One More Day (15 page)

As if her thought had invoked him, the Super Hot Guy stepped behind her, that boyish smile on his lips.  "I like it," he said.

"Me, too.  It's kinda tough."

"It's pretty fucking cute is what it is."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tony slap Colby's arm. 

"Fuck off," Mack told them.

"So," Colby said, very obviously changing the subject.  "Food?"

Ryan looked at her.  "Would you think I'm insane if I said French fries?"

"Anything to go with those?" Colby asked.

"A coke?"  She scrunched up her face as she asked.  "I could be very wrong on that."

"Burger?  Nuggets?  Onion rings?"  Tony asked.

Mack just shook her head.  "No.  I'm worried fries might be pushing it."

"Lots of fries," Colby said, tapping Tony's arm.  "You parked out front?"

"Sure am."

"Then you're driving.  You two hold down the shop," Colby called over his shoulder as they left.

Ryan watched the headlights turn on, then steered Mack toward the employee only side of the building.  As soon as they were in the hall, he leaned her against the wall, standing close, nearly every inch of his body touching hers.

"Still feeling ok?" he asked softly.

Mack's heart was beating a little too fast, but she was pretty sure that wasn't what he meant.  "I'm actually feeling great.  This has been the best day in as long as I can remember.  How sad is that?"

He smiled and looked down.  "I'm trying." His voice was almost apologetic.  "We're all trying.  You deserve this, Mackenzie.  God, you look so fucking good with a purple crew cut."

Gently, so gently, Ryan rested his palm against the side of her face and brushed his lips against hers, but he didn't pull away.  His lips paused, barely a breath away, then his thumb caressed her cheek, the pressure of his hand encouraging her to kiss him back.  Mack leaned into him, reaching up to his chest, her mouth parted, and he pulled her the rest of the way, their tongues meeting.

She felt like heavy bass was playing in her chest and her knees were suddenly weak.  She moaned softly, clinging to his neck, wanting it to never end.  At first he kissed her carefully, but the more she gave, the more he took, until they were both breathless.  Her back was crushed to the wall by his body and their mouths danced, his arm around her back, holding her, neither able to stop.

The sound of the front door was the only thing that made him pull away.  Breathing hard, Ryan looked in her eyes.

"Damn," he whispered.

Chapter 15

Colby rounded the corner.  Seeing Mack and Ryan so close together, he just laughed.  One slap on Ryan's shoulder, and he continued down the hall, heading for the break room.

"You have to feed her, still," he yelled behind him.  "Don't tell me you've been there since we left."

"Maybe," Ryan said softly.

"Get a room," Tony teased.  "Well, after she samples the food."  He also laughed as he passed, making Ryan blush.

"You ok?" he asked.

Mack just nodded.  "I'm a bit weak in the knees for a reason that has nothing at all to do with cancer."

His smile was so honest.  "Good.  C'mon, sweetie.  Food, then meds, then I get you to take your clothes off."  He grinned for moment then added, "So I can paint your body."

"Have something in mind, do you?"

He nodded.  "Yeah.  It'll last about two weeks, and yeah."

Mack ducked under his arm, and stepped back toward the break room, offering her hand.  With a shy smile, he took it, letting her lead him like an obedient puppy, slowly shuffling to the back.  The guys had already started handing out food, placing the two of them side by side.

"Coke, fries, and an assortment of anything that you can pick at," Tony said.  "Anything that smells bad, we shall remove from the face of the earth for all time."

Mack walked behind him and wrapped her arms over his shoulders.  "Thanks, Tony."  She glanced at Colby, intending for him to be her next victim.

"Oh, uh uh," he said, waving her off.  "I am not getting my ass kicked for hitting on Ryan's girl.  Nope.  Sit down."

They ate and talked.  Mack managed to eat a few pieces of chicken and most of her fries, but that was all.  The coke, however, was a hit with her sensitive stomach.  Halfway through, Ryan disappeared.  Mack checked the clock, realizing it was, once again, time for her medication.

"How often does she take that?" Colby asked when he returned.

"Every four hours."

Colby nodded and pulled out his phone, opening an app.  "Starting when?"

"Seven in the morning, if she can stick to it."

"Fuck," Colby moaned.  "No wonder you're dragging ass, Mack.  No one should be up at that time.  K, if you're busy, I'll remember now, too."

"Thanks, man," Ryan said.

"Ok."  Tony stood.  "This was fun, but I should head home.  Call me if you need me again."

"Thanks," Mack said, meaning it.

Colby stood as well, and began throwing things away.  "You need me anymore?" he asked Ryan.

"Nah, go home, it's almost nine."

"Thanks, man.  Katie's being cool, but I haven't seen her all week, and she's off tonight."  He rubbed Mack's purple hair and smiled at her.  "And show me your new art tomorrow."

"Thanks, Colby, I mean it," she said.

"I know, baby.  Two more days until you get to sleep in a bit."

They left, leaving Mack alone with Ryan, again.  She sighed, and leaned back in the chair.

"Tired?" he asked.

She shook her head.  "Well, no more than usual."

"Want to take your clothes off for me?"  There was a devious glint in his eye.

"What the hell are you planning?"

"A surprise.  Since this is temporary, and your boss doesn't mind how crazy your tattoo is, I figured we'd make one hell of a statement, right?"

"Ok?"

"I've been inspired, Mack."  He waved at the stack of canvases behind him.  "You're truly amazing, you know that?"

She shrugged.  "And you saw the angel."

"Yeah.  I kinda don't feel bad about my secret sketch book, now.  Very happy Hailey didn't recognize you, though."

"What?"

He sighed.  "Yeah, she caught me drawing once.  Wanted to know who the hell that bitch was, or something equally tasteful."

"Oh, shit," Mack muttered.  "You were fucking the beauty queen, and still drawing me?"

Ryan shrugged.  "Only days I ever missed were when you didn't show or I was slammed as soon as we opened.  Most of those, I tried to make up that night.  I think there's three that I didn't get at all."

"I called in sick to work twice, so skipped coffee."

"Yeah.  I wondered why you weren't there."

She shook her head.  "A damned year, and you never talked to me?"

"Hey.  You never talked to me, either.  Don't give me that shit."  His smile proved he wasn't truly upset.  "Now c'mon.  I have rooms in the back for a reason."

"And if you get a client in the next three hours?"

The corner of his lip twitched.  "Then you can lay naked on the bed waiting for me."

"Naked?"

He shrugged.  "Close enough.  Figured you won't want me explaining all of the minor details of our private life to the guys, right?"

Mack just shook her head.

"So let them believe what they will.  You've been in my bed, we've showered together, and here in a minute, I'll lay you out.  That's all you need to say."

Mack laughed, still feeling somewhat embarrassed.  "Ryan - "

He held up his hand.  "Maria was very clear about some things, Mack.  A little too clear."

"Yeah."

"I'm good," he promised.  "Keep kissing me like you were in the hall, and yeah."

"Ok."  She gestured to the other room.  "So where are we going?"

He grabbed her hand and slid his fingers between hers, leading her back to the work area, to a small private room in the back.  It was where the guys did the genital piercings and tattoos on private areas.  There wasn't a lot of space, just a large padded table, a stool, and a rolling tray.  Ryan gestured to the bed.

"Everything over the waist off, lay face down.  Slide your pants down to the middle of your hips.  I will be right back."

He left, closing the door gently behind him.  She smiled.  He was treating her exactly as he would any client, giving her the privacy she needed to get into position.  Mack slipped off her shirt and bra, casually dropping them on the rolling table.  Pushing the yoga pants down, she found a comfortable position.  Ryan must have been waiting outside, because no sooner had she stopped shifting, then he walked in carrying a selection of brushes and tubes.

He glanced at her and smiled.  "Comfy?"

"Not bad," she admitted.

He sat on the stool and leaned back, opening the cabinet for a small pillow.  "Lift your head?"

She did, and he set it carefully before her, catching her eyes before turning back.  He pulled out more supplies and set them on the table, chuckling when he moved her shirt and bra over.

"Tease."

"Maybe a little," she admitted.

He grabbed the clothes and folded them, pausing to look at her bra, the impish corner of his lip betraying him, before setting them aside.  It took him only a moment to organize.

"So, you're going to have no idea what I'm putting on you until it's done," he warned.  "You ok with that?"

"You already asked me that, and I said yes."

"K.  First part is cold.  Sorry, nothing I can do about that."  He poured a clear fluid onto a square of gauze and wiped it across her entire back, laughing when she flinched.  He paused at her waist, then tugged her pants a bit lower.

It wasn't until he tossed the gauze into the trash, that she realized his hands were bare.  "Gloves?" she asked.

"Don't need 'em." 

"No bleeding, right."

"Not exactly."  He picked up a brush.  "More like you've already been tested for everything under the sun, and anything they missed, I'll end up getting, anyway."

She didn't get a chance to respond to that because the cold pigment touched her skin, making her straighten just a bit.  He chuckled and moved closer, resting one arm casually against her shoulder.

"Damn that's distracting," she muttered, mostly to herself.

"Hmm?"

"Your arm.  I know why the girls are always flirting with you, now."

"Sorry, hun' I'm taken, and my girl's a bit jealous," he said professionally.

"I am not," Mack shot back.

"Shh, it's a good line."

She could feel the brush caress her shoulder blades, moving higher.  He used long sweeping strokes, never working in one spot for too long.  It was relaxing, and she closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of his fingers along her back, slowly working down her spine, then over.  His hand brushed her arm, gently, and she shifted, moving her elbows away from her body without even thinking about it.

"You're good," she said.

"You have no idea."   The brush began to move down, across her ribs, just caressing the side of her breast.  She was glad her chest was pressed against the bed when her nipples hardened.

Mack bit her lip, and he paused, his free hand sliding down her body.  He moved his thumb closer to her spine.  She could feel his palm flow with the curve of her hip, stopping just above her ass.  She closed her eyes, savoring his touch, but they flew open when his lips touched the hollow of her back.

"That's for teasing me.  Now stay still, I'm working freehand.  You are about to be my best work of art."

"Better than the ribbon dancer?"

He chuckled at that.  "Mack, look closer at her, next time."

"When did you paint her?"

"Mm.  Just after the new year.  You were wearing a thigh length leather jacket, and I caught you staring off into space rubbing the end of your pen across your lip.  It was the first time I got a clear look at your face.  I finished her that night."

"Ryan?" she asked softly.

"Yeah, sweetie?"

"You know I'm not going to get better for a long time, right?"

"Chemo the rest of this week.  Six to eight weeks of radiation with chemo once a week.  Two weeks off, then a hysterectomy.  Six to eight months of recovery for that."  He traced the brush down her back.  "Gina, one of the nurses, was more than happy to answer all of my questions this morning while you were in radiation."

"I'll never have kids."

"Me either," he said.  "I have the breast cancer gene.  Got tested when it came out."

"Oh."

The brush never stopped.  "Keep trying, Mack.  I've done my homework."

"Early menopause, vaginal dryness - "

He chuckled.  "You know about the dilators?"

"They mentioned something," she admitted.

"Yeah.  I know what I'm getting into, Mack.  All the inconvenient details.  I also know that it has to be a bit terrifying - and a whole lot embarrassing."

She nodded.  "I'm trying to think of it clinically."

"Look," he said, finally lifting the brush, wiping it clean.  He set it down and grabbed another, loading it with pigment before he continued.  "I'm thirty-one, Mack.  I'm not looking for a weekend fling.  I happen to know a woman who is beautiful, even with a purple flat top.  Ok, especially with it.  You're smart, talented, kind, and so damned sweet that I can't stop thinking about you."  The paint touched her skin again, trailing gently down her back.  "You haven't said a thing about me being a high school drop-out.  You act like this business is respectable, not some drug dealer's haven."  He chuckled.  "And you look really good in my bed, wearing my clothes."

She giggled.  "Ok.  I just kinda feel like I'm taking advantage of your need to take care of the underdog."

"You probably wouldn't believe this, but it's not really a thing for me.  Yeah, both you and Colby may have a story, but so does everyone."

"Ok?"

He changed brushes again.  "I just saw something in him.  He was begging for someone to help, and refused to quit.  I figured the worst that happened was I fired him.  I gave him the chance, he did the rest, and I got a damned good friend out of the deal.  Not quite the same for you, though."

"Go on?"

He leaned over and kissed the side of her hip, then tugged the waistband just a bit lower still.  "I figured that if you worked for me, at least I'd still be able to draw you."

"Now you're drawing on me."

"Painting," he corrected.  "And yeah.  I am.  Damn, this is good."  She laughed, and he swatted her hip with the back of his hand.  "No wiggling."

"What is it?" she asked.

"You can't tell?"

"No, you're all over the place."

"Then you have to wait," he teased.  "It's symbolic."

"I need a shirt that's low in the back," she said, "to show this off."

"Yeah," he agreed.  "Low in the front too."

"Ryan!"

"What!  You've been walking around my apartment for almost a week with a thin little tank and no fucking bra."  He drew another line, then paused.  "Mack?"

"Yeah?"

"You tell your family, yet?"

"No," she admitted.  "I was hoping to get a bit of good news, first."