Chapter 20
TWENTY
That was the moment. It was the moment Nick knew would begin the rest of his life. Just like the day he’d asked Raina to marry him. He could tell from the smile of pure joy on Bax’s face, and he could tell by the warm, settled feeling that spread through his gut, encircled his heart, and made his entire body hum with rightness.
“What do you mean the children are staying here?” his mum asked, her lips thin and her words tight. “We made an arrangement, Nicholas.”
Nick sighed and pulled his gaze away from Bax. Really, he wanted to forget everything and kiss Bax just then. Hard. Whether the kids were watching or not. In fact, he wanted his kids to see. He wanted them to see that Daddy was happy and that Bax was part of their family.
“I’ve changed my mind,” he repeated for his mum. “I don’t know what I was thinking earlier. There’s no way I could give my babies to someone else to raise, even to you. I love them and I want them with me always.”
“Nicholas, this is ridiculous,” his mum huffed. “Children belong in a stable household with traditional values. They should not be raised in a heathen paradise as this one with a…a sorcerer exerting his influence over them.”
Nick grinned. He wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t funny. His mum was insulting the man he loved. But even he had to admit that it was ridiculous that she’d gone from accusing Bax of witchcraft to labeling him a sorcerer in a matter of a few days.
“Mum, I love you, but I also love Bax,” he said, walking around to the back of her car and starting the process of taking out everything he’d just finished packing. “I claim temporary insanity brought on by stress, exhaustion, and just not trusting the man I’m in love with enough to feel like everything will be alright.” He probably could have used both hands to unpack the car, since Jordan was clinging desperately to him like a monkey, but he kept one arm around his son as he pulled the larger of the suitcases out and set it on the tarmac. “I love you,” he told Bax as he straightened. “And everything will be alright.”
“Damn right it will,” Bax said, leaning in to kiss Nick’s lips.
Nick’s mum made an exasperated sound and stepped forward, like she would come between them. “And now he’s using rough language around the babies?” she demanded.
“Mum,” Nick sighed.
There really wasn’t anything else he could do. His mum was who she was, and she wasn’t going to change that for anything.
He didn’t need her to. For too long, he’d relied on her for most of his support, but now he had Bax. It was wild how one moment, one action, could change his outlook on everything and shift his burden.
“You’re sure you’re alright with taking the kids and everything back upstairs?” he asked Bax, just in case.
Bax laughed as he lugged the other suitcase out of the car while Macy flopped her head against his shoulder, her hand in her mouth for comfort. “I am absolutely alright with it,” he said. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Nick’s heart squeezed again, and he inched in to steal one more kiss before facing his mum.
“Thanks for being willing to take the kids and thank you for all you’ve done for me in the last few years, Mum,” he said. “I’m not going to stop you from seeing your grandkids or even from watching them now and then, if you want to, but they’re not going to live with you.”
“This is outrageous,” his mum said, so angry he was surprised she didn’t stomp her foot. “You cannot be serious about allowing them to continue to live here. Can’t you see how this place has infected you?”
“We’ll come back down for the rest of the boxes and things once I get the kids settled,” Nick went on, ignoring her.
“Er, we can take some of those.”
Nick twisted to see Blaine and Alfie coming out of the house, Blaine hurrying like there was a fire and Alfie striding with long, calm steps.
“We were just coming to find you anyhow,” Blaine said as he reached them. He zipped right past Nick to grab one of the boxes from the car. It was a heavy one. “Uff. Alfie, you get this one. It needs your muscles. I’ll just take the suitcases.”
“Alright,” Alfie said, nodding to Nick’s mum as he strolled past and continued unloading the car.
Nick’s mum shook with rage. “I mean it, Nicholas,” she said as if she’d been making threats throughout the whole exchange. “If you refuse to let the children come with me, then I won’t ever babysit for you again. You’ll have the full responsibility for the children on your own shoulders.”
Nick glanced across to Bax, who was trying to help his overexcited brother reach for some of the boxes that had been pushed deeper into the car. Bax straightened and looked at Nick like he was trying not to smile.
Nick turned back to his mum and said, “Something tells me I won’t have trouble finding help with the kids. I do want you to be a part of their lives, though. You’re their granny.”
“Get all of that out of my car,” his mum ignored him, circling around the back of the car to direct Blaine and Alfie as they emptied it. “I want all of it gone. Take the car seats, too. I offered you help, you turned it down, and now you’re on your own.”
Nick stood where he was, shaking his head in amazement as his mum made certain everything belonging to him and the kids was removed from her car. Once it was, before they could start taking things up to the flat, and without saying goodbye to him, his mum got in the car and sped away.
“Is she going to be alright?” Alfie asked as he stacked the cardboard boxes, then lifted the entire pile.
“Yeah,” Nick said with a sigh. “She just hates not having her own way.”
Bax huffed a laugh, but kept his comments to himself. Which was one of the reasons Nick loved him so much.
“Why were you looking for us?” Bax asked once they were all upstairs, as Blaine started unpacking the box of toys.
“Oh!” Blaine said, straightening suddenly, a soft toy elephant in his arms. “We’ve got a surprise for you.”
“A surprise?” Nick asked, one eyebrow raised.
“Well, it’s more for Bax, but we are all hoping you’ll want to be a part of it, too,” Blaine explained.
Nick was worried and glanced to Bax to tell him as much.
“A surprise for me?” Bax asked.
“Yes,” Blaine said. “Come downstairs to the garden and see.”
Nick had no idea what kind of madness they were in for, especially if Blaine had planned it all. But his heart felt light after taking back his kids. He felt like he’d taken back his life and like he and Bax were finally on the right track to building a strong, lasting relationship. He could face whatever Blaine had come up with feeling the way he did.
He was surprised when they rounded the house only to find pretty much the entire Hawthorne family save Ryan, who was still in Milan, camped out on the lawn with a picnic set up around them. They were spread out over several blankets and Nick spotted a lot of the eggs and flowers and things they’d been planning to use for their Ostara celebration among them. Along with that, a small table had been set up to one side with all the ceremonial things that had been on Bax’s altar before the unicorn had fallen on it.
Nally saw them coming and jumped quickly to his feet, saying, “Oh! They’re here!”
The rest of the family dropped their conversations and finished swallowing the food and drink they’d been enjoying as they got to their feet, too.
“Surprise!” Robert called out.
The rest of the family joined him with surprises of their own.
“You’ve resurrected the Ostara picnic,” Bax said, beaming as they joined the rest of the family.
“Isn’t Ostara all about resurrection?” Blaine asked, hurrying forward to join the rest of the family instead of standing with Bax and Nick.
Alfie joined them at his more sedate pace. “No, that’s the wrong religion, sweetheart,” he said, winking at Blaine.
Nick laughed, not bothered about whether the joke was sacrilegious or not. “This is great,” he said, looking around at the baskets and platters of food and the pile of dyed eggs in the center of the blanket. He didn’t mind letting Jordan down so he could run over and investigate. His entire family was there to catch Jordan if he got out of hand.
“It’s not just the picnic and the fun things,” Janice said, taking Robert’s hand and coming forward to greet Nick and Bax at the side of the blankets. She addressed Bax as she went on to say, “We’ve given it a lot of thought, and we’ve decided as a family that we’d like to learn very much more about Paganism as a faith system.”
Nick burst into a smile and turned to see what Bax thought of that.
“Hold on,” Bax said, laughing. “Are you telling me that the entire Hawthorne family wants to convert to Paganism?”
Janice and Robert exchanged a loving, teasing look before facing Bax again. “Yes,” Robert said with a casual shrug.
“The entire family?” Nick asked.
“You have to admit, it’s awfully cool as far as religions go,” Nally said, looking excited and abashed.
“Sure beats most other religions out there,” Robbie said with a shrug. Toby elbowed him like he’d said something shocking, but he was grinning.
“We don’t know much about covens,” Janice went on. “I mean, Robert and I belonged to a cult briefly in the seventies, and I think I might have had an affair with a high priestess when I was in my early twenties, but that’s not the same thing as forming a proper coven for serious spiritual pursuit.”
Nick had to cover his mouth with one hand to hide his amusement. He peeked up at the blue sky and the puffy clouds whizzing past and thanked Raina for bringing him to such a weird, wonderful family.
Bax was suddenly far more serious than Nick thought the moment called for. “Hold on,” he said. “Are you all telling me that you want to form a coven for me?”
“Basically, yes,” Blaine said, his mouth half full with the bun he’d snagged from one of the plates while Janice was talking. “We know you’ve been longing to have a spiritual group again and that nothing that’s come along has been quite right. We might all be a disaster, too. But we’d like to learn, and we’d like you to teach us.”
Bax laughed and shook his head. “You realize you’re all ridiculous, right?”
The Hawthornes exchanged looks and shrugs before Robert, definitely acting as head of the family, said, “Yes, of course. We always have been.”
Nick couldn’t stop smiling. It was all too perfect and bizarre. “Well?” he asked Bax. “I’m game if you are.”
Bax shook his head and rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t wipe the smile off his face either. “You all will be the death of me,” he said. “Paganism was the one unique thing I had to set me apart from the rest of the family. Now you’re taking that from me, too?”
“You’re still our only accountant,” Blaine told him, making a face as he did.
Bax laughed louder. “Alright, then,” he said, chuckling. “If you really want to do this, I guess I’m now the Hawthorne family’s spiritual leader.”
Nick was glad his mum was gone. She might have tried to take the kids away by force if she could see what was happening. But he’d never been happier. He loved the way the Hawthornes went all in on a barmy idea. He didn’t think it was all that barmy, really. He liked what he’d learned so far about Paganism, and he had no qualms at all about raising his and Raina’s kids with a respect for nature and the forces of the Universe.
They were welcomed onto the picnic blankets with hugs and cheers from the other Hawthornes and sat down with the kids to enjoy the picnic feast that they should have had the day before. Everyone was in a good mood and full of questions for Bax about what being officially Pagan entailed.
“You should have asked me what this all means before making the decision to convert,” Bax teased them as they finished supper and started in on pudding.
“I’m still waiting for the part where we get to have orgies,” Blaine teased his brother.
“Blaine, it’s a family coven,” Bax told him with pretend disdain. “There definitely won’t be any orgies here.”
“That doesn’t mean there can’t be other naughty rituals and things,” Toby said, looping his arm around Robbie’s shoulders then kissing him sloppily.
It was all such a good time that Nick didn’t even think about telling the rest of the Hawthornes about the confrontation with his mum and her declaration that she wouldn’t babysit anymore until the meal was done and Bax got up to set up his altar for a short ritual. The Hawthornes were both outraged by his mum’s stubbornness and quick to offer their help caring for the kids.
Everything would be alright. The Hawthornes around him were living proof of that. And it looked like they were all serious about being Pagan, too. Bax talked everyone through the symbolism and significance of the springtime ritual he’d had planned for the other night, and they each played their parts as candles were lit, poetic prayers were offered, and flower garlands were passed around so everyone in the family could wear one as they planted seedlings in the garden plot that had been set aside the other day.
“I think this whole thing is going to work out after all,” Nick said hours later, as he and Bax got ready for bed in Bax’s flat. Early and Rhys had volunteered to be on kid duty that night so that the two of them could have the whole night and part of the morning to themselves.
“What whole thing?” Bax asked as he tugged off his shirt and set it aside.
Nick forgot what he was saying for a second as desire rushed through him. “Everything,” he said, his voice on the rough side as he stepped over to Bax and pulled him into his arms. He’d already taken his shirt off, so they were skin to skin, heat to heat. “The family being Pagan, everyone helping out with the kids, and most of all, us.”
He smiled, but that wasn’t enough to express the joy he felt at everything working out in the end. He pulled Bax tighter and slanted his mouth over his in a deep kiss.
It was so new and so natural to be with Bax that way. He’d been so worried at first, but now it felt like home as he wrapped his arms around Bax while deepening their kiss. He spread one hand across the muscles of Bax’s back, digging his fingertips in, and slid the other down under the waistband of Bax’s trousers to grab his arse. That muscle was firm and delicious, and when he stretched his fingers into the cleft between Bax’s cheeks, he loved the reaction he got.
Bax gasped then groaned into Nick’s mouth, pressing his arse into Nick’s grasp. “You make me so hot,” he purred as he stepped back from the kiss and reached for the fastenings of Nick’s trousers. “I want you in me.”
Nick made a rumbling sound of approval and kissed Bax again. That kiss was short-lived as Bax undid his zipper and sank to his knees to tug Nick’s trousers down.
Nick sucked in a breath as Bax slid a hand up his eager shaft, then held the base so he could lean in and lick the tip. Pleasure shuddered through him as Bax pulled his foreskin back to kiss and mouth him. He might have been working off instinct when making love to Bax, but there was something to be said about Bax’s experience as well.
He had to grab handfuls of Bax’s hair and widen his stance to keep himself from being knocked over by the pleasure of Bax’s mouth on him. All that hot wetness as Bax bobbed deeper and deeper on him, going so far as to gag himself once or twice, had Nick seeing stars. Bax gripped his thigh with his free hand at first, but when he moved it to cup Nick’s balls, the whole thing nearly ended after barely beginning.
“Too close,” he hissed, rocking back so his wet cock popped free from Bax’s talented mouth. “I want to last longer than that.”
Bax grinned up at him with a throaty laugh. “I thought the family had the kids all night,” he said. “Who knows how many times we could get each other off without being interrupted.”
Nick laughed, combing his hand through Bax’s silky hair. “After the weekend we’ve had, I’ll probably fall dead asleep after the first orgasm.”
Bax sent him a cheeky look as he pushed himself to stand, sliding his hands over Nick’s hips and sides as he did, and playing his fingers through Nick’s thick chest hair to pinch his nipples lightly by the time he was standing.
“Sleep, then,” he said, gaze flitting from Nick’s eyes to his lips. “I’ll wake you up in a few hours so we can do it all again.”
Nick made a hungry sound as he grabbed the back of Bax’s head and brought him in for a possessive kiss. “I’ll take that,” he said.
They kissed for a few minutes, mouths hungry and hands searching. Nick couldn’t get enough of Bax’s tongue in his mouth or his hands gripping Bax’s flesh. Bax could get him worked up and desperate faster than he’d thought was possible.
“Right,” Bax gasped, rocking back. “If I don’t get you in me right now, I won’t be responsible for what I do.”
Nick laughed. “Alright, then.”
He stepped out of his trousers, which were already around his ankles, then bent to pick them up and toss them over to the chair where the rest of his clothes were. As he walked around the bed to the table where the lube was kept, he stroked himself a few times to keep the good feelings sizzling through him as they took care of practical things.
He needn’t have worried about losing his desire. As soon as Bax kicked off his trousers, he dove onto the bed face first. He made such an appealing picture with his arms and legs spread, his gorgeous arse lifted slightly in invitation, as he peeked over his shoulder, that Nick abandoned his fledgling thoughts about foreplay entirely.
“I love how open you are with what you need,” he growled as he flicked open the bottle of lube and squirted what was probably way too much on his hand.
“Open?” Bax teased him with a grin, reaching behind him while pushing his shoulders into the pillows. “How’s this for open?”
He grabbed his arsecheeks and pulled them to reveal the tight pucker of his hole. The boldness of the move made it hard for Nick to breathe. He scrambled onto the bed between Bax’s legs, feeling like he could come at any second.
He stroked lube onto his straining erection as he found the perfect position, then wiped the excess over Bax’s hole. Bax moaned and lifted his hips higher, pulling his knees up under him so he could get closer to Nick. The move was wanton and brash, and Nick couldn’t help but push two fingers into Bax to show his approval.
“God, yes, love, yes!” Bax gasped, pushing back on Nick’s fingers. “You have no idea how horny I am right now.”
“Er, actually, I think I do,” Nick chuckled. He was mesmerized by the sight of Bax’s hole swallowing his fingers and stroked his dick with his free hand.
“Fuck me, Nick,” Bax panted. “Fuck me until we’re the same body.”
Nick caught his breath at the raw command. “Are you sure you don’t want?—”
“Fuck me!” Bax shouted.
Nick laughed at how demanding his lover could be. He liked it, though. Ultimately, they wanted the same things.
He shifted in, grabbing Bax’s hips and pulling them up, then guiding his cock to where it needed to be. Bax’s body put up a little resistance that had them both panting as he pushed, but as soon as Nick made it past the tight ring of muscle and sank deep inside Bax’s warmth, they both groaned.
He wasn’t going to last long. He wanted Bax too much and was already primed and flirting with his orgasm. He needed to give Bax what he wanted, though. Bax had been the best teacher he could have had in their time together so far and had schooled him in his favorite angle and intensity to be fucked. Nick adjusted his thrusts until he was pounding Bax’s prostate.
He knew he’d done it right when Bax began to howl with pleasure, bucking back on him and reaching between his legs to stroke his cock. It was wild and carnal, and Nick felt completely taken over by instinct and the drive to come. It didn’t have to be pretty or sweet, and they didn’t have to be careful with each other. They were two beasts who needed to come and who trusted each other to get what they wanted.
He couldn’t hold out, and within a few minutes, he let out a cry as his orgasm started to rush through him. It felt amazing to shoot off inside of Bax, knowing he was leaving a part of himself there.
“Yes, baby, yes!” Bax gasped before Nick’s orgasm had completely finished, squeezing him as he came, too.
It was as perfect as things could be. Nick wasn’t sure if he was supposed to or not, but he held Bax’s hips tightly to him as he collapsed to the side so his flagging cock would stay buried in his lover.
He actually managed to stay there and Bax hummed and wriggled like he enjoyed it as they relaxed, panting. He was hot and sweaty, but Nick didn’t care. He pulled Bax into his arms and held him there, resting a hand on his belly.
“Is this alright?” he asked when he had enough breath to speak.
“This is more than alright,” Bax said. He threaded his fingers through Nick’s and squeezed his arse around Nick’s cock. “This is perfect.”