Until Her Smile: Happily Ever Alpha World Page 9

  “Yeah, I guess so. So, this guy tells me that you’re thinking of some ink for yourself. What do you have in mind?” Ethan asks.

  “I have two ideas. One is some music notes in the inside of my wrist. The second is music notes floating off a sheet of music. Maybe a few lines of the lyrics to the first song I wrote that went number one on the charts.”

  “Both of those would be easy. We could do both and have the music notes coordinate. Are you thinking black or color?”

  “Black, probably. Do you do watercolor tattoos?”

  “I do, just know that watercolor tattoos tend to fade over time, so they need to be touched up to keep the vibrant colors.”

  “Then I’d probably just stick with black ink, then.”

  “Once I’m done with this, I can draw up some things for you. How big are you thinking for the sheet music?”

  “Um…I don’t know. Maybe like two inches wide by four tall?” I tell him.

  “What about the size of the screen on your phone there?” he asks, pointing to the iPhone in my hand.

  I flip the phone up so I can look at the screen. “That would be perfect. Will that be big enough for a few lines of the lyrics?”

  “Should be. I don’t want to make the text too small, as it will fade out and you won’t be able to read it. But we can play around with the size. Where are you thinking for placement?”

  “I think my side,” I tell him, pointing to just under my rib cage and above my hip.

  “That’s a great location.”

  “Eek!” I say, clapping my hands as I dance in the chair. “I can’t believe I’m finally doing this.”

  “I’ve got another appointment tonight already, so I won’t be able to tattoo you today. But I can for sure draw up the designs, or at least get a start on them. Then, you can think about it. We can then either do both of them at one sitting, or if you want to start with one and come back for the other, we can do that, too.”

  “Perfect. Thanks, Ethan.”

  “Anytime. You talk to Cam today?” he asks.

  “Nope, I won’t see her until Wednesday when I have the assessment with one of her clients. Any specific reason I need to talk with her?”

  “Nope, just wasn’t sure if y’all got together today or not.”

  “Oh, no, later this week. It will be good to see her again. I’ve been so busy with Reese that I don’t feel like I’ve seen anyone else but her and Lee lately. It was nice to get out on Friday night and let loose,” I tell him.

  “I bet. Plus, you got to meet this guy,” Ethan says.

  “That I did,” I say, winking at Peyton as he sits still in the chair as Ethan works at inking his back.

  “So, what do you think of the designs?” Peyton asks as we sit across from each other at a restaurant a few hours later. He insisted on taking me out to dinner once we left Ethan’s shop.

  “I love them! I think I’m going to have him do the wrist one first, make sure I can handle the pain, since it’s smaller. Then, if I do okay with that one, I’ll go back another time and have him do the bigger one on my side. I know the wrist is probably going to hurt like hell, though, so are you going to sit there and let me squeeze your hand?”

  “Sounds like a reasonable plan. Just a small word of advice, they can become addicting.”

  “Is that so?”

  “Absolutely,” he confirms as our server delivers our plates.

  “Can I get either of you anything else?” she asks.

  “We’re good,” I tell her before she walks away, leaving us to eat.

  “What wrist are you going to do?” Peyton asks between bites.

  “I think my right. Since I wear my watch on my left, and I don’t want it covered all the time by it.”

  “Good point.”

  We fall into an easy conversation while we continue eating, learning new things about each other. Even as comfortable as we both feel with each other, there’s still so much we don’t know.

  “Ready to get out of here?” Peyton asks, once our server returns the check for him to sign, along with his debit card. He once again refused to let me pay, standing firm that when we’re together and out, he will pay.

  “Yep,” I confirm, popping the P.

  “Your place?” he asks once we’re out in the parking lot.

  “Sure,” I reply as he pulls me in for a sweet kiss. “Unless you want to spend time with your dad tonight?”

  He checks the time on his watch before replying, “He’ll probably only be awake for another hour or so. We could stop by and say hello if you don’t need to rush home.”

  “Sounds like a plan. I’ll just follow you.”

  “Since we’re so close to your place, do you want to go drop off your car, and then you can just ride with me?”

  “We can do that. Does that mean you’re coming back to my place later?” I ask, flashing him a coy smile.

  Peyton pulls me closer, sliding his hands around my waist and resting them along my lower back, just above my ass. “Do you want me to come back to your place tonight?”

  “I want you to come as long as it’s what you want,” I tell him honestly. I suck my bottom lip between my teeth as I wait nervously for his answer.

  Peyton brings his hand up to cup my face, sliding his thumb across my bottom lip as he pulls it from my teeth. “First off, it drives me fucking crazy when you bite this lip like that. I’m the only one who should be biting it. Second off, I want to spend every single second with you that you’ll let me this week. Don’t worry about my friends or my dad. They’re all big boys who can take care of themselves. They also don’t need me warming their beds at night,” he says before dropping a kiss to my lips again, ending it when he sucks my lip into his mouth and bites down on it, then quickly soothing the sting with a swipe of his tongue.

  “Okay then,” I reply. “Let’s go drop my car off, go see your dad, and then…” I trail off, letting him fill in the blanks on what the rest of the night will bring our way.

  “Good to see you again, Stacey,” Robert says as I take a seat on the couch. He mutes the baseball game he has playing on the TV.

  “You too. Did you have a good day?”

  “Can’t complain. Finally kicking this crap that’s had me under the weather the past few weeks. I actually got out of the house today and went somewhere other than the doctor’s,” he says on a laugh.

  “That’s great to hear,” I tell him as Peyton hands me a glass of water and takes a seat next to me.

  “Let’s see the tat,” he says to Peyton.

  “He still needs to do some coloring on it in a few weeks to finish it up. But he wanted to let this part heal first,” he tells his dad as he pulls his t-shirt off over his head. I have to bite my tongue to keep from letting a small moan slip out when his rippling muscles come into view. Seeing him without his shirt on turns me on in seconds flat. He tosses me a quick glance and winks, knowing damn well he’s making me hot, sitting next to me, shirtless, and the brat is enjoying it.

  I help him remove the cover on his new tattoo so he can show his dad. It’s an intricate set of wings that span across his entire shoulders. The details Ethan included in it are amazing.

  “Looks good,” Robert comments, after getting a good look at it.

  “He did a great job with the idea I gave him,” Peyton confirms.

  I help him cover it back up and he slips his shirt back on over his head. After adjusting it over his torso, he places his arm around my shoulder and pulls me into his side, where I stay for the next hour or so as we visit with his dad.

  When his dad calls it a night, Peyton heads into his bedroom and bathroom to grab a few things to bring back to my place with him tonight.

  “Ready?” he asks, coming down the hall with a bag slung over his shoulder.

  “Yep.” I step back from the living room wall that’s covered in pictures from when he was younger.

  He grabs my hand and leads me to the front door, where we both slip our shoes on and
head out to his truck. Once we reach it, he opens the back door and tosses in his bag. Before opening my door, he backs me up against it and kisses me. I immediately open to him as I wrap my hands around his neck and anchor myself to him. I can feel his hardness pressed against my lower stomach and know exactly what lies ahead for us once we reach my place tonight.

  Chapter Eleven

  Peyton

  I lie here with Stacey sound asleep in my arms. We practically ripped each other’s clothes off once we got back to her place earlier. My thoughts race as I have her in my arms like this. She has me second-guessing every single thing I thought about women. She has me reconsidering my stance on relationships. I still don’t know what this is between the two of us, but I damn well know I don’t want this to end. The distance once I return to base will be a small hurdle to deal with, but as she’s said already, it isn’t really all that far when you think about it. Hell, there are people that commute every day for work from more than an hour away.

  All I know for sure is that I want to spend every possible moment I can with her this week. After that, we’ll figure things out as we go.

  I eventually drift off to sleep, my mind finally settling down as I think of the positives having Stacey in my life can bring and not allowing my experiences in the past to bog me down anymore.

  The week passes quickly—way too quickly, in my opinion. Stacey was busy the rest of the week each day with work, and I took advantage of the time to spend with my dad. Once he was finally over being sick, we headed out during the day, hitting up a gun range one afternoon and a driving range on another. Each night, Stacey came over and we all had dinner together before I’d follow her back to her place, where we’d spend the rest of the evening in bed.

  Tonight, I’m taking her out for a nice dinner before we spend our last night together, since I have to return to base tomorrow. I never expected to meet the most amazing woman while on leave, nor did I expect to be returning no longer a jaded, relationship-avoiding man. This woman has captivated me this past week and completely turned my life around.

  “Hey,” I say, opening the front door for Stacey. I pull her into my arms and seal my mouth over hers. I’ve come to crave the feel of her lips against my own and know it’s going to fucking suck not being able to kiss them every day after tomorrow.

  “Hi, how was your day?” she asks once we break our kiss, though we are still tightly wrapped together. She lays her head against my chest, right over my heart. The very heart she so quickly swooped in and now holds in her hands.

  “Good, kinda lazy. Sat around drinking coffee with Dad once I got home from your place this morning. Ran a few errands with him while we were out for lunch. How was yours?”

  “It was good. I finished up the paperwork I needed to finish today. We got our official schedule for the awards show. Reese is the opening artist and will be singing a medley of her hits from this past year, so we’ll be working on the arrangement over the next couple of weeks.”

  “That’s awesome, I bet she’s excited about that.”

  “Oh, absolutely. It’s pretty big to get the opening spot.”

  “I’m proud of you,” I tell her, tightening my arms around her.

  “Thanks. So, what do you have planned for us?” she asks, breaking out of my arms.

  “Dinner, then we’ll see where the night takes us,” I tell her, cupping her cheek and dropping a chaste kiss against her lips.

  “Hmmm…I like the sound of that. Are we having dinner with your dad?”

  “Nope, tonight is his monthly poker night with some of his American Legion buddies. He left to head down to their post a little while ago. They meet up for dinner and then play poker for a few hours.”

  “Okay, so what’s the plan, then? Dinner here, or out, or my place?”

  “Out, I’ve made us some reservations. Figured I’d take you out, and wine and dine you tonight,” I tell her, pulling her back into my arms. I realize we’re still standing in the entryway of my dad’s house.

  “What time is our reservation?”

  “Ah”—I pull my cell from my pocket and check the time—“we’ve got about forty-five minutes, so we should probably head out soon.”

  “All right, I’m just going to use the bathroom and then we can leave,” she tells me and takes off down the hall. I grab my jacket from the closet and wait for her by the door.

  “Ready?” I ask, holding out my hand for her as she walks over to me and links our fingers together. I bring our clasped hands up to my mouth and place a kiss against the back of hers.

  “I was born ready,” she teases. I chuckle as I lead her out to my truck.

  “Where’s your car?” I ask, just now noticing it isn’t in the driveway.

  “I Ubered it over here.”

  “You should have told me you were going to do that, I could have just picked you up at your place.”

  “It’s no big deal,” she tells me as I pull out of the driveway.

  I just shake my head and smile. My stubborn girl.

  “How was everything tonight?” our server asks as he clears our plates.

  “It was amazing. I don’t think I’ve ever had a steak so tender,” Stacey tells him.

  “Good to hear, and yours, sir?”

  “Mine was just as great, thank you.”

  “Would either of you like to take a look at the dessert menu?” he offers, and I look at Stacey.

  “I’m sure the desserts are delectable, but I can’t eat another bite,” she says.

  “No problem. Can I bring either of you anything else?”

  “Just the check when you have a moment.”

  “Right away, sir,” he says before stepping back from the table.

  “So, what would you like to do? Head out dancing? Go see a late movie? Stop and grab a movie from Red Box and head back to your place?”

  “What do you want to do? I’m happy as long as I’m with you,” she says.

  “Honey, if you leave it up to me, I’ll drive us straight back to your place and have us both naked within a minute of walking in the door.”

  “And there’s a problem with that because…?” she asks, winking at me. My dick hardens in my slacks at her words.

  “N-no,” I stutter out in reply. “But”—I finally find my voice—“it doesn’t all have to be about sex.”

  “I know, and I don’t think that’s all that this is about. But we also have to take advantage of the time we do have left together.”

  Our server picks that moment to drop our check off at the table. Before he can walk away, I hand him my card, not even caring what the total is on the bill.

  “Are you going to let me help you out with that?” Stacey asks, eyeing where the bill folder had just been sitting.

  “Fuck no,” I tell her. “Your money is no good when we’re together.”

  “I wish you’d reconsider that. I feel bad with you paying for everything this past week.”

  “Get used to it, babe. Call me old-fashioned, but when we’re together, I’ll be taking care of you,” I tell her as our server drops off the bill folder, with my card and the slip for me to sign. I place the card back into my wallet, add a generous tip, and sign my name. “Ready?” I ask, standing and holding my hand out to Stacey.

  “Yep,” she tells me, accepting my hand. I escort her out to my truck and help her up into it before closing her door.

  “Do you want to stop and pick up some wine or anything before we head back to your place?” I offer as I start up the truck.

  “Actually, yes. Some wine tonight sounds perfect.”

  A quick stop to grab a bottle of wine for Stacey and a six-pack of beer for me and we’re back on the road.

  “Why don’t you go change into something more comfortable while I pour you a glass of wine, then meet me on the couch,” I suggest to Stacey once we make it inside.

  “Sounds perfect.” She presses a quick kiss to my lips and then slips down the hall to her room. I step into the kitchen and
pull out a wine glass and the opener, then pour her a glass. I pop the top on one of the beers and head out to the living room where I turn on the TV and pull up Netflix and start flipping through the menu.

  “Did you want to change?” Stacey asks, coming to stand in front of me.

  “Now that you mention it, yes,” I tell her, standing up and kissing her. “I’ll be right back. Pick something for us to watch.”

  I quickly change into a pair of athletic shorts and a t-shirt, then head back out to the living room. “Got room for me?” I jokingly ask.

  “Of course, I’ll always have room for you.”

  I scoop her up and sit back down with her in my arms and across my lap. “Now, what are we watching?” I ask, shifting us around until we’re comfortably lying on the couch together, facing the TV.

  “How about this Jeff Dunham special?” she suggests.

  “Whatever you want, babe.” I reach for my beer on the end table. “Do you want your wine?”

  “Not right now. Thanks, though,” she says as she starts the comedy show.

  We are both engrossed, laughing away at the show, and I let my mind wander. Lying here with her in my arms, spending a Saturday night together, just feels so right. It fucking sucks that things will be so different after tomorrow morning. I tighten my arm that is draped around her torso, pulling her ass back against me a little more. The contact has my half chub hardening fully, and now all I can think about is stripping her naked and sliding inside her. I bring my lips to her neck as I slip my hand under her tank top, bringing it up to cup her breast.

  “Mhmmm...” Stacey moans, pressing her ass against my cock as she arches her back, pushing her breast further into my hand.

  “I’m going to fuck you right here,” I growl into her ear before I flip her under me. I quickly rip her tank top off over her head and drop my lips to her bare chest.

  “Yes!” she cries out as soon as I suck a nipple into my mouth.