Ink's Second Chance - Carol Dawn Page 0,25

are out of this world and his tanned skin glistens from the light shining through the window. His eyes hold stories, but one thing remains the same, the beautiful green color that seems to shine brighter than the sun. I’ve always loved his eyes.

“I see why they call him Ink now,” Laura says.

Oh, yeah, the tattoos. They are everywhere. I haven’t let myself fully examine them for fear of being caught, but Sammy has tattoos up both of his arms, across his chest, over his shoulders, and down his back.

Shirtless Sammy is bad news.

Shoot, fully clothed Sammy is bad news.

“Did you hear me, babe?”

Startled, I look up and glare.

“You need to put a shirt on,” I say.

“You’re wearing my shirt,” Sammy grins.

“Is this the only one you own?” I tease.

“It’s my Friday shirt,” he smirks. “I can’t wear any other shirt today except that one.”

“Today’s Tuesday,” Wolf says causing us all to laugh.

“You’re all just jealous that you don’t look this good.”

“Dear God, shut up,” I laugh. The man’s ego sure hasn’t changed any.

“Don’t you dare start that shit, too,” Sammy says.

I don’t understand why everyone is in tears with their laughter, but I smile and remind myself to ask Laura later on what was so funny.

“You ready for this?” Sammy asks once everyone has calmed down.

I know what he’s talking about. I want to say no. I want to stay right here in this little bubble of smiles and laughter.

But, even more than that, I truly do want revenge. So, with a reluctant determination, I nod my head.

Sammy places me in my chair, and I shift around until I get comfortable.

“What are these buckles for?” he asks.

I warm at his curiosity.

“While I do have most muscle control in my lower back, it’s not always the strongest,” I admit. “Sometimes, I need that belt to help hold me in my chair.”

“And these?”

I look down to see him touch the wheel locks.

“It locks my wheels in place, so my chair doesn’t move when I don’t want it to.”

His eyes roam my chair with an intense curiosity.

“Wouldn’t an electric chair be better?” Someone asks.

I look over at the voice and it’s a woman I haven’t yet met.

“Sorry, I’m Thea,” she says, blushing.

“Nice to meet you, Thea,” I smile. “And yes, I’m sure an electric chair would be easier for certain things, but I prefer the mobility of the one I have. Those power chairs are bulky and heavy and don’t move the way this one does.”

“We best head in now,” the man beside Thea says. “Go save my boy from that insane woman.”

Thea laughs. “Brendon is fine with Bella,” she says. “Ignore all of his facial expressions,” she tells me. “He’s not as grumpy or as mean as he wants people to think he is.”

I’ll have to take her word for it. Because the man looks pissed off just standing there. Well, until he looks down at Thea. Then a soft, almost non-existent, smile appears on his face.

“Let’s go, baby.”

I turn my chair and follow Sammy. My heart is beating a thousand beats per second knowing that I’m about to relive that whole situation again. One that I’m sure will be in my dreams for years to come.

***Ink***

I’m pacing back and forth as Rachel tells us everything that happened. She’s being so brave and I’m beyond proud of her. But I’m about to fucking lose it.

I held her hand as she walked us through her attack and was surprised as fuck that I didn’t lose it sooner. She’s in the middle of explaining how she had to fall off of her bed to get to her phone charger when she stops talking.

Looking back, I watch as tears slowly flow down her face. I memorize the pain and the fear in her eyes. I want that image in my mind when I fucking kill the bastards who did this.

“Go back to before you called the police,” Bear says softly. “You told us that the two men who held you down and attacked you left while the first man stayed behind. What happened after that?”

I push my own feelings aside and sit down next to my woman. My arms ache to grab her out of her chair and hold her but I think she needs her personal space while she tells us what happened.

If it was up to me, I would never let her out of my arms again.

“I opened my eyes,” she whispers. “And he was sitting on the side of my bed