“So…” I looked at Clara after she took Fern, both happy to see each other again, “Do you know why Kip needs to go to Atlanta? It's going to be crazy on a Friday night.”

“Huh? Oh, he must want to check on Solstice,” she shrugged, tossing her hair over her shoulder as Fern was trying to eat it, “I'll keep her tonight, I really doubt you'll be back until tomorrow afternoon or Sunday. I've got her.”

“The hell is Solstice?”

Clara blinked a few times as she stared at me before heading into the kitchen, “Do you want a shot?”

“Mum, it's 3!”

“Oh, right. Wine?”

“I'm not letting you watch Fern if you're going to be sloshed,” I snorted, “Mum…”

“I think it'll be better coming from Kipling. You're open-minded, you'll have fun.”

“Well… okay. What do I wear?”

“Hm… Black jeans. Do you still have any of those button-ups I got you?”

“Yeah, I have the red, burgundy, purple, or black one.”

“Purple. The deep plum one. Don't button it all the way; leave the first three buttons open. Make sure to fix your hair, you have the best mullet going on with the curls. Jewelry?”

“My ear cuffs and that silver chain Kip gave me for my birthday.”

“Put on both and,” she headed upstairs for a moment and came back, throwing a bottle over that I quickly caught, “put that on your chest and collar bones.”

“It's… body glitter? Why the hell do you have body glitter?!”

“I like to shine when I go dancing with Rian. Just borrow it. Wear nice boots. Do you have the harness still?”

“The hell do you know about my chest harness?” My face flared, and Clara laughed loudly.

“I found it once. Was it for fun times with Eddie?”

“Mum!” I gasped, “No! With… myself.”

“Ah. Wear it over your shirt.”

“Jesus. Is it a strip club?”

“No, but there's an all-male one next door with some pretty hot dancers. Rian likes it there.”

“I'm leaving, this is too much for me,” I waved both my hands in a panic and went over to hug Fern and kiss her on the cheek, “Have fun with Grandma, okay? Daddy will see you tomorrow afternoon.”

Fern bounced happily, making me smile as I walked out of the house to go home and get ready for whatever the hell I was doing with Kipling tonight.

I took a long shower, shaved everywhere, and got dressed in the outfit Clara had mentioned, covering myself in body glitter.

“Ren?” Kipling called from the living room, and I poked my head into the hallway, “There you are. Are you getting ready?”

“Yeah, I'm pretty much done. Is this okay?”

I stepped into the hallway, and Kipling dropped his bag onto the floor, his jaw falling open. I tilted my head, chewing my lip, and he came close, taking my hand and spinning me in a small circle.

“Kip?” I whispered.

“It's perfect. Absolutely… perfect,” he whispered back, “Look at you. Jesus, where'd that kid go?”

“He died a few years ago when I became an adult. Thank you very much. Asshole.”

“Shut up,” he flicked my forehead, and I scowled, “Make sure you have your I.D., you'd still be able to get in since you're with me, but I don't want the headache.”

“I take it everywhere, but I won't bring a bag, I'll just put it in my wallet. I still have the chain you got me to keep it safe. How late are we going to be out?”

“Probably won't be home until tomorrow afternoon. I'm gonna shower and change. Did you eat anything?”

“I did.”

“Good boy,” he hummed, making my stomach my flutter, “Wait for me.”

“I always do.”

Kipling pinched my cheek and went to his room, closing the door to get ready. I gathered what I needed once he was gone and took a seat on the couch, tying my boots and going to the mirror on the wall to fix my hair, the curls settled perfectly along my forehead. I hopped over to the kitchen and took two quick shots of whiskey, my nerves through the roof for some reason.

“Pre-gaming?” Kipling teased as he came into the kitchen, and I nearly dropped the shot glass on the floor, my eyes wide.

He was also wearing black jeans, but his shirt was a white button-up pulled tight against his skin as if it was at least a size too small. Kipling's chest was exposed more than my own, a long cross necklace dangling just above the first closed button of his shirt, and he had made his hair fluffy but still styled. For the first time in years, his lip ring made an appearance, and he clicked his tongue piercing against his teeth, making me smile and do the same as we had matching ones as of my 18th birthday.

“You clean up good,” I cleared my throat.

“So do you, sunshine,” he stole my shot glass and poured himself one, tossing it back with a hiss, “Mmm. Okay. Rules for tonight.”

“Rules?” I gasped, leaning against the counter, and Kipling moved in front of me, putting his hands on the counter to pin me in place.

“They're necessary. One: Don't leave my side. Two: If you do and someone approaches, you tell them you're with Mr. O’Connor. Three: When you want a drink, tell me and I'll get it for you. I don't want you taking drinks from random people. Four: have fun.”

“That last rule seems unnecessary,” I snorted, gently touching the back of his left hand with my fingertips, “I'll be with you. That's always fun.”

“This is more of an… adult trip than our outings with Fern. You haven't got to go out and be a man before. It's time. But you have to stay with me, Ren. Do you understand?”

“Mhm.”

“Good boy,” he whispered, pinching my ear, “Okay. Let's go.”

We reached Atlanta 25 minutes later, and Kipling parked his car behind what I suddenly realized was a nightclub. He ran around to open my door, and I took his outstretched hand, smiling when he pulled me out and slipped his arm around my back, taking me inside through a separate door.

“What is this place?” I gasped, the lights inside red, music thrumming from a stage at the back wall as a hoard of people danced in the middle of the room, three separate bars surrounding the dance floor.

“Solstice nightclub,” Kipling smiled, “Do you like it?”

“I've never been to one! It's incredible. Can we come back?”

“I come every weekend.”

“You like it that much?” Smiling, I let Kipling guide me to the first bar on our left, which was made entirely of black stone with gold inlays of swirls.

“No,” he laughed, hailing down a bartender who immediately rushed over to us, “Gem, let me get a Manhattan and a vodka cran.”

“Sure thing, Mr. O’Connor,” she quickly made our drinks, onyx hair bouncing under the lights, “here ya go.”

“Thanks,” Kipling nodded, not offering payment as he handed me the vodka cranberry.

“You're not paying?” I gasped.

“Mr. O’Connor doesn't pay,” Gem laughed, “he gets what he wants.”

“Why?”

“He owns the place!” Another bartender yelled from the other end, his hair bright white, and Kipling winked at me.

“Thanks, Jett. Thanks Gem. Tell Onyx, Jade, Cal, Bel, and Jamie that Ren,” he gestured to me and I waved, “is with me. He gets what he wants as well. Jamie needs to keep focus on Ren if I'm not with him. I'll send a message.”

“Sure thing,” Gem saluted, trotting off to do what Kipling told her.

“So wait,” I accepted Kipling's arm when he held it out, hooking mine through it and following him up a small set of stairs to a balcony that overlooked the entire nightclub's interior, “On top of the barbershop, you own a clearly successful nightclub in Atlanta?”

“I do,” he nodded, taking a seat on a deep red couch and patting the spot next to him, “I've owned this place for three years now. Only open Friday and Saturday for the full experience, but I let Gem and Jett open during the week, except Thursday and Sunday, for bar service. I pay them well, but they split tips with the other four bartenders, so I want them to make money. What do you think?”

“I think… I love it,” I giggled, taking a sip of my drink and going to look over the balcony railing, resting my arms against it to watch everyone dance, “The DJ is good.”

“Yeah, I bring a new one every month to keep things fresh. Local artists perform here, too.”

“So why do you stay in Sandy Springs? You could buy a nice apartment here and keep this place open like this every night.”

“You,” he called, and I turned, leaning against the railing with a smile, “I can't leave you in Sandy Springs, Sunshine, and I don't want Fern growing up in Atlanta.”

“You're not chained to me.”

“Am I not?” He set his drink down and came over, hooking his hand into the strap of my harness that settled above my stomach, pulling me close, my heart racing, “16 years together. Why would I ever leave you behind?”

“To meet a nice woman and settle down. Start a family.”

“I'm gay. You're well aware.”

“Then man.”

“Ren,” he rolled his eyes, and I smiled, finishing my drink and laying a hand on his chest.

“Can we go dance?”

“Yeah? Sure. But you're changing the subject.”

“I'm aware.”

We headed down the stairs, Kipling squeezing my hand, and he pulled me close, both of us dancing to the heavy house music blaring from the speakers. Kipling kept his hands on my waist, guiding me the entire time as I slid against him, my back to his chest. His right hand slowly ran up my body and wrapped around my throat, forcing my head back as I ground my rear against his groin.

“You're good at that,” he whispered in my ear, a flood of tingling shooting through my skin, “Press back harder.”

“Kip,” I groaned.

“Harder, Sunshine.”

I did as he asked, and Kipling squeezed a bit, moving my body in time to the music.

“Mr. O’Connor,” a deep voice interrupted from behind us, and Kipling scoffed, refusing to let go of me, “Problem at the door.”

“You can't handle it, Jamie?” Kipling growled, a sound I had never heard that overwhelmed my senses.

“No. Not this time.”

“Ren,” Kipling let go of my throat and spun me around, “Go upstairs and wait for me. I don't want you down here if I'm not.”

“I'll go to the bathroom, then I will,” I nodded, my chest heaving.

“Get another drink from Gem. You already finished your first. Be safe.”

“Mhm.”

Kipling followed Jamie from the dance floor, and I rushed to the bathroom to calm myself, splashing water on my face. The moment with Kipling on the dance floor was intense, a level of intimacy I didn't know was possible or could have prepared for, and had left me entirely on edge.

“Your ass looks great,” a strange voice called and I looked into the mirror to find a disgustingly greasy man coming from a stall, “You sell?”

“Sell?”

“I can pay 200 right now for a quickie in the stall.”

“Ew. No,” I scoffed, walking out of the bathroom and cutting through the dance floor to the bar.

Gem noticed me immediately and rushed over, “Hey, cutie. What do you want?”

“Cosmo. I prefer vodka.”

“I'll keep that in mind for when you're here.”

“Also,” I scanned the crowd and found the man who had accosted me in the bathroom slowly coming over, “See the guy staring at me?”

“Yeah.”

“Can you have Jett or Jamie toss him? He tried to pay me to fuck in the bathroom.”

“Jett!”

He came running, and she flicked her golden eyes over at the man. Jett nodded, leaving the bar and cutting the man off before he got close. I couldn't hear their interaction, but the man turned ghostly pale and immediately left.

“Thanks,” I giggled, taking my drink from Gem.

“It's nice to finally meet you. Mr. O'Connor talks about you all the time,” she laughed as well, beautiful honey skin tone glittering in the lights, “You're way more gorgeous than I thought you'd be, though. He told us you had a kid! I wouldn't have even known. It took me three years to bounce back.”

“Fern was huge, but I look pretty good,” I shrugged.

“Jett and I have four kids, so I get it. Hurry up to the VIP before Kipling flips. He's not going to be happy if something happens to you.”

“Oh, you're together?”

“All of the bartenders that match up are. Onyx and Jade have been together for 4 years, Cal and Bel are on 10, and I've been with Jett for 12.”

“Beautiful. I've known Kip since he was 12.”

“Adorable. Go on.”

I left the bar, heading upstairs and grateful to find that there was another security guard at the top who let me through. I took a seat on the couch, sipping my drink, and Kipling joined me a few minutes later with a new Manhattan in hand.

“Jett told me what happened,” Kipling squatted in front of me, and I laid my free hand on his shoulder, “Are you okay?”

“It was just some slimeball who thought I was a sex worker. No big deal. Does that happen a lot?”

“Yeah, there are a few guys who work at the club next door who are escorts. He probably thought you were one of them since I let them work out of the club for their safety. It's between us, okay? I could get arrested. I just don't want anything to happen to them.”

“My lips are sealed,” I winked, sticking out my tongue and rolling my piercing along my lips, “Can I come here with you sometimes? Maybe twice a month. I don't want to leave Fern with your Mum all the time.”

“Mhm,” he leaned up and gently nuzzled my jawline with his nose, “I'm sorry our dance got cut short.”

“Nothing we can't fix,” I hummed, tangling my hand in his hair, “Do you want to dance?”

“Yes, but I don't want to see how people look at you.”

“Jealous?” I laughed, entirely joking, before I saw the serious look on Kipling's face.

“Tell me, Ren,” he ran his hands up my thighs and gripped my hips, pinning me to the couch as the music blared around us, lights flashing to match the staggered beating of my heart to see Kipling this way, “Am I wrong to get jealous over you? Is it wrong of me to want to keep you all to myself?”