Read Ink (The Haven Series) for Free Online Page B

actually do a lot of the club’s tattoos, he shook his head. “Bitch is a first-timer and Paulie says she’s nervous as hell. I ain’t got the patience for that shit. Got a better idea. In fact--” He broke off to reach for the helmet strung over one of his handlebars and swung a long denim-clad leg back over his bike, gunning the engine into life. “Something I gotta do. Later, man.”
    Sam watched as his friend peeled away and shook his head. He’d never have called Colton easy to read before, but he could see where this was going a mile off. How it would play out though, that was a different story. Very different.
    ***
    Pouring over case notes in his office, Michael sat back with a groan and stretched out the muscles in his shoulders, loosening his tie and rubbing a hand wearily over his face.
    He knew he was many things to many people, not all or even most of them complimentary, but if there was one thing no one could accuse him of it was slacking off. He worked long, unsociable hours and had long since paid for it. His marriage of almost fifteen years had finally snapped under the strain just over three years ago. His son and namesake from a previous relationship would now be twenty-four and probably didn’t care if his so-called father was alive or dead.
    That was the price you could expect to pay for putting your career first.
    And that was how it had always been with Michael, how it had always had to be. Unlike most of his associates, he didn’t come from old money. He didn’t inherit the family business. The only son of a truck driver and a store clerk, he’d had to work for every cent and he supposed, on some level, it had paid off.
    He was his own boss, owned the whole damn company, answered to no one. He owned more property than he knew what to do with, drove nothing but top-of-the-range cars, played golf with the local movers and shakers.
    And then there was Callie.
    If he couldn’t turn the competition green with envy with her on his arm, then there wasn’t much hope for him. While all but a few of his circle were married, and not all of them happily, he was sleeping with a girl even he knew he should only have been able to fantasise about. He still wasn’t sure how he’d pulled that one off.
    FLASHBACK
    “You, buddy-boy, need to get back on the horse,” came the advice from down the bar. Their golfing party had made the near-obligatory stop at the ‘nineteenth’, deciding to take in a few bars before calling it a night. The topic of conversation somehow worked round to the second anniversary of his divorce. Not the most cheering of subjects, for him anyway.
    “He’s right, Michael. And that’s a damn fine young filly you’ve got in your sights,” the retired judge beside him guffawed, amid a cloud of cigar smoke. “Time to turn on the old Corsada charm, eh?”
    “Less of the old, James,” Michael said, eying the blonde and almost changing his mind. She was probably way too young to look twice at him. Sure, powerful lawyer – that was usually a turn-on for women. Dirty old man though ... Not so much.
    “Hey, check it out – she’s definitely legal anyway,” top criminologist Stefan Hollstein piped up, grinning as he jerked his head to where the bar manager was carefully carrying a birthday cake blazing with candles to the now beaming girl’s table. They watched as she fondly told off her friends for their unexpected surprise, socking a burly black guy with dreads in the arm after he’d teasingly ruffled her hair and hugging everyone else. “See? Says twenty-seven on the top. Twenty-fucking-seven , Mikey. Remember when you were that age? Hundred bucks says you crash and burn.”
    He never could resist a challenge.
    ***
    “Earth to Callie! Yo, anyone in there? ”
    “Huh?” Starting as the voice broke through her thoughts, Callie’s elbow caught her takeaway cup of coffee and sent it tumbling off the edge of the table to burst open and shower its contents all over the floor.