Oh, yes. How could I forget?
The texts from earlier today. They were loaded with an innuendo I couldn’t get out of my head. It posed a real issue for me at work. Thoughts of her doinganytype of favor for me had my dick pressing against my zipper uncomfortably all afternoon. I spent the rest of the day hoping that my shirt covered my incessant hard-on while I tattooed three more clients.
“Oh. Right.” I cough into my fist, stalling for time, trying to get myself back together. “I was asked to do a guest spot. Tattoo at another studio in Texas next month. I’d have to be there for a few days.”
“Oh, do you want me to stay with Lilah while you’re gone?” she cuts in, already ready to help.
I rake a hand through my hair and shake my head. “Well, I was actually wondering if you two would want to come with me.”
Her head whips to me, and I blurt out the rest quickly.
“I’d get you your own hotel room. It’d be the same schedule as usual. I’ll pay for everything. Youwouldn’t have to worry about that. I just… I don’t like leaving Lilah for that long,” I explain.
She’s thinking. I can tell by her adorable fucking scrunched nose.
“If you’re uncomfortable with it…” I start, not wanting her to feel any pressure, but she stops me.
“No, it’s not that. I just worry about leaving Rose for that long. But her daughter lives nearby, so it should be okay,” she says, mostly to herself I think. Who is Rose?
“Rose?” I echo.
“My landlord, well, neighbor I guess. Or grandma-friend.”
“Yourgrandma-friend?” I quirk an eyebrow.
She smiles at that. “I rent her studio apartment above her garage, and we’ve become close. We eat dinner together a few nights a week, and I check on her regularly. She’s older, maybe around eighty.”
God damn it, I wish she wouldn’t have told me that. It makes me like her a hell of a lot more.
“Alright, I understand. Well, I guess just let me know by the end of this week, if you can,” I say, nodding.
She nods quickly. “Yes, of course. It should be totally fine. I’ll make sure her daughter will be around. If she even knew I was making a fuss about this, she’d probably beat my ass,” she says, letting out a deep laugh, and my lips twitch in response.
My alone time with Ivy, and our walk, comes to an end too soon when we come to a stop beside her car. She hauls her door open, then lingers in the space between the seat and the door.
She fiddles with her keys between her fingers, and rocks back on her heels—looking up at me. I tuck my hands safely away in my pockets, trying to keep them occupied. I don’t last long, moving one hand and combing my fingers through my hair. I hope she can’t tell it’s nerves.
Her eye catches on my arm—lingers on it—and I feel something shift in the air. A slow, building heat flares in my stomach. Seeing her ogle me again, knowing I might affect her even a fraction of how she affects me, is a very dangerous and intoxicating feeling.
It makes me want to push my luck a little. Play with fire.
I know I need her help. Lilah needs her. If I tried anything with Ivy, and it blew up in my face, we’d be screwed.
Still, the pull Ivy has is becoming hard to resist. Why can’t I get her out of my fucking head? I’ve never reacted to a woman like this before, and somehow, that only makes her more irresistible. I know she feels something too. I’ve seen it in her eyes.
I move before I can stop myself. Bracing one hand on the top of her car, the other grips the edge of the opened door, effectively trapping her. She looks up at me, the porch light from my house illuminating a soft warm glow on the side of her face.
I clear my throat. “Drive safe. It gets real dark out here at night.”
Smooth.
She cocks her head. “No kidding? Cars tend to have headlights for that specific reason.” She’s smirkingagain, but it’s not evil like the one she gave Maverick earlier. It’s playful. Challenging even.
“You’re a brat, you know that?” My voice drops an entire octave.
She tucks a long wild strand of hair behind her ear, never breaking our stare. “I think you like it, Wesley.”
Her tone is teasing. But right now, I’m about done being teased by her.
