Page 27 of Screwed
He met her eyes and held her gaze steadily. Her belly muscles tightened. Finally she said, “You don’t have to take me to get this done.” Her smile faded. “Especially if you don’t approve.”
He lifted one shoulder. “Hey, it’s none of my business if you get a tattoo or not. It’s your decision. I just want to make sure you don’t end up with some kind of monstrosity or an infection. At least I know Mystic Tiger is clean and everyone is competent.”
“Okay then. Let’s go.”
An hour and a half later, Callie walked out of Mystic Tiger with a bandage on her finger, her hand throbbing a little, kind of like a mild burn. On the sidewalk in front of the shop, she let out a littlewhoopof triumph and pumped her left fist into the air.
Cash lifted an eyebrow at her.
“I did it!” She grinned. “That was awesome! See how tough I am?” She gave his upper arm a punch, a little awkwardly because it was her left hand.
“Always knew you were strong, darlin’. Just hope you don’t regret this in the morning.”
She snorted. “Regrets are for horseshoes and hairdos.”
He choked on a laugh as they walked toward his truck.
“It hurt while he was doing it.” She winced. “But it got to be kind of fun to see how much pain I could stand.” Weirdly, she’d gotten almost high, like she was floating. And even more weird? She felt turned on. Her inner thighs rubbed together as she walked, and her girl parts tingled. Whoa. Her entire body was sensitized.
“Should I take you home?” He jingled his keys. “Or you want to go get dinner?”
“Hmm. Dinner sounds good, actually. I don’t think I’ve eaten all day.”
“What?” He glared at her.
“I was too busy baking. I had a couple of cookies.” She shrugged. “But although I may have been willing to go to a tattoo parlor looking like this, I’mnotwilling to go out for dinner this way.”
“We could go back to your place so you can change.”
She remembered last night and running into that client and his wife, who’d been clearly curious about why she was with Beau’s business partner. “Nah. Why don’t we just pick up something and take it home to eat?”
After a short pause, Cash said, “Sure.”
In his truck, they bickered over sushi versus pizza versus tacos. In the end, Cash let her have her way, and they drove to Tokyo Sushi in Rice Village.
After they ordered, Callie wandered back outside and onto the sidewalk. The late-afternoon heat surrounded her, and she strolled down the street, checking out the cute little shops. She loved the Village, with its eclectic mix of boutiques and eateries. She passed a little wine café she enjoyed, then a shop where she liked to buy yoga clothes. She paused in front of a building that was now vacant and studied theFor Rentsign in the window. She tilted her head, unable to remember what used to be in this location. She pressed her nose to the glass to peer in, but it was hard to see anything.
“What are you doing?” Cash’s deep voice behind her made her jump.
“Just nosing around. Do you remember what used to be here?”
“I think it was a coffee shop.”
“Oh, that’s right. I wonder why they closed down.”
He shrugged. “I think they’ve been closed a while. Come on, let’s get our food. It’s probably ready.”
They picked up their huge platter of assorted rolls, along with tempura vegetables and edamame.
At home in her kitchen she pulled out a container of food and set it on the island. “We’re never going to eat all this.”
“Don’t underestimate my appetite.” He patted his flat abs.
“Oh right. The winner of the Omega Chi taco eating contest. How could I forget?” She was oddly distracted by the sight of his hand on his abs, and that tingling between her thighs was still there. Her gaze wandered over his torso and then lower to his low-rise jeans that were well worn, especially over the bulge behind his fly. A quivery sensation rippled through her belly.
He grinned. “To this day, nobody has beaten my record.” He lifted the plastic lid off a platter, then his smile faded as he saw where she was looking. His eyes went heavy-lidded, and a muscle twitched in his jaw.
Callie’s face heated at being caught ogling him. Tension arced between them as they stared at each other, the moment dragging out a little too long.
