Page 134 of Rose
She looked up, and everything slowed.
He rounded the corner shirtless, steam still clinging to his skin. The deep lines of his tattoos glistened under damp bronze, his beard dripping with leftover water from the shower. Grey Nike shorts hung low on his hips, his inked legs flexing with each step, and that print… unapologetically obvious. Her eyes dropped for just a second too long. No wonder women didn’t want their men in grey sweats outside the house.
She licked her lips, caught off guard by how easily he did that to her.
She unclipped Ace’s leash. The dogs took off, playfully getting to know one another.
“You ignoring me now, Allure?” he asked, biting into a red apple. Her eyes fixated on his mouth—how his lips wrapped around the fruit, the slow crunch, the drip of juice he caught with his tongue. She swore she hated him sometimes.
“I wasn’t ignoring you. I was in a meeting,” she said, stepping farther into the house.
When she tried to walk past him, he pulled her back by the waist, his body flush against hers. She felt him—every hard inch of him—and her breath caught. A wave of goosebumps danced up her spine.
“With my sister?” he murmured at her ear.
“Yes. How did you— You know what, never mind. Forgot you were my stalker,” she cut herself off, making him chuckle. “I had an idea… something that involves her restaurant,” she said, finally turning to face him, his eyes locked on hers, curiosity flickering.
“Care to share?”
He took another bite of the apple, never looking away. Her gaze dipped again, transfixed by every calculated movement.
“Nope. Mind your business,” she smirked.
He chuckled. “You bring what I asked for?”
She lifted her bag. “Yup.”
Inside was her tattoo kit. He had requested new ink, and though she was intrigued, she couldn’t figure out what space he even had left.
“What are you getting tatted?” she asked as they moved into the living room.
“Your name,” he said, dead serious.
She snapped her head toward him. “I’m not tattooing my name on you, Savior.”
He laughed. “What? Every woman wants their man to get their name tatted, right?”
“You’re not my man, for one. And secondly, I’m not every woman.”
“That’s facts.” He grinned, dropping down onto the couch as she unpacked her tools beside him. “So has a man ever gotten your name tatted before?”
She hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah… just one.”
Her voice softened.
Her mind drifted to William. She could still see the way he looked at her when he asked—calm but certain. She’d laughed at first, thought he was joking. But when he said he was serious… she melted. He had her name inked over his heart. She used to kiss that spot every night, believing it meant his love would never fade.
But then he did.
“Allure…”
Savior’s voice pulled her back from wherever her mind had drifted. She blinked, startled. “Huh? Yeah… my bad. You said something?”
He stared at her, like he could see everything she was trying to hide.
“I asked if you were ready.”
She nodded quickly. “Yeah. But where am I putting this tattoo, and what exactly do you want?”
