Page 105 of Play The Game

The tattoo artist from the Bay took a good ten minutes to calm down enough to trace the image out nicely, but the tremor in his fingers is finally gone. I try to look friendly and approachable, but I think that only freaks him out more. Something about me being an assassin and renowned killer has him unnerved. Who knew?

Then he hands it off to the second guy and we’re in business.

Harley and Blaise go first, unflinching and completely at ease as the needle drags through their cheeks. The jaw bones and sharp teeth only make them look hotter, the assholes, and the giggling girls in the corner refuse to leave after their belly button piercings are finished. Finally, after one of them tries to talk to Harley, the receptionist kicks them out. The blond gets snooty and tries to play the rich daddy card but Avery only laughs at her, the cruel edge cutting.

“These are gang tattoos, you dense bitch. Do you want to risk a bullet by fucking the boss’s boy?”

They scurry out quickly after that. I glare at Avery and she shrugs, smug as always.

It takes an hour and Ash smirks at Harley when he gets taped up, puffy and grumpy at the inconvenience. Avery cringes the second the gel hits her skin to transfer her little wolf onto her wrist, but she doesn’t flinch at the needle piercing her skin. Hers only takes ten minutes, being so small, and I make my decision to cement myself in the family with them.

I catch the tattoo guy’s eye and ask him to tattoo me as well. He blanches for a second and then recovers nicely, nodding and clearing his throat.

When I point out Harley’s tattoo, he agrees quickly but when I move to take my pants off, all hell breaks loose.

“What the fuck are you doing?!” Harley hisses, and Avery giggles at him.

I glare back at him, and then over his shoulder at Blaise. “I’m getting a tattoo as well. Go wait with Avery, it’ll only take a few minutes.”

Harley plants his ass in the seat next to the tattooing table and refuses to move like the stubborn asshole he is, and Blaise takes up watch by the door. I roll my eyes and try to ignore them as best I can. By chance I’m wearing my most modest panties but, given that Ash picks them out for me, they’re still fairly sheer. Harley glares at the tattoo artist like it’s his damn fault.

“I want it on my panty line, where my hip meets my thigh, because it’s fucking personal and the only people I want seeing it are you three dickheads so lay off,” I snap, and he calms down a little.

Then I zone the fuck out while the family creed is inked into my skin, a permanent reminder that I belong to them just as much as they belong to me.

I couldn’t be fucking happier with it.

We take the next week off while the tattoos heal and spend it in the boys’ room watching trashy thriller movies Blaise loves and drinking too much whiskey. Avery continues to go to her classes and tells the teachers we’ve caught mono, something they all accept without question because who in their right mind argues with a Beaumont?

Blaise and I mess around with the song list for his new album, him playing the guitar and me sweating as I sing without my earplugs in but fuck, we sound perfect together. Ash bans us from singing around Avery because the second we start he ends up hard as stone and drooling for me. It’s a nice fucking compliment, better than any stupid roses he could ever give me.

Harley cooks me French toast and insists I eat it in bed, sulking when I refuse to do it naked. I’m positive it would quickly turn into an orgy if I did, and I’m not quite sure I’m ready for that. There’s an unspoken agreement amongst the boys not to talk about my new non-virginal status, thank fuck.

On the Sunday, I step into the shower, getting ready for bed and pouting that my week off has come to an end, when Harley ducks in behind me. I give him stern look that quickly melts away because sweet lord fuck, he is glorious to look at.

His personality ain’t bad either.

“You’re going to flit back to your room tomorrow and I’ll have to make do with the smell of you on my sheets. You’ve turned me into some pathetic sap; it’s fucking sad.”

I snort at him, blushing wildly, and then I grab the soap to wash him, any excuse to run my hands over the solid plains of muscle on his chest.

“You’ll just come and sleep in my bed anyways. I’ll try to sleep here a bit more. We can work something out. What are we going to do after winter break when we’re all used to being in the same bed all of the time?”

Harley groans and rubs his dick against my belly. “You’re going to move in here next semester. Fuck it, Avery needs to work her magic to switch out for the room next door. We all know she could make it happen and she absolutely would if it meant we can live together.”

My teasing dries up in my throat because, fuck, that sounds perfect.

THIRTY-FOUR

The school staff decide that the students need motivation going into the last couple of weeks of classes before winter break, so the class rankings are posted on every door. Our first class for the day is history, and I do a double-take when I see that the second spot, under me, is Ash. Not Harley.

Oh fuck.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Harley snarls, and the look Ash gives him is total arrogant asshole.

Do I stand between them or just let them fight it out? Stupid question, I get the hell out of there and zone them the fuck out. When Harley finally takes his seat, I smile at him only to have him glare back at me.

Fuck.