Page 18 of Time for Change

“Very true,” BJ says. “Stevie, this is Jax. He owns Xpress Urself. Jax, Stevie. She just got her very first tattoo.” She pulls out her phone and shows off the images she took.

“Wow, it looks even better than I imagined,” Amanda says, wrapping her arms around Jax’s waist as she rests her head against his chest.

“Stevie drew it herself,” BJ boasts, sliding her phone back into her pocket.

“Really? Very artistic. It’s a great design,” he compliments.

I step up to the counter and pull cash from my bag.

“It’s seventy-five tonight,” Amanda states, pulling out the information with post-care instructions.

I pay the cost of my tattoo in cash and hand another ten over to BJ. “Thank you again.”

She smiles and slips it into her pocket. “You’re very welcome. And I’m serious about your next tattoo.”

“Well, if I decide to get another, you’ll be the one I call,” I tell her, turning toward the door. “Oh, wait. You guys do piercings too, right?”

“We do.”

“I’ve been, I don’t know, thinking about getting one. A piercing,” I say, stumbling just a bit.

“Yeah? Where?”

“Umm, my nose,” I reply, having noticed how cute Amanda’s stud nose piercing is. “But I work in the food industry, so I’m not sure it’s acceptable.”

“My husband owns a restaurant. It’s fine,” BJ states, waving her hand. “You would look so darling with a small gold hoop or a little stud.”

“Really?”

“Oh, yeah! I love piercings. I have several,” she states casually, and when my eyes scan over her face, where I don’t seeany visible piercings, she adds, “No, you can’t see them.” Then she adds a wink, that causes me to blush.

“Oh. Oh! Yeah, that’s okay,” I mumble.

Everyone in the room chuckles as BJ says, “Yeah, we’ll leave the piercing conversation for another day. But if you’re serious and want one, we can do that for you. We recommend waiting a few weeks after your tattoo, so give us a call if you decide to do it.”

“I will, thanks.”

“Have a good evening,” BJ says as I give one final wave and push through the glass door and step outside.

The cold January night wraps around me, making me wish I would have brought my coat. But I knew I probably wouldn’t want anything rubbing against my fresh ink, so I left it at home. Oh well, it’s only a few minutes, right? I’ll be home in no time.

As soon as I slip inside my car, I crank up the heat, trying to ignore the fact the air hitting me in the face is still freezing cold. I’m not going to let anything damage my mood. I just received my first tattoo, and it was done by an amazing artist. BJ helped keep me calm, even when my heart was about to burst from my chest.

Did it hurt?

Hell yes, but I realize just as quickly I would do it again in a heartbeat.

You know what they say.

Tattoos are addictive.

Chapter Six

Jack

I’ve been staring at the number on the receipt without calling it. Why? Hell if I know. Really. I’ve gone round and round in my mind since Wednesday, listing reasons on why I should and shouldn’t call her on some sort of mental tally sheet. The one containing the reasons I should is quite long. First off, she’s fucking gorgeous. Second, I’m interested. That’s pretty big in and of itself. I don’t find myself curious about too many women anymore, which might be why dating has taken a back seat to the life of being a dad.

The other column seems to be the one I keep getting hung up on. She’s young.Veryyoung. The fact she can’t even order a drink on any date we would go on isn’t something that sits right with me. Not that drinking is important. It’s not. In fact, I rarely drink myself. I’m more of a casual beer or two every now and again with Caden type of guy. I’m well past the going out and getting drunk on a Saturday night, and not just because I have my kids every weekend. I guess you sort of grow up fast when you’re twenty-one and find yourself with a new baby and new wife. Your priorities change in a big way. The wild partying I always thought I’d indulge in never really happened, but I’ve been fine with it. I don’t need booze to have fun.

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