“Nothing worth having for life ever is.” He flashed all his teeth and Drew shook his head, laughing in response.
“I’ve already got the patch where I need it.” His eyes drifted from Stinger to me, a hidden challenge in them as he looked at me with that look only I ever got to see. That cocky assurance of his shouldn’t have made my skin ripple to life the way it did.
“I could always do that snake—”
“Shut the fuck up.” Drew snapped his head back to Stinger and smirked. “I suppose there is one thing I could get.”
“I hope we’re on the same page… Pres,” Jedd interrupted.
Drew looked at him, not giving anything away. “Okay. Maybe two things.”
“Kerching ching,” Stinger sang out. “Take a seat, Tucker.”
Before he sat down, Drew took one last lingering look at me.
I moved before I was aware I’d thought about doing so, cutting through the small group of men who were quietly chatting amongst themselves. I stopped only when I was at the seat Drew had occupied as I’d received my tattoo. I knew damn well he didn’t need me there for strength, but I wanted to be there. This suddenly felt very significant.
In one look he’d told me that he was about to do something big, and in turn, I’d responded. Grinning at Stinger, I raised one shoulder in a half shrug. “Maybe Jedd can get that snake instead?”
“He hasn’t got the length for it,” Drew joked, pulling my attention back to him seconds before Jedd reached out to slap Drew up the back of the head. The whole group laughed, and for the first time in a long time, we were all bathing in a calm that we’d come to crave after everything that had gone on in our lives.
“What am I doing, Drew?” Stinger asked as he switched the needles over.
Clearing his throat once, Drew raised a finger and signaled for Stinger to lean in. He whispered in his ear, not letting me or anyone else hear what he had planned. The moment Stinger leaned away, everyone saw his small smile and nod of approval.
I watched with curiosity, my eyes flickering between the tattooist and Drew. When Stinger knelt down beside him and Drew leaned back enough to give him access to his chest, I wondered what the hell was going on. My view was just as cut off as everyone else’s until Stinger leaned back to wipe away the first blotting of black ink, only to reveal an A beneath the hound that occupied the space over Drew’s heart. He leaned back in to continue as I looked up into Drew’s eyes.
I opened my mouth, closing it again as I felt the sting of tears from the happiness pooling inside of me. I felt ridiculous about the emotional outburst, so I covered my mouth with my hand, knowing Drew could see the smile that consumed my eyes when I held his gaze. If it hadn’t been an impossible task, I would have thrown myself at him, but Stinger was still working on the perfectly inked D next to the already inked Y, so I paced myself and gave him an air kiss instead.
Drew offered me a wink, but other than that, he stayed completely still. Drew knew when to respect the artist,apparently, but I could see the heat in his eyes. Stinger worked quickly, and the way his wrist moved without effort was awe-inspiring. After a few more buzzes and wipes of Drew’s skin, he leaned back, resting his ass on the heels of his feet as he tilted his head from side to side.
“Looks good,” Stinger said seriously.
Drew glanced down, his naked chest rising and falling slowly as he studied my name on his skin.
“Looks complete,” Drew added quietly.
I reached out, my fingers brushing over his hand as it hung over the back of the chair. Sliding my fingers between his, I blinked back the tears that were so eager to embarrass me. I was just about to open my mouth and tell him just how much I loved him when I heard my brother enter and groan.
“Why is my sister in her braaaaa—is that a tattoo?” The change of direction in his attention was a typical Tate thing to do, but that didn’t make it any less amusing.
Drew rolled his eyes and smiled as Tate approached, but he stayed still, his eyes locked on me.
“Sit down, Tate. You’re next,” Drew said quietly.
Tate stopped beside the two of us, his eyes flickering from my back to Drew’s chest and back again. “Seriously?” he asked, eyes alight.
“Sure,” Drew answered. “Stinger, you got time to mark Tate’s balls for his initiation, right?”
“I’ve always got time to prep a pup, Drew. You know that,” Stinger said through a smirk.
Tate’s eyes went wide as he stared at the tattooist he’d never seen before.
I tried my level best not to laugh. My teeth were firmly planted into the inside of my cheek, but I knew Drew couldsee it. I sucked in a breath and looked up at Tate, eyes still watering. “I won’t tell you where I got mine.”
“Shut up!” Tate said, stumbling back. “That’s an image I’m never going to get rid of. It’s hard enough hearing you two—but now… ugh. I’m going to school.”
Someone, and I suspected it was Jedd, did the very same impersonation of me that Drew had done at dawn. The ‘Oh God’, ‘There’, and ‘Harder’spread around the room to the immense humor of everyone, while I just lifted two arms and flipped the bird at them all. “Laugh it up, assholes. Just remember who cooks around here.”
