Page 16 of Reckless Harmony

“You do?”

“Well, sort of,” he laughed. “I’m James, and I’m one of your bachelors for the upcoming fundraiser.”

“Oh, awesome. It’s great to meet you.” She shook James’s hand. “Thank you so much for participating. We really appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome.”

“How did you hear about it?” Rayna asked.

“Emma,” James said. “She popped into my office one day and convinced/bribed me to participate.”

Rayna laughed. “Bribery with chocolate chip cookies or banana bread? Both are crowd favourites.”

“The cookies,” James said. “I can’t resist cookies.”

“It’s true,” Eva said. “I have to hide them at home, or he eats them all after I go to bed.”

“Hey, no sharing family secrets with strangers, remember, Eva?” James said with a good-natured grin. His grin faltered a little when he glanced at Hollis. “Hi, Hollis.”

“Hello, James,” Hollis said.

There were a few seconds of silence before Eva frowned. “Why is it weird?”

“It’s not weird. You’re weird.” James tickled her, and Eva laughed before kissing his cheek.

“C’mon, Daddy, we gotta go, or I’ll miss my cleaning.”

“Right as always, Bunnykins.” James smiled at Rayna. “Good to formally meet you, Rayna. I’ll see you at the fundraiser.”

“See you then,” Rayna said.

James turned and walked away, and Rayna glanced at Hollis just in time to see the woman’s gaze slip to James’s admittedly very tight ass. She looked away, giving Rayna a bit of a flustered smile.

“I don’t suppose you’d be interested in participating in the fundraiser if you’re single? I run Little Whiskers Rescue, and we’re looking for a few more bachelorettes,” Rayna said.

“Absolutely not,” Hollis said and then grimaced. “Sorry, that was rude. I’m single, but I’m not interested in participating in the fundraiser as a bachelorette. I’m happy to donate separately, though.”

“That’s very kind. Thank you. Or,” Rayna glanced at James’s retreating back, “you could come to the fundraiser and bid on one of the bachelors. It’s for a great cause, and you’ll get a fun night out with your bachelor if you win the bid.”

Hollis cleared her throat, her gaze slipping to James a final time before she smiled her stiff smile. “Give me a moment to get my jacket, and I’ll take you to the gym. All right?”

“Sounds good,” Rayna said.

CHAPTER 8

“Take off my underwear?” Nola stared at Nix, real panic curling at her edges.

“Yes,” Nix said patiently. “If you want the tattoo on the front of your hip, you’ll need to remove everything from the waist down.”

Nola perched on the side of the tattoo bed, staring wide-eyed at Nix. She’d been prepared to remove her skirt and tights, but she hadn’t expected to remove her underwear.

She sucked in a breath, giving Nix a shaky smile. “I, um, I thought maybe I could just hold them out of the way.”

Nix shook his head. “I need space to tattoo, and I can’t have your hand or clothing in the way.”

“But,” she glanced around the shop, “anyone could come in and see me half…”

She trailed off, mortified that she couldn’t even say the word naked in front of Nix.

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