Page 87 of Spring Break Fling

The moment I pushed open the tattoo shop door, my stomach sank.

This was bad.

Last night, Nikko had transformed a small room in the back into something out of a dream—soft lights, candles, the whole shebang. In the harsh light of day, the shop looked like a hurricane had hit it. Now it all made sense why he took me in through the back door and kept the lights off. He didn’t want me to see all the damage but he still wanted to make sure he fixed my tattoo.

The chairs that I had sat in with my friends were gone. Well, one remained but it was stained with purple ink. Jessie was behind the counter, sorting through a mess of papers with a tight-lipped scowl. She glanced up when she saw me, her expression softening but still strained.

“Hannah,” she said, setting the papers down. “What are you doing here?”

“What happened?” I gestured at the chaos around us. “The place looks like ground zero for a bar fight.”

Jessie let out a humorless laugh. “Might as well have been a bar fight.”

“Was there another break-in?”

“Samantha happened.”

My stomach churned. “Samantha? Nikko’s ex?”

“Bingo.” Jessie propped her hands on her hips.

I was stunned. “I don’t understand.”

“After you left, she and Nikko went out back. They were out there a couple minutes, yelling at each other, and then she came back in here and trashed half the shop.”

“She did this by herself?”

“Yep. We would have stopped her but Nikko told us not to. If we laid a hand on her, she would cry victim and get us thrown into jail instead of her.”

“Holy shit,” I said.

“We just filmed everything and called the cops to get her out of here,” Jessie said. “It was bad. Real bad. We had to call Marcus. Bad went to nuclear.”

Shock slammed into me. “Nikko never mentioned any of this.”

Jessie sighed. “Of course he didn’t. He doesn’t like people seeing his mess but trust me—he’s got demons.”

“He told me he was fired, but I assumed it was because Samantha stormed in here. I didn’t realize the storm she brought with her. Marcus has to know this wasn’t Nikko’s fault, though.”

“Nikko has made some bad choices, and one particularly bad choice with terrible hair extensions and a temper to match. Those bad choices have consequences. Marcus doesn’t want to be part of the consequences.”

“But it’s not fair. I’m guessing Nikko didn’t know Samantha was a crazy bitch when they hooked up. Sorry. I shouldn’t call her a bitch.”

Jessie smirked. “Don’t worry, we all hate her. Nikko hates her guts, too, especially now that she got him fired. You’re much better for him. I’m glad he met you. Unless you’re also here to trash the place?”

“Not today at least.” I swallowed hard, my throat tightening. Guilt washed over me. I had become part of his life and now I was going to abandon him. “Jessie, I’m leaving the day after tomorrow. I’ve been trying to get a hold of Nikko all morning, but he’s not answering. I was hoping to talk to him.”

Jessie’s smile faded. “You’re leaving?”

“Yeah. I thought we’d already said our goodbyes, but…” I trailed off, my hands twisting together. “I don’t know. I needed to see him.”

“Did you go to his place?”

“No, I assumed he might be here. I don’t know why. I guess I was hoping he wasn’t actually fired. This place means a lot to him. Since we were here last night, I assumed there were just some things said, and they would get over it. Men are like that.”

Jessie smirked. “True. Diego and Nikko have arguments all the time and they are cool five minutes later. Guys are so weird.”

“I guess I can try him at home. Maybe he doesn’t want to talk to me. I don’t want to make it worse. I’ve called like ten times and texted. I guess I should get the message.”