Reece's Faith (107 page)

The club owner smiled brightly. "The feeling's mutual. I like that I turn you on."

"Do you ever." Faith wrapped her arms around Reece's neck and kissed her, this time not so hungrily, but sensuously.

The tall woman relaxed and accepted Faith's love. When the kiss ended, both women were smiling.

"What do you want to do with the rest of the day, baby?" Faith asked as she laid her head on a strong shoulder.

"What do you think about a tattoo?"

Faith sat up and stared at her lover, both her eyebrows arched in confusion. "Huh?"

"Well, I think I want one."

"You do? Where? Of what? When did this happen?"

Reece snickered, "Yeah, I do. I was thinking of an armband, right here," she pointed to her bicep. "I saw something I liked down at Violet's shop, but I don't want something that someone else will get, ya know? I want it to be only mine. I was thinking about a small tribal band, maybe with a personal design in the middle of it. Something symbolic. Japanese maybe."

Faith almost laughed at Reece's enthusiasm. "Well, you've obviously given this some thought," she chuckled. "I haven't heard you go on about something like that before."

"Well, what do you think?" the club owner asked expectantly, rubbing her hands up and down Faith's back.

"You're asking me? Its your body, baby," the actress played with a lock of Reece's hair.

"It's more your body than mine, Faith. You certainly have a right to an opinion."

"Are you serious? Oh, Reece, that's so sweet! Of course you can get a tattoo."

Reece lit up. "Yeah? Thanks, I really want this."

"I'll admit that I was surprised that you didn't have any to begin with." Faith leaned her head back on her lover's shoulder and idly ran her fingers through thick, black hair.

"I always wanted one or some, but never could come up with something I wanted to have forever. It's a big decision."

"I always wanted one too, but I was chicken of the pain. Once I got my nipple pierced, that whole fear went out the window. Nothing could hurt like that did."

"Oh? It hurt?" Reece kissed the top of Faith's head.

"Like crazy. Violet wanted to numb it, but I got visions of the dentist and my lip feeling like it was forty pounds. I couldn't imagine my nipple in that condition, so I went for it without the numbing. Bad choice."

"Why didn't you tell me it hurt so bad?"

"Cuz it didn't any more by the time you saw it. Besides, you should have seen your face." Reece chuckled, making Faith smile against her neck.

"I like it. A lot."

"I know, baby." Faith sat up and gave Reece a quick kiss. "Hey, what about animal."

"What?" Reece furrowed her eyebrows.

"The Japanese symbol in the armband. How about animal... or strength... or love..."

"How about Faith."

The actress's mouth hung open. "You'd get that on your arm forever?"

"Why not?" Reece shrugged. "Uncle Frankie always told me to have faith. A million times a day, I should have faith. Then it happened. Faith walked in to my life and changed it completely. I can never go back and I can never forget. It would mean a whole lot to me to wake up every morning and see faith on my body."

The actress looked like she was going to cry as Reece cupped her face. "That is the most wonderful thing..."

"So it's okay?" Reece asked hesitantly. Faith nodded and kissed her lover's palm. "You're not going to cry every time you see it?" she teased. Faith shook her head and sucked a finger into her mouth. "Okay, so it's a plan... what are you doing?" Reece shivered.

"Loving you." Faith continued to suck on Reece's fingers.

"Mmmm, my lips are feeling pretty left out."

"I can fix that."

"No doubt." Reece slipped her hand into Faith's hair and guided her lips to her own.

 
*  *  *

Violet, Reece and Faith stood huddled over the tattoo artist like expectant mothers while he drew up the design. It was a small, but strong, design that would frame the symbol in the middle perfectly... reverently. It was just what Reece had wanted. When he finally finished, he held it up to the tall woman's bicep and waited.

"Wow, baby, it's gorgeous!" Faith hopped up and down excitedly.

Reece was more nervous than she let on. Sure, she had a piercing, but it was one needle and it took a split second to finish. This was a whole lot of needles and it was going to take an hour. She blamed her nervous sweat on the small, stuffy studio and Faith seemed to believe her. Good thing, too, the club owner was more afraid of Faith finding out that she was scared than she was of getting the tattoo. She watched as the artist applied the design to her skin and nodded her approval when she looked in the mirror.

"Okay then. All set. Just take a seat over there," Violet said as she nodded to the dentist-looking chair. "I got a client now."

Reece's eyes widened, but she obeyed and lay back in the chair. Faith pulled up a stool and sat next to her with a huge, proud smile.

"Are you as excited as I am?" the actress spontaneously kissed her lover.

The club owner chuckled at Faith's enthusiasm. "Yeah, I can hardly wait," she mumbled.

Faith leaned down and kissed Reece's ear, then whispered in it, "You don't fool me. I know you're nervous, baby, that's why I'm going to hold your hand."

Reece grinned and nodded. Faith knew her better than anyone. Grateful that her lover twined their fingers together, she took a deep breath and relaxed. "Let's go, buddy. I haven't got all day," she said in her best irritated voice.

Faith leaned over her lover to watch the artist start tattooing. She saw Reece's arm flinch of it's own accord when the needles hit. She glanced at her lover's face only to find her staring down her shirt with a big grin on her face. "Does it hurt?"

"Not really. Can you lean a little to the left?" Reece craned her neck to see further into Faith's cleavage.

The actress laughed. "I can't sit like this the whole time, baby," she teased.

"Hey, tat' guy, can she sit on my lap?"

The man stopped working and assessed the situation. It would certainly be a first, but he didn't see any problem as long as Reece didn't move her arm. "Sure, get comfy, but you can't move after I start again, okay?"

"You hear that, Faith? You'll have to sit still."

He pulled the chair into an upright position and Faith sat between Reece's legs, leaning her back into her lover's front.

Faith groaned after they got settled. Reece was breathing down her neck. "Oh, god, this is going to be torture."

Reece grinned evilly and tasted Faith's ear.

 
*  *  *

"Okay, it's all done. Go take a look at it."

Reece was reluctant to move, having enjoyed Faith being between her legs and at her mercy for over an hour. The actress scrambled off her lover's lap, flushed and breathing erratically. She flashed Reece a look that was a cross between relief and desire. Reece snickered and stood up quickly to hide her own desire.

"Oh, honey, it's awesome!" Faith exclaimed of the tattoo.

The tall woman studied the new tattoo in the mirror from all angles. The black designs around the Japanese faith seemed to twine around it and hold it, almost cradling it. It was perfect. "That looks great. Thank you," Reece smiled widely at the artist.

"I love it, Reece!" Violet said happily. "It looks fantastic!"

"Thanks. It means a lot to me, too. It's not just random ink," Reece said seriously.

"I know," the piercer nodded, sharing a deep moment with her friend.

 
*  *  *

Reece didn't feel like going into work that night, not after the way Faith behaved when they gotten home from the tattoo shop, but work was work, so here she was. The tall woman didn't want to wear a tux, either. She knew the fresh tattoo would rub annoyingly against the shirt and the ink was going to stain it. Faith suggested Reece change the outfit a little and wear her black long-sleeve T-shirt under the jacket instead of the tux shirt and bow tie.

Reece was glad she listened as the soft cotton felt much more comfortable than the stiff shirt she'd usually wear. Settling onto her usual barstool, the club owner smiled politely at Amber the bartender and then turned to face the club.

 
*  *  *

Faith lay in bed and looked at the clock for what was probably the twentieth time in two hours. She missed her lover already; it felt like she'd been gone forever. The actress felt even more connected to Reece now, as if the tattoo sealed some sort of open door and she was forever a part of her lover. She felt confident, more than she'd ever been, and she felt special. She rolled over and smooshed her face into Reece's pillow, inhaling and experienced an overwhelming feeling of need wash over her with the scent. Not a sexual need, but a longing to feel the woman she was suddenly so connected with, a need to look at her physical body and not just inhale her essence. Faith became worried at her behavior; after all this time in their relationship, she wondered why she felt this way now. Surely, she could wait the few more hours until her lover came home? Faith felt like she may bust with anticipation. It scared her.

 
*  *  *

Cori couldn't wait to get finished with her set. She was waiting all night to see Reece... and her new tattoo. Not only couldn't she believe that the woman who called her a freak had gotten a tattoo, but also what she decided to put on her skin forever nearly floored her. Violet had described it in detail and even drew it for her. She told her that it was the perfect embellishment for the perfect bicep.
Faith... who woulda thought?
The depth of its meaning didn't get passed the dancer and she was almost misty over the whole thing. Of course, she couldn't pass up the opportunity to tease her boss either, so she continued to squeeze through the crowd towards the tall club owner.

Reece could feel the tattoo throbbing and shifted uncomfortably. It wasn't like she was even thinking about it, it simply made its presence known. It burned some and she likened the feeling to a skinned knee. The design wasn't as elaborate on the inside of her arm as on the bicep, but, still, there was ink there and it was pretty sensitive. She held her arm away from her body slightly and pursed her lips.
Maybe I need to put that stuff on it now,
she thought and then pursed her lips even tighter when she realized she'd have to take off her clothes to do so.
Fuck.
Reece pouted until she saw the curious looks she was getting from Amber and grinned sheepishly.

"Whassup, Boss? You look kinda moody," the bartender said as she swiped Reece's glass away.

"Ah, it's nuthin." Blue eyes looked up and Reece's gaze traversed the expanse of skin Amber was exposing, stopping on the thin Celtic style armband.

Amber blushed at the blatant examination. She, like all the other women in the club, harbored a big crush on the boss and the way the tall woman seemed to be checking her out made her giddy. She spoke before she could control herself. "See something you like?"

Reece's both eyebrows shot up and she fought the blush of embarrassment she suddenly felt, just that second realizing how she was misinterpreted.