The Biker's Fate Chapter 536

Tate

"Did you get taken out by a crow?" I asked, answering after one ring. I was in my room, the pint of mint chip ice cream on my nightstand and a spoon on top of it. I was waiting for it to soften a little before eating it, so I'd gotten in my pajamas and logged into my laptop to get ready for a study session when Flash finally called.

"No, sorry, baby," he said. "My mom needed me."

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, Dad was gone, and she was bored."

I chuckled. "No movie this time?"

"Nope, Dad walked in just in time," he said. "Hold on a sec."

I flopped onto my bed and leaned against my headboard, reaching for my ice cream when Flash came back on the line.

"Sorry."

I smiled. "All good. I'm just about to plow into a tub of ice cream."

"I thought I was the one who was gonna plow you?" he challenged.

"Well, you're not here, so I'm going to do the plowing."

"Fair." He chuckled. "Is that ice cream mint chip?"

"Of course it's mint chip." I sighed. "I should probably buy stock in Tillamook."

"What if I just promise to keep the freezer stocked?"

"That'll work." I smiled. "Now we just need the reno to be done."

"Cade said he can meet with us tomorrow if you want."

I paused, mid-bite. "I'm free."

"Awesome. I'll text you tomorrow and let you know what time."

"Okay." I closed my eyes and let the warm fuzzies cover me. "I love you."

"Love you too, beautiful. Now, go study. I'll text you when I'm done."

"Can't wait."

"Me neither."

We hung up and I opened my laptop before grabbing my ice cream. My heart was full and my spirit peaceful as I hunkered down to study.

I drove over to Flash's place just before lunch the next day and walked into chaos. There were towels covering the living room floor and workers rushing through the house.

"Flash?" I called out.

"Kitchen, babe."

I walked that way and found Flash and his uncle bent over the new island, plans spread across the form. Flash's uncle looked a lot like Hatch, only with short hair. He was a little taller than Flash's dad, leaner but obviously fit. Short, dark hair, he kind of looked like if Paul Rudd and Channing Tatum had a baby. He was just as gorgeous as all the Wallace men.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Water main busted," Flash said.

"Oh, crap."

He grimaced. "Yeah. Old pipes."

"It's a miracle they lasted this long," Cade said. "But, yeah, we gotta replace 'em all."

I bit my lip and Flash wrapped an arm around me. "Hey, it's all good, baby. All the floors were already ripped up and none of the new hardwood had been laid. Better it happen now rather than later."

"How can you be so calm?" I asked. "It's not even my house, and I'm freaked."

He chuckled. "Can't worry about shit that's outta my control, Tater. Plus, got you and my family at my back. I'm covered."

I sighed, wrapping my arms around him. "This is very true."

"Why don't you two go over to VFI and look at paint, flooring, and tile?" Cade suggested. "Write down things you like, you can check out samples too and bring them back here to check light and stuff. I can give you pricing, and you can decide your favorites from there. Sound good?"

Flash gave me a squeeze. "You feel like shopping with me?"

"I'm a girl."

"So?"

"Um, so, it's in my DNA."

He chuckled. "Okay, great. I'll grab my keys."

"I've got my car."

"Pull it into my garage."

"Or, I can drive," I countered.

Cade chortled as he walked away.

Flash leaned down and met my eyes. "Pull your car into my garage, baby. I'm gonna drive."

I narrowed my eyes. "Are you seriously getting all alpha male on me right now."

"I sure am," he said. "Are you gonna give me grief about it?"

"Well, no." I bit my lip. "But I am gonna inform you that it's kind of turning me on."

He smiled slowly. "I'll be sure to take care of that later."

"I would appreciate that."

He kissed me quickly, then I pulled my car into his garage, and we headed out.

Later that night, Flash had surprised me by grabbing a hotel room and we'd just made love and were now cuddled on the sofa looking out over the Willamette sipping wine as we solved the world's problems and talked about our dreams and plans for our lives going forward.

"Can I ask you something random?" he asked.

I lifted my chin to meet his eyes. "Of course."

"What happened between high school and now that made you so fuckin' freaked that I'm gonna make you do something you don't want to do?"

I bit my lip, dropping my cheek to his chest. "It's not important."

"Baby, if you don't want to disclose, you absolutely don't have to, but just know I'm here, and there is nothing you can do or say that will make me judge you."

"I know."

"But something did happen?"

"Yes."

He gave me a gentle squeeze. "I'm here."

I nodded, settling my chin in my hand as I met his eyes again. "Nick."

His body tightened, but he didn't say anything, and I took a deep breath.

"We'd been dating about two weeks… social media official at least, and he said he had a surprise for me." I swallowed, trying to bolster my courage. "He told me to dress nice, and I figured he was taking me out somewhere fancy, so I dressed to the hilt, excited to see what the surprise was."

Flash stroked my back and I relaxed into him.

"It wasn't a restaurant or a bar. It was… um… a sex club."

"I'm sorry?"

I felt my face heat and I licked my lips. "There were people openly fucking, each section set up with different scenes. It was both equal parts fascinating and terrifying," I admitted. "The second we walked in, I'd begged for him to take me home, but he insisted, promising me it would be fun. I kind of let my curiosity trump my gut, but I also tried to give myself a pep talk. I mean, Nick was a nice guy. We'd gone through two years of school together just as friends. He'd never do anything bad to me, you know?"

Flash grunted but didn't comment and I snuggled closer.

"It was… weird. Too much for me, especially considering I was a virgin, and my parents had kind of sheltered us as kids, so I didn't even know places like this even existed. He walked me around the building, stopping and watching a few of the scenes, and I found myself closing my eyes unless we were walking. I was just creeped out by the whole thing. When he pulled me into a private room and pulled my dress down, though, I freaked. I didn't know at the time why I'd reacted so extremely—"

"Maybe because you weren't asked for consent," he ground out.

"Well, yes, but it was something else. I pulled myself together and ran out of the room to discover there was a one-way mirror, and there was a small crowd gathering to watch whatever Nick intended to do to me without my knowledge."

"Fucking hell," Flash hissed. "Did he know you were a virgin?"

"Does it make a difference?"

"Yep, it sure fuckin' does."

I sighed. "Yes, he knew."

"It's goddamn bad enough he took you somewhere like that without having a long and thorough conversation about it. It's fuckin' assault when he pulled you into that room, but it's psychological torture considering he knew you were a virgin and would have no concept of what a place like that was."

"I did go in, Flash. He didn't force me—"

"Fuck me, Tate, don't you dare minimize this," he hissed. "That shithead's a predator."

I sighed. "Yeah."

"I'm so glad you're smart, baby."

"Not smart enough not to date him," I countered.

"You dated him after that?"

"Hell, no." I shuddered. "Gross. I kicked his ass to the curb and blocked his number."

"Exactly." He gave me another squeeze. "Smart."

I met his eyes again. "What if I had dated him after?"

He shrugged. "I still wouldn't judge you, baby, but I'm really glad you didn't."

"I just wish I'd never dated him to begin with. Although…"

"Although, what?"

I bit my lip forcing back a smile. "The club was kind of interesting. I'd never want to go back because it was also super sleazy, but I can't say I wasn't kind of turned on by a few of the scenes."

"Oh, yeah?" He raised an eyebrow. "Like, what?"

"There was one with the woman handcuffed to the bed and blindfolded," I said. "That was kind of… intriguing."

Flash rolled me onto my back and kissed me. "Anytime you want to play, baby, you let me know."

"Really? Do you like that?"

"Never done it, but I'm all over figuring it out with you." He stroked my cheek. "We've grown up together, and I'm so fuckin' beyond happy that we get to grow old together, and figuring out what turns each other on is part of that."

I nodded. "Yeah."

"So, you just say the word and we'll play."

"Okay," I breathed out.

"Come on, let's go back to bed.

I grinned. He didn't have to tell me twice.