Page 6 of Virgin Skin

I nearly defiled the kid and all I want to do is finish the job. I want to put my filthy hands all over him and hear him moan my name right in my ear.

Jag hums, seemingly to himself. I’m still trying not to stare in the direction that they disappeared and failing miserably, butI can feel his eyes on me anyway. “Not really the part I was most curious about, but okay,” he mutters.

My heart jumps again and I swallow around the rising bile in my throat. I force my attention back to my sketch pad without really seeing it.

“Do you think it’s true?” Arrow asks.

“Yeah. They look exactly alike.” I give up trying to draw, tossing my pad down and spinning around on my chair so I won’t be able to see the doorway to the back room anymore.

“Do they?” Tex uses his thumb to tip his cowboy hat back a few inches so it’s not casting as much of a shadow over his face. “I didn’t get that good of a look.”

“Seems like Piston did,” Jag says, an unmistakable edge of goading in his voice.

Fine, he picked up on the fact that I obviously recognized Milo when he walked in, but he doesn’t know anything more than that. He’s fishing, hoping I’ll spill my guts like any of the rest of these big mouths would. Fat chance. I learned how to keep secrets young, and that’s a skill that never leaves you.

I shrug one shoulder.

It’s only a few minutes later when footsteps have us all looking towards the back of the shop again. Milo’s head is ducked, so I can’t see his expression. The necklace he was wearing when he came in is wrapped around his fist now and he doesn’t even look my way as he hustles out through the door.

I’m out of my chair before I can think about it, spinning towards Hero as soon as the door closes behind Milo. I close the space between us in only a few steps, stopping with my face right in front of his.

“What the fuck did you say to him?” I bark.

Hero’s thick eyebrows pull together, and to my left, Arrow coughs. The sound is pointed, shaking me from whatever impulsive fog dragged me out of my chair. What the fuck am Idoing? Getting up in Hero’s face? That’s not me. Even the harsh edge in my voice is out of character, and they all know it. I swallow and take a step back, crossing my arms and rubbing one hand over the rough stubble on my chin.

“What happened?” I ask more evenly.

Hero shakes his head, looking dazed now that I’m not flying off the handle at him. He wanders over to his chair and plops down hard enough that it rolls back an inch under his weight. I can’t imagine what the woman in Jag’s chair thinks right now. Probably that she didn’t realize she would be attending a live taping of theJerry Springershow when she booked this tattoo. All of us, except for Jag, crowd around Hero. Arrow pats his shoulder, and Tex hops up to sit on the client chair right in front of him while I hover off to the side, trying to remember how to act normal.

I only met the kid last night. I don’t know why I’m so invested in this whole thing. Except that he sounded so sad and nervous about meeting his dad, and whatever happened, he practically sprinted out of here in less than five minutes.

“So, uh, he said he’s my kid?” Hero rubs the back of his neck with a faraway look in his eyes.

“Do you think he is?” Arrow asks, squeezing his shoulder.

“I don’t know. He said his mom’s name is Emily, which, I mean, who the fuck remembers the name of a woman they slept withoncealmost thirty years ago?” He shrugs weakly. “But he knew my name, obviously, and he had a necklace that used to belong to me. He said his mom told him she took it as a souvenir that night.”

“Like a serial killer?” Jag quips.

Tex chuckles and Arrow glares past me at Jag.

“Not helping, man.”

Hero doesn’t really seem to be listening to any of the bickering though, his gaze still unfocused like he’s lost in thought.

“I guess I should get a DNA test?”

“Not a bad first step,” Arrow agrees.

“What does he want though? Is he looking for money or something? Can he sue you for back child support or anything as an adult?” Tex wonders out loud.

I grit my teeth at the suggestion that Milo just showed up to shake him down. But fuck if I know. That could be exactly why he’s here.

Hero shakes his head.

“I don’t know. He didn’t say. He just rushed through all of his reasons for believing I’m his dad, and I told him I needed to process everything. That’s when he took off.” He rakes his fingers through his beard. “I don’t understand why she never told me. My ass has been right here in Fall Crosse for all forty-six years of my life. I’m not exactly hard to find. Hell, Milo didn’t seem to have any trouble finding me.”

The corners of his eyes tighten, and he bounces his knee. It reminds me of Milo’s show of nerves last night at the bar, and a fresh wave of guilt washes over me. As fucked up as this situation is though, as unfair as it feels, it’s obvious Hero needs the kind of steady, clear-headed advice they all rely on me for. I crouch and meet his eyes, putting my hand on his knee to still his leg. The fog clears and he finally focuses on me.

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