I shake my head with a slight laugh. “Baby girl, that sounds horrific. Your body is perfect to me. Somehow my hands permanently etched into your skin doesn’t scream sexy to me.”“Definitely not. You know there are people who come in to get work like that done. One guy came in and asked for his dick to be inked. He wanted the slogan ‘Melts in your mouth’ wrapped around it like a Christmas tree garland.”“Ouch.” Laughter erupts between us, and I know there’s no way in hell I’m letting another man or woman touch my cock to tattoo it. “I wonder how painful it is.”“Have you ever wanted to get some work done?”“Not really. I’ve seen some amazing pieces done. A client of mine runs a gym and has his entire back done of Muhammad Ali versus Joe Frazier. It’s one of the most iconic moments in boxing and sports history. He loves it and loves talking about it. I like that aspect of tattoos in that it’s art. It evokes emotion.”Raina nods. “You mean if it’s good, it evokes emotion.”“No, even if y
RAINAThere’s an air of rebellion I feel every time I step inside Tattoo Heaven.Come in and get inked by an angel or a demon. Angel always brags that his wife, Avery, must have sold her soul to be such a damned good artist. The way he looks at her with love in his eyes reminds me of the way I feel when Rex can’t keep his eyes or hands off me.Angel’s not as tall as Rex, but he’s stocky and covered in ink. Avery has two sleeves of artwork that she displays regularly. The glass display case that separates the waiting area from the rest of the shop is now sitting in front of a temporary partition. The accordion-looking paper wall typically goes up whenever someone has an appointment to get a sensitive body part worked on.“Hey, honey. What are you doing here?” Avery asks, her snowflake tattoo beaming in the morning sunlight shining through the window. “I thought you were getting out of town for a few days.”“Owen had other plans that made us rethink that. Rex is running around a bit, bu
REXThe tin box sitting in my passenger seat has dents in it from where I had to pull it out from under the sink. What the hell was Owen thinking by leaving it there?I call him as soon as I get into my car. Luckily for me, he answers right away. “What’s wrong, Rex?”“For starters, your little stunt last night set off all kinds of alarms at Raina’s place. I have her place wired with cameras and motion sensors,” I tell him with a twinge of annoyance.“Did you find it?” he asks, with his voice barely above a whisper.“The box? Yes, I found it. It didn’t take a search party or anything. Pretty fucking obvious hiding spot if you ask me.”“I wanted it to be obvious to you. Those are the originals in that box. I have copies with me and that’s what I’m using to lay breadcrumbs for the agents I’m working with.”“Is talking on your phone okay? I feel like you shouldn’t be talking on the phone about this.”He sighs. “I probably shouldn’t but I just don’t give a fuck anymore, Rex. I’m tired of b
“This is Rex Remington, Mr. Carlyle. Owen’s partner at the firm. Is there something I can do for you that will persuade you to let Raina and the owners of that shop walk out of there? Surely, you’re not holding them hostage.”“That’s a dangerous accusation, Mr. Remington. They’re all fine. Now, as I see things, the shop is open for business. The owners have clients and things to tattoo while Raina is simply keeping me company as a receptionist does. No one’s being held hostage, but they can’t just walk out of the shop during business hours. No, no. They’ll stay put until Owen drags thatbrokenfucking leg down here to talk to me.”He’s smart and I don’t want to play games with this guy. Still, I have to stall on the off-chance that Owen can do something right and figure a way out of this.“How about I come inside for us to discuss the situation like gentlemen?”“It’s a free fucking country, Remington.”He ends the call and hands the phone back to Raina. I’m not going to leave her in the
RAINAShades of red bloom across Rex’s forehead along with a pulsating vein on his temple.My heart is racing, but Rex is doing everything in his power to keep his anger under control. Lorenzo Carlyle is infuriating and manipulative. Worst of all, Owen is in up to his neck with this guy.This is the kind of person Owen gets himself tangled up with and then leaves them to barrel their way into my life. He’s so fucking selfish. He never thinks about me.“Baby girl, how are you doing?” Rex asks quietly. His eyes shift from me to Lorenzo to Angel and the gun on the counter.Lorenzo sucks his teeth, taking Angel’s gun to put it in his waistband. “You should not play with guns, Mr. Ramirez. They’re dangerous, and someone can get hurt.”Angel pushes a low exhale through his nostrils, making sure to keep Avery behind him. A woman, Kelly if I remember correctly from the appointment book, begins walking toward the door. Her curly hair jostles in a high bun as she reaches for the door and pulls
REXFor fuck’s sake.Raina doesn’t waste any time with that devilish smile and sinks to her knees in front of me. Those bold blue eyes staring up at me with the most preciousFuck Meface a guy can want. Blood pumps directly to my cock while she watches me slide my pants off and sit back down on the bed.I know this is her first time putting me in her mouth, but my body is ready to explode with anticipation.“Tell me how to make you feel good, Daddy.”“You should lick your lips. Taste it first.”She puts her tiny hand around my shaft, positions herself above it, and kisses it gently.“Kiss it the way you’d kiss me. See how it feels and what it tastes like.”She lowers her mouth onto the head, swiping her tongue across the tip and lighting up every never ending in my dick. I don’t have to say much more as she finds a rhythm, moaning with every sultry kiss of my cock.Fuck me, she’s going to make me come before I’m ready.I need to feel her walls tightening around me as I sink myself insi
I help Raina clean up after I pull out of her, and she goes back to making pancakes. The first bite is damn near as orgasmic as fucking her first thing in the morning.“This is good, baby girl.”“Thank you, Daddy,” she says with a kiss and sets a mug of coffee beside my plate.“I want every morning to be like this one,” I admit to her. However, looking at the food, there’s only enough for the two of us. “Listen, baby girl. I know Owen’s not on your list of favorite people, but I don’t think we should let him starve.”“He left,” she says with a shrug and slides a note over to me. “Look.”I read it out loud:Rex, I know I’ve always made a mess of things. From having you help me get through law school to showing up for Raina every time I couldn't. I hate admitting that you’re the better man, but you are, in life and with her. Keep looking after her, keep taking care of her, and finally, thank you for always taking care of me.When you go into the office, you’ll find my contracts, liquida
RAINAOne Year LaterThe sound of Rebecca Remington’s newborn wails piercing through the late-night hours has me on edge.She’s only a few weeks old, the most beautiful thing in this world, and is in full control over me and my body for the foreseeable future.Sleep isn’t ready to let me go check on our daughter who’s my steepest competition for her father’s attention. It brings a smile to my face to see how in love he is with her, with us. Even now, as I flip the blanket off me, the space beside me is empty.I groan because I know that Rebecca wants Mommy to feed her. We’ve been trying to give her a bottle, with every attempt ending in failure. My feet drag across the carpet from our bedroom into the spare room that we’ve transformed into her nursery.The closer I get, the quieter it seems. I can’t imagine she’s put herself back to sleep. It’s time for her morning feeding. When I poke my head inside the room, I see the sweetest sight.Rex is sitting in the chair with Rebecca swaddled