Brynne
R onan rolled his eyes toward the ceiling of The Taphouse. “I can’t handle another monster romance, Trin. I can’t—I can’t do it.”
“Whatever. Stop being such a baby.”
“I’m not being a baby,” he grumbled. “I’m just tired of reading about orcs fucking these poor women.”
“I don’t think they’re complaining,” Willow said, and he glanced at her.
“You like orc smut?”
“I mean, I don’t hate it.”
“It’s better than that alien one,” I said.
“Yeah, you’re right. You’re right.” He shoved his fingers through his dark hair with a sigh. “What’s the book this week?”
“We’re diving into omegaverse,” she said, as if she were a teacher telling the students what the next part of the curriculum was about.
“Now, what the fuck is omegaverse?” Ronan asked with a mix of exasperation and fear, like he didn’t want to know the answer but a part of him still longed to.
“Trust me, you’re gonna love it.” Trin grinned as Theo set the tray of drinks on the center of the table.
“Love what?” he asked, sinking onto the stool beside me. His knee pressed against my outer thigh, but he pretended like it didn’t. Like he wasn’t touching me.
This was the first time we’d seen each other since the incident on the couch. I almost didn’t come tonight, because seeing him and pretending like everything was normal sounded exhausting.
It sounded like a nightmare.
But Trin wouldn’t take no for an answer, so I forced myself off the couch, and out of the house.
I’d asked Mason if he wanted to come, but I knew better.
He never wanted to go out more than he had to.
Even though people in Cedar Ridge mostly left him alone and we weren’t in tourist season anymore, photos of him still ended up online.
And the last thing he or his PR team needed was a photo of him in some small town bar playing trivia games with the locals. Even if it would be endearing, we both knew the press and internet had a way of spinning even the most well-intentioned things negative.
So, he stayed home. Alone. Writing a new song.
I hadn’t worked up the courage to ask Theo about how Scout was handling the news. If she saw me differently, or if she felt betrayed that I hadn’t told her sooner. It was ridiculous, but was a reaction I’d dealt with plenty of times before.
The difference was she wasn’t just some random friend I could cut off for being an asshole. She was Scout , my best friend’s niece and my…whatever Theo was, daughter.
But I wanted to talk to her. I wanted to make sure she was alright after she abruptly left the game. She hadn’t played with us since, and I was starting to feel like it was my fault.
I didn’t know what Theo talked to her about, what she said, but whatever it was made her more introspective than usual.
All week at school, she’d written some of her best work, she’d stayed totally to herself, lost in thought.
But there wasn’t this immense, heavy sadness weighing her down like there usually was.
And I’d felt a shift in Theo, too. Something about his energy felt calmer now, more settled. Like they’d come to some kind of agreement, met in the middle somehow, and their walls were crumbling.
“Omegaverse,” Trinity said simply, pulling me from my thoughts.
Theo’s brows rose as he took a swig of his beer. “That’s the wolf shit, right?”
“It can be any creature, not just wolves,” Trinity explained.
“I’m not reading another wolf shifter,” Ronan grumbled, crossing his arms.
“Petulant baby !” Trinity cried, pointing an accusatory finger at him. “You’ll read what your divine leader tells you to read!”
“Divine leader?” Theo laughed, and she shrugged.
“I’m trying to start a cult,” she said nonchalantly. I choked on my drink, my eyes watering.
“ What? ”
“Yeah, you’re my test subjects. I’m trying to see how easy it is to manipulate you.”
“Oh, my god.” I shook my head. “You’re insane.”
“That’s no way to speak to your divine leader—no, I don’t like that. It’s too much of a mouthful.”
“Just like the orcs are,” Theo muttered.
I slammed my fist into the center of my chest, coughing. “You Caldwell’s keep making me choke,” I wheezed, and he grinned. That grin held all the words he couldn’t currently say, but he didn’t need to—I knew exactly what he was thinking. Leaning over, I hissed, “ Pig .”
“You like it,” he whispered back, that same cocky grin on his face. Clearing his throat, he turned his attention back to the table, but slid his hand on my thigh. “So, we’re reading omegaverse?”
“It’s a gargoyle why choose,” Trinity said, stirring her fruity drink.
“We’ve read gargoyle already,” Ronan muttered.
“Not omegaverse gargoyle, and not gargoyle why choose.”
“What the fuck is why choose?” Theo laughed.
“It’s where the female character doesn’t have to choose just one love interest. She has multiple,” I explained. “In this case, they’re all gargoyles.”
“So, she has a bunch of boyfriends?”
“Basically,” Willow said, nodding.
“And…they all…” Theo lifted his brows expectantly.
“Sleep together?” I finished, laughing breathily. “Yes.”
“At the same time?” Ronan asked, looking like he was about to clutch his pearls at any moment.
“Obviously.” Trinity rolled her eyes at Ronan’s expression. “Whatever. Don’t act like you’ve never watched gangbang porn.”
He shoved his fingers in his ears. “No way my sister just said that to me.” He shook his head so quickly, so forcefully, I thought he was trying to dislodge the words. “No fucking way.”
I tossed my head back, laughing as Ronan and Trinity continued bickering. Willow rested her hand on Ronan’s forearm, smiling softly at everything he said.
And Theo’s hand crawled up my leg.
My laughter slowly died, and in its place was a warmth that spread through my chest at breakneck speed. I glanced at him as he sipped his beer as if nothing were happening, but he was dangerously close to the hem of my dress, and I knew he knew.
As if he felt me staring, his eyes dragged my way. Leaning over, his breath brushed my hair.
“What do you think about multiple partners, Red?” he asked quietly. “You want to be fucked by a few men at the same time?”
Lava erupted throughout my body. My breathing turned shallow, my heart in my throat.
“Or maybe just multiple cocks inside you? We could recreate that with toys.”
His hand finally slid under the silky fabric of my dress. He paused when he couldn’t go any higher, when the press of my full thighs stopped him completely. I hesitated—I knew what he wanted.
Did I want that too?
Of course I did.
But here? Now?
It wasn’t so much being in public that made me hesitate. It was who surrounded us.
Trinity was right there , just inches away. Ronan and Willow were on the other side. I couldn’t let Theo touch me, no matter how badly I wanted him to.
“ Theo ,” I whispered, somewhere between a plea and a warning.
A part of me wanted him to make the decision, to tell me to just open my legs.
I knew if he told me, I’d obey. Not because he was a man or because I had to, but because it was easier to have him call the shots and let me turn my mind off.
It was easier to listen to orders, follow them, and get out of my head for a while.
To let him take charge.
He pulled away, but left his hand between my legs. My breathing turned ragged, and I felt like I was about to hyperventilate at any moment.
“Oh, we’re starting,” Willow said, pointing at the stage.
The mic squealed as Tommy lifted it. Poor guy looked exhausted as he read off the paper. His shoulders fell an inch.
“Ash Kickers,” he said, and a few guys at the Blackrock Bay table cheered. “Sherlock Homies.” Trin pumped her fist in the air and used her other hand to cup her mouth, booing Blackrock Bay.
I was surprised when Dean didn’t shout something at her. And by the look on her face, she was just as surprised.
“You’re going down!” she cried, pointing a challenging finger at them. Maybe she did it because she really was that competitive—and she was—or maybe it was to get a rise out of Dean. To get him to notice her.
Play with her.
I glanced at Theo—he wanted the same thing.
I spread my legs and watched as his Adam’s apple slid up and down his throat. Slowly, his hand dragged up my thigh. He shifted his eyes to meet mine, a silent question of consent burning in them.
Dipping my chin in a nod, I let my legs fall open even more. And this time, he didn’t hesitate. He didn’t slow down.
He moved his hand until his pinky rested firmly against my panties. I gasped at the sudden feeling, and heat rushed into my cheeks, knowing he could feel how utterly soaked I was.
“Not this again,” Tommy grumbled, jolting me back to the moment.
“Beaver Eaters and Beavers They Eat?” He looked at the last two tables.
Beaver Eaters were a group of old men, and Beavers They Eat were their wives.
“Alright, do we have everyone here?” Tommy looked around, watching as everyone nodded.
The first round dragged on. Mostly because with every question, Theo pressed his hand harder and harder against my pussy. I clasped my hand over my mouth as his pinky pressed harder into my panties, between my lips. He ground against my clit, and I dug my nails into my cheek to keep from moaning.
Trin didn’t seem to notice, and Willow was too caught up in the question, but Ronan did. Of course he did.
His eyes flicked between us, and, as if getting off on knowing we were being watched, Theo moved his pinky faster. As soon as Ronan realized what was happening, his gaze darted to the table, a rush of pink filling his cheeks.
“What’s the answer?” Trinity asked, and I blinked, my gaze moving to her.
“What?” I said breathlessly. Theo moved his finger faster, my heart racing and body sweating as I tried to fight my building orgasm.
“Who’s Winston Smith?” she cried. “Who is he!”
“A president, maybe?” Willow asked, glancing around.
“No, the prime minister,” Trinity said confidently.
“What’s the answer, Red?” Theo purred. “You know it.”
I fought to catch my breath as he rubbed faster. In my shoes, my toes curled, and I gripped the edge of the table until my knuckles turned white.
“He’s the protagonist in 1984,” I rasped. Trinity eyed me skeptically.
“Are you sure?”
I nodded, my hair flying. “Positive.”
She scribbled the words on the white board, and when she held it over her head, Tommy pointed her out as the winner. The table erupted just as my orgasm crested, and my cries of pleasure mixed with the sounds of their cheering.
Finally, Theo pulled his hand away, turning his head slightly and sticking the tip of his pinky into his mouth. He grinned around it, a flash of white teeth in the low light.
My skin buzzed, my blood vibrated. I stared at him, shocked at what just happened.
At what I wanted to happen.
Finally, Tommy called for a break, and it was like the world took a breath. My shoulders fell, my body swaying forward and resting against the edge of the table.
“Meet me in the bathroom in a few minutes,” Theo said quietly, low enough for only me to hear. I jolted at the sound of his voice, at the words. When I nodded, he cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention. “I need to make a call.” He got to his feet, but no one paid him any attention.
No one but Ronan.
His all-knowing gaze flicked between us, a million questions whirling through his head. He didn’t need to say a word for me to know what they were.
What the fuck was that?
Are you two a thing?
Are you together?
What about Trin?
What about Scout?
I shook myself, forcing the questions, the judgement out of my mind. I knew Ronan didn’t care, not really. It was just a shock, but nothing so detrimental he needed to announce what he just saw.
The last thing either of us wanted was for this—whatever it was—to go public. Even if public was just this small group of people we loved, it meant making this thing real. And I didn’t think either of us were ready for it.
I certainly wasn’t.
Ronan kept glancing at me, and I knew there was no way I could disappear without him knowing exactly where I was going. What I’d be doing.
No sex , I reminded myself. Absolutely no sex.
We couldn’t cross that line.
A few minutes passed, and when Ronan left to go get another round of drinks, I stood on wobbly knees. “I’m going to the bathroom,” I said too loudly to be casual. Trinity’s brows twitched together, but she nodded.
“Alright.” She drew the word out, flicking a look to Willow. “Thanks for letting us know about your pee habits.” I laughed, but again, it was too loud. Too obvious something was off.
Thankfully, they ignored me and went back to chatting about the new book, and I disappeared into the throng of people. Every step toward the bathroom felt like a bad idea—or maybe the best idea. I didn’t know. There were too many things warring inside me, fighting for dominance.
When I got to the bathroom, I paused. He was in there. Right on the other side of this door.
Did I really want to do this?
Of course I did.
I pressed my fingers into the rough wooden door and slowly shoved it open.