AUTHOR'S NOTE: This chapter is rated M.
Where I Belong
Epilogue
LIKE LOVERS DO
ADDISON
"I've got a surprise for you," Zed whispers in my ear.
"If it's what's poking me in the thigh then I've gotta tell you, that's not so much of a surprise as it is expected," I joke, seeing as our morning always starts with a roll in the sheets.
"Well that, obviously, but there's something else too."
"Oh?" I turn onto my side so I can focus on him. My head spins a little from the amount I drank last night, but it's not enough to distract me from what my surprise might be.
"I need you to get up, get dressed in something comfortable, and then pack a bag."
"A bag? What sort of things am I packing?"
"The essentials."
"You know you're talking to a woman, right? Almost everything I own is essential. You're going to need to give me a little more. Clothes for hot or cold weather? How many pairs of panties? What kind of shoes?"
He rolls his eyes at me. "Fine. Pack for two weeks. Hot weather, sexy shoes, and zero panties. Anything you forget we'll buy, no biggie."
"Two weeks? Where are we going?"
"It's a surprise," he says teasingly before sitting up and pushing up from the bed.
"But what about…" My eyes drop to his body, and I bite down on my bottom lip.
"No time. But, there's always the mile-high club."
"We're flying?"
"Just get ready, Kitten."
While I get myself sorted, Zed runs down to the studio to sort out a few things of his own.
With my bags packed with everything I could possibly need, I lug them down the stairs after locking the apartment.
"I would have come and gotten that for you," he says as I roll it into reception.
"It's fine. You ready to go?"
"I am." He shuts down my computer and spins towards me.
"Don't you have clients?"
"Nope."
"But the calendar was full."
"All fake. I made them up so you wouldn't be suspicious."
I narrow my eyes at him. "Sneaky."
"I thought so."
He grabs both of our suitcases before turning off the lights and pulling the front door open for me. There's a car already waiting. He immediately opens the trunk and loads our bags inside.
Before I know it, we're walking through the airport and towards the desk to check-in.
My eyes flick up to the board and excitement explodes within me. "We're going to LA?"
"We sure are. I thought it was time you met Eliza and experience how things are done on the West Coast."
I turn my wide smile from the board displaying our destination and look at Zed.
"You happy?" he asks with a chuckle.
"Like you wouldn't believe." Pushing up on my tiptoes, I crash my lips to his and show him just how excited I am. Maybe we'll have to see about that mile-high club thing…
I'm practically bouncing on the balls of my feet as we drag our bags out to arrivals. Now that we've touched down I'm desperate to experience the delights LA has to offer. The second we walk through the arrival doors, I spot a beast of a car with a petite tattoo-covered woman with green hair waiting for us.
Her eyes light up the second she sees the two of us, and she steps forward with a wide smile on her face.
"Zed! It's so good to see you."
Zed walks straight into her and embraces her in a ferocious hug with lots of back-slapping while I laugh at their overexuberant greeting.
"And you must be Addie." Eliza's joy at having us there is infectious and I squeal in delight when she sweeps me off my feet and spins me around in a hug.
"Hands off, E. She's mine," Zed sulks.
She laughs at Zed's pouting face as she lowers me to the ground. The world spins a little and I cling to Zed for support.
"You're safe Z. I'm not one for tying myself down, you know this." Something passes between them, making me curious about the women I've only spoken to on the phone. Some kind of understanding that only comes from a long-standing friendship. Zed talks about her often but nothing more than a few memories of times they've spent together or related to tattooing, but I don't know much more than that.
"So, when do I get to walk on the golden sands of a California beach then?" I ask, breaking the tension that suddenly descended around us.
"Not long. Come on, my car's waiting."
The heat hits us the second we exit the airport, and it's glorious. I tilt my head towards the stunning blue sky and allow it to warm my face.
"You're going to like it here a little too much, I can already sense it," Zed laughs, opening the car door for me.
I'm expecting to go to a hotel, so I'm a little surprised when we pull up outside a studio with a very familiar neon sign hanging out the front.
"It's like home away from home," I say, staring at the Zombie Ink sign.
"Just with a little more sun," Eliza adds, jumping from the car and helping Zed with our bags.
We follow her into the studio and I can't help feeling like I've been transported straight back to Seabrook.
"Okay, this place is incredible, but it's a little freaky. I'm still in LA, right?"
Zed and Eliza both chuckle as I look around the familiar waiting room.
"You like it?" Zed asks, his arms wrapping around me from behind as his heat warms my back.
"How could I not? It looks like home."
"I might have wanted to run away, but I needed a little bit of my old life with me," Eliza says sadly, following my gaze around the space. "Tour?" she asks, coming back to herself and pulling her mind back to the present.
"I'd love one. Do you have a coffee maker Zed could make use of?"
"And here I was thinking Z was the boss. I didn't realize you'd handed over your business as well as your balls, dude."
Zed flipped her off as he moved towards a closed door. "Don't go anywhere near her skin with your gun or you'll never be able to hold a gun again."
"Loud and clear, boss. Loud and clear."
I follow her as she shows me each room. Just like Seabrook, each room is different, decorated as its artist desires. "And this is mine." She pushes the door open and my breath catches at the amount of artwork adorning the walls.
"Wow… Zed said you were talented but… wow."
She's silent as my eyes take in design after design before me. I stop when I find one of an intricate heart with flames wrapping around the outside. I lift my finger to trace the lines, lost in the vibrancy of the color. When I glance back, she looks a little unsure of herself.
"He's… uh… he's really fallen for you, you know?" a little color appears on her cheeks as she says this, telling me she hadn't planned it.
"I like to hope so." I think back to his confession before dinner last night and my heart swells in my chest.
"The way he talks about you on the phone… it's…"
"It's what?" A booming voice comes from behind him.
"Shit… Caught red-handed," Eliza says with a laugh, lightening the mood a little.
"Don't let me stop you. Anything you need to tell Addison you can say in front of me."
"I was just going to say that you've swept him away. Stolen his heart and taken control of his balls. It's quite a sight to see. If he hadn't brought you so I could see you with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it was possible."
"Aw, Eliza. Are you a bit of a romantic?" I teased.
"No. Definitely not. But equally, I didn't have him down as one either."
"Your time will come," Zed says knowingly.
"Abso-fucking-lutely not. I have way too much baggage for any one person to deal with."
"Is that your way of saying you don't want a significant other or that you need multiple?" I ask when things suddenly get serious again.
Eliza lets out a laugh. "I really like this one, Zed. Don't fuck it up." She turns to me and whispers, "When he does, you can always have a job here."
"Thanks, I appreciate that."
"Right… that's enough. I don't need her to think you're more charming than me." Zed's hand slips into mine. "You've seen the place. Now we need to eat. Surf Shack?" he asks, turning back to Eliza.
"You bet." Eliza pulls her phone from her pocket and books us an Uber.
Minutes later we're on our way to the restaurant that Zed hasn't stopped talking about since he mentioned it. Best seafood in the state, apparently.
We have a lovely meal looking over the ocean as the sun sets. Zed and Eliza catch each other up on their lives as we eat and make easy work of our drinks that the waitress helpfully keeps topping off.
"And how's the always beautiful Willa?" Eliza asks.
"She's good. Busy as always."
"I can't believe it's been so long."
The atmosphere gets heavy as Zed lifts his hand to the dog tags around his neck.
He never talks about Mason. Even now I only know the basics. Eliza gets a similar far-off look on her face as she thinks back, and I realize for the first time that this is how they're connected.
"Did…" I hesitate because I know Zed won't want to talk about it, but I need more. "Did you know Mason?"
"Yeah. We served together. Our military service ended on the same day."
Our eyes hold as what she's saying registers into my jet-lagged brain.
"Oh. But you're…"
"Surviving."
"You should really reach out to Willa," Zed says so quietly I barely hear it. "I know she misses you."
Eliza let out a wistful sigh. "She deserves better than someone who would just remind her of the love she lost."
"Can I get you guys any desserts?" the waitress asked, distracting us from the heaviness of the conversation.
Thankfully, once we place our orders we manage to turn the conversation to lighter topics. Eliza tells us about the new places she's discovered here and ensures that Zed agrees to take me to a few of them.
We have a great night. It's clear to see why Zed trusts Eliza over here with this part of his business. She's so easy to get along with, despite her obvious issues that keep her eyes a little clouded most of the time.
"You ready to head to the hotel?" Zed asks, finishing off his beer.
Thoughts of a swanky LA hotel room fill my mind and all the things we could do in one have my temperature spiking.
"If that look is anything to go by, I think she is," Eliza laughs. "I'll get the check, you two head off."
"My treat. You deserve a bonus for everything you've done out here."
"Don't I fucking know it?"
In only minutes we're saying goodbye to Eliza, agreeing to meet her at the studio in the morning so they can go over some stuff. Excitement tingles through my veins of what's to come for our trip here.
The car drives along the coast, allowing us to take in the last of the evening sun before it dives into the ocean, and before long we're pulling up in front of an incredible hotel right on the beachfront in Malibu.
The place is mind-blowing, but the lobby is nothing compared to our room, which looks out over the stunning golden sand a perfectly clear night sky.
"Wow," I breathe, stepping out onto the balcony. Zed follows me out and wraps his arms around my waist. I really am in heaven.
Our first week flies by. We spend time each morning at the studio and I get to meet the other artists whose names I know but mostly have never spoken to. We then head off and experience LA in the afternoons. Zed has yet to tell me when we're actually going home, but I can sense that our little bit of paradise is coming to an end.
"You think Eliza would swap back? We could stay here instead," I suggest, resting my head back on Zed's shoulder as we enjoy the sunset over the water one evening after our dinner in the hotel restaurant.
"I like your thinking… but I don't think it'll get you anywhere. Eliza belongs here. Seabrook holds too many ghosts after…" Zed stops himself when he realizes he's said too much. "I'm sorry," he says softly, spinning to face me. "She's not really one to talk about her life, I just…"
"It's fine. I get it. You're a good friend. She's lucky to have you."
He shrugs off my comment as if it's nothing. "Care to take a walk on the beach?"
"Is that a trick question?"
We grab our shoes, and I pull a light jacket from the back of the chair. It feels like only seconds later, I'm slipping off my shoes and stepping onto the soft sand. The beach is almost empty except for a few late-night surfing attempts and a couple of young families building sandcastles, other than that, it's just the sound of the crashing waves and a few birds overhead as we walk.
"Where do you see your future?" Zed suddenly asks.
"Um… to be honest, I've never really put much thought into it. I seem to spend my life disappointing my parents or following their orders and disappointing myself. Starting to work with you was the first time I actually did something for me and really felt like myself." I wince as I think about my parents. I still haven't introduced Zed to them, but that's all going to change at the beginning of next month. I've agreed to attend their next event with a plus one. As scared as I am for them to meet Zed, I'm equally as excited to see the looks on their faces when they take him in.
"Okay, so now what? Do you want to stay at the studio? Do you want a room of your own?"
"What?" I ask, coming to a stop. "I can't have a room. I have no idea how to…"
"I know a few people who could teach you the ropes." His hand lifts to my cheek. "I've seen that sketchbook you think you hide in the bottom drawer of your desk, and I've also seen your own studio. You are more than capable of being one of my artists should you wish."
I roll the idea around in my head before an idea sparks. "Would you let me ink you?" I wiggle my eyebrows in curiosity.
"Without a doubt. Which bit of me do you want, Kitten?" He takes a step back and holds his hands out to offer himself up to me, and I laugh.
"All of you."
His face suddenly turns serious and I panic, thinking I've said the wrong thing.
He closes the space between us as he stares into my eyes, but he doesn't reach out for me. Instead, he does something that I didn't see coming in a million years. He drops down to one knee.
I snicker, thinking that he's going to burst out laughing any second at his joke, but he never does. Instead, he takes my hand in his and brings it to his lips.
"You've got all of me, Kitten. But the question is, can I have all of you? Will you marry me?"
An unattractive snort falls from me as I wait for him to regret what he's just said, but he doesn't. He just stays down on one knee, in the Malibu sand with the ocean as our backdrop, and patiently waits for my answer.
"Yes," I blurt as the realization starts to hit that he really means this. Zed Necrodopolus is serious enough about me that he really wants to do this.
"Yes?"
"Yes!"
He launched himself at me and tackles me to the sand. He cradles the back of my head as he lowers me before dropping his weight onto my body and finding my lips.
He kisses me until we're both breathless and our lungs are screaming for air. He brushes his lips along my jaw until he gets to my ear.
"You know I've got a studio in Vegas, right?" His hand skims up over my hip and squeezes my waist.
"Of course. What are you suggesting?"
He pulls back and looks at me, something wicked twinkling in his eyes.
"Care for a diversion before heading home?"
"Is that a trick question?" I ask, repeating my words from earlier.
He pulls back, cups my jaw in his hand, and rubs his thumb over my bottom lip. "Do you want to invite anyone?"
Holy shit, he's serious.
Five days later, the two of us are standing in a wedding chapel in Las Vegas with the biggest grins on our faces. I glance over my shoulder and take in our two and only guests, Bree and Bonzo. Eliza was desperate to follow us, but she was booked solid at the studio. They both smile back at me, but I'm not convinced by Bree's delight. She might be happy we're doing this, but she's anything but happy about being forced to spend time with Bonzo.
I'm dragged back to the here and now when the officiant before me speaks once again.
"Addison, your vows," he prompts.
I pull out the napkin I wrote them on the other night when we made the crazy decision to write our own.
"I, Addison Wells, take you, Zed Necrodopolus, to be my husband. I promise to be there for you in good times and bad, in sickness and in health. I promise to be everything you want as well as things you don't even know you need. I promise to support you and be your partner in crime as well as your sounding board when you're growing your empire. I promise to love you, honor you, and hate you all the days of my life."
He lets out a laugh at my final words.
"Zed," the officiant prompts. But unlike me, he doesn't pull out some scribbled notes, he just stares into my eyes and either makes it up as he goes along or he's secretly been memorizing them.
"I, Zed Necrodopolus, take you, Addison Wells, to be my wife. I had no idea I was missing something, but I now realize I didn't stop for long enough to notice as I ran from a part of my life I didn't think I wanted. But you came crashing in and forced yourself on me," Bree snorts behind us, but he's undeterred, "and showed me what I was missing. I've equally loved and hated our time together, and I know that I'm only going to love and hate it more with every day that passes. You're the final stroke of paint, the last drop of ink, that completes me. You make me whole, Addie-Cat, and I promise to show you how much I love you every day."
I wipe the tears from my eyes as he reaches out to take my hand.
I pretty much sob through the rings part of the ceremony, and before I know what's happening our very small congregation is clapping as we start to make our way back down the aisle.
Zed's fingers squeeze mine tightly, and the reality of what we've just done hits me. I look up at him and find the widest smile I think I've ever seen on his face.
"You okay, wife?" he asks when he notices me watching him.
"I can't believe we just did that."
"Believe it, Kitten." He lifts my hand and kisses my new rings. When we eventually dragged ourselves off the beach the night he spontaneously proposed we got an Uber to the closest jewelry store and he bought me the most stunning platinum, princess cut engagement ring that now sits proudly next to the simple wedding band we chose to go with it.
Excitement shoots through me. I've never done anything so crazy in my entire life, but equally, I've never done anything that feels so right.
The second we're in the chapel's lobby he pushes me against the wall and crashes his lips to mine.
"Jesus, you might be husband and wife now, but I still don't need to see that," Bree complains when she and Bonzo appear behind us.
Zed releases me and accepts congratulations from our two best friends before the four of us walk out of the chapel.
It's dark out now, and the lights from the Strip illuminate the sky.
"Mom and Pops are going to fucking kill you, you know that right?" Bree says, trailing behind us. "You remember what Mom was like when she found out Bucky and Lacey did this without them? She forced that big wedding on them."
"I'm pretty sure they're in no position to criticize me ever again, Bree. And we're not having one of those weddings."
"Maybe… but they'll be gutted they didn't get to witness that."
"You took pictures, right?"
"Of course, but I'm not sure they'll be happy with that. And your parents are going to go fucking nuclear," she says, turning to me.
"Meh, it's a bit late now." Finally, I feel strong enough with who I am and what I want with my life that my parents' opinions no longer matter. I've found where I belong, and that's with the man who's holding my hand right now looking at me like I'm the most amazing person in the world.
"I'm starving," Bonzo complains, much to Bree's disgust. "Where are we celebrating this epic union?"
"Burger place?" Zed suggests with a shrug, and at that moment I couldn't think of anything better.
We fill up on burgers and fries before hitting the casino in our hotel, all delighting in watching my husband lose a bit of his well-earned money before we descend to the nightclub to drink and dance the night away.
I have no idea what time it is when we crash through the door to our hotel suite, but the sun's starting to come up and I'm more drunk than I've been in a long time. I think most of my buzz is due to the man who's currently pushing me up against the nearest wall than it is the drinks I've consumed.
"I didn't think I was ever going to get you alone."
His lips find mine, and his tongue plunges between my lips. His hands skim down my waist, bunching up the skirt of my wedding dress until he finds the soft skin of my thighs.
He works his way up until he finds the lace of my stockings and garter belt. "Um… what are you doing to me?" he groans against my lips, his fingertips tracing the lines of my lingerie.
I gasp when he rubs at me over the lace of my panties, my head falling back against the wall as he grazes his teeth over the sensitive skin below my ear.
"Zed," I beg, needing more than he's giving me.
He kisses down my chest and over the swell of my breasts that sit above the neckline.
"Have I told you how beautiful you look today? How lucky I am to be able to officially call you mine? How badly I want to show you just how I treat things that belong to me?" His fingers slip beneath the lace and I cry out when he connects with my clit. "Fuck, I want to taste you right now."
"I'm all yours... forever." My voice is no more than a breathy whisper. He glances up at me, a salacious smile playing on his lips before he disappears under the mass of fabric that hangs from my waist.
His fingers find the sides of my panties and he slowly pulls them down my legs until he taps my ankles one at a time so he can remove them completely. He rubs his nose against my smooth skin before parting me and pressing his tongue where I need him most.
Lifting one of my legs, he drops it over his shoulder, leaving me balancing on one unsteady leg as he eats me until I'm crying out his name and clenching around his fingers seated deep inside me.
When he emerges from my dress, his face glistens with my arousal and his hair is a mess from the lace it was brushing against.
He wipes his mouth before starting to undo his shirt buttons. He drops the fabric to the floor and my eyes feast on his inked skin. My mouth waters like always as I take in his sculpted torso and his deep v lines that disappear into his boxers. I bite down on the inside of my cheek as my need to run my tongue down the ridges gets too much to bear.
"I need you naked. Right. Now."
Taking my hand, Zed pulls me from the wall and spins me so he can find the zipper at my back. Painfully slowly, he pulls it down and then pushes the fabric from my shoulders. The dress pools at my feet, leaving me only in my lingerie.
"As sexy as this is, I want you in nothing but my ring."
Heat floods my core, his hand brushing against my back as he finds the clasp of my bra and releases it. The lace joins my dress, and my shoes, garter belt, and stocking join them only seconds later.
Once I'm naked, I reach for him and help him remove his final items of clothing. The second he's bare, he pulls me into his body, his lips find mine, and he lifts me so I have no choice but to wrap my legs around his waist. The head of his cock teases my entrance. I grind my hips, trying to get more of him. He chuckles almost painfully as he walks us to the bed.
"So impatient," he murmurs.
"I want to feel my husband moving inside me."
He growls, his eyes darkening before me as he lowers me to the bed and settles himself between my thighs.
"I promise to love you now." Thrust. "Forever." Thrust. "And always." Thrust. "I fucking love you, Addie-Cat."
"I love you too, almost as much as I hate you."
He laughs, but it's cut off when his lips find mine and he sets about spending what's left of the night showing me just how much he loves me.
I can barely move when we wake up the next morning. Every single one of my muscles pulls deliciously, reminding me of our wedding night.
"Morning, wife," he whispers, his rough, sleepy voice sparking a desire within me that really should be sated.
"Morning, husband."
"Hmmm… I love the sound of that. Almost as much as I love you."
"I love you, too… I don't want to ever leave this bed," I admit, snuggling into his side.
"Wanna order room service? I really need to eat."
I groan. "We promised Bree and Bonzo we'd meet them for lunch."
"My sister is such a cock block," Zed complains, rolling on top of me, proving that I'm not the only one who's ready for our next round.
"Come on, hotshot. We've got the rest of our lives for that. I need a shower before gracing other human beings with my presence."
"Shower… that sounds perfect."
As expected, Zed gets his way in the shower and it takes much longer than I was anticipating to eventually get out of the suite to meet our two guests for a very late lunch.
Amazingly, they're not sitting at a table waiting for us when we get down to the restaurant we'd agreed on last night. We order ourselves coffees and are busy reading the menu when Bree and Bonzo join us at the exact same time, looking much worse for wear.
"Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes," I say, laughing at their slightly green faces as they keep the sunshine streaming through the windows to their backs. "Have a good night after we left you?"
"Can we not talk about it?" Bree asks, reaching across the table to steal my coffee.
"Sure but don't think… wait… what's that?" I ask when something on her finger catches my eye. "Is that a fucking wedding ring?"
All four of us stare down at her ring finger in shock, but none more so than Bree and Bonzo.
"Oh fuck…" she groans, releasing her grip on the mug and holding her hand out in front of her. Reaching down, she lifts Bonzo's hand from his lap and her eyes almost pop out of her head. Bonzo, on the other hand, doesn't look so shocked. If anything, he looks smug as fuck.
Zed and I exchange a knowing look before laughing. This should be interesting.
-THE END-
(?)
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thank you so very much to everyone who has stuck with this story. Where I Belong was my pandemic baby and gave me an outlet for all my anxiety and frustration. It's been a wild ride and it feels all kinds of weird to write THE END. As you could probably guess, I don't think I'm quite done with these characters (hence the question mark). I don't know when I'll start, but be on the lookout for ZOMBIE INK, a collection of short stories and one-shots involving the Zombie Ink crew. Thank you again for your endless love and support!
Looking for something else to read while you wait for ZOMBIE INK? Feel free to check out my other stories:
Our Year/ Watch Us Shine: Covering the life of our favorite Zombie/Human couple as they navigate through Senior year, college, and life thereafter. (Rated T-M)
On The Edge: When you're living life on the edge, will you risk it all for love? Just your average story about sex, drugs, and rock n roll. (Rated T-M)
Call To The Wild: That voice inside you, the one that screams, "Go! Get out of here. There's more to life than this!" That's the wild calling. Waiting for you to answer… (Rated T-M)
More Than Flesh and Bone: "Fairy Tales are real. Monsters are real." I stared at him open-mouthed, not sure how to respond. Then he said the craziest part of all. "And I'm pretty sure you're one of them. (Rated T-M)
Teaming Up: Crew. Eight men, using one-hundred-percent of their God-given muscles, stressing every system in their bodies to the max in an all-out sprint… just them against the water and the wind. Man against nature. All arms, and abs, and rock hard… muscles. A sporty story about second chances and ignoring first impressions. (Rated T-M)
* I realize now as I look at all my summaries next to each other that they're not very good… please don't judge them on that alone!