Chapter 5
Chapter five
Rory
Owen’s house was a familiar sight, a rustic powder-blue two-story on the edge of Kennett.
My pulse thumped a little harder as I shut off the engine to my car.
Maybe I was feeling a bit guilty after lusting so hard over Harper’s dad at the gym. But holy fuck. Having my hand on his cock earlier today, inviting him out to the gay club—all of it edged me too close to hopeful in a way I shouldn’t be pursuing.
So I’d channel this energy into annoying Owen.
I hopped out of the car, the walk to the door expelling some of my jitters, and the moment I stepped inside, the murmurs from the living room trickled my way.
“What movie is it tonight?” I called out, announcing myself in the usual fashion.
“I told you five times today,” Nyx shouted back. She was my favorite, another grumpy marshmallow like Daddy Owen.
“Mmm, did you?” I teased. She had mentioned it a dozen or so times, but I’d forgotten.
Again. Forgetting was a frequent thing on my part, information traveling in and evacuating just as fast. If it wasn’t vital or immediate, it didn’t linger, except for reappearing at random times.
I’d made my teachers crazy back in school and earned myself the title of difficult or problem child.
“I couldn’t tell with all your grumbling. ”
I stepped into the living room, where everyone was sprawled out over the cushy leather couches. Owen and August claimed one, and Harper, Becky, and Nyx piled onto the other. Caspian had plunked on the floor between the couches, clutching a pillow like he wanted to strangle it.
“It’s Scream.” August waved at me, happy to repeat as usual, one of the many reasons I loved him so much.
“Oh, with my murder boyfriends,” I stated. “Whose lap can I sit on?”
Owen rolled his eyes. “No one’s.”
“You can squeeze in here,” Harper said, patting the small space between her and Becky.
I scampered over and plunked into the spot, sidled right up next to both of them.
Which had been a poor plan on my part, because all I could think of was Harper’s dad on repeat.
Guilt flushed through me again. Taking Wyatt to a gay club would be pure innocence.
Just a casual, friendly introduction to the world of clubs.
Definitely not thinking about grinding against his pretty cock.
I heaved out a breath. Thinking about Harper’s dad’s cock while sitting next to her also classified as off limits. We’d gotten into piercing around the same time, and our friendship had clicked into place as easily as it had with the rest of this crew.
“Since we were just waiting on you, I’m putting the movie on,” Owen said, pressing play. The sounds streamed from the speakers at once.
“Like that’ll stop me from talking through it,” I said with a grin.
Nyx snorted. “I’m pretty sure the day you stop talking you’ll be dead.”
“Is it like how sharks constantly have to swim?” I asked. “See, trying to keep me quiet is deadly.”
“Don’t think that’s the lesson you were supposed to take from that,” Cas said, all deadpan snark. He was our resident salt queen and always seemed to have some battle he was fighting, whether it was to not declaw kittens or no circumcising. Or was it to not circumcise kittens? Whatever.
I stuck my tongue out at him.
“Keep doing that and it’ll get bitten,” Cas said, a smirk on his lips.
“Maybe that’s my kink,” I said with a sniff.
“Nah, it’s not on the laundry list you share with us daily,” Harper teased.
I swallowed past the lump in my throat. Because recently, all my kinky fantasies revolved around one man.
Her dad is off limits. Her dad is off limits. Her dad is off limits.
“Owen, are you going to set up an event at the shop any time soon?” Cas asked. “We could use some fresh blood.”
The idea that had been circulating in my mind bubbled up to my lips, but for once, I chewed it back.
The tattoo convention had been a long-term goal of mine. When I was in high school, I went with Ollie and Ais, and seeing the cool competence of the piercers there on the floor doing their thing, even amid the surrounding chaos, had inspired me. I’d wanted to do that. Be there.
The tattoo convention had spurred my dive down the rabbit hole into piercing, and I’d never been happier to have found a job I genuinely enjoyed going to each day.
Truthfully, after the hell school had been for me, I hadn’t believed that’d be possible.
And part of me had always held onto the dream of standing in one of those booths in the excitement of a huge show and being able to prove to the world I was competent.
My teachers sure as fuck hadn’t thought so.
I wrinkled my nose. Holding back was hard. I glanced at the screen. “Oh, my murder husbands!” The classic duo of murderers from Scream were still hot as hell even for an old movie.
“I mean, truth,” Cas said.
“Didn’t you have an idea you were fiddling with?” Harper asked, jabbing me in the side.
“No.” I shot her a look, and she gave me a slight nod, seeming to pick up that I didn’t want to discuss it yet. “Unless my idea is how to get into either murder husband’s bed.”
“I’m more into Sidney,” Nyx said, wrapping an arm around her girlfriend.
“You would be,” I teased.
Nyx rolled her eyes, which I had a running counter for. I earned every single one of those eye rolls.
“Did anyone bring food?” I asked.
“Did you?” Owen countered, even as he rose from the seat. “I’ve got popcorn.”
“Hey, my contribution last week was a case of beer,” I stated, lifting my hands. “I can’t help that you all drink like fish.”
“Oh, gonna ignore the three you had?” Cas commented.
“I’ll bring a case next time,” August offered. “We’ve got to keep Owen stocked up.”
“Right, for the thirsty boy toys he brings home,” I called, loud enough that Owen could hear in the kitchen.
“Rory, I’m going to strangle you.”
“Kinky,” I responded. “You know I like it that way, don’t you, Daddy Owen.”
The cabinet door shut a little harder, and I bit back a laugh. Teasing him was always far too easy.
What was difficult was mustering the courage to ask him about the upcoming convention. I tilted my head back to stare at the ceiling, and Harper flicked me in the side again.
Oh yeah, and the fact I had a major thing for her dad.