Page 18 of The Fake Out

He nodded. “Looks good. Rox trusts you, so do what you gotta do.”

I put down the mirror at my side table and got out my machine, turning it on and dipping it in ink. “Ready?”

“Not really, but go for it,” he said with a smile.

My smile was hidden as my machine blared to life, and I started inking his skin.

He reached out to Rox and gripped her hand in his. “Oh, love, it’s not that bad,” Rox assured him.

“Angel, hold my hand and stop teasing me.” He cringed at the pain.

“I thought you were supposed to be a big tough guy. Don’t you play hockey?” I teased while I did my work. But it was cute to see this big guy ask his girl to hold his hand. These two were perfect for each other.

He glared at me, and I laughed. “No wonder you like her,” he said to his girlfriend. He looked like he was sweating from the pain. Poor guy.

I tried to distract him by getting him to talk more. “What position do you play?”

“Left-wing.”

“I don’t know what that means. Does that mean you play offense or defense?”

“Offense. I’m a forward, but I work mostly on the outer playing area.”

“Yeah, I don’t know what that means,” I admitted. “I hooked up with a hockey player over the summer, but I don’t know what position he played.”

“Really?” Rox asked, her interest peaked. “Who?”

“Not on our team, but he’s from here,” I explained. “How are the Bulldogs doing? I don’t pay attention to sports.”

Rox beamed. “Sales are good. We got a new defenseman on the team, so everyone’s trying to figure out the new arrangements. Coach has been experimenting with the lines, trying to figure out special teams.”

I had zero idea what she was talking about, but I nodded as if I did.

Benny laughed. “Rox, she doesn’t care about hockey.”

The curvy woman smiled. “Sorry! Now that I’m playing again, it’s like I eat, sleep, and breathe the sport.”

“I’ve actually been trying to send the new guy your way,” he said to me.

“Why?” I asked. I wiped at Benny’s skin and checked my work before starting back in on the line work.

“He has his ex-girlfriend's name tattooed on him,” Rox explained. “You’re good at cover-ups, right?”

Alarm bells rang in my head, but I didn’t know why. “Yeah, they’ve become my specialty. I made that mistake before, so now I want to fix it for everyone else.”

“We’ll get him to come in. I think he’s a procrastinator,” Benny explained.

I laughed and continued with my work, knowing when to change the conversation to distract Benny from the pain. Once we got to the shading, he relaxed. Rox was a champ at getting inked, so it was hilarious to me to see her big hulk of a man pretending it didn’t hurt. When I was almost done, my brother came over to inspect my work.

He and Benny shook hands. “Nice to see you again, man. My sis take care of you?”Alex asked.

Benny nodded. “She’s good at distracting you when she’s stabbing you.”

Alex laughed. “Yeah, she is.”

I wiped at Benny’s skin, admiring my work. This piece was awesome. I loved doing flowers so much, it had become my brand. I held up the mirror for him to see again. “What do you think?”

“Damn, V, it’s awesome!” Benny said.