Claiming Felicity (Ace Security #4)(41)

“Thanks,” Felicity whispered. “I needed to hear that.”

Bailey squeezed her hand, then winced as the tattooist’s needle struck a sensitive spot on her back. “What are we doing after I’m done here?” she asked, obviously wanting to concentrate on something other than the tattoo on her back.

“Ryder said he wanted to take me to meet some of his friends here in Colorado Springs. You and Nathan are invited, but I wasn’t sure what your plans were for the rest of the day.”

“How do you feel about that? Are you okay with meeting his friends?”

Felicity knew what Bailey was asking, and she loved her all the more for it. The truth was, she had no problems with meeting Ryder’s friends. He’d told her stories about the men over the last week, and she felt as if she already knew them. “I’m okay,” she told Bailey. “If you want to come, that’s cool, but if you want to get home and have some alone time with Nathan before you have to pick up your brother, I wouldn’t blame you.”

Bailey grinned, but gestured to her back with her eyes. “Not sure I’ll be able to do much with this on my back.”

“I’m sure you can be creative,” Felicity fired back, feeling snarky.

Bailey stared at her for a moment before smothering a laugh, not wanting to make the tattoo artist have to pause again because she was laughing. “True. God, it’s good to see you like this again.”

“Like what?” Felicity asked.

“Like you. Outspoken. Full of comebacks. Your eyes not full of worry and fear. I swear to God you were one of the only reasons I didn’t bolt back when I was sure Donovan was going to find me. You were so strong. I’ve hated seeing you so unsure and scared lately. So it’s good to have you back.”

“It’s good to be back,” Felicity said honestly. And it was. She felt one hundred percent stronger with Ryder at her side. She knew without a doubt that with Ryder next to her, she was safe, but she also knew Joseph better than anyone. Ryder couldn’t be with her every second of every day. Joseph would wait until the perfect moment to strike and was going to get to her, eventually. But she was done cowering in fear. She didn’t know what he had planned, but nothing she did would speed it up. He’d act in his own time, and no one else’s. Her new attitude felt liberating.

“If it’s truly okay with you, I think I’ll take you up on your suggestion and take Nathan back to our house and have my wicked way with him,” Bailey said with a grin, as if she really was thinking about all the ways she could make love to her man without being on her back.

The two friends smiled at each other. The tattoo artist sat back and patted Bailey’s arm. “That’s it for today. I think one more session to even out the shading and add in the little details you want, and we’ll be done. Wanna see it?”

Bailey nodded eagerly. Felicity got up and went to stand behind her.

She heard her friend’s breath catch as she saw the additional work that had been done on her back. “I can hardly believe it,” she said in a whisper. “I can’t tell the other tattoo was there at all.”

“And I can’t believe some asshole put that shit on you in the first place. Fucker.”

With wide eyes, both Bailey and Felicity looked over at Alicia, the incredibly talented tattoo artist who had been working on her art for the last three sessions. She hadn’t ever had one comment about what she was covering up, except to say she’d easily be able to make it disappear.

“What?” the woman asked a little belligerently. “If you must know, I was so upset after that first session that I got shitfaced drunk. My girlfriend had to talk me off the ledge. I wanted to hotfoot it up to Denver and find anyone who ever called themselves an Inca Boy and kill the motherfuckers myself. Oh, and Bailey, I’ll cover up whatever other ink you want for free too. Us women have to stick together.”

“Oh . . . uh . . . thanks.”

“See you next time,” Alicia said, waving off Bailey’s gratitude. Then she spun around and went up to the front of the store, most likely to get her next appointment.

Felicity’s wide eyes met Bailey’s. Alicia hadn’t ever really said much about the tattoo she’d been tasked with covering up, and Felicity hadn’t thought she had much of an opinion about it. Guess she’d been wrong.



“Everything go all right?” Ryder asked after Felicity had said her goodbyes to Bailey and Nathan at the tattoo shop. She and Ryder were on their way to a pool hall/bar called The Pit. Apparently it was where he and his friends hung out whenever they weren’t out on a job. Each of the six men had “regular” jobs as well as being hired mercenaries and used the pool hall as a place to relax and even to have meetings about upcoming and previous jobs they’d done.

“Yeah,” she said, answering Ryder’s question. “Bailey’s tattoo is amazing. Alicia is a true artist.”

“You get a new one too?” Ryder asked, gesturing to the small bandage on her forearm.

Felicity nodded. She fingered the bandage. “A bird like Grace and Logan have. I know it’s their thing, but I talked to Grace a while ago, and she said she wouldn’t mind if I got one too.”

“I can see that,” Ryder said immediately. “You guys are as close as sisters.”