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Mad counts down the first one, and just as I thought she hardly even reacts, Mad goes over to my side to get the second hole, and I take a step back to get out of his way.
As quickly as it started, it’s done, and Jade’s new jewelry shines in the light. This piercing really suits her.
As soon as he gives the all-clear, she hops off the chair and goes back to the mirror to inspect Mad’s handy work.
She turns to face me with a huge smile, and I can’t help but smile back.
We all head up to the front while Jade looks at all the art on the walls from the tattoo artists as we go.
“Did you want a tattoo as well?” I ask her.
“Can I?” She asks me with a huge smile, and I can’t help but shake my head at her. She's really not getting it, but that’s okay, I’m happy to keep telling her until it sinks in.
“I said anything, didn’t I, Doll?” I ask her, but it’s clear she’s no longer listening.
“Hey, Mad, when will the boss be in next?” I ask him.
“Boss is out for the week, I can set you up an appointment, but unfortunately, he’s pretty booked out for the next few weeks.” He says with a smirk on his face because, yeah, he knows that’s not how this works, but when I look at Jade, I can see the disappointment on her face, and I realize she has no idea.
“It’s all good, man.” I tell him before I head toward the door.
“Come on, Jade.” I call back to her as I nod to the door to let her know we're heading out.
“Thank you, Mad!” She shouts back before we walk out. He gives her a wave and a smile.
We make it about halfway back to the car before Jade stops dead in the middle of the sidewalk.
“What?”
“You didn't pay for this, did you?” She asks as she points to her nose.
I laugh but shake my head at her as I continue walking, it takes her a minute, but she catches back up easily enough.
“Don’t worry about it. The shop has a running tab, so we don’t pay them, but they aren’t losing out, I promise.” I explain and watch as she nods. Even though I’m sure she has no idea what I mean by that, she will soon enough.
We get back in the car, and instead of returning to the house, I take her farther into the city. She shoots me a look but doesn’t say anything as she picks a song from my phone to let play as we go.
When we pull up to Hoppers, I see the question in her eyes before she opens her mouth.
“Just trust me.” I tell her as I pull up into one of our spots. She looks at me for a moment before she gives a small nod and follows me out of the car.
We head in through the staff doors. It’s early in the day, but it’s still a Friday, so the place isn’t packed, but it is much busier than any other time Jade’s been here.
We hit the stairs, and instead of going down like we have the last few times, we head up all the way to the top, where I know Kratos will most likely be in his office. I probably should have called and given him a heads-up, but oh well, it's too late now.
When we get to the top floor, Jade stops in her tracks and takes a moment to look out the floor-to-ceiling glass that runs along the whole hallway. This floor is only for Vengeance business, Froggie and Kratos both have offices here, and right outside their doors is a short hall leading to the glass.
Kratos has cameras on most floors in his office, but being able to stand and watch the party floor below gives you a sense of power and accomplishment that the screens just can’t. It was so surreal the first time we were invited up here a few years back. The feeling of being on top was better than the high I used to chase with drugs.
I leave her to look and head over to Kratos' door, it’s closed, but I don’t hear any voices from the other side, so I knock and hope I’m not interrupting something important if he is busy.
The door swings open, and Kratos stands in the doorway, taking up all the space as he looks down at me.
Shit, this guy freaks me out. I’ve never liked being around him, and I have to fight the urge to take a step back. His eyes dart over my shoulder to Jade, and just like that, I find myself more relaxed just like that. I didn’t come here for me, I came here for her, so I need to nut up and handle it.
“Zander.” He says after a moment of us just standing there without a word, and I hear the question in his voice even without him asking it.
At the sound of his voice, Jade turns around from her spot near the glass and looks at us. The smile that lights up her face should upset me. Hearing Mad say her nickname earlier had me ready to lay him out, but this does nothing.
