He nodded. “They do. They start out as one thing and become something else. When they’ve matured. The same, but different. They have to go through something traumatic that changes them—and they have to fight to get out of their cocoon to become something else. There is beauty in the struggle, but eventually they become what they were destined to be—Beautiful.
I felt the tears trickle as they spilled down my face and Falcon brushed them away.
“What do you think? Do you want to go for it?”
Daring to hope, I looked at Dee. “I don’t know if it would work on my skin.”
He winked at me and cocked his head toward a private room.
“C’mon in the back and I’ll take a look.”
I followed him while Falcon waited. It had only taken a few minutes for Dee to decide if the tattoo would work. We went back to the front where Falcon was waiting in the lobby.
“I’m going to do it.” I sounded a bit hesitant and it was obvious he noticed. He warmed my upper arms and shoulders in a very comforting way and his voice was so low that only I could hear it.
“Babe, this was just a suggestion. If you want time to think it over, don’t do it.” There was such tenderness in his voice.
“I do. I really do.” I paused to take a deep breath. “If he can make me look like anything better than what I see in the mirror, I want to do it. I don’t think anything could make it look worse.” From the corner of my eye, I saw Dee prepping his table and I turned back to Fal.
“He said this could take a while. Why don’t you go and I’ll call you when he’s finished?” He was concerned. His eyes became a rich emerald and, right now, that depth came from his concern for me.
“I’ll stay with you.”
I stood on tiptoe, my lips brushing against his. “I’m fine. I promise. Besides, I want you to be surprised.”
“Call me as soon as he’s finished. And if the pain’s too much, make him stop.” I couldn’t help but laugh.
“I’m not a little girl anymore and, unless he has hot oil in that thing, it’s nothing I can’t handle. But if it makes you feel better, I promise I’ll make him stop.” I wrapped my arms around his waist and he pulled me in.
Reluctantly, Falcon left and I occupied myself by watching Dee finish his preparations.
“Nobody will see me, right? It’s the scars…”
He smiled knowingly, having seen the extent of them. “Not a problem, love. Now let’s get started.”
Falcon had collaborated with Dee through telephone and email and when he saw the sketches in person, the work looked extensive. Having sat for hours to get his own tattoos, he was a little concerned. There was no denying that Paige had gone through much but this would be her first work. There was no doubt that she’d be sore. Dee’s work was flawless and, as long as she was happy with the final product, he’d be content to keep his hands off of her while she healed. No matter. They had a lifetime to make up for it. Although he was hesitant to leave her, he went back to the hotel.
In a way, it worked out to his advantage. Although he’d spoken with the police about the shooting, there were things he wanted to follow up on. It was obvious that Paige was a bit desensitized when it came to attacks. Her altercation with Marisol was the most recent in a long line of them. It unnerved him that talking to the police was the norm for her. In his world, that was unacceptable. Little did she know that there were two undercover bodyguards watching her.
After the doctors released her from the hospital, the two of them went back to the hotel. While she showered, he ordered food and made several phone calls. He had informed his partners what had transpired. Though they were shocked at Blake’s death, no one seemed too sad about it. He found out from the autopsy that there was cocaine in his system at the time of his death. Both Carter and Marcus were following up behind the scenes. They all suspected that there was a connection between the Vallega’s, Blake, and the drugs. It was imperative that he find out the reason Blake was in Vegas. He believed there was more to the story and that Manny Vallega had the answers. There were too many coincidences.
When Paige told the press that she didn’t remember much—at least it was partially true. She didn’t fully trust the judicial system and she had good reason. After Marisol attacked her and Aria, she was supposed to be locked away for good and that didn’t happen. The whole experience left Paige jaded, and now he knew exactly why—because she told him.
Once Jorge picked them up at the hospital, she confided the truth of what she remembered and it was more than she had disclosed at the station. The details became clues; what the shooter said to Blake, how tall he was, the sound of his voice, and the sound the gun made when it went off. These details and the answers to his questions would possibly provide fodder for an investigation. There was no way he’d let her be hurt again.
As soon as he got back to the room he did two things; called Paige’s friend Liz so he could use her to get information from the tattoo shop and called the office to follow up with Marcus and Carter. It had been two days since the shooting. Because he didn’t want to alarm her, most of his communication was via text messages. A conversation was in order.
“Carter?”
“Hey. How’s Paige?”
“Better. What did you find out?” He reached in the drawer of the hotel desk and found a pad of paper and a pen.
“Something you’re not going to be happy about.” His serious tone weighed on Falcon’s mind. “Blake was distributing cocaine. One of the models was hysterical about his death and confided in Declan that he was her connection. We think Marisol was helping him to get it. We think Manny is the supplier. Of course, so far, there’s no proof.”
“Shit!” He threw the pen down.
“Yeah. That’s what I thought. He was registered in a room right next to theirs. For all appearances it looks like they’re on vacation, but I did some inquiries. Seems the DEA suspects some coke dealing. They’ve been following the trail of a few thousand kilos.”
“Blake was involved. I know it.”
“I know where your mind’s going. I don’t think Paige knew anything.”
He closed his eyes and ran his hand over his face. “I don’t think so either. It would explain his aggression.”
“And it would explain his erratic behavior. You didn’t know Blake until my party. He was a pretty likeable guy. A little egotistical, but that’s normal in that business. I talked to Declan. The girl that told him about the drugs told him there were others that were getting it from him.”
“And the DEA is trailing Manny?”
“Yeah. For a while. I’m not sure how far we can go with this.”
“Dammit! This son of a bitch has got to have some loose end that we can trail. Maybe if we bait him…”
“Don’t do something stupid, Fal.” His tone issued a warning. “I’ll see if we can offer any assistance, other than that, we have to back off.”
It took him awhile after the phone call to compose himself. Something about the whole thing wasn’t sitting well with him but he didn’t want to give Paige a reason to suspect that anything was wrong. She was pretty intuitive, so he enlisted her friend Elizabeth to help him. Even now she was calling the tattoo shop to get updates for him. She called him with the first report right after he got off the phone with Carter. True to form Paige said that she was weathering the session well and was anxious for Liz to see it. Falcon asked Liz to meet him and they could go together to see the final product. By then, Paige would be engrossed in showing her tattoos to Elizabeth and he could get an update from the undercover cops. He only wished that he didn’t have to be so secretive about protecting her. If she knew he was having her watched, she would be pissed.
Frustration was still biting him when the elevator doors opened.
“Well, well.”
He looked up and into the face of Marisol. With the new revelations, it took all the energy he had not to say anything to her. She, however, followed him with narrowed eyes and a
sarcastic attitude.
“Are you trying to be this rude or does it come naturally?”
He ignored her and kept on going.
She shouted, her echo drawing attention. “I hear you have a new bitch and that her markings are…interesting.”
Son of a bitch!
That comment got his attention. Furiously, he turned around and glared at her. She smiled back.
“You can thank me for that.”
She was talking in riddles. “Somebody should put you out of your fuckin’ misery.” He spat the words through gritted teeth. If his jaw were any more clenched it would shatter.
“Awww…now, now. That’s no way to act. Of course I wasn’t myself when she went through the window. I was just happy to hear that she had something to remember me by.”
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, you evil bitch. Go crawl back up Manny’s ass, Marisol. You reek of him.”
“Oh no, no, no…Manny didn’t give me that tidbit of information,” Her brow creased. “Blake told me he saw them when he was riding your whore.” Falcon’s hands tightened into fists, but what he wanted to do was wrap them around her corrupt neck.
“You mean he told you when he got out of jail after he tried to rape her. Good thing he’s dead, huh?” She ignored his comments, not even flinching when he mentioned Blake’s death, and instead continued to bait him.
“I hear the scars give her a very unique… look. Don’t worry Falcon. Some men are attracted to freaks.”
“Fuck you.”
He turned his back on her and headed out the door. If he stayed, he would have throttled her. If it were the last thing he ever did, he would bring Manny Vallega down and see Marisol rot in jail with him. He couldn’t stand the sound of her voice. She was still yelling at him and he was walking out the door.
“Give my best to Paige.”
Freedom.
It was the best gift that Falcon ever gave to me. He sacrificed the remainder of our honeymoon to my healing. It was almost three weeks to the day that he gave me the best present I could ever have hoped for. The tattoos were no longer sore but he still inspected them every day. Of course, he admired them as much as I did. Gone was the dread that had accompanied my reflection for as long as I could remember. In its place was a sweet kind of conceit. Dee Sanchez injected the ink of grace and elegance into my skin, beauty from pain. I found myself staring in the mirror with an appreciative fascination after years of loathing.
When we returned from Vegas, Falcon said he wanted to do something special to mark our wedding. After going back and forth, we decided to have a dinner for our friends and family at one of my favorite restaurants in Ocean City, The Hobbit.
Falcon’s face was priceless when I suggested it. The name threw him off, but then it did for most people. All he could picture was a quirky place with gnome-infested décor. He was pleasantly surprised to find an elegant venue. He loved the Bay view and the wide variety of selections for our mini reception. By the time the planning was done, he acted like the whole thing was his idea. That was a week ago.
Luckily, all those that we were close to were able to attend, and we would be seeing them very soon. I was a little nervous about picking out my “wedding dress” but there was no way I was backing out now. He was waiting for me in the living room as I prepared to show it to him for the first time.
“Are you ready?” I called out to him and heard him laugh.
“Yes. Are you going to make us late?”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I was so nervous that I felt like I was floating. Never in my life had I exposed this much of me but I was no longer a broken sculpture, but a work of art.
“Holy shit!” His eyes widened and he looked stunned. I was thrilled by his reaction.
“Really?”
He stood and put his hands in his pockets, circling around me to get the view from all angles. My dress was an ivory satin that draped in a deep cowl neck in the front and did the same far down my back. Butterflies and blossoms peeked out every time I moved. The body I’d always hidden was now a masterpiece.
“You’re stunning!” There was a breathless appreciation in his words. It caused a lump to form in my throat.
“Thank you.”
He approached and lifted my chin. He gave me a light peck on the lips.
“I’m not going to ruin your makeup, but later…” He gave me a lustful look. I gave him a light kiss back.
“I’m going to hold you to that.”
My dress had a matching jacket that fell tastefully and hid the more revealing dress. I wore it throughout out the meal. I told my mom that I had the tattoos so she and my dad wouldn’t be too shocked, but they hadn’t seen them yet. I didn’t even send her a photo from my phone. No one else knew because the jacket had a clasp at the neck that covered everything nicely. I felt like a kid on Christmas morning that couldn’t wait to show off her presents. We were about to cut our wedding cake; a seven tiered Smith Island cake with a ‘Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas’ sign on top. Obviously, my husband’s idea of adding a lighthearted reminder of the best mistake we’d ever made. My body hummed with happiness and excitement.
Falcon had the staff fill champagne glasses and clinked a water glass with a fork until he had everyone’s attention.
“I want to thank you all for celebrating with us.” He took my hand and I rose to my feet. He looked deep into my eyes.
“Paige, before I met you, I lived a very black and white life. But somehow, on a snowy walk, something happened. You did something that no one else could—you filled my life with color. Marrying you was the best thing I ever did. I love you.”
He kissed me and was about to get everyone to toast, but I put my hand up.
“If you all could wait just one more minute,” I interrupted. I lifted his hand to the clasp at my neck and we undid it together. He pushed the jacket off my shoulders. I heard a few gasps but I only looked at his face. His eyes glistened and reflected his love and pride. He took the jacket from me and laid it on the back of my chair. As I looked over the room, I smiled at my parents, my brother, Aria, and the remainder of our friends. There were tears—happy ones. The others would never understand the importance and significance of what I’d just done. I wanted to add something to Falcon’s speech but I was so full of emotion that it was impossible to articulate how his love changed my life.
One look at me and I knew he’d read in my eyes what faltered from my lips. Without missing a beat, he stole the moment and dipped me very dramatically. He stole a possessive kiss that incited cheers and catcalls from the crowd. When he finally let me stand his gaze was filled with love. I rolled my eyes and giggled at him.
“You’re such a show off.”
Growling playfully, he planted a kiss just below my ear where the scar from the bullet was healing nicely.
“Well, you’re stuck with me now.”
He wrapped his arm around my waist and we turned to our guests. His voice was loud and full of pride as he held his glass up for a toast.
“Here’s to my wife. The most beautiful woman in the world.”
My hubby ~ You remind me every day that it’s never too late to live a dream. I love you.
My family ~ Your love and support are what keep me going day by day. I am so blessed to have you.
My support team ~ Cathy, Regina, and Julie ~ Thank you for everything. You take my ideas and words and present them so well. I appreciate everything you do.
The Bloggers ~ Thank you for reading my books and spreading the word. I’m so thankful for your time and dedication.
My Readers ~ I don’t know what I’d do without you! You buy my books, tell your friends, and inspire me every single day. If you keep reading, I’ll keep writing.
And finally…
Gracie Allen ~ Your love story with George Burns continues to inspire me. Paige’s tale was birthed by my desire to see you wear a strapless dress.
DD Lorenzo is a fresh modern-day st
oryteller. A neighborhood of people reside in her head and she relocates them to the pages of her books.
DD resides in Maryland, The Land of Pleasant Living. She met the love of her life in high school and decided to look no further. Together, they have raised their children into fabulous adults. When she isn't writing stories of the impassioned lives of her characters, she is rooting for the Baltimore Ravens or the Baltimore Orioles. Her favorite pastimes include spending time with the great people in her life and riding in her husband's classic Mustang to the Eastern Shore.
You can find DD on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram, and at ddlorenzobooks.com
Other Titles by D.D. Lorenzo
Depth of Emotion Series
Positive/Negativity (Book One)
Selective/Memory (Book Two)
Here/Now (Book Three)
Same/Difference (Book Four)
Beauty is a Bitch (Book Five) – Coming 2016
Same/Difference (The Depth of Emotion #4) Page 21