Tempting (Inked Hearts 1)

Fuck, this is confusing. But Tom was my friend or close to it, and I am happy to see him.

"Okay, I'm here. You can start having fun now." Tom slides off his sunglasses and flashes his million-dollar smile. He nods to Ethan and spins on his heels—he's wearing fuchsia Converse—to face us. "Hey, Pipes. You miss me?"

"It's been three days since I last saw you," she says.

"Bet it's been miserable," he says.

She laughs. "Always miserable without you, Tom." She goes to hug him hello.

Ethan was in one of Tom's bands when the two of them (plus Tom's bassist brother Pete) were in high school. The band broke up the way most high school bands do, but Tom has always stayed in touch. He was already famous when Ethan and I started dating, but he still made a point of coming to Dangerous Noise shows and visiting the Strong family every time he was in Orange County.

His eyes go wide as he takes me in. "Fuck, Violet Valentine. Is that really you or is Ethan into some fucked up I need a woman who looks like my ex shit?"

"It's me," I say.

Tom's eyes widen as he looks back to Ethan. "How the fuck did he get you here?"

"Mal offered me a gig," I say.

Tom nods. He gives me a once-over. "You two fucking again or what?" His voice is matter of fact. To Tom, this is a normal question.

Piper laughs.

Ethan shrugs as if he has absolutely no opinion on whether or not our bodies are joining.

His voice tells a different story.

"No, we're not," Ethan mutters through clenched teeth.

"I'd be upset about that too if I were you." Tom motions to me. "Get your cute ass over here and hug me hello."

He raises a brow—trust me.

Is he really trying to make Ethan jealous?

I look at Ethan for a split second. He's smiling through clenched teeth.

He is jealous.

Well, I'm not about to snub an old friend because my ex is jealous.

I hug Tom hello. "I don't flirt with married men."

He steps back and shows off his wedding band. "I don't flirt with anyone but my wife."

I laugh. "I haven't seen you in forever."

"You look good. That's a nice top. Garbage is the shit." Tom leans in to stage whisper. "Plus, you get to remind Ethan what he's missing with your tits on display like that."

"Uh…" My cheeks are burning.

"Hey, if I had those tits, I'd show 'em off too. Do me a favor, Violet." Tom looks me in the eyes.

"Depends what it is," I say.

"Fair. I'm a demanding man." Again, he leans in to stage whisper. "Keep making Ethan's life hard."

"What do I get?" I shrug as if I'm not thinking about making Ethan hard.