| |
––––––––
“We’re closed,” I call without looking to see who entered my shop. “Read the sign on the door next time.”
Seriously, I’m working on some new designs here. I’m not even wearing a shirt because the air conditioning blew out last week, and now it’s way too hot in here.
“I’m sorry,” I hear a woman say. “I’ll be out of your hair in a minute.”
I look up, and if I didn’t know any better, I’d think the AC started working again because I get goosebumps all over my body. Leaning against the door like a scared cat is a curvy goddess. She keeps looking over her shoulder as if there’s a threat in the street.
I put my sketching pad and pencil down and get up. After pulling a shirt over my head, I walk over to her. “Is everything okay?”
“Yup.”
I peer out the window. “Do you have a stalker or something?”
“No, why?”
I rake a hand through my hair. “Because you keep looking over your shoulder.”
“Oh, yeah, that’s um... It’s okay. I’m doing great.”
Man, she’s confused and nervous. I don’t know what to make of her, but the least I can do is offer her a seat. Maybe she’ll open up about why she dashed into my shop like this.
I pull a chair out from under my desk. “You can sit down if you want.”
“Thanks. I’m Roxy, by the way.”
“I’m Nate.”
She slides into the chair and offers me a sheepish smile. “You probably think I’m nuts, but I promise you I’m not.”
I laugh. “Good to know. I like my women sane.”
“Phew.”
“Are you looking to get inked?” I ask.
I let my eyes trail over her skin, but I don’t see any tattoos. She doesn’t have any yet, or they’re hidden under her clothes.
“Not really.” She sighs. “I should explain. Also, is it me, or is it hot in here?”
“The air conditioning. Stopped working about a week ago.”
“Oh, I see. Anyway, I hid in here from a horrible girl I used to know back in high school.”
I frown. “Was she threatening you? If you need to call the cops, please do so. My brother Derek is the town sheriff, so you’re in good hands.”
It’s true. Although I wish she were in my hands.
“It’s nothing like that. She made my life miserable in high school, and I bumped into her today. Turns out, she’s still as horrible. Some people never change.” She flinches. “Macie even called me by that awful nickname she came up with years ago.”
“Nickname?”
She bites her lip and searches my face as if afraid of confiding in me. “She always teased me because I was a bit on the heavy side. She and her friends started calling me Boxy Roxy. One time, they lured me to the local burger place with a fake text from the guy I had a crush on. I thought he wanted to date me, but he wasn’t there when I arrived. I figured he was running late. Macie and her friends were there, though. They were seated at the booth behind me and couldn’t stop laughing while I kept checking the time. After thirty minutes, I realized it was a silly prank, and my crush wouldn’t show up.”
My blood scorches my veins. That’s how angry I get thinking about how this kind girl got treated by her peers. I’ll never understand the need to put someone down like that, but I get why some do it. Hurt people hurt people. This Macie girl undoubtedly has it rougher than she lets on. Still, that’s no excuse to treat people like crap.
“What did she do to you today that made you run in here?”
“She kept nagging me about being single, so I told her a little lie. I owe you an apology, by the way.”
“Me? What for? We’ve never even met. How could you owe me an apology? Unless it was you who broke the AC,” I say with a grin.
She laughs. “No, I didn’t. But I did tell her you and I are a couple. I’m truly sorry. I wanted her to back off, and I panicked. Then she asked me if I was going to our high school reunion with you. Not that I’m planning on going. I graduated five years ago and vowed never to set foot in that school again.”
“Five years ago?”
“That’s right.”
Wow. If she graduated five years ago, I’m twelve years her senior. We’re worlds apart. She’s in her twenties. I’m in my thirties. What an age gap.
Not that it matters. She’s only here to hide from her high school nemesis. After today, I’ll probably never see her again.
“At least you got rid of her by coming in here,” I say.
She nods. “I know, but I feel like I didn’t stand up to her. All I did was run. And what if she finds out it was all a lie? If she wasn’t laughing at me before, she sure will when she discovers the truth. I should never have told her you and I were going to the reunion together.”
“When is this reunion?”
She knits her eyebrows together. “This weekend. Why?”
“It’s settled then. We’ll go.”
“We will?”
“That’s right. I’ll be your fake boyfriend, and you’ll be able to stand up to Macie. When she sees how happy you are, she’ll back off. Living well is the best revenge, after all.”
She blushes. “You would do that for me? We’ve only known each other for like twenty minutes.”
Deep down, I know she’s right. This is fucking insane. But... if that’s true, why am I so attracted to her? Why do I feel the need to get to know this girl better and to help her?
“I’ll go to the reunion with you if you tell me what you think of these new designs,” I say.
“Okay. I can do that.”
I grab my sketching pad and show her three designs I drew. “These are all tattoos that will go in the exclusives book. I only ink every design once.”
She takes the pad from me and studies my drawings. Her finger traces one of the lines. What would it be like if she were tracing my skin like that?
“I love this one,” she says, tapping the page. “The others are great too, but this is by far my favorite. It speaks to me for some reason I can’t explain.”
It’s a drawing of a vibrantly colored hummingbird extracting nectar from a flower. Its delicate, slender beak and the bright hues of its tail make it a mesmerizing picture.
“I can ink this on your skin if you want,” I offer.
Her eyes grow wide. “You don’t have to do that. Besides, I don’t know if I’m the kind of girl who gets tattoos.”
“Enlighten me. What kind of girl gets tattoos?”
She shrugs, a dreamy smile playing on her lips as she tells me. “A girl who knows what she wants and goes for it. Who doesn’t back down or let anyone stop her from chasing her dreams. Someone... bold and feisty and good-looking.”
“You are good-looking, so I don’t see a problem there.”
Her cheeks color red again. “Thanks, but you don’t have to do that.”
“Do what?”
“Say these things to make me feel better. I know why Macie and her friends used to call me Boxy Roxy. You don’t need to lie for my sake.”
I pin her down with a look. “I only ever tell the truth, Roxy. If I’d been in your class back in high school, I would’ve called you Ravishing Roxy. Now that’s a nickname that suits you.”
She averts her eyes, and I’m afraid I’ve crossed a line with her, but then she looks back at me with a twinkle in her eye. “Ravishing Roxy, huh? That does sound great.”
“I know. I should’ve been a poet, right?”
She tilts her head back and laughs, and the entire tattoo shop lights up because of her.
“So, it’s settled then. I’m going to the reunion with you, and I’ll be the best fake date you’ve ever had. I’ll pretend to be madly in love with you.”
Not that it would take a big effort. All kinds of feelings are already simmering inside me whenever I look at her.
“Thank you, Nate. I truly appreciate it.”
“I’m glad I can help.”
And also delighted that I get to spend more time with this girl. I honestly can’t wait until the weekend rolls around and we can go out together, even if it’s all supposed to be fake.