Is it possible that this is just some fucked-up coincidence? But he knew it wasn’t. He only knew one Hailey Shilley, and she was the little sister of his best buddy, Ryan. But when he’d last seen Hailey, she’d just turned fourteen. Their dad was transferred to New Mexico and that was the last time he saw or thought of her.
She grew up real nice. He shook his head forcefully. Damnit! This is Ryan’s little sister. He couldn’t go there. Even though he was drawn to her, and he suspected she was to him, he couldn’t start anything with her. Ryan would kill me. I just have to forget about her.
He prepared his room, then went to the front. Only one of the guys was sitting on the couch. “My buddy went with the other dude,” he said.
Goldie nodded and motioned him to follow. I always call my customers after they get a tattoo. I’ll give her a quick call tomorrow and then it’ll be done. What’s one call going to hurt?
Resolute in his decision, he motioned for the guy to sit in the chair, and then he closed the door.
Chapter Two
Hailey groaned when she turned on her back in bed. Rolling to her left side, she glanced at her digital clock and grimaced: five thirty. The area where she got her tattoo throbbed, so she pushed herself out of bed and padded to the bathroom to take two Tylenols. I can’t believe I got a tattoo on my butt. I can’t believe I let that gorgeous guy see my butt, and touch it. She silently swore she’d never drink White Russians again. She’d lost her head the previous night. And Rory and Claudia were just as much to blame as she was. They pushed me into doing it. But she knew she was more than willing. She’d wanted one for such a long time but never had the nerve to do it, especially when she’d been living with her parents in Albuquerque.
After filling the glass with water, she downed the Tylenol, then went back to bed. It was Sunday morning and she wanted to sleep in. It was the only day she had off from the flower shop she was running for her aunt Patty. It’d been eight months since she’d come back to Alina—her hometown. She wasn’t sure how she’d feel about it, but she had to admit it was great being back with her two best friends, Rory and Claudia. The three of them had known each other since they were old enough to walk, and even though they’d kept up with each other through social media, it wasn’t the same as being together again in the same town.
Closing her eyes, she hoped sleep would come, but the handsome face of the tattoo artist stayed in her mind. He was definitely hot, with his muscled chest and his tight, sculpted biceps. She was a sucker for a man’s biceps, and the cutie from the previous night had the best pair of arms she’d seen in a very long time. Maybe even the best ever.
But it hadn’t stopped there. His face was smooth and clean-shaven, just the way she liked it. So many men had scruff, but she loved to run her fingers over a freshly shaved face. When she’d first seen him, his blue eyes pierced her like shards of ice on a wintry day. It was like he was trying to see inside her core, her essence. It both unnerved and excited her at the same time. He had a nice sprinkling of tattoos on his built arms, and she found herself sneaking peeks at him whenever he wasn’t looking. His jaw was square and his cheekbones high, but it was his full lips that beckoned her. I bet they’re soft but firm. He struck her as a man who would know how to please a woman.
Tingles skated across her skin as she imagined being in his arms, his mouth pressed against hers, her body fused to his. She licked her lips. I really need to get laid. I’ve been here for eight months and haven’t even kissed a guy. The problem was that she was so busy at the flower shop, and the men who did approach her just didn’t do it for her. They didn’t spark anything in her to make it worth her while. No one really had except for the rough, sexy tattoo artist. Just thinking about him made her shiver all over.
He probably has a girlfriend. And he’s probably a cheat. A guy that good-looking never has a shortage of women.
The vibration of her phone startled her. Who in the hell is calling me at this hour? Warmth flooded her when she saw Ryan’s name flash on her screen.
“Do you know what time it is?” She tried to sound pissed but failed miserably.
“It’s a quarter to three in the afternoon in Bahrain.” His chuckle rumbled over the phone.
She winced when she rolled onto her back and quickly turned back to her side. “You’re in Bahrain? Are you on leave?”
“Yeah. A few of us are here for four days. I’d rather be in Alina though. You getting used to being back?”
“I am. I’m just so busy all the time with Aunt Patty’s shop. She didn’t listen to the doctor and went back to work, and then she had to get another operation. I told her I could take care of everything and for her to relax and stay off her leg.”