“Told you I’d behave.”
She smiles, and actually it’s one of the few times she’s not being hostile to me. I… I like it. She’s beautiful when she smiles. Her whole face just lights up.
It makes my heart race and my cock throb. Even just a quick glance at her bare neck – she’s got her hair tied up – brings me up. I want to bite her there, lick her, taste her. God, my lust for her is carnal, almost savage. I want to bite her until it hurts, and then a little more.
“You did behave,” she says. “To my great surprise.” She gives me an accusing stare, as if to ask, ‘What’s your angle?’. I just play it off as nothing. I got no angle. She knows I want her.
Penny clears her throat. “Tina did a good job with the shading, didn’t she?”
“She did,” I agree.
“Does it hurt?”
“No. Tingles.” I pull the Porsche over. “We’re going to Lou’s.”
“Lou’s?” she says. “That sounds like an American pizza restaurant, or something.”
“That’s because it is,” he says. “Deep dish, Chicago style. Thought you’d like something from home.”
There it is again, that smile. God, she looks amazing when she smiles.
I lick my lower lip, and bunch my brows together for a moment. I don’t think I’ve ever thought something like that before.
“Thanks, but it’s not really just a Chicago thing anymore. I had no idea they had something like that over here?”
“American themed restaurants are popular here,” he says. “Mexican, too.”
I get out, and then help her out of the car on her side. It’s so low that she practically has to climb up onto the curb.
As we step into the bar-and-restaurant, a smattering of American accents reach us. I see Penny looking around, perhaps a little surprised that there’s such a large American enclave in the form of a restaurant. The place is heaving, and the television above the bar is playing one of yesterday’s college basketball games.
“This feels pretty authentic,” she says.
“How’s that?”
“I don’t know. Just the decorations, the atmosphere.”
“Well, it’s popular.”
“With Aussies, too?”
“Oh, yeah, sure,” I say, flagging down a waitress. “They love this shit over here. They pretend to hate the ‘yanks’, but really they’re enamored with us.”
We get seated in our own booth, pick out a spinach and mushroom mix, and then order drinks. To my surprise, she gets a vodka-martini.
Penny shrugs when she sees my expression. “Dad and I have this thing where we watch a James Bond movie every other weekend together. I don’t really like them, but he does. Anyway, I’ve always wanted to try one.”
“The old ones are the best ones.”
She snorts. “More like the most misogynistic ones.”
“So, what made you want to become a tattoo artist?”
Penelope grins, and peers at me. “What is this? You pretending not to be a dick?”
“Got a bite, do you?”
“Seriously, Pierce. Why are we here?”
“Why do you need a reason for everything? It’s like you’re always suspicious, always need to know every detail. Don’t be so insecure.”
“I’m not being insecure,” she says. “I just don’t believe this whole act you’re putting on.”
“What act is that?”
“The whole dinner date thing.”
“We’re on a date?” I ask, smirking. “You just can’t say no to me, can you?”
“I’m going to leave,” she tells me. “Really. I only agreed to come because I was curious as to what you might want.”
“You’re so prickly all the time. It’s like defusing a bomb trying to get to know you.”
“Well, get used to it, because I’m not letting my guard down.”
I lean back. “You going to tell me?”
“Tell you what?”
“What made you want to become a tattoo artist.”
“You tell me what made you want to become a fighter first.”
I shrug. “Fair enough. My dad’s brother, Uncle James. He was a boxer when he was young. He was pro, but not very well ranked. Before—”
“I don’t need a retelling of your life story.”
“Are you going to let me tell you or not, Pen?”
“Fine.”
“Before my dad died, he showed me an old black and white recording of Uncle James boxing. He wasn’t a hard hitter, and he had a bit of a glass jaw, but fuck me he could dance in the ring. He was so springy, always moving, like a rabbit on amphetamines. I was just mesmerized by it. He could dodge and evade like no other. I wasn’t a big kid growing up. It wasn’t until I was about sixteen that I hit a second growth spurt, so his style was attractive to me. I mean, half the time he wore his opponents out, and when their guard was down, that’s how he scored his points.”