by SM Olivier
He chuckled, and I smiled at the sound. He sat up before he gave me a long, lingering kiss. I could taste myself on his lips. Again, I was reminded that, for someone who didn’t kiss or go down on a girl, he was definitely beyond excellent at both.
“The sun should be up soon. I think I saw some formula here, and we should probably get a few more things,” he nuzzled his nose against mine.
I smiled at the tenderness he was showing me. I wanted to reciprocate the favor. I pulled away from him before I grabbed him through his pants and leaned forward to whisper in his ear as he had done in mine. “Let me suck your cock and make you feel better. Let me taste your come like you tasted mine. Let me make you feel as good as you made me feel.”
He hissed between his teeth, and I felt him stiffen in my hand, felt him sway against me for a second.
Instead, he abruptly stood up, clearning his throat. “Little Warrior, as tempting as that sounds, we’ve tarried long enough. I’m sure your brothers and friend are more than worried about us. We need to gather supplies and get out of here.”
I frowned, immediately realizing how selfish I was being. I grabbed Axel’s t-shirt and slid it over my head. I had put not only myself, but Axel as well, in danger tonight. I had made my family worry, putting us all at risk by putting myself first. Had Axel not stopped me, I would have gladly gone down on him and begged him to take me. My own release had been put above others and common sense.
“Whatever you’re thinking stop.” He knelt in front of me, then kissed my lips gently. “I want nothing more than to feel your mouth around me, to slide into you.” He adjusted his erection, which was still very hard, as if to prove his words. “If we were at Sanctuary right now, I’d have to brake all my rules and take you with or without you accepting my team, but sadly duty calls.” He kissed my nose and smiled.
I nodded and kissed his mouth briefly, still feeling bereft.
Chapter 10
“What are you doing?” Axel asked sometime later as I wrote ‘eight tubs of formula’ down on a notebook I had found.
“I’m figuring how much we owe them. BJ has some cash left, we can swing by and pay them before we leave,” I said with a shrug before I placed them in a book bag I had found.
So far, my list looked like this:
Notebook 2.39
Pens 1.59
Bookbags (6) 119.94
Tampons (10 boxes) 100.76
Pads (14 boxes) 168.68
I had started rounding up at this point because I still had to do the math, plus I hadn’t attributed taxes yet.
Condoms (11 boxes)170
Formula (8 tubs)240
Axel leaned over my shoulder, perused the list, and started to laughed heartily. I was too stunned to react at first. He had the prettiest, straightest white teeth I had ever seen and… crinkles! He had eye crinkles! Could the man get any more beautiful?
He surprised me by wrapping his arms behind me. “Little Warrior, you are so… refreshing. You do realize money is useless now, right?”
I frowned. “I know, but this was someone’s livelihood. I don’t feel right just taking their stuff with no… payment.”
He kissed the spot between my neck and shoulder before he reached in his back pocket and withdrew a wad of hundred dollar bills out of his overstuffed wallet. “I’ll put this in the office if it makes you feel better, but I read their communication binder,” he said, pointing toward the phamarcy’s back room. “I have a feeling Mrs. and Mr. Edwards aren’t coming back. Cathy called out because her husband was sick, and Kurt refused to stay since Bill, Ned, and Cory were no-shows and weren’t answering the phone. That was two days ago. No one’s been here for two days.”
I nodded, somewhat mollified. “Okay.”
I turned back around before filling the bags with baby food, diapers, and wipes. I systematically filled the bags with all the things I thought we might need, from first aid kits to toiletries for us all.
Axel came back with a bin that looked like a laundry cart. “We can start filling these up. I found a work van at the back door, and before you ask, I wrote out a check. I’m good for it.” He smirked at me with a wink.
Who was this man? I was amazed at the transformation he’d gone through. He was teasing me, touching me. For a man who didn’t kiss or go down on his partners, he was very demonstrative.
“Well, I’m sorry if I don’t have a penchant for stealing,” I replied pertly as I stuck my tongue out at him. “How was I supposed to know the owners were gone?”
“Don’t stick that out unless you want to use it,” he warned me with a faint smile.
“Oh, I wanted to use it.” I licked my top lip. “I wanted to lick that big cock of yours like a lollipop and then suck on you like a popsicle until you filled me with your sweet treat, but you denied me,” I said saucily.
His eyes darkened, and he couldn’t hide the erection pressing against his pants as he visibly swallowed. “Be careful the games you play, Little Warrior,” he said quietly before he started to walk away with his bin. “Oh, and make sure you pick up more condoms,” he said over his shoulder, “…the largest size they have, too. Because when it’s time, I’ll be using them and you won’t be able to walk the next day.”
It was my turn to groan in frustration, wet yet again. I wanted nothing more than to feel Axel stretching me.
֍
The sun had risen only an hour before we finally packed up and pushed the cart to the van. It was a newer model van and still smelled new, with lots of room in the empty back and even had built-in shelves.
“What do you think happened to the people who owned this?” I asked softly as I buckled up.
He leaned forward and synced his phone to the bluetooth. He scrolled through his phone until Imagine Dragons’ Believer came out of the speakers surrounding us. I nodded and smiled. I typically liked to listen to a variety of music, but I had been on an Imagine Dragons kick recently. Before my matches, over a week ago, I had Thunder, Whatever it Takes, and a few others on loop, pumping me up for my fights.
“I think,” he finally said, cautiously, “that I don’t like to think about what happened to them. We can spend all day tormenting ourselves with those kinds of thoughts. I much rather live in the present and protect those I can.”
He put the van in drive and drove down the alley. We hit a few potholes, but the suspension in the vehicle made it barely noticeable.
I nodded. “You’re probably right,” I said quietly.
It took us less than five minutes to reach the hotel. We entered the parking lot to see four other vehicles now parked near us, and a small group of people were dragging bodies of the infected to a ditch near the road.
“What will happen to them, the infected?” I asked, scrunching my nose in distaste. Even from this distance, I could smell their putrid scent of rot and copper.
“They need to be burned,” he answered concisely.
The closer we got to the hotel, the more I felt Axel physically slide back into his former role. Gone was the teasing, affectionate man I knew, replaced by the stern, stoic leader.
“Are they… contagious, even in death?” I inquired as we opened the doors.
He frowned, seemingly debating his response. “I won’t pretend to understand the virus or all of its effects, but we had to put down several of the strays that roamed the village. Without the people throwing them scraps, they became desperate for food…” His voice trailed off, and I filled in the rest.
I was torn between cursing my curious mind and empowered to know the truth. Right now, knowledge was power, and I refused to feel more helpless than I already felt.
“Avery!” I heard my name called out in relief, before Mikey and Miller launched their bodies into my arms.
I felt Mikey’s wet tears against my shirt, and Miller had a death grip around my waist. I pulled them in tight and felt the trembling in their little bodies.
“Hey, guys, I’m okay,” I murmured to them. “I’m sorry I scar
ed you. I had a bad dream, and I didn’t know what I was doing.”
“I’m scared to see what you would do if you knew what you were doing,” Felix said dryly as he sauntered over.
I gasped, placing my hands over my mouth. Any embarrassment I may have felt over my actions was quickly replaced by horror. Felix's right eye was nearly swollen shut, and the entire area around it was painted in angry shades of blue, purple, and black.
“I am so sorry, Felix,” I whispered in mortification.
Felix scrutinized me for several seconds before he smiled. “It’s all good, but be warned, woman. In the future, I’m going to tackle your ass and not worry about gently waking you.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Axel said dryly. “I already have a plan in place, and my team will ensure her safety.”
I felt my cheeks blush red as Felix gave me another small, knowing smile. “Well, you know that the Bravo Team always has your back.”
“I’m going to kill you! Bring you back to life and kill you again!” Sylvia yelled from my right.
I couldn’t help but smile as the little firecracker stomped towards me, BJ only steps behind her. “You can try,” I teased her. “But until you outgrow my pocket, I don’t think you’ll do much damage.”
BJ embraced me as Sylvia stopped to growl at me. I always joked that we were such an odd couple. She was so short, and I was so tall. She would tease me in return and say I should just get one of those purses for dogs so I could carry her around. I replied that I wouldn’t need a bag when she could fit in my pocket.
“I should stab you,” she growled.
“I love you, too,” I replied with a smile. “I’m sorry I scared you. You know it’s not intentional.” I frowned.
She hugged me, trapping the boys against me. I felt her warm tears on my chest, and I patted her back comfortingly.
“Welcome back.” A tall, lumberjack of a man walked towards us with a broad smile. “I’m happy to see you found her safe. Boys, my girls just made some cookies. Why don’t you run and get your tins.” He looked at Miller and Mikey.
“Thanks!” Miller yelled, taking off at a run, not even stopping to ask if he could have any.
I frowned again. We had been too lenient on their sweet intake the last couple of days. Stephanie was going to have a conniption when she found out they hadn’t had any vegetables and barely any fruit in our care.
“I’m Duke.” The burly man held out a hand.
“Avery,” I murmured, returning the shake as I looked the man over. I’d never see hair so red. The beard that fell to his chest was just as vibrant. He had a broad open face. I liked him immediately. Some people just had this…vibe about them that put you at ease, and he had it.
He gave me an assessing look. “There’s a pound down the road about a mile to the left. We’re headed that way now. You need a dog,” he stated decisively. “Let one of them pick you, and you’ll have a friend to help keep you from running.”
I immediately realized this was the owner of the hotel. The guys had returned to the room last night, telling us about the nice but interestesting character that owned the hotel. If this man was the owner, then that meant he was the Army vet. Did he, too, suffer mentally? Why was he telling me I should get a dog?
He reached down and ran a comforting hand over his… dog?
I didn’t know how I had missed the ugly dog behind the lumberjack—it was hard to miss. He was missing an eye and almost a whole ear. My immediate reaction to him was revulsion, but soon I saw the beauty in his sleek gray coat, his thick muscular body, and the calming golden eye that regarded me as if he could see into my soul.
I always wanted a dog, but my parents didn’t think we were responsible enough to care for them as kids. The Cavaliers had a yellow lab, up until a few years ago, but it wasn’t the same. Then my apartment complex wouldn’t allow any dog over ten pounds, and I wanted a dog, not a… toy.
“For real?” Sylvia gushed as if she’d forgotten her ire at me, wiping her eyes with her hands. “Do they have small dogs, like a Chihuahua, a Yorkie, maybe even a Pomeranian?”
“Right now, we have a brother-sister pair that can’t be separated,” said a kind-faced woman who walked over to us. “I think they are a mix of Boston terrier and Pomeranian; sweet dogs, but most people didn’t want both of them. I volunteer at the shelter. The owners abandoned them. I don’t want them starving to death in their kennels and,” she hedged, “I don’t want to release them if they can turn.” She frowned. “Duke and Liza are going to take some of them, but they can’t take all of them, and my husband will kill me if I bring any more dogs home. I already have five. I want to place the dogs before nightfall, as they seem to be a natural deterrent against the foamers. I heard them all night last night, those foamers, circling my home, but they wouldn’t come up on my porch. I kept my Rotties out there all night, patrolling the porch.”
“We’ll take them!” Sylvia said enthusiastically. “I even have their names picked out.” She gave me a wicked smile.
I groaned, certain I didn’t even want to know. I looked over at Axel and noticed he now held a large box of supplies.
“It doesn’t hurt to test the theory out,” Axel said cautiously. “But it is your land, your place. It’s not up to me to make that decision.”
Huh. I wasn’t expecting that response. Sure, the land was in Dad’s and his brothers’names, but in my head, it was always Nana’s and Pop-pop’s.
Axel had taken the lead in most decisions up until this point. I just assumed he would make a decision whether or not we were going to try and fit a few dogs into our two vehicles. They were packed enough as it was.
“I think we should get a few,” BJ said cautiously. “But where are we going to fit them?”
“We have the van now.” Axel patted the vehicle. He handed the large box of supplies to the red-haired man. “We ended up in the pharmacy down the road. It looks like the owners are gone, and the employees stopped showing up to their shifts. I left a significant amount of cash on the desk,” he cut his eyes towards me, “and grabbed a few things. I put together a box of things that may be a hot commodity soon—antibiotics, a few bottles of pain killers, alcohol, and I noticed the Mrs was smoking some Marlboro lights. I got a few cartons of those as well.”
I barely noticed Duke laughing until he uncovered his mouth. “Thanks! She’ll appreciate that. You left cash on the desk, though…?”
“She made me.” Axel smirked at me. “She didn’t want to steal from good, hard-working people.”
Duke continued laughing, and I noticed a few others had joined us by now and was participating in the mirth as well. I felt my face redden.
“Stop it.” A petite African American woman came pushing her way through the people. “Stop embarrassing that girl,” she said in a deep southern accent. “It’s honorable!” she insisted, taking my hand and squeezing it. “My name is Liza, and that brute is my husband.”
“Avery.” I attempted to smile through my chagrin.
They had to be the oddest couple I had ever seen. Liza was as dark as Duke was light, and tiny where he was huge.
“New world, new rules,” Liza said softly. “It’s not honorable to steal from the living or in occupied areas, but if a store is left open with no sign of ownership, it’s…free game.”
“You’re right,” Duke said, wiping his eyes. “I’m sorry for being an ass, Avery, but after what I’ve seen in all my forty-nine years, I never knew people like you still existed. How’d you get the van?” his mouth twitched as he looked over at Axel. Somehow I didn’t think he was done teasing me.
“I wrote a check.” Axel grinned before he took me into his arms. I was surprised he’d embrace me in front of the others. “The last time I checked my bank account, I had more than enough to cover the cost.”
Liza snorted. “Let me know when you can access your accounts, because I can’t even make a simple phone call, let alone withdraw money.”
I grimaced. Whe
re did all that money go, and if the world were to return to normal, would I be able to access mine? Was our currency system now obsolete?
“We should probably get going. Thank you for the hospitality, but we’re in a race against the sun,” Axel stated as he looked over at Josh, who was just now joining us. “We’ll make a quick stop at the pound and see if any dogs want to come along with us.”
“The truck’s packed, and what dogs?” Josh said with a confused expression.
“You guys talk amongst yourselves. Finish getting packed up for your trip,” Liza commented. “I’m going to steal the girls away. My sister-in-law owned a boutique and brought a lot of her inventory. We’re going to get these girls some clothes!”
I looked down at my t-shirt and boxers. That was probably a good idea.
“Oooh clothes!” Sylvia cried out gleefully.
“Sounds good, hon.” Duke smiled. “Hurry back, though. They really should get going to their safe place. Just wished I could talk you guys into staying.” Duke sighed dramatically.
“If we didn’t have family waiting on us, we would gladly accept,” I heard Josh say as Liza and Sylvia dragged me away.
I felt a sharp sting on my butt as I walked away, and I whipped my head back around. Axel grinned and winked at me. Did he just spank me? And did I like it? I glared at him before sticking my tongue out at him. His eyes darkened with promises I couldn’t wait to indulge in.
֍
We left the pound with seven dogs, supplies from the near-by vet clinic, and several bags of dog food. Four of the dogs were now riding with the kids, Sylvia, Chad, and Felix, and three of them were with the rest of us, in the van.
In the time that I had taken a shower and gotten dressed, the guys had a bench-seat installed on the sidewall of the van. Apparently, Duke had an old, broken-down van, so he gave us the seat to use in ours. Currently, BJ and Josh were sitting on it. BJ’s labrador was lying at his feet, while Josh’s pit-lab puppy was curled up in his arms.
It was more than endearing to see the guys act like kids as they chose a dog to come home with us. Only Axel and Chad had elected not to select a dog and had followed me around as I picked out mine.
