Page 25 of Joyride
“Hey!” Luke walks out of the storage room. “Ready for your first day?”
“Hell yeah.” I giggle.
He flashes me a smile. “Come on over here, and you can check everything out. Set shit up in whatever way works best for you.”
I walk behind the desk. There is an appointment book with a bunch of chicken scratch in it, four six-by-six-inch portfolios. Each cover is decorated differently from the rest. Each one has a different character from Alice in Wonderland. The Mad Hatter, White Rabbit, Cheshire Cat, and Knave of Hearts.
“What are the characters on the portfolios for,” I ask Luke.
He grins and there’s a darkness in his eyes. As quick as it came, it’s gone again. “They represent each of us. Mine is the Mad Hatter. Sketch and Mama Maggie are the only ones who call me Luke anymore. Once I moved out on my own, I started going by middle name, Maxton, or Max for short. I knew from a young age, I wanted to have my own tattoo shop, and Alice in Wonderland was oddly my favorite movie as a kid. At some point, I decided my tattoo shop would be called the Mad Tatter. Cooper jokingly dubbed me the Mad Hatter and began calling me Mad Max. It stuck and that’s who I’ve been ever since.”
“I like that,” I tell him. “Who are the others?”
“I’ll let you figure that out as you meet them.” He winks.
“Oh, this will be fun.” I laugh.
“Sketch said you were thinking of getting a tattoo,” Luke says. He pulls another portfolio off a shelf. “Have you thought about what or where?”
“I know what, but I’m not sure where yet,” I admit to him. He hands me the portfolio. Opening it, I recognize it as Sketch’s portfolio.
“Take a look through all of our portfolios. Maybe it’ll help you decide,” he suggests. “It’ll more than likely be pretty slow around here for the next couple of weeks. All four of our schedules are almost booked up completely.”
“So, if there’s any time where I don’t have anything to do, what do I do?”
“Whatever you want. If a client is alright with it, you’re welcome to watch any of us tattoo someone. You can take lunch breaks whenever you choose as long as you let us know when you’re going so one of us can watch the front. And we won’t ever keep you here past six, unless for whatever reason, you want to stay,” he explains.
“Sounds good to me.” I flip through Sketch’s portfolio. The more I see his work, the more I know he’s the right artist to do my tattoo. I’ve seen his drawings on paper. His tattoos are just as amazing as his drawings. It’s incredible. To top it off, the watercolor tattoos he’s done are absolutely stunning. I stop on a picture of a woman with a very detailed sternum piece. It’s a lot more than what I’m wanting, but the placement would be perfect. “I think I decided on a placement for my tattoo.”
“On your sternum? That’s sexy.” He smirks. I text Sketch to let him know I made up my mind. “How’s your pain tolerance?”
“I’d say it’s pretty high,” I tell him.
“That’s good. Sternums can be painful spots for tattoos,” he tells me. We go over prices and the steps to take when someone wants to schedule an appointment. Free consultations are always first, and we go from there. By the time we’re done going over everything, the other guys start showing up. As each of them comes in, they stop and introduce themselves to me. After talking to them, I’m confident I figured out who’s who.
Luke walks to the front door, flips the sign toOpen,and comes back to the desk. “So, did you figure it out?”
I tap my finger against my chin. “I’m pretty sure I did.”
“And?”
“Cooper is Cheshire. He has a mischievous grin. Jesse is the White Rabbit. I got an anxious vibe from him and he kept checking his watch. Leaving Austin to be Knave.” I cross my arms over my chest and wait for his response.
“Not bad. You hit the nail on the head with Jesse,” Luke tells me. “What about first impressions?”
“They were respectful, but I definitely get the asshole vibe from them. You too, actually. It’s a lot like being around the Savage Menaces,” I admit.
Luke lets out a full belly laugh. “Fair enough. Being around the Savage Menaces, is it safe to assume you can hold your own?”
“Oh, for sure. My brother taught me well.” I wink at him. “Do y’all prefer to go by your nicknames?”
He nods his head. “Yes, ma’am. How’s the schedule look for today?”
“Two consultations will be in at twelve-thirty. One for Cheshire and the other for Knave.” I look down at my appointment book. I got everything transferred from their old one, and I even color-coded everything. “At one, you have a client coming in for a two-hour session and Rabbit has a three-hour session.”
A smile stretches across Luke’s face. “You’re gonna fit in great around here.”
17
