“You’re entirely too invested in turning my body into Zed’s work of art.” The words were out of Cassie’s mouth before she fully realized how they could be twisted.
Zed chuckled and locked her gaze on Cassie again. “I’m a busy woman, but I could squeeze you in whenever you wanted…”
Cassie bit her lip. The thought of being squeezed anywhere by Zed was becoming more appealing by the second. Her hormones were out of control; it really had been too long for her to be behaving like a horny college kid. “That sounds delightful, and if I do decide to get a tattoo someday, you’ll be my first call but—”
“Ibetter be your first call,Cassandra,” Rachel said and swatted Cassie’s shoulder none too gently. “Losing your tattoo virginity is something you should share with your bestie.”
Cassie raised her eyebrow and tilted her head slightly. “You think you’re my bestie?”
Rachel put the iPad down and crossed her arms—quite the feat considering the size of her breasts, which was something Cassie tried hardnotto consider.
“Ibetterbe your bestie. Who else is vying for the title? Is there someone I need to beat down?”
Cassie laughed. “You’d beat someone up to be my bestie?”
Rachel pouted then looked uncharacteristically serious, the kind of serious she usually reserved for work situations when there were copious amounts of blood, tears, and general terror.
“I’d do anything for you,” Rachel said.
A wave of gratitude washed over Cassie, and she pulled Rachel into a tight hug. They teased each other so much that Cassie sometimes forgot how important Rachel was to her. She blinked back the hot burn of tears, sure that Zed would find them a total turn-off, and released Rachel. “And I’d do anything for you. Which is why I’m here to keep you entertained while you have your fragile skin punctured at a rate of three thousand stabs per minute—I watched a TED talk, before you tell me I know nothing about tattooing.”
Rachel cleared her throat. “I need the little girl’s room before we start.”
Cassie didn’t miss Rachel’s glassy eyes before she turned away. Cassie looked up to the ceiling to stem her own unbidden reaction, then she focused on the catatonic expression of the guy in the adjacent station to Zed’s. He looked like he’d gone into shock, which wouldn’t be surprising since his tattooist was bouncing his torture tool against the poor guy’s cranium. When she noticed he had ear buds in, she surmised that he could’ve simply zoned out to some death metal music.
“What kind of doctor are you, doc?”
Zed’s gentle question drew her attention back to the sexy tattooist and away from the vulnerability bubbling just below the surface of her skin. If she had let Zed loose with her tattoo gun, who knew what manner of emotions would escape. “Emergency room.”
“Ah, you like the non-stop action?” Zed’s smile took a wicked turn.
“I like to help as many people as I can.” Judging by Zed’s reaction, Cassie’s answer had been sharp. She wasn’t about to explain to a complete stranger what had really driven her to that specialty; those details were double digit date material, and with her career, Cassie rarely made it to date one, so her demons were safely hidden. “And it keeps me moving all day, which is useful because by nature, I’m a bit of a sloth when it comes to physical activity.” She smiled but Zed was busy printing Rachel’s tattoo template.Thatdidn’t take long to mess up.
Zed glanced up and winked. “It’s obviously working; you look great.”
So nottotallyblown.
“Okay, I’m ready for your next masterpiece.” Rachel sat on Zed’s chair, pulled off her T-shirt and lay down.
Cassie couldn’t decide if it was good timing or not. Who knows what other ways she would’ve found to upset Zed if Rachel had left them alone much longer. Which was why she found casual hook-ups easier. It was virtually impossible to have a real conversation over the ear-bursting music that was ubiquitous with every dance club in Vegas, and thus it was virtually impossible for her to self-sabotage her chances with a hot butch. And since she usually made her excuses and left before breakfast, there was rarely any awkward post-coital conversation either.
She pulled up a spare chair, sat beside Rachel, and held her hand while Zed did tattooist-type things with a razor and sterilizer. She’d noted Zed breaking out a needle from sealed packaging,andshe pulled on black latex gloves. Maybe this place was sanitary enough for her to consider getting inked, though the black skintight gloves begged for a more sexual application.
God, settle down. Metal Mickey, her thumb-sized vibrator, would be certain to get a workout this evening. Cassie glanced at the gentle curve of Zed’s bicep as she began to trace the outer edges of Rachel’s mandala, and she knew exactly what she’d think about tonight too.
Rachel wiggled her fingers. “You’re staring, and you’re hurting my hand,” she whispered.
Cassie shushed her without speaking and relaxed her grip. She assumed Zed hadn’t heard over the sound of a million buzzing bees coming from her tattoo gun. “How come you’re so relaxed when everyone else looks like they’re getting enemas? Anybody would think you were having a gentle massage instead of needle torture.”
When Zed paused for a second to get more ink, Rachel said, “It just doesn’t hurt. Everyone has different pain thresholds, and mine seems to be quite high. Which is lucky considering this is an addiction.”
Zed returned to her canvas. “Sorry, Cassie, I have to ask you not to talk to Rach much. I need her completely still, or this will end up looking like a bad Keith Haring homage.”
Cassie wrinkled her nose. “Sorry. I’ll be quiet.”
“Thanks.” Zed rewarded her compliance with another sexy smile.
She watched, morbidly fascinated by the combination of artistry and surgery, and lost track of time, almost hypnotized by the precise and repetitive movements of Zed’s pain pencil. Her pager sounded loudly in her pocket, and she pulled it out.
