“Stuart does quality work.”
Stuart’s booth looked like Lex’s closet, though Noelle had seen enough custom tailoring to know most of the other woman’s outfits had been made specifically for her. None of the designs on display were familiar, but one corset drew her closer. Smooth, supple leather with laces across a neckline that swooped halfway down the body and little cap sleeves held together by demure black bows. It was dangerous and sweet at the same time, and she stroked a finger over the leather and imagined her breasts behind those laces. Caged, on display but trapped, desperate to spill free.
Just like she felt. “This one. I want this one.”
The man behind the makeshift counter squinted as he eyed her. “It’s handmade. Ain’t cheap.”
“I recognize quality craftsmanship.” She recognized the look he was giving her too. Her borrowed clothes weren’t expensive enough to be worth his consideration. She imagined Jasper’s presence was the only thing keeping him from sneering. “You make clothes for Lex, don’t you? The style’s very similar.”
He grunted in assent, his gaze flicking to Jasper. “You a friend of hers, girl?”
“I like to think so. I’ve been borrowing her clothes, but I need to purchase some of my own.”
“We could make a deal, I bet. Cash or trade?”
Her moment of confidence wavered. With Jasper at her back, she’d felt safe enough to pretend he was just another merchant, but her knowledge of navigating expensive, sneering shops ended at the city walls. She didn’t know the value of cash or how many crumpled bills compared to the intangible credits she no longer had access to.
The man stared at her as if every moment of silence cemented his original assessment, and she had to say
Jasper laid a hand on her shoulder. “This is Noelle. She’s the newest O’Kane.”
Stuart cleared his throat and nodded. “Yeah, okay. No problem.”
Amazing, how smoothly the transaction went after that. Stuart indicated a price that would have been a steal in credits, but Jasper’s tiny headshake encouraged her to counter. Stuart accepted her offer without a murmur, and Noelle peeled the correct amount off the roll of bills in her pocket with mixed feelings.
She could believe that tangible cash held a higher value than credits, which could disappear with a flash of electricity. Less credible was the notion that Stuart would have accepted her counteroffer so willingly without Jasper looming behind her, his arms a walking advertisement for the O’Kanes.
Her independence was as dubious as the respect she’d been given in Eden as a councilman’s daughter, a fabrication based on fear and someone else’s power. But if she took O’Kane ink, those tattoos would curl around her wrists too. Still borrowed power, but power she’d earned by finding a place.
A shameful place, according to everything she’d ever learned. A degrading place. But something inside her hungered for the sin.
And now, watching men eye Jasper with wary concern and respect, she hungered for his power, too, even if it was only reflected on her. She’d have to give up everything to belong to him—her secrets, her body, her shame.
It might all be worth it if he could set her free.
Chapter Six
Ace had finished the outline already, and Jasper winced as soon as his friend turned away to switch out his equipment. “Are you off your game today? This hurts like hell.”
“Is that the tattoo or your balls?”
“My balls are fine. Wanna check?”
Ace made an amused noise. “No, thanks. Unlike you, I was smart enough to get a ride or two last night.”
“And who said I wasn’t?” Noelle wasn’t ready for it, not remotely—after spending the morning with her, he was more sure of that than ever—but she didn’t have his dick on a chain, either.
“Dom.” Ace swiped his shoulder and set the needle against skin. “He’s talking shit to anyone who’ll listen.”
Dom was a mean motherfucker who had the brawn but not the brains to rise up as one of Dallas’s more trusted men, and it ate at him like a cancer. “He talks a lot of shit about a lot of stuff.” Jasper paused. “What’s he saying?”
“That you’ve got a limp dick and no spine. Bastard’s just pissed because the girls cut him off. Which is what happens if you don’t bother to make sure they have a good time.”
Limp dick, no spine—meaningless, unimaginative words, easy to brush aside. But while Dom posed no threat to Jasper, that didn’t mean he wouldn’t apply himself wholeheartedly to harassing Noelle. “If he has such a beef with me, we should hash it out in the cage.”
Ace snorted. “Do it. Make everyone’s night.”
No. He wouldn’t give the man the satisfaction of answering his cowardly challenge, but if Dom came at
“Probably, as long as nothing goes down with Sector Three. I’m hitting my stops early tonight.” Ace moved the shader to a new spot.
Jasper clenched his jaw as fresh pain welled. He could handle getting punched in the head better than he could handle these damn needles sometimes. “You need backup?”
“Nah. Bren’s coming with me.”
“The two of you aren’t likely to run into trouble.” Jasper bared his teeth. “Unless you want to. We can take Dom along, settle things nice and uncivilized in an alley. Who’d miss him?”
Ace grinned. “Not even his mama.”
Another time—and with a little more reason. Jasper glanced down at the red heart emerging on his chest. “Make it bloodier. Truth in advertising.”
“Yeah, you and your bleeding heart.” His friend sounded amused. “What’s next? Gonna rescue some kittens?”
A foregone conclusion, apparently, that he’d mark Noelle. A done deal. “She was horrified last night. Would you saddle yourself with an old lady who’s ashamed of fucking?”
Ace choked on a laugh. “Shame I’ll give you, brother, but the only thing that girl’s horrified by is how much she gets off on being a bad little girl. If you don’t want her, I’ll spank the
If Jasper could be sure that Noelle was only struggling with the novelty of exploring her sexuality, he’d mark her. “Maybe it’s just new. We’ll see. And I
“Is that your way of telling me to keep my dick out of her?”
“It’s my way of saying tread lightly.” Jasper lifted an eyebrow. “Some of ’em aren’t quick fucks unless you push them, and she doesn’t need to be pushed.”
“Bleeding fucking heart,” Ace muttered, returning his attention to the tattoo. “You know, her father’s directly responsible for making our lives hell. Has it occurred to you that’s the real reason Dallas is keeping her around? You might not want to get too attached.”
For information, perhaps. Anything more sinister and Lex would kill him—and Dallas knew it. “Or it’s all the more reason for me to look out for her.”
The lights above them flickered, and Ace bit off a curse. “I think the back generator’s acting up again. Need to get a grease monkey out here to look at it.”
“That’ll take forever. Have Rachel knock off her shift early and check it out.”
“Rachel can’t stand the sight of my face. Maybe you should ask.”
Jasper sighed. “You wouldn’t have this problem if you weren’t such a fucking
Ace seemed unperturbed. “Could be worse. I could be Dom.”
“Barely worse.”
