The Veil

Chapter Forty

Luckily Emma and Joe were absolutely fine with me taking another weekend off, and wouldn't let me apologise no matter how many times I tried. 

I think it had something to do with the fact that my job wasn't really a necessary part of the operation at the tattoo studio, they'd made the position for me when I'd come in begging for a job going on four years before and told them I wouldn't leave without one. 

"Are you reading a medical journal?" Joe asked me as he peaked over my counter and looked at the front of my book that was spine up next to the computer. 

"No, not exactly, it's hard to explain." I giggled glancing at the book. It was almost a medical journal, it was as close to one as I could get. 

I loved reading about medical conditions, their causes, symptoms, cures. 

I suppressed a sigh at knowing I could have been studying medical practices and procedures all the time at college.
"You're an odd one Lily." He shook his head with a fond smile and walked over to his station, starting to disinfect the surfaces. 

Work passed as it always did, slow and routinely. 

As I turned from waving at Emma through he window I jumped as I bumped into someone. 

"Shit, sorry." I stumbled back a step and looked up into Ronan's face. 

An easy smile spread across his face, "Oh hey." 

"Sorry, Hi Ronan, how's it going?" I asked, I pulled my gloves out my pocket and put them on, pulling my scarf a little tighter. 

"Same as always. You heading home?" He asked, gesturing left. 

I nodded and he started walking in the same direction. "Did you have a good birthday?" He glanced down at me as we walked through the frozen streets. 

"Yeah it was great, they kidnapped me to take me to the lake for the weekend. It was quiet and filled with Jade force feeding me." I giggled. 

"Sounds perfect." He laughed his deep laugh. "Hey, I've been meaning to ask you something, are you and Grey together?" 

I missed a step and stumbled slightly, he caught my arm holding me up. 

I didn't know why but it made me nervous. 

"Um, yeah. Why?" I thought he already knew, pretty much everyone in town knew. 

When everyone first found out they'd made a big fuss, a lot saying they thought we were already together, some saying they knew it would happen. 

Me and Tom always just rolled our eyes. If we didn't know how did everyone else?

He shrugged and we kept walking at a slower pace than before. "I was just wondering, Henny told me a few weeks ago but I didn't believe it. I never believe anything that comes out of Henny Shores mouth. But I guess now I know what you were always running from." He shrugged again. 

I felt my face heat up, the blush coming easily. 

I'd always felt guilty about using Ronan. 

He knew what it was though and he'd never complained, but it still made me feel awkward when he bought it up now, even if he didn't seem to mind too much, he didn't seem embarrassed. 

"Um, yeah. Look Ronan." I stopped us walking and grabbed his sleeve, forcing myself to look him in the eye, no matter how embarrassing it was. "I'm really sorry about all that, I didn't mean to basically use you. I was really-" I didn't even know how to explain to him.