Damaged and the Dragon (17 page)

“
Raven insists on playing
with us. That’s weird, man,” Judd said.

When his wife opened her mouth in her
defense, Vaughn raised his hand. “I got this,” he said, giving her
a wink. “Judd is just jealous that you beat his ass in every
game.”

“
Not every game,” Judd
growled.

Leaning against Nick, I whispered loudly.
“They’re idiots.”

Vaughn and Judd turned in unison and glared
at me.

“
Do you play videogames?”
Vaughn asked Nick.

“
Not really.”

“
Do you play pool?” Judd
asked.

“
No.”

Vaughn smirked. “I’ve seen you bowl, so we
know you can’t do that either. What can you do?”

“
Tolerate Bailey!” Tucker
hollered from farther down the table. “That makes him a fucking
superhero.”

As people laughed, I prepared to scream my
response. Before I let loose, I glanced at Nick who wasn’t
laughing. In fact, I sensed he wasn’t really listening. Crowds made
him uneasy and these weren’t his people. Not yet anyway, so he
focused on me like I was a lighthouse in a storm.

Everything around me faded until I was alone
with Nick. I thought about the way he said my name in his sleep.
How he woke up edgy until his gaze met mine. I remembered how he
now removed his shirt to swim without looking ashamed of what his
father did to him. Even pushed past his comfort zone, he was
happy

Knowing I was special to Nick, I let the
others laugh. There was no need to defend myself when I belonged
with Nick who accepted me fully.

His green eyes studying my face, I wondered
what he found so fascinating.

“
Hey, Nick,” Vaughn said
over the chatter, “bowling for shit don’t mean you can’t still join
our bowling nights. Nailing Bailey means you’re part of the
crew.”

“
Deputy Dickhead even
joined us that one time.”

I stopped gazing into the eyes of the man I
loved, so I could glare into the laughing faces of my friends.

“
You jerks! Why did you
invite him?”

“
He was your man meat,”
Vaughn said, laughing against Raven. “You were a cute couple
too.”

“
Assheads. I was trying to
ditch the fucker and you guys invited him to bowl. Now, he’s a
frigging stalker.”

The minute I said “stalker,” the men around
me stopped grinning and became territorial dicks.

“
He’s stalking you?” Tucker
asked, walking to me and leaning over my chair. “Should my bat and
I have a talk with him?”

“
I have it
handled.”

“
Is that a yes?”

Nick glanced up at Tucker. “Do you think
Bailey can’t handle a douche cop?”

Tucker looked at Cooper who showed no
reaction. I knew they were doing their silent conversation trick
that I’d seen them do most of my life. I had a theory that they
shared a brain and Cooper just kept it a hundred percent of the
time. It sure would explain a lot of things.

Finally, Tucker shrugged. “Point taken.”

Watching my brother back off, I didn’t know
if he was showing respect for me or Nick. Either way, Tucker and
Cooper decided to stay out of my business for the first time
ever.

As everyone settled back into their
conversations, I leaned against Nick and stared into his sexy eyes.
“Thank you,” I said, my lips brushing his. “Oh, and I really want
you inside me.”

Kissing me gently, Nick smiled as if I was
already under him, begging for more.

Kentucky Tattoos was where I came to make
Dragon come alive. Aaron created magic and I considered him a
friend. Like most of my friends, I didn’t actually hang out with
him. Maybe I would now that I had Bailey.

“
Glad you called,” Aaron
said from behind the counter. “Been slow this week. With parents’
weekend coming up, everyone is faking like they’re
saints.”

“
Well, I don’t have that to
worry about.”

“
What are you looking to
do?” Aaron asked as we walked into his workroom.

“
Nothing too complicated,”
I said, displaying my wrist. “I want Bailey’s name on my
wrist.”

Aaron exhaled slowly. “Are you sure? The
Johanssons don’t play when it comes having their women’s names on
their wrists. It’s forever shit for them. That’s how I knew Cooper
wasn’t fucking around with Farah.”

“
Bailey’s mine, but I can’t
find a way to make her truly believe. When I try, it feels like
just words. I know her name on my wrist is a word too, but maybe
it’s one that she’ll know means forever.”

“
Fair enough. Just know
once the Johansson boys see her name on your wrist, it’s like
you’ve gotten on one knee and proposed. Trust me that Bailey and
Jodi will be talking wedding dates behind your back. If you lose
interest or cheat or break it off, it’s not going down softly. The
shit will hit the fan.”

“
The only way Bailey gets
rid of me is to put me in the ground.”

Aaron grinned. “Hell, if everyone ain’t
falling hard in Ellsberg these days.”

I sat in the chair while he prepared his
tools. “How is Lark?”

Aaron smiled, but his eyes lost a little of
their joy. “The happy version is she’s loving being pregnant. Bed
rest is fun because she has people serving her. Everything is
peachy.”

“
And the real
answer.”

“
She just turned twenty and
is carrying twins. We’ve been married less than a year and Lark
can’t do anything more strenuous than move from the bed to the
couch and back. Our idea of a fun evening is me bringing home
barbecue for dinner. It’s the only time she gets to pig out now
that she needs to eat healthy crap to keep her blood pressure
down.”

“
Would you do something
different?”

Aaron sighed. “No, but it can feel like too
much too soon. I worried until one day while I was golfing with my
parents.”

“
Golfing?” I asked, giving
him a look.

“
I golf. Sue
me.”

When I just grinned, Aaron continued, “My
mom said going through all these trials in the beginning of the
marriage was best. Then we’d always look back at this time and know
we’d make it. Besides, the babies will be born by the end of the
year and we’ll be faced with a whole new ball of crazy.”

“
No regrets
though?”

“
If I’d change one thing, I
couldn’t know what I might lose in the process, you know? Life
doesn’t always give us more than one shot at happiness.”

“
I wasn’t really ready for
Bailey,” I blurted out. “Maybe I never would have been ready. I
keep feeling like I need more time to change for her.”

“
Waiting isn’t always the
way, Nick. I had a cousin. Smart chick with her life planned out.
When she was twenty five, the guy she was dating proposed. She
loved him and they were happy, but she turned him down. They’d been
together since college and she wanted to make sure she wasn’t
settling. I saw her a few years ago and she was with a guy and
thinking about marriage. After a few drinks, she admitted how the
first guy was the one, but she lost track of him over the years and
didn’t know if he found anyone else. A part of her wanted to wait
to see if fate would bring them together again. Another part said
to settle with this new guy, but she would always know he was her
second choice.”

Aaron took my wrist and ran his fingers over
the pulse. “I didn’t have any advice for her, of course. I was a
sixteen year old guy who didn’t know shit. Still, I remembered what
she said when I watched her walk down the aisle. I keep it in mind
whenever I think about how fast everything happened with Lark. Like
slower sounds better. Fun dating for a while then a few years
married without kids. All that stuff sounds easy, but life doesn’t
work that way. You get a shot at happiness and you need to grab it.
Forget about schedules and being scared. Some people get lucky and
life gives them plenty of chances, but most people are one and
done. Screw up your one shot and you’ll regret it forever.”

“
It’s why I’m getting this
tattoo. If Bailey and I don’t work out, I’ll still want her name on
my wrist,” I said then exhaled hard. “I have a ton of marks on my
body. Reminders of fucked up times. Even the dragon comes from
something ugly in my life. Bailey though is a beautiful part and I
never want to forget.”

Aaron grinned. “Poetic, man. Who knew a guy
would get all worked up over Bailey? Not that she isn’t hot, but
her mouth scares most guys.”

“
I’m not most
guys.”

After giving me a knowing grin, Aaron worked
his magic again. Each letter was drawn beautifully across my wrist.
Even if I was a mess most days with Bailey, I knew her name would
remain on my flesh until the day I died.

Lark Barnes was one of my favorite people.
She had the biggest heart and a great sense of humor. With all her
qualities, the chick’s petite body wasn’t built for pregnancy.

Knocked up with twins, Lark had become a
giant baby bump on two legs. By the time the babies were born, I
suspected she’d look like Humpty Dumpty with spiky hair.

Around ten, I sneaked into the house to find
Lark still asleep on the couch. Every morning she got up with
Aaron, only to return to sleep once he went to the tattoo shop.
Leaving her to rest, I opened the backdoor so her ugly dogs could
do their business. Next, I focused on the laundry.

With Lark on bed rest, everyone in the crew
was helping out so she could stay off her feet. Though I hated
cleaning floors and left the crap work to Raven. My skills shined
with laundry.

Folding Aaron’s millions of wife beaters and
the moo moos Lark called maternity clothes, I thought about kids. I
had no interest in the stink machines. Besides, I was just learning
to pull my head out of my ass. The last thing I needed was to be in
charge of a kid. Young in ways I wasn’t, Nick especially needed
time to settle into being a man.

When we were ready, Nick and I would make
awesome kids who would play with my nieces Scarlet and Lily. They’d
be pals with the twins too. Once he’d felt safe in Ellsberg like he
never felt when growing up, Nick would be a great dad. We could
make a great life together if I was patient enough.

“
You’re folding them
wrong,” a sleepy voice said from behind me.

Turning around, I found a baby bump with
Lark attached to it.

Bed head beautiful, she grinned. “Rich girls
can’t fold for shit.”

“
Do you want me to
stop?”

“
Only if you’re planning to
sweep the floors,” she said, waddling away. “If not, keep folding
them in your goofy way.”

Carrying the basket with me, I followed Lark
into the living room where she eased onto the couch and propped her
feet up on pillows.

“
How do you feel,
fatty?”

“
Svelte actually. Thanks,
jealous hag.”

I laughed. “Need something to drink or
eat?”

“
Yes on both. A diet soda
and a fruit cup would be great.”

In the kitchen, I found lots of food with
sticky notes labeled, “Lark.”

“
What’s with the food? Are
you and Aaron already fighting over stuff?” I asked, sighing. “So
sad to see love die.”

Lark said nothing, only lifted two middle
fingers then laughed. “On my last checkup, I had high blood
pressure. Nothing serious, but the doctor put me on super duper bed
rest. I might need to crap in bed at this rate.”

Despite worrying about her health, I
laughed. “What’s that have to do with the food?”

“
Low salt diet. I’m
supposed to drink tons of water, but I need soda or else I’ll puke.
I already had to give up coffee since the caffeine made me
weird.”

Once I let the dogs back inside, I brought
her the soda and fruit cup. “Is feeling so shitty for so long worth
it?” I asked, sitting at the end of the couch.

“
Hell yeah. I’m having my
man’s babies. I can’t wait to see what they look like and what
personalities they have.”

Reaching over, I placed my hand gently
against her bump and one or more of the babies moved inside her.
Lark didn’t seem to notice as she ate her fruit cup.

“
Farah knows what her baby
is. She already named it Lily.”

Lark grinned. “I’m announcing our baby names
at the first baby shower.”

“
Tell me now.”

“
Nope. You’ll blab,” she
said, finishing the fruit cup.

“
No, I won’t. I promise,” I
said, but even I didn’t believe me. “Fine, chunky. Keep your
secrets.”

“
How’s Nick?”

“
Changing the subject, huh?
Sneaky,” I whispered and she grinned. “He’s amazing. Everything I
hoped for, but better. He’s mine.”

“
I’m glad. Nick’s a good
guy. Are you treating him right?”

“
What the hell does that
mean?”

“
You know,” Lark said with
her eyes closed.

Frowning at her dogs, I wanted to defend my
awesome. I didn’t though.

“
I nearly lost Nick when I
gave him an ultimatum and he called my bluff.”

“
What kind of ultimatum?”
Lark asked, opening her eyes to giving me a disapproving
look.

“
I said he needed to give
up fighting or I’d dump him.”