by A. J. Snyder
"Okay!" she calls back before groaning in pleasure from the first shower she's probably had in a long fucking time.
Her groan goes straight through me again. I picture in my mind the water cascading down over her naked body, and I have to adjust my cock that's suddenly straining against my zipper.
Fuck, this girl is gonna be the death of me.
Before going down for breakfast, I quickly change the sheets, thankful that I had an extra clean set in the closet. I ball up the dirty sheets in my arms and head downstairs to talk to the guys.
I have no idea what they're going to say about our new guest. It's not like we've ever had a visitor here before. It's been the four of us for a long time now, and adding someone else to the equation, especially a female, might really throw things out of whack around here.
CHAPTER 7
TRINITY
I FEEL LIKE a brand new woman by the time I'm done with my shower. I even used a disposable razor to shave my legs and armpits. I swear my legs looked like I was wearing fuzzy legwarmers twenty-four-seven, and my pits looked like I had Bigfoot in a headlock.
Digging through the pile of clothes in the box, I select a pair of dark gray sweatpants, a burgundy v-neck shirt and sneakers. I even find a pair of panties and socks, which I am grateful for. And even though all the clothes are too big for my thin frame, and the shoes are a little large for my feet, I make them work.
Beggars can't be choosers. Especially not in the world we live in now. I'm just happy to have any clothes at all, especially clean ones.
I comb my fingers through my hair and make myself as presentable as I can, given the circumstances. I have gone without so much for so long that I barely even miss the makeup I used to wear every day or the straightener I used on my hair. Hell, I don't even have a bra on right now. That would have bothered me to no end before…but now I could not care less. I'm just pleased that I was finally able to take a shower. I had been washing with the others in the cold creeks and rivers for so long that I never thought I would experience a hot shower ever again.
Sighing contently, I leave the room. I immediately hear loud, booming male voices downstairs, and I stop short on the landing. I know I should fear being in a house full of men, but for some strange reason, I'm feeling fine.
But all of this is so strange, so surreal. Maybe reality hasn't fully set in yet. I mean, I did fall asleep in a net with a zombie chasing after me and then woke up in an actual bed with sheets and blankets. It's almost like I woke up in an entirely different world.
And besides, there might be other people here too, maybe even other women. Just because I saw four guys in my room last night doesn't mean there aren't other occupants in this large farmhouse.
I make a promise to myself not to totally freak out unless it's completely necessary. Until then, I'm going to play it by ear but also be very cautious.
Tiptoeing down the stairs, not wanting to announce my presence yet, I overhear the conversation coming from the kitchen.
"So her name is Trinity?" someone asks. I think it's Jack, because it's so deep.
"Yes. She didn't tell me much, but I'm sure we'll find out more after she's done with her shower." That's Lucas's gentle voice. I almost have it ingrained in my head.
I reach the last step as the guys continue to talk about me. They have no idea I'm eavesdropping, and I can't help but want to find out what they think about me.
"So which one of us do you think she'll fall for first? If I had to put money on it, I'd say me," Carter says with a dark chuckle. His voice is deep and melodic.
"Fuck you, Carter," Jack pipes up. "Always turning everything into a contest, as usual."
"Speaking of which, I already claimed those canned peaches," he retorts.
Jack simply mumbles in response.
I smile as they bicker back and forth. And then, as I take a step closer, I end up stepping on a creaky floorboard that gives away my presence in an instant.
I cringe and stand stock-still as their conversation ends abruptly. Yep, they definitely heard me.
"Trinity?" Lucas calls.
I walk into the kitchen with what I hope is a friendly smile on my face. The four guys are crowded around a large rectangular wooden table. Their plates are full of food, and there's an empty chair and plate waiting for me.
Lucas pulls out the chair next to him and gestures for me to sit. Once I do, he pushes me in closer to the table. "We weren't sure what you like to eat, but I hope you like eggs."
I look down at my plate full of scrambled eggs, some leafy greens and fresh-picked black raspberries.
Oh, I could practically weep at the sight.
My stomach growls and my mouth waters. I haven't eaten a decent meal in what feels like forever. "This is great. Thank you so much," I say vehemently, picking up my fork and forcing myself to eat slowly and to not inhale everything on my plate like some kind of animal. And even though the food is bland since there's no salt and pepper to season anything, it tastes just like heaven to me.
Once I begin to eat, the rest of the guys start digging in too.
"We eat a lot of eggs, but we also fish from the river, and Jack hunts for small game and deer," Carter explains. "It's nice to be able to cook a variety of things instead of having eggs every day."
I can't even imagine getting tired of eating the same thing. I would have killed to have eggs every day when I was out in the woods. My group was living on anything we could get our hands on, which wasn't much. It wasn't abnormal for us to go days without a single ounce of food. It was horrible, and a shiver runs through me at the memories that surface in my mind.
"Are you cold?" Lucas asks from beside me.
Always the protector.
I give him a small smile. "No. I was just…thinking of something."
He nods and then takes another bite of his meal.
There's a glass of water beside my plate, and I lift it up and just stare at the clear liquid that's not brown, murky and teeming with bacteria and dirt like I'm used to seeing. I lick my lips before taking a big swig of the cool water, barely holding back a moan as I set the glass back down.
Carter stands up and retrieves a hot mug from the old-fashioned wood stove in the corner of the room. He's wearing a t-shirt today, which I'm thankful for. I don't think I would be able to concentrate with his perfectly chiseled chest on display again.
I gawk at the cup filled with very light green water as he sets it down in front of me.
"It's pine needle tea," Carter speaks up after seeing me eyeing the cup. "It's not coffee; but if you close your eyes really hard, you can pretend it is," he says with a sexy grin.
I take a tentative sip. It's not bitter, but I can taste a hint of pine in it. It's actually really good considering I haven't had anything but river and rain water since the apocalypse. "How did you learn to make this?"
He claps Jack's large shoulder and says, "Jack here is the survivalist amongst us men. He taught me how to forage and make stuff I never even would have dreamed of making before a couple years ago."
I glance at Jack, and he gives me a smirk. He looks even more massive this morning than he did last night in my room. The shirt he's wearing is tight against his muscular chest, and the sleeves are cut off, revealing bulging biceps. He has some tattoos scattered over his skin - an eagle, the American flag with Semper fidelis scrawled underneath, and a cross.
He catches me staring and explains by saying, "I was in the Marine Corps."
And with that bit of knowledge, it changes my opinion of Jack completely. He may look like a giant, but he's a protector too, just like Lucas. I flash him a big smile and tell him, "Wow, that's incredible." Then, to keep up the small-talk, I offer, "I was an elementary school teacher."
Carter says, "I was a carpenter. I worked for my dad's company. But I also ran a bar and cooked."
"I was a doctor…but you already knew that," Lucas utters from beside me.
I glance at Owen, who is sitting quietly at the e
nd of the table. He's watching our interactions, but not saying a word. His brown hair is still haphazardly styled on his head, and he studies everyone behind his dark-rimmed glasses.
"What about you Owen?" I prompt.
"Owen is the brains of the operation," Carter says with a grin, answering for him.
"I was a scientist," Owen explains quietly.
"Oh, he's being modest," Carter says with a grunt. "He, like, invented shit and had patents on a lot of his creations."
Owen's definitely the quiet one of the bunch, but I actually find his quirky shyness really sexy. Also, it doesn't hurt that he has a Clark Kent thing going on. He's not as muscular as, say, Carter, but I can definitely see his firm, sinewy forearms as he reaches for his drink.
"So, Trinity, how old are you?" Carter asks.
"I'm twenty-four," I answer.
"A year older than me. I always had a thing for older chicks," Carter says with a wink.
That gets him a punch in the arm from Jack. "Don't mind him. He hasn't seen a female in a very long time."
"None of us have," Carter mutters, rubbing his arm.
My eyes widen at that admission. "So…there are no other people here?"
Lucas shakes his head. "Just the four of us. We haven't seen anyone else in almost two years."
I take a sip of my tea as I process that new piece of information. Okay, so no other females here. I'm feeling suddenly outnumbered and for good reason. Four against one. The odds are definitely not in my favor.
But I still don't have a sense of fear from these four men. They have been nothing but kind to me; and until they do something otherwise, I'm going to trust that they will not harm me.
The guys then take turns telling me their ages. It turns out Jack is the oldest at thirty-five with Lucas at a close second at thirty-four, and then Owen four years older than me at twenty-eight.
"Did you guys know each other, you know…before?" I ask quietly.
They all shake their heads simultaneously. "The four of us ended up together somehow when our group started getting picked off one by one," Jack says.
I know exactly what that's like, I think to myself.
We finish with breakfast and take our plates to the sink. "I can wash these," I offer to Carter, but he shakes his head.
"Thanks, but no thanks. You're our guest. So why don't you just relax and take it easy for today?"
My stomach drops at his words. Yes, I'm just a guest. And who knows how long they will allow me to stay. They could kick me out tomorrow if they really wanted to. I have no claims to this house or property.
The thought of going back out there on my own terrifies me to no end. I need to prove my worth, that I can be helpful here. But when I ask what I can do to help, the guys all tell me to relax for the day, and my heart sinks.
I retreat to Lucas's room and sit on the edge of the bed, staring out the window. My hands feel around the clean sheets that Lucas must have put on the bed while I was in the shower. The coolness of the material does little to qualm my nerves, however; and pretty soon tears fill my eyes as I try to imagine being out in the woods on my own.
I probably wouldn't last a week.
Maybe not even a whole day.
Curling into a ball on the bed, I allow my emotions to surface, and I eventually cry myself to sleep.
CHAPTER 8
TRINITY
THE NEXT MORNING after breakfast, Jack asks me if I'd like to go fishing with him. I practically jump at the opportunity. This will give me time to bond with the giant of a man, but it will also give me a chance to prove my worth to the group.
I've never fished in my life; but I know that if they allow me to stay here, I need to pull my own weight and contribute in some way. I can't expect the guys to dote on me like a princess. And I certainly don't want to spend all day in Lucas's room again doing nothing.
Jack opens the front door and walks outside. I stare at the open door like it's a portal into another world. I haven't been outside in days, and I can feel the fear creeping up my spine already as I step out onto the porch.
After two years of never really being able to put my guard down and always waiting for something to jump out and attack me from around every corner, I can't quite shake the eerie feeling of being in the open with no protection.
The fresh air fills up my lungs as I breathe it in deeply and exhale slowly, taking in the property that's laid out in front of me.
The front porch wraps around the house, and the big yard slopes down a grassy hill to a beautiful, flowing river in the distance. To the right of the property are two large barns and a small shed. To the left is a big garden surrounded by tall wire with various plants growing in the tilled soil.
The old farmhouse itself is massive with two stories, white siding with dark blue shutters.
The guys definitely lucked onto this property. They have a place to grow food to eat, and they must have animals somewhere on the farm considering what we had for breakfast and the fact that they have homemade goat milk soap. Plus, the whole farm looks like it's surrounded by tall fencing and a front gate, keeping unwanted guests out.
On the end of the porch, Jack grabs a small bucket labeled "worms" and two fishing poles before we continue on down to the river.
He walks confidently while I'm the complete opposite. Every step I take I'm afraid of seeing one of them. The fence around the property is nice and all, but I'm still afraid that they could get in somehow.
When Jack notices that I'm trailing behind, he stops and says, "You don't have to worry about them, Trinity. The perimeter is secure, and we have precautions in place. We'll hear them before we see them." And then he adds, "Besides, I won't let any harm come to you."
His words make me instantly feel better, but I'm still a little wary. Old habits die hard I suppose.
At the edge of the river that runs through the middle of the property, Jack drops the poles and bait.
"Ever fish before?" he asks me.
I shake my head.
"That's okay. There's a first time for everything, right?" He grabs one of the poles and baits the hook with a long earthworm. "Good thing I'm a great teacher."
He thrusts the rod into my hands, and I stand there like an idiot. I don't even know how to cast the hook into the water.
Jack comes up behind me, and the instant warmth of his massive body feels good against my chilled skin. "Is this okay?" he whispers in my ear.
"Yes," I croak. Then, I clear my throat and answer confidently, "Yes."
He chuckles deeply, and it sends a shiver straight through me. His beard tickles against my neck as he shows me how to grip the rod. He pushes my thumb into a small button and says, "That's to release the line." Then he positions me sideways and shows me how to flick my wrist and launch the hook, bait and sinker into the water. A little red and white bobber pops up, floating above the water. "If you see the bobber go below the water line, that means something's on your hook." Then, he spins the little knob on the side and says, "That will get some tension in your line." He releases his grip on my rod. "And that's all there is to it," he tells me before stepping away. "If you feel something pulling on the line, tug up fast to secure the hook in the fish's mouth."
I instantly miss his warmth. It's a foreign feeling for me to feel safe and protected, and I definitely do in Jack's arms. Maybe because they are so freaking huge and he could protect a small village inside of them.
I sneak a peek at him as he readies his rod and casts it out a few feet down river from mine. He's wearing a dark shirt with the sleeves ripped off and ripped up jeans. Most of his face is covered with a beard, but I can tell he's handsome underneath all that scruff. His long, dark hair is tied back with a rubber band, and his dark eyes are studying the water intently.
He doesn't talk much while we fish, but it's nice to have a comfortable silence between us. I'm definitely not used to everything being so calm and peaceful. And it's wonderful.
After a while, I'm the first
one to break the silence when I ask him about the animals. "So, you have goat's milk soap and eggs. I take it there are animals somewhere on the farm?" I haven't heard any, and I have no idea how they keep them quiet from the monsters lurking in the woods.
"We soundproofed one of the big barns out back. We have a few goats and several chickens." He draws in his line a little. "They were all here when we got here, so we've been taking care of them."
"And you also trap animals in the woods? Lucas said I was in one of your traps."
"Yep. I trap deer, bear, cougars." He looks over at me and adds, "And pretty girls."
And then, he flashes me a big smile, the first I've ever seen grace his lips. He looks so boyish when he smiles that my heart does a little skip inside my chest. Suddenly, I no longer see him as a large threat. I see him more like a gentle giant.
I turn my attention back to my rod, and that's when I feel a slight pull on my line. "Uh, Jack," I whisper.
He looks over at me and asks, "You got something?"
"I don't know. Maybe." Then, I feel a much sharper tug. "Yeah, I think I do."
He reels in his line and drops his rod before coming over to me. He steps behind me and guides my hands, helping me to reel in the fish that's tugging hard on my line. "Nice and easy," he says, his breath skating across my neck. "That's it."
I settle my back against his hard chest, but I don't think he even notices since he's too focused on the task at hand. His warmth engulfs me, and it feels so damn nice. I watch his biceps bulge as he wraps his hands over mine and tugs on the pole.
"It's a big one," he says, and I have to hold back a giggle because I can't help but think of what else is big in this situation.
A long fish jumps up out of the water, and I squeal quietly in delight. I've never caught a fish before, and I suddenly feel extremely proud that I was able to do it.
Jack takes control of the rod and brings the fish out of the water. "Nice catch, Trinity," he says, beaming up at me as he kneels down to take the fish from the hook. "It's a rainbow trout," he tells me as he holds the fish up for me to see the iridescent green and purple colors running along its length.
