Faith (The Fast Love Collection Book 1) (11 page)

Chapter
Eighteen

My eyes widened at the sight of one rather large seafood platter. The menu said that it would feed two but I believed that it would feed a whole lot more. Even Archer was a little surprised at how much food came out.

The restaurant was sitting atop of a small cliff that overlooked the beach and the sea. Here the waves crashed to the sand, the white caps were rolling to the beach in vast numbers.

We were sitting out on a deck that over looked a beach below, a few families had set up on the sand and the sounds of laughter and shrieks from the children were oddly comforting. A view into the future. As crazy as it sounded, I think the thought of having a child was slowly growing on me. What would happen between Archer and I was still very much up in the air but if today was anything to go by, things would be good. We were opening up, slowly learning about each other. Things that were club related were still a touchy subject but at least now I wasn't met with a scowl, just a frown and no answer. I'd get there, only because I knew that it wasn't that I couldn't know about it, it was because he wanted to ignore the past.

“How old are you?”

“Twenty-eight in a few hours.”

I stared blankly at him, the words barely registering. He chuckled and picked off another prawn.

“You're kidding, right?”

He shook his head, more interested in peeling out the edible part of the prawn.

“Why didn't you tell me?”

“I just did.” He returned.

“No, I meant before this. I could have gotten you something.”

“Naked in bed together is more than enough.”

Archer paused for a moment and then grinned darkly.

“And being naughty of course, that's a given.”

Well duh.

“Can't believe you left it to a few hours before to tell me.”

“I've had a trying few days Rox, give me a break. Moved house, got a girlfriend and managed to knock her up, had dinner with my old man and my dead brother's family, something I haven't done in a really long time. Kind of in a weird head space at the moment, you know?”

“Sure.”

I said nothing more, his mood shifted slightly and I didn't want it to progress into something that was negative. Our late lunch was going well, I didn't need it ruined by a stupid fight.

“So what was your name?”

He looked at me as the food rolled around in his mouth.

“Rails.” He finally offered.

“Why?”

“First ride I hit the guard rail and my old man said it was a sign. Kellen said it wasn't a sign it was a rail as in guard rail and it stuck.”

Warily I continued, curiosity was a killer. I wanted to know everything about him but he was really hot and cold with giving information over.

“And what about your father and Kellen?”

“Kel was called buck because he hit a rock and got thrown off the bike, like a bucking bronco. The old man's called striker, likes to throw a punch or two now and then.”

I nodded, a little placated in my quest for knowledge. Rather than the constant push, I'd take little nibbles here and there and hope that he'd always be happy to talk.

Comfortable silence hit the table as we continued to devour the amazing platter of fresh seafood. We made a fair dent in it, I sat back feeling so full I was beginning to wonder if I'd overdone it. Archer had a huge appetite, consuming the majority of what had been eaten. I'd picked my way through, taking it easy on my unsettled stomach.

Waddling back out to the car, Archer seemed rather amused by my slow walk and complaints of regret.

“One day you're going to explode with a lot of fat. Do you realize how much you eat?”

He shrugged and opened the door. “Growing boy.”

When he sat behind the wheel, he turned side on and looked at me.

“So now what?” I asked.

“Wanna get inked?”

I stared at Archer, bewildered as I waited for my mind to find one answer. Rattling between yes and no, it seemed that any form of an answer was a long way off. Archer chuckled and turned the engine over, pulling the car out of the car park.

“Maybe I'll get a little one and you can sit with me, decide once you've seen it in real life.”

“Does it hurt?”

“Shit yeah but you'd get used to it. The skin kind of goes numb after a while.”

Oh. Not as convincing as I'd hoped it to be though I wasn't so foolish as to believe it wouldn't hurt.

As far as distractions went, this one was by far the most distracting. Instead of thinking about the possibility of being pregnant, I was thinking about how much pain I might be in if I decided to get a tattoo.

When the thought of the pain had increased to the point where it was too unbearable, I decided that I wasn't getting one, no matter what.

Then, I was thinking of what I would get if I decided to get one. I couldn't decide so I believed it was a sign that I was not to get one.

It wasn't in my nature to be so flippant with such a life altering decision. I was the kind of person that would think about it and weigh up the options, write down the pros and cons of the idea and decide based on the list.

If I had a list, it was scattered in my crazy mind, obliterated with yes I will and no I won't, of how romantic it was to get tattoos together and of how it was a permanent mark on my body. By the time we got to the shop, Archer was shaking his head, the grin was a mile wide and I couldn't help but wonder why.

“Finished deciding yet?”

“How did you know?”

“You were silent and you'd frown and then smile, sneer and twist those pretty lips, biting them and generally making this man really, really horny.”

He leaned over and kissed me once, soft and quick before he got out of the car. I'd quickly learned to sit and wait, to not even open the door. I wondered how long this would last before he got sick of it. Maybe I'd be the one to crack first.

Archer opened the door to the shop, the buzzing sound was a little quieter than I'd expected.

“Afternoon rails, who is your friend?”

The fellow behind the counter was a narrow bodied, middle aged man that was in what appeared to be like a uniform. Black bowling shirt and jeans, the same as the other guy who was doing a tattoo on a young woman. Her friend was sitting on a chair beside her, watching the ordeal.

“Hey Glen, this is Roxy my old lady.”

“Charming.” I muttered under my breath.

Archer ignored me.

“Rox, this is Glen. He does all the ink for the club.”

“Hey.” I nodded at him.

Glen offered his hello nod with a smile that was a little devious. When he turned I looked down, hoping that nothing was on show. Thankfully the headlights were off and we were not showing anything.

“Climb on Roxy.” Glen said as he gestured to the long padded table.

“Oh Archer's...”

I looked at the man who was now eying off the rack of clothes, ignoring the conversation.

“I guess not then. Look Glen, I'm not really sure about this.”

“Oh, you're a virgin.”

“Pardon?” I said rather shocked.

“Ink virgin. It's okay Roxy, we can do something real small if you like. What do you think?”

Glancing at the young woman who was laying on her back, getting something done on her lower abdomen, I thought about it with a lot of seriousness. Something inconspicuous would be ideal, something small would be great. At least then I could say that I'd done it. Who knows? Maybe I might like them. I liked looking at Archer's and I had a tendency to drool over inked guys rather than the non-inked variety.

“Sure, small. Maybe a book or something, the inside of my wrist might be okay.”

Glen looked at me a little confused.

“Roxy is an author, she writes romance books.”

“Yeah?” He said rather happily. “My old lady reads romance, maybe she's read yours.”

“Possibly.”

An office chair was pulled out and offered to me, along with a padded bench for me to rest my arm on.

“This will be easier seeing as you're getting it done on your wrist, take a seat.”

Archer helped himself to the long bed like table, sitting on it with a smug grin. Somehow he'd managed to get me to go first, I was still trying to figure it out. Glen was setting up, putting out little pots of ink. I looked at the drawing he offered. An open book with the pages rising up, turning into birds that were flying away.

“Yeah, that's pretty cool.”

“Good.”

The image was pressed to my wrist, transferring onto the skin.

“Okay Rox, brave and all that nonsense.” Glen offered with a cheeky grin.

Taking a deep breath I closed my eyes and waited. The buzzing started and the pain seared through my arm.

“Ow.” I muttered, not impressed.

It was more than just ow. We could say that ow was just the forerunner to a whole lot of wincing, ouches, general complaints and pinching Archer's leg until he moved. But at the end of it, I was okay. I survived. For all that I'd been a little vocal about it, I was just messing around.

After I was patched up and given a list of do and do nots for tattoo care, I got up and waited for Archer to take a seat. Instead he got off the long table and talked to Glen as he moved to the front counter.

“Aren't you getting one done?”

“Yeah, Glen's just looking for the pattern I'd left here.”

“Found it.” He crooned, turning from the filing cabinet against the back wall. “Did you just want the outlining today or do the whole thing? How much time have you two kids got?”

My phone rang, removing it from my bag I looked at the screen and wondered why Alexis was calling me.

“That's my agent. I might be a while so you might as well do the whole thing.”

I pressed the screen to receive the call, crossing the room to take the call as I looked out the window.

“Alexis.”

“Afternoon Faith, how's the hunk doing?”

“Great.”

I turned and looked at said hunk, rolling his sleeve up. Glen put the image onto the skin, a continuation of his arm piece. Archer was slowly inking his way down his arm.

“Good.” She crooned. “Hopefully a little loving will help the flow. I've emailed some dates for you to go over, check if there's any conflicts that I've forgotten about. Have you heard when your sister will be back?”

“Not anything definite.” I said a little perplexed. “Dates for what?”

“Promotional tour Faith, we discussed this. The dates are only tentatively booked so if I've double booked you over a birthday or something you'll need to let me know.”

Maybe not a birthday as such, maybe a birth day. Holy crap, my life has just gotten complicated. A book tour, how did I miss her saying that one?

I looked at Archer who was already being tattooed, sitting there as if the pain was nothing. He was a freak. I offered a weak smile as he looked up at me, his own gleaming smile was hard to miss. The man was happy and after the shitty beginning of the day he needed to end it on a high, especially given that tomorrow was his birthday.

Far out, how could I tell him that I was going on a book tour, probably gone for a month. This was not good and I couldn't tell him tomorrow, it would making his birthday a depressing one. So when could I tell him? And what if I was pregnant, could I still go on the tour given that it wouldn't happen for a few months yet?

My life wasn't complicated, it was monumentally messed up.

Chapter
Nineteen

Archer rubbed the cream onto my tattoo, amused eyes looked up from my wrist. Amused because the so called buttoned down Faith was becoming a little wilder, carefree Roxy. He washed his hands and wrapped my wrist up again, all the while eying off the cake that was cooling on the bench.

The man didn't understand patience. He wanted it cut now, he wanted to eat it now. There was no waiting for it to cool or maybe eating lunch first. It was his birthday and he wanted it when he deemed the time was right. To hell with lunch.

He relented when I said that it had to be iced and I couldn't do that until it had cooled off a little more. So lunch was back on and almost ready. If I could distract him with tending to the lunch, I'd be set. No distracting pest who was always sneaking sly kisses, wrapping his arms around me and rubbing his arousal on my backside.

But actually getting him to step away from me was difficult, more so when I started to prepare the chocolate icing. Fingers were smacked, pouts were given. His birthday had started so well, waking to him entwined and hard pressed against me. Morning sex was slow and incredible, I always found the missionary position to be rather intimate, making a closer bond between two lovers. His body barely left mine, the close contact was perfect.

My body quivered at the thought of it, remembering his eyes staring into mine as he gently kissed me. Gently rocking into me until we were ready to come, the pace quickened but his body was still pressed to me. I knew what it was, I wasn't blind. It was proper making love, not hard core fucking, not even hot and heavy sex. As much as it freaked me out just a fraction, I was okay with it.

Dumping the utensils into the sink, I looked across to Eddie's kitchen. He was at work as he should be and I missed him. I hadn't seen him since a quick conversation last night, James had made dinner and it was on the table, the man was eager to get going on what he said was looking like a delicious meal. I could feel us drifting apart and the thought was killing me inside.

Turning back to the cake I saw the birthday boy feigning nonchalance as he looked to the ceiling. Casually I walked over and tugged his shirt, sniffed his chocolate breath and tried to stifle the smirk. I couldn't be angry with him, not when he loved my cooking and it was his birthday.

Archer didn't want some big fanfare for his birthday, just a day lounging around with me was good enough for him. He was shocked when he learned that I didn't know how to play poker and suggested that it was ideal to learn as strip poker was lots of fun. It was fun until he was down to his shorts and I still had my clothes on. I was now being accused of pretending that I wasn't really good at the card game. Pure luck was all that this was. I placated the sullen man by sitting on his lap, planting lots of kisses on him.

Rumbling of motorcycle engines filled the quiet afternoon air, Archer and I looked at each other and realized that play time was over.

“I could pretend I'm not here.”

“It's okay, they're probably just stopping by to say happy birthday. Go and see them, I've got cleaning up to do anyway.”

Darkness shrouded his face as he nodded, looking like he wanted to say something about whoever it was out there.

“Won't be long.” He offered with a peck on my lips, fleeing quickly.

I looked out the glass doors to the balcony to the two fellows that were waiting at Archer's front door. Cleaning up distracted me for a few brief moments, the sounds of motorcycles starting up made me smile. Seconds later my phone vibrated across the kitchen bench, chiming as it received a message. I opened the message from Archer, reading that he had stuff to do and would it would be a while before he was back. The sounds of another motorcycle starting made me gasp, I ran to the balcony and watched as Archer rode up the street. Gone without a goodbye.

Huffing with frustration I returned the message, telling him to be safe and to return to me alive and well. It's all I could hope for when he was off doing club business.

“So much for not being in a club.” I muttered.

It was time to face the facts, he might say he's out but he isn't. Not really. Not when they can turn up without notice and he goes running, following them to wherever it is that he's gone to.

Focusing on cleaning up after lunch rather than the fact that things were getting worse by the day, I continued without stopping until the place was back to my preferred state, spotless.

The cake had cooled sufficiently so I iced it so that it was ready for eating after dinner tonight, letting it rest on the bench. When it was done I put one little candle in the center of the cake, smiling to myself at how cute it was.

Keeping my mind going rather than becoming stagnate, I checked my emails and found the offending time bomb that was waiting for me. The dates began at the beginning of January until the end of the month, with a few days off for Saffron's birthday. I guess that means she's coming home sooner than she anticipated.

I sat back and rubbed my belly, lifting the shirt and looking at it. Trying to make it protrude out was something that I'd never done, not even as a kid. I was never the kind of girl that played families, preferring to sit in the corner and read a book.

Curious to how I might look, I went to the bedroom and pushed my stomach out as far as I could. I sighed sadly as I looked at the roundness, unsure if I was or wasn't. There was still a few days yet before I could take the test.

Returning to the computer, I continued to look over the dates and wondered when it had gone to an entire month. Previous releases had always been a few days here and there, was this a sign of my rising popularity? If it was then it was a really good idea not to be so dismissive with the tour. But that meant being away from here for an entire month. Archer, Eddie and James, my parents, could I leave for that length of time?

Anxiety gripped me, fearing that the time away from Archer was too long. Was it a risk to part company for so long? Would he still be waiting for me at the end of it or would boredom have gotten the better of him? I didn't want to return to face another woman strutting around his house, replacing me.

Feeling weak like this was horrible, I wanted to be stronger but the thought of him finding someone else was crushing. With a huff I turned off the computer, unable to write when I had such a clouded mind. If I did go on the tour and came back to learn I was a single woman again, then so be it. I did not need him, end of subject.

By four pm I was beginning to wonder if I should start the preparations for dinner or not. I sent Archer a message, asking that he give me some kind of indication as to whether he'd be home in time.

I got nothing in return.

So with the belief that he was busy or maybe his battery had died, I began dinner. Archer wanted another roast, one with all of the vegetables that I'd done on Sunday. After an hour of preparations, the roast was in the oven and slowly filling the apartment with wonderful smells. Checking my phone for what must have been the tenth time in as many minutes, I grumbled and went to have a shower.

By seven pm I was sitting at the dining table and mindlessly flicking my phone in a circle on the table. I had dressed in a pretty dress and sexy underwear underneath. Dinner was probably stone cold now, hopefully the oven will keep it warm and not dry it out.

My mind had checked out, I sat and stared across the lounge room to the darkened night sky, not thinking about anything in particular as I waited. The soft patter of rain snapped my mind out of the dull, thoughtless land I was in. It increased in tempo, soon becoming a hard spatter to the balcony floor.

The heavy rain was loud but not so loud to drown out the sound of a motorcycle coming down the road. Glancing at the clock, I realized another hour had passed while I sat and waited. Angrily I got up from my seat, grabbed my keys and stalked out of the apartment.

Archer was at his back door by the time I found him, giving me a cold and distant hello as I drew closer.

“Where have you been?”

“Out.” He murmured.

“You said you wouldn't be long.”

He shrugged and walked into the house. I followed after him, looking like a drowned rat. All the efforts I had gone to, to look nice for his birthday dinner was washing away in a sea of mascara, wet hair and sodden clothes.

I was about to say something as he removed his leather jacket but stopped when I saw the crimson color on his shirt.

“Are you hurt?”

He huffed with a slight laugh, shaking his head. The reality of it sunk in, it wasn't his blood. There was a lot of it too.

“Did you hurt someone?”

“You're asking too many questions Roxy.”

Yeah, I get it. Club business and all. I nodded and walked out of the house, letting the rain hide my tears. Rather than going home to face the cake on the bench and the dried out husk that was once meat that was in my oven, I wandered down to the park.

I sat on the swing and rocked back and forth slowly, letting the rain wash away the pain. Did I stupidly believe that he would change? I did. He said that he was out of the club life, he wanted a fresh start that was a reasonably honest one yet in the few days that I've known him, his life hasn't exactly been an honest one.

Could I blame him for his inability to change? I had no straight forward answer, nothing that could give me hope for a sinking situation.

Pulling back the cloth that covered the new tattoo, I realized that someone had changed, it was just the wrong person. It wasn't a bad thing, I hadn't changed that much. I was still the same neat freak with writer's block only now I had a tattoo and maybe.

My hand rubbed over my stomach, wondering if maybe was in there or not. I sobbed just a little as my head hung lower, feeling a mighty weight push down on my life.

Looking up to Eddie's apartment block, I watched the shadows that passed the window. He was so lucky to have an easy going relationship, no screw ups, no running off for hours at a time only to return with another person's blood on his shirt.

What had he done? Had he killed someone? Was I lying in bed with a murderer? A chill went up my spine as I thought about the red on his shirt. At the very least, someone was hurt. Why couldn't Archer tell me?

The lights went off in Eddie's apartment and I wished I could walk up the stairs and see him and James. But I couldn't do that. Not now, not today.

I needed time alone and I knew that he'd offer me hugs and consoling words but it wouldn't help, not when I was dealing with a man that was from the wrong side of life and always would be.

There was no changing him.