Total pages in book: 33
Estimated words: 31300 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 157(@200wpm)___ 125(@250wpm)___ 104(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 31300 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 157(@200wpm)___ 125(@250wpm)___ 104(@300wpm)
Reese nodded at us and rose from his seat—
“—Iraq or Afghanistan, I don’t know.”
I whipped around to see who had mentioned Iraq, but it was impossible to tell. Behind me, Reese and Ivy greeted each other. I kept searching. I heard Reese tease Ivy about the fact that she could let him whip her ass but she was too shy to sit next to him at a crowded restaurant in broad daylight. The background noise drowned out the possibility of finding whoever had talked about Iraq. Nothing had happened, had it? I hadn’t checked the news since before I took the Metro to work this morning.
Fuck. Knowing someone who was deployed was freaking traumatic. I couldn’t imagine what actual family went through.
“You okay, buddy?” Reese asked.
I scanned the lunch guests once more, then nodded once and turned back to Reese and Ivy. They were looking at me quizzically. I couldn’t blame them.
“Sorry about that.” I extended my hand to Reese and straightened my tie. “It’s good to see you again, my friend.”
“You too, West.” He shook my hand firmly and clapped me on the shoulder. “River wanted to make it, but he’s working.”
Reese and River were one and the same. Where some twins wanted to break free to find their own identity, others were two peas in a pod and happy to stay that way. River and Reese were bikers without ugly mustaches and bandanas, James Deans without hair gel, quarterbacks without gear, and punks without anarchy shirts. Rough around the edges was putting it mildly, yet they were also charming as hell.
The only way I could tell the two apart was by the tattoo Reese had on his neck. River was also a bit quieter than his other half.
We chitchatted to catch up while we ordered and waited for our food to arrive, and Ivy was too cute when she became excited. She’d evidently hung out a bit with the twins since they’d come home a couple weeks ago, and every now and then, she would tug on my arm and go, “Oh, tell Lucas about the time you went…” Insert anecdote about fun adventure.
“And yet, you’re too afraid to go near him,” I teased.
Ivy huffed. “Look, mister fister—”
Reese and I barked out a laugh.
“Listen!” Ivy tugged on her ear, frustrated. “They were nice until the last party. They told me I better watch myself! So that’s what I’m doing. Ya gotta be smart, son.”
“Same applies here, you know.” I stifled my amusement and draped an arm along the back of her chair. “Don’t get too sassy with me. Definitely don’t call me son.”
She contemplated what I’d said, probably scheming and looking for loopholes—the brat—then scrunched her nose at me. “But I can call you fister?”
I lifted a shoulder and exchanged a “why not?” look with Reese. “At least it’s more accurate.”
Reese nodded and closed his fist for Ivy to see. “Nothin’ like hearing that sharp scream when you—”
“Okay, I get it!” Ivy exclaimed.
I smirked and took a sip of my wine.
Our food came shortly after, and Ivy pushed for the next thing Reese simply “had to tell” me.
Reese waved his fork at her. “Do you have a list somewhere that you’re checking off, sassafras? How many topics are left?” He snorted when she pretended to zip her mouth and throw away the key, and then he faced me instead. “But I guess I should tell you why I wanted to meet up.”
“Because I’m wonderful to be around?” I guessed, cutting into my duck.
He puckered his lips. “Always, princess. More than that, Riv and I are opening a kink place, and we want to build our own community around it.”
My brows went up, and my food was momentarily forgotten. “Color me interested. Tell me more.”
He launched into the plan he’d put together with his brother and told me they’d already bought a piece of land outside the city. There was a big house too, a three-story Victorian, but it needed work. They wanted it to be exclusive, invite-only. Members paid an annual fee to gain access.
I was already nodding. Christ, this could be big. “I like the part about the membership. We’d be able to get away from the pop-up events.”
It was basically what we had now. Kink communities rented regular nightclubs for special occasions. A club that was solely a kink dungeon was rare.
“We knew you’d get it,” Reese said. “We’re sick of that too. Then we visited this place in Germany, and it was fucking heaven. It sparked the idea.” He shoveled some food into his mouth and continued. “I haven’t told you the best part yet. Most of the property is forest. Think of the games we could play. Capture-takedowns, hide-and-seek—”
“Easter egg hunts!” Ivy squealed behind her hands.
I laughed and kissed her temple. “Where you little ones are the eggs, maybe.”