Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 55099 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55099 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
“And you told that voice to pipe down,” I guessed.
“With a swift kick to the nuts,” he confirmed. “Take it from me, hon. I spent years mopin’ and grumbling to myself, but when push comes to shove—I don’t wanna live with regrets. I’d rather have my heart stomped on, as long as I gave it a go.”
All the lovesick idjits were saying the same damn thing.
And they were right. Not an ounce of me wanted to slow things down with Nora. Hell, the opposite. I wanted to ask her to spend more time with me out here. I could drive her to work in the mornings, and then we could stay in my cabin while I sorted out my vanilla life. I had work lined up. I just had to find a new home.
A house with a big backyard, maybe…
Once Greer was done, he applied deodorant and came back out. He grabbed a clean tee from a bag on the kitchen table.
“Are your other three coming out later?” I asked.
“Just Archie today,” he replied. “Sloan’s kids are hoppin’ on a flight tomorrow to go see their mom in Chicago, so he and Corey are staying back to spend the evening with them.”
“The kids are flying on their own?” If I wasn’t mistaken, the two youngest were under four.
“No, their mom’s parents are takin’ them, thank fuck. Ever since she started her job in Chicago, it’s clear her priorities have shifted.” He was visibly annoyed by that. Couldn’t blame him. “To be honest, I’m not sure she’s comin’ back. It’s supposed to be for one year, but…” He shrugged and dug out a pair of jeans next. The kilt-loving brats would be so sad. “Fuck it, I’d rather have the kids with us full time. They’re finally happy again.”
I smiled. I knew how much those children meant to Greer.
“Speaking of kids, I heard Reese talking about a few new cabins out front, where members can bring their kids,” I said.
He nodded with a dip of his chin. “Aye, he asked me about it. It’s a good idea as long as we make sure the kids don’t stumble upon anything they shouldn’t see.” He scratched his jaw. “We talked about an age limit too. Kids older than three shouldn’t be here. You never know where they might run off to.”
That was true. Greer and Archie had brought their daughter a couple times, but she was just a year old, and they kept her in here where things couldn’t be more vanilla. If Archie wasn’t with her, Greer was. Or Corey or Sloan, of course.
“Three is a good limit.” I nodded. And the front of our property was so large. We usually compared it to a football field, and we didn’t use it one bit. But plant some bushes, transplant some trees, build a picket fence around a new area, and we could create a kid-safe zone in there. We already had a group online for kinksters with children; they met up for their own munches in the city from time to time.
It gave me butterflies to think I might be one of those one day. I honestly wasn’t sure if it was what I wanted, but now I had the choice, and it meant a lot.
“Pen, I know that stupid smile,” Greer chuckled.
“What?” I composed myself and scrubbed a hand over my mouth. Fuck.
He grinned. “Nothin’. It’s just good to see.”
I huffed.
Saturday morning, I didn’t get much time with Nora either. We were in full-on Game mode, and all participating members had been banned from the backyard. No pool fun for them. Instead, they were using the shitty little grill on the front porch to make lunch—and they were sending the brats to run through the sprinklers.
I heard bets were being made…
Because so many dynamics had signed up for the event, we’d had to ask for more volunteers, and Reese was now going to run his mascot competition as a sidetrack station so that the groups weren’t too large.
For several hours, it was me, Reese, Jack, August, and our volunteers, Santiago, Franklin, Lucas, Beau, Ivy—who couldn’t do anything strenuous—Gretchen, and Sierra running around to set everything up.
We cleared the deck of all outdoor furniture, because that would be Jack’s station. Left behind were the two hot tubs and a long table that Gretchen and I began filling with coolers. It was too warm to leave the food out for hours.
Said coolers were packed with all kinds of food, from fruit and vegetables to bread and toppings, from pastries and cookies to beef jerky and chips. Plus beverages—which reminded me, I had to prepare a thermos or seven. Most Tops loved their coffee.
Meanwhile, Reese’s station would be out on the lawn, beyond the pool. He and Franklin were setting up kinky furniture where slaves would prove they could suffer for their Owners.