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I flinch a bit and try to not to think about it. I distract myself as best I can by staring at the posters that adorn the walls and looking for shapes in the textured ceiling.
“So, you and Serena, man…” Rooster comments with a snicker. “She’s a hot piece of ass.”
“Fuck you,” Derek says, punctuating his words with a middle finger in Rooster’s direction. He pushes his hat down over his eyes and slumps lower in his chair.
“Guess he’s done talking to me,” Rooster remarks.
“I’ll talk to you when it’s my turn in the chair and you’re not being an asshole.”
More snickers erupt from Rooster, and he turns his attention to me. “So, brother is a bass player. What does little sister Audrey do?”
“How do you know I’m the little sister?” I ask.
“Lucky guess,” he tells me.
“I’m a fitness instructor.”
“I can see that.” His eyes lazily take in my body as he laughs.
“Knock it off.” Derek’s tone is sharp, but it only causes Rooster to laugh some more. “I’m only pretending to sleep, but I’m not deaf.”
Rooster ignores him. “What do you do, work in a gym or something?”
“I train clients either in gyms or out of my home, and then I’m also on Beachbody with a couple of fitness programs that anyone can do anytime they want. I have a few smaller classes up there too.”
“Nice. Good for you.” He’s quiet for a bit, concentrating. He already has the waves done, and soon he’ll be working on the fish. “Would you like me to shade those waves?”
I stare at my arm, not sure what to say. I haven’t really thought this tattoo through as thoroughly as I normally would have. “Uh…”
Derek rises from the chair and looks at the ink on my ribs. “Yeah, shade them. Sorry, Aud, this part is going to be kind of painful, but it’ll be worth it in the end.”
He’s right. When I’m all done and bandaged up, the pain was worth it. I really like Rooster’s work, although I had a feeling I would based on what Derek had said about him.
Derek is now in the chair, ready to get inked. I study his chest and his hard, toned stomach. His whole body is a work of art, not just the tattoos he has but all those muscle and lines. He clears his throat, and our eyes meet. Derek snickers.
Great. Caught ogling him yet again.
Derek’s eyes stay on me the whole time he’s getting a tattoo. He stares at me so intently that my mind starts to play tricks on me. I think the look in his eyes is lust, and maybe the foolish way I’ve been feeling at him catching me staring at him was all for nothing. That he realized I have this stupid little crush on him and that it’s okay because he feels it too. Just as those thoughts are going through my mind, Derek winks at me. Like he can read my mind and he’s agreeing with everything I’m thinking and feeling. I clench my thighs together. I’m getting wet from just one look.
I bite my lip to keep from saying or even doing something stupid.
Rooster breaks the silence with some stupid conversation about Serena, and the spell is broken. His eyes may be focused on me, but that look is gone. He’s busy bristling over the shit Rooster is giving him for dating Serena.
“Tell me something though, man. Is she really as vapid as she seems?” Rooster asks, pausing the gun over his pec for a moment.
Derek just shrugs. I think it pains him that he can’t come clean about the lie. But with the way his life is, you never know who’s listening, and I have a feeling that while Derek may like Rooster, he’s not sure how much of his confidence would be kept. So, Derek keeps up the lie in front of him and steers Rooster to other topics, like the rescheduling of the lightning tattoo.
Once our tattoos are done, we make our way up to the counter. I go to pull my card out to pay, but Derek stops me.
“I made you get this, so my treat.” He hands Rooster a black card, and he immediately runs it. I don’t even have time to protest.
“Thanks,” I say.
“You two have a great day,” Rooster says as he hands Derek the card back. “Enjoy your time together.” He winks at us like he knows. Like he’s been let in on our little secret and is dying to torture Derek with it later.
“See ya, man.” Derek takes my hand and leads me out of the parlor.
“Thank you,” he says when we’re out on the street. He kisses my hand. “This was perfect.”
