“And I tried sushi for the first time.That, I liked.”
Cross glanced down at the floor and she caught a faint smile.
“What about hanging out with Knox’s family? The club and Cleo. You liked that too?”
Her eyes welled and she swallowed the knot in her throat. “I liked that a lot.”
He glanced up, eyeing her suspiciously. “No tattoos, right?”
She stared back at him, feeling all the emotion and fear weighing her down.
“I didn’t know.”
He grasped his hips, bowed his head, and cursed. “Fuck.”
“I swear I didn’t know, Cross.” Her voice cracked, and she inched closer. “But I’m gonna fix it. I’m going home, and the first thing I’ll do is go back to the shop and have it blacked out.”
He clasped his fingers, pulled his arms behind him, cradled his head, and looked up at the ceiling. He remained silent as if he hadn’t heard her. A lump lodged in her throat, and her skin prickled. She’d never had a panic attack, but she was showing signs.
“I promise, I’ll cover it up like it was never there. Please don’t cut it out or burn me.”
Cross jerked and slowly lowered his gaze. It was a look she hadn’t seen from him. It was a cross between bewilderment and rage.
“You think I’d do that to you?”
“Not you but the club.” Her breath came heavy. “I now know the significance behind it and the rules of only members wearing it. I only did it because Knox wanted to, and I thought it was a nice way to honor him. But I swear, I didn’t know about the rule.”
He dropped his arms to his sides. “Let me see it.”
She froze.
“You think I’m gonna hurt you?”
Did she? She shook her head, and he lifted his chin.
“Then show me.”
She’d fisted her hands so tightly there was a small ache when she loosened her grip. She drove her hands through her hair, gathered it up on her head, and slowly turned around to face the kitchen wall.
“The back of the neck,” he muttered. His steps were slow, but she heard them as he made his way toward her. His breath fanned over her skin. The room was completely silent.
“Property of Knox’s heart.” His voice was low and raspy.
Addison wasn’t very creative when it came to art, but she’d taken her time to design the perfect piece to reflect her tattoo for Knox. It was in the shape of an actual heart with the Killcreek Drifters insignia in the center and below in her own handwriting “Property of Knox’s heart.”
She flinched when his calloused fingers traced over the tattoo.
“I got it to honor him.”
“Yeah,” he whispered and grabbed her wrist, forcing her to let go of her hair, and he gently turned her around. “This is why you’re going home?”
She nodded. “I’m going to go back to the guy who did it and have him black it out. I swear, I didn’t know.”
“But you know now?”
Addison wouldn’t divulge that it was Ava who told her. This was a serious situation, and she wouldn’t involve someone who was trying to help her out.
“I randomly saw some video and realized I’d broken a huge rule, and it would come off disrespectful to the club.”
