Black Hollow: Beating Around the Bush

by Sheri Lyn

  “No shit.” Shayde mumbled as he dropped his forehead down on Choals thigh. “You’re killing me.”

  Bishop grunted out a laugh which only made Shayde want to hit the other man, “Bishop, I swear, you’re killing me here, babe.”

  “Choal,” Bishop grinned wickedly. “What would you say if I told you that I know of two people who would kill to kiss you?”

  Choal gaped in shock, “You do?”

  “Fucking hell, Bishop.” Shayde grumbled.

  “I do.” Bishop agreed. “I’ll make you a deal, you tell me who you want to kiss and I’ll tell you who wants to kiss you.”

  “I….um….” Choal hesitated, closed his eyes, and bit his lip, before finally giving a slow nod. “Okay, but you go first, please.

  Shayde studied Choal and wondered if he could possibly be seeing what he thought he was. He glanced to Bishop and raised his eyebrows with a nod of his head to Choal.

  Bishop smiled. “I think so too.” He agreed.

  Shayde reached out and pulled Choal to lay down between them. “What would you say if I told you I’d give anything to kiss you, to hold you in my arms, to love you?” Shayde whispered, making Choal’s eyes open in amazement.

  “Me?”

  “You.” Bishop agreed as he leaned closer and placed his hand on Choal’s stomach.

  “You two?” Choal swallowed audibly, “You both want me?”

  Shayde leaned up on his elbow so he was hovering over Choal, “Can I kiss you? Show you want it feels like?”

  Choal licked his lips and smiled, “I’d love that. I admit since I found about sex you were the person that I wanted to try it with. I was afraid to bring it up though in case it wasn’t normal.”

  Shayde wanted to kick himself for letting this beautiful man ever doubt himself. He couldn’t change the past, but he could make sure it never happened again. Without another second’s hesitation, he leaned down and pressed his lips softly against Choals. His lips were soft and full. He slowly licked against the seams of Choal’s closed mouth, begging for him to open.

  “Let him in,” Bishop whispered from their other side. “You guys are so beautiful like this.”

  Choal shuddered, making Shayde grin in triumph as his tongue stroked against Choals. If he never got to kiss this man again, he wanted to make sure this would be memorable for them both. A kiss to rival any other one either of them would ever have.

  “Feel that sensation filling your cock. That need for more, that’s how you know if it’s good. You’re both breathing hard, you’re straining to touch each other more, and your rock hard erection is pulsing in your pants.” Bishop narrated for them.

  Shayde pulled back panting as he studied Choal and waited for him to speak, daring not to hope for too much yet. He darted a worried glance at Bishop who just winked at him.

  “Holy shit.” Choal whimpered as he tentatively touched his lips with his fingers. “Everything tingles, and burns.”

  Shayde felt like he’d won the lottery with that admission. “Sex feels like that, but a thousand times more.” Shayde explained.

  Choal’s eyes widened and he turned to look at Bishop with wonderment and excitement shining in his eyes.

  “Bishop, I think he wants you to kiss him now too.” Shayde encouraged as he smiled lazily at them. “Let me watch and see what you saw.”

  Bishop bit his lip and raised an eyebrow at Choal, “Is that true, love? Do you want me to kiss you too?”

  Choal didn’t respond instead he wrapped his arm up and around Bishop’s neck and pulled him down until their lips met. A soft groan filled the room making Shayde’s cock stiffen even more. Bishop had been right, it was fucking hot to watch the two of them kiss, see the passion building, and knowing they both wanted you just as much as they wanted each other.

  Bishop pulled back and licked his lips, “So fucking delicious.”

  Choal giggled as he slumped back with a happy smile. “I get it now, I think.”

  Shayde grinned as he laid down on his back, “I never thought we’d get here. I feared I’d lose you if I ever even hinted at wanting anything more than friendship with you. You never hinted you even knew that there was such a thing as sex, love, or anything. You blew my mind when we were all in the bathroom here and you let on that you knew things.”

  “No shit.” Bishop agreed. “I did not see that coming. You act so innocent and naive, but you knew things that contradicted that. I couldn’t figure you out.”

  Choal laughed, “I am innocent in theory. I know the mechanics of sex, just not the important stuff. Then I saw you two kissing and I couldn't get it off my mind. I just had to figure out how to get answers once I knew we could do that stuff too.”

  “Babe.” Bishop laughed, “You can do so much more than that, ask Shayde about it sometime. I’m sure he’ll be happy to share what he did just a few days ago in the other house with me in the bathroom.”

  “Bastard.” Shayde tossed his pillow at Bishop with a roll of his eyes. “Choal, I’ll happily show you one of these days….when you’re ready for that. But I think this is a big step for tonight. Why don’t we talk and then if you want to know...I’ll tell you….”

  Choal happily agreed and they spent the next few hours doing just that. Talking, laughing, and filling in the gaps of their lives with each other.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  As Choal yawned and opened his eyes he became aware of being surrounded by warmth, a body was pressed on either side of him and an arm was wrapped around his stomach. He smiled as he took in the sleeping face of Shayde snuggled close, his hand on Choals hip, he glanced over his shoulder to see Bishop spooning him.

  He knew they hadn’t planned on falling asleep, it’d just happened as they’d laid there talking for hours the night before. It was a memory Choal would cherish for as long as he lived. This would be another. He felt so protected, loved, and needed, it was a feeling he’d never experienced before and one he wasn’t keen on giving up any time soon.

  They may have jumped into this situation rather quickly, but he had no doubt that it was the right decision. These two men belonged together and with him. All three of them were destined to be together and to make a family with Kohen.

  A soft knock on the bedroom door had Choal gently climbing over Shayde and out of bed. From their time in Black Hollow, he knew Shayde was a heavy sleeper.

  “Morning,” Choal whispered as he stepped out of the bedroom and met a grinning Kohen standing there.

  “It’s almost time for me to leave for school, and I didn’t want to go without letting one of you know.”

  Choal cringed, “Give me a minute and I’ll wake them up. We can walk you to school.”

  “No, it’s okay.” Kohen stopped him. “I can walk, it’s not far.”

  “Oh okay, well what about breakfast and lunch?”

  Kohen rolled his eyes and laughed, “I made myself a sandwich and grabbed some snacks for lunch. And yes I ate breakfast too, there’s some leftover pastries on the counter from yesterday.”

  Choal frowned. “I feel like we should have been up doing that for you. That's our place as the adults. We’ll get better at this thing I promise.”

  “You guys worked really hard getting this house ready for us. It’s okay, I know how to take care of myself.” Kohen reassured, “I’ll see you guys later, love you.”

  “Love you too,” Choal called out as Kohen raced away leaving Choal standing there in shock once again.

  “Hey, you okay?” Bishop asked from his place in the bedroom doorway. “I heard Kohen say he was leaving and you looked upset, what’s wrong?”

  Choal sighed, “I feel like we screwed up letting him do that stuff. He should be a kid, not getting up and feeding himself. I know that much even if I don’t know a lot of other things.”

  Bishop sighed and moved forward to wrap Choal into a hug, “Is this okay?”

  “Of course” Choal snuggled in closer, “I think I needed this.”

  “Good, get
used to them.” Bishop placed a kiss against the side of Choal’s head. “I love having you in my arms.”

  They stayed that way for a couple of minutes before Choal finally pulled away with a sigh. “For the record, I kinda loved waking up between you guys and feeling your arms around me. But I’m afraid I have things I have to do, and that doesn’t include more of this at the moment.”

  Bishop smirked, “Well there’s a lot more we could be doing…. But what’s so important you’re leaving the warmth of the bed? Kohen’s all taken care of now.”

  “Oh, well your friend Johnny said I could come by the restaurant this morning and they’d give me some lessons on cooking some things. Feeding us shouldn’t be all on your shoulders, I want to learn too.”

  “I’m not complaining, but don’t think you have to. I love to cook, and I’ll be happy to continue showing you what I know. But I'll admit they know a heck of a lot more than I do.”

  “You’ve got to get to work too.” Choal scolded playfully. “I heard Kian last night, he said not to be late today.”

  Bishop nodded, “I know, I know. I’m going to get ready and leave in a few minutes. Trust me, holding you is worth any yelling my Alpha may do.”

  Choal smiled as he moved past him back into the bedroom to get his things and get ready for the day. He hummed softly under his breath as he headed into the bathroom and set his clothes on the counter. With a start he stared at his reflection in the mirror, he was still smiling and he hadn't even realized it. He couldn’t remember the last time he felt like this, he was happy for the first time in ages.

  Chapter Twenty Eight

  The good mood he’d woken up in from being in bed with Choal and Shayde slowly drained away as he watched the clock inch closer and closer to the time he had to meet Blake. He wasn’t sure what she wanted to talk to him about, and since they weren’t really friends, he was clueless and left fretting over it.

  “I’m out,” Bishop announced as he headed for the front door with a wave over his shoulder. The walk to Stoney’s was quick and he only passed by a couple of people before he was at the door. He took a deep breath for fortification, pulled the door open, and paused to let his sensitive eyes adjust to the dimmer interior lighting.

  “You’re on time, good.” Blake called as he came beside him, “I grabbed a table already.” She explained as she weaved her way through the tables and few patrons that were loitering about.

  He followed behind her grudgingly as he signaled the bartender for a beer. He wasn’t sure if they knew what he drank, but he really didn’t care. As long as it was cold and alcoholic he would take it.

  “I’m glad you came,” Blake said as she pulled out a chair and sat down with a sigh. “I was half afraid I’d have to track you down and kick your ass.”

  Bishop cringed at the mental image, she wasn’t just talking shit. As a Valkyrie, she could and would do it. “What did you want to see me about?”

  She took a long sip of her beer and looked over his shoulder, “Thank you for joining us, Johnny.”

  Bishop craned his neck around in surprise, “You were summoned too?”

  “It was more of a demand that I be here, but yeah.” Johnny agreed as he sat beside Bishop. “Any ideas what’s up?”

  “Nope,” Bishop replied as he accepted the beer with a nod of thanks.

  They waited as Johnny ordered a drink and the bartender had walked away before they brought their attention back to the woman sitting across from them smirking.

  “You boys aren’t nervous are you?” Blake laughed at her own joke, “There really isn’t anything to be worried about. I just had some questions….well, we did.” She gestured behind them with a wave of her hand. “Figured it was about time to find out before things went any farther.

  Bishop and Johnny both turned quickly to see Kian, Skylar, and Zander approaching the table.

  “Fuck.” They both cursed at the same time.

  “We decided it would be better if only a couple of us came to this little meeting, so we didn’t freak you out too much.”

  “Too late,” Bishop grunted as he met Johnny’s eyes. “We could try and make a run for it.”

  Johnny scowled, “I’m a musician, not an athlete.”

  “Wow, are we that bad?” Skylar asked as she dropped into a seat on Bishop's other side. “I thought we were rather nice, but from your reactions…. I’m questioning everything.”

  Johnny sighed as he glanced from face to face, “What is this all about? Why did you ‘ask’ us to meet you here?”

  “We wanted to know what your problem with us is.” Zander waved to the group, “It was obvious you weren’t happy we came to help you yesterday. We all talked and can’t figure out what that is.”

  Kian nodded, “Did we do something to you guys that we don’t remember? I know we pull some pretty epic stunts and pranks, but I don’t recall you guys being impacted by them….”

  Johnny scrunched up his face as he scratched the side of his head, “Shitastic.” He mumbled. “No, you never did anything to us.” He said louder so everyone could hear him even without their shifter hearing.

  “Then please explain it.” Blake pleaded as she laced her fingers in front of her on the table. “For the life of me, I can’t think of more than a handful of times we’ve actually spoken.”

  “Me too.” Zander and Skylar agreed.

  “As your Alpha, we talk a lot. I’ve never gotten the impression we had an issue, until the other day, and then yesterday it was confirmed.” Kian blew out a breath, “What’s going on? And I’m not asking as your Alpha right now.”

  Bishop wanted to laugh, just because he said that didn’t mean Bishop could forget who he was. “Why did you ask me about inviting Choal and Shayde into the Rainbow Squad?”

  Kian frowned as he looked at the others and shrugged, “Cause we thought they might like to make some friends in town, that’s all.”

  Johnny let out a bitter laugh as he shook his head, “Unfuckingbeliveable.”

  “What?” Zander demanded. “Don’t just sit there and mutter to yourself, use your damn words like the grown-ass man you are and tell us what crawled up your ass and died.”

  “You guys,” Johnny growled in frustration. “Never once did you extend a hand of friendship to either of us. You’d see us out together and you wouldn't even acknowledge us or invite us to join you. But the new guys come to town and it’s all ‘hey, welcome to the gay club.’ and that fucking hurts.”

  Kian gaped at the two men, “You both felt that way?”

  “Yeah.” Bishop agreed. “This town is awesome. Accepting and supportive, but sometimes you just want to talk to someone who understands the frustration of being gay.”

  “Why didn’t you approach us? We wouldn’t have turned you away or anything. This isn’t a fucking club where we have shirts and have to vote new members in. It’s just a nickname the town came up with. It’s a joke.” Kian fumed.

  “Not a joke, when you’re on the outside looking in.” Bishop shot back in frustration. “If you guys were in our shoes, would you have walked up and joined you all without an invitation? Seriously, think about that. Valkyries, the pack Alpha, a Leshy, two Doctors…. Need I say more?”

  “I’m a shapeshifting singer, and he’s a pack member. We’re nothing special, don’t you see. You guys are intimidating as fuck, and you’re legends for the pranks you’ve pulled.”

  Bishop sighed and stood up, “Come on Johnny. I think I’ve had enough of this conversation for today. I’ve gotta get home to my guys.”

  Johnny stood up and nodded, “Yeah, I’ve got things to do too.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Choal had a spring in his step as he walked down the street, nodding to people he passed and greeting those he recognized. He was about to cross Main street when he felt like someone was watching him. He stopped and looked around, but didn’t see anything that would explain the odd feeling. He was halfway across the street when he happened to look up and s
ee who must have been staring at him. He lifted his hand in a friendly greeting but didn’t stop to talk.

  Just because they were all in the same profession, didn’t mean they all knew each other. From what he’d been told he knew that the man and woman watching him had to be Vasily and Misha Rasputin, the grim reapers who owned the pet store he’d just walked by.

  They passed by in the middle of the two-lane road and continued on with a nod of their heads. Choal made a mental note to stop in and introduce himself at some point. It’d be interesting to meet people who’d become so tired of death, they’d opened a pet store called Cuddles. He paused and turned around calling out a greeting to them. He smiled as they turned and waved for him to come with them.

  “It’s nice to meet you officially. “This is Vasily and I’m Misha.”

  Choal shook their offered hands once they were on the sidewalk outside their store. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  “We’ve been meaning to catch you guys when you’re out and about and introduce ourselves, but it seemed like something always came up.” Vasily nodded towards the pet store. “Animals can be needy little suckers.”

  Misha laughed, “Yes, that’s the truth. Anyway, we’d love to have you guys over for dinner sometime. We’d love to find out how you’re both adjusting to living here in Black Hollow and in this place in general.”

  Choal nodded eagerly, “And we’d love to get to know you and how you went from grim’s to pet store owners. What a story you must have.”

  They made small talk for a bit longer before he said his goodbyes and headed back across the street. He was almost to the sidewalk on the other side when he heard the slamming of a door. He looked around and scowled as he saw Johnny and Bishop storming away from Stoney’s bar. He made a mental note to check in when they both got home, he didn’t like knowing that Bishop was upset.

  He was so lost in thought for the rest of his walk he didn’t notice the tension in the air as he walked in the house until he was face to face with his smirking boss.