Pretty in Ink (Voretti Family Book 3) Read Online Free Page B

her palm. “CJ, I swear to God if you don’t tell me what you’re talking about in the next two seconds, I’m going to strangle you right through this phone line!”
    “Inking my name on your arm is so…permanent.”
    “And that’s another thing! How did I end up with your name when I was supposed to be getting a butterfly?”
    “A butterfly?” CJ snorted. “No, babe. You pointed at the your-man’s-name-here tat.”
    “Are you kidding me? Why didn’t you say something?”
    “I said you should probably think about it.”
    “But you didn’t say why .” The reality of the situation hit her, leaving her weak and dizzy. She put one hand to the wall to support herself. “I have your name on my arm . Forever .”
    “So it was an accident? Not some crazy play to get a ring out of me?” CJ had the nerve to sound skeptical.
    “Of course it was an accident!”
    “Okay. Well, if you want to hook up later—”
    “Hook up?” Her voice went so high Ocean on Fire cringed. “Are you kidding me?”
    “Naw. I mean, as long as you’re sure you’re not gonna go all Bridezilla crazy on me, there’s no reason we can’t pick up where we left off.”
    “Actually, CJ, there is.” Her heart beat fast and hard, but it felt nothing like her earlier panic attack. Her head was totally clear.  
    CJ didn’t love her. He didn’t even care about her enough to give her the basic courtesy of a heads-up before taking off. They’d never been right together, and every effort she’d made to turn herself into the girl he wanted had only been postponing the inevitable.  
    “This relationship isn’t going anywhere,” she said. “I’m not the woman you want, and you know what? You’re not the guy I want either. So let’s not waste any more of each other’s time. We’re done.”
    “C’mon, babe. Just ‘cuz we’re not getting married doesn’t mean we can’t have fun together.”
    “I’m not having fun.”
    He muttered something about crazy bitches, and Liv took great pleasure in punching the end call button.
    She stood straighter, letting the weight of CJ slip off her shoulders. But as the adrenaline drained out of her system, she could no longer ignore the pain in her arm—the world’s worst sunburn. She’d broken up with CJ, but she still had the jerk’s name branded onto her skin.
    The tattoo throbbed, her body chastising her for her impulsiveness. How many times had her family warned her that she was throwing her life away? She’d been stupid and immature, and she’d finally done something there was no going back from.
    All she could do now was try to find a way forward.

CHAPTER 4

    T HREE MONTHS LATER

    “Livvy! There you are!”
    Liv started at the sound of her mom’s voice—high and nervous, like she’d been combing the city in search of Liv’s unconscious body—knocking over the mustard, which hit the mayo, which plopped into the center of the platter of deli meats she’d gotten out of her parents’ refrigerator.
    She angled herself in front of the counter, trying to hide the damage. “What’s wrong?” she asked brightly. What did I do this time?
    She must not have done a very good job hiding the mess, because her parents crossed the kitchen in record time. Mom insinuated herself between Liv and the sandwich fixings. “Here. Let me help you.”
    Before Liv could object, Mom had taken two pieces of rye out of the bread bag, and Dad was spreading on the mayo.  
    “You guys. I can make my own sandwich.”
    “Of course you can.” Mom spread a layer of mustard on the bread. “But we want to help you.”
    I don’t want your help.  
    Liv swallowed the words. As much as she’d like them to be true, they weren’t. She’d spent the three months since the tattoo debacle trying to muscle her life back on track, but it wasn’t there yet.  
    She’d made some progress. She’d written up the business plan for Designs by Olivia . She’d entered a local design competition with a small cash