Page 10 of Right Where You Left Me
I never did tell her what it is I do, and I guess she’s about to find out. Just not from my lips. She walked out on our friendship, and it won’t be me that closes this gap now.
“We own Rust Belt Revival.” River says beaming, squeezing me tighter into his side. “The tattoo shop on Main Street. Sage and I are the artists and Peyton here is our counter girl and my apprentice.”
“Some would say, I’m the most important person in the building.” Peyton says primly.
“No one says that.” River and I say at the same time.
“Rude.” She scoffs. “You two would be lost without me to schedule your lives.”
“I think somehow we’d manage.” River deadpans.
“Again, rude.” Peyton snaps, but laughs when River winks at her.
“You’re a tattoo artist?” Emma asks me with a grin. “That’s amazing! You always wanted to do something with your art.”
“Yup.” I say with a small nod. I look down at the beer in front of me and start pulling the wet parts of the cocktail napkin it’s sitting on away from the glass.
“Do you like it?” She asks, prodding. Always fucking prodding. Why can’t she take a goddamn hint already.
“Yup.” I say again and take a large swig from my drink.
“Well. That’s good. Great.” She says with an awkward laugh. “I bet you guys get a lot of business, being the only tattoo shop in Cedar Falls.”
I can feel her eyes on me as she asks, but I’m so over trying to be pleasant. I knock my knee into River’s. Silently begging him to deal with the question.
He clears his throat. “We do, yeah. I wouldn’t say we’re turning people away, but we’re doing pretty well. Better than we would have if we’d stayed in Chicago at least.”
“Oh, why’s that?” Emma asks.
“Big city, lots of shops.” River says with a shrug. “We managed to get a good client base built up here, and we even have people travel to get work done. Like I said, we aren’t super famous or anything, but we’re well known. It’s nice being a big fish in a small pond that way.”
She nods. “Is that what made you all decide on Cedar Falls then?”
“Well,” River starts and looks at me. “Actually?—”
“I wanted to move back home when I found out Piper was pregnant with her oldest. I wanted her to have family support and River and I had already been talking about trying to strike out on our own, so he came with me.”
“Aren’t your parents still here?” She asks and I can feel every fucking muscle stiffen at the mention of them.
“Nope.”
“Really? Would have thought they’d stay here forever.” She says. “Like my mom.”
I scoff. “Yeah well, not all of us were blessed with great parents Emma. Some of us were given ones that decided they’d rather live a life pretending one of their kids doesn’t exist because she kisses other girls.”
I get a cruel sense of satisfaction as I watch the color drain from her face.
“Sage, I’m so sorry.” She rasps. “I wouldn’t have said anything if I knew that. Shit.”
I shrug. “Yeah, well. Now you do. Piper stopped talking to them when it all went down. Parents fucked off somewhere in Cincinnati I think.”
“I’m sorry.” She says again, almost a whisper on her breath.
“Of all the things I want to hear you say that about, this wasn’t it.” I grind out.
She blanches. “What?”
I glare at her. “Are you seriously going to play dumb about it?”
