Back to Life by Mellie George Read Free Book Online Page A

a way for us to meet
anyway.”
    “That’s
true. When Vivian Tanner wants something, look out world. I have to admit I am
a bit surprised though,” he said, taking a long drink from his beer.
    I
cocked an eyebrow up. “Oh? How so?”
    “Well,
don’t take this the wrong way, but you aren’t at all what I pictured when Mom
described you to me.”
    I
laughed. “What were you expecting?”
    “Honestly?
I was expecting you to be a, well, a…”
    “A
gin-soaked coked-out socialite whore?”
    Liam
smiled another crooked smile at me. “Well, something along those lines. All Mom
ever said about you was that you were a stylist at a high end salon, that you
were smart, quick witted, and that you were, and I quote, ‘a stunning redhead.’”
Stunning, huh? Wow. “Anyway, I can’t wait to hear what you expected me to be. Come
on, tell me,” he said, grinning.
    “In
the name of honesty, I expected a…”
    “A
trust fund yacht club frat boy bitch?”
    “That
wears polo’s and smoking jackets,” I said.
    Laughing,
he said, “You just described my father,” and a dark laughed laced with contempt
escaped him.
    I
knew Liam and his dad didn’t get along, so I decided to change the subject.
“So, Nick’s a trip. How long have you two known each other?”
    “Since
we were kids. We grew up together, and my family kind of became a surrogate
family for him when his mother died.”
    “That’s
so sad that he lost his mom, but I can see Vivian being nurturing like that.
Your mom’s great.”
    “She
is.” He paused for a moment, and continued. “Can I ask you a question?”
    As
I threw back another shot of Patron, I said, “Shoot.”
    “Okay,
so my mom’s been trying to hook us up for three years now.”
    “That’s
not really a question,” I said, and he smirked.
    “I
know that, smart ass,” he said, nudging me with his arm. It felt white hot
against my bare skin and I had to fight to keep my wits in check. “I guess I am
just wondering how you have been single after all this time,” he said, his
clear blues eyes locked on mine. “I mean, a sexy redhead that’s rocking some
serious ink and piercings? You have to know you are hot, every guy in this club
has been checking you out.”
    I
instantly broke eye contact with Liam and looked around. Immediately I noticed
four men at a nearby table starting at me like they wanted to take my clothes
off with their teeth. I rolled my eyes. “I don’t give a fuck if they are, let
them look.”
    “So
you aren’t going to tell me?”
    “There’s
nothing to tell. I just don’t date, that’s all.”
    “You
don’t date,” he laughed. “Care to elaborate?”
    Slamming
back another shot, I glared at him and said, “No.” I felt a dull ache in my
chest.
    Liam
must have known I wasn’t about to answer. “Okay, fair enough.” Even though he
had backed off, I could tell he was intrigued, but I wasn’t about to get into
my messed up romantic history on a Friday night.
    After
a few uncomfortable moments, I finally spoke. “You have some nice ink of your
own, by the way.” I finally got a good enough glimpse of the tattoos I could
see, and he had a huge sacred heart on his right forearm, and a large dragon on
the other.
    He
instinctively flexed his arms, and said, “Thanks.  These are the only ones that
are visible right now. I’m actually working on finishing my back piece.”
    “Sweet.
Are you doing a theme or just lots of different things together?”
    “A
lot of things. Every tattoo I have is a part of who I am,” Liam said proudly,
but his jaw tightened. “What about you?  What do these all mean?” he asked,
gliding his fingertips under my hair and across the upper part of my back. I
shuttered slightly, and for a moment my heart was beating faster.
    “Um,
well, most of these mean something to me, but a few of them are just reminders
to not get a tattoo when you are a little buzzed,” I laughed.
    “I
take it that the happy cartoony dolphin will be