Rome. Jay Crownover

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      She shrugged and fiddled with the stethoscope that dangled around her neck. She was hot, and if I was so inclined, I could see working up some really nice nurse fantasies where she was the main attraction.

      “I get that a lot. I must just have one of those faces. I have to run. No rest for the wicked.” She gave me a little grin and disappeared around the corner, leaving both of us staring after her, me in pure male appreciation, Nash in puzzlement.

      “I swear I know that chick from somewhere.”

      “She one of your one-hit wonders?”

      “No. Maybe Rule’s pre-Shaw?”

      I snorted and contemplated the ceiling while my head and side continued to burn. “She seems too smart to fall into that category.”

      “Maybe. It’s going to drive me nuts until I figure it out. What the hell happened to you tonight? Picking a fight with Rule wasn’t enough, you had to take on a whole biker bar?”

      “’Merica!” I gave a bitter laugh at my lame joke.

      He scowled at me and took a seat on the doctor’s wheelie chair, dwarfing the thing.

      “Seriously, Rome. You need to knock this shit off.”

      I didn’t have to answer because the doctor chose that moment to come in. He was a guy in his fifties who clearly was at the end of a long shift because he was no-nonsense as all get-out and wasted no time in fixing me right up. When he was done he gave me a serious look and told me I might want to lay off the booze considering my blood test came back potent enough to start fires, and all I could do was silently agree.

      He scribbled a prescription for painkillers that I hoped I wouldn’t need to fill since I was already struggling with my reliance on another dangerous substance, and told me the nurse would be back in a few minutes to discharge me. I was stoked about having one more chance to get my flirt going, but as soon as she stuck her head back in, it was clear she was all business and wanted nothing more than to see us go.

      “Take care of yourself, Mr. Archer, and thank you for your service to our country.”

      She spun around to leave when Nash suddenly hopped to his feet and snapped his fingers. It made the nurse wince and made me frown.

      “I knew I knew you! We went to high school together, didn’t we? Aren’t you Saint Ford?”

      We could have heard a pin drop she went so still and got so quiet. She stared at him like he had just crawled out of the sewer.

      “I am. I’m surprised you recognized me, most people don’t.”

      He tilted his head to the side and gave her a considering look. “Why did you say we didn’t know each other, then?”

      She cleared her throat and fiddled with the end of her braid. She was clearly very uncomfortable with the conversation.

      “Because high school was a million years ago and I was a very different person then. It’s not a time that comes with the fondest memories; in fact I prefer to pretend it never even happened. I’m sure that’s not something a guy like you can understand. Have a nice night; try to avoid any more knife-wielding bikers if you can, Mr. Archer.”

      She swept out in a haughty cloud, leaving both of us dumbfounded and gaping at each other.

      “Whoa. Were you a dick to her in school or something? That was a whole lot of hostility for something that happened so long ago.”

      He shrugged and helped me get up onto my feet. I wobbled a bit from the mixture of alcohol and blood loss, so he didn’t let go until I was steady.

      “Probably. Rule, Jet, and I were a bunch of punks. Remy was the nice one.”

      “What do you mean, ‘were’? You probably teased her for being fat or something.”

      He had the good grace to look ashamed. “That is entirely possible. I wasn’t exactly in a great place when I was in high school either. There was too much stuff going on with my mom and that idiot she married for me to really give a crap about anything or anyone else. Man, that blows. She’s a total babe now.”

      I didn’t even consider putting my blood-soaked shirt back on as I hobbled out of the emergency room.

      “She sure is.”

      We got to Nash’s fully restored ’73 Dodge Charger and I slumped down in the seat. It wasn’t the worst Independence Day I could remember having, but it sure wasn’t one of the best either. All I wanted to do was crawl into bed and forget about everything, not that that seemed to be working out for me so great as of late.

      “Listen, dude, I’m sorry about today. I’ll touch base with Rule and make things right. I’m just a little off balance right now.”

      The massive motor rattled so loud it made my teeth hurt.

      “We all get that. You just aren’t giving anyone a chance to try and help set you straight.”

      “I’ll chill out.” I wasn’t sure how I was going to go about that exactly but I knew I needed to get on it. “You can tell the rabid pixie to back off.”

      He laughed. “No can do, my friend. Cora is like a pit bull; when she sinks her teeth into something or someone she doesn’t let go. You might want to try and apologize. She just wants to look out for all of us and she does a good job of it.”

      I closed my eyes and let my head drop back on the seat.

      “I remember when that was my job.”

      Heavy silence filled the car and I didn’t think he was going to say anything else about it, but after a minute he muttered, “You went off to save the entire world, Rome, we just did the best we could while you were gone.”

      Just like being a big guy often had its disadvantages, wanting to be a hero to everyone and anyone often had the same dangerous pitfalls. I got used to everyone needing me, to them relying on me, and now that I wasn’t needed anymore I simply didn’t know what to do with myself. That honestly terrified me more than any war zone or bar brawl with armed bikers ever could.

       CHAPTER 3 Cora

      Summertime was always busier at the shop. It was the Tuesday after the ill-fated barbecue, and the ink bunnies were out in full force. The warm weather and lack of clothes led to people wanting to get all kinds of adornment in all kinds of interesting and visible places, and I swore to God that ever since Rule had officially gone off the market, the girls who came in to get work done specifically by him had doubled in number. I would never understand the allure of wanting something you clearly couldn’t have, but I had to admit it was a riot to watch them try to get it.

      The Terrible Trio were booked solid for the next six weeks, as were the other three artists who rounded out the crew at the Marked. I wasn’t as busy since I had to schedule appointments around my other obligations at the shop. Today a young guy had wandered in talking a big game about getting a full Jacob’s ladder, but СКАЧАТЬ