Page 66 of Four Tattoos

He goes quiet again, and during the silence, I tell myself that everything will be okay, regardless. A weight has lifted just getting this out in the open, and I know that I have all the support I need, whether or not Patrick is accepting of my plans.

But then he gets up and comes over to hug me. “Of course, Rose. I love you.”

Nancy comes over next, hugging me, too. “I’m so excited for you. When are you due? How have you been feeling?”

“That brings up something else we’d like to talk about,” Hutch says.

I know where he’s headed, so I quickly interject, “The baby’s due in February,” to answer her first question.

“We’d like Rose to reduce her hours at the coffee shop,” Hutch continues.

“We’d like her to stop working altogether,” Zipper says, “but as long as she’s healthy, that’s up to her.”

Patrick nods. “I’ll hire someone to start filling in, so Rose can cut back.Areyou feeling okay, Rose?”

“Just tired, but I expect that to pass soon. I’d like to keep working until my arms can’t reach the counter over my belly. I’d be bored not working.”

“We can accommodate whatever works for you,” Patrick says. “Maybe I can train you on some of the office work so you’re not on your feet as much.”

“Thanks. I appreciate that.”

“We’d like to have you both over for dinner sometime soon,” Christian tells them. “I’m sure you’d like to see where your sister is living, and we’re looking forward to getting to know you better.”

His congenial tone makes me think back to the first time I walked into Brothers in Ink, when Christian’s behavior verged on rude. He barely spoke to me that day, and here he is being all polite and friendly.

It’s not an act for my brother’s benefit, though. I can already see impending fatherhood softening the men in subtle ways, though they still have plenty of hard, rough edges, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Dinner sounds good,” Patrick says as Hutch stands, offering me a hand.

As he walks us to the door, my brother says, “I had no idea things were so serious when I came to your shop that day.”

“We understand,” Mace says, shaking his hand before all of the other men do the same.

“As long as you’re true to your word and treat my sister well, everything will be okay.”

“Everything’s going to be great,” Hutch says, squeezing my hand and giving me a grin before I hug my brother and Nancy and say goodbye.

50

ROSE

Now that the last guests have left the building, there’s not much for me to do besides watch Juliana as she closes out the system. It’s my last night working at Club Red, and Juliana is ready to fully step into my shoes.

“The desk is organized, and the report is ready for Brittany,” she says.

“Perfect.”

She’s been doing a great job, aside from a lot of head swiveling whenever one of the dancers passes through the lobby, but there’s nothing wrong with that. Some of the performers seem to be making extra trips past us lately, so I suspect the admiration goes both ways.

I’m surprised that Callie hasn’t come out to say goodbye yet, even though we already have plans to get together for lunch next weekend. When I head toward the showroom in search of her, Brittany calls my name from the other hall. “Can you come into the breakroom, Rose?”

I do as requested, Juliana following closely behind me, and as I turn into the room, there’s a loud cry of, “Surprise!”

Callie, along with several other servers, Brittany, Duke, and even a few of the dancers surround a table holding a large cake.

“You did this for me?”

“Of course! We’ll miss you, Rose,” Callie says, a sentiment echoed by several of the others.

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