Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 61746 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 309(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61746 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 309(@200wpm)___ 247(@250wpm)___ 206(@300wpm)
Taj brought out creativity in me, helping me see the world in so many hues of color, so many shades of emotion. He was a hard worker with something to prove, and I endlessly admired his work ethic and dedication. Ti, with all of his little critters and cool, calm demeanor, always kept me on my toes. With his sense of fashion and effortless charm, he never failed to make me swoon.
They were all so different, but the strong feeling I had for all of them was the same. It was deep, intense, and serious, and that scared part of me.
How could I have feelings for all of them? How could that work without me messing up the dynamic they had between them for years now? I didn’t want to drive a wedge between them from jealousy, so I didn’t say anything about my feelings. I just tried to focus on keeping my life somewhat together for my daughter.
Though, I couldn’t stop the fantasies of having a happy life with the seven of them from breaking into my mind from time to time. Leah had ended up with six great guys who loved her and treated her right, so I couldn’t help but wonder if I could have something like that with the seven tattoo artists I had feelings for. Even if that still sounded crazy.
While Chloe was at school today, I decided to hang out with Taj at the tattoo shop rather than hide out in my room. Per the guys’ request, I took some time off work and told my mom and Aisling that I was sick to lower suspicions.
“What’s all this stuff?” I asked Taj as I peered down into one of the open drawers at his station.
Taj spun his stool around to face me, his loose, white tank top hanging off his lean but muscular body.
“My piercing equipment,” he replied.
I cocked an eyebrow at him out of interest.
“You do piercings?” I asked.
Taj grinned with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
“Sure do. Want to get one?” he replied playfully.
I didn’t answer immediately and shrugged before motioning to my ears.
“I’ve only had my ears done. I haven’t really considered getting anything else done,” I admitted. It took me forever to get a tattoo!
Taj patted his tattoo table, motioning for me to take a seat as he pushed his stool closer.
“If you could get any piercing, what would you get?” he questioned me with a genuinely curious look on his face.
My face immediately burned red as an embarrassed laugh broke from me.
“Okay, I did have this rebellious thought once when I was like nineteen,” I admitted before looking away from him. “I wanted to get my nipples pierced.”
Taj feigned a shocked look before patting the side of my thigh.
“You naughty girl,” he teased me with a chuckle. “You’d look sexy with nipple piercings, baby. You should get them!”
I smirked and shook my head.
“You’re a bad influence, Taj,” I said.
“A bad influence with the right equipment to make your dreams come true,” Taj pointed out as he lifted his eyebrows.
I couldn’t exactly think of any reasons to say no besides being nervous. They would be hidden. I could take them out if I didn’t like them. Plus, the thought of him piercing my nipples strangely turned me on a little.
“You’re terrible,” I teased him before pulling my T-shirt off and unclasping my bra, leaving myself in jean shorts and sneakers.
Taj let his eyes rest on me for a few moments, shamelessly checking me out.
“I’ll be as terrible as possible if it still leads to you shirtless on my table,” he chuckled as he started taking his supplies out to put on his tray.
I laughed and brushed my hair behind my shoulders.
“Look at me… getting my nipples pierced amidst the pure chaos going on in my life,” I sighed. “And my little sister is winning hockey tournaments around the world and passing her classes at Yale with flying colors.”
“Uh oh. You sound like me with my older brothers,” Taj said as he pulled black, latex gloves on.
“Are you the jealous sibling who thinks you didn’t succeed as much as the others?” I asked.
Taj nodded after a few moments, his energetic glow fading slightly.
“You hit that right on the head. My eldest brother is an accountant. The other is in medical school,” Taj told me as he arranged the piercings on his tray. “And I get arrested for theft in college for stealing a school laptop.”
“A school laptop?” I replied.
“I got plenty of scholarships for tuition, but I didn’t have enough money for a laptop. Nowadays, you need some sort of computer or laptop to do half of your schoolwork. They had these old ones they were switching out for new ones in the business study lounges, and I stole one because I figured they were just going to throw them out,” Taj told me before shaking his head in shame. “I was tired of spending hours in those study lounges using the school-provided ones. Everyone knew I couldn’t afford one, and I just wanted to study with friends or do work wherever I wanted. It was… idiotic.”