Chapter 32
Chapter Thirty-Two
Nick
The inside of his ass was sore as hell. They’d gone through three different plugs, anal beads, a probe, and a lifelike dildo.
It had been one hell of a primer. Granted, none of the toys had been used on them for long.
Mistress Julie had pointed out when they used them on a submissive, it would be for longer periods with fewer changes between toys, but the overall impact gave them an idea of what those longer times would feel like.
Nick had a newfound respect for what the submissives went through, especially when it came to physical reactions that they couldn’t control. He hadn’t meant to get a hard-on while Master Law was inserting the probe, but his body had had other ideas.
On the other hand, it had opened his mind to what he might let Avery do to him. He’d heard a finger in conjunction with a blowjob could be pretty spectacular. That was something he hadn’t been willing to try before that he might try now—at least, in a few weeks when he’d recovered from tonight.
The Doms had elected to stand through the last lecture in the class.
Thankfully, Olivia had left the room as soon as the hands-on demonstration portion was over, so Nick didn’t have to avoid her gaze.
Looking at Mistress Julie was hard enough.
He couldn’t look Master Law in the eye right now, not after the man had become even more intimately acquainted with Nick’s body than his own doctor.
“See you all next week for the final class!” Mistress Julie said cheerfully. “Don’t forget to talk to me or Master Law if you want to sign up for individual sessions of any kind of edge play.”
As interested as Nick was in fire play, he was going to pass. Doing the ‘regular’ kinky stuff would keep him busy for a while. Maybe when he felt more comfortable, he’d talk to Avery about doing the individual classes for some of the extra stuff.
Q and Connor seemed to feel the same. They all moved out of the room quickly, if a bit stiff-legged, into the lobby, which was thankfully empty.
As if by some hidden signal, they all slowed.
No one said they wanted to talk, but Nick knew they did.
Tonight had made them feel more like a cohesive group since they’d all been through something together.
He felt bad Sam hadn’t been here but had to admit he wasn’t sure it would have been the same if she had been.
She’d already been through it, whereas he was pretty sure it had been entirely new for Q and Connor, the same as it had been for him. Butt virgins no more.
“One more week.” Q shook his head in disbelief. “And then we’re Doms.”
Connor made a noncommittal noise, but he wasn’t a chatty guy, so Nick wasn’t expecting much more from him.
“I’ve already been practicing with Avery at home.
Do you two go to Stronghold?” He couldn’t help but be curious.
He hadn’t seen either of them scening the night he’d been there with Avery, but he and Avery hadn’t stayed much longer after Iris got into trouble.
That had put a bit of a damper on the evening for their whole little group.
“So far, I haven’t done more than visit and watch with some friends,” Q confessed.
“Same.” Connor’s single-word reply was so like him, Nick had to smile. Besides, the conversation was distracting him from how his ass felt.
The door to Olivia’s office opened, and all three of them tensed. When Luke appeared in the doorway rather than his more intimidating counterpart, they relaxed. Connor and Q knew Luke was Olivia’s sub, which meant he’d been through the same thing they had tonight—probably far more often.
Seriously, don’t think too hard about that.
He was surprised Luke hadn’t wanted to be there, considering Olivia had stepped in to teach.
Other than an involuntary physical reaction, there hadn’t been anything particularly sexual or sexy about tonight’s class, which Luke probably knew.
It was fascinating how kink could be incredibly sexy or completely platonic.
“Hey, Nick, got a minute?” Luke asked, striding toward their little group.
Connor and Q quickly said their goodbyes, moving toward the stairs and leaving Nick with his brother.
Not that he minded, even if it was a little awkward.
“Just wanted to see how you and Avery are doing. Mom was asking me if you’re going to bring her around for the holidays. ”
Holy shit, it was October. When had that happened?
“I have to talk to Avery,” he said, knowing the excuse would only let him off the hook for so long, although it was true.
He didn’t know what her plans were for the holidays.
They hadn’t talked about it. Nick had never brought a girlfriend home for the holidays, but for the first time, he really wanted to.
Wow. He wanted to introduce Avery to the whole family. That was new and different, but it also told him how much he really loved her. You know, if tonight’s class hadn’t already confirmed that.
“It’d be great if you want to come by. Mom’s torn between being interested in your new girlfriend and my and Olivia’s reproductive schedule.” Luke grinned when Nick groaned, his eyes dancing with amusement.
Ah, yes. The eternal quest for grandbabies.
Maybe he shouldn’t inflict that on Avery…
On the other hand, since Luke and Olivia got together, they’d had his mom’s complete focus.
The brotherly thing to do would be to share the load, especially since Luke and Olivia were fairly ambivalent about having kids.
Did Avery want kids?
They hadn’t talked about it. Ever. That was probably something they should do. Was it too soon? They’d already been together a few months.
“Hey, you okay? You look like you’re about to have an aneurysm or something.
” Luke clapped his hands on Nick’s shoulder, trying to peer into his eyes.
Scoffing, Nick brushed him off and stepped away, wincing a little when his body reminded him it was sore in places where he wasn’t used to being sore.
“Questioning whether I want to inflict Mom on Avery this soon in the relationship,” he admitted.
“Hey, that’s what we do to the women we love.” Luke chuckled. “Besides, Olivia will help protect her.”
“Ah, right.” When Luke arched an eyebrow at him, Nick shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I, ah, haven’t actually told Avery I love her yet.”
“Oh…” Luke blinked, then laughed. “Well, definitely tell her before introducing her to Mom. That should help keep her from running.”
“Is that what kept Olivia from running?”
“If Olivia felt fear, she’ll never admit it.”
Avery
When Nick knocked on her door, Avery thought, not for the first time, she really needed to get him an extra key.
That or move in together.
Yeah, no. That was moving too fast. They hadn’t been dating long enough, no matter how long they’d known each other before they started dating.
Right?
Answer the door, twit. Think about cohabitation later.
Right, right.
The look on Nick’s face when she opened the door almost made her laugh out loud.
As happy to see her as ever, there was an odd cast to his expression.
He looked like she’d felt the first time she’d ever done anal play.
The sensations lingered long after it was over, and the taboo of it had stuck in her mind.
“Hey, there,” she said, smushing down her laughter as best she could, tipping her lips back for a kiss. His eyes narrowed suspiciously, but thankfully, he didn’t call her on it.
“Hey,” he said when he pulled away. “How are the ladies?”
“They’re good.” She shut the door behind him, admiring his ass in his jeans, then had to suppress more laughter when she saw his stiff gait.
That was not his normal walk. If he was another submissive, she’d be giggling in fellow-feeling, knowing exactly how that felt, but she didn’t think Nick would appreciate sympathetic laughter.
He was more likely to think she was laughing at him, and she didn’t want to make him feel like that.
“We spent most of the night building the perfect man for Iris.”
That made Nick turn around, his brows furrowing. “What?”
Now, she could finally laugh, and it if was a little heartier than it might have been otherwise, he couldn’t take offense.
“Apparently, she wants to be part of a happy couple, so we were talking about what would make the perfect guy for her.” Avery grinned as Nick shook his head and turned around, heading for the kitchen. “What, you don’t think there’s a perfect guy for Iris?”
“If there is, he’d need the patience of a saint,” Nick tossed over his shoulder.
Avery plopped on the couch, watching him with amusement as he moved around her kitchen as though he belonged there. She was the same way at his house. Maybe thoughts of moving in together weren’t so far-fetched.
Maybe you should wait till you exchange the L-word before you go down that path so you don’t scare him off.
“Iris is a brat, in the purest sense of the word.”
“You’re not wrong. She wants someone adventurous and fun.”
Picking up a beer from the bottom shelf of the fridge, Nick made a face as he straightened. The hiss from the can opening punctuated his expression.
“She’d be better off with someone who could ground her a little.”
“The way you ground me?” Avery teased.
Nick laughed, coming over to the couch, sitting gingerly next to her.
Avery really felt she deserved a medal for the way she kept her face straight.
Leaning in, he brushed his lips over hers for a brief, affectionate kiss.
He’d taken a sip of his beer, so when he kissed her, he tasted like oranges and hops.
“No, the way you ground me.” He winked at her. “I’m not fucking Gordon Ramsey after all.”
“No, you’re fucking me.” She completed the joke, even though it made her want to groan. The big jerk chuckled, looking smug. He’d probably known she wouldn’t be able to resist.
“So, what are your plans for the holidays?”
Avery nearly choked. It was a good thing she wasn’t the one drinking beer, or she would have spat it out all over him. When she met his gaze, it was full of mischief, and he was grinning at her.
“Not what you were expecting me to say?”
“Well, there was no segue.” She narrowed her eyes, a little miffed he’d amused himself at her expense while she’d been trying to be so good about not doing that to him, but she couldn’t ignore the pounding of her heart.
Was he asking what she thought he was asking?
“I uh, hadn’t really thought about it… but my mom asked if I might bring you home when I told her about you. ”
“Wow. Our mothers must be made from the same mold.” He took another sip of his beer, but the amusement hadn’t faded from his expression.
If anything, it had increased. Shifting on the couch, he pulled her into his side, so she was nestled under his arm, head in the nook between his shoulder and chest. Her favorite spot.
“I asked because Luke pulled me aside tonight. Apparently, our mom has been asking him if I’ll be bringing you home for the holidays. ”
Nice to know she wasn’t the only one with an importuning mom.
“Why doesn’t she ask you?” she asked, curious.
“I’ve always been a bit of a contrarian. I’m pretty sure she worries if she asks me, I’ll say no on principle. Luke was the good son who tried to make my parents happy. I was the one who would do the exact opposite of what they said.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Avery shook her head, rolling her eyes.
“Be warned, if you meet her, she’ll want to know if you want kids.”
The casual tone of his voice threw her off as much as the actual conversation.
As if this wasn’t momentous, life-altering stuff they were talking about.
Suddenly, she wished she could see his face, to see how serious he was, but she was kind of glad she couldn’t.
She wasn’t sure what her expression looked like right now.
“Do you want kids?”
Act normal! Act normal! He’s acting normal. You need to as well!
“Yeah, I always pictured myself with a couple of kids.” She wondered if she was dreaming. The whole conversation felt a little surreal. “What about you?”
“Yeah. Luke was the one who was never sure if he wanted kids. I always wanted at least one, more like two.”
“Two is a good number.” She didn’t lift her head from his shoulder, barely daring to breathe.
“Seriously, though, think about it. Your family is in Georgia, right? Maybe we could do one for Thanksgiving and the other for Christmas or something.” He yawned as if he hadn’t just knocked the breath out of her.
Yeah, she’d been having ‘moving in’ thoughts, but that had all been in her head. She hadn’t said it aloud. Somehow, it had been easier to imagine moving in together than meeting each other’s families.
“Want to watch some Great British Baking show?”
“Yeah, sure,” she answered automatically, thankful for the reprieve from the conversation that had thrown her so badly.
Think about it.
She could hardly think about anything else that night, curled up in Nick’s arms, eyes wide open while she thought about it. They hadn’t said they loved each other, but sometimes, actions spoke louder than words.
He wanted her to meet his family. Wanted to meet hers. That was a big deal, right? Something people did when they imagined a future together. She loved him. He obviously felt something deep for her, even if he hadn’t said it yet. Maybe that was enough for right now.