She grinned. “I know. Now?—”
His eyes widened, realization of what she was going to make him do now that they’d agreed they were family hitting him right before her gaze brightened with mischief.
“Guess what we’re going to do tomorrow?”
Emmett stared up at the large, blocky clubhouse building through the windshield of Roni’s car and felt panic licking at the edges of his brain. What was he doing there? How had she talked him into this?
“Roni, I don’t know—oh, shoot. I should call you Viper here, shouldn’t I?” He scrubbed at his face, wishing he’d been able to bring his dragon. Snowball always made him feel braver than he really was.
“You can still call me Roni, babes.” She sounded like she was laughing at him, and it made him peer through his fingers to glare at her.
“You’re enjoying how nervous I am, aren’t you? You’re some kind of secret sadist, and this has all been a long con of gaining my trust so you could put me into a situation that was excruciating so you could be entertained. That’s it, isn’t it?”
She stared at him, deadpan. “Yes, that’s exactly what happened.”
“I knew it.” He slumped back in his seat and turned to look at the box in the back seat, wondering if he had everything he needed at home to make cookies since decorating them with the club was obviously going to be a bust. Why had he ever believed that a bunch of bikers would want to frost Christmas cookies? He was so naïve.
“Oh my god, calm down. You know real sexual sadists only like torturing people who like it, right?” She poked him in the ribs when he ignored her, so he rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out at her.
“Yes, of course I know that. How doyouknow that?” He straightened in his seat. “Wait. Are you kinky too? Why didn’t you tell me?” he whined.
Shrugging, she turned away like she was just casually looking around them at the other vehicles in the parking lot, but he thought he detected the faintest hint of pink in her cheeks. “I’m… let’s just say, hanging out with Ollie and CJ has broadened my horizons even before I met you or learned you were a little.”
The implications of that statement had him reaching over and grabbing her arm. “Ollie and CJ are kinky! Why didn’t you tell me about that in all your attempts to get me to spend time here?”
She turned a sly smile on him, reaching forward and turning off the car. “It’s not my place to share other people’s business. Just like I didn’t tell them about you.”
Oh. Right. Yeah, that made sense. Roni was the best; there was no way she’d go around blabbing about other people’s lifestyles. “Oh.”
“Come on. Let’s get inside before one of them comes out and drags you in.” She opened her door and stepped out, the cold November air rushing in around her. She leaned down to smile at him. “To say they’re excited that you agreed to come today would be an understatement.”
Shivering, he hurried to unbuckle and follow, only pausing to grab his box from the back seat before hustling up to the building and standing next to her. She gave him a look as she reached for the doorknob, but he just nodded, letting her know he was as ready as he would ever be.
With a grin that didn’t reassure himat all, she pulled open the door and led him inside the club’s inner sanctum. The loud Christmas music and laughter were the first things he noticed as he blinked at the bright lights. There were tables and booths set up in what was obviously an area the club used to eat meals, but then there was another large space off to the side with a couple of huge TVs and enormous furniture that looked so comfortable he had the urge to go and take a nap. Along the back wall, there was a fully decked-out bar with stools and TVs hanging on the wall above all the bottles, and a door off to the side that probably led to a kitchen.
The best part, though, was all the Christmas lights and decorations throughout the place. It was like an elf had thrown up all over in the best way possible.
His head was turning around as he tried to take in everything at once when he heard a squeal and then hurried footsteps and… tinkling bells? Confused, he faced forward and stared in wonder at the young man rushing toward them. Ollie had always been beautiful in Emmett’s eyes, but he wasradiantas he practically sprinted across the hardwood floor. His silver boots had three-inch heels and red and green bells on the sides that wentperfectly with his skintight Christmas sweater and silver shorts that showed off his ridiculously tanned legs.
How was he so tan in winter? And wasn’t he cold? His shorts looked like they probably didn’t even cover all of his butt. When he got closer, Emmett realized he was wearing tights, and that was why his legs looked so dark. There was also something black high up on the inside of one of Ollie’s thighs, probably a tattoo, but he couldn’t make it out in the small flashes he was getting before Ollie was on him.
“Emmett! You made it!” He enveloped Emmett in his arms, squeezing him tight and crushing his box between them, surrounding him in a vanilla-and-citrus scent that made him relax automatically.
“Is your hair the same color as Roni’s?” he blurted out as they parted a second later.
“Who? Oh, Viper. Yeah! Doesn’t it look great?” Ollie struck a pose, and Emmett’s eyes caught on the large, dark hickey on Ollie’s neck. The bruise looked like it waspainful, but Emmett still squirmed at the sight of it, an achy want blooming in his chest.
“Give him some space,” Roni said, coming back and grabbing Emmett’s arm. She pulled him deeper into the building, Ollie trailing behind them with a dazzling smile and skip in his step, until they reached a long table at the very back near the bar that was covered in hundreds of sugar cookies cut out into different shapes.
“Whoa. Who baked all of these?” He glanced at Ollie, but he raised his hands.
“Don’t look at me. CJ and Knuckles did most of it, but Daddy helped some too.”
Daddy.
Emmett’s eyes locked on the love bite again, mouth dry. “D-Daddy is Six, right?”
He remembered hearing about the man who’d swept Ollie off his feet in a matter of weeks back at the beginning of the year. Ollie had been… beside himself with happiness, and every time Emmett had seen him at the salon or the assisted-living place when Ollie came in to volunteer, he’d be practically glowing. And Emmett had tried to be happy for him instead of incredibly jealous.
