by Snow, Jenika
Christ, he was hard as steel.
“Malachi,” she whispered. When she turned her head to the side, he saw a small smile on her face.
He fucking loved that he’d put that look on her face.
Malachi took hold of the root of his shaft and started stroking himself. He could get off on the look of her pleasure alone. “On your back, baby girl.”
She instantly rolled over for him, presenting herself. When he was between her splayed thighs, positioned at her entrance again, he stared into her eyes. Slowly he pushed into her this time, never taking his eyes off of her. He wanted to prolong this, to make it last. But she was too gorgeous, felt too good.
Resting his arms beside her head, he buried himself in her wet cunt and made love to her slow and easy. She was fucking perfect, tight and hot and all his.
In and out, keeping the same pace every time, and experiencing the buildup of orgasm, Malachi closed his eyes and growled low. He felt his climax approach, knew he’d come in a matter of moments because the ecstasy was too much to stem off.
It started as a tingling at the base of his spine and moved quickly through him. “Fuck, Sasha. Baby.” He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. “I’m going to come.” He went to move out of her, to come on her belly, but she held him close.
“Don’t pull out,” she whispered. “Come in me. Fill me up.”
Oh. Fuck.
He should be smart, because a baby right now wasn’t what they needed. But fuck it was hard stopping.
He bumped her clit with the base of his cock when he thrust into her again. She cried out. Malachi didn’t stop himself from leaning down and kissing her just as his climax claimed him.
He came harder than he ever had, even when he’d jerked off thinking about Sasha. It sucked the air from his lungs, stole his sanity, and he knew he would never be the same.
Sasha was fucking his.
He groaned once more and stilled as his pleasure finally receded. They lay there for several minutes, neither saying anything, Malachi still buried balls deep in her tight pussy. When he pulled back, a grunt left him when his dick slipped free of her warm pussy. For a second all he did was stare between her legs and watch as his cum slipped out of her.
Possessiveness filled him.
She reached out and grabbed his hand, pulling him toward her, on top of her.
“Malachi. Hold me,” she murmured softly.
He held her close, moved his hand through her hair and pushed the strands away from her shoulder, and then he leaned down and kissed her skin. She tasted slightly salty … perfect.
She was here with him, pressed close to his body, and he wasn’t going to ever let her go.
Chapter Forty-Three
Wrong time, bad world
Sasha wanted to stay in the supply closet forever. Her body felt different. She was no longer a virgin. No longer innocent. Malachi lay beside her, and she couldn’t help but smile.
“What are you smiling at?” he asked.
“You.”
“What about me? Do you regret what we just did?”
“No.”
“Then what is it?”
“I’m glad we did what we did.”
“But?” he asked.
“But nothing. Really, I don’t have any regrets. Do you?”
“None.”
“Good.” She tentatively put a hand on his stomach. They had gotten dressed as soon as they had finished. Malachi had found a piece of tissue to help her clean herself with, and he’d been really sweet and kind to her.
“What is going on in that crazy head of yours?” he asked. “Don’t try to pretend you’re just thinking or any of that shit. Tell me.”
“Okay, erm … here goes. I wish we didn’t have to hide in a supply closet for my first time. I wish we could have been on an actual bed where the threat of the outside world wasn’t a real one.”
He put his hand over hers, and she watched him. He was a handsome man. He had a few scars but she found it gave him character more than anything.
“Do you really think if we’d been in the real world, you’d have even looked twice at me?”
Sasha paused. “You don’t think I would have.”
“We’re from completely different worlds. I don’t think for a single second you would have looked at me.”
“Wow,” she said, sitting up and turning to him, giving him her full attention. “Is that really how you feel?”
“It’s what I know.”
“I can’t believe this. You really think I’m just some goodie two shoes daughter? Someone who didn’t have feelings or if I did, I’d be wanting the jock or something like that?”
“You were still in high school.”
“Malachi, I don’t think you even realize how fucked-up you sound,” she said, getting to her feet. She had to get out of there. Before she even made it to the door, though, he was there, hand on her arm, stopping her from moving. “Let me go.”
“No. Look, I like you, Sasha, really like you. I don’t know if our past lives in the normal world would have ever collided. I’m not a good man, never have been. With you, you make me want to be good. You make me want to be all the things I thought made me weak.”
She turned to face him, leaning against the door. “You’re not a bad man, Malachi.”
“I’ve done a lot of bad shit.”
“Like kill people? Join the club. You’re not the first nor the last that has killed people. I’ve done it as well. It’s something we’ve all done.” She sighed. “I don’t want to get in to this with you.” She’d just lost her virginity. She didn’t want to start talking about all the men she’d killed.
It wasn’t many but it was more than one and even that number scared her.
“I know,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter how much you think you’re saving me or protecting me. That life I had with my parents, it’s gone. I’m never going to get it back. You can keep comparing the two of us, and trying to figure out some way to make this less real, but it’s not going to change what has happened between us. We are real. We are very real, and it’s not going to change anything.” She cupped his face. “I need to get some sleep.”
He didn’t let her go, though.
Malachi cupped her face and kissed her hard. She let out a moan, wrapping her arms around his neck and wanting more. Even as her pussy pulsed from their first time, she didn’t care about the pain.
The pain meant she was alive, and as she was, she wanted to be with him again. They could be dead at any moment. Would it really be so bad to have another moment?
“I’m not going to fuck you again, Sasha.”
“But?”
“No buts. The next time, you’re not going to be sore, and the next time we’re going to be able to explore one another and I’m going to make you come so many times that by the time I get my cock in you, you’ll be begging for more.”
She licked her lips and nodded. “I like the sound of that.”
“Good, because I like it as well.” He cupped her cheek. “Sorry for being an asshole. I don’t think I could have ever imagined having someone like you in my world.”
She smiled. “Is this the world that you say we wouldn’t cross in?”
“Yeah. Here’s the thing, Sasha. If you’d crossed my path before this world went fucked up, I would have stolen you away and kept you for myself.”
“Why is that?”
“You know why.”
He didn’t say anything but she knew. Deep down she knew Malachi had feelings for her that went beyond caring. It was deeper than love. Deeper than anything two people could share.
They had seen pain together.
Killed together.
And held each other when they needed it most.
No one could take that away from them.
“I loved being with you.”
“Even if I do let Tree Man stick around?” he asked.
She giggled. “Even then. I know I don’t trust
him, but he seems to know what he’s doing when it comes to surviving and we can’t fault him for that.”
“Nope, we can’t. His riddles drive me crazy though.”
“He’s the man of the riddles.”
“And nothing we can do about it.” He held her close.
“We still can’t stay in the closet.”
“I know, but I don’t want to let you go, especially if you’re feeling angry with me.”
She laughed. “I’m not angry. Not anymore. I get it, to a point. I do get it, but it doesn’t mean I actually agree with it.”
“Good. Sometimes you’ve got to learn not to even take what I say seriously.”
“I don’t.” She put her hands on his chest. “I better go and check on Lucy.”
The sound of a large crash filled the air.
Eyes going wide, they rushed out. Sasha grabbed her weapon and aimed it at the door. Seconds later Tree Man came running. In one hand he held a spear, and in the other a gun.
“Did you hear anything outside?” Malachi asked.
“No. Nothing.” Tree Man stood tall, puffing out his chest. He looked ready to kill. To protect.
“Someone must have followed us.”
“Or they don’t know we’re here,” Sasha said, whispering.
They weren’t wearing any shoes, and with the noise coming from down in the street, their new occupants clearly didn’t know there were people in the dentist office.
“We can’t risk them getting in. Sasha go there, cover me. Tree Man, my other side.”
The candle they’d lit was too bright, and so Sasha blew it out quickly.
They needed to keep her safe but Sasha made sure she could see her sister just so she would be able to protect her.
How had her life gotten this fucking complicated?
* * *
Malachi gritted his teeth. He couldn’t make out how many people were down in the street. So far, he could only hear men, and that didn’t sit well with him. All it would take was for them to look through the window of the dentist office to know they were in here, or see their shit laying on the ground. Hell, if they came in here there’d be no hiding.
He shouldn’t have let them stay here, or he should have at least done something to secure the door.
This wasn’t how he imagined his and Sasha’s night together. He’d expected more time with her, and he didn’t want to get into that long, drawn-out conversation with her either. Everything had become so fucked.
His hands didn’t shake though.
Not even for a second.
He held them steady.
One.
Two.
Someone was close.
He had to protect them.
Did he shoot first or try to reason with them?
The moment he saw a head, he fired his weapon.
He couldn’t risk Sasha or Lucy. He had no choice but to take care of them.
They needed him and he wouldn’t do anything to fuck it up.
And then he saw them coming closer. He had his gun, and although he should save bullets, picking them off from a distance was far easier and safer.
He slowly, quietly opened the door, aimed the gun at the first man, and pulled the trigger. He watched as the bullet tore through him. Malachi had to be quick, especially when he saw the other two men freeze, about to retaliate.
He pulled the trigger a second time, and once more, his aim impeccable, the sound of it ricocheting and echoing around them.
And then there was silence.
“What happened?” Lucy asked behind them, fear in her voice.
“It’s okay, sweetie. You don’t need to worry,” Sasha said.
“Keep her here. Tree Man, help me.” He needed to get rid of the bodies.
“All the death mounting up,” Tree Man said.
“I don’t need you to give me a running commentary.”
“Sorry, I can’t help it. It sounds like a lot of fun. We’re always doing stuff like this together. You know, hanging out. Having lots of fun. Partying. Doing all of this. One day we won’t, you see, because life is not going to let us and then you’re going to wish for these moments, and pray they turn up.” He laughed. “I can’t wait. It’s all going to be so exciting.”
“Can we just go and fix this, please?” he asked.
“Sure. Sure.”
Once they were outside, Malachi was hesitant as he made his way toward the bodies, making sure they were alone.
Once at the corpses, he ignored the blood and dragged the men down by their ankles, off to the side and toward a building. He didn’t want to draw Sasha’s attention. She’d already seen enough blood and death and he intended to make it his mission to protect her, to love her. To do whatever needed to be done to help her.
“You’re in love,” Tree Man said as they dumped the last man around the back of the building into a trash can.
“You need to learn to keep quiet.”
“I know but I can’t help it. Once I start talking, I can’t seem to stop. It’s like a curse really. The curse of talking.”
“Will you keep your voice down? We can’t stay here anymore.”
“Why not?”
“Don’t you get it? There could be others looking for a way in. Looking for something. I can’t risk them. Not now. Not ever. I’ve got to protect them.”
“And you think you can do that by constantly moving?” Tree Man asked.
“Yes.” A few hours ago, Tree Man would have agreed with him. Now it seemed like he didn’t want to move.
“Fine. You’re right. You’re right. Stupid. So stupid. Of course we need to leave. We need to move and not do anything else. Just keep walking. Trying to make it home. Trying to get us all safe and sound with no problems. Got it.”
“You okay?” Malachi asked. “You seem to be ranting a little more than normal.”
“No. No. I’m fine. All the walking makes me ache. It irritates me.” Tree Man lifted his foot and moaned. “See? Aching feet.”
“Aching feet, I get it.”
He laughed. Heading into the dentist office, he went to where Sasha and Lucy were already waiting.
“Is it safe?”
“It’s as safe as we’re going to get for now.”
“So not safe at all?” she asked.
“We’ve got to move.” He didn’t want to but it would seem that was all he was going to be able to do.
“Okay,” Sasha said. “I figured as much and we got ready.”
“Good.” He ran his fingers through his hair.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I didn’t mean for tonight to end up this fucked up.”
“It’s fine.”
“It’s really not.” He groaned, reaching out to touch her arm. “Please forgive me.”
She chuckled. “You need to stop thinking everything is your fault when it really isn’t. We can’t help that this world is messing with us. We have to leave, we’ve got to. I know that where there are a bunch of men, there’s also a risk of more coming. I get it. You don’t have to keep apologizing for it.” She cupped his cheek. “I get it.”
Reluctantly, Malachi pulled away as Lucy came out of her room. She looked tired.
“You okay, Malachi?” she asked.
“Yeah, kid. I’m fine.”
She smiled at him even as she looked tired.
They had to keep on moving and now they didn’t have a car.
Grabbing his supply kit, and making sure to take a first aid one with him, they all made their way out into the night.
He’d not gotten any sleep and it wouldn’t be long before it caught up with him. Running a hand down his face, he took the lead with Sasha and Lucy in the middle, and Tree Man taking up the rear.
He could do this.
One foot in front of the other.
Scanning the darkness.
Waiting for something to come out. The dog came toward his side. He wondered where it had been during the attack. Knowing his luck
and the way his life was going, he probably had a coward for a dog, and that wouldn’t do him any good.
His muscles ached.
Deep in his gut, he felt a twisting sensation as if something bad was going to happen. This shouldn’t be how his life went.
Sasha and Lucy were making him soft. They were making him care.
Taking a deep breath, he held his weapon more firmly.
Until he got them all to safety, he couldn’t allow himself to be fooled into a false sense of security.
What would be would be.
He had only one mission, to get them north.
Once that was over, he’d deal with his feelings for Sasha. He’d promised to always take care of them, and that was exactly what he was going to do. No matter what it cost him.
One foot in front of the other.
Looking left and right.
Not thinking about Sasha or what he felt.
He had to keep his focus.
He kept on repeating the mantra inside his head in the vain hope he’d finally focus on what was important, staying alive.
Chapter Forty-Four
Let’s just deviate from the plan
They’d been walking for hours, long, tiring hours. Lucy was all but dragging her feet, and every part of Sasha ached.
“Malachi, please, just a little break.”
He looked over his shoulder at her, then glanced at Lucy. Although he probably wanted to keep going, he nodded once and gestured over to a large fallen log off to the side.
The sound of the creek they’d been following was clear, and after Sasha set her bag down, she grabbed Lucy’s hand and walked her the few feet toward the rushing water.
Sasha crouched in front of the water and scooped some up, washing her face and neck off, and just letting the droplets cool her. Despite being in the mountains and surrounded by the trees and shade, September was a hot month, and she was feeling it. All the walking, the lack of cold water, and her nerves made for one awful experience.
She glanced over her shoulder at where Malachi was. He sat on the fallen log cleaning his gun.
“This heat is making me cranky, Sasha.”
