A burst of amused air leaves my nose. When I was little, Ihatedbeing called ‘Spot’. It was Dot or Dottie and nothing else as far as I was concerned. And with Theo being a cheeky teenage boy, helovedseeing me stomp my foot whenever I got mad. Spot was the only way he’d refer to me.
“I haven’t heard that nickname inyears,” I say, my mouth tilting up at the memory of grumpy little me.“Thirty-three to be exact.”
“Long time between visits,” Theo says, closing the portfolio he was looking at and standing.
“Didn’t notice you coming to see me either, Theo,” I scoff, rolling my eyes because I was only six when our parents sold the farm and moved Duke and me to the suburbs. It wasn’t long after that before Duke got an apprenticeship and moved even closer to Sugar City for work, meaning I never really had the opportunity to interact with his friends the way I did back in Cedarwood Valley. That, and I’m pretty sure Duke purposely kept his friends away from me. For a long time, I thought it was because he was embarrassed of chubby little me. But as time went on, I realized it was just him being a protective older brother. Something Theo confirms for me with his next comment.
“Duke was like the dragon protectin’ your ivory tower, Spot. Never trusted a single guy around you. Still doesn’t, if I’m honest.”
“That explains my love life then,” I mutter, fingering the gemstone necklace that hangs around my neck as I turn away to start cleaning up my workstation. It’s strange because this gemstone feels warm between my fingers, yet cool when I release it and it taps against my skin. The ladies in the Soulwink Society—a group of Whisper Valley women who swear they experienced a phenomenon where their souls ‘winked’ when they met their husbands—believe that this colorful little stone has magical properties that help to draw two soulmates together. One of their members once put a bunch of these gems inside some candles and sent them out into the world, which is how my new sister-in-law, Ava, came to visit Whisper Valley and meet Duke. Then Ava took those gems and turned them into necklaces. Which is how one came to hang around my neck. I’m yet to feel confident in its power though, since all I’ve felt is rejection since putting it on before the wedding.
“What was that?”
“Nothing.” My cheeks heat because I didn’t mean to lament my lack of love so loud. “I just said I need to tidy up.”
“Listen, I know it’s pretty late,” Theo says, coming up behind me. “But if you’re willing, I’d love for you to add something to one of my sleeves.” When he lifts his arms and turns them side to side, the muscles ripple and flex under his tattooed skin.
“Like what?” I ask, feeling all warm at the thought of putting my hands on this man’s body. He may not want me, but I certainly can’t shake the thought of wanting him. I might not get anywhere here, but a girl can dream, right?
His mouth curves up in a slow grin. “Anythin’ you want.”
I hold off on replying too quickly, not trusting my voice to come out steady when I’m standing this close to him with my thoughts swimming dangerously close to filthy waters. It’s strange how a person can exist for so long in your memory, frozen as the boy he was, and then suddenly you meet again and all of that has changed. He’s a man now, and even though you can see hints of the cheeky boy in the light behind his eyes, something tells you that he doesn’t pull pigtails anymore. Oh no. This man pulls hair. And for the first time ever, I want to get my hair pulled.
“So…you’re just going to sit there and let me do whatever I want?” I ask when I’m sure I can speak without squeaking.
“Sure. Why not?” He pulls back then narrows his eyes slightly. “You’re not gonna draw a dick and balls on me though, are you?”
“I’d never stoop so low,” I say, giving him a wicked smirk. “But why don't you take off your shirt instead? I don’t want to mess with these sleeves, but if you’ve got some skin on your back or torso, I could do something there.” I’m not going to pretend like I’m not creating an excuse to see this man shirtless either. This request is purely personal under the guise of being professional. And I’m not even a little bit sorry.
“You want un-inked skin?” he asks, pulling his shirt off in one swoop. “I’ve got plenty of it.” When he drops his shirt to the side, I have to hold my breath to stop from gasping. This man isripped.
“Um. Yeah, OK,” I say, trying not to linger too long on any one muscle group. The tattoos he currently has are the very definition of sleeves, starting at his shoulders and ending at his wrists. Beside a couple of smallish pieces on his back and chest, it’s pretty much open real estate.And I get to add anything to it I want…
This opportunity almost feels too good to be true.
I gesture at the now-clean station. “Why don’t you take a seat and I’ll get my equipment ready,” I say, wracking my brain for something small yet meaningful. Since the only thing I really know about the adult him is that he spends most of his time traveling, I settle on my version of a North Star just under his left collarbone above his heart.
“You gonna let me see this before you add ink to it?” he asks, trying to angle his head to see what I’ve just freehand sketched onto his skin.
“That would defeat the purpose of letting me do whatever I want, wouldn’t it?” I say, flashing him a smile as I pop the cap back on my marker.
“Can’t argue with that,” he says, watching intently as I pick up my machine and check the needle.
“Last chance to turn back,” I say, loading it with ink.
“Don’t want to. Do with me what you will,” he says, and I can’t deny that I get a little heat between the thighs at the thought of doing just that. Theo Oliver grew upwell.
“I think I owe you an apology,” Theo says when I’m about halfway through lining the design.
“What for?”
“The weddin’. I should have danced with you.”
“It’s honestly fine, Theo. It’s not like I couldn’t have come to ask you myself, right? It is the twenty-first century after all.”
“Maybe. But it was wrong of me to ask and then not collect. And I feel like skipping out on you has caused us to get off on the wrong foot when we should be here having fun reminiscing over old times.”
“I’m not holding a grudge, Theo,” I sigh. “Did it annoy me? Yes. But can I move past it? Of course.” I pause my work so I can look up at him and grin. “Besides, that tray of oil sloshing all over you kind of makes us even.”
