Enzo (Jinx Tattoos Book 1) (16 page)

His words were everything she’d longed to hear. It was the tiny seed she’d planted and wished to fruition when he first agreed to go back to a head shrinker.
But can I trust it?
She placed a kiss on his lips. “Give me something to go with.”

“I can do that,” he murmured, ghosting his lips across hers. Winding his fingers in her head, he bit her bottom lip.

She whimpered and opened to him. His tongue demanded, dominated, and she gave in return, allowing him to take control. His mouth was the altar she worshipped at. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her hips into his. The bulge in his jeans sent a fresh gush of moisture onto her panties. She rocked her hips, moaning as the friction made her center throb. His kiss became possessive as he plundered her mouth, stripping her to her base emotions. Nothing more than a squirming, wet bundle of need, she rejoiced when he lifted her up. Winding her legs around his hips, she leaned back, peering into his intense gaze. She could see the lust, love, and future in his stormy stare.
This was what I wanted. His admission of feelings and total commitment. So, why am I gun shy?
Pushing the thought she couldn’t answer to the back of her head, she trailed her fingernails down his neck.

A growl vibrated in his chest. He strode into his room, slamming her back against the wall. “I’m going to fuck you until you know who you belong with.” He ground against her, and she cried out. Pulling away from the wall, he tossed her onto the bed, following her down as he all but ripped off her clothing. His came next, leaving his magnificent frame bare. The tattoos that adorned his body moved with the flex and release of his muscles. His lips suctioned her neck, and she arched against him.

The painful sucking bruised her flesh.
He’s marking me
. “Enzo.”

He stroked his hard length, clutching the thick head. Swollen and purple, it dripped a pearly drop that made her mouth water.

“All I want to hear is my name and the word yes,” he said.

His husky voice sent goose bumps over her skin. “Yes,” she whispered.

“That’s a good girl.” He wrapped his hand around her neck, holding her into place, and nudged her entrance with the tip of his cock. “So fucking wet and ready for me. Your pussy knows who it belongs to.” He eased in.

She cried out as her body stretched to accommodate him. The pleasurable pain. The phrase hurt so good fluttered in her head. He stilled, and she whimpered. “Enzo.”

“Tell me whose pussy is this, Ave?”

“Yours,” she wailed.

“Damn straight.” He drove home.

The world narrowed to the glide of their bodies together and his mouth. The slap of their skin was the sweetest symphony her ears had ever heard. His name became lyrics, and the love they shared was the inspiration behind the entire creation. Shaking, sobbing, and desperate for completion, her muscles contracted as she flew head first into ecstasy with his bellows trailing her and his warmth filling her.

e glanced at the door for the millionth time, knowing he would lose his mind if he remained in the house with Aoife for much longer. Ave had been gone for three hours and time seemed to have slowed.

Aoife was content on the floor lying in a nest of pink blankets.

“Well, baby girl. Your old man is about to crack up, waiting on your mama to realize what I already know. Are you going to be stubborn like her?”

Aoife turned her head toward him and he smiled. People say children changed you. He’d never expected to experience that all-consuming love firsthand. There was a handful of people he counted on to set him straight when his mind was a tangled web. There was only one he trusted to keep this under wraps and hold back their judgment. Pulling out his phone, he called the man who had a knack for helping him get his head out of his ass.

“What’s up, brother?” Noah answered.

“You got some time for me today? I need an ear.”

“Might have. This sounds like serious shit.”

“It is,” Enzo said.

“You want me to come your way?” Noah asked.

“Yeah, that’d work best. I can’t really leave the house right now.”

“Fuck, brother. When you stray off the path, you don’t do it halfway, do you?”

“For once, I think I’m progressing,” he said.

“No shit?” Noah asked with a laugh.

“You can be the judge. See you here?”

“Yeah, brother, I’ll be that way in about thirty.” And with that Noah hung up.

“Well, the dice have been cast, I suppose,” Enzo muttered to himself. Doubts crept into his brain.
Can I do this? I had nothing but a piss poor example of parenting growing up. The Jordans didn’t set me straight until I was damn near an adult.
He had a handful of decent memories about his mother. Those moments were frozen in time, a shiny diamond buried deep in a pile of shit. He rarely let himself examine the jewel. It hurt more than all the wrong things she’d done, because it proved a human lived inside that vacant shell.
Did she ever glance down on him with the love and affection he already felt for this little girl not of his flesh?
He’d never known his father, and he had the sinking suspicion it was because she had no clue who he was. In her own convoluted way, she’d loved him. She had shown that on some level.

He lay on his belly beneath the little dining table, watching his mother. She wore her tiny black dress. It meant one of the men would be coming. He didn’t like them. They were loud and smelled funny. They laughed a lot and he never understood why. He didn’t like the way they touched Mommy, either. In their other home, he had a room to play in when they came, but this place only had one bedroom he had to share with Mommy. So, she told him to stay out of sight and hidden.

A knock came at the door and he held his breath.

His mother clacked across the floor on shiny tall shoes and opened the door. The man came in. Big and white haired he spoke softly. Maybe this one would be nice. His mother nodded her head, took his hand, and led him back to her room.

Once the door shut, he slid from his space. His stomach was rumbly. He walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge. There was cheese on the very top shelf. He glanced toward the door. He wasn’t supposed to get things he couldn’t reach. He’d made a mess last time. His belly continued to talk.
She won’t know
. He climbed up and grabbed the chunk of cheese. He wobbled, his arms flailed. The cheese fell from his hands and he grabbed the bar. It gave and he fell to the ground, bringing other bottles with him. Dazed, he remained on his back breathing heavily.

“What the hell? You have a brat in here?”

He rolled onto all fours and stared up at the red-faced man.

“He’s okay. He was just trying to get something to eat.”

His mother sounded funny. His stomach rolled. He didn’t like it when Mama took her medicine. She acted weird.

The man slapped his mother’s face. “You don’t tell me what’s okay.”

Tears rolled down his face.

“He’s pretty like his mama, isn’t he?” the man said as he stalked forward.

Enzo scrambled backward.

“You ready to start helping your mother earn money?”

He shook his head, unable to speak.

“No, you don’t touch him!” his mother screamed, launching herself onto the man’s back.

“You crazy bitch!” The man spun around.

His mother continued hanging onto him while the man kept trying to dislodge her. She then sank her teeth into his shoulder. The man cried out, and flung her across the room. She slammed into the wall and slid down to the floor.

“Stupid bitch! I would’ve paid you well,” the man snapped, walking toward his mother.

Finally, the pent up terror inside of him erupted and Enzo screamed.

The man froze in mid-step and then ran for the door.

His mother crawled over to him. “
Shhh,
it’s okay. He’s gone now and he will never come back here again,” she said.

Enzo sobbed, pushing against her chest. He hated the way she smelled and all the friends she had over for play dates. Hiccupping, he lay against her all tapped out.

At least, she’d saved him from that. Others weren’t so lucky. Children brought in the big bucks. But she’d never resorted to that.

A knock on the door told him Noah had arrived. Opening the door he let the older man in. “Hey, man, thanks for coming over,” Enzo said as he closed the door behind him.

“Any time, man. I’m glad you finally learned how to call instead of blowing up and doing something stupid,” Noah replied, shoving his hands in the pockets of his faded denim.

Enzo laughed. “Yeah, that weekend wait in jail was enough to snap me out of that. Never caught another assault case again.”

Noah nodded. “I knew it would open your eyes. That’s why I told your mom to let you sweat it out. Made the consequences more real.”

They walked into the living room.

“Holy shit, whose kid is this?” Noah questioned.

“Well, if all goes well…mine,” Enzo said.

“You finally knocked one of those tarts up?”

Enzo laughed. “Not exactly, but that’s what I’m hoping everyone will believe.” He launched into the story.

Noah listened intently, nodding and making noises to indicate he was still following along. “And your heart is set on this?” he asked when he finished.

“Yeah, man. She’s mine as far as I’m concerned.”

“Well, it takes a hell of a man to raise a child. I have no doubt you’ll be an excellent father. But, boy, you fucked up with Aibhlinn. No woman wants a half passed proposal with no ring. Doesn’t help that she thinks this is for the kid there and not because you love her.”

“What? I told her it wasn’t.”

Noah shook his head. “All this time fucking women and you haven’t learned a damn thing about how they work. It’s never what you say. It’s what you do.”

“And how do you know so much about it?” Enzo snapped.

Noah grew quiet. “I had a fiancée once upon a time.”

Enzo sat up straight, intrigued. “What happened?”

“She died in a car crash.”

“Damn, I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

“Most don’t. Never got back on the horse after that ’cause no one I met ever came close to comparing. I think we all get one shot at real happiness and mine came and went early. You have to fix this before anything goes through with Aoife. I think you’re batshit crazy for taking on this responsibility. But it’s not for me to tell you how to live your life.”

“You think it’s plausible?” Enzo asked.

“Yeah, ain’t no secret you’re a man whore,” Noah said.

“Was.”

“See, she’s working miracles already,” Noah teased.

Enzo released a sigh of relief. Knowing he had his mentor in his corner made all this a little easier. “What should I do?”

“How do you think she’d want you to ask her to marry you?”

“Shit, I don’t know. She’s quirky, but traditional.”

“Well, I suggest you start thinking fast. Time is ticking down. If you don’t get to her before she makes up her mind, you might be screwed.”

“You’re right, she’s stubborn as hell.”

Aoife whimpered.

He peered at her scrunched up face. “You need a diaper change, little girl?” he asked.

Noah laughed. “You got your hands full now, don’t you?”

“Yeah, but in the best possible way.” He scooped her up and moved to the crib with his brain working overtime. “So first thing I need is a list.”

“All right,” Noah said, removing his phone from the front pocket of his plaid jacket.

“I need a ring, a place, and a theme.”

“Okay, so what does she like?” Noah asked.

“Horror movies, Sci-fi movies, art, Ireland.”

Noah laughed. “Good luck with this one. Aibhlinn is an amazing woman, but her interests are all over the place, man, and very specific.”

“That’s what Etsy is for.”

“Wait—what?” Noah said.

“This site where people make all kinds of shit. They do a lot of graphic work and you can buy it and just print it out.”

“Do I even want to know why you know this place exists?” Noah asked.

“Man, I’m an artist. It’s a great medium for us to sell our work on.”

“Didn’t know that. I thought it was all knitted hats and shit,” Noah said.

Enzo snickered, as he baby powdered Aoife’s bottom, and wrapped her in a fresh diaper. “Is that better?” he asked.

She cooed her agreement and he re-snapped her onesie.

“Whatever you do make it good. She’s been waiting a long time.”

“Yes, she has,” he whispered as an idea took root. “Amy Pond.”

“What?” Noah asked with a puzzled look.

“The companion, Amy Pond. She was the girl who waited, and so is Aibhlinn!”

“You’re speaking another language, but I sense you’re happy, so I’m going with it,” Noah said.

Enzo laughed. “We got this, baby girl. All I need now is a ring. Are you going to help me with that?”

She blew a bubble, and he laughed again. “I’ll take that as a sign of good luck. You rolling with us, Noah?”

“Oh yeah, I wouldn’t miss this for the world,” Noah replied, wiggling the toothpick in the corner of his mouth.

“You think I’m going to crash and burn, don’t you, old man?” Enzo asked.

“No. Just think it’ll be highly amusing,” Noah stated with a grin.