"Me neither. I think it'll come out great with just a bit more detail." Chase had already set up his needle, so he connected the gun to the machine and tested it to make sure it vibrated. He was using a shader rather than a liner for softer lines. Then he'd have to switch to color to blend in the final colors around the edge of the tattoo.
As soon as her skin was wiped down, his gloves changed, and the light on, Chase's focus was absolute.
His foot on the pedal, his pinky balanced his hand steadily on her skin. The needle vibrated and thrummed through his hand...
He carefully wiped away excess ink as he went. He was even more focused than usual from nervousness at being watched.
It wasn't like he'd never been watched before. It happened all the time. Bosses, apprentices, teachers, customers' partners...
But Jackson was different.
Chase drew a breath as he lifted his foot from the pedal and pulled the needle away. He smoothed a layer of Vaseline across her skin. "Now for the colors."
"Oh, wow, that looks great already." Kate knew to look past the reddened skin at the quality of the lines. Chase was thrilled with how smoothly they'd come out.
"Yeah, that's definitely what it needed."
Jackson murmured, "Wow. I bet everyone asks, but doesn't it hurt? You're bleeding..."
"Only a bit," Kate answered. "Somewhere fleshy, it's just a bit like getting pinched a lot. You sort of tune it out. My shoulder blade was the worst one – everything else was easy."
"Everyone's different," Chase added as he swapped machines. He showed her the color he'd already added. "Just like we said, yeah?"
"If you're sure it'll come out right."
"I promise," Chase chuckled. It didn't always look the same in the bottle as on skin, after all.
"All right, go for it."
"You need a break first?"
"Nah, get 'er done."
Jackson laughed and settled back again, and Chase leaned in to start coloring. This was much more fun. He enjoyed sketching and shading in black ink, but clients always appreciated color. The extra pinks shading the edges of the flowers would make them stand out. Making it look like a watercolor was a thrilling challenge.
"How 'bout... that?" he murmured a few minutes later.
Jackson murmured, "Dude, that was cool."
Kate laughed at him, then turned to get a good look. "Ohhh, yeah. You were right. That was the right color." She examined it carefully. "Yeah, that's perfect. I think that's just what it needed."
"Great," Chase concluded, then glanced at Jackson. "That was a really simple session. Usually there's more back-and-forth or Sharpies..."
Kate added, "Fighting over color choices..."
Chase laughed. "I was right, though, huh?" he teased, flicking her shoulder gently. "Okay, I'll get that cleaned up and covered and you're on your way."
"Awesome. Thanks."
As Chase bandaged the spot, he felt Jackson watching him with admiration. It was hard not to grin.
Chapter 21
Jackson
"Man, that was cool," Jackson said for about the third time once Kate was out the door and it was back to the two of them. He had a vivid memory of Chase's hands so carefully working across bare skin. He was precise with the sharp instrument, millimeters at a time, to create permanent art.
Chase grinned. He acted embarrassed at the attention, but it was easy to tell he loved it. He checked his phone, then tossed it onto the counter and turned to the cash register. "You really liked watching that. Maybe you should get some yourself..."
Oh, he was incorrigible. Jackson just laughed. "Like I said, we're starting with one."
"It can be a bigger one..." Chase winked. He pulled out the cash drawer. "Wanna lock the door?"
Jackson strode to the door, and while he was at it, he turned the sign to read Closed. While Chase brought the drawer to the office and cleaned up the room, Jackson waited by the counter.
He wasn't a snoop, but sometimes he couldn't help but notice things around him. His eyes were drawn down to the orange and beige of the Kijiji website on Chase's phone. It showed an apartment listing: one bedroom, one bathroom, close to downtown in Fredericton.
He's apartment-hunting? He never mentioned.
"You looking for a new place?" Jackson asked as soon as Chase emerged from the hall.
Chase almost froze on the spot. Then, he gave a nervous smile and grabbed his phone to pocket it. "Yep."
That was weird. "Your lease coming up?"
"Uh, maybe, I dunno," Chase answered vaguely and patted his pockets down for his stuff. "Where we goin' for drinks?"
Jackson took the hint, as curious as he was about why he'd gotten that reaction. "C'mon, just in walking distance." After Chase locked up, Jackson took Chase's hand to walk down the street with him towards a bar. They could finally unwind and grab sandwiches, chips, and a couple beers.
Jackson pushed back the empty basket of chips and wiped his fingers on a napkin, then hummed. "You never said why you're moving."
As much as he hated intruding on people's privacy, it was still bugging him. Chase's reaction was so weird – guilt, like he'd just been caught in the act of something or other.
Chase licked his lower lip and glanced down at his beer, his brow furrowed.
"I'm gonna ask what's going on when you act weird, you know," Jackson told him. "If you don't want me to know, you can tell me to fuck off. I won't be offended, I promise. You don't have to share everything with me."
Chase's shoulders sank and he offered Jackson a smile. "Uh... I need to move apartments. Don't wanna, but have to."
"Your landlord doing something illegal? Or neighbors? There's ways to break your lease, but there's usually a fee..."
"Oh, I know." Chase sounded bitter. "Boy, do I know."
Jackson leaned in. "I can put you in touch with the lawyer who helped me get my shed rezoned. He does all kinds of property stuff, and he's cheap. Might save you money if your lease break fee is high enough..."
Chase snorted and gulped the rest of his beer down, pushing back his glass. "No lawyers. I'll deal with whatever I have to."
Jackson rubbed his chin, then reached out to touch Chase's arm. "Just... let me know if I can help, all right? We still don't know each other super-well, but I worry about you."
It was true: it was easy to worry about Chase, especially when he had so many odd habits that Jackson just hadn't placed yet. Nothing that was a deal-breaker... just odd.
"Thanks," Chase smiled, then leaned in across the table to peck Jackson's lips. "C'mon, let's get home. Your place?"
"My place is good," Jackson agreed. They headed up to the bar, debit cards in hand. Before Chase could pay, he took the bill, playfully shouldering in past him.
"Thanks," Chase laughed from behind him. Chase touched the middle of his back as he waited next to him to leave.
They made polite conversation with the waiter. Jackson felt eyes on their back as they left the bar holding hands. He'd learned over the years there weren't as many people watching as it felt like, but it only took one asshole. Not that that would stop him. If he wanted to hold Chase's hand, fuck it, he would.
Besides, Chase's hand was warm in his, and Jackson was tingling at the looks Chase was starting to give him. They couldn't get home soon enough.
Chapter 22
Chase
Jackson's house had small piles of construction material in strange corners. It didn't look quite finished, but it felt... like home. Maybe because it smelled like Jackson and it had far more character than Chase's plain little apartment.
He and Jackson didn't even stop at the kitchen on the way up to Jackson's bedroom. Getting naked together was the best way to make up for their week apart.
As Jackson pulled off his jeans, Chase grabbed him from below to wrestle him onto the bed and on top of him.
Jackson laughed. "I missed you, too, babe," he murmured and leaned down to kiss Chase.
Chase arched into Jackson and rubbed their bodies together, grinding up against him. "Hnnh," he breathed out, his lashes fluttering closed to enjoy these kisses. "Lemme show you how much I missed you."
"You sure?" Jackson murmured, his eyes lighting up with amusement.
Chase let his gaze wander down from Jackson's eyes, across the curves and planes of his muscular chest. His stomach was tight, his biceps huge, his cock thick and half-hard already. It stood up in a stark reminder of what they both craved. Chase was rapidly getting hard against Jackson's thigh.
"Very."
He wanted to taste Jackson again. He was so fucking delicious, and Jackson responded so well when his thick cock was in Chase's mouth...
Chase grabbed Jackson's ass and slapped it to encourage him to scoot up over his chest.
"Nnh," Jackson grunted and grinned, brushing his hand back through Chase's hair. Then, he shifted himself up to kneel over Chase's chest. He gripped the headboard with one hand and his own cock with the other.