by Amber Burns
Next they each wanted their own personal tattoos. Tommy had an idea involving an all seeing eye theme and Heather wanted a fairy with a pixie cut and torn up dress. It was an interesting sit down, but Cade looked forward to designing these for them. In the meantime, he had them follow him back so he could get to work with their wedding bands. Tommy, not a stranger to tattoos, didn’t flinch. But when Heather sat down and Cade went to work, he saw that her right hand squeezed the arm rest so tight her knuckles were white.
They were both excited when their swollen, pink fingers were done. Cade just smiled at them and gave them instructions on proper after care.
“I will have these designs done by the end of the week and we can discuss any changes you may want to make.” Cade was standing in the lobby with them. Heather nodded and headed out the door.
“Hey, so what’s going on with you and Cindy?” Tommy had waited till Heather was gone to ask.
“Nothing, we had a really nice time after the wedding and we are going to go grab a cup of coffee tomorrow.” Cade was trying to be nonchalant about it.
“Well, I am shocked, happy for you, but shocked.” Tommy raised an eyebrow at Cade, he clearly wanted more information.
“Yea, I was pleasantly surprised too.” Cade was the most shocked that he loved her. He didn’t know how he could possibly love her after just one evening, but he knew he never wanted anyone else but Cindy.
“Don’t worry about it Tommy, I am a grown man.” He slapped Tommy on the shoulder and headed him for the door.
“I know, but you have been through so much and I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“I am thicker than that man, I will be ok.”
Tommy shook his head. “Cindy is great, it is her family that are questionable.”
“Well, you also warned me that Cindy would be a horrid bitch, but she was far from it.”
“Ok, we will see you soon. Later.”
Tommy turned and left, seeing that he wasn’t going to win an argument involving Cade’s love interest. It did bother him a little that Tommy was so concerned about his own love affairs. He found himself wondering about her family, but he wiped the thoughts from his mind. He needed to talk to Cindy before he drew any conclusions.
6
The next day, Cade threw on his leather jacket and ran down the stairs to jump on his bike. It was almost noon and he didn’t want to be late. Speeding never ends well, and the blue lights that flashed behind him made him groan in frustration. He waited patiently for the cop to approach. It was Veronica. She loved to give him a hard time.
“Hey Cade. Where you headed in a hurry?” He looked at him over her glasses, her brown hair tied back in a neat bun.
“A very important date,” he smiled his best charming smile at her, hoping his beard didn’t ruin the effect.
“Yes, well important enough to be going fifteen miles over the speed limit?” She had one hand rest in a fist on her hip and the other holding her clipboard. “You know the drill, driver’s license and registration.”
He sighed and gave her the proper documentations. A few moments later she brought them back and handed him a pink slip that he already knew said he owed over a hundred bucks for his violation.
“Slow down motorcycle Cade,” she winked at him and walked back to her car.
Cade looked at the number on the document. It wasn’t a ticket, it was actually her phone number. She rolled past him with a smile and drove off down the street.
Since when did she have an interest in me?
Cade shrugged, he was not interested in pursuing anything with her or anyone else that wasn’t Cindy. Seeing that Veronica was well down the road, he crumpled up the pink slip and tossed it into a trash can on the sidewalk.
Cade’s heart thudded in his chest and he parked his bike, took off his helmet, and went inside Loco Joe’s to find Cindy. He looked around the room and spotted her in a corner booth reading. She was wearing her blue scrubs and her hair was tied back. She was beautiful. He ordered a mug and paid, then joined her in the booth.
“Sorry I am late. You are beautiful,” He quickly added and picked up her hand, kissing her cool skin.
She smiled, a light blush rising on her clean cheeks. She wasn’t wearing any makeup that he could see and she was perfect.
“I am so tired, but I have been looking forward to this cup of coffee all night.”
He did notice how sleepy her eyes looked and he felt a pang of guilt for inviting her to coffee after working a long shift.
“Rough night?”
“It was a steady night for sure, but I have had worse nights for sure.”
She placed her hand on her shoulder and squeezed, pain stitching across her brow. He moved to sit beside her and had her turn towards the window. He began rubbing and squeezing her shoulders and back and she moaned. He felt her relax under his hands and he wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close to him. She looked up at him with those sleepy blue eyes and he bent down to kiss her. His heart raced with exhilaration.
“This is crazy.” She said a moment after their lips left one another.
“What?”
“I feel so comfortable in your arms. I have never felt so safe with anyone.”
Her eyes shined brightly at his and it took a lot of will power not to scoop her up and undress her on the spot. He ached to be inside of her again. He wanted to feel her raw, wet and tight around him. Feeling himself harden at the thoughts, he shook himself and kissed her lightly on the temple.
“I completely understand what you mean.”
He sighed and sat back up to take a sip of his coffee. They spent the hour together, sharing details of work. He told her about Tommy and Heather’s tattoos and she described a night of patients that weren’t emergent flooding into the hospital. She yawned and stretched, their coffee cups cold and empty.
“You need to get home and rest, do you have a ride?”
“I usually take the bus, my condo is way up on Twenty First Avenue,” she said through a yawn, her sleepy eyes blinking heavily.
“Have you ever ridden on the back of a motorcycle?”
Cindy immediately perked up. “No, but that sounds awesome!”
She clapped her hands together, excitement wiping away the traces of exhaustion. They walked outside and he handed her his helmet. She stared at the monster of shiny black and metallic steel. He loved his bike and he could tell she was a little frightened now that she was standing in front of it.
“Are you ok?” He asked.
“Yes, let’s go!”
He straddled the bike and she climbed on behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist. He started his bike and engine roared, rattling its passengers. He felt her grip grow tight when the engine rumbled and he smiled, as she pressed herself tight against him. He had to adjust to the extra weight on the bike, but found it easy and comfortable. It felt right to have her on with him, scooted up against his back and holding on tight. A new thrill raced through him.
When they pulled up to the beautiful condominium, Cade stood and stared at it in awe. The brick had been painted white, and the balcony on the second floor was wrapped in beautiful ornate cast iron. She took his hand in hers.
“Would you like to come up?” She asked as she squeezed his hand in hers.
While he very much wanted to come up, Cade knew she needed rest. He pulled her hand to his lips and then wrapped her into an embrace, kissing her deeply. She moaned into his mouth and pushed her body against his. He pulled back after a moment of losing himself to her.
“I would love to come up, but you need to sleep and if I come up, you won’t get any rest this evening.”
His husky voice deep with desire as he tore himself away from her. She groaned, but smiled and waved as he made himself climb on his bike. Turning away, she walked up the stone steps to her historic, but beautiful condo and disappeared through the navy front door. He waited a moment, fighting the urge to race in after her and rip her clothes off. A
moment later, she stood in the balcony window and looked down at him. He started the engine and rumbled down the street.
Cindy watched Cade disappear around the corner. Her heart fluttered at the thought of him holding her. She had wanted him to come up and have his way with her. Cindy had a few lovers, but school and work had kept her busy over the years. Still, she had never had such a connection with anyone as she had Cade. He seemed to be hiding something about his past. When they had spent the night talking at the bar and after they had slept together, she had only asked a few questions about his past, but didn’t seem very forthcoming with the information.
Turning away from the window, her feet and back ached, but thinking of Cade’s hard muscular chest and stomach, another ache threatened to consume her. Her condo was beautiful; her own little peaceful haven. The off-white walls complimented the dark hardwood floors and the neutral tones of the tiles in the kitchen. Her kitchen was large with marbled countertops and stainless steel appliances. Her parents wanted her to live lavishly, but she never really cared for that life. She longed for something simpler.
They both had frowned at her occupation of choice. She knew they would have rather her follow her older brother’s footsteps and become a doctor or surgeon. If only they knew how much work and dedication, as well sweat and tears, went into her profession. Nursing made her feel like she was contributing in a way that she didn’t think she would feel if she had gone on to medical school. She had even talked of being a teacher, but mostly to make her parents squirm. Rebelling was never something she was very good at, but she did take pride in her small victories.
Now that she was alone, she could feel just how tired her body and mind were. She looked to her bedroom through the French doors, her bed was made up and waiting for her. Sara had obviously been by to clean and straighten up, which meant her fridge would be stocked. Compliments of her parents, she had her own maid and grocery shopper. She sighed and rolled her eyes. She had told Sara plenty of times not to come back and that she would survive without her, but her parents were insistent that she be taken care of.
Her mind went back to Cade. Those eyes were so penetrating and she loved his free spirit. He had a sadness in those eyes, but a strength that backed it. She was captivated by him and at the same time, she felt completely in love with him. That frightened her, since she had only just met him. His demeanor and tattoos made him seem rough and fierce. She knew if he ever met her parents they would have a conniption. But, he wanted her and she just couldn’t understand why. Regardless, she loved it and she wanted more.
Opening the fridge, the cool air from inside blew out at her and she looked at the many choices of pre-cooked meals. Fresh fruits and vegetables loaded down the drawers in her fridge, and her favorite yogurts and juices lined the shelves. She took out a juice and in almost one gulp emptied the small bottle. Slowly she peeled off her scrubs and threw them in the laundry basket as she made her way to the bath to have a hot and bubbly soak. Starting her bath, she decided she wanted a glass of her pinot noir, so she wrapped herself in the softest robe and tiptoed back to her kitchen. She poured the delicious smooth red liquid into her glass and made her way back to her steamy, large claw foot tub. After nearly falling asleep more than once, she looked at her pruned fingers and decided it was time to get out of the bath.
She wrapped her hair in a tight towel and rubbed lotion all over her still moist skin. This ritual was the one thing that really seemed to ease her tension. Well, she had found another activity she would like to do more of to relax. She had been sore the next day after the best sex of her life, but she loved every inch of Cade and wanted to feel him deep in her again. She bit her lip and thought about calling him back to her condo, but decided he was being too much of a gentleman so she crawled into bed naked, as always, and fell fast asleep. Dreams of a handsome shaggy-haired man consumed her unconscious mind. A chiseled chest and a blood red dragon snaking up a muscular bicep mingled with the tangled up naked bodies in her dream. When she woke for her next shift, her mind and body were even more sexually aroused than when she had fallen asleep.
***
That night, Cade ached with desire for Cindy. Going to bed was hard and he looked at his phone several times. Finally, he texted her.
Him: Hey what are you up to?
Her: Hey, same as most nights, busy with the crazies!
Him: Would you care if I came to visit sometime?
Her: No, come anytime! I can’t promise I will be free, but definitely come visit. Shouldn’t you be sleeping now?
Him: I can’t stop thinking about you and it makes it impossible to sleep. He hoped that wasn’t too forward.
Her: I understand, you left me pretty frustrated this afternoon.
Him: Good. Talk to you soon.
Her: Night Cade.
Him: Night Cindy.
He thought about getting up then and heading over to visit, but he didn’t want to appear too desperate. They were not even a couple yet, he wasn’t sure what they were, but he knew he wanted to keep her all to himself.
7
A few days later, Tommy and Heather were back in the shop.
“I love it!” Heather squealed as she looked at the fairy design.
Cade had given her a drawing of a fairy with a bright pink pixie cut who was dressed in a tattered purple dress. Her wings were blue, green, and pink and she had the perfect hour glass figure.
“Where will she be going?” Cade inquired.
Heather pointed at her thigh and Cade was surprised. The finger was a rather sensitive area and she was clearly in discomfort, he wondered how she was going to react to the soft spot on her thigh being worked on for at least an hour or more.
“This is awesome dude,” Tommy complimented as he looked at the eye staring back at him.
It was black and curved and rested inside of a pyramid. Many would confuse the tattoo with a popular secret society, or maybe even the ancients, but Cade had designed it by incorporating ideas of each.
“And where will we add the eye?”
Tommy rolled up his right sleeve, exposing the nicely carved out bicep that he had worked on building up after years of drug abuse. His track marks had mostly cleared up, but some scaring still raced up his arms. Many of the tattoos that Cade had placed on his arms were to hide those very scars.
“Alright then,” Cade smiled. “Let me get set up, who wants to go first?”
Tommy looked at Heather and she pointed at him. They moved back to the room and Tommy took a seat in the leather chair as Cade prepared the ink and sat the design up so he could reference it as he worked. Marking the outline points on Tommy’s bicep, Cade began to craft his art. It didn’t take too long, especially since he did not have a bunch of colors to add. He did have to add some shading, but after that he was done and he sat back, cleaning the area. Tommy looked at it and appraised it.
“Thanks man, it’s awesome.” He smiled and showed it off to Heather.
Next Heather took her seat. Cade got everything ready and marked her thigh. As he started he heard her suck in some air and Tommy came to hold her hand. It took a while, as he added the colors and the features to the fairy’s face. When he was done, the area around Heather’s new tattoo was slightly swollen and red with irritation from the intrusion of a foreign substance. He cleaned the area and sat back to let her examine it. Her face lit up with joy and when she got up to leave, she hugged Cade tightly.
“Thank you!” She gushed.
“You’re very welcome,” Cade managed to squeak out from Heather’s hug.
Heather let go and pulled back before speaking again. “Cindy is coming to our house for dinner tomorrow night, would you like to join us Cade?”
“Uh, alright,” Cade stammered at the unexpected question. Hearing Cindy’s name, had caused Cade’s heart to skip a beat. “What time?”
“Around seven.”
“Do I need to bring anything?”
“Yourself and maybe a good bottle of pinot n
oir. That is one of her favorites.”
“Ok.”
Cade stored that bit of information away for safe keeping. Tommy took Heather’s hand and they walked out of the shop.
Looking at the time, Cade thought Cindy might be sleeping by now. He wanted to surprise her at work tomorrow and, after debating on a good first gift, he decided to do something classic and go with flowers. He dressed himself nicely and trimmed his beard. He stopped by the grocery stores floral department and found roses and lilies in bunches. He collected a few single stem flowers that he thought went nicely together and had them wrap it with a ribbon; hoping they would survive the bike ride to the hospital.