Chapter 23

(Night)

Moving Day

One ten-foot truck, that’s all it took to move three grown men into their new home. They wouldn’t even have needed that if it hadn’t been for Saint’s bedroom furniture, including the large black metal toybox that sat at the foot of his bed. Its diamond pattern glinted whenever light struck it. Saint had a wicked collection of clamps, cuffs, gags, floggers, and restraints collected inside, most of which Night hadn’t had the opportunity to experience yet.

Having their own place meant that would be changing soon and he couldn’t wait to experience every deliciously devious device. The thought of Sinn and Saint tormenting him until he was begging them to pin him down and fuck him stupid, made getting things inside a bit difficult and not just when it came to walking.

Twice now Sinn had pressed him against the bedroom wall only to have the fun interrupted when someone carried another item into the room. While Night had grumbled curses, Sinn had just laughed that deep, throaty laugh of his and gotten back to work putting things away.

Considering the way he’d shown up in town with just a backpack and sleeping bag tied to the sissy bar on the back of his bike, Night wasn’t worried about where to put his stuff. A drawer would do, which he’d easily see to later. Right now, his focus was on the clipboard with the blank sheets of paper Saint had given him, along with instructions to start a list of the things they’d need to make the place comfortable.

He”d had half a mind to ask why me, or better still, the fuck would I know, only he realized as soon as he thought the words that Saint had assigned him that task because he’d given Sinn full reign over the garage and wanted them to be equal partners in the place. Saint’s domain, as Night had discovered when they’d been lounging around the evening before, was going to be their backyard.

Night had been sprawled on his side in the middle of the bed, head turned so he could watch the movie unfolding on the flat screen. Every now and again, Sinn’s fingers would skim up his bare back or trace patterns along his hip while Saint massaged his sore shoulder, grumbling every time Sinn flinched about him needing to learn to take breaks if only long enough to stretch it.

Night had never imagined that he could be a part of such a domestic scene.

“The fence has to come down. I fuckin’ hate chain link,” Saint explained. “Shit looks cheap as hell and offers no protection. It’s too easy to climb and those bottom prongs have gotten caught on dog collars and choked them when they tried to get free. Don’t get me started on how easy it is to stick a muzzle through one of the holes and open fire.”

“So are you thinking wood, or stone?” Sinn asked, letting out a pained groan when Saint hit a particularly sensitive spot.

“Stone. It’ll take a little longer to put up right, but Kong is a master Mason and it’ll fit the look of the house better, considering the stone front on it,” Saint explained. “It will have a charming appeal to it once the ivy starts flowing over the stone and it will require far less maintenance than wood. The last thing I want is for us to be out there every other summer replacing weathered boards or applying fresh coats of stain.”

“You could always sucker a few unsuspecting crew members to do it for you,” Sinn muttered.

“Do I look like Tom Sawyer to you?”

Now that was the moment when Sinn paused, humming in that way of his that was becoming a dead giveaway that a sarcastic remark was in the making.

“I mean, you could, but how the hell would I know?” Sinn replied, chuckling a little. “I don’t think you’re blond enough though. The way the light hits your hair is different from how it would be if your hair was a shimmering gold.”

“You just wait until the rest of the gray comes in,” Saint shot back. “Then folks are gonna be pegging you guys for my sons and me for an old letch when I tell ‘em you’re my partners and love me pinning you to the bed every night.”

“Every night, huh?” Night asked. “That a promise?”

“You’re damn right it is.”

“Even if we don’t roll in until well after midnight?” Sinn asked.

“We could shamble through the doors at three am and by three o three one of you will be riding my cock while I suck off the other one.”

That had been the declaration to end all conversation and catapult them into a wild rush of grasping fingers and clashing tongues. The press of fingers along the sides of his neck startled him. He’d been so lost in the memory that he hadn’t heard Saint come in, let alone step up behind him. As Saint’s fingertips dug into the muscle, caressing up and down the sides of his spine, Night felt his body grow loose as electric pulses of pleasure slithered through his mind. It wasn’t erotic pleasure; it was more like the kind meant to relax or even distract. Night melted against him, allowing Saint to support his weight as Night enjoyed the gentle, rhythmic motion.

“Looked like I’d lost you there for a moment.”

“S-sorry.”

“Nuthin’ to be sorry about, though I am curious to know what you were thinking about.”

“Last night,” Night blurted, feeling Saint’s fingertips press a little harder, even as his other arm snaked around him so he could run his hand up Night’s thigh, palm skimming over the front of his jeans just enough to tease.

“Oh god, not you too,” Night moaned.

“Not me too what?”

“Teasin’ me like Sinn was doing.”

“Oh really and what were you two getting up to while I wasn’t around to see it?”

“I’d rather show you later than tell you about it.”

“Mmmmmm,” Saint murmured. “Guess that means I’d better go help the guys bring in the heavy stuff.”

“How much is left?”

“The long dresser, and my old bed, which is going in the spare room,” Saint replied. “Then we’ll head over to the furniture store to pick up the set we picked out. I was hoping to take your list with me.”

It was said with the barest hint of reproach, just enough to remind Night that when tasks were given, his Dom expected them to be completed in a timely fashion. Still, Saint didn’t let go when Night started to straighten up, and instead, caressed him more, his teeth scraping the pulse point beneath Night’s ear, flooding his body with endorphins.

“It’ll be ready.”

“That’s my good boy,” Saint murmured against his skin.

Just hearing that from him made Night shiver and let out a low moan.

Saint turned him loose then, but with renewed focus and the thrill of knowing that it would please his Dom a great deal to be able to shop for the things they needed while they still had the truck rented and help to haul it home and get it unloaded.

Which reminded him… they still needed groceries.

The only appropriate thank you for this kind of undertaking was a homecooked meal and a cooler full of ice-cold beers, neither of which they’d have until Night got a move on.

Night sucked in a breath and bent his head to the task, writing couch before adding specifics. Like footrests so the thing almost resembled a bed. He wanted it wide, dominating the back wall and the side wall too. Night had no idea what the hell those kinds of couches were called, so he drew it out, wanting enough space on it for them and the dog they were looking forward to adopting.

Night had never understood how people could get a pet and then bitch about it getting hair on the furniture. At that point, either get a fuckin’ aquarium, or a pet with scales or feathers, that or a furless cat. As far as he was concerned, it took a real asshole of a pet owner to fuss about fur after getting a pet that was covered in it.

His inner voice screamed at him to focus. They’d had that very conversation about fur when they’d talked about what kind of dog they wanted. Nothing small and no puppies. It wasn’t that they were unwilling to train one, it was just that they all shared the same feelings about there being adult dogs who’d sat too long at shelters, while everyone snapped up the cute and adorable pups.

Going together to adopt was a must, they wanted to be certain that whatever pet they chose was one that would bond with all three of them. Now, there had been a debate about one dog or two, but in the end, the consensus had been a wait and see sort of thing that could only be answered once they got to the shelter and had the opportunity to meet the dogs that were housed there.

He wrote down end tables, lamps, and a flatscreen television, since the only one they had between them was the one that had come down off the wall of Saint’s bedroom. That one was going on the wall opposite their bed.

Through the window, Night spotted them carrying the mattress up the walkway, and realized that they would need curtains, especially with the way they liked to parade around naked.

Might want to add something to sit their asses on and a table to eat off of too. Table for six…for eight…for four, how the hell did people make those kinds of decisions? At the very least they should have places for six, for when Bellamy, Wreck and Cody came over. If there was a need for more than that, then he trusted Saint would make that adjustment.

The kitchen had a gigantic island running down the center of it, giving him plenty of counter space. Some barstool style chairs there might be nice, so he wrote those down too, along with an entertainment center for the game room and a trio of easy chairs. They couldn’t need more than that, at least to get them started, though…Night thought about the mahogany bar that had always sat in the corner of the family den when he’d been growing up. Might be nice to have one of those in the game room.

Staring down at the list, he had a moment to wonder if he was going overboard, then Sinn excitedly called his name, and Night hurried to see what he’d gotten up to.

“What’s going on?” Night asked as he entered the room and didn’t see hide nor hair of Sinn until he popped his head out of the closet, grinning.

“You’ve got to check this out!”

When Night stepped into the huge walk-in closet, he was shocked to see a door that couldn’t have been more than three foot tall, open along the left wall. There was no handle on the back of it, which was probably why none of them had noticed it when they’d done a walkthrough of the house.

“The hell?” Night said as he squatted and pulled his phone from his pocket, activated the flashlight, and bent to shine it inside so he could get a closer look.

“I accidentally kicked the wall and that thing swung open and clocked me in the shin,” Sinn explained as he rubbed it. “Hurts like a bitch too. Fucker is solid.”

“About two inches thick,” Night said as he shone the light around.

“Like I said: solid.”

“It’s a crawl space of some sort, goes in about five, six feet,” Night said as he squeezed his shoulders through the opening and wiggled forward. “Looks to be empty, except for a colony of dust bunnies. I’m gonna poke around a bit. Might be a good place to stash weapons and anything else we need to restrict access to.”

“You spot any mouse droppings in there and we will be revisiting that discussion we had about getting a cat,” Sinn insisted.

“Why, so you can wake up in the middle of the night to step on the corpse of a present it’s left you?”

When Sinn let out a grumble of revulsion, Night laughed and wiggled deeper into the space until he could see all of it. Small totes could easily be concealed in here, a small safe and lock boxes too. While he doubted they’d have much use for it as an extra storage space, it would definitely come in handy for hiding shit.

Including gifts for nosy partners.

“No sign, or scent of rodents,” Night said once he’d finished investigating the space.

“I’m not sure whether to be pleased with that, or disappointed,” Sinn admitted.

Turning around proved interesting. His six foot plus frame did not appreciate his efforts, especially once he’d smacked his forehead on the beam that ran through the center of the space. “Owe, fuck!”

“You okay in there?”

“Yeah, but it’s a good thing I’ve got a hard…” Night began to say when something more solid than wood bounced off his head and hit the ground, the jangle of coins spilling along the hardwood superseding it.

“God dammit,” Night roared, because that fucking hurt. As he rubbed the side of his head, he swore he felt the place where it had scraped beginning to swell.

“Careful, you concuss yourself and you’ll be confined to bed and not in the best of ways.”

“You would threaten me with that,” Night complained as he winced at the throbbing left behind by whatever the fuck had struck him. He’d dropped his phone when he’d gotten hit, the flashlight glowing beneath the device, making it easy to spot.

The last thing he expected to see when he picked it up was the glint of light off gold.

“It’s not a threat, it’s a promise, so remember that and keep yourself intact,” Sinn scolded, sending a shiver down Night’s spine, especially when Saint, who was now watching him through the door with an amused expression on his face, decided it was the best time to chime in.

“That goes double from me,” Saint declared as he poked his head through the opening.

Rather than respond, Night shifted his position and shone his light on the small chest and spilled coins scattered around it. “You have got to see this.”

“Is that what I think it is?” Saint asked as he struggled to twist in a way that would allow his broad shoulders to slip through the narrow opening.

The folks who’d lived here must have been average sized people to create a doorway that small.

“Fuck…god fuckin’ damn it! Owe! Shit. Fuck.” Saint snarled when he got his arm stuck over his head and his other shoulder wedged against the doorframe, forcing him to back out again. “Just scoop everything up and bring it out!”

“Yeah, okay,” Night said, leaning the phone against a beam so he had least had some light to work with.

He shoved all the coins he could see back into the metal box and tried to secure the lid, only to see that the latch had snapped in its fall. He shoved it through the doorway then retrieved his phone, having a much easier time getting out than getting in now that he knew how to angle himself.

By then, Saint was seated on the closet floor, Sinn at his side running his fingers over one of the coins.

“I think I got all of whatever those are,” Night declared as he emerged and sneezed several times from the dust.

“Doubloons,” Saint replied as he held one of the oddly shaped coins up to the light. “Maybe. I don’t have a clue if their real or not, but I know who would.”

“Whoa…” Night breathed.

“Not a word of this to anyone until we know one way or another,” Saint said. “Last time we dealt with the fallout of a club brother being involved in underwater artifacts, someone took a shot at my brother and Lucky nearly got himself killed.”

“Our lips are sealed,” Sinn said as he passed the coin back to Saint.

“Speak for yourself,” Night replied, licking his lips. “Mine are feeling kinda empty over here.”

“No worries,” Sinn remarked as he undid the zipper on his jeans. “I’ve got just the fix for that.”