Chapter 2

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Instincts

Mark was right

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Mark was right.

Three hours of dancing, some awful attempts of socialising and an empty bottle of tequila later meant one nasty headache in the morning. The lack of sleep after a full shift at the gym the day before left me stumbling into work with sunglasses on my face to hide my dark circles.

The tight skinny jeans and black tshirt I wore reflected my dark mood as I pushed my way through the front door of J's tattoo parlour. I discarded my shades and downed my second cup of black coffee quickly in the break room before moving to my work station. I've been working on a design for a customer the past few days. They wanted a realistic crow-like bird hanging onto a broken branch that would span across the right side of their body. It was unusual for me to design a tattoo without meeting it's human counterpart first but one of the guys directed the design my way knowing I'd do the better job. Then again, I always loved a Challenge.

By the time the store started filling up, my hangover was pushed to the back of my mind and my body moved with muscle memory. Alot of our customers were first timers, meaning that we'd have to be careful with what we suggest and cater souly to their personalities. This job required alot more social skills and the art of reading people than you'd discover.

At the time being, owning half the store meant I get to deal with the financial papers and taxes of the business. It was a pain in my ass but Jason knew I like to limit my interactions with customers as much as could. We've got two artist at J's, Malcom and myself, but Jason pitches in when it gets too hectic.

In the middle of a shouting match with our ink suppliers about how they've been skimming our deliveries and robbing us of our products, Jason knocks on the back door.

"We need you up front. The crow tattoo customer is here." He says before leaving the room and closing the door.

I sigh deeply before stating calming, "Listen you piece of shit, I've got the proof and records. Either you give us a complete compensation for the shit you've stolen from us or I'm changing suppliers and going to the police. You've got three days." I end the call roughly before dragging a hand through my shoulder length hair. I pull it into a messy bun exposing the shaved hair underneath and the lotus flower tattoo at the back of my neck. Grabbing my leather jacket and sketch book, I head out to meet the customer.

At the front desk there's only one person sitting on the waiting couches so I make my way towards her. She has flaming red hair, cascading down her back in loose curls. The arge to wrap those long soft curls around my hand and tug her towards me is so strong I slightly stumble in my approach. The creaking floorboards bring her attention to my approaching figure and stun my racing mind further. Dark glistening emeralds stare back at me with a slight smirk on those rosy lips of her as if she knows how affected I am by her. I shake my head slightly trying to get rid of the thoughts of what those beautiful green eyes would look like rolled back in pleasure.

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