by Nikki Ashton
“Hmm, I think I have to disagree,” she said, snapping her seatbelt closed. “I mean that bloody awful t-shirt I wore to the gym, if I came out wearing that I think you’d have something to say about it.”
I pondered her response and grinned. “Gotta be honest darlin’, I fucking love that t-shirt and can’t wait to find out if it’s true.”
“Okay,” Katie said, blowing out a breath. “If he starts being a knob either of us can give the code word and the other will make up an excuse to leave.”
“And what’s the code word?” I asked, taking her hand as we walked across the cobbled parking lot.
Katie faltered slightly and looked down at our hands before continuing. “Erm, I suppose the easiest thing is to say…‘Carl’s being a knob, let’s go’.”
I let my head drop back and laughed. “Shit, you’re funny.”
“I’m not, I’m nervous,” she muttered, placing a hand on her stomach.
I stopped walking and pulled Katie in front of me. “Why? It’s your ex, he has no hold over you.”
She looked up at me with big eyes and sighed. “I like you Dex. I don’t want him to scare you off and this bloody meeting seems ridiculous seeing as we’re just about to have a second date. Plus, apart from all that, I have no idea how to be with you, how to act. It’s been almost thirty years since I started a new relationship, and while I liked Ryan, it started off as a rebound thing when Carl and I split up for a while. You’ve made me feel more attractive in a few days than Carl ever did in the last six years of our bloody marriage, and I don’t want that feeling to stop, but I’m petrified it’s all going so fast. Plus, I’m scared that my telling you all of this might just have scared you off even more than my controlling ex-husband and three gorgeous but demanding kids already have.”
Katie’s shoulders sagged and she closed her eyes as she finished her little speech, and I took the moment to look at her. I watched the frown lines on her head straighten themselves momentarily, before creasing up again. I saw her bottom lip get sucked into her mouth, and I took in her shaky hand as it went to her throat that had a crimson hue spreading upward.
As she chewed on her lip, I leaned in close to her ear and whispered against the shell of it.
“I like you and I want to see how this goes. It scares me too.”
Katie’s eyes shot open. “It does?”
“Yeah it does. I was with a woman for three years and never felt the excitement that I feel around you. I lived with her, yet when we split, I didn’t feel a fraction of the amount of fear as I did when I knew you were going to tell me that we couldn’t do this.”
Taking a deep breath, her eyelashes batted against her cheeks. “Really?”
“Yep, really. I have never been so grateful for a kid throwing up chunks as I was that night.”
Katie giggled. “Why?”
“Because it distracted you. Stopped you from over thinking. Now, as for Carl scaring me off, it ain’t gonna happen. Yeah, we might have done this all the wrong way around, forced the issue, and we can rein it back if you want, but I’m pretty happy the way things are. As for going too fast, well we ain’t young kids with years ahead of us. We’re both in our forties and I for one am pretty sure I know what I want by now, and you pretty much fit the bill.”
“I do?” she asked, her brows arched.
“Yep, you do.”
I landed a soft kiss on her lips and smiled when she gave a little moan of satisfaction.
“Okay,” I said. “Let’s get in there.”
Still gripping her hand, I made my way into the pub. As we walked through the door, there he was, Carl, Katie’s ex-husband and sitting with him was, who I assumed to be, his new wife. Katie had said she was younger and this woman was a lot younger than him, plus she was holding tightly to his hand that was resting on top of the table.
As we started towards them, Katie stopped and turned to me. “You never did say what you were disappointed about. When you picked me up, you said you were disappointed.”
I grinned and leaned closer. “I was going to say that I was disappointed that I couldn’t take you back to my place and kiss the hell out of you.”
Katie gave me a sexy little smile and then led me to the table.
Katie
When we reached the table my nerves increased tenfold. Sophie Tit Wank was looking absolutely picture perfect, beautiful. Her long black hair was perfectly straight and perfectly shiny, her skin was bronzed to perfection, and her eyes had been made up perfectly in a smoky, sultry way. Even the emerald green dress with little cap sleeves and a frill around the hem was perfect – I should know, I’d ordered it on line but had to send it back because you could see my knickers when I bent over. Plus, I was forty-five, I really shouldn’t have ordered it in the first place.
“Carl, Sophie,” I said. “You both okay?”
“Great thanks,” Sophie said, as Carl simply nodded.
“I didn’t know you were coming,” I said, looking at Sophie. “I thought it was just Carl.”
She smiled at me and then at Carl.
“I thought we should all be here,” Carl answered. “Sophie is their step-mum after all.”
I was fully aware of that and while I didn’t really have a problem with her being there, I had to wonder what the hell it had to do with her? Did she have a problem with Dex being around the kids as well?
As I contemplated everything, Dex let go of my hand and thrust his toward Carl.
“Nice to see you again, Carl.”
Carl nodded and shook Dex’s hand. “Yes, you too. This is my wife, Sophie.”
It was at that moment I suddenly realised that Sophie being there meant she was going to meet Dex. He was standing in front of her with a hand out to her at that very second. It was also that moment that I suddenly realised Dex was going to meet my younger and more beautiful replacement. Carl had found me attractive once, so wouldn’t it figure that Dex had the same taste as him, so would also find Sophie to be a much younger and more beautiful alternative?
I shifted from side to side as Dex shook Sophie’s hand, and I actually counted in my head how many seconds he held it for.
Okay, four seconds. That wasn’t too long, just three shakes. He didn’t grip her hand and his fingers didn’t linger in hers.
“You want a drink, darlin’?” Dex asked, turning to me and putting his big hand against the small of my back.
“Please. I’ll have-.”
“You want that Californian white wine you like or a bottle of beer?”
My mouth gaped a little that Dex remembered not only the wine I’d been drinking when we went on our date, but that I’d told him towards the end of the evening that I was more of a bottled beer girl.
“A bottle of beer please.”
Dex gave me a beautiful smile and leaned in for a quick kiss. “You guys?” He pointed between Sophie and Carl who both shook their heads. “Okay, be right back.”
As Dex went to the bar, I pulled out a chair at the table, choosing the one opposite Sophie. It was a toss-up between Carl potentially snarling at Dex for the next hour, or Dex getting a prime view of how beautiful Sophie was. At the last minute, I felt awful for not having faith in Dex and moved to the one opposite Carl.
“How’s Jessie?” I asked, looking at Sophie.
“She’s great, thanks.” Sophie beamed as she spoke of her cute two-year-old. “She’s started to scream when she has a wet nappy, so we’re potty training at the moment.” She looked at Carl who rolled his eyes and then smiled.
“You’re helping?” I asked Carl.
“Yes,” he replied indignantly. “I’m in charge in the evening after work.”
I gave him a small smile and nodded. He’d evidently forgotten that he didn’t want to have anything to do with it when Annie and Charlie were potty training. Isaac, he’d helped with, but once was obviously enough for him.
“He seems nice,” Sophie said, nodding her head toward Dex at the bar.
�
��He is,” I replied, feeling a tightening in my chest. “Really nice.”
I reached for a beer mat and started to pick at the corners, peeling back the top layer.
“How’s Charlie feeling?” Carl asked, just as the silence started to become a little oppressive.
I looked up from my beer mat and smiled. “He’s much better. He went to school today, so he should be okay for the weekend.”
“That’s good. I’m going to take him Go Karting with Ben and his son, James.”
“Oh, he’ll love that.”
Ben was Carl’s best friend and had a son a couple of years older than Charlie. The two boys got on well and the four of them often did boys’ things together.
“I was going to ask Isaac, but couldn’t get hold of him. Do you think you could ask him? Annie already politely declined.”
I knew Isaac’s answer would be no. My excited son had told me over dinner that he was going to spend the weekend at Heaven & Ink to try and get settled in before he actually started his job the following week. I was just about to tell Carl when Dex came back with our drinks. He placed them down on the table and sat in the seat that I’d already pulled out, the one opposite Sophie.
“Thanks.”
Picking up my bottle, I eyed Dex, watching to see what he did. He angled himself in his chair towards me, gave Sophie a quick smile, and then looked directly at Carl.
“I just want to say I get why you wanted to meet me,” Dex said, his tone sincere. “Your kids are the most important things in your life and you need to be sure I’m no threat to them or their safety.”
Carl cleared his throat and glanced at me. “I trust Katie’s judgement, but in this day and age you can’t be casual about strangers who come into your kids’ lives.”
“Sure, I agree, so any checks you wanna make, you go ahead.” Dex reached his arm around the back of my chair. “This thing with me and Katie is real new, but I’d like to think it’s going to go somewhere, so I want you to be happy with me being around them.”
Carl nodded and looked at Sophie, who was watching Dex carefully. “Sophie will tell you, I didn’t let her meet the kids for quite a while when we started going out, and when I did it was pretty gradual – an hour here and there.”
I squirmed in my seat, desperate to say something. I knew he was having a dig at me for letting the kids be around Dex already, and for the fact that I had insisted on meeting Sophie first. Okay, so maybe I was a bit of a hypocrite, but I hadn’t planned things this way. When Dex had taken me home after my car had broken down, I hadn’t thought for one minute we’d end up going out together. The night of our date, Charlie wasn’t meant to be there and the older kids were in bed. It was going to be one quick cup of coffee; it wasn’t like he was going to stay overnight.
“Yep, I totally understand,” Dex replied, stopping me from opening my mouth. “It’s just the way things happened, we weren’t able to do that. I met them before me and Katie were even a thing.”
“I suppose that does change things. I know you helped Katie when the car broke down.”
At the mention of the car, Dex stiffened beside me and his palm landed on my shoulder. I glanced at him and saw the tick in his jaw – he really had issues with my car.
“Yeah, I did,” Dex replied, his voice tight.
“So where are you from, Dex?” Sophie asked brightly.
The change in subject was sudden and if I didn’t know better, I’d say she knew Carl was on thin ice on the subject of my crap car. She ought to know, I suppose. Carl and I’d had enough arguments about it over the last couple of years.
“Ah well, I thought you’d want to know all about me, so I put this together for you.” Dex moved his arm from around my back, shifted in his seat, and reached behind to his jeans’ pocket. He pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Carl. “Everything you need to know about me should be on there.”
Carl unfolded it and looked down at the words, which I could see were in neat typeface.
“You got one of those for me?” I whispered in Dex’s ear as Carl and Sophie read the notes.
“Yeah, but yours have some vital measurements on it.” Dex grinned at me and moved his arm back into its original position around me. “However, I can think of much better ways of us getting to know each other, Katie Cat.”
“Katie Cat?” I echoed, leaning back to look at him.
“Hmm,” he replied, flicking his tongue along his bottom lip. “I kinda like it. It’s cute, like you. And I hate those generic shit nicknames like babe or baby – it’s a lazy way to conduct a relationship.”
“You call me darlin’.”
“Yeah, but I call lots of people darlin’. Katie Cat is my name just for you. You okay with it?” Dex asked.
I looked into his eyes that were sparkling and I felt my heart skip a beat.
“Yeah, I agree,” I whispered. “I like Katie Cat much better.”
“Good.”
He lifted his drink and watched me carefully as he took a sip. Watching to check I wasn’t over thinking things again and because I wasn’t, as soon as he put his glass back on the table, I leaned in and kissed his cheek.
“Thank you for doing this.”
“My pleasure,” he replied. “If it makes life easier for all of us, then it’s the least I can do.”
I was thinking about kissing him again, when Carl coughed to gain our attention.
“It all seems okay,” he said, tapping a finger on the piece of paper.
“You’re a tattoo artist?”
Sophie practically bounced in her seat and I knew what was coming, as I recalled my conversation with Annie about Sophie’s up and coming tattoo.
“Semi-retired,” Dex replied. “I only do work on a small group of regulars these days. Running the business takes up too much time.”
“Oh that’s a shame,” Sophie sighed, screwing up her tiny little nose. “I’m getting a tattoo aren’t I babe?”
Dex and I looked at each other, both holding back laughter.
“Yeah,” Carl replied, looking a little uncomfortable.
He no more wanted Dex to tattoo his wife than I did.
“Actually,” I said, hoping to distract Sophie. “We need to speak to you about Dex’s studio.”
“What about it?” Carl asked, looking between us.
“It’s about Isaac,” Dex replied. “I hope that you don’t feel I did this behind your back, but truth is I never thought about it. I just figured it was a good idea.”
“Please don’t tell me you’ve tattooed his face,” Carl said, actually giving a real smile.
“No, not at all.” Dex smiled back and the tension seemed to ebb away a little. “I offered him a job.”
Carl leaned back in his seat and stared between us. It was difficult to tell from his demeanour what he was thinking. He hadn’t gone purple with rage, so that was a bonus.
“What do you think?” I urged.
“Doing what?” Carl asked. “He doesn’t know how to tattoo – not as far as I’m aware. He doesn’t even have a tattoo, isn’t that pretty much a pre-requisite for a tattooist.” He looked pointedly at Dex’s forearms that were on show as his sleeves were rolled back.
“It’s not something we insist on,” Dex replied, “but it helps if the client sees you’re into the same thing. If you believe in your art. Are you against him getting a tattoo?”
Carl shrugged. “No, not really, he’s just never shown an interest. So, is that what he’s going to be doing; training to be a tattooist?”
“Maybe.” Dex nodded slowly. “First of all, I’m taking him on as a designer and someone who does general jobs around the place. I’m going to be paying him two grand a year more than he’s getting at the record shop, which was real shit pay by the way, plus a flat rate for his designs. If he shows interest in learning to ink, which I think he will, either me or my main man, Jethro, will train him. Considering most apprentices have to buy their own equipment and learn their art while not e
arning a penny, I’d say that’s a pretty good deal for him.” Dex gave Carl the information in a cool, measured way and I knew straight away that was how he probably did business too.
Carl looked at me. “You okay with it?”
“I spoke to Isaac tonight and I’ve never seen him so excited about something. He’s happy and can finally see himself doing something with a future, so yes, I’m more than okay with it.”
“Can I get someone to look at his contract?” Carl asked Dex.
“Sure. I thought you’d say that.” He pulled out an envelope from another pocket and passed it to Carl. “He’s not signed it yet. I told him to wait until he’s spent the weekend working in the studio. He’s supposed to start next week.”
Carl nodded and picked up the envelope and slipped it into his own pocket. He then picked up his drink and drained it before turning to Sophie.
“Okay, Soph, let’s go. Leave Katie and Dex to their evening.”
Sophie nodded and pushed back her chair, stooping to pick up her bag. I got a glimpse of her perky cleavage but was pleased to see Dex was already out of his chair and moving around mine to shake hands with Carl.
“Nice to meet you properly,” he said. “And let me know if you have any problems with Isaac’s contract.”
“Will do. Night Katie.” He leaned in and gave me a hug. “Tell Charlie I’ll pick him up from school on Friday.”
“Okay,” I said, breathing a sigh of relief that it had gone okay. “Bye Sophie.”
“Bye Katie, bye Dex.” She gave us a brilliant smile and followed Carl out of the pub.
“So, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Dex asked.
I shook my head. “No, it wasn’t. But thank you for doing all that; typing up your life story and bringing Isaac’s contract for him. I think it made a difference.”
“Like I said, I want this to work. So, what about the rest of the night?”
I blushed and shrugged. “I don’t know. What do you want to do?”
“I have a vague recollection of you telling me that you wanted to kiss me.”