Page 71 of Down & Dirty: Rage

“Uh huh. I’ve never known you to be a liar.”

“I’m…” She bit her bottom lip.

“See? You can’t even lie about being a liar!”

“Keep your voice down! I really don’t need my employees to know my business.”

“And that you got the business?” Avery grinned.

At least Carl was gone, but Trish and their resident goth girl, Raven, were in their areas busy tattooing. Hopefully they couldn’t hear shit above the whir of their tattoo machines.

“If it wasn’t Rage, who was it, then? Spill, bitch! We don’t ever keep anything from each other. Don’t make me burn our best friend cards.” When Lyric covered her eyes and groaned, Avery grabbed her wrists and yanked her hands back down. “Fess up! Because if I’m right, we have something to celebrate!”

Just as she thought. Avery would want to make a big deal over something Lyric wanted to keep on the down low. But before she could try to head off Avery again, the front door opened.

Saved by the bell!

“My next client is here.”

“Your next client is your father?”

“What?” She twisted her head to see Crow heading in her direction. She bugged her eyes out at Avery to make sure she kept her mouth shut.

With a grin, she elbowed Lyric and whispered, “Why is your dad so fucking hot, even as old as he is?”

Lyric scrunched up her face and shoved her back. “Eww. Will you stop lusting over the men in my family?”

“Never!” she exclaimed. “We’ll talk about that other thing later. I want details.” She wiggled her eyebrows.

“None to give.”

“Uh huh.” Avery stood and said, “I need to get back.” She paused to give Crow a quick hug. “How are you doing,Daddy?”

“For fuck’s sake,” Crow muttered at the same time Lyric fake gagged.

Of course, Avery had always teased him like that, but now, Daddy meant something totally different than when they had been connected at the hip as kids.

Crow’s brow dropped low in feigned annoyance, even though he treated Avery like a daughter. “Ain’t you supposed to be somewhere?”

“Heading there now!” Avery said in a singsong cadence. She added an exaggerated wink to the ridiculous finger wave she shot Lyric. “Toodles, bitch.”

Lyric expected to be relieved once Avery left, but instead, her father had shown up.

Why?

Her heart began to thump. Didheknow? The blood drained from her face. “Is something wrong?”

Crow stopped beside her. “Dunno. You tell me. Left pretty damn early this mornin’.”

Having her parents know her business was one of the hazards of still living with them. And why she was saving to move out.

“Was worried somethin’ was wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong,Até.”

Of course she screwed up by using the Lakota term for “father” since it set off his fatherly instincts. She normally used it when trying to get on his good side, which was just about every side unless you screwed him over.

Or he had a reason to suspect something.