Chapter Eighteen
From Zombie to Zen
Walking through Costco with wet panties wasn’t nearly as much fun as it sounded.
Ultimately, though, I couldn’t help but be pleased with the epic party haul I’d amassed. Vixen’s Den would be turned into a veritable funhouse for a night, with acres of orange, black and purple streamers and twinkling lights that would blanket the ceiling. Several battery-operated cauldrons strobed with a rainbow of lights and pretend fire, and I already knew where to strategically place them for added mood lighting. The small dance floor with the stripper pole was one of the few things Tyr and Red Flag hadn’t damaged, so that was a kickass place to get a party started. Several chairs and tables were going to be delivered to the shop tomorrow so people would have plenty of seating, and Tyr had assured me that they had an extra banquet table at the clubhouse that I could borrow to put all the food on.
I also had plenty of activities to roll out, from a pub-style Halloween movie trivia contest, to a selfie wall area that Roxie and Carlo were going to manage, to streaming a line-up of horror movies on the wall-mounted TV. There would be bobbing for apples adult-style, which meant bobbing for plastic toys shaped like boobs and penises that I had found online and already had a package of said toys delivered to the shop.
Since this was a birthday party but I wasn’t into the whole birthday-gift thing, I’d asked everyone to instead bring a nonperishable food item that could be donated to a local food bank. I talked with my next-door neighbors at the brewery and found out they did parties, so now I had a couple people scheduled to serve flights of autumn-themed beers, from a pumpkin ale to a deep amber lager to an earthy stout and more, plus I bought a dozen or so cases to give away as prizes. Better yet, since most of my guests would spend the night across the street at the Barracks, everyone could get as freaking hammered as they wanted without worrying about driving anywhere. And last but not least, there would be a costume contest with prizes involved. I already knew I’d vote for Ashtray and Mabel for best couples’ costumes, with Ash dressed as Batman, Mabel as the sexiest Catwoman around, and Ash’s wheelchair made to look like the Batmobile.
I finally figured out what my own costume was going to be—something Tyr would either love or roll his eyes at—but sadly I couldn’t coordinate with him like we were a regular couple. Not that he was the type who’d be in to wearing a silly Halloween costume in the first place, of course. But a girl could dream.
“Ginger? Um, could I talk to you for a second?”
Shit.
In the process of packing my car full of party stuff while a cold October wind whipped through the Costco parking lot, I turned to find Misty standing a few feet away. She scooted over as a minivan rolled by, clearly giving up on taking my spot.
“Sure, Misty,” I said, keeping it casual while trying not to squirm. My friend had gone surprisingly silent after we’d left the food court, and I hadn’t missed how she kept looking at me throughout the remainder of our shopping trip. I wasn’t sure what her damage was, but I was positive I was about to find out. “What’s up?”
“Please don’t hurt Tyr.”
I froze. Of all the things I’d expected her to say, warning me to not bring any harm to the virtually indestructible force of nature that was Tyr Colgrave wasn’t anywhere on my bingo card.
I opened my mouth and said the only appropriate thing. “Girl, what the fuck?”
“I know I have no right to poke my nose into whatever’s going on between you two, and that I should mind my own business. And I swear I will. But I think it’s only fair for you to know how things are from my perspective.”
What the fuck, times infinity . “Misty—”
“He’s so happy right now, Ginger,” she said, surprising me into silence. “You have no idea how he’s changed just this past week. I’ve worked with Tyr for years at Ride Or Die Choppers, and I thought I’d seen every single one of his moods. I thought I knew what he was like when he was in a good mood. But after seeing him this past week, I realized that I’ve never seen this man truly happy. That’s sad, but it’s also amazingly beautiful that he’s feeling it now.”
I crossed my arms to cover how touched I was. “I guess. Listen—”
“Do you know what he did for Lasso and me the other night?” she plowed on, talking over me until I gave up with a sigh. “My man and I were in my office, and Tyr overheard us talking about whether or not we should try for a third kid. He straight-up broke into our conversation to tell us he wanted us out of there. At first I thought he was firing us for talking about personal stuff while on the clock, but then he told me to use the business credit card to hire a babysitter for the night and reserve a room at a hotel of our choosing. Then he said that doubt and worry shouldn’t be the driving force behind the shaping of a family, and that if we even had a glimmer of a thought about expanding our family, the answer should always be yes .”
Honest to God, Tyr was beyond baby-bonkers.
“I guess what I’m trying to say is that the man I knew last month and the man I know today are two entirely different people. The old Tyr plodded through life like a damn zombie, and all this time no one knew it. But the new Tyr is filled with so much life he’s almost blinding, and it’s all because of you, Ginger. That’s the only explanation that makes any sense. He’s happy because of you .”
With everything in me I wanted to believe that, so much so my heart tried to pound its way out of my chest. “What makes you think I have anything to do with whatever’s going on with Tyr?”
Misty sighed. “Ginger, I was sitting right there.”
“Right where?”
“Right next to you while you and Tyr had phone sex and you were pretending to be rude while he called you his good girl. It’s none of my business,” she added hastily when I growled and took an automatic step toward her. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do once I reached my friend, but my man believed we needed to keep our relationship a secret, so that’s what I was going to do. “I’m sure you guys have your reasons for keeping your relationship under wraps, and it probably has something to do with the war with Hades. I wouldn’t even be saying any of this if it weren’t for the fact that I now know what’s making Tyr so freaking lighthearted, and I’m thrilled it's you.”
“Listen to me very carefully, Misty,” I said, keeping my voice low so no one who might be interested in what we were saying could hear us. “You. Don’t. Know. Anything. Understood?”
She searched my expression for a long moment, found something there that made her mouth tighten, before she nodded once. “In other words, I need to suffer a case of amnesia?”
“Amnesia sounds good. Thank you very much for your understanding.”
“Fine, fine. But before I forget everything, I need you to listen to what I have to say.”
“Do I have a choice?”
“No.”
Oy . “Let’s hear it.”
She took a deep breath and dived in. “Tyr is president of the Gravediggers, but even without that fancy official title, he’s just such a natural-born leader I don’t think he knows how to be any other way. When he split from the Chicago Gravediggers, he put all of us on his shoulders and moved forward, dedicating himself to keeping us alive and thriving. That was a crushing burden he took on, and he’s always done it without complaint. All these years he’s struggled on his own to build this club into an unstoppable force, and until a few days ago I never realized that doing this on his own meant that he was alone . But now that you’re together—”
“Allegedly.”
She rolled her eyes but otherwise ignored me. “Tyr has laughed more and smiled more in the past few days than he has in all the years that I’ve known him combined . It’s like he finally sees the light at the end of the tunnel when it comes to his uncle, and he’s allowing himself to reap the rewards of that freedom. That’s why I’m speaking up now, Ginger. In just a handful of days he’s gone from zombie to Zen because of you, so please just promise me that you won’t hurt Tyr by being careless with his heart, okay? Because of all the people in the world who might be gunning for Tyr Colgrave, I think you are the only one who has the ability to actually hurt him.”
*
I wasn’t sure which Mr. Happy was going to kill me first, my battery-powered one, or Tyr’s.
At least I’d die with a smile on my face.
The evening had kicked off with an almost surreal quality. I had our dinner pretty much prepared, and had the addition of a pumpkin pie and whipped cream from the store chilling in the fridge. In the living room, a classic cartoon where a certain round-headed kid kept getting rocks while trick-or-treating murmured in the background. It kept me company as I lit the trio of candles on the table, then hustled around the rest of the loft’s lower living area to turn on the dozen or so flameless candles placed here and there to accentuate the mood lighting.
If my man wanted candlelight, he was going to get some damn candlelight.
The house smelled like heaven, a mixture of frying parmesan, garlic, bacon and bread, and the warmth radiating from the kitchen made my fuzzy robe covering the black bustier and thong no longer necessary. My black platform heels clicked smartly on the wooden floors as I moved back to the stove to check on the last of the chicken, and that was when the sound of the front door sliding open reached my ears. I looked up from turning off the heat to find Tyr pocketing keys he’d clearly used to get in, sniffing the air appreciatively before he glanced my way and held up a massive bouquet of roses in his other hand.
“Honey, I’m home.”
The laughter that burst from me broke the weird sense of unreality trying to engulf my brain. With a flourish I threw off my robe and struck a pose, hoping against hope I didn’t have some random robe fuzz sticking to me somewhere.
“Welcome home, darling. How may I service you?”
“Get that fine ass over here, woman, and kiss your man hello.”
I laughed again, ran to him as fast as my heels would allow, and gave him a kiss that made my toes curl. I could only hope he felt the same way.
Eventually I got him a vase to put the flowers in while I busied myself with plating up our dinner. He wouldn’t allow me to handle the hot tray of garlic bread straight from the oven, which I thought was cute, and I watched him as he placed the toasted bread in a napkin-shrouded basket. Then we sat at the table, our first homecooked meal together, bathed in candlelight and the scent of roses perfuming the air, and everything was perfect.
Until I told him Roxie swore she’d never eat at this table again because we had our very first sexy times on it, and he nearly choked to death on his laughter and a bite of chicken.
Tyr has laughed more and smiled more in the past few days…
God, I loved this man.
And maybe, just maybe, he had some real feelings for me, too.
Tyr had always had a healthy appetite, so it was a pleasure to watch him plow through first and second helpings as we talked over our day. LEO had come around Ride Or Die Choppers for a little chat about the Chicago Gravedigger massacre—no surprise there—and I told him about how smart his receptionist was when it came to sussing out who he was currently fucking. He pondered that for a while before deciding no real harm had been done. But he still wanted to keep us a carefully guarded secret until he dealt with Hades once and for all.
That was when I couldn’t stand it any longer and asked if Hades had done us all a favor and dropped dead during the massacre. When Tyr shook his head I tried to look like I didn’t care, but I knew I’d failed when he reached over to take my hand.
“I swear to you now,” he rumbled, and his eyes were so fiercely locked on mine he was suddenly all I could see, “before this year is done that bastard uncle of mine is going to be six feet under, baby girl, because that’s where I’m going to put him. We can’t raise a family with that rabid shitbird running loose, so he’s got to go.”
The mention of babies—again—and the fact that I was pretty much now in the window of opportunity to make a tiny human being made my blood simmer. It took all I had to stay focused on clearing away the dinner dishes and serving up dessert. But as soon as the last bite was taken and I brought the dishes into the kitchen to stack them in the dishwasher, Tyr wrapped his arms around me from behind and kissed my neck.
“Snap, you’re wearing a thong and heels in front of me, with your mile-long legs and perfect, squeezable ass hanging out there on full display. You really think I’m going to let you do dishes now?”
The incredulous way he said it made me snort. “And a bustier, don’t forget.”
“Hell, no, I could never forget the busty thing. Love the busty thing.”
I laughed again before turning in his arms. Being six feet tall while wearing six-inch platform heels meant that I could almost look him in the eye. “Is there something else you want me to do besides dishes, Tyr?”
There was a fire burning in his eyes, a fire that promised all sorts of sinful delights. “Show me where you keep your Mr. Happy.”
That was how I came to be in my current position—wearing only the bustier and heels, kneeling between Tyr’s widely spread knees. He sat naked on the edge of my bed, his arms braced behind him on the mattress, his eyes heavy-lidded as he watched me work on taming my gag reflex to push his cock all the way in. I was getting better at this, and I now had what was probably an unhealthy obsession to become the world’s best blowjob queen, if there was such a thing. One, because he clearly loved it so much and I totally got off on making my man sigh and moan in helpless bliss. Two, since he insisted I play with myself every time my knees hit the deck, my pleasure was never denied. And three, I was now addicted to sucking his flavor into me. My mom loved heroin. I loved the taste of Tyr’s cock. Such was the life of an addictive personality.
While one hand worked the base of his shaft, my other hand clutched the quietly humming vibrator. When I’d shown it to him and he saw how many levels it had, he’d asked if I’d ever pushed it up all the way to maximum. I told him that was way too much for me since my clit was clearly too sensitive. When I confessed I’d never made it past mid-level without coming my brains out, he’d just smiled and asked where the lube was.
He'd started me on the lowest setting after inserting it himself, which was quite possibly the most erotic thing I’d ever experienced in my life. I let him play with my pussy with the toy until I almost came, which only took a couple minutes since I was so sensitive. That was when he took the vibrator from me, commanded me to my knees while he undressed and sat on the edge of the bed. It was only after I’d calmed down to almost normal levels that he gave Mr. Happy back to me, and again gave me the instruction not to come while I took him in my mouth.
I didn’t know how much time had passed since we’d come up to my room; the world had melted away and there was only the two of us as we pushed each other toward climax. It was there, flirting at the edges of my blissed-out mind, and I wanted that sweet release so much my muscles hurt from restraining myself. But I wanted to hold back even more, because that was what Tyr liked and wanted, and giving him whatever he found pleasurable fulfilled me in ways I couldn’t begin to explain.
“You’re getting close, aren’t you, baby girl?” The sound of his voice was almost crooning, though the excitement threading through it bubbled through my veins like a drug. “You’re moving around a lot more, fucking Mr. Happy like your life depends on it. Jesus, it’s one helluva beautiful sight, watching you play with yourself until you’ve lost your damn mind.”
Oh God, his words were just about enough to send me flying over that edge he delighted in keeping me on. He needed to stop talking, or I was going to fall.
“I need you to hold on for as long as you can, you hear me? I want to be on the very edge before I fuck you, so get me there, woman. Suck on me hard, stroke me with your tongue and massage my balls, all of it… yeah. Yeah, baby, just like that. Jesus fuck, your mouth is goddamn magic.”
He groaned, and a trickle of saltiness slid down my throat. Tyr made a tortured sound before dragging me off his cock. The moment he did that, he uncorked all the moans I’d been holding back while I plunged the vibrator into me, rolling my hips so that it hit my clit just… so… perfectly…
“Don’t you fucking come.” His voice was unrecognizable, and I loved it. As if by magic, I all but flew off my knees and landed on all fours on the bed. He hauled my ass up high before reaching between my legs and removing the vibrator.
“I’m making all my dreams a reality tonight, so prepare yourself, Snap. It’s gonna be a wild ride.”
Lost in a near-orgasmic haze, I could barely understand his words. “What?”
For an answer, the unmistakable chill of his lube-slicked fingers rubbed all around my anus. Then, even as I gasped in shock, the equally lubed hard tip of Mr. Happy pressed at that threshold.
“Get ready for madness,” was all he said, before I heard the gentle hum of the vibrator suddenly screamed at a setting I’d never used but immediately recognized. I took a breath to tell him no, but he was already shoving the vibrator up my ass, then half a second later filling my pussy with the bold thrust of his cock.
I screamed into the mattress. Instantaneous orgasm was apparently a thing my body could do, because I suddenly found myself in the wild heart of it. My senses boggled, overwhelmed by the alien sensation of being utterly filled, both by the vibrator and Tyr, The toy’s vibrations were so off-the-charts intense that it felt like my very womb was vibrating with it, and all of that shot me straight into what he promised—madness.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck .” Tyr slammed into me like a jackhammer, so fiercely he moved me across the mattress. “I can feel that shit all the way inside my cock… oh, Jesus fuck , Ginger, you’re such a perfect fuck… yes . Goddamn it, yes !”
I came again and again, a never-ending chain of orgasms where I couldn’t tell where one ended and another began. I lost my mind to it, lost my sense of self other than being Tyr’s fucktoy, and eventually, lost consciousness as I hyperventilated while screaming the only word that mattered.
Tyr .