by Marla Monroe
That wasn’t the intended effect. Instead, he gritted his teeth and tried to get Kirk’s attention. Finally the other man looked back at him.
“Kirk, bring her, man. I can’t hold on.”
Kirk nodded and reached between their bodies to touch her clit. He obviously managed to finger her just right, because she went wild in their arms after that. Between his need to come and her squeezing him in her tight ass, Brad yelled out and thrust twice more in her back hole, spilling his cum in long streams deep in her bowels.
He heard Kirk call out then thrust up into her before stilling as he, too, shot cum deep inside of her. He groaned and fell back, pulling Carmen with him to the bed. Brad kissed her back several times before slowly withdrawing from her ass. His cock was deflated and thoroughly satisfied. He walked to the bathroom and cleaned up then took a warm wet bath cloth back to clean up their woman. She moaned when he wiped her down, but didn’t stir from her seat on Kirk’s body.
He smiled and tossed the wet cloth back into the bathroom before climbing back on the bed and helping to move her off of Kirk without messing with his hurt foot.
“Maybe I need to get hurt like that next time,” Brad teased.
“Don’t even go there, Brad. I’ll give you anything you want without you going and doing something stupid.” Carmen snuggled against Kirk, though, offering her sympathy and support.
Brad realized he didn’t feel pissed that she was curled up with Kirk. Kirk needed her attention right now. He’d had her attention when he’d spanked her. That had gone over really well, he decided. Maybe he could introduce her to a few other things as time went by. He’d think more about it later. Right now, he wanted to be closer to her and a good night’s sleep.
He slid up closer to her back as she lay on top of Kirk’s chest. It didn’t bother him, and that truly amazed him. He closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.
* * * *
Several days later, Kirk’s foot had pretty much healed. He was able to wear a boot again and the men had left her to go work. Carmen was so thankful Kirk’s foot hadn’t been in any worse shape. It could have been serious. She surveyed the garden and realized that she might actually have to cut back the tomato plants soon. They were overrunning the rest of the garden.
The pamphlet she’d read from the city had warned her, but she guessed she hadn’t really believed it until she saw it. They would have plenty of tomatoes for sandwiches and canning. That was for sure. She would probably be canning tomatoes this time next month by the looks of the blooms and baby fruit on the plant.
After tending to the garden, which had become a full-time job now, Carmen walked around in the backyard to determine where she could put a small flower bed. She wanted to be able to have fresh-cut flowers next year. She picked some of the flowers and arranged them in a vase on the table. Sniffing of them, she realized she felt really sleepy all of a sudden. She staggered and caught herself on the side of the counter. A sharp pain radiated through her hip.
Carmen managed two steps before she slipped to the floor. She felt weird all over, almost like she was floating, but she couldn’t really feel her arms or legs anymore. Panic had her heart racing in her chest. She tried to calm down to keep from passing out, but darkness soon overtook her.
* * * *
Brad and Kirk stretched as they got out of the transport. It wasn’t quite dark, but they had made so much progress, they had decided to knock off early to get home at a decent hour. When they walked back to the house, they realized that there weren’t any lights on in the house. Unease settled into Brad’s mind as he reached for the door.
When they walked into the kitchen, Brad groaned in worry. Carmen lay on the floor as if she’d just fallen in midstride. Her arms and legs were at odd angles. He and Kirk immediately knelt down on the floor next to her. Brad was almost afraid to check for a pulse. His fingers found her neck and the thready beat of a pulse. She was alive.
“What happened to her?” Kirk asked, looking around.
“Turn on the light. I don’t know what’s wrong.”
Kirk jumped up and turned on the light. He looked around, but nothing jumped out at him. He began searching her body from the feet up as Brad shook her and tried to get her to wake up. She wasn’t responding to him. Fear began to eat at his gut.
“What could have happened? Do you see anything wrong anywhere?” Brad felt of her head for any sign she’d hit her head.
“Look, here’s a little spot of blood on her hand.” Kirk pointed out a dried spot of blood along one finger. “What could have caused it?”
“It’s not a bite?” Brad asked.
“No. I can’t even see a hole or anything. It’s just a spot of blood. I wouldn’t have really paid any attention to it except we’re looking for something.”
“So something pricked her finger. Some sort of animal we don’t know about?”
“Flowers! There are fresh flowers on the table.” Kirk jumped up and looked at them.
“Don’t touch them!” Brad yelled.
“There’s one of those thistle plants in among the flowers. I bet that’s what did it. I’m going to go call the doctor and ask what we need to do. You put her upstairs in the bed.”
Brad grabbed her up in his arms and carried her upstairs to the bedroom. He gently laid her on the bed and took off her boots and then her jeans. He went and got a warm bath cloth and cleaned her face. She was beginning to grow cool all over now. It worried him so he covered her up with the blanket and then lay next to her to warm her up. Where was Kirk?
A few seconds later, Kirk ran up the stairs and into the bedroom. His face looked deathly white.
“It’s a deadly thistle plant. They are really rare, but she managed to find the only one in the area I guess. Hell, Brad. The doc said they don’t know what it will do to her. All they know is that it reacts violently with human blood. He said there’s nothing he can do that we can’t do. He acts like she isn’t going to make it, Brad. She has to be okay.”
“Climb into bed with us and help me keep her warm. She’s gotten cold. I’m sure she’s in shock.” Brad scooted over and let Kirk take half of her body once he had his boots off.
They held her between them for several long hours before she began to shiver. Her breathing grew raspy and she gurgled when she breathed. They immediately moved all the covers off her and propped her up to help her breathe. She thrashed around as if having a seizure. Brad was beside himself, not knowing what to do to help her.
“Go call the doctor again and tell him what she’s doing. Maybe there’s something he can think of with her symptoms changing. She’s not cold anymore. She’s getting hot, and she’s having trouble breathing.” Brad wasn’t leaving her side for any reason.
He lay next to her on the bed, keeping her from falling off whenever her coughs grew heavy. She seemed to be fighting for each breath. Tears pooled in his eyes. He couldn’t lose her. He hadn’t told her he loved her yet. In that moment, he knew he did. He loved her with everything inside of him. He was sure Kirk felt the same way. They needed to tell her.
“I love you, baby. Don’t leave me. Don’t leave us.”
Kirk’s footfalls on the stairs had him turning in bed to see the other man run to the bed with a syringe.
“What is it?” Brad demanded.
“He said to give her one of the anaphylactic shock injections we have in our first aid kits. He said since she made it through the first part, her body is fighting it and this might help. He doesn’t know for sure, but it’s the best he can come up with. She’s drowning in her own fluids. It will get rid of some of them.”
He administered the injection on her thigh, then crawled up in bed with her. In less than a minute, she began to breathe easier, though she continued to shake occasionally. At least she wasn’t fighting for each breath. Brad sighed in relief.
“What else did he say?”
“That was really about it. Other than she still might not make it, but I don’t believe
it. She’s going to be fine. Right, Brad?”
“You know it, Kirk. She’s a fighter.”
They spent the next few hours keeping her warm and bathing her when her skin grew hot. She alternated between being hot and cold. Somewhere around two in the morning, she settled down and seemed to relax into a more natural sleep. The men were afraid to go to sleep, so they took turns sleeping and watching over her.
Early the next morning, Brad woke Kirk up to let him take over.
“How is she?” he whispered.
“No change since last time you were up. She’s resting quietly.”
“I’m going to go fix something for us to eat so we can take care of her. I also need to call up Greg and Steven and let them know we aren’t going to be there today. Or maybe for a while.”
“Right. I didn’t even think about work.” Kirk sighed and stretched then got up to sit on the chair and watch out for her.
Brad hurried downstairs to contact the others. They were naturally worried and made him promise to keep them updated. He felt like they truly were worried for Carmen. It was good they had developed a friendship with the family.
He cooked some dried eggs and made toast from a loaf of homemade bread that Carmen had made earlier in the week. He shook his head and ate, then took some up to Kirk. The other man had turned the chair around backward and was straddling it, laying his arms across the back of the chair. He looked up and smiled.
“Thanks, I was getting hungry. She hasn’t moved. Do you think we should keep her turned or something?”
“Probably would be a good idea. I’ll sit with her while you eat and then you can go work in the garden some while I watch her. I’ll finish up the garden when you come back in. She’ll kill us if we let the weeds take over while she’s sick.”
Brad turned Carmen to her side, putting a pillow at her back to keep her that way. Kirk helped then left them to go downstairs. Brad tried talking to her. He wanted her to do something to acknowledge he was there.
“Carmen, baby. If you hear me, squeeze my finger, baby.” He held her hand in his with his finger in her palm.
She didn’t move.
“Baby, can you hear me? Can you move your hand for me?”
Still nothing.
“We’re worried about you, baby. You need to wake up and let us know where you hurt. We’ll make it better, I promise.”
He cursed when she didn’t move or make a sound to let him know she was even in there. He needed something to keep him going. He was so afraid they were going to lose her. Brad hurried to the bathroom and got a fresh cloth. He dipped it in some water and wet her lips with it. After a couple of times, her tongue reached out and licked at her lips. He continued doing it until she no longer licked her lips.
It was something, anyway. He repeated the process every thirty minutes until Kirk came back upstairs. He told him what he was doing and Kirk got excited.
“That’s great news. She’s thirsty, so she’s got to be getting better.” Kirk ran downstairs and got some of the passion fruit and mashed it up in a bowl.
“What are you going to do? Don’t choke her, man.”
“I’m not going to. Let’s see how she reacts to something with taste.” He smeared a small amount on her lower lip and her tongue reached out to lick it off.
Her whole mouth got in on it this time. He put some more and she was soon sucking it off his finger. Brad insisted on a try. When he laid his fruit-covered finger on her lip, she reached out and sucked his finger in her mouth where she promptly bit him.
“Fuck!”
Kirk chuckled but quickly sobered up when Brad glared at him.
“Let’s give her some to chew on.” Kirk put a small bite in her mouth.
She immediately began to chew on it. Then he added some water and she swallowed. Both men grinned. They could keep her hydrated and fed until she woke up. Brad tried one more time to get her to react to his voice, but she didn’t respond.
“You can’t demand she follow your directions, Brad. Give her time to get over the shock her body’s had. She’s doing better. That’s all that matters right now.”
“You’re right, Kirk. I’m just impatient. I can’t stand not being able to talk to her.”
“Go finish the garden, and then we’ll fix something for her to eat and see what she will chew on.”
“I’m not putting my dick in there, that’s for sure.” Brad grinned, glad that they could smile some now. “I’m going to go call up Steven and Greg and let them know how she’s doing. They were really worried earlier.”
“Good. I’m sure Janet will be glad to know that she is doing better.” Kirk continued giving her water and fruit until she no longer took it from him.
Brad hurried downstairs and out to the garden. The damn thing looked like a small jungle growing up. He hadn’t paid much attention to it over the past few days. He’d been too engrossed in finishing their first house. Now he admired the lush greenery and how well Carmen had been keeping it up.
He weeded the last few rows. Then he went around with a pair of gloves and found every possible thistle plant there was and destroyed it. He made sure to burn the bits leftover as well. He didn’t want her to ever go through this again. They might not be so lucky next time. He even burned the flowers she had placed in the vase to be sure there wasn’t anything left of the dreaded plant. He would pick fresh flowers for her when she was able to sit downstairs again.
Once he got hold of Steve, he filled the other man in on what they had managed to accomplish with Carmen and thanked them for their prayers.
“I’ll call you again in the morning and let you know how she is.”
“Janet is anxious to come see her. Would you let us bring her over once Carmen is awake again?”
“That would be great, Steven. Carmen would probably love to have another woman to talk to about being sick. She’s bound to be scared right now. I just wish she could talk to us.”
They said bye and Brad hurried back upstairs to see if there had been any change.
Chapter Ten
Three days later, Carmen finally opened her eyes for a short period of time. Kirk nearly scared Brad to death yelling for him when it happened. Brad ran up the stairs, nearly slipping when he did.
“What’s wrong?”
“She opened her eyes. Look.” Kirk sat back on the bed.
“Baby, can you hear us?” Brad asked.
She didn’t say anything, but her eyes moved to look at them. Kirk felt sure she heard them but still couldn’t answer for some reason. Brad was smiling from ear to ear, but soon sobered when he realized she was closing her eyes again.
“She’s probably tired. Maybe she’ll leave them open longer later,” Kirk suggested.
“I’ll sit with her for a while.” Brad took over the bedside vigil, leaving Kirk to head back downstairs to finish up dinner for them.
He ate then took a plate up to Brad. The other man was busy feeding Carmen and nodded at him to leave it on the bedside table.
“She’s eating pretty well tonight. She didn’t eat so well this morning.” Brad placed a little water on her lips. She sucked it in.
At the sound of her sucking, Brad looked at Kirk.
“Do you think she could sip from the glass?”
“Worth a try.”
Brad placed the glass at her mouth and tipped it up until the water was against her lips. She opened her mouth and sucked, then swallowed. She repeated the process until half the glass was gone. Then she stopped and sighed.
“Hey, another breakthrough. She’s going to be good as new soon,” Brad said.
“I’m going to take a quick shower. I’ll be back to relieve you in a few minutes,” Kirk told him.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
After he had finished in the shower, Kirk climbed in bed with her and pulled her so that she was resting her head on his chest. Brad left them to go shower as well. When he returned, they dozed off and on during the night.
S
ometime around four, a noise woke Kirk. He sat up and listened. Sometime during the night, Brad must have pulled Carmen’s head over on his chest because that was where she lay now. He listened closely for whatever had wakened him. Just when he thought he was hearing things, he heard it again.
“Tirsty.”
Kirk’s brows furrowed. “Tirsty?” He leaned over Carmen’s head and noticed her eyes were open. He hurriedly climbed over Brad and looked at her.
“Are you thirsty, baby?” he asked in a quiet voice.
“Tirsty.” Her lips moved just a little.
Kirk whooped in joy and kissed her.
“What in the hell?” Brad sat up growling. “Kirk! What are you doing?”
“She’s thirsty. She said the word, Brad. She said tirsty.”
“Well, give her something to drink, asshole.”
Kirk grinned like an idiot and grabbed the glass. He held it to her lips and she sucked down half the glass before he stopped her.
“Easy, baby. Rest and I’ll give you some more in a second. You don’t want to make yourself sick.”
“Thirsty,” she insisted. Her eyes followed him as he picked up the glass again.
“Here you go, baby.”
She sucked up the water then stopped and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, there were tears in them.
“Oh, baby. What’s wrong? You’re getting better. We’re not going to leave you alone. We’ll be here with you, baby.” Kirk took her hand in his and gently squeezed it.
Brad sat up, cradling her in his arms. “You’re going to be just fine, baby. It’s just taking a little time. Bear with us, baby.”
Later in the morning, the three of them were all entangled when Kirk woke up again. This time, he extracted himself from them and climbed out of the bed to relieve himself. When he had finished and washed his hands, he returned to the bedroom and sat on the chair to watch Carmen’s face for any sign she was moving around inside.
Brad finally woke up an hour later and climbed out of the bed. Kirk helped him arrange her so that she was in the middle, making sure she wouldn’t fall out of the bed if she began thrashing around again. Then he slipped downstairs to fix something for breakfast.