“This stays between us.” I pointed my finger back and forth between us before Staci grabbed my hand and pulled me into her booth.
I watched her work, setting up her equipment, looking like a surgeon with all her sterile materials.
When it came time for me to take my top off, I only hesitated for a second. I was sitting in her chair naked from the waist up, and she was smiling at me like a loon.
“This is going to be perfect. You have a great set of tits.”
I laughed and had the urge to cover my chest.
“Do you talk to all your clients like this?”
Staci shrugged. “No. Not all my clients have great tits. Some come in here with tits to the floor and still want them pierced. Which is fine, to each their own, but it makes my day when I know someone down the road is really going to appreciate my work.”
“You’re insane.” I gripped the edge of the chair as she made her way toward me with a clamp that looked like it was used to torture people.
“Maybe, but I know a great set of tits when I see one.”
The metal bit down around my nipple, and I tensed, preparing myself for the pain.
“Will you stop talking about my tits?” I said through gritted teeth.
“Okay. Are you ever going to tell me about your history with Parker?”
Her question came out of left field and I wasn’t expecting it, but before I could contemplate how to answer her, pain seared through my breast and my only thought was that this bitch lied.
That fucking hurt.
L I V
Four Years and Five and a half months earlier
People come into our lives for a multitude of reasons. Some come for fleeting moments, some are there for a lifetime, and then there are those, the ones who it doesn’t matter how long they are a part of your life. They make such an impact that a moment with them is more poignant than a lifetime with someone else.
That was what my moments with Parker were like.
When we finally walked out of the karaoke bar, my heart was racing, my shirt was damp with sweat, and my cheeks were hurting from smiling.
He pulled me to him when I leaned up against his truck, and I didn’t think I had ever seen him smile so much.
“Those people in there think you’re a rock star.” He pointed over his shoulder toward the bar.
“Well I kind of am.” I rolled my eyes dramatically.
“Uh huh.” He chuckled and his hips pressed into mine. “I didn’t know I was going to have to share you so much on our first date.” He looked down at me, the flecks of gold in his green eyes shining in the neon lights.
“Well take me somewhere you don’t have to share me,” I whispered, my hands tightening in his t-shirt.
He pressed his forehead against mine before letting out a ragged breath.
“Let’s go.”
He pulled the door open and helped me into the truck. As soon as he climbed in, he lifted the console that separated us and patted the seat next to him. I had dreamed of riding in that spot forever, and when I finally settled in next to him, it felt like it was exactly where I belonged.
His hand rested on my knee, the warmth of his skin against mine was the best feeling in the world, and I watched his fingers trace circles against my skin while he drove.
I didn’t know where he was taking me, and I didn’t care. All that mattered was that I was with him in that moment and there was nothing anyone could do to ruin that.
We pulled up outside his grandfather’s old house. I knew the place from coming out here a hundred times over the years, but we had never been here alone.
The property was pitch black, and I wouldn’t have known where to step if it wasn’t from memory. We walked around the back of the house wordlessly. Only the sound of our steps against the ground heard against the backdrop of the creek.
There were two old rocking chairs sitting in the back yard overlooking the water. They had been painted white at one point, but they had since chipped and peeled away, showing the years of use. Parker’s grandparents use to sit out here and watch us play, but that was before his grandmother passed away and his grandfather went to a nursing home. Those rocking chairs had shared years of stories, laughter, and love.
The wood creaked under Parker’s weight as he sat down. The house was beautiful, an older white farmhouse, but it was easy to see that his grandparents hadn’t been able to take care of it over the years.
I sat down in the chair next to him pulling my knees to my chest.
“I love this place.” He was looking out over the creek that ran along the back end of the property, and he looked so peaceful.
“I do too.” I ran my finger over a piece of paint that was barely hanging on. “I used to love coming out here when we were kids.”
“Yeah. That’s because my grandparents spoiled you. They thought you hung the moon.” His head was pressed against the back of the chair, and he turned it to face me, a lazy smile on his face.
“Who says I didn’t?” He smiled bigger. “You can’t blame them for loving me. I’m pretty awesome.”
“No. I can’t.” He was staring at me, and every second his eyes were on me, I felt my breath leave my body. “He would love to see you, you know?”
“Who?” I tucked a piece of hair behind my ear that had fallen out of my bun.
“Papa. He asks about you all the time.”
My chest ached as guilt filled it. Parker’s grandfather was the closest thing I had to a real one, and it had been a long time since I went to see him. Too long.
“Let’s go see him. Will you take me?”
“Of course.” He nodded his head. “I planned on going tomorrow. Do you want to go with me?”
“Yeah.” Plans. We were making plans. I told myself I wouldn’t let myself get hopeful about whatever the hell we were doing, we were just going to see his papa, but it was impossible.
He stood from his chair before he reached for my hand. I had no idea where he was taking me now, but I didn’t care. He pulled his phone from his pocket and fiddled with it for a moment before music played from his speakers. Still gripping my hand, he pulled me closer to him and wrapped his other arm around my back.
“What are you doing?” I giggled.
“Well, I didn’t really get to dance with you at the karaoke bar.” He started moving against me causing my body to move with him.
“Okay?”
“I’m done missing out on things with you, so I’m dancing with you now.”
He spun me around playfully before pulling me back against him, and I laughed, the sound getting lost in the trees that surrounded us.
“I never expected you to be this guy.” I ran my hand up his chest before resting it behind his neck. I knew that Parker’s girlfriends had loved him, but I never expected this. I had never seen this side of him before.
“I’ve never been this guy.” He stared down at me, the moonlight illuminating his face, and I felt like I was in a dream.
It was all too good. Parker was too perfect. This night was too amazing.