Tattoos and Angels

by Casey McMillin

  Tattoos

  and

  Angels

  By:

  Casey McMillin

  No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form or by any means without prior written permission of the author.

  Copyright © 2015

  Casey McMillin

  All rights reserved.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Epilogue

  Chapter 1

  "I'll finish when you're gone, Mom. It's really not that big of a deal."

  "I'd like to help you get settled while we're here, Charlotte."

  "I really don't have that much stuff. Plus, you and Dad aren't leaving for another three days."

  "I just can't understand why you'd want to drop everything and get dressed to go out when we just got here."

  "Because I'm not in a hurry to unpack. I can do it tomorrow."

  My mom stared at me for several long seconds and then let out a defeated sigh. "I guess I'm just being selfish."

  I sighed as well. I loved my mom, but it was my first official night in Miami, and I was really looking forward to going out.

  I'd already made plans with my cousin, Megan. She was going out with her boyfriend, Rory, and his people (who, as it happened, were a family of real-life pirates). Our friend, Addie, was dating his brother, Drake. He couldn't set foot on a ship because he got seasick and had to do all his pirating, whatever that may be, on land. I wasn't sure what they did, specifically, and wasn't about to start asking questions.

  Rory and Drake were the sons of the infamous Captain Tom Kelly. He was as charming and handsome as they come, and if I was twenty years older, I'd have a huge crush on Tom Kelly, gold tooth and all.

  Apparently, there was a new brother in the mix who they'd just met. He had come into the picture only recently, and I'd never met him, but I knew his name was Angel and that he grew up in Puerto Rico without knowing Tom. From what I understood, Angel knew Tom was his dad, but only met him a few months ago when he decided to move to Miami.

  I didn't really think much of Megan's crew, though. I was hyped beyond belief for one reason alone. Connor was meeting me there tonight. Connor Newman was my boyfriend and was pretty much the reason I moved to Miami in the first place. Not that the thought hadn't crossed my mind before I met him. I fell in love with Florida every time we came to visit my aunt and uncle. They had a beautiful home and were willing to open it up to me when I decided to move.

  Well, it was finally happening. Today was the day. Here I was, moving into the second bedroom of my uncle's gorgeous guesthouse where my cousin Megan lived. She and I were close in age. We got along great, and would have been inseparable all these years if we hadn't lived so far apart.

  Up until a few days ago, Addie lived in the second bedroom, but she offered to move out even though I told her I was more than happy to sleep in one of the unoccupied bedrooms in uncle Alan's house. She said she stayed most nights at Drake's house and had been talking about moving in officially anyway.

  So I was taking over Addie's old bedroom, which was awesome, and making plans to meet up with Connor. I was feeling utterly pumped, but had to hold back a little for my mom's sake.

  "I thought since you and Dad were gonna be here for a few more days, that you'd be okay with me hanging out with Megan for a little while tonight."

  "Is Connor gonna be there?" she asked.

  I nodded tentatively and she smiled a little.

  "That makes me feel a little better," she said.

  "Why?" I asked.

  "Well one, because it makes more sense why you'd want to go tonight. I know you were looking forward to seeing him. And two, because I'd rather you have a gentleman with you when you go out in this city."

  "Mom, half of the people we're going with are guys. Megan and Addie's boyfriends are coming, and probably a bunch of other tough guys."

  She shrugged. "I know, but it just makes me feel better that someone's specifically going with you, so I know someone's got their eye on you."

  "I'm fine, Mom. I'm almost twenty-two."

  "I don't care if you're sixty-two. You'll always be my baby girl, and it's hard to let go. You'll see one day."

  "I'll be fine, Mom. I don't want you to worry."

  She sighed. "That's impossible. You'll see about that one day too."

  "Maybe I won't have kids," I said smirking at her to lighten the mood.

  She smiled. "Being a mother is very hard, but the joy far outweighs the pain… like by a mile." She reached out and touched the side of my head and I leaned into her hand. "What are you wearing tonight?" she asked.

  "I think I'll wear that little skirt I made with the lace."

  "Oh that'll look so cute." She glanced around hopelessly at my room, which contained about twenty boxes. "Do you know where it is?"

  I pointed to the bags that were at the foot of my new bed. "It's packed in one of those."

  "Why don't you get it out and we'll see if it needs ironing?"

  I smiled. "I'll miss your ironing chops," I said. "I'll have to switch to all polyester from now on."

  "Megan's got an ironing board in the laundry room. I saw it. You know how to use it."

  "Yeah, but it's much easier to hand it to you."

  My mom put her fingertips together and smiled as if she was some sort of mastermind. "I depended on that," she said, being silly. "That's how I've kept you around all these twenty-one years."

  I laughed. "The cooking's not bad either."

  We were laughing about that when Megan came in. "Char, you in here?" she yelled. Before I could yell back that I was indeed in the house her dog, Thor, pranced into my bedroom.

  "Hey boy," I said, bending to call him.

  "Hey, cuz," Megan said, coming into the doorway. "I'm sorry he just ran right in here."

  "I wanted him to," I said in a voice I'd use to talk to a baby. "Yes I did, I wanted him to come in here." I laughed at the way Thor leaned into my hand when I rubbed him.

  My mom hugged Megan and after one last rub on Thor, I stood to do the same.

  "I'm so glad you made it," Megan said. "Did you decide if you're coming out with us tonight?" She glanced at her phone. "I don't mean to rush you, but Rory's been on a trip and I'm really anxious to see him. We'll probably head out in an hour or so."

  "Who's all coming with us?"

  "Addie. She'll be here in a few minutes. We'll meet the others there. Does that mean you're coming?"

  "She's going," my mom said. "We were just looking for her skirt so I could pass the iron over it."

  "You wanna iron my outfit too?" Megan asked.

  My mom smiled. I could tell she was glad she could be helpful. "I'll go turn it on. You girls get your stuff and bring it to me."

  "You wanna move in, Aunt P.J.?"

  "Don't tempt me," she said, chuckling as she took off for the laundry room.

  I began digging through my bags in search of my outfit, and Megan went to her room, calling Thor to come with her. As promised, Addie arrived a few minutes later. Megan was ready to go within thirty minutes even though she said it'd be more like an hour. She heard from Rory, who said they were on their way to the club al
ready, and she was bursting at the seams to see him. She tried not to act impatient for me to get ready, but she stood there watching me and asked more than once if she could help me in any way.

  It was late May, and I hadn't seen Connor in person since we met at the New Year's party. I'd been on the road all day, and there was simply more than thirty minutes work to do before I was in any condition to see him. I hurried, and we split the difference, leaving the house forty-five minutes later. Mom, Megan, and Addie all helped, and I felt pretty good about myself when we walked out the door.

  I had a fairly quirky sense of style that I tried to tone down a little since I knew Connor was pretty conservative. We'd gotten to know each other quite well over the past five months. He knew all about my taste—knew I'd begun collecting tattoos and planned on continuing to do so. I was one of those girls who wanted a lot of them. Some people need to have a connection with whatever artwork they're having tattooed on their body, but not me. I was attracted to the looks of large quantities of ink, and just so long as I identified with the piece, I was happy to get it.

  Anyway, Connor knew all about my plans, and was completely on board, but had mentioned several times that he'd never want to get one himself. He planned on running for a political office one day and, from what I could tell, almost always made responsible choices.

  I admired that in a man. Even though I had an alternative sense of style, I was fairly conservative, and I respected that Connor had long-term goals and ambitions that didn't include being all tatted up. The good news was he didn't seem to mind if I was. If anything, it was almost as if he was encouraging me to continue. In fact, he mentioned getting me a tattoo for my birthday. I smiled at the thought. I couldn't wait to see him. I was as anxious to see Connor as Megan was to see Rory. Addie was pretty excited herself, even though it had only been hours since she'd seen Drake.

  All three of us were excited to get to the club and had a fun time on the drive, listening to music and singing along like idiots. We talked to the bouncer, who let us through with no questions once we mentioned Tom's name. The second we stepped foot in the door, a wave of rap music hit us. We walked into the crowded entryway, headed in the direction of the private booths. Rory was near the bar with their friend Mack, and Megan went straight over to him. Addie spotted Drake along with Tom and a few other guys, and we all made our way to the private booth. I sat there for a few minutes, talking to Addie and Drake, but excused myself to go to the ladies room, mostly so I could find a private spot to text Connor.

  I was in the hallway that led to the ladies room when I found a spot where I thought I'd be out of the way and leaned against the wall. I pulled my phone out of my purse and stared down at it. I had a text from Connor, and I smiled as I read it.

  I expected it to say, "I'm on my way. See you in a few." But what it actually said was, "I can't make it. So sorry. My grandma's sick." There was an emoji with tears streaming down the little yellow face. I felt heat rising to my cheeks as I reread the text, unable to believe how casual he seemed about not seeing me. I had to remind myself that Connor caring for his grandmother was a good quality. I tried not to let my frustration show when I text him back.

  Me: "Really? I'm so sorry to hear that. I was really looking forward to seeing you."

  Connor: "Me too. It sucks. We're all staying positive. I'll call you tomorrow to set up a time to come over. I can't wait to see you."

  I thought about asking what was wrong with his grandma but changed my mind. I'd find out when he came over tomorrow anyway.

  Me: "I can't wait to see you either! I'm bummed but understand. Hugs to your grandma."

  Connor: "Thanks, see you tomorrow bae."

  I sent him a heart emoji and instantly started surfing the internet. I was feeling really disappointed and didn't feel like moving for a few minutes while I processed the new turn the evening had taken. I typed leather purses into the search engine. I didn't really want to look at purses, but I wanted to seem preoccupied so it didn't look like I was just standing there sulking.

  I was thumbing absentmindedly through random leather handbags when Tom's son, the new one named Angel who I'd never really met, came down the hallway. He was smiling at me when I glanced up at him, so I forced one in return before returning my gaze to the phone.

  "Is there a line?" he asked, coming to stand against the wall next to me.

  The music was loud, and it took me a second to register what he'd said. "Oh no, there's no line." I put my phone into the pocket I'd sewn into my skirt. "I was just standing here taking care of a few texts."

  Just then, three people came down the hall and walked into the restrooms—two girls into the ladies room, and a guy into the men's.

  "See?" I said, gesturing to them. "No line." I smiled and started to walk toward the door of the ladies room. Normally, I would have been sociable with him, but I was really let down by the news that Connor wasn't coming.

  "What's the matter?" he asked before I could walk away.

  I gave him a questioning glance. "Nothing," I said.

  "You're Charlotte, right?"

  "Yeah. I'm sorry. I should have said that."

  "You left before we could be introduced."

  "I'm sorry," I said again. I looked at him for what seemed like the first time because I had the distinct thought that he had a gorgeous, masculine face. He had a stunning face—that's all there was to it. I studied it.

  "I'm Angel," he said, offering me a hand.

  I smiled and shook it. "I've heard a lot about you."

  "Same here," he said. "Megan and Addie are really excited you moved down here."

  "I am too, although it's still hard to believe it's real since I've only been here a few hours."

  "No joke, you just rolled into town? How'd you manage to look so beautiful?" He stared at me with an expression that said he was genuinely curious and not just saying that as a pick up line. Or maybe it was the accent that made him seem innocent. Either way, the question made me feel a teeny bit better after the news about Connor. I smiled.

  "We got to Miami a few hours ago. I've been riding in a U-Haul all day, and I had to rush to get ready because Megan was jumping out of her skin to head over here. Plus, my boyfriend, who was supposed to meet me here tonight, can't make it." I sighed. "So thank you. I needed that." I smiled as I turned to walk toward the ladies room.

  "It's true," he said.

  I gave him one last smile as I opened the door and stepped inside.

  Chapter 2

  There was a dressing area in the ladies room that you had to walk through to get to the sinks and stalls. It was a narrow room with a full-length mirror on one wall and a giant aquarium and some benches on the other. It was loud and dimly lit, and no one was really paying attention to me, so I found a quiet corner near the mirror to disappear for a few seconds.

  I had a little bag across my shoulder, which I dug in to get some lip-gloss. I didn't necessarily need to freshen it up, but it gave me something to do. I went ahead put some powder on while I was at it. I stared right into my own eyes in the reflection, trying to think positive thoughts.

  Now that Connor wasn't coming, I didn't really care to be there anymore. I thought about asking Megan if I could drive her car home, and smiled at the relief I felt once I realized she'd probably agree to that, and I wasn't stuck there. I adjusted my skirt before making a few tiny tweaks to my hair. I didn't really need to use the restroom, so I headed out the way I came.

  I had my head down when I walked out and didn't see that Angel was still standing there. I heard him say, "Hey," but there were other people in the hallway and I assumed whoever said it was talking to someone else. "Hey," he repeated, as he walked along side of me.

  "Heyyy," I said, looking up at him a bit surprised. "What are you doing?"

  "I was waiting for you," he said, smiling. "I'll walk you back to the booth if you're going up there." He was obviously gorgeous, and I liked his accent a lot, but I wasn't in the mood to smile an
d make conversation.

  "I was just about to get my cousin's keys and get outta here."

  "We just got here," he said, looking confused and maybe a little injured.

  I smiled and we started walking slowly toward the booth. "I know we just got here, but I'm tired from being on the road all day." We entered the main room and the music, which had been loud, got even louder. We had to yell to hear each other.

  "Is this because your boyfriend stood you up?" he asked.

  "No," I lied. "I just didn't realize how tired I was."

  "I think you're gonna need to hang out a few minutes at least," he said. He glanced over at me as we elbowed our way through the crowd, and I gave him an apologetic look.

  "I can't. I'm wiped out."

  "What I meant is that I don't think you have a choice."

  "Why not?"

  "Because Rory and Megan took off."

  "What do you mean took off? They disappeared, but they're still at the club, right?"

  "They definitely left the club," Angel said. "They might still be in the parking lot, but they're not in the building."

  I let out a frustrated, defeated sigh that he didn't even see because he was looking straight ahead and I was walking behind him. I stopped in my tracks and reached out to grab a handful of his shirt. He turned and came to stand next to me. People surrounded us, so he came near so he could hear what I wanted to say.

  "I'm gonna go to the bar to get a drink before I head up there," I said. "You go ahead."

  "I'll go with you," he said. His personality seemed sweet and easy going, which was an odd contrast to his dark, mysterious appearance.

  "It's okay," I said. "Thanks for offering to walk me back, but I'll probably just hang out down here where I can see the door and wait for Megan."

  "What if they're in the booth?"

  "You just said they left."

  "They did. I just wanted you to come up to the booth with me. I'd feel better if you did." He looked over my head in the direction of the door. "They'll come up to the booth when they get back. Come on. You can get a drink up there."