The Pulse: Book 1 in the Pulse Trilogy

by Shoshanna Evers

  Jenna put her arm around Taryn and winked at the soldier. “If you really want her, then pretend you’re me.”

  The soldier must have liked the idea of that, because he laughed and sat down.

  “Can I take your shirt off?” Jenna asked Taryn. Just being asked for something the men had tried without permission seemed to make Taryn feel better, and she nodded as Jenna slowly stripped her dirty T-shirt over her head. “You’re so beautiful,” Jenna said, and the men hooted in agreement.

  Jenna leaned in close to Taryn and whispered in her ear. “It’s me and you. Close your eyes and just… feel.”

  Taryn nodded, closing her eyes, her breath evening out.

  “Hold on to the bar,” Jenna suggested, and Taryn reached above her head, grabbing hold of the bar that ran across the middle of the subway car for riders to hold on to when it was standing room only, which, Jenna remembered, used to be all the time.

  Jenna ran her hands over Taryn’s naked torso, warming her skin, getting her comfortable. The soldiers watched with rapt attention, but they were, in fact, treating it like a show—sitting back and viewing.

  Taryn wiggled her hips, and Jenna slowly tugged her sweat pants down, pulling them off with a flourish, leaving the girl naked. The flames from the garbage fire outside their subway car made her body seem to glow in the dim light.

  Jenna dropped little nipping kisses across Taryn’s belly, licking fully around her waist until she was behind Taryn, admiring her pert bottom. Running her hands over Taryn’s ass, she slipped her fingers down her cleft, finding her clit from behind. The girl moaned, but she was still dry, probably from fear of the soldiers.

  She’d have to remedy that. Jenna ran her fingers over Taryn’s ass cheeks, tickling her, and when she started to giggle a little, Jenna slipped her fingers back to her clit, rubbing softly. She was starting to get a bit wet now. Good.

  Jenna came back around to Taryn’s front and kissed her on the mouth as she played with her pussy, not entering her, lightly teasing her nether lips with soft strokes, then finding her clit and flicking it just a little with her fingertip. Her teasing had the desired effect—soon Taryn moaned and pressed her wet cunt against Jenna’s hand, writhing against her.

  “You want more?” Jenna asked quietly, and Taryn nodded, her eyes still pressed shut. Twirling her fingers in the dark, moist curls that covered Taryn’s mound, Jenna rubbed her swollen clit, keeping up a steady rhythm with one hand, and then she slid a finger deep inside her, so both of her hands were buried between Taryn’s legs.

  The soldiers, Jenna couldn’t help but notice, were all entranced, and all hard as rocks. Their pants tented comically as they looked at the two women.

  Jenna winked at them and flicked her tongue out, trailing wet kisses down Taryn’s neck, dropping between her breasts, sliding down her smooth belly, and finally meeting her hands at Taryn’s pussy. Jenna spread Taryn’s labia apart and kissed her clit, licking it lazily, until Taryn’s thighs quivered.

  She grabbed the girl’s thighs and held them, caressing her, sucking at her slick juncture with renewed enthusiasm. Taryn cried out, a gush of moisture covering Jenna’s mouth and chin, trickling down Taryn’s inner thighs.

  “Oh my God,” Taryn said, her eyes snapping open. “What just happened?” She looked down at the moisture covering her inner thighs and at Jenna.

  Jenna grinned and wiped her face with the back of her hand, laughing. “You had an orgasm. Surely that’s happened before, right?”

  The girl nodded slowly, then whispered, “I’ve never done that before when I came!”

  Jenna laughed again and held her hand up to Taryn’s nose. “It’s clean—smell it, silly. It’s not pee, it’s your come.”

  Taryn sniffed Jenna’s hand and laughed with her. “Oh that is so gross.”

  “They don’t think it was gross, do you guys?” Jenna asked, finally bringing the men into the conversation.

  All four men shook their heads, looking shell-shocked. The one who had the flask pulled it out and handed it to Taryn, smiling gallantly. “Definitely not gross,” he agreed. “Watching you come is hot as all hell.”

  The other soldiers nodded in agreement and Jenna took a deep long sip, though she was reluctant to chase away Taryn’s musky taste from her mouth.

  The soldier who had threatened her before stood up, his tented pants no longer looking comical to Jenna. “I’m done watching,” he said. His intention was clear—but Taryn wasn’t ready for that, no way.

  “Come back another night,” Jenna said sweetly. “I’ll take care of you then.”

  The man shook his head. “How ’bout now.”

  It wasn’t a request, she could tell. Jenna’s heart raced. The other soldiers had stepped outside, leaving their buddy. Maybe they knew what he was like, and didn’t want to be a part of it. But they also didn’t want to help the girls. As long as Taryn didn’t have to be a part of it, Jenna was game.

  “It’s your turn to grab the bar, Jenna,” the soldier said, his voice low. “And I’m not asking.”

  His commanding voice made her instantly wet. “You don’t need to ask, soldier,” Jenna purred. “Especially if you plan on using that tongue of yours for more than just talking.”

  Potterskill, NY

  MASON

  Mason looked over at Emily and frowned. Her beautiful face looked worn and tired. She’d been working nearly around the clock since they came to Luke’s house, helping a steady barrage of Potterskill residents with everything from an infected hangnail to a case of walking pneumonia.

  Mason winced as he overheard Emily explain to a man, the son of one of the remaining elderly residents, that his mother was going dusky gray every so often because her oxygen saturation was low. The woman needed extra oxygen, but since she was so old and had very little chance of surviving much longer Emily had to suggest one of the few available oxygen tanks go to the young man with pneumonia who stood a good chance of pulling through fine.

  Triage. It broke his heart thinking about the terrible choices Emily was being forced to make. It didn’t help any that the people were alternating between being happy she was there and suspecting she would only bring trouble.

  Some people wanted her kicked out already.

  Mason and Emily ate well, though, and had spent the last two nights sleeping in Luke and Melissa’s house, which was nice except for the occasional baby cry waking them.

  Emily looked like she had gained a pound or so, if that was even possible in just a few days. But eating until they were full three times a day, real food—it did wonders. And it made it almost seem worth it.

  Until he looked at Emily again and realized she was beyond exhaustion. This town would work her to death, until she literally died from the illnesses she fought to treat.

  He had to step in. Had to make them treat her right and set some rules. She shouldn’t be working so hard, for so long, without rest. He wished he had her medical knowledge so he could step in and help her, but he didn’t.

  Mason walked past the people standing in line to see her, getting more than a few dirty looks in the process. “Emily,” he called, getting her attention. She looked up at him, her eyes blurry and red. “I need to talk to you.”

  “I can’t,” she said, shrugging helplessly. “I have patients.”

  Mason turned toward the line of people. “Emily will be back in two hours to see you. You can either wait here or go home and come back.” The crowd actually booed, and Mason shook his head. They didn’t care about her, not a bit.

  “Mason,” Emily said, looking at him. “What are you doing?”

  “You’re taking a nap. If you don’t lie down you’re going to pass out, and then you won’t be of use to anybody.”

  “No, I can’t do that.”

  “Pretend you were your own patient. What would you say to yourself?”

  She paused. “Fine.”

  She seemed relieved, and took Mason’s hand when he offered it. As much as he desired her, h
e wasn’t going to interfere with her nap time, even though the thought of her sprawled on that queen-sized bed made his cock twitch in his pants.

  He made sure she went into the house and closed the door to the back bedroom before he let her out of his sight. Now Luke was going to get an earful.

  Mason found Luke in the backyard, planting tomatoes. They had a very decent vegetable garden going. When he wasn’t watching over Emily, Mason had spent the past few days watching over Luke as he worked in the garden, asking him questions, trying to learn a bit about the process. Mason had never grown anything before, and the one time he had a houseplant it had died.

  “Luke, this can’t continue,” he said straight off.

  Luke peered at him from under the oversized hat he wore to protect his face and neck from the sun. “Not my doing.”

  Just the fact that Luke knew exactly what Mason was talking about made Mason angrier. “This town is taking advantage of her. I won’t stand for it.”

  “You’re both eating pretty well. You’re eating so well, in fact, I’d say maybe you’re the one taking advantage of her.” Luke went back to digging with a broken spade, the handle held on with duct tape.

  Anger rose in Mason like bile, and he swallowed hard before the sour taste could hit his mouth. This asshole didn’t know him. He didn’t know anything about their situation. “She can see patients for two hours in the morning. That’s it. She’ll round on other people she’s already treating for two hours in the afternoon. And that’s the extent of it. No more. No less. If you have a problem with that, you’ll have to go through me.”

  Luke stood. “Sounds like part-time work for full-time food, for two people. We’d have to cut the salary, to one meal a day, and just for her.”

  “Like hell you will. Three meals a day, for both of us, and I’ll work doing whatever you need, planting or fixing stuff or whatever.”

  “No deal.” Luke went back to gardening, apparently feeling pretty secure in the fact they had nowhere else to go.

  Mason cursed under his breath. “Maybe we’ll leave.”

  “Leave then. I like having Emily here, but she’s managed to piss off some people by waltzing in here and taking over, including taking oxygen away from an old lady.”

  “You asked her to help. This is how she helps.”

  “Well, maybe when she’s done helping, you guys should skedaddle.”

  Mason sobered at the thought. He didn’t want them both kicked out. If anyone had to leave it should be him, but he didn’t trust the townspeople to take care of Emily the way he would.

  “Maybe you should leave,” Luke said quietly at Mason’s prolonged silence. “She can stay.”

  “I’m not leaving her here alone with you people. This town is overridden with men, and I don’t trust any of them, including you.”

  He shrugged. “She’d be safe here. We’re not like those guys in the city.”

  Mason gaped. “How’d you hear about that?”

  “Just a guess, based on your attitude problem.” Luke continued. “Potterskill is a very tightly run ship. We have enough food and supplies for our residents and no more. The only reason we let you in the first place was so Emily could treat Melissa. Emily has since earned her keep. I think we need her, even if some others don’t feel the same way. I wouldn’t mind having her stay, but we don’t need you. You’re taking up valuable resources. If you want to stick together then she has to leave with you.”

  “Who are you to decide? There’s a whole slew of folks out there who live in Potterskill too, and they might feel differently.” Mason gestured to the line of Emily’s patients.

  Luke nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll put it before the council tonight, then. We’ll have a town hall meeting and people can vote.”

  Fuck. What if they voted them out? If they didn’t think Mason and Emily were hitched then they might agree to at least keep Emily. All those men in town would definitely want Mason out of the picture so they could try for a chance with her. But the meeting would give Mason a chance to state his case, at least. He didn’t want a handout, he wanted to work for his food.

  Mason stormed off, slamming the gate behind him. Damn him. It made sense, he knew that. Everything Luke said made sense. If Mason was in charge of keeping an entire community safe and fed and alive, he’d probably do the same thing. Here, Emily would be fed well. She’d gain weight. But what about when she caught some illness and died, like all the nurses and doctors before her?

  He had to make sure she stayed safe.

  Mason took the time while Emily napped to walk around the center of town. The people looked happy here. Busy, perhaps. Hardworking, definitely. But the bad sorts were all gone or dead by now. So were the weaker ones. Maybe next winter wouldn’t hit them as hard as the last, now that they had fewer people to keep alive. To keep fed and warm. If everyone stockpiled firewood, enough to last through the winter, outside each of their houses, and stockpiled food now—maybe made a bunch of beef jerky—they could be okay.

  How would Emily fare if he took her from here? On the road, they could die. Maybe if they found another setup like this one, they’d be all right. But one of the reasons Potterskill thrived was that they were smart about things, triaging supplies for their own people, and refusing to let hungry travelers put their survival in mortal danger.

  He needed to give Emily a chance to stay in the town, even if they didn’t want Mason.

  Mason walked back to Luke’s house. He was still planting. The man stood up when Mason came through the back gate.

  “I’m not here to start trouble,” Mason said, his hands up as if to say he surrendered. “I’ll stand by whatever the council decides tonight. I just want to talk.”

  “So talk.”

  “Me and Emily aren’t really married. We met in New York City a couple weeks ago.”

  This didn’t seem to be what Luke expected to hear. He raised his eyebrows and stayed silent in an implicit invitation for Mason to continue.

  “I’m probably more… more attached to her than I should be, all things considered. I told her I’d make sure she was safe. So—I’m thinking you guys can probably keep her safer in here than I can out there.”

  Luke nodded.

  “I’m nervous, though,” Mason continued. “Nervous about leaving her, a single young woman, alone here. I need to know there will be a man, one of your residents you won’t be kicking out, ever, to watch over her. To keep her from the other guys, like how you take care of Melissa.”

  “No one would touch Melissa,” Luke interrupted. “They wouldn’t dare.”

  “Exactly my point.”

  Luke thought on this for a moment and nodded. “Okay.”

  “So I need a few more days here, even if the council decides tonight I need to go and she can stay. If you make me leave tomorrow, I’ll take her with me to make sure she’s okay. But if you really want to keep her, I need a bit more time to make sure you honor her new work hours, and to find a guy who will look after her. Then I’ll leave.”

  “What does Emily say about this?”

  “Emily doesn’t know yet about the town hall meeting tonight—I still have to tell her.”

  Emily had been growing more and more confident each day she spent with him, and she’d proven that she can take care of herself. She probably wouldn’t care at all if he left.

  That should have made him feel better, but for some reason it didn’t. It’s a good thing she’s able to protect herself without me around, he told himself. A good thing.

  “For my own peace of mind, let me stay a few more days.”

  “For your peace of mind?” Luke snorted. “I only care about keeping my town safe and secure. I don’t give a shit about your peace of mind.”

  Mason had to make sure Emily would be okay. “Then I’ll take her with me tomorrow morning.” He wasn’t even sure if he was bluffing or not, so he doubted Luke would know.

  Luke sighed. “Fine. If the council decides to kick you out of Potterskill b
ut let Emily stay, I’ll recommend they give you three days to wrap things up. Today’s Saturday—I want you gone by Monday, whether you take her or not. But for her own good, I’d suggest you let her stay where she has a chance at surviving.”

  Mason nodded and went to wake Emily up from her nap. The line of people waiting to see her was still long. They had all waited outside for the past two hours.

  Was there any chance the council would let him stay here in Potterskill with Emily?

  He had a lot of work to do before Monday. First he need to make sure she wasn’t going to end up being worked to death, and the only way to do that was to insist she stand up for herself. Second, he needed to find a man for her to live with. In three days.

  The thought of another man putting his hands on her made him so angry he could barely think straight, but there was no other way.

  She wasn’t his to keep.

  But how could he get the right person to watch over Emily for him without her realizing what he was up to? Mason knocked on the back bedroom door softly. No answer.

  He stepped inside, annoyed she hadn’t thought to lock the door. If he had been anyone else, she could have been in danger. But as soon as someone stood up and claimed her, like Luke did for Melissa, no one would dare touch her. Luke and Melissa had a good life—and it would be selfish of him to not want the same for Emily.

  But he’d always been selfish. Always been a loner. Just because he wanted to continue being with Emily didn’t mean he had a free pass to put his needs above hers. No, she had taught him something about generosity, and he intended to put that knowledge to good use.

  She looked so beautiful, lying there on the bed, her legs sprawled across the bedspread, her mouth slightly open as she slept deeply. He didn’t want to wake her, but he had to. The people were waiting.

  He leaned down and kissed her cheek lightly and she stirred, opening her chocolate brown eyes.

  She sat up on the bed. “Thanks for making me nap,” she said.

  “You need to start sticking up for yourself. Promise me from now on you won’t let yourself get overtired or sick.”