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His big hands wrap around mine, pulling me flush to his back with a thud, placing my arms around his chest. The smell of leather and petrol envelops me as I’m forced to grip him.
He’s rock solid; all rippling muscle beneath my twitching fingertips. “Here. Hold on tight and don’t let go.” The zing that travels through me is the same as earlier. I wish he’d stop being so… so…him.I might be able to focus on not falling off his bike if he was just a little less Grayson.
He puts his own helmet on and fastens it, then pushes down the visor and I’m done for. That’s quite enough motorbike porn from you, Mr King.
When the engine roars to life, I internally squeal and clench everywhere. The rumble carries through my body until it’s deep in my bones; the vibrations making me want to clench my thighs together to ease the flood of arousal I feel threatening to soak my underwear. Grayson skilfully navigates the traffic, the wind rivalling our speed as it whips over us both. I’m grinning like a clown from within my helmet; I’ve never felt so alive, so free. Travelling at the speed of light through London should have been on my list because this is addicting. A little giggle escapes my mouth when Grayson zips around a corner quickly and then he stops at a red light. Tilting his head to one side, he asks, “You okay back there?”
“Better than okay,” I cry, elation filling my voice. He laughs, and the motorbike roars beneath us as he takes off again when the light turns green.
A few minutes later, we arrive at a tiny little blacked out shop front. Grayson parks his bike and tells me to hop off, which I do reluctantly, and then remove my helmet. “That was… incredible,” I say, not able to stop the evidence of the adrenaline beaming through my smile.
Grayson removes his helmet, too, as he grins at me. “Did I just pop your motorbike cherry?”
I nod, suddenly feeling shy. “Consider my cherry popped.” I echo his words from earlier and he grabs my hand to drag me into the shop.
Inside, I’m hit with the smell of antiseptic and then something sweet assaults my nose. “Where are we?” I ask, looking around at the sketched artwork that adorns the walls.
As Grayson opens his mouth to speak, a red-haired woman appears, covered in tattoos. She’s stunning. “Grayson,” she purrs before pulling him in for a hug, which makes me disconnect our hands that I hadn’t realised were still linked.
“Hey, Cece. How you doing?”.
They break apart and I notice her bright green eyes now and how much they sparkle beneath her dark thick lashes. “I’m good,” she tells him before turning her attention to me. “Hey, I’m Cece.” Her hand stretches out for mine.
We shake hands. “I’m Nora.”
“This your girlfriend, G-man?” Cece asks playfully, nudging him.
“No. Just a friend.”
“She’s way out of your league, just like I am.” Cece winks.
I shouldn’t be so affected by him saying that because it’s the truth. We are just friends. He is just helping a friend. I take a step sideways away from him just so I can clearly draw the line for my own sanity.
“Have you had a tattoo before?” Cece asks, then I realise that she’s looking at me.
My eyes bug out as I flick them between Grayson and her. “Is that why I’m here?” I ask Grayson nervously, realising that I hadn’t even really taken in my surroundings. I take a quick glance around and see pictures of tattooed limbs all over the back wall. Cece
He nods, smiling. “It’s on your list, shorty. Cece here is the best of the best.”
I bite the inside of my cheek. Itison my list and now that I’m here, I regret it more than I realised. “I-I… I have no idea what to have done.” And what if it hurts? I can’t back out once it starts. Oh God, this was a bad idea.
“I’ll leave you with our artwork books. See if anything pops out at you.” She hands me four huge heavy books from beneath the counter and I take them with a polite smile. Cece goes to the back of the shop again, leaving Grayson and I alone with the books.
“I’ll be right back. Don’t leave, okay?” Grayson says before following Cece.
I frown, wondering if she and Grayson have been or are together, but I push the thoughts out of my head before they blossom into jealousy. I try to steady my thrashing pulse as I sit myself down on the black leather sofa at the side of the shop and start going through the book labelled ’Portraits’.It only takes a couple of seconds to realise that isn’t what I want. I pick up another book labelled‘Misc’.
“See anything you like?” Grayson asks. I jump and make a noise that’s barely human.
“God, you scared me.”
“Sorry, I thought you heard me come back through,” he says, plopping his big, broad body next to me.
My eyes scan the pages of butterflies, infinity signs, moons, and scripted letters. The panic of ‘what if it hurts’ is back again, clawing at my throat. “Maybe I haven’t thought it through enough. This is going to be on my body forever.”
Grayson shifts closer to me. “I know you’re on the verge of saying no. If you really want to back out, then I’m not going to stop you. You’re right, this is forever. But if you have an idea, then I’d really like to be there when you get it done. Even if that means it’s not happening today.”
My body warms to his words. “Why did you get your tattoos?”
