Page 38 of Exposed Ink

She quirks a brow, daring me to argue, and I roll my eyes.

“So, what are you reading?” I ask, hoping she’ll drop the subject of Shane.

“A curvy single mom romance,” she says with a grin. “She meets a sexy younger tattoo artist, and he won’t stop until she agrees to go on a date with him.”

“Sounds a lot like yours and dad’s love story.”

“Right?” she agrees and then proceeds to tell me all about the book, leaving the topic of Shane behind.

* * *

“Ugh, I’m exhausted,”Taylor says a little while later as she dramatically plops onto the couch next to us. “This whole working life isn’t for me.” She brings her hand to her forehead and sighs, making Mom and me laugh.

“You’ll get used to it,” I say, patting her knee. “Are you on break?”

“Nope.” Her green eyes pop open. “I’m off. Came in at six a.m. for the early shift.”

“We’re going to get pedicures,” I find myself saying. “Want to join us?”

Taylor’s eyes light up. “Yes! I’m totally in need of a good pedi. We’re going to be heading to Florida for cheer camp soon, which will mean plenty of pool and beach time. Gotta make sure my toes look cute.”

Mom snorts out a laugh while I shake my head.

“Okay, let’s go.”

Since the nail salon is in walking distance, we leave Taylor’s and Mom’s cars in the parking lot and head over.

The salon isn’t super busy, so they’re able to sit us next to each other, and the entire time, Taylor chats away about everything and anything. I learn she was in a relationship for a while, but the guy cheated on her with her now ex-friend. Casey is talking to a guy on the football team, and since Taylor is single, she feels left out, but she’s trying to be supportive since Casey was always supportive of her relationship with her ex.

She’s heavily involved in cheer, and she has a competition coming up. She gets good grades and plans to go to NYU for graphic design. A lot of this I already know from Shane, but I enjoy listening and getting to know her, so I don’t mention that, simply letting her talk.

“Kinsley went to NYU,” my mom says with a proud smile. “Maybe she can take you on a private tour. Show you behind the scenes.”

Taylor gasps. “Oh my God, that would be awesome!”

Taylor’s phone goes off, but when she checks it, her smile morphs into a frown.

“Everything okay?” I ask.

“Yeah, I was supposed to have dinner with Casey, but she bailed on me to hang out with the guy she’s talking to.” She rolls her eyes like it doesn’t bother her, but I can tell it does.

“Why don’t we go to dinner?” I offer. “I don’t have any plans, and I’ve been wanting to check out that new hibachi restaurant that opened, but it seems weird to go alone. Do you like hibachi?”

“Oh, yes!” Taylor squeals, clapping her hands. “I’ve been wanting to go to that place.”

“Mom?” I ask, turning toward my mom.

“Oh, no, you girls go and have a good time. I have a date tonight with my husband.”

She waggles her brows, and Taylor giggles while I mock gag.

Twenty-five years later, and I’m still not used to the amount of PDA I’ve had to witness between my parents over the years. I can’t even tell you how many times my siblings and I have walked in on them or heard them when they thought no one was home.

On the other hand, I love that my parents love each other so fiercely. It’s what I wanted for myself, and the thought that I’ll never have it again makes me sad. Yet I can’t bring myself to move on because the fact is, I already had it, and I destroyed it.

The rest of our pedicure is spent talking about various books we’ve read and loved and the hundreds we have on our TBR list. Once our feet are clean and pretty, we walk back to the cars, and Mom takes off.

Since Taylor drove, I hop into her Jeep with her, and she puts the top down, swearing it’s the only way to ride in a Jeep. I love her free spirit, and as she drives us down Main Street, I can’t help but feel like maybe Shane and Taylor were meant to come into my life.

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