But he only laughed. “You know what I mean.”
He was flirting with me. Damn. I couldn’t handle any more men flirting with me right now, especially not stupidly hot ones, when I’d already made out with two others. What was it I’d said to Tara about the end of the world making everyone horny? Seemed I was right.
I forced myself not to look at Dean, though I was horribly conscious of his presence right beside me, the bulge of his biceps beneath his shirt, only inches from my arm. Instead, I wolfed down my food—not caring how I looked—and watched the rest of the room instead.
I spotted Mike lining up to get his meal. I caught his eye and lifted my hand in a half wave, but his gaze flicked to Dean beside me, and instead of smiling or waving back, his brow pulled down in a frown. What the fuck was his problem? My heart tightened, and I tried not to feel hurt at his rebuttal. Did he not like me sitting with Dean, or had he heard that I’d made out with both Casey and Aleandro today, and now thought differently of me? My stomach suddenly felt heavy from the food I’d eaten. Mike was my fun guy, and I didn’t like the idea of him angry with me for any reason.
Though I wanted to speak with him, he got his meal and took a spot at a table across the room, taking the only spare seat. Had he done that deliberately?
Not wanting to be in the cafeteria any longer, needing my own space, I rose from the table, picking my tray up with me as I went.
“Everything okay, Camille?” Molly asked me, tearing herself away from the attention of her Marine for a moment.
I nodded. “Yes, fine. Just busy, and tired. I’ll catch you later.”
Keeping my head down, worried that someone would notice how close I was to tears again, I wove my way through the tables and scraped off my plate. All of this had been so overwhelming, and I just needed some space to gather my thoughts.
Staying on the same floor, I went to the female changing rooms. I figured I’d take a shower and try to clear my head. What I wanted right now was about twelve hours of sleep, a bottle of wine, some expensive chocolate, and a good series to binge watch on Netflix, but I knew none of those things were going to happen. The most luxurious thing I could do right now was take a shower, and I didn’t even care that it was my second one of the day.
I went to my locker. I’d run out of clean changes of clothes and made a mental note to speak with Sergeant Byrd and see if he could get his men to pick some up during one of their trips into the city.
Because of the skewed division of men and women now working in the Observatory, the women’s changing room was quiet. I stood facing the locker, working the combination lock to get to my stuff.
Movement came from behind me, and my heart lurched.
I spun around, unsure of what I would find, but it was only Mike standing behind me.
“Jesus, Mike.” I clutched my hand to my chest. “You scared the life out of me. What are you doing in here?”
Mike’s lips were pressed together, his arm folded across his chest. His shirt sleeves were rolled up, exposing his forearms and his biceps bulging under his sleeves. Tattoos crept down from beneath the material.
“What the fuck is going on between you and that solider?” he demanded.
I’d noticed him giving Dean a number of glares, but I’d assumed that had everything to do with the invasion of the army and government officials on our work territory. His question had come out of the blue and surprised me.
“What are you talking about?”
“I’ve seen the two of you together. Don’t make out like there is nothing going on between you.”
Mike and I had never even kissed. It wasn’t as though we were in a relationship. I mean, I felt something for him—of course I did—but I had the others to think about as well. There was the same connection between me and Aleandro, and me and Casey, too. I’d never gotten to know Aleandro before now, but I’d always felt something for sweet, intelligent Casey. We’d never mixed business with pleasure, though. We’d all known we had to work together and our careers were important to us. After what had happened, however, I thought each of us had suddenly become aware of just how short life was. We denied ourselves so many pleasures because of fear of what the repercussions might be in the future—we didn’t eat that delicious piece of cake for fear of the weight we might put on, or didn’t take that vacation because worries of money troubles ahead—but what if that future never arrived?
“Mike, I barely know the guy. He only just got here. Am I attracted to him? Sure, who wouldn’t be, but that really isn’t any of your business.”
His scowl deepened. “I think you’re my business, Camille.”
I threw my hands up in exasperation. “Why? Why would you think that?”
“Because I care about you. We all do.”
“You all do?” What, was he speaking on behalf of the other guys, too? I didn’t know how I felt about the three of them colluding with each other and discussing me behind my back. I knew I should probably be angry and continue down the ‘what I do is none of your business’ line, but a small part of me couldn’t help but feel nurtured and protected by the three of them worrying about me. And that they cared about me? I didn’t know why I was so surprised. I cared about each of them, didn’t I? I was attracted to each of them, too, so why shouldn’t it work the other way around? There were three of them, and only one of me, and that wasn’t how things were supposed to work, was it?
We might be near the end of the world. Who gave a fuck about formality and tradition?
Mike huffed out a breath of exasperation. “Jesus, Camille. Sometimes I think you’ve got your head in the clouds. This is hardly a new thing. Poor Aleandro practically swaps his shifts around so he can be on the same one as you, and all you do is flirt with him, and Casey will come up with any excuse to ask you a question.”
I gaped at him. This was all news to me.
“And you?” I asked. “What about you?”
He edged closer, and my heart stuttered. Electricity sparked between us, and I suddenly felt like every nerve ending in my body was on hyper alert. My nipples crinkled beneath my shirt, and a jolt of pleasure condensed between my thighs. Jesus, he hadn’t even touched me yet. My body was responding just from the way he was looking at me. I thought I might spontaneously combust when he did.
“I’ve just tried to play it cool, Camille, and hoped you noticed me one day.”
“I’m noticing you now,” I managed to say, though my voice was breathy.
His gaze slid down my body and then back up to my face, and a hint of a smile quirked one corner of his lips. “So I see.”
My nipples were poking obviously through my shirt. Even my bra hadn’t managed to contain them. “Oh.”
We’d closed the space between us, and I knew he was going to kiss me. I wanted him to, desperately, but there was something holding me back.
“This doesn’t mean you get to own me, Mike.”
“I know that. I’d never want to own you.”
“I’m my own woman. I’m independent. I get to say who is in my life.”
His gaze darkened. “Are we talking about Dean again?” His voice had lowered to a growl.
“Yes. If I want to spend time with him, then I will. You just have to accept that.”
“I’m not jealous, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
I cocked my eyebrows. “Really?”
“Really. I’m not the jealous type, Camille, or not too jealous anyway.” That hint of a smile was back again. “But there’s something about Dean that isn’t quite right. I can’t put my finger on it.”
“It’s only because he’s come onto your turf,” I told him. “These men won’t be here forever. They’ll all be deployed sooner rather than later.”
“I’m not going to tell you what to do, ’cause I know how much you’d hate that, just promise me you’ll be careful around him, okay? Keep your wits about you. After all, we know nothing about these men.”
He was right. They’d been drafted f
rom all over, and I got the impression some of their own comrades didn’t know each other. In the chaos, teams had been split up and re-banded, and just pulled in from whoever was nearest and could make it to the Observatory due to the destruction of the roads and other services. It wasn’t a perfect situation, but it was what we had, and we had to work with it.
“Okay, you’re right. I’ll be careful, I promise.”
His smile widened, and he stepped in closer still, his body swallowing that final inch so he pushed up against me. Then his hands cupped my face, lifting my chin toward him, and he ducked his head and pressed a kiss to my lips. I groaned in response and opened my mouth to him. A fire sparked inside me as our tongues met, gently lapping and twisting and tasting, learning each other’s mouths. Mike kissed me for a moment, and his hands moved to the back of my head, fingers tangling in my hair, and then slipped down my body. His hands were on my ass, yanking me hard against him, and his desire for me jabbed hard into my belly. He was only a little taller than me, and so I stood on tiptoes, wanting to feel him on the sensitive spot where I needed him the most.
“Oh God, Mike.”
We were away from prying eyes, but that didn’t mean someone might walk in on us at any moment. Perhaps I should be ashamed or embarrassed, but I was quite the opposite. The thought of someone catching us only served to heighten my arousal. I’d never considered myself an exhibitionist before, but suddenly I wanted each of them there—Aleandro and Casey, and even Dean, too. I wanted them to watch me with Mike.
I’d always been so focused on my work and taking care of Molly, even though she was an adult now, that I’d never really given much thought to my sexuality. There had been men in the past, but none had made much of an impact on me. I’d been happy to spend time with them, but mostly they got frustrated by how much time I spent at work, or how much I studied, and then when they called things off, or got bored and just stop contacting me, I’d been more relieved than anything.
Mike’s kisses left my mouth, trailing across my jaw. He nibbled and licked his way down my throat, teasing the sensitive skin. One of his hands moved lower slipping beneath the waistband of my pants, while the other pushed up, beneath my shirt, to cup my breast over the lacy material of my bra. I wasn’t holding back from getting a good handful of him either. I’d always been able to tell he had a good body—not bulky, like Aleandro, but muscular and well proportioned. Casey was taller and leaner, all flat planes and hard angles, but Mike was smooth muscle and quiet strength.
The thought of what Dean might look like with no clothes on flashed in my head, but with it came a wave of guilt, and I pushed the image away, even though I was pretty sure his body would be as perfect as his face.
He didn’t matter now. None of them did right in this moment. Right now it was only me and Mike, and he deserved my undivided attention.
He backed me up against the lockers, my back meeting with the smooth, hard surface. I tugged at the bottom of his t-shirt, as I didn’t want the clothing between us, but I knew we couldn’t get naked out here. Plus, I didn’t have any kind of protection, and I was pretty sure Mike didn’t wander around with condoms in his pocket either. There were vending machines for sanitary towels and condoms in the bathrooms, but I wasn’t about to break things off to go and get one.
His hand slipped beneath my panties from behind, cupping my ass as he first squeezed the soft, firm flesh, before he dipped lower. His fingers trailed over my asshole to my pussy, and I sucked in a breath. I was already wet and ready for him. He pushed a finger inside me, and I groaned, and then he added another. The clothes and the way they were holding him back frustrated me, but us getting naked together would have to wait for another time and place.
Wanting to get my hands on him as well, I worked the zipper of his pants and reached in and pulled out his cock. He was a perfect size, his erection curving up to meet me. I fisted him and worked his length, pumping my hand down to his base and then back up again, using my thumb to swipe over the smooth head, feeling the wetness of his pre-cum. He grew even harder in my grip, and I knew how incredible he’d feel inside me. His fingers jammed in my pussy, and my eyes slipped shut, allowed me to focus on the pleasure.
We clung to each other, grinding up against the lockers like a couple of animals, the space filled with our grunts and moans, the sound sexy and turning me on even more. He was fingering me from behind, but I needed stimulation on that little bundle of nerves. I knew we couldn’t have full sex, but I pressed myself forward, wanting to feel the length of his cock there.
“Oh, fuck, Camille. I want to be inside you so badly.”
“Me, too. But we don’t have a condom.”
“Fuck.”
“I have the contraceptive implant,” I told him between gasps and kisses. “I won’t get pregnant.”
“And I’m clean,” he replied.
I nodded. “Yeah, me, too.”
He ground harder against me, pressing his cock into my hand. “And is it bad if the first time I fuck you is up against the lockers in the changing room?”
“I don’t give a shit where you fuck me, as long as you fuck me.”
A slow, sexy grin was my reply. “Your wish is my command.”
His fingers slipped from my body, and he spun me around so I was facing the lockers. His hands found their way to the front of my pants, and he undid the button and then yanked them down my thighs, together with my panties, and bent me over. This was insane, but then everything about the last few days had been crazy, and I was definitely at the point of just needing to roll with it. He edged forward, and his cock nudged at my entrance. I was already wet, and there was only the slightest resistance before he rammed deep inside me. I groaned, my forehead meeting with smooth, cool metal. His hands circled around me. One hand was on my tit, slipping inside my bra to roll and twist my nipple, the other sliding down between my thighs to find my clit.
I pushed back on him, wanting him deeper and harder. “Yes, that’s right. Fuck me, Mike. Fuck me hard.”
His mouth met with my neck, teeth nipping the delicate skin. His fingers strummed my clit while he slammed the length of his cock inside me. It felt incredible. I literally felt like an instrument he was playing, and we were reaching the crescendo of our performance. My thighs trembled, my stomach muscles taut with my impending orgasm. I’d forgotten any concerns about someone walking in on us, no longer caring. All that mattered was our two bodies crashing together, feeling him swelling inside me, his hips jamming against my ass, his grunts and groans hot and heavy in my ear.
“Oh, fuck, Mike, oh God.”
My orgasm swept me away in its rapids, pleasure pulsing through me. My pussy clamped down hard on his cock, milking him, urging him on. He released my breast and took his hand from my clit to grip my hips instead. Then he fucked me hard, and I glanced over my shoulder to see his face contorted as he pounded into me.
“Ah, yes. Fuck.” He held himself deep, his forehead pressed to my shoulder, his eyes squeezed shut as he came.
We stood together, his arms wrapped around me while we caught our breath and he grew soft inside me.
“Shit, I’m going to have to run to the bathroom,” I said, clamping a grin behind my lips.
“Damn, sorry about that. I’m leaving you with all the mess.”
I twisted and kissed him. “Yes, you are. But it was worth it.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“We’ve got work we really should be doing.”
He pulled me in closer. “Do we really have to?”
I gave his shoulder a playful shove. “Yes. End of the world and everything. Remember?”
“I guess I’m going to have to, though I’d much rather hide away down here with you and pretend it’s not happening.”
“Me, too.”
He gave me another kiss and a secretive grin, his blue eyes sparking. “I’ll see you back upstairs.”
“Sure.” I watched him go.
What the hell was I going to do
with three men under the same roof?
Chapter Twelve
We worked the rest of the night through, each of us alternating two-hour naps on the couches, while the others watched the satellite radar and monitored the communication systems.
It was strange spending time with both Mike and Casey in such close quarters. Neither of them said anything, and occasionally Aleandro popped his head through the door to make sure everything was okay.
I’d cleaned up the best I could after Mike and I had had sex, wiping smudged mascara from under my eyes and combing my fingers through my hair, but I still felt as though I radiated sex. I knew I was imagining things, though, and no one could tell from the outside. Only the slightly sore, swollen feeling between my thighs gave it away that I’d been fucked against the lockers not long before, and no one else was aware of that.
I took the final sleep of the night, my eyes shutting the moment my head hit the cushion. By the time I woke again, sunlight was streaming through the glass dome above, and I knew I’d slept longer than I should have.
I yawned and stretched and sat up. Through the glass walls, I spotted both Casey and Mike still at their desks. Had they talked about me overnight?
“You two let me sleep too long?” I only half complained as I made my way out to them.
They both smiled at the sight of me, though I must have looked a mess. I was definitely feeling better, though—less emotional than the previous day. The sleep must have done me good.
“We thought you might need it,” Casey said.
“It was the hair sticking out on one side and the line of dribble onto the pillow that did it,” Mike added. “We couldn’t possibly wake such a sleeping beauty.”
“Hey!” I playfully smacked his shoulder and hoped I didn’t look quite that bad sleeping, though probably not that far off. “I do feel better, though. Thanks. Let me go and grab a coffee and then I’ll take over. Were there any developments overnight?”
Casey shook his head. “No, we’re still no further on in understanding what the strike was all about.”
Their Invasion- Planet Athion Page 8
