“The barbells I’m going to put in are longer than what you’ll wear after you heal. This will allow for swelling in the nipples. It will go down, but initially you’ll need the extra room on the bar.”
Wide-eyed, she nodded.
“Okay!” I said with a bright grin. “Remove your shirt and bra. I need to mark you to ensure we’re straight.”
She did as I said and nervously balled her shirt up around her bra.
“Go ahead and sit on the table,” I instructed as I motioned to the massage table.
She stood and held the wadded-up shirt protectively against her stomach. Then, I grabbed a small level. People laughed at me that I took piercing to such precision, but I hadn’t gotten to where I was without being meticulous.
I held the level to her nipples and made a mark on either side of each one with a surgical marker.
“How does that look?” I asked her as I passed her a hand mirror. She studied the marks and finally handed it back to me with a nod.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” I quietly asked her one last time. It seemed like her boyfriend was more excited about the process than she was.
She glanced down at her breasts, then at her boyfriend. “Is it gonna hurt?”
I wanted to pinch the bridge of my nose and groan. What I wanted to say was “No, not at all. I’m only shoving a sharp needle through each nipple, followed through by a bar that I will need to screw on and tighten. Nothing to worry about.”
Instead I gave her a reassuring smile. “It’s not gonna feel great, but it will be over quick. That I can promise.”
I was true to my word. The procedure was over with minimal mess, and Felicity handled it like a trooper. After going over the care instructions with her, I finalized her payment and showed her and her boyfriend out.
It didn’t stop there. By the time we closed, I ended up with three walk-ins and two other scheduled appointments. Leo locked the door, and we walked to our cars.
“See you guys tomorrow,” Leo said as he climbed in his sleek car. We all waved.
“Meet you there?” I asked Devlin.
Devlin stopped by my car and rested an arm over the roof. His dark hair fell over his forehead, and he grinned. The cutest damn dimples popped with that smile. In another world, I could’ve completely fallen for him.
“You could always ride with me and maybe, oh, I don’t know… stay at my place tonight.” He leaned in and ducked his head to look me in the eye.
A car door slammed loudly, and we both looked around.
When I saw the same Challenger that’d been at my place parked about four cars down from us, I sucked in a sharp breath. My heart started to pound, and I nervously scanned the area, but there was no one in sight except a couple walking down the sidewalk toward us from the opposite direction. No way was it a coincidence though.
“You ready?” Devlin asked, dismissing the sound.
“Yeah, I’ll follow you,” I said, giving him a smile that I sure as hell didn’t feel. Chills chased over my skin from head to toe.
It took us a few minutes before we were pulling into Bruno’s gravel lot. It was close enough that we could’ve walked, but we would’ve had to go back in the opposite direction of where we both lived.
As we walked toward the small bar, Devlin rested his hand on my lower back. I swear to God, I heard a growl and felt what seemed like hot air across my neck. It sent a shiver down my spine, and I darted a glance around again. We were alone in the lot, and there were about ten other cars there but no people.
A familiar scent blew on the light breeze, and I hurried inside.
Shaken, I settled on a stool at the bar. Devlin and I placed our orders, and he started talking, but I barely caught what he was saying. The feeling of being watched weighed heavy on my shoulders, and I wanted to go home.
“Thanks for buying my drink,” I said as I finished and set the glass of ice down on the napkin.
“You’re leaving, aren’t you?” Devlin said with a crestfallen expression. I gave him an apologetic smile and nodded.
“I’m sorry, I’m beat. I really want to go home and soak in a hot bath. I slept like crap last night.” To soften the blow, I pressed a friendly kiss to his cheek, and my glass flew across the bar and shattered on the floor.
“Oh my God! I’m so sorry, I must’ve bumped it,” I said to the disgruntled bartender. Though I didn’t remember making contact with it after I set it down, I must have, and I felt like an ass.