13. Ash

THIRTEEN

Alex: So… are we meeting?

Istare at the text after Sunday and Wade leave my apartment and sigh. I was supposed to meet Alex this morning for a meet-up before her shift. She's an escort who was going to go over the plan to pretend to be my girlfriendat my mom's wedding. That's where I had been headed when I ran into Sunday and Wade. I had so much fun with Wade, too much probably. The kid is amazing, bright, talented, and just as sarcastic as his mom.

His mom.

Fuck, when I saw Sunday on that pole, she looked like a magical, sexy angel. It was the most hypnotic thing I've ever experienced. Damn it, I need to fuck someone. If I don't, I am, without a doubt, going to do something verystupid with Sunday Sutton. And that can't happen. Sunday cannot happen. Which is why I need to get laid because, at this point, I haven't even jerked off in days due to my mind going to her, and after that performance at her dance studio, followed by the incident at the car… I don't think my cock has ever been so hard.

If I thought for one second that Sunday and I could fuck and be done, I would in a heartbeat, just to get it out of my system. But that isn't possible. I've listened to her sleep or snore and that kiss. It was more than just a kiss. She consumed me in a way I've only felt once before, and it was by her then, too. She awakens something in me that both exhilarates and terrifies me. And what she had said in the parking lot… Well, it doesn't matter. The point is, she and I cannot be a hookup. But Alex and I can. She just got off work and is ready. I could meet with her, go over the plans for the wedding, and get this fuck out of my system.

My phone dings and I look down to see the message.

Sunshine: It's Wade

Sunshine: Mom's seizing

"Fuck." I jump up and nearly plow into Indy as I run through the living room and across the hall. Wade has the door open for me, and I walk in to see Sunday on the floor in convulsions.

"Did she hit her head?" I ask as I kneel next to her and gently roll her to her side while pushing the coffee table away.

"No, she was sitting on the couch," Wade says, oddly calm, and it dawns on me that he's probably used to this. "She just said she felt off and to text you. By the time I asked her what was wrong, she was seizing and sliding off the couch."

Sunday's convulsions lessen, and I hear her small, stiff grunts. Wade lays beside her, and I watch as he runs his hand over her face.

"It's okay, Mom," he chokes out, and I feel my heart constrict. "Just breathe, you're safe." Wade continues to stroke Sunday's face, and I watch as tears silently spill from his eyes.

"She's alright, Bud," I say softly, and he nods.

"I know. It's just hard to watch." He wipes his face before going right back to stroking hers. "Don't tell her I cried; she worries enough." His words send me back to my adolescence. Doing everything in my power to put on a brave face, to be the man my baby sister and my sweet mother needed, even when I was just a scared child, just like Wade. "She likes being comforted like this," he continues softly. "When she comes out of the seizure, she's usually confused and scared. Sometimes, she'll cry. But I've noticed that the times I do this." He gestures to his hand. "She's calmer."

Sunday lets out a long groan as her body tries to stretch out. Her eyes flutter, and I see the fear on her face.

"Breathe, Mom." Wade's young voice is commanding as he maintains eye contact. "You're safe." After another moment, Wade moves to allow Sunday some space after helping her sit up.

"Wade, does your mom have medicine for after a seizure?" I ask as I place my hand on her back to hold her steady.

"Yeah, I'll go grab it." Wade runs off, and I look at Sunday. She's not fully back yet. Her eyes are distant, and she seems confused.

"Hey," I say softly while sitting next to her. "How are you? Do you know my name?" She looks up at me, brows furrowed.

"A… pain in my ass?" I snort as I press my lips to her temple. The act takes me by surprise. I have no idea what possessed me to do it, but Sunday leans against my lips before resting her head on my shoulder.

"Don't," she murmurs groggily. "Don't leave me alone?" I feel her tuck closer into me, and I know there"s no way I'm going to be able to leave her. Not tonight.

"Never, sweetheart. I'll stay as long as you need me." Stroking her arm, I let out a long sigh. This is going to be another sleepless night, I can already tell.

Sunday growls in annoyance."Ash, I am fine. I'm fully capable of living my life without you in it!"

I'm exhausted. Beyond exhausted. I haven't slept since the night before the documentary. Last night, I was up watching Sunday sleep. She asked me not to leave her. Apparently, that was not the real Sunday, because when the real Sunday came to this morning, she started screaming at me for daring to stay in her house all night. It's not like I slept in the fucking bed with her.

"You asked me to stay!" I try to reason with her as I rub my temples. I have a horrible headache, which is precisely what I don't need going into the shop today.

"Oh? Is that all it takes? So, if I were to ask you to jump off the roof, would you?" she snaps, hand on her hip.

"If it ends this conversation…" I groan out.

"Mom," Wade says from his place at the kitchen table where he's eating his cereal. "Stop being a butthole." Sunday makes an indignant noise, and I take this as my shot to escape her wrath.

"Okay, I'm out. I owe you one, Wade." I point to him before running out the door. I have exactly ten minutes to get myself ready before I need to head to Hel's.

"Comenear this shop one more damn time, and I'll take one of those piercing needles and stab it in your jugular!" Janie screams as the cop takes the young man toward their cruiser. The officer looks over his shoulder at the redhead and chuckles loudly.

"You really going to threaten someone in front of a cop, Pierce?" He laughs as Fox and I continue to hold Janie back.

"I ain't scared of you, Kevin!" Janie yells at the cop. "You passed out and puked while getting a quarter-sized tattoo! I want his ass to get the chair."

"Okay," Fox laughs nervously. "Come on, baby doll, I think you've made your point." Janie scowls at the man and makes a hand gesture that says she's watching him before storming back into the shop.

"Stupid ass," she grumbles as she walks to the show floor and picks up the shirts that were knocked over after the kid tried to grab jewelry out of the piercing area and run out. Stevie is in the back with Atlas and Indy as they try to make sure she is okay while the rest of us are out here making sure Janie doesn't commit a murder.

"You know," I sigh as I lift the fallen clothing rack off the ground. "You really shouldn't be trying to fi–" I feel an icy chill, and when I look, she's glaring daggers at me.

"This is myhouse, and he just waltzed in here, dropped his pants, and dragged his shit-covered ass across my rug." I look from her to Fox, who is shaking his head and holding his hands up as if to say he's not touching this one.

I hear the door chime and thank whatever god is up there for throwing me a bone. I turn to greet the customer, but my already exhausted brain short circuits. Sunday walks in wearing pretty pastel-pink floral romper shorts that have a thin, white strapped top attached to them. Her long hair looks freshly colored silver with new red tips spilling down her bare, tanned shoulders.

"Damn," Janie whistles. "You coming here to tempt me, Sunday Sutton?" Janie smacks Sunday on the ass and… NO, absolutely not. Not going there.

"Hey, charming." She smiles up at me, and the smile is almost apologetic looking.

"Hey, sunshine," I breathe, and I mean it. She really is a ray of sunshine today; she's practically glowing.

"I come bearing apologies in the form of sugar." She says sheepishly as she holds up a box. I peek inside to see the birthday cake donut from Nuts About Dough and smile.

"Oh, be still my heart," I smirk while taking the box from her. I try to ignore what this simple gesture is doing to me, but it's nearly impossible and when Sunday opens her mouth to say something, I'm thankful that Indy rounds the corner, stopping her.

Glancing at my sister, I notice the red rubber bracelet around her wrist and frown, knowing what that color means. Since her diagnosis, Indy has never defined her days as good or bad. Instead, she always color-codes them with bracelets. I think it was something she picked up when she worked at the children's hospital. Pink is the worst of the worst, like she may need to go to the hospital. Blue means she hurts too much to move a lot and needs rest. Red means proceed with caution because a blue day is coming. Yellow is a typical day; her pain is manageable, and she can get around, and purple is reserved for her best days.

I've never seen her with a purple bracelet on.

"Are you alright, Indy?" I ask softly, gesturing to her bracelet. She gives me a tight nod, though her eyes are telling a different story. If she isn't feeling well, why not go home? I'm about to ask her when she looks at Sunday.

"You ready?" I look from my sister to Sunday and raise a brow.

"Ready? For what?" Sunday blushes and Indy snickers.

"Sunday's getting her nipples pierced."

"Would you stop it!"Derek snaps, startling me. I glare over at him.

"Stop what? I'm sitting here minding my own damn business!"

"If I watch you lean that fucking chair back to see if Sunday is coming out one more time, I'm going to snap. And when it happens, I will no longer be in control of my actions." I roll my eyes, and Atlas sighs longingly.

"I wish Ren would get her nipples pierced. I would latch on to those puppies permanently."

"Just what your wife needs." Fox snorts, and Atlas shrugs, ignoring his comment.

"So, Ash, what are you doing this weekend?" I raise a brow.

"I'm leaving for Mom and Neil's wedding in a couple of days. Why?"

Atlas frowns as he looks crestfallen. "I was hoping we could hang out and play video games." Janie snorts as she walks out of the back room.

"Jesus, video games? How old are you?"

"Says the woman playing war video games in the break room!" I state, and Janie looks at me as if I've betrayed her.

"Wait." Derek stands up and cocks a brow at the redhead. "Are you the one that fucked up my stats last month?" Janie winces at the man before shooting me a death glare.

"I told you I was innocent!" Atlas sighs. "Fucking got crucified and everything over that damn game… Hey, wait a minute." Atlas looks at Janie with a similar look of betrayal on his face that she had previously sported. "You were here the day he was up my ass. After our fight, you brought me a muffin to cheer me up. Fucking Judas!" He points an accusatory finger at Janie, who glares back at me.

"Are you happy?" she asks sharply. "See what you've done."

"Me?" I cry, pointing at my chest. "Why didn't you just start a new game and not touch Derek's player?"

"Because!" she grumbles in annoyance. "He had all the cool stuff. How was I supposed to know he would lose rankings?"

I am about to speak when Stevie and Sunday come out of the back room.

"Wow," Fox chuckles. "You were silent. Usually, we can still hear a little cry when Stevie does the second one." Sunday gives him a little curtsy.

"Stevie is fast and as gentle as possible, plus I have a high pain tolerance." I watch as she looks herself over in the mirror.

"Do you need to check for evenness?" Atlas freezes at his words and looks up at me in horror. "That slipped out. I swear I'm in tattoo-shop mode." He gives me an apologetic look, and even though I completely get it, I'm still beating his ass later.

Wait, why is he giving mean apologetic look? Why would I care? I mean… I do, but how would he know?

Sunday laughs lightly. "Thanks, but Stevie, Janie, and Indy all already checked."

Stevie hands Sunday one of our aftercare bags. "Alright, they take nine to twelve months to heal; clean them a couple times a day. Loose clothes for the next few days. No baths or public swimming pools. And don't let anyone suck on them for… I'd say a minimum of four weeks, but if you could push it longer, that would be better."

"Oh, trust me," Sunday says while grabbing the bag. "No one is sucking on my tits."

I watch as Sunday says bye to everyone and walks to the door. "Sunshine!" I call and walk to the door. "I'll walk you out. I need to talk to you." She seems hesitant but nods.

Once outside in the bright sun, I watch her pull out her phone and squint at the screen.

"What's up?"

"Trying to get a rideshare home," she mutters.

"Want me to drive you?" She looks up and raises a brow.

"Why?"

"Because it'll save you money, and it'll take me fifteen minutes, and I need to talk to you for a minute." She pauses, and it looks like she's weighing her options before shrugging and giving me a nod. I smile and walk with her around the building to my car, opening the passenger door for her once we get there.

Once in the car, I take off down the street. "So, where's Wade?" I ask as I choose not to notice her smooth, toned legs as she crosses them.

"Art class, thankfully," she says as she looks at her phone. "I was afraid he wouldn't be willing to go today after last night. Which by the way, I owe you an apology. I shouldn't have acted that way this morning. It was very kind of you to stay with us last night. I just have a rule about sleepovers."

I laugh. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, I wasn't doing any sleeping."

"No, actually, it doesn't." Her voice is soft, and she sounds concerned. My thoughts are interrupted when my phone rings through the Bluetooth in my car. I don't recognize the caller. Fuck, did I forget about an appointment? "This might be a client, sorry."

Sunday nods, and I accept the call. "This is Ash."

"Ashy Johnson." I nearly wreck my car at the sound of hervoice. My heart starts pounding, and my brain stops working. Sunday notices my reaction and squeezes my bicep to get my attention. I quickly turn into a parking lot and stop the car.

I give her a look that I hope shows her how sorry I am before speaking. "Shannon!" I force out with as much fake excitement as I can muster, even though I feel myself shrinking. "To what do I owe this, pleasure?" I see the look of confusion written all over Sunday's face, and it"s now I realize Sunday doesn't know my ex's name.

"Yeah, Ashy, look, Hud and I are going to be at the wedding this weekend. Are you going to be able to act like a real man about it, or will that be too much to ask of you, given your sensitive nature?" I flinch at the ice in her words and cast my eyes downward, not wanting to meet Sunday's gaze. "That is the correct term, right? I wouldn't want to be unsympathetic or something and make you have to go cry to your therapist about me again." Her laugh grates at me, and I wish to god a black hole would open up right now and take me far away.

"Yep," I say softly, feeling the familiar humiliating sting of her verbal beatdown. "Honestly, I hadn't given it much thought."

"Oh my god," she groans. "This is so like you! I'm trying to have a conversation to make sure everything will run smoothly for your mother, and you're shutting down like a child. It's disrespectful, and this is just one of the manyreasons no woman in their right mind would ever suffer through a relationship with you. My god, the fact I stayed with you as long as I did after the shit you brought to the table, I deserve a freaking medal."

"Excuse me?" My eyes snap up to look at Sunday's angry face. "Who in the fuck do you think you are to talk to him that way?"

Shannon chuckles uncomfortably. "Ashy? Who"s that?"

I go to speak, but Sunday beats me to it. "This is his girlfriend. So why don't you explain to me why it is that you're calling and talking to my man in such a disrespectful way?" Holy fucking shit, I can't breathe. "Because I'm telling you right now, I wouldn't allow you to talk to a hog like that, let alone my boyfriend." What is she doing? How am I going to face Shannon this weekend now that I supposedly have a fucking girlfriend with Sunday's accent?

"Listen, sweetheart. I'm Shannon; I'm sure you heard of me."

"It"s cute that you think your presence is so impactful that he would have a conversation about you." Shannon scoffs loudly, and I continue to stare at Sunday in shock.

"I was his freaking girlfriend!"

"Okay, and? I AM his girlfriend. Not everyone feels the need to discuss trash. Sometimes, you take it to the curb and forget about it." Holy shit… I listen as Shannon disconnects the call, but my eyes never leave Sunday's face.

"I don't like her. Don't you let someone talk to you that w-mmppf–" I can't help it. I pull her to me and capture her lips. I wait for her to shove me off and slap me, but it doesn't happen. Instead, she captures my bottom lip in between hers and kisses me back. God, her lips are so fucking soft, and fuck me; if she bites my lip like that one more time, my cock is going to punch through my jeans. Sunday slips over the console, straddling my lap, and it's nearly too much.

"Fuuuck..." I groan against her mouth as I feel her center grind against me.

She moves from my lips to my neck, licking and sucking up to my ear. Her hot breath brushes over the shell, and it's all I can do not to let a very unmasculine whimper out as she nips on my ear lobe.

"Don't ever," she whispers as she sucks on my ear. "And I mean, ever allow someone to talk to you like that."

You're not going to be good enough. You know what will happen, and then you'll have nowhere to hide this time. Look at you; are you even hard right now? Pathetic.

"Hey," I flinch at Sunday's hand on my face before shaking my head. "Where did you go?"

"I uhh..." I give her a soft chuckle that is one hundred percent forced. "Sorry, that phone call just–"

"No problem." I watch as she bites down on her lip before moving and sitting back in her seat. No problem? She's just going to move on like that? She's not going to scoff, roll her eyes or pout? "If you need to talk about it, I'm here, but I think you're a little more like me and would rather we just move on with another conversation." Why does she always have to remind me what I'm missing with her? Sunday is nothing like Shannon or any of the women I've been with. I've known this from the start, but every day I'm around her and Wade, I'm further reminded that there's something missing in my life, and that realization is terrifying. An idea pops into my brain, and I know it"s a terrible one before it leaves my mouth, but here I am doing it anyway.

"So, Indy and I are heading to my mom's wedding this weekend. You and Wade should come." She blinks her pretty eyes at me as her forehead wrinkles in confusion.

"What? W-why would I do that?" I give her a slight shrug, trying not to show the rejection on my face. Of course, she doesn't want to uproot her life and go with me to my mom's wedding.

"Well, you kind of told my ex, who will be there, by the way, that you're my girlfriend," I smirk as I turn into our garage. "It'll be fun. Good food, free drinks, and I'll take you and Wade flyboarding."

"Flyboarding?" she asks as I park in my assigned spot. "What's that?" Smirking, I turn towards her and give her a shrug.

"Guess you'll have to come to find out." She looks like she might consider for a second before she shakes her head.

"I can't. I'd have to have someone take over my classes, plus there's Alice."

"Alice?" I question while trying not to get drunk off her scent. She smells so fucking good. Warm and woody, which is unique for a woman, I'll give her that. It's like vanilla and smoke and spice. I remember her smelling this way years ago too, and it had the same magnetic effect then that it's having now.

"Wade's chicken," she says, and I blink in confusion. Chicken? It's then I remember seeing the black bird around when I had been in her place when the girls were drunk, but I didn't see it last night, so I didn't think about it.

Wait. Black Chicken?

"Holy shit, it was you!" I say, pointing a finger at her. I remember her talking about running to save Wade's pet. "I saw you that night. I saw you running with an all-black chicken. But I didn't know it was you because you were moving so fast."

She laughs and shakes her head. "Yep, that stupid bird is Wade's baby. Apparently, the thing is some kind of rare breed. Josh researched it, and when he found out, he wanted to breed her. But Josh didn't understand how to, and I had no desire to be a chicken dealer, so I said no. Josh then bought a rooster, which he thought was the same breed as Alice, with a lot of my money. It wasn't the same breed, and the rooster was a dick and tried to kill Alice. When we broke up the last time, it was because I realized he was willing to commit more to building a chicken business than to a family. Then he tried to keep Alice. So I had to break into his place and steal the bitch."

"Well, yeah, obviously." I chuckle at the absurd story and brighten as she, too, begins to laugh.

"Thanks for taking me home." Sunday smiles as she unfastens her seatbelt.

"So, it's really a no from you? You're going to leave a man out there hanging like that?" Sunday snorts and rolls her eyes.

"I'll think about it, but you're going to have to sweeten the pot." I waggle my brows suggestively, and she smacks my forehead. "Try again, charming." She smirks as she exits the car and waves before heading into the elevator lobby.

Once out of sight, I rest my head on my seat and sigh while running my thumb over my lip, where she bit me. Her going is a bad idea. So bad. Like there isn't a worse idea I could possibly have. She and I need time apart because we keep fucking locking lips. I don't lock lips. No, her staying here and me going to the wedding alone is the perfect way for us to reset.

But even as I come to that conclusion, I'm trying to think of ways to entice her into coming along.

I runmy hands over my face before crawling into my bed and hugging my pillow. God, I'm exhausted. Once I got back to the shop, I had a calf tattoo that took me the rest of the day and completely fucked over my back. Just as I close my eyes, I hear the faint tap tap on my wall, and as much as I want to be annoyed, it makes me smile. I knock twice in return before my phone vibrates.

Sunshine: Okay, I know how you can sweeten this deal.

Me: Hit me

Sunshine: I mean… if you're offering.

Me: Your wit, madam, is top tier.

I hear her laugh and instantly grin, feeling successful.

Me: Alright, sweetheart, I'm all ears.

Sunshine: Fine, I will go. I will be the best fake girlfriend you've ever had and in exchange, I expect Wade to get to experience an adventure and I demand a ridiculous amount of Starbursts.

Me: Starbursts? Like, the candy?

Sunshine: Not just any candy. It is the greatest candy known to man.

I snort a laugh as I type out my response.

Me: Well, that"s arguable.

Sunshine: No, it's not.

Sunshine: I mean, you are entitled to your embarrassingly wrong opinion, but that is what it is, wrong.

Sunshine: Anyhow, I love Starbursts. More importantly, I love the orange ones. They are the elite flavor, and I only get like four to a pack. So…

Sunshine: I'm going to need four packs' worth of orange Starbursts.

I bark out another laugh, and I hear her smack the wall in response.

Me: You want me to get you four packs of orange Starbursts–which is the grossest candy known to man—to play my girlfriend this weekend?

Sunshine: Up for the challenge?

Me: Game on.