He wiggles his eyebrows. “I saw you checking me out.”
I blush hard.
“That one’s just purely dumb.” He laughs. “I got it on a whim. It has absolutely no meaning.”
“Oh my gosh. I couldn’t get something inked into my skin if it didn’t have a meaning.”
He looks at me with intrigue. “But you would get a tattoo?”
I bite my lip. “That’s not exactly what I was saying.”
“I think you’d look good with some ink, Sassy.”
“Maybe one day.”
Dax rubs his forearm where the scorpion lies. “I dunno. It feels like some kind of control to get tattoos that I choose after how I got my first one.”
“It’s sickening how that happened.”
“At least my dad isn’t around anymore.”
I can’t help myself. “So, what is your dad in for?”
For a moment, confusion contorts Dax’s expression. “I don’t know.”
“Huh?” I’m dumbfounded. “How can that be? Didn’t you know as much as your mother did?”
A pensive look crosses his face. “Well, I got told once he was in, that he got charged with burglary. But that doesn’t make any sense because he was the boss. He didn’t do the jobs. He sent the guys out. But no one else got arrested. So I don’t really know what the truth is.”
“Oh, that is confusing.”
“I also heard they’re stringing him along. That his court case won’t be for a long time, making him rot in jail.” Dax huffs. “Maybe it’s so they can connect him to more stuff? I’ve got no idea.”
“How often do you visit him?”
Dax looks me dead in the eyes. “I never have.”
“Oh.”
“Even my brother, Lance, doesn’t visit. He has, once or twice, but he prefers not to so he can run things his way.” Dax winces and grabs his side. “The older guys, like Boscoe and McCoy, visit on occasion. They’re more loyal, and I can tell they’re peeved that my brother is giving them orders.”
“Has the club always been run by your family?” I ask. “Or can anyone be in charge?”
“Anyone can be in charge. My brother just got there first.”
“Do you think he knew what was going down with your dad?”
He shakes his head solemnly. “No. He’s just an opportunist.”
As Dax shifts uncomfortably, still massaging his wounded ribs, I nestle closer to him. “You really should get that checked out.”
He grunts. “It’s not from the fall. It happened earlier. It’ll heal.”
I run my fingers along his jawline and sigh. “I’m sorry you feel like no one has stuck by you. But I’d like to, if you’d let me.”
Dax pulls an arm around me, cuddling me close.
“So, I guess, none of them are wondering where you are right now?”
