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“Do you want to bet on it?”
Max yelled, “Yes.”
At the same time as Kia said, “No.”
Gonzo, the little shit, winked at her, then tapped his mouth like he was deep in thought before finally smiling mischievously. “Winner gets to choose what flavor of ice cream the other one has to eat.”
“Ew, I hate Tiger.” Max’s entire face scrunched up as he wrinkled his nose in distaste.
“Then I guess you better not lose.” Gonzo tapped him on the head and walked into the garage.
“Bye, Mom,” Max said absently as he turned to his dad. “We better not lose.”
Jeff smirked at her as he walked past. “Don’t worry, we’re not going to lose.”
“Have fun.” Kia held the door open and watched while Jeff loaded Max into the booster in the backseat.
Chapter Twenty-Four
KiastrolledintoFathomlessInk and looked around. Her gaze landed on the man leaning against the counter. He eyed her up and down, his lip quirked up slightly as he watched her walking toward him. “Can I help you?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’m looking for Christian.”
He eyed the case in her hand with amusement. “He know you’re coming?”
“Yeah, he’s expecting me. Can you tell him Kia’s here, please?”
“Sure.” He poked his head around the corner and yelled, “Yo, Chris, there’s a Kia here for you.”
A moment later, Christian strolled out with a huge smile on his face. “Kia.” Christian wrapped her up in a hug. “You got your stuff?”
She nodded toward the case in her hand. “Yeah. Thanks for letting me use your shop for the day. I really appreciate it.”
“Anytime. You know I’ll always make room for you.”
The guy at the counter snorted. “Yeah, I’ll bet you will,” the guy muttered.
Kia raised her eyebrow and looked at him. The asshole eyed her up and down like she was a piece of meat. Her jaw clenched. She turned to Christian and flicked a finger toward the guy behind her. “Chris, I’m not putting up with that shit.” Dickheads like this guy were a dime a dozen, but she’d paid her dues and she sure as hell didn’t have to put up with it anymore.
Christian’s eyes narrowed as he looked at the guy behind her. “You don’t have to worry about that, Kia. He’s not going to be a problem.”
“I didn’t do anything,” the guy growled.
“Keep it that way.” Christian stared at the guy pointedly, then turned back to her. “Let me show you around and you can get setup.”
“Seriously Chris, you’re just going to let some bitch off the street come in and tattoo?”
Kia spun around. “First, I’m not some newbie off the street and second, you haven’t even begun to see what a bitch I can be. Keep it up, dickhead, and I’ll tie you to my fucking chair.”
Christian laughed loudly and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “Day-um, I’ve missed you, Kia.” He spun her so they were facing the counter. “Kia, this is Saul, Saul, this is Saskia Kamen.”
Saul’s jaw dropped open. “Holy shit, Saskia Kamen?”
Kia smiled tightly. Amazing how fast a person could go from dipship to gobsmacked all in the space of a moment. Ever since she’d won a monster tattooing competition in Vegas a few years ago, her name had instantly garnered her respect. Her name, not the fact that she was simply a fellow artist. It sucked that until guys like him heard her name, they thought it was okay to treat her like shit.
“What are you doing here? How long are you here?” Saul pressed.
“Chris is just lending me some space to do a tattoo for a friend while I’m in town.” She followed Christian deeper into the shop. He paused beside a chair against the window. “This okay? I know you like natural light.”
