by Z. Allora
“You’re amazing” was groaned through the wall.
Jackson wasn’t used to so much chatter. Usually the guys would use his and Corey’s mouths and vanish with barely a grunt. But he loved how good the words made him feel.
Trying to stay detached was impossible, so he went with focusing on giving incredible head.
He licked and sucked and teased as he tried not to question his desperate need to please this man.
What? This is just a blowjob. I’ll get some essence—
No matter what he told himself, Jackson continued to use his mouth to make love to this dick like the shaft belonged to Corey.
Why did this feel so right?
He bobbed his head and longed to play with the guy’s balls.
Maybe we could go to—
No!
An urgent need to get this dick inside him as deep as he could rode him hard. He needed to crush these uncontrollable urges, but for right now he stayed on his knees, sucking. Typically, he didn’t deep-throat—that was Corey’s gig—but the desire to not just get this guy off but to give him the best blowjob he’d ever gotten seemed to erase his usual inclinations.
“It’s been too long, and you’re amazing. I’m not going to last.”
Excitement raced through him. Yes! He wanted this guy’s come. He craved it….
Where did that come from?
Jackson redoubled his efforts and bobbed his head quicker. He hollowed his cheeks and sucked.
The first shot of come spurted into Jackson’s mouth, and his body tensed with pure pleasure.
Another pulse of this stranger’s pleasure hit the back of his throat. Jackson moaned around the cock and began shooting off in his pants.
His heart expanded with affection and devotion.
He kept sucking because that increased his satisfaction, and more to the point, that of his mate’s.
His second mate. Corey would finally be fulfilled. He felt such happiness at finally finding their third. They would finally be complete. He wouldn’t be alone—he’d have support to balance Corey.
A tear of grateful joy slid out the corner of Jackson’s eye as the cock slipped out of his mouth, disappearing through the hole.
A zipper was being pulled up. “Um, thank you. That was incredible. Can I suck you?”
A generous offer not usually given, but of course their mate would be caring and loving.
A finger traced the inside of the hole. “I’d be happy to make you feel good too.”
Jackson shifted so he could peek through the hole. What did his mate look like? “No, I’m—Keith?” That pushed him back onto his ass.
An eye appeared in the hole. “Jax? Is that you?”
6
KISS: Keep It Simple, Stupid
Jax? Jackson Davis just sucked me off?
Keith peeked through the hole again. Sure enough, that was Jax on his ass on the other side of the wall.
An undeniable thrill coursed through him at finally having Jax in this small way. He’d lusted after him all throughout his senior year. His high school fantasy while still repressed had bridged the gap between friends turning into boyfriends in a world where orientation—and HIV— didn’t exist. To finally have a bit of him….
Closures and beginnings warred inside Keith, fulfilling something deep and mostly hidden in him, but his elation and rightness was crushed by a single thought—Corey.
“Jax, what about Corey?” Even though Jax and Corey were polyamorous, his heart hurt to think somehow, he’d wronged Corey… again.
“I just sucked you off, and your first question is about Corey?” Jax’s whisper sounded annoyed through the opening in the wall, but he texted someone.
Worry and fear of hurting Corey got stronger as the concern twisted its way through him. “Yeah, does he know you’re here?”
“Let’s go for a walk.” Jax shifted away from the hole.
Keith righted his clothing and weaved his way past several men grasping the handles and fucking the holes in front of them. It all seemed—this was why he didn’t do this anymore. Sexy as an anonymous blowjob might seem, the aftermath left him cold.
Jax, looking as ruggedly handsome as ever, waited at the end of the walkway and waved for him to follow. And Keith felt rather warm.
He trekked behind Jax and tried not to feel disappointed Jax didn’t kiss him or anything. But he couldn’t stop himself from appreciating the way Jax’s red T-shirt stretched across his shoulders or the way his jeans cupped his ass. What an ass! He wore his hair short in the back and a bit longer on top, which allowed some to do a sexy flip onto his forehead.
Jax held the door open for him, and Keith couldn’t help but notice how young Jax looked as he brushed past. Life must have treated him well.
The sun had just set, washing everything in dusty twilight colors and giving a surreal feeling to Keith… or maybe that was the fact one of his high school crushes had gotten him off at a glory hole. Who’s to say?
He tried not to be vain, but he was glad for the dim light because maybe his crow’s-feet and laugh lines wouldn’t be highlighted. Jax didn’t seem to have any wrinkles.
A few yards from the door, Jax plopped down on the bench and brushed off a few petals from the crepe myrtle that sheltered the seat. The thoughtful gesture made Keith’s heart reach out, wanting… things. Jesus, wiping off a bench for someone shouldn’t be a big deal, but Keith couldn’t convince his heart of that.
Keith sat next to him. Where to start? “I know you and Corey are poly.”
Jax stretched his arm across the back of the bench and squinted at him. “How do you know that?”
Trying not to move closer to the warmth Jax gave off, Keith found his words. “Ulrich said you were looking for a third.”
“We’re looking for more than that.” Jax’s fingers tapped on the back of the bench, near Keith’s shoulder.
“I’m sure, but do you really think you’re going to find him at a glory hole?”
Jax snickered. “Oh, Keith, you have no idea. Corey would love the irony of that statement.”
A shiver of excitement tripped through him. Would Corey be into—nah, Corey still hated him for what he’d done in school. Couldn’t blame him, but Keith had to ask. “What do you mean?”
“We need a partner who complements not only me but Corey… someone who can give him what I can’t. We need someone who completes us.”
Crushing the “why can’t I be that,” Keith settled on, “Of course, which is the appeal for more than one person in the relationship.”
Jax’s eyes flashed with interest. “You’ve done triads?”
“Not beyond a fucked-up threesome or two,” Keith admitted with reluctance. How he’d wished one of those situations could have worked. To have what was sometimes hinted at in those threesomes’ videos….
Jax went silent for a while, then chuckled. “Geez, I always thought it was funny, but this is hard.”
Turning to him, Keith asked, “What is?”
Amusement vanished, and Jax turned serious. “I need to tell you something unbelievable, but it is 100 percent true. And I’m aware I sound crazy, but again, it is real.”
Worry skittered through Keith. Was Jax or Corey dying? Would he lose them before—“I’m listening.”
Jax took a deep breath and exhaled hard, like he was bracing himself. “Let me tell you about zombies. We—”
“We? What do you mean? You’re a zombie?” Keith’s chuckle died a quick death when Jax didn’t join in.
“Stay with me.” Until Jax’s words were out of his mouth, Keith didn’t realize on how many levels he wanted this.
Remaining still, Keith barely breathed, the air around them alive with potential. For some reason his gut told him whatever Jax would share next might blow his mind and possibly change his life forever.
“Zombies aren’t the walking dead with body parts dropping off. We—”
“There’s that we again,” Keith’s mouth ran, pointing out th
e obvious, but a general unease flitted through him.
Jax sighed. “Let me get the rest out in one go. Okay?”
Keith shrugged and clenched his fists, because no way Jax was going to the destination he was heading… right? Because that would be insane.
Jax stared into Keith’s eyes as if imploring him to believe. “We don’t eat brains. The doc says in many ways it’s actually like a protein deficiency. Zombies start transitioning at nineteen, stop aging at twenty-three, and we need to ingest ejaculate to function. We search for our mates—”
“Wait… you need come to survive? That’s not crazy at all. So what, zombies blow each other?” Keith chuckled. Jax needed to keep the joke closer to where it was believable.
“Or they suck off others until they find their mate, or in our case, mates.”
Keith would play along to see where this was going. Who could fault him for not being able to keep the sarcasm out of his tone? “Your mates? Meaning you have two mates?”
Jax squirmed on his side of the bench. “Um, well, yeah. Corey and.…”
Maybe if Keith could lead Jax back to the specifics, then Jax would laugh at the bizarre joke he was trying to tell. “Okay, so what makes people zombies? A virus? An outbreak? Exposure to—”
“Not even the doc knows for sure, but it seems to run in families and in the same geographic areas.” Shaking his head, Jax stared off into the distance.
Back in the day, Jax was never one for tall tales or even embellishment. Understating was his thing. Jax’s expression was earnest enough that he seemed to truly believe this wild story. A lot could happen to someone in twenty years, but how deep did Jax’s psychosis go? Was this a permanent break from reality, or did this belief about being a zombie come in waves? Did Corey know? “You’re saying you are a zombie. Is Corey one too?”
“Yes.” Jax nodded and blew out a breath.
Maybe Keith needed to get his friend some help, but first he needed to know…. “Why are you telling me this?”
Jax’s lips twisted, and he shrugged. “You’re my mate.”
Keith ignored how his heart soared at the idea at being Jax’s mate, and he asked, “And how do you know this? We haven’t seen each other in twenty years.”
“Neither Corey nor I have been able to forget you….”
He hadn’t forgotten either of them. Neither had faded to the place old crushes should be kept. Whenever his thoughts turned toward them, Keith figured it was his loneliness.
What was he thinking?
Jax continued, “More to the point, when I tasted you, I came.”
And right back to Nuttyville. Keith snorted. It was poor form, but…. “You came in your pants, and this makes us mates? Keeping it simple, wouldn’t a more reasonable explanation be premature ejaculation? It happens to—”
Jax grabbed his hand, sending a bolt of affection through him. He rubbed his thumb across Keith’s palm.
Oh God! His cock started to lengthen at the caress, and all the emotions he’d bottled up in high school erupted to the surface as if his feelings had lain dormant, waiting to bloom.
Jax gave him a small smile that confessed he was aware of the power he had over Keith. “It’s not that I orgasmed, but I can feel the link between us, Keith. Every moment I’m with you, I’m more convinced. You can feel it too, can’t you?”
Yes! But he couldn’t get lost in this fantasy. Putting space between them made the most sense. He should leave, even though walls never kept Jax out of his heart or mind.
If Keith wasn’t careful, he’d believe this line of bullshit. “Where’s the camera?”
“What?” Jax looked around.
“I’m being punked. Is this Corey’s way of getting me back? I deserve it.”
Jax pulled away, making Keith feel ridiculously sad at the loss of his touch. He dropped his hands to his knees and sighed. “Look, I know it sounds crazy.”
“It does.” Jax was carrying this joke as far as he could. Keith tried to poke the balloon again. “So you stopped aging at twenty-three?”
Jax nodded.
He hadn’t seen Jax at twenty-three, but Jax still looked almost exactly like he had in high school. It might be the light or good makeup. “Maybe you had plastic surgery.”
“Yeah, right. Me?”
Okay, that didn’t seem like Jax, but what did Keith know? Frowning, he asked, “So everyone in the club is a zombie?”
Jax shook his head. “Nah, just some.”
An odd thought burrowed into his brain. “Storm?”
“Yes. He turned last year.”
A shiver ran through him. “And his boyfriends are his three mates?”
“Yes, maybe hearing from him would help?”
Keith shook his head. “I’ve known you longer, but maybe.”
“Hold, please.” Jax texted, and a minute later, he got a text back. “He’ll be here in a bit.”
Within five minutes, Storm with his… mates joined Keith and Jax.
Storm stood in front of Keith with his hands on his hips. “Dude, I know where you are right now. It’s completely weird, but it’s true. Welcome to Zombiehood.”
Cutter playfully smacked Storm’s ass but then caressed the injury. “Oh my God, Storm, you’re such a dick. Keith, what questions do you have?”
“How is this possible?” Keith ruled out psychotic break… and mass hysteria, because well, the way two of Storm’s mates were sucking at each other’s lips, no one was even close to being upset, let alone hysterical. More people in on the joke?
Shaking his head, Cutter said, “The doctor has been researching for decades but doesn’t know.”
“How did you believe it?” He couldn’t see how anyone could buy this without proof.
Cutter shrugged. “Alex wasn’t always this big and muscular, and then overnight he had a rare secondary transition and went from model thin to… this. Literally overnight. So Storm and me figured if he hadn’t developed a super roid habit, then the zombie thing was a possibility. Besides, what’s the endgame… to trick us? Ulrich and Alex weren’t like that.”
Keith didn’t want to believe Storm and Cutter would be in on this joke, and he really seemed to be sincere. “I guess they say seeing is believing.”
Jax traced a finger down Keith’s arm. “How are you feeling?”
Biting his lip to keep in a moan, Keith shook his head. He couldn’t deny the pull he felt to Jax, but he’d always been helplessly drawn to him and Corey.
“On that note….” Ulrich dropped to his knees and started to unbuckle Cutter’s pants.
“On what note?” Keith asked no one in particular.
“Um, we should probably go. Follow me.” Jax gestured for them to evacuate.
Keith turned away from one of the sexiest scenes he’d ever witnessed. “Wow.”
Chuckling, Jax smirked. “Understatement.”
The laughter that bubbled up in Keith felt like a valve had been opened, and he felt more in control once they were in Jackson’s apartment.
The place appeared so normal. “Nice. Do you live here with Corey?”
“Yeah. Want something to drink?”
“Sure. A beer if you’ve got it.”
Jax handed him a bottle and the remotes. “Make yourself at home. I’m going to take a quick shower. I’ll be right back.”
Keith wandered around the living room, which was done in calm beachy shades of blue and green. Having properties at the shore, he’d decorated in these tones, so the space felt vaguely familiar. He meandered over to the bookcases, and wasn’t surprised to find a collection of yaoi, game videos, and even some New York Times bestsellers.
Not wanting to be nosy, but being curious, he moved a stack of books to see what the big volumes were in the back. The Mating Book, Volume 1 and The Mating Book, Volume 2. He pulled Volume 2 out and skimmed the stories—some had rather humorous titles. Walking backward to the couch, he sat and looked through the pages. These were love stories ending in a blood exchange, bindin
g the men together as… mates.
He tugged out the first volume and scanned. Each story was unique, and he started slowing down at the parts that showed how the mates reacted to the zombie news. Maybe he should have been comforted he wasn’t alone in his disbelief—what was he thinking?
Zombies didn’t exist. Though there were hundreds of stories and thousands of pages… a long way to go for a joke.
“Ah, you found The Mating Book volumes. Corey got angry a few years ago and hid them. Our friend wrote them, so we couldn’t get rid of them.” Jax ran his fingers through his wet hair. He was dressed much like he used to for gym class—sports jersey and board shorts.
“Looks like I’m not the only one who had their doubts.” Keith put the volumes back in their hiding spot and covered them with the other books. Maybe the joke was based on the books, or maybe this wasn’t bullshit. Could such a thing even be possible?
“No kidding. If I hadn’t been so exhausted, I wouldn’t have believed it either.”
“Huh?”
“When you’re a zombie and start transitioning, you are dead tired. I could barely move. In that state you’re more apt to listen with an open mind, or at least you can’t run away.”
“But I’m not tired.” And he didn’t want to run away.
“You’re a mate, not a bio zombie. Bio zombies get exhausted,” Jax added like he was giving a ten-day forecast of the weather.
“So that was enough?”
“No, my body had started to shut down without essence. I couldn’t even fight the two guys who came to pick me up—Lafayette and Beau. They created this safe haven for zombies. Anyway, when I saw Corey, I lost all my will to struggle and just went with them.”
“And then?”
Jax shrugged. “As soon as I was given some essence, I felt great… better than ever. Within a couple of days, Corey and I found out we were mates, but we still needed our third.”
“How did you know?”
“There’s a deep connection between us, but like a hole”—Jax caught Keith’s gaze—“where you should be.”
Keith couldn’t respond to that even if he could swallow past the lump of emotion in his throat. The promise of never being alone tantalized him. “Is this where you disappeared to?”
