Accepting His Home

by Ember Davis

  When he’s standing up in front of me again, he smirks down at me and then turns me toward the bathroom and swats my ass. I yelp in surprise. He chuckles and smacks the other cheek.

  He leans forward and whispers in my ear, “Enjoy your shower, Livy.”

  I shake my head and try to shake off the lust that’s filling me from Zeke undressing me. I get myself under control enough to head into the bathroom and get the shower going. I pull my hair back; it’ll be faster not to wash my hair and just try and style it as it is.

  I put a little curl in it this morning and it is still holding, well, at least a little bit. This is why I keep my hair shoulder length, any more than that and it’s too much upkeep. It’s enough keeping up with the color; if I had to spend time styling it extensively every day, I’d probably end up shaving it off.

  I do my normal shower thing and take a few extra moments to shave my legs. I roll my eyes as I’m finishing up because guys have it so easy. Zeke is a super clean guy and I fucking appreciate that so much, but guys still avoid so many social expectations about appearance. I guess I could be the kind of girl to ignore them, but I really do prefer my legs shaved and everything neat. I wonder if Amelia will be able to shave her legs once she gets super pregnant.

  How do women deal with their body being invaded by a baby? It must feel so strange. Like the first time you feel the baby kick, what the hell does that feel like? An image of ‘Aliens’ pops into my mind and I cringe. Then an image of Amelia and Beckett holding a little beautiful baby enters my mind. I must admit that it makes me consider the possibility of kids with Zeke and my heart clenches. I bet they’d have his eyes; well I hope they do.

  I step out of the shower, dry off and wrap the towel around myself. I expect Zeke to be waiting for me in my bedroom, but I’m relieved that he’s not there. I don’t want him to see me put on this dress. Does that make me a coward? Maybe. I prefer to think that it makes me smart.

  I plug my hair curler in to heat up as I start putting my makeup on. I’m not super into makeup, but I’ve watched some tutorials and can do a fairly good smokey eye so that’s what I do tonight. I put on a purple lipstick because I just can’t help myself. I do my hair and then survey myself in the mirror. Not bad.

  I slip on a black lace g string and then use my honey lotion all over my body. I learned early on when I was an apprentice that clients can be very sensitive to smells. That’s why I make sure the scents I put on are always a lighter, natural scent. Zeke tells me that I smell like honey and cinnamon, I don’t have the heart to tell him that at least part of that is my lotion. I like it when he smells me.

  I slip my dress on and turn around to get a glimpse of myself in the closet mirror. I turn around again and I have to say, I look fucking hot tonight. I totally wasted this dress on that douchebag at the gallery, but I’m glad that I have it to wear tonight. I bet the club will be full of girls in much shorter skirts and probably less clothes, but that’s just not my style.

  I slip my booties on; they have chain details on them just like the back of my dress and they’re surprisingly comfortable. I grab my leather jacket out of closet and slip it on before I slip my phone in the pocket and grab my ID out of my wallet. I know I won’t be paying for any drinks tonight and SO set us up with a party bus kind of thing that’s picking us up at the shop and will be taking us all to the club after.

  When I walk into the living room, Zeke is standing in my studio area looking at all my shelves. They aren’t great. I’ve pieced them together with modular shelves, but they’re cheap and they work for me now. I’d love something sturdier and more permanent, but there wasn’t any point while I was still living in this apartment? Soon I’ll be home with Zeke; the thought brings a smile to my face.

  I take a moment and take Zeke in, he’s wearing his boots, as I expected. His jeans look new and are a dark wash, they hug his ass perfectly and I know that I won’t be the only one checking him out at the club tonight. Good thing he’s coming home with me…or am I going home with him? Whichever.

  He has a black button up on and when I look closely, I can see silver pinstripes in it. I don’t remember the last time I’ve seen him in a button-down shirt, but this one seems to be cut just for him. His broad shoulders are being hugged by the material perfectly and show off the way his body tapers down at his waist. It really highlights his slimmer build and the muscles of his torso.

  His hair is pulled back in his man bun and, fuck, if that still doesn’t do something for me. I like pulling his hair out of his man bun when I get him in bed at night. He rarely wears his hair down, so it’s like I get a part of him that no one else does. It’s a major fucking turn on.

  I clear my throat and hold up my ID, “Do you think you could put this in your wallet for me?”

  He turns around slowly and then his perusal of me starts at my badass booties. Every millimeter of my body heats up as his eyes travel along it. By the time he’s reached my eyes, I’m about to become a messy puddle of want and need. I feel my nipples pebble and his eyes snap to them. Which only make them harden further and I see his eyes narrow.

  When he looks back at my face, I can see him warring with his inner caveman. I arch my eyebrow in challenge. I’m curious which side of him is going to win and if he’s willing to handle the consequences of him going full caveman by trying to dictate what I wear on my own damn body.

  He takes a deep breath and sweeps his gaze down and up my body again. He slowly starts prowling toward me, eyeing me like a predator at a prey buffet. I squeeze my thighs together because, when he looks at me like that, I can’t control my body’s response. Not that I want to.

  His grin is predatory when he stops a foot away from me. “You look fucking spectacular, little fairy.” He runs a finger along the neckline of my dress. “Good enough to eat.”

  I bite my lip and his eyes go to it immediately. My voice is low and throaty, “You look pretty good yourself. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this dressed up.”

  He chuckles and he wraps his arm around my waist and grips my ass, pulling me flush against him. He runs his nose up my neck and murmurs against my skin, “Right now I’m having a hard time remembering why we’re all dressed up and that we need to get going.”

  I groan and force myself to take a step back, I don’t want him to slip a hand under my jacket too early. I smirk up at him and slap my ID against his chest. Zeke grins down at me, slips his wallet out of his back pocket and then my ID into it. He picks up a dark grey peacoat off the back of the couch and slips it on; it is sexy as fuck.

  I start toward the front door, “Ready to get going?”

  Zeke captures my wrist and pulls me back to him, he runs his thumb underneath my lip, “I can’t wait to get these purple lips wrapped around my cock later.”

  I blink up at him, my panties getting even wetter. He kisses my forehead and smacks my ass before opening the front door for me, locking it behind us and leading me down to his car. He buckles me into the car and drives to Banks Ink. with a cocky grin on his face. On almost anyone else it would be annoying, but on him it’s like a fucking revelation. Seeing him this way, free to be wholly confident and full of swagger makes me fall in love with him even more. As if I wasn’t head over heels already.

  We’re not the last to arrive at Banks Ink., thankfully, because I’m sure we’d never hear the end of that. Andrea and Steve have gotten so much shit for being the last to arrive places more than once, especially because she always has sex hair and he always has a smirk on his face. This time it looks like Dex, Troy and Walsh are the last to arrive; the HS guys and even Nate, Sam and Ellen are already here.

  Amelia’s dressed in a raspberry colored dress that hits right above her knees with sequins along the empire waist, her grey leather jacket and some raspberry and grey cheetah flats. Beckett’s dressed like Zeke, but in a grey button down; yeah, guys have it so fucking easy.

  Andrea is in a pair of leather pants with a sheer seafoam shirt and a black bra
underneath that is peeking out of a black blazer with leather details. She smirks at me as I check out her outfit and I see that Steve is doing the same with a scowl on his face. He’s wearing a black suit with a seafoam button up and no tie.

  Nate, Sam and the rest of the Higgins guys are all wearing various colors of button-down shirts with jeans. They’re all styled and buffed or whatever; we definitely look like we’re dressed to have a good time. Ellen is wearing jeans and a t-shirt with a pair of glittery heels. She already told us that she won’t be going out to The Den with us after the concert, but she wasn’t going to miss the chance to see SO play.

  I laugh and point between Andrea and Steve, “Don’t you think you’re a little too matchy-matchy?”

  Steve shrugs. “Nope,” he pops the p.

  Andrea shakes her head and looks at me I pointedly and smirks, “Like you’re one to talk.”

  I look at Zeke and then at myself. I shake my head, “I didn’t even notice.”

  Amelia arches her eyebrow and quips, “I’m sure.”

  Before I can sass her back the front door pops open and Troy, Walsh and Dex roll in. Walsh looks between the couples and doubles over in laughter. Troy bites his lip to keep from laughing.

  Amelia rolls her eyes, “The worst.”

  Walsh shrugs, “It’s not my fault you guys look like you’re all going to prom together.”

  Steve sweeps a hand down Andrea’s body, “Have you seen my fiancé?” He shrugs, “You’re just jealous you don’t look this good.”

  I snark, “What he said.”

  Dex smiles at me, but there’s something missing from it and I wish that he’d let us in on what’s been going on in his head for the last six months. He was doing a good job of hiding it at first, but it’s becoming more and more obvious. Amelia breaks away from Beckett and walks directly to Dex. She wraps her arms around him and gives him a hug. He visibly relaxes for a moment before putting his emotions back behind a mask.

  Amelia releases him and smiles up at him, “You look nice tonight.” He does, too, he’s wearing a bright blue button down and some grey slacks. She looks around at us girls, “You just let us know if you get a little too much female attention, I’m sure we can come up with something scandalous and fun to get them off your back.”

  She wags her eyebrows lasciviously and he laughs; for the first time in a while it sounds completely genuine and free. It makes my heart feel fuller that Amelia can do that for our family; make us feel better and make us feel seen while protecting our vulnerabilities. He wraps his arm around Amelia’s shoulders and kisses the top of her head. She wraps an arm around his waist and the other rests on the top of her belly like it’s the most natural thing in the world. It must be a mom instinct.

  Amelia looks around the room, when she sees me watching her and Dex her smile widens. She looks me up and down, “You look extra special tonight Liv. I love your dress.”

  I let out a small uncomfortable giggle. Zeke wraps his arm around my waist and his hand sits on the small of my back right under my jacket. I feel his thumb graze my skin; he looks down at me with a mixture of lust and possession.

  I give out a small squeak and then clear my throat. Zeke smirks down at me. I give Amelia a smile, “Thanks. I forgot I had it in the back of my closet. I love that color on you.”

  Amelia grins and I swear she’s fucking glowing. Pregnancy looks so good on her. “Thanks, girl.”

  The party bus pulls up outside the shop and everyone starts to gather coats and anything else they need. Zeke leans down and whispers in my ear, “I have the feeling that I can’t wait to see the back of your dress, little fairy, but also that I’ll have to fight other men off all night.”

  I bite my lip and look up at him and shrug. He chuckles as he leads me out of the shop and into the bus. It is seriously swanky inside and it’s obvious that the guys of SO have spared no expense on this whole VIP experience thing. The driver lets us know our itinerary and lets us know that while they can’t provide it, we’re allowed to smoke cannabis while riding. Bonus.

  We even have a bartender for the night and they already have a few special cocktails in various colors mixed up. Zeke grabs me the lilac colored one along with a beer for himself and settles me into one of the seats. I smile at him gratefully and then look around the bus with a smile.

  It’s nice to be out with everyone like this and we fall into the easy thing we have with each other. Nate and Sam sit down next to us and we chat about how the adoption process has been going for them since I didn’t get the chance to get a lot of information at Thanksgiving. They’re both so excited and I couldn’t be happier for them.

  CHAPTER 18

  OLIVIA

  Once we make it to the arena, we get ushered backstage and can hear the crowd and the opening act. When I glance over at him, Walsh looks like he’s on the verge of hyperventilating. Amelia sidles up to him and wraps an arm around his waist. She looks up at him with mischief in her eyes and chuckles softly.

  He kisses her forehead and pleads, “Please don’t say anything embarrassing tonight.”

  Amelia pouts, “I wouldn’t have to if you weren’t about to have a full-on panic attack.” He rolls his eyes and she giggles, “Just remember, they’re the same guys we hung out with just a few days ago. This is their day job,” she bites her lip, “well, night job, I guess. They’re just like you. They found they had a talent and they work every day to make it into something great.”

  Walsh gives her a relieved look and leans more into her, giving her more of his weight and she stumbles a step, but she giggles and shoots him a faux annoyed look. Walsh chuckles, “You’re right, Sweetcheeks. Thanks for the reminder.”

  Amelia gives Walsh a little squeeze before pushing him off her and winking at him as we continue to follow our escort to the band’s dressing room. She sasses, “I bet they’re horrible drawers, so there’s that.”

  Walsh throws his head back and laughs as Cole opens a door with a huge smile on his face. “Hey family! Welcome to the behind the scenes life of being a rock star. Come in and make yourself at home, there’s drinks and snacks and stuff set up.” He whistles, “Wow, ladies, you all are looking good.” He eyes Amelia, Andrea, Ellen and I up and down as he opens the door wide for us to enter. He kisses Amelia on her cheek and murmurs, “Hey hot mama, how are you feeling?”

  Amelia flashes Cole a wide smile, “I feel great, I just wish I could really party with you guys tonight. Can’t say I’ve ever partied with rock stars before.”

  Cole winks at her pulls her to his side, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, “It won’t be your last opportunity, I can promise you that, little mama.”

  Amelia gives his waist a little squeeze before greeting the rest of the band and Cole kisses all the ladies on the cheek as we file in. When he gets to me, he makes sure that the plan’s still on for them picking up my painting tomorrow before they get on the road to next stop on their tour. He gushes over Ellen and how happy he is that she came out to see them play, but I miss some of the conversation because Elliot walks up to me and wraps me up in a hug.

  I hear Zeke grunt behind me and whisper to Beckett, “How are you ok with anyone manhandling your woman?”

  I glance back and Zeke’s eyes are boring into me; Beckett has an amused grin on his face. Beckett shrugs, “Amelia’s mine and she’s growing my baby.” His voice goes lower and has an edge when he adds, “With the family it’s fine, but if it was some fucking stranger douche touching my woman, we’d have a fucking problem on our hands.”

  I stifle my laugh at their caveman tendencies as I greet the rest of SO, Troy catches my eye and gives me a wink before grabbing a few beers and distributing them. I check out the side of the room where a large table has been set up with bottles of water, beers in buckets, a few bottles of liquor and deli style sandwiches.

  I take a few minutes and admire the people around me, it’s much more relaxed than I would have expected considering SO is going on stage in front of a
sold-out audience soon. I guess they’re used to it, but I seem to have caught a case of nerves by proxy and my stomach knots with the idea of performing in front of all those people.

  Zeke wraps his arms around me from behind and pulls me flush against his back. He kisses right under my ear and a shiver runs up my spine. He chuckles and murmurs, “You’re mine, little fairy.”

  I nod absently and Zeke leads me over to one of the couches in the large room and sits down before pulling me onto his lap. Walsh brings over a beer for each of us and settles down on the couch as everyone else settles in around the room. He looks like a little kid on Christmas morning, it’s fucking adorable.

  I can’t help but give Walsh a little shit, so I lean over and whisper, “Are you about to scream at the top of your lungs and hurl your panties at the band?”

  Zeke barks out a laugh and Walsh glares at me, “You know, if I didn’t love you so much, I would be offended. I’ve gotten over my fangirling.” I shoot him a look and Walsh chuckles and shrugs, “Okay, well mostly over it. You have to admit that this is pretty fucking cool though.”

  I give him a big smile, “You’re not wrong.”

  We sit and enjoy the company and get to know our new rock star family members a little better. We find out about how they all met in high school and started the band in order to pick up chicks. How cliché, but kind of adorable. They describe themselves as kind of nerdy in high school. Looking at the guys now, it’s hard to picture them being anything other than the cool, popular jocks at school. They’re all ripped, tall and sexy as hell. I guess they had to grow into that and now they have to maintain their image.

  After about half an hour, the door to the dressing room bursts open and the opening band comes through the door all pumped up from coming off stage. These guys don’t look older than 18. Yeah, the rest of us at Banks Ink. aren’t all that much older, but they look like kids to me.