“Let me explain,” TJ said, gesturing with his talons like they were his hand. “I’m not human, but a shifter. That means I can transform between a human form—which is the one you know—and this, my true form.”
I nodded slowly as I absorbed this wild information. “So, kind of like a werewolf?”
“That’s right. But I don’t need a full moon. I can change shape at will.” TJ grinned, flashing sharp, pointed teeth. “And I’d like to think I’m a bit more handsome than that.”
“You’re very handsome, no matter what you look like.”
“I appreciate that.” He regarded me with his gleaming black eyes, his long tail waving sinuously behind him. “I hope this hasn’t frightened you away from wanting to work here.”
I laughed. “Are you kidding? Who else can say they work for a tyger-with-a-y?”
TJ joined in my laughter. “Good, you remembered how to spell it.”
“Now your conversations with Kiara make more sense,” I said with a grin. My gaze fell to the ground. My heart hammered because of what I was about to say. “And besides... I like you, TJ. The fact that you’re a shifter doesn’t change that.”
Getting the words out was a relief. It was a weight off my shoulders to finally tell TJ how I felt.
When I glanced back up at him, the tyger was gone. TJ was back to his human form, tattoos and beautiful smile and all. He approached me with a warm expression, holding out his arms for a hug.
I was all too happy to oblige. We embraced, confirming our bond. I felt tangible relief radiating from him. He’d been so nervous to tell me the truth about his identity, but now he felt secure and happy.
TJ sighed deeply as we hugged. The sensation of his breath against my neck made me shiver. Up close like this, I smelled his spicy, masculine scent. I wanted to bury my face in it and smell it forever. My heart hammered at lightspeed. The hug went on longer than I expected, but I sure as hell wasn’t complaining. I could’ve spent forever like this, locked in TJ’s strong, tattooed, protective arms.
“Thank you, Brady,” TJ murmured against the shell of my ear, sending a tingle through me.
I was disappointed when he pulled away, but then he picked up a fresh pair of sterile gloves and I remembered why.
“Well, then,” TJ said with a calm smile. “Shall we finally finish up that tattoo?”
Eight
Tj
I dippedthe humming machine’s needle into the red ink cup one final time. After it drew up the pigment, I applied it to Brady’s skin with great care. Every time I touched him, I was forced to ignore my creeping horniness for the sake of doing my job.
Once I finished packing the color in, I drew back and looked at the big picture. Not to toot my own horn, but the daisy was beautiful. The lines were crisp, the color rich, and the design had an interesting, slightly 3D effect. Most important of all was that the old tattoo was completely invisible. Brady never had to see it or think about it again. Which made my alpha instinctsveryhappy.
I wheeled back in my seat and gave the tattoo a proper once-over. Satisfied, I nodded.
“Done,” I announced.
Brady let out a mix of a sigh and a squeal. “TJ, it looks so amazing. I can’t thank you enough.”
He threw his arms around my neck, hugging me again. It felt so good to embrace him.
But after spending hours alone with Brady, constantly touching him, plus the inherent intimacy of tattooing, my pants were more than a little tight.
I swallowed and pulled away from the hug. “Hang on. Let’s get this covered up,” I said.
“I don’t wanna cover it up,” Brady argued, pouting. He held his arm away from me like he was defending his brand-new tattoo from me.
I chuckled. “Not like that. It needs a protective layer. Don’t worry, it’s transparent.”
That relaxed him. Brady offered his arm as I fetched the hypofix. It was a medical-grade breathable layer of material. I applied it to Brady’s tattoo.
“There we go,” I said. “Leave that on for three days, then peel it off. It’s water-resistant so you can shower with it on, but don’t take long baths until your tattoo’s healed.”
Brady nodded, still gleefully examining his arm. “Okay.”
