Page 61 of Paco
“Are you ready to go? I’m getting hungry.”
“Me too, but it’s not for food.” He caught her gaze and winked.
She laughed. “You’re so bad.”
“I never told you I was good.” He stood up.
“But you promised me lunch.” She jutted her lower lip out in an exaggerated pout.
He laughed and went over to her, slipping her lip between his and sucking lightly. “So fucking tempting.” He smacked her ass, then went into the bathroom to freshen up.
When they pulled in front of the tattoo parlor, Chelsea gave Paco a confused look. “What’re we doing here?”
“I was thinking you should get rid of those fucking tats. We’ll go in and have one of the brothers cover them up.”
A pink flush swept her cheeks and she threw her arms around his neck, smothering his face with feathery kisses. “You’re so good to me. You’re the best. I love you.” She buried her face in the crook of his neck, and he felt wetness on his skin.
He held her for what seemed like an eternity, and then he slowly pushed her away. “Let’s go inside.” She nodded, wiping her nose with the back of her hand. He chalked up the “I love you” statement to her being overcome with emotion, or just an exclamation without much thought behind it. He didn’t want to think about herbeingin love with him.
She’s going home. She needs a chance to live the life she was meant to. I’m not the one for her. I can’t offer her anything smooth or ordinary. My world is chaos and violence, and that’s the last thing she needs.
Liberty smiled when they walked in. “Hey, Paco. Long time no see. You here for a tat, or you want to see Goldie?”
With his hands on Chelsea’s shoulders, he pushed her forward. “She needs some ink. Is Goldie busy?”
“He just finished. Go on back.”
He lifted his chin, then headed back with Chelsea’s hand firmly in his.
“Come on in,” Goldie’s voice boomed through the door.
Paco opened the door and let Chelsea go in first. From the way Goldie looked at her and then at him, Paco knew he was surprised to see them together, but Goldie didn’t say anything.
“Chelsea needs a couple of tats covered up. She’s been wanting a new one too, but that’ll have to wait until I get back.”
Goldie nodded and motioned for Chelsea to sit on a chair that resembled those in dentists’ offices. “What’re you trying to cover up?”
Chelsea pointed to her arm. “This one—” She swooped up her hair and turned sideways. “—and this one.”
Goldie’s gaze darted to Paco’s when he saw the bar code tat. Paco gritted his teeth and jerked his head. Goldie touched the tattoo. “I can cover both up easily. Do you have any designs in mind?”
Without hesitation, she said, “For the one on the arm, I want the words ‘free to be me’ with a broken chain around the script and a few tiny birds flying out above it. And for my neck, I want a beautiful yellow rose with the stem and leaves. No thorns.”
Goldie moved his stool over. “Been thinking about this for a long time?”
“You could say that.” She latched on to Paco’s gaze. “Thank you.”
He came over to her and bent down, brushing his lips against hers. “You want me to stay?” She nodded. He kissed her, then went over to the black couch and sank down.
When the needle first went on her arm, she cried. “Do you want me to rub on a numbing cream? It’ll take about forty-five minutes to do its thing,” Goldie said.
She shook her head. “It doesn’t hurt that much. I’ve felt dead inside for so long, but now I’m alive, beginning a new chapter in my life. It’s just overwhelming, that’s all. That this time I get to choose what goes on my body. That I’m free.”
Goldie cleared his throat, and Paco came over and stroked her face. “You’re free because of your strength and courage. You’re a survivor, babe. Don’t ever forget that.”
She wiped her cheeks, then brought his hand to her lips and kissed it before releasing it. “Okay, I’m ready.”
For the next two hours, over the whir of the needle and under Goldie’s steady hand, the brandings on her arm and neck were replaced by colorful ethereal designs. Afterward, she moved her arm one way and then another as if admiring Goldie’s handiwork. He turned the chair around and handed her a mirror.
