She’s damn good at pretending.
“Holy shit,” my extremely part-time coworker calls. “Who the hell is this vixen who got Gaige fucking Addams to not onlysmilebutlaugh?Because I call dibs!”
“Bullshit,” I growl, scowling at Farrell.
His bright blue eyes go wide then a boisterous laugh erupts out of him. “Well, I’ll be fucking damned. You must be some kind of special if you’re making Gaige become an overprotective assclown.”
I stare him down, his smile never leaving his face. He’s walking on thin ice and we just arrived.
“Go work or something, Farrell.”
“Can’t.” He claps his hands excitedly. “I don’t have any appointments for another thirty minutes.”
“Then go clean,” I urge.
He shakes his head; his perfectly coiffed midnight black hair doesn’t move an inch—too much hairspray or some shit. “Nah. It’s done already. This place is immaculate.”
I raise a brow. “Where’s everyone else?”
“Davies rolled out for some coffee, should be back any minute, and Romeo is back with a client. Nipples, man.” He rubs his hands together as he rolls his tongue over his lips. “I fucking love nipples.” Then he winks at Haley.
Sighing, I turn to her, expecting her eyes to be bugging halfway out of her head at this point. Instead, I find her trying to hide a smile. An urge to punch Farrell sings through me becauseIwant to be the only person to make Haley smile.
Me. I want all her smiles to belong tome.
I manage to squelch the impulse, rubbing the back of my neck to relieve some building tension. “Haley, this is Farrell. Dipshit, this is my…” I glance to her, unsure how to introduce her.
She walks forward, sticking her hand out to the bastard behind the front counter of Everlasting Ink. “Best friend. Haley. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Farrell.”
A smug, sexual grin lines Farrell’s lips. “Oh darling, there’s no ‘mister’ needed. Farrell is my first name, but if that’s what you want to call me, I’ll happily answer to it.”
“Go away, Farrell,” I growl, again.
“Can’t, man. I’m in love with your best friend.”
I take an unconscious step toward him, then Haley’s laugh freezes me. I watch as she leans her head back. Fuck me. It’s been way too long since I’ve heard her laugh like that, and I realize I’ve missed it more than I’d miss my next breath. It’s infectious, burrowing its way into my head, my heart. I stand there in a daze as it fills my body with an incomparable warmth.
“What are you doing here anyway, asshole?” Farrell asks.
“Showing Haley around, obviously.”
He glances toward her. “She’s yourbest friendand you’ve never brought her here? That’s messed up.”
Shrugging, I say, “We’ve been a little preoccupied lately, and this is the first time we’ve had a chance to venture out of Wakefield in a while.”
“Ah, and you decided the first thing you wanted to do is show off your badass skills and give this schoolteacher some ink, huh?”
Haley gasps, her hand flying to her chest. “How’d you know I was a teacher?”
Farrell looks down at her and winks. “I’m good at reading people, babe.” He looks back to me. “So, what are you putting on her and where?” He reaches out, grazing his finger lightly over Haley’s exposed collarbone. “Because I think something would look dead sexy right about here.”
He’s seriously fucking touching her again. I want to clobber him, beat his stupid smug fucking face in until you can hardly recognize him. I want to—
“No,” Haley says. “I mean, yes, but no. I don’t want anything exposed. What about my shoulder blade?”
My head snaps toward her. “What? I didn’t bring you here to ink you up, Hales.”
She shrugs. “I’m here, so why not? I’ve always wanted a tattoo.”
