The Mad Tatter

by J. M. Darhower

"I get it," Avery says after a moment.

  I glance at her curiously, wondering if she knows what I'm thinking. "You get it?"

  "Yeah," she says. "My parents are kind of the same way. To them, the only thing that matters is traditional ballet. They think every other form of dance is a waste of time... a waste of talent. My mom, she's a little more understanding, but my father's set in his ways. So I get it, you know... I know what it's like to have those expectations."

  "Do you know what it's like to be cut off because of it?"

  My tone is harsher than I mean for it to be, harsh enough that her footsteps falter briefly. She falls a step behind me, and I slow, glancing at her curiously.

  "They cut you off?"

  I nod, turning back away. "Haven't spoken to them in five years."

  "But... what about Lexie?"

  I shrug. "What about her?"

  "Don't they want to see her?"

  "Not when seeing her means seeing me."

  "That's just... that's nuts."

  "It's life," I say. "My life, anyway."

  "I don't get it. I don't get how people... how parents... how anybody can just cut someone they love out of their life..."

  I chime in before she can continue with that thought. "You ever make a mistake, Aphrodite?"

  "Of course."

  "Yeah, well, you ever fuck up so bad that it derails your life? Makes your parents give up on you, damn near everyone you know turn their backs on you… ever do something that haunts you every day for years, all because you thought you were invincible and didn't have to play by the rules? Because I have. I’ve done it. I did it. And some mistakes, maybe they're harmless, but they have a way of messing up lives, anyway. And when people make those kind of mistakes, even if you love them, sometimes you gotta walk away. It’s called tough love."

  She hesitates. "What did you do?"

  Sighing, I shake my head. "What I did was think I was an artist when I was nothing more than a stupid kid."

  Before Avery can respond to that, I pull her into a small store on the corner and stroll up to the counter. "I need a pack of Camels in the box."

  I still owe Ellie some smokes.

  The cashier grabs the cigarettes and tosses them down on the counter. I turn to leave after paying but hesitate as I approach the door. Reaching into my pocket, I feel around, pulling out a handful of loose change. Beside the door, a cluster of coin-operated machines covers the wall.

  "Lexie loves these things," I say, stopping in front of them. I slide two quarters in the slots of one of the machines and shove the lever in, a cardboard sleeve popping out when I pull on it. I grab the cardboard, opening it, and pull out the glittery temporary tattoo. It's some bullshit heart design, something I’m pretty damn sure I’ve tattooed on someone for real before.

  I wave it in front of Avery. "For you."

  "Fast food and body art in one night? I'm beginning to think you might be a bad influence."

  "Beginning to think? I must be doing a shitty job if you're just now catching on to my plan."

  "And what exactly is your plan?"

  "You don't know?"

  "No. I mean, I can guess, I guess, but I don't know, you know?"

  I laugh as I lead her back out of the store, the two of us lingering on the sidewalk beneath the streetlight. Without answering her question, I peel the plastic sheet off the tattoo and push her sleeve up, pressing it to her forearm. I steal a piece of ice from her McDonalds cup to wet it, pressing it on tightly for a minute before peeling the back off.

  "Huh," Avery says, staring at it affixed to her skin. "Good job."

  I wink playfully. "They don't call me the Mad Tatter for nothing."

  She glances at me. "That's what they call you?"

  "Yeah."

  Her eyes narrow slightly. "Curious."

  I grasp her chin, leaning toward her, lightly kissing her, as I whisper, "curiouser and curiouser," against her lips.

  "Hey!"

  I glance up from my can of Genesee as Avery slides onto the stool beside me. I look at her, doing a double take when I see the sweat along her brow, her skin flushed and hair pulled back into a bun. She has on a black tank top and a pair of tiny shorts. Doesn't she know it's cold? Instinctively, my eyes glide along her bare legs, wondering how they'll feel wrapped around me when I plow into her.

  If I ever plow into her.

  It's been damn near a month and nothing.

  I'm starting to question my skills because of her. "Hello."

  The bartender strolls over, asking if she wants her usual, but she shakes her head. "Just water tonight, please."

  I cock an eyebrow at her. "Water?"

  "Yeah, I'm parched," she says, grasping her throat as if to emphasize her point. "We were in rehearsals all night. We've been working on this new choreography but it's been a bitch to nail down. People keep messing up so the choreographer had us doing it over and over and over and…" She trails off, gulping down her water when it arrives, before shooting me a sheepish smile. "Sorry, I'm just going on and on and… well, you know… on."

  "Doesn't bother me," I say, shrugging. "My other girl does it, too. You've got nothing on Lexie when it comes to rambling."

  Avery sets her water down, eyes widening slightly as she gazes at me. "What did you just say?"

  "I said you've got nothing on Lexie."

  "No, before that."

  "I said it doesn't bother me."

  She stares at me for a moment, blinking a few times.

  "What?" I ask, confused by her expression. "What's wrong?"

  She shakes her head, smiling softly. "Never mind. It's nothing."

  I shrug it off. "So you just finished rehearsing?"

  She hums in confirmation. "Just a few minutes ago, actually. I came straight here. I probably look like crap."

  "Hardly," I say, my gaze scanning her again. "You look good all hot and sweaty."

  She lets out a laugh. "You're trying your best to charm the pants off of me tonight, aren't you?"

  My brow furrows as I reluctantly pull my gaze from her legs to meet her eyes. "I'm not trying to charm you. It just comes naturally. Besides, not sure if you're aware, but you're not wearing any pants."

  She rolls her eyes. "I'm wearing shorts."

  "If that's what you wanna call them," I say, my attention once more drifting downward. I can't keep my eyes off of her. "Jesus, they're indecent. I've seen underwear that covered up more."

  "If it bothers you, I'll leave."

  "No way in hell you're leaving," I say. "Not without me, anyway."

  "You know, you're awfully possessive for a man who hasn't even seen me naked yet."

  Yet. I smirk at the word. It’s a beautiful goddamn word, one of the most beautiful to come from those gorgeous lips of hers. "I saw parts of you."

  "But not all."

  "Yeah, well, it's not from a lack of trying."

  "I haven’t seen you try very hard lately,” she says. "And I certainly don’t see you trying right now."

  I cut my eyes at her. Those words sound eerily like a challenge. I stare at her, my gaze so intense I can see her flushing from the attention as she fights to keep from grinning. I finish my beer in silence, sipping it, each passing second as I keep my eyes trained on her making her fidget more and more.

  I get under her skin. Good. At least it's fucking mutual.

  Once my beer is empty, I set it down on the bar and stand up to leave, still watching her. "You coming, Aphrodite?"

  "I guess that's up to you."

  "If it's up to me," I say, leaning close to whisper in her ear, "you'll be coming the second I get you alone."

  I need not say another word. Avery is up, out of her seat, and heading for the door. I shove my hands in my pockets and stroll out behind her, nodding my goodbye to the bartender. As soon as we're outside, Avery slips her hand into mine. "Your place?"

  I don't even hesitate this time. "Absolutely."

  We walk the few blocks, neither in any hurr
y, but once we step inside my apartment, there seems to be a shift in the air. Avery wraps her arms around my neck, standing on her tiptoes, pressing her mouth to mine. My tongue darts out, gliding across her bottom lip, and she willingly opens herself to me. I kiss her deeply, passionately, my hands moving from her hips to her ass as I pull her flush against me. She moans, her fingers running through the hair on the back of my head, when I press myself into her.

  I lead her down the hallway to my bedroom, flicking the light switch when we make it inside, but Avery quickly reaches over and turns the lights right back off. Chuckling, I keep them off for her.

  I take my time as I strip her out of her scant clothing, leaving every scrap of it in a small pile on my wooden floor. I stare down at her, pulling back from her lips between pecks, desperate to see whatever I can of her body in the soft glow of the moonlight from the bedroom window.

  She can't say I haven't seen her naked anymore.

  Avery climbs back on the bed as I hover over her. My lips leave her mouth and trail down her jaw, caressing her neck, and exploring her chest. A hint of sweat already lingers on her skin. I tear my own clothes off, haphazardly discarding them, before rolling on a condom and climbing between her thighs.

  The first thrust, slow and deep, elicits a strangled gasp from Avery. I groan at the sensation, savoring the warmth as I fill her for the first time.

  I pause, deep inside of her, giving her a moment to adjust. She's tight, so fucking tight, that I can hardly contain myself. It's Heaven, pure goddamn beauty, and it's Hell, the most delicious torture, wrapped together in a storm of feeling… shit that I can't even begin to name.

  Sex is good.

  No, sex is great.

  But sex when you haven't had sex in a while? It's fucking everything.

  "You feel so good," I groan, pulling nearly the whole way out before filling her again, my lips finding their way back to her neck. Never before have I wanted inside of a woman so much in my life, never wanted to taste a pussy, or ravish a body, as much as I do in this moment, with her, and I'm going to take full advantage of every second I have her in my bed.

  Avery wraps her arms around me and cocks her head to the side as she spreads her legs further, eagerly welcoming me in.

  It's an invitation I take with pleasure.

  I increase my pace, thrusting hard and deep, giving her every bit of myself that I can possibly give. I nip and suck at her skin, drinking in every gasp and moan and curse and cry that echoes from her, a shiver tearing down my spine the first time she whimpers my name.

  "Reece," she cries, her muscles taut as she clings to me, nails digging into the skin of my upper back. "Oh, God… Reece…"

  I trace my tongue along her jaw before kissing the shell of her ear. "What is it, Aphrodite?"

  "I'm gonna…" She gasps, swallowing back the rest of the words when I reach between us and stroke her clit. Within a matter of seconds her body seizes up before exploding. She tilts her head, arching her back up off the bed, as orgasm sweeps through her.

  Beautiful.

  My eyes fight to close, the pleasure intense, when I feel her convulsing around me. I force them to stay open, though, watching in awe in the moonlight as Avery trembles, her hands impulsively grasping her own breasts and kneading her nipples between her fingers.

  I nearly come from that alone.

  As soon as her pleasure subsides, Avery relaxes, panting, her eyes wild, as she looks up at me in the darkness. I smirk, grasping her hips and yanking her toward me, pulling her onto my lap. She sinks down on me, moaning, as I lay back on the bed, giving her the control.

  I want to watch her.

  She rides me, grinding her hips. I suspected it, the first time I saw her… she knows what she's doing. I stroke her thighs, my fingertips trailing along her stomach before caressing her breasts, pinching her nipples just like she'd done to herself.

  I feel her body grow taut the moment I do it.

  I smirk. I love a woman that knows how she likes it and isn't afraid to show it.

  Avery covers my hands with her own, her fingers grazing over the old tattoos before she links hers with mine, holding my hands. She leans down, softly kissing me, her tongue lingering at the piercing near the corner of my mouth.

  It won't take me long. I know it. I can feel it, building inside of me. I force it down, not wanting her to stop, too captivated with watching the way she moves her hips, rolling them, shifting them, like we're dancing to music nobody can hear, but the pressure eventually mounts to the point where I can't control it anymore. I grab her hips, closing my eyes and gritting my teeth. I hold her in spot, just off the bed, and thrust hard up into her a few times. I come, losing myself in the sensation, vaguely hearing her cry out as my thrusts drive her over the brink.

  Panting, Avery lays down on top of me afterward, resting her head on my chest. "Holy shit… that was… wow."

  I push her hair out of the way, my knuckles grazing her cheek. "It was."

  Wow.

  Avery quickly drifts off, but sleep evades me all night long. When morning comes, the sun just rising outside and lightening the room, I stare up at the ceiling as I casually stroke Avery's back, feeling every breath as she lies soundly against me. It's about the time when I usually slip out, disappearing to avoid any semblance of a relationship.

  But there's no escaping whatever this is.

  Sighing, I pull away from Avery and climb out of bed, throwing on a pair of sweat pants before making my way to the kitchen. Quietly, so silent my footsteps against the wooden floor sound magnified in the apartment, I put together the batter for pancakes and start cooking. I lean against the counter by the stove, tapping my spatula against the marble countertop, my mind drifting as flashes of last night infiltrate my thoughts.

  "Smells good."

  Her soft voice surprises me. I smile at the sound of it before straightening my expression out and turning to face her. Grabbing a stack of pancakes, I set the plate on the table. "Help yourself."

  She steps that way, sliding up on the stool. "Banana walnut?"

  "Of course."

  Smiling, she grabs a fork and takes a bite, letting out an exaggerated moan. "Okay, this is amazing."

  "Thanks."

  "No, thank you," she says, her gaze wholly on the pancakes as she eagerly takes another bite. "I thought I would never experience a moment more satisfying than last night, but wow... these pancakes. Best ever."

  "I'm not sure whether to be flattered or offended."

  "Definitely flattered," she says, nodding assuredly. "No wonder these are your special occasion pancakes. They're like a secret weapon. You've probably built a legacy on these things and have a slew of women constantly coming back for more. Your own little pancake brigade. The banana walnut whores or something."

  I open my mouth to respond but have no idea what the hell to say to that. Instead, I let out an awkward laugh, not having the heart to tell her the truth—the only lady I've ever made breakfast for is three feet tall with a love of dinosaurs.

  I shower, standing under the scalding spray for only a few minutes, but when I resurface this time, Avery is long gone. She vanished from the apartment, leaving an empty plate in the sink and a note on the counter with a lone word scribbled on it: Thanks.

  I stare at it for a moment before balling it up and tossing it right in the trash. Thanks. What does that even mean? Thanks for the breakfast? Thanks for the sex? Thanks for nothing, you crooked-dick motherfucker? I'm out of my element, in unchartered waters, and I don't like that familiar territory seems to be getting further and further away.

  I'm catching feelings, I realize. Real feelings.

  I'd rather catch the bubonic plague.

  Days pass, days where I don't see the goddess, days where I feel all twisted and unsure of how I'm supposed to proceed.

  It's karma, I think.

  Now I'm the one being fucked and forgotten.

  The past is catching up to me.

  It's a week la
ter when I'm sitting at the studio, finishing up a second session with Jimmy, the man with Starry Night adorning his back. I'm adding some shading, blending the blue in with the black, when Ellie strolls to the doorway. "Someone's asking to talk to you."

  "Take a message."

  "They're here in the shop."

  "Take a message."

  Ellie laughs. "You sure?"

  I nod. "Take a message."

  Shrugging, Ellie walks away, leaving me to my work. I finish some last minute touch-ups on the design before switching the machine off. "All done."

  "Yeah?" Jimmy jumps up excitedly and looks in the mirror, grinning. "Awesome!"

  I bandage him up and pocket the money, having no time to dick around tonight. After Jimmy leaves, I clean up my workspace and glance at the clock: a quarter till ten. Locking up the room, I stroll over to the receptionist's desk.

  "You and Lexie got any plans this weekend?" Ellie asks casually when I approach.

  "Just the usual," I reply. "Might go to the museum. I'll stop by tomorrow to finish up my paperwork."

  "Sounds great," Ellie says, scribbling a note in the appointment book. I'm about to leave when Ellie holds up a piece of notebook paper. "Oh, here."

  I grab it. "What's this?"

  "You told me to take a message."

  Ah. I unfold the paper, seeing the vaguely recognizable scribble.

  See you across the street?

  ~A

  Avery. I sigh, bidding everyone goodnight, before heading out of the shop. I pause on the sidewalk, looking at my watch, although I already know the time. I'm supposed to pick up Lexie in a few minutes.

  Hesitating, I shove Avery's note in my pocket before jogging across the street.

  Avery is sitting on her usual stool, chatting with the bartender, laughing at something the man says. I feel a flare of something inside of me, possessiveness I don't like feeling. I shove it back as I approach, nodding at the man before looking at Avery. I don't sit, make no move to order a drink. "I can't stay."

  Her brow furrows briefly at my standoffishness before realization seems to dawn on her. "Oh, crap… it's your weekend, isn't it?"

  I nod. "It is."

  "I'm sorry," she says quickly. "I was so excited tonight that it slipped my mind. I just came straight here without thinking."