other’s. “Yes, ma’am. I
started a week ago.”
“ Shouldn’t you be at home
getting your schoolwork done?” her dad asks suddenly, looking up
from his phone.
“ No, sir. I already did all
my work.”
“ What’s your major?” Mrs.
Madison asks.
“ I’m double majoring in Art
and Advertising,” I say.
Emily tugs on my arm as she sits
forward in her seat. “You should see some of his art. It’s really
amazing.”
“ Do you do paintings,
Logan?” her mom asks.
“ I use different mediums,” I
say. “It depends on what fits the situation.”
She points to the tattoo on Emily’s
wrist. “Like that one?”
“ Oh, he didn’t do this,”
Emily says. “His oldest brother Paul did this.” She strokes her
hand down the inside of her forearm. “It was a surprise for
Logan.”
“ How did you two meet?” she
asks. She tilts her head to the side. Something tells me that she
already knows the story, but her husband has set aside his
Blackberry and is listening now.
Emily looks up at me and blinks her
pretty brown eyes. “I went into his tattoo shop to get a tattoo.”
She grins. “And he put the moves on me.” She nudges me in the side.
“Can I tell them what happened next?” I can feel her laughter
against my side.
“ She punched me in the face,
Mrs. Madison.” I reach up and absently stroke across my
nose.
“ He tried to put the moves
on me, and I was angry.” She shrugs, but she’s still laughing.
“I’ll never forget the look on his face.”
“ One minute I think I’m
going to get to spend some time with a pretty girl,” I say. Emily
squeezes my hand when I say “spend some time” because we both know
I tried to lay her, just like I used do with every woman I met.
“And the next, she breaks my nose.”
Emily laughs. She tugs my sleeve until
I look down at her. “You never tried that move on anyone else, did
you? After that?”
“ You cured me of that
particular move,” I say. I laugh because it’s funny now. It wasn’t
nearly as funny then. It fucking hurt.
“ Was it love at first
sight?” her mom asks.
I look down into Emily’s eyes. I was
intrigued by her the moment I saw that tattoo she wanted. There was
so much in that drawing that made me want to get to know her. But
she wouldn’t let me. “It was almost instantaneous for me,” I
admit.
Trip jabs a finger toward his throat
like he wants to make himself throw up, but I think I’m the only
one who sees it.
“ It took me a little
longer,” she says. “He and his brothers let me stay with them for a
little while.”
Her father arches his
eyebrows.
Emily rushes on to say, “He slept on
the couch and let me have his bedroom.”
Her father glares at me. I only slept
on the couch for half of that first night. The rest of the time, I
spent in bed with her. I didn’t have sex with her, though, not
until she was willing to open up to me. She had too many secrets in
the beginning.
“ My family would like to
have you over for dinner one night before you leave town. So
everyone can meet.” I hadn’t told Emily that yet, but Paul brought
it up. It’s a good idea.
“ I think that sounds lovely,
Logan,” Mrs. Madison says.
“ Sounds like an interesting
night,” Mr. Madison adds.
“ I got my class schedule
nailed down last week,” Emily says, changing the subject. Her
father huffs, his chest bellowing with air.
“ I hope it’s not going to be
too difficult for you, dear,” her mom says. Emily
stiffens.
“ I’ll be fine with
it.”
“ Anything exciting with your
music, dear?” her mom asks. At least she tries to look like she
cares.
“ There’s a big show coming
up at the end of the week. I have to prepare an original piece to
perform.” Her brow furrows, and I can tell she’s unsure about
it.
“ Sounds exciting,” her mom
says with a smile. She tugs on her husband’s sleeve. “Doesn’t it,
darling?”
He shrugs her hand off his arm. “Sounds
like a waste of time.”
“
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