Untamed (201 page)

The only thing I can do is shake my head.

At the altar, Isabelle says, “I do.”

The priest says, “You may kiss the bride.”

My father and my new stepmother kiss.

My new stepbrother’s fingers sidle over my thigh, leaving tingles and buzzing in their wake.

“Stop it!” I whisper, slapping his hand away.

He just grins, gets up, and swaggers off.

I watch him over my shoulder. The ceremony is not even fully finished, and already he’s disappeared into the cottage. Moments later his figure appears in one of the upstairs windows. He beckons me through the glass.

Everybody is starting to chat and mill about now, and so I use the opportunity to sneak away. Nobody notices me as I recede slowly from the congratulating crowd.

I enter the cottage, walk up the creaky steps, and into the room that Pierce is in. It’s a small bedroom, fully furnished, though no doubt it’s all for show. A four-poster bed lies against the wall; it looks old, a little too grand for this small cottage. A folded card sits on top, and it reads: Do not sit.

“What do you want?” I ask. Pierce is standing at the window, leaning out of it, smoking cigar clasped between his thumb and index finger. “Why did you come up here?”

He turns around, a smirk prying his lips apart. “Why do you think?”

“Gross,” I say, grimacing. “God knows when this place was last properly cleaned. God knows who last… you know, did it in this bed. I’m sure
somebody
has.”

“I’m sure, too.”

“What did you really ask me up here for?” My eyes go to his cigar. “What does it taste like, anyway?”

“It’s difficult to describe. I don’t think you’d like it.”

“Can I try?”

“Sure, but don’t inhale.”

He holds the cigar out, and I take a puff, let it out of my mouth, and make a face. “It’s so bitter.”

“Truth be told,” he says, and he stubs it out on the windowsill. “I don’t know why people even smoke these things.”

“Pierce!” I hiss, going to the window. The wooden sill has been burned, and black ash is smudged in a faint circle. Some of the old off-white paint is now chipping.

“I think we should tell them.”

I spin around, blinking. “No, we shouldn’t.”

“Why not?” he asks. “Don’t you think it would be fun, Pen?”

“They’ll be gone from Melbourne in a couple of days for their honeymoon, and then they’ll be gone from this country in two weeks.”

“So you just want to let them leave without knowing? And we continue our little forbidden tryst in secret?”

I sigh. “Yes.”

He leans against the wall at an angle, and puts his hands into his pockets. “Sounds like a plan, Pen.”

We don’t speak for a moment. He’s staring off into the middle distance.

“What are you thinking about?”

“I was serious, you know.”

“About what?”

“Getting a Prince Albert.”

“Oh for God’s sake,” I say, heaving a dramatic sigh. “No you weren’t. You were just trying to annoy me.”

“I was,” he admits. “But I’ve thought about it a little more. Could be fun, you know?”

“I can’t believe we’re talking about this again.”

“Think you’d like it?”

I widen my eyes in disbelief. “I honestly haven’t thought about it before.”

“Well, think about it.”

I give him a shrug and a head-shake. “I don’t think that I care.”

“Think Tina will branch out into piercings? Hire someone good?”

“Ew, no,” I say. “And besides, I don’t think I’d be comfortable with you getting it done at our shop.”

“
Our
shop?”

“Tina’s letting me take on more clients now,” I say, grinning. “In fact, I’m starting to bring in business!”

For a moment, Pierce almost beams at me. “That’s great, Pen. I knew you’d make it.”

“I haven’t made it
yet
. But I’m getting there.”

“How long will you apprentice for her?”

“The full year, if I can.”

“And then?”

“Then I’ll talk to her about starting my own shop. Or I’ll work for her for a little longer, you know? Get more experience.”

“I was thinking about getting a new tattoo,” he says.

“Oh, yeah?” I ask, grinning. I go to him, take his hand. “So was I, actually.”

“Where?”

“I want a half-sleeve. I’ve been sketching up some designs.”

“In your top-secret sketchbook you never let me look at?”

“I’ve got it with me now,” I tell him. “It’s in the car. Want to see them?”

“Hell fucking yes, I do.”

“Then come on. We’ll get them and go sit in the garden. It’s a nice day today. We’ll let all the adults mingle.”

We leave the room together, hand-in-hand.

“You know, I’m glad you’re not fighting anymore. When is the grand opening for the gym?”

“Not set yet. There’s still some work that needs to be done, and I need to get a practice cage in.”

“Ballpark?”

“Sometime next month.”

“So you’re really going to teach, huh?”

Pierce shrugs. “Why not? Man’s got to earn a living.”

“Well, just as long as you don’t teach them how to get into underground fights. Have you got students yet?”

“They’re lined up twice ’round the block. What can I say?” he asks, smugly. “They’re learning from a legend.”

“Oh, shut up.”

As we’re walking down the steps, he leans into me and smells my hair. Then he whispers, “I’m still going to fuck you in every room in this house, you know. We’ve got all afternoon.”

“No you’re not,” I tell him. “You couldn’t do it that many times in one day, anyway.”

In his eyes I see a blaze of competitiveness.

“Want to bet?”

Thank you for reading
Uncaged
.