Page 4 of Adoring Ink

Holy hell. The man was sex on a stick.

“That’s good to know,” he said smoothly, his voice going deeper. “And if you’d ever like to test out that adventure on the back of my bike, since I saw the way you were looking at it, just let me know.” He grinned this time. “I’ll be right over at the shop if you’re interested after you finish your meal. It’s nice to meet you, Holly.” He nodded toward the others. “Ladies.”

And with that, he strolled away, back toward Montgomery Ink. Holly’s eyes were glued to his very firm butt encased in perfect-fitting jeans.

What the heck just happened?

One minute, she was thinking of an adventure. The next, this man drops out of nowhere and practically lands in her lap.

“Oh, boy,” Hailey said with a sigh. “It seems Brody has his eyes on you.”

Holly turned toward the other women. “No, he doesn’t. He was just being nice.”

Arianna snorted. “There was nothing nice about that. He was all sex lathered up in smooth caramel. I say if you’re looking for adventure, this Brody might be the one to help you out.”

“And in case you’re worried about him, don’t be,” Hailey put in. “He’s a good guy, and not one of those creeps who is good at pretending to be good.” She paused. “But if you’re serious about finding something new and fun, Brody might be the perfect guy for that.”

Holly stared at her friends, confused and a little worried. When she’d talked about adventure and being different if only for a moment, she hadn’t been thinking of a man.

But for some reason, she couldn’t get Brody out of her head.

And that could be dangerous.

Chapter Two

Brody Deacon strolled into Montgomery Ink and couldn’t help but smile. The buzzing sounds of the machines and artists at work soothed him. He’d been in one of the chairs in this room countless times before for all of his ink, and he knew he’d be in them again soon. Each person tattooed differently, and while some clients wanted the same artist to do every tattoo on them, Brody was a little different.

He liked the way the people in this room had created his artwork as a team. They each had their own strengths and weaknesses and made sure he got the best of the best. It helped that the crew at Montgomery Ink was some of the most talented artists in the country.

The owners, Austin and Maya, were sought out around the world and had waiting lists years long. He was damn lucky he’d been able to get work done at all.

Today, however, he wasn’t there for a tattoo. He’d taken his day off to help out the crew since they’d given him so much of themselves while laying the ink on his skin.

“You’re here,” Maya called out. “It’s about damn time.”

He rolled his eyes and leaned down to kiss her cheek. She glared at him, but he saw her mouth twitch. “I think your new slogan should be ‘It’s about damn time’ since I hear you say it so often.”

She flipped him off. The other artists in the room—Austin, Callie, Derek, Brandon, Blake, and Sloane—laughed.

“He’s got you pegged,” Austin said with a grin.

“Just watch yourself, Brody,” Callie warned, her smile wide. “She packs a punch.”

“I’d stand up to her, but she’d probably hit me,” Blake put in. “And then Graham would get all angry if I showed up with a black eye.”

Maya flipped them all off using both hands before laughing. Being smart, Derek, Brandon, and Sloane remained silent. When Maya went on a tear, it was best to proceed as you would if you met a bear in the woods. Look nonthreatening and act like you weren’t there before slowly backing away.

Or were you supposed to look big and powerful against a bear?

Maybe play dead?

Hell, he didn’t remember anymore and made a mental note to check that out later.

Maya snapped her fingers in front of his face, and he blinked, his mind coming back to the present and not the long, winding journey it had just gone down. “You there, Brody?”

“I’m here, darling. Just tell me where you want me.”

“One day, Jake and Border are going to kick your ass,” Austin said, his arms folded over his large chest. The man was big, bearded, and had once been more growly than not. Thankfully, marriage and kids had calmed him down some. Some.