“Come on, babe.” Kevin jarred me to the present. “It’s time to leave.”
Slowly I stood and took a step, but my feet gave resistance. I wanted to stay here with Nyx and pick her brain about tattoos, about her love for Dracula, about whether she liked girls like I hoped she did.
Except I needed to do something first.
Before I could follow, Nyx slipped beside me and pressed something into my palm.
“If you guys ever break up, give me a call.” Her voice was low and throaty, and the spark in her eyes—well, fuck.
Apparently, she liked girls.
Specifically me.
Heat rushed through my body, and I looked at the business card with a number jotted down.
“Thanks,” I said. The rest of the words I wanted to say dried on my tongue. While I might drag my heels on breakups, I wasn’t about to cheat. If my mind wandered, I was clearly over this relationship, and I needed to do the right thing. I gave Nyx a nod and bolted out of the room to catch up with Kevin.
He stood at the front counter, where the same guy from before was ringing him up.
“Let’s get out of here,” Kevin said. “I want to go to the bar to show the guys.”
My heart thudded hard as I followed him out of the shop. I cast a glance at the front of Alchemy Ink as if it could help bolster me for what I was about to do. I stopped by our cars in the parking lot. Breaking up with people made my skin crawl, and the idea of the hurt on his face that was about to arrive made me feel a little nauseous. However, I’d been stalling long enough.
“Meet you at Fun Guy?” he asked.
“Kevin, I’m not going.” I leaned against my car.
He shrugged. “That’s on you. You could use a little more fun in your life, though. You’re boring as fuck sometimes.”
Jesus fucking Christ.
Kid gloves were coming off.
“Since you have no regrets, this shouldn’t be tough for you. I’m breaking up with you.”
Kevin’s brows drew together. “What the fuck, Becky? Who’s going to wash my tattoo?”
Holy fuck.
An incredulous laugh escaped me. “Better figure that one out yourself. Categorizing that as not my problem.”
Kevin crossed his arms over his chest and winced. “You were a lousy lay anyway.”
I lifted a brow. “At least one of us came.”
It fucking hadn’t been me.
Kevin let out a huff. “Whatever. I’ve got somewhere to be.” With that, he yanked open his car door and shut it with a slam. A second later, he was peeling out of the parking lot.
Damn, good fucking riddance.
I stared at the card in my palm. The temptation to walk back inside and chat Nyx up reared high, but I needed some time. My breakup wasn’t even two seconds old, and I wanted to go homeand tell Bast all about the news. She would be so smug about being right about him. I owed her some fresh tuna.
The sign for Alchemy Ink felt like a harbinger of change, the sort I could sink my teeth into.
I should be mourning the end of a relationship, but instead, a shiver rolled down my spine.
I’d entered the tattoo shop beaten down, but upon emerging, I hadn’t just gained a spine but also a new perspective.
