Page 163 of Jesse's Girl

“Right here,” she whispers, tracing her fingers over my lower back as she bites her lip, failing to fight off a smile.

“Can you even say that anymore?” I ask, frowning. “Tramp stamp?”

Ada thinks for a moment. “Yeah, I guess it sounds kinda slut-shame-y? Fine, then. Sexually empowered woman stamp.”

“Well, I am a sexually empowered woman.” I lean down to give her a quick kiss. “But I’m not getting some random tattoo on a whim.”

“You’d look hot with tattoos, though.” Ada pulls out of my arms, backing up a step to inspect me.

“Tattoos? Plural? Get outta here.”

“It’s true, though,” Olena chimes in. “Tattoos are hot.”

I cast a glance at Jude, who crosses his tattooed arms over his chest with amused patience, then turn back to Ada and Olena, who are both eyeing me up and, apparently, conspiring to get me inked right here and now.

“I dunno,” I hedge, frowning at their scrutiny. “I’ve thought about it. But I don’t even know where I’d wanna get one, I mean?—”

“Forearms,” they blurt in unison, cutting me off with what I can only describe as a concerning level of intensity.

Jude laughs behind me.

“Uh…” I clear my throat, motioning to Ada. “We should get going before I let you talk me into something.” Then I remember we’re waiting on the auction to wrap up. I check the time on my phone. “When did they say they were closing bids? Seven?”

“Yeah,” she says.

Olena asks, “Bids? For what?”

“There’s this silent auction. In the art gallery.” Ada gestures to the doorway nearby. “There’s still a few minutes left to check it out if you?—”

Olena laughs awkwardly. “Oh, no, that’s okay. Art galleries aren’t my thing.”

“Why not?” asks Ada.

“Oh, I uh…” Olena hedges, like she’s not sure how to answer. “I don’t really get modern art.”

“Y’know,” I say, “Ada’s an artist… She draws and paints.”

Ada’s eyes widen and she shakes her head at me as if pleading for me to shut up.

“You do?” Olena asks her, appearing genuinely surprised. “But you’re so… relatable. Normal. Not a stuffy snob, I mean.”

“Aww,” I tease Ada. “Did you hear that? Someone thinks you’re normal.”

“I can’t believe you outbid me,” Katie grouses, handing me back the gift certificate package for the night at Starscape Manor. She turns to Dimitri. “We’ll have to figure out some other place for our wedding night, I guess.”

“I’m not too worried about it,” he replies, then kisses her. “We’ve still got lots of time.”

Ada finally emerges from the gallery, looking pleased with herself as she joins us on the street outside. She’s holding an envelope in her hand.

“Alright, big spender,” I say, lifting my chin at her. “Whaddya got there?”

She opens her mouth to speak when she spots Murphy behind me. “Oh, hey, buddy!” she croons, tucking the envelope under her arm and crouching down to say hello.

He pushes his nose into her, licking one of her hands as she ruffles the fur around his collar with the other.

“He likes you,” Olena says. Then, when Murphy pushes into Ada with renewed enthusiasm, tail whipping back and forth, she laughs. “Uh, really likes you.”

I know the feeling, pal.

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