Free Razor's Edge (Afflictions) by Racquel Reck

the color tonight, which will take another hour and a half. Or you could come back in a week or two depending on your scabs and we can finish the color then. I only ask because we are an hour and fifteen minutes in and you might need a break."
    It was that long? No way. Sure enough, the clock on the wall reads two in the morning.
    "I’ll be done with Wiley in fifteen." Bebe doesn’t even glance up from her chair.
    Lina, Bryan and Tryst are already gone and his station is dark. Those fuckers didn’t even say they were out.
    On one hand, I don’t want to leave. I enjoyed my time with Shay and Ben. The burning sting from her gun hardly phased me. But it’s late, and the kid needs to go to back to bed. "Yeah, I’m ready to call it a night."
    "Aww..." Ben whines from beside me. "I was almost done with my picture. You coulda strung it out some more."
    I laugh. It’s hard not to. The kid’s too damn cute. "Why don’t you finish it the next time your mom works on me? You can sit and talk to me some more."
    Ben nods. "Okay. But you have to come tuck me in."
    Whoa. I snap my head back. What do I say to that?
    Shay's cheeks are red. "Ben, go kiss your aunt Bebe good night. And don’t–"
    "I know, Mom. Startle her or bump the gun." He jumps up and runs to Bebe.
    Shay turns off her machine and dresses my wound. "Sorry, about that. He gets a little carried away sometimes, especially when guys pay him attention. His father isn’t around so—" Her cheeks brighten again.
    Damn. “So…your boyfriend ignores him then?”
    “I don’t have one.” She takes a deep breath and tosses her ink caps in the garbage.
    Score. I smile. "He’s a great kid.”
    She smiles back at me and hands me my shirt. "Let’s ring you up."
    Following her to the counter, I shrug on my shirt as I go. "For the record, I really did just have to pee earlier."
    She blushes again. "It’s one-sixty now and one-twenty when you come back."
    "I’ll just give you the two-eighty up front." I hand her my credit card.
    She swipes it and we wait for the receipt to print out.
    "You gotta come see my Nightmare Before Christmas bed." Ben’s in front of me, eyes wild with excitement. "It rocks!"
    "Ben." The tone in Shay’s voice is all warning and he ducks his head.
    It’s not the kid’s fault. He thinks he’s made a new friend and wants to show off his things. But I know where Shay’s coming from. A man she just met and hasn’t had a decent convo with is not the man who she should let into her apartment, much less let tuck her kid into bed. Ben doesn’t understand that though. It’s cool the kid likes me that much, but I know it’d be crossing the line and maybe make me look a little creepy to her.
    I bend down so that I’m on his level. "Wicked cool slippers you have there, little guy."
    "I’m not little." He stares straight at me. "I’m a man."
    I chuckle.
    He laughs. "But yeah, they’re my favorite."
    Yawning, I don’t have to pretend for dramatic effect. "I would love to see all the cool stuff you have, but I’m kinda tired from the tatt. I need to go home. Maybe when I come back? If that’s all right with your mom."
    I eye her up. Her arms are across her chest showing off her perfect breasts. She cocks a brow and bites her lip. Yeah, I’m definitely going to make sure I take her out before our next session.
    Ripping the receipt from the machine, she hands it over with a pen. "Ben, go put your chair back where it belongs. I don’t want your uncle Tryst tripping over it when he comes in. You know how clumsy he is."
    Ben giggles. "Uncle Tryst is really funny."
    "I bet he is." Actually, this is news to me. Tryst doesn’t strike me as a guy who acts goofy for a kid’s benefit.
    "Goodnight, Morgan." The kid hugs me.
    Awkward. Not because he’s a kid. I have a niece who’s a little older than him that I help take care of all the time. But his mother Shay looks really embarrassed that her son has hugged a perfect stranger. I need to have a talk with