Four Mercenaries - The Complete Collection

by K. A. Merikan

  Still on top, still in charge, Drake pushed their foreheads together, but when that strong hand grasped his cock, he didn’t have the words to describe what a turn-on it was. “Been thinking about this for a while now, so make my fantasies a reality.”

  Tank let his kiss talk for him and stroked Drake’s cock fast and to the point. There wasn’t much finesse to it, but in this moment Drake didn’t much care for anything but Tank’s touch.

  Hands cupping Tank’s face, their mouths joined, he tumbled into a well of pleasure that overflowed all around him as his balls tingled, and his cock spurted cum all over Tank’s hand. Fighting for breath, Drake nipped on Tank’s lip almost too hard before settling in his arms, satisfied yet still shocked by what actually happened.

  “Yes. We need to do this again.”

  Tank’s gaze softened and he wrapped his arms around Drake. “You know you’re my best friend?” he asked after a while.

  Warmth filled Drake’s chest, and he rested his cheek on Tank’s shoulder, watching him with a smile stretching his lips. Maybe this made their arrangement even less conventional than it already was, but he didn’t care. It worked for them. “And you’re mine.”

  Tank pressed his mouth to Drake’s again, and it didn’t feel awkward that there was cum between them or that they still had their cocks out. “This was… nice.” He smiled and grabbed the bottle from the table to finish it. “Now I really can’t die. You’ve got to give me head again.”

  Anxiety scratched its claws across the back of Drake’s skull, and he squeezed his arms around Tank. “If you die, I’m going to haunt you in the afterlife.”

  And the worst thing was that while his heart had been heavy with worry before, it now felt so much worse.

  Tank passed him the bottle, as if he understood.

  Chapter 16 – Pyro

  Sweet things really did help. Pyro hoped he wouldn’t end up fighting off a pot belly as a result of Boar’s food therapy, but it did aid him in getting back to his sober self. Thirteen days since his last glass of liquor, since the last line of cocaine, his mind was gradually clearing, and the fatigue he’d experienced in the beginning had been replaced by moderate levels of energy.

  Boar sat outside in a rocking chair, huddled under a blanket, Clover was nowhere to be seen, and Drake had gone away to pick up some secret message from Tank, so the cabin resonated with a profound silence. Deep in the woods, no sounds of engines or crowds were there to disturb the quiet of their hideaway. Pyro had found the absence of strong stimuli frustrating when they’d first moved back here, but as his cravings subsided, he had to reluctantly agree that there was peace to being in nature.

  He wanted to stuff the last homemade brownie into his mouth, but when his gaze slid over Boar’s head again, he picked up the plate and walked out onto the porch instead. “Want a snack?”

  “Nah, I’m good,” Boar muttered and wouldn’t even open his eyes. He seemed paler than usual, which made his freckles stand out in a way that tempted Pyro’s lips.

  He put the plate on a side table and pressed a kiss to the stubble of red hair growing out of Boar’s skull. “What’s up? I thought you slept well last night.”

  “I’m okay. Just tired.” Boar opened his bloodshot eyes and let his head fall back so he could look at him. “Do you need anything? Clo could go for a walk with you. He’s around.”

  Pyro frowned. It’s been almost two weeks since they’d gotten Boar back, and he’d been recovering well. So what the fuck was that? “Are you sick? Maybe you want something warm to drink?” he asked, rubbing his knuckles along Boar’s cheek.

  Boar took a deep breath and slid his hand into Pyro’s. “I’m out of painkillers. Clo shouldn’t drive and it’s gonna be a while until Drake’s back. I just gotta tough it out.”

  Boar had broken ribs and many injuries that were still healing, and while he wasn’t dying of pain, Pyro could only imagine how worn down his system was after months of fighting in the secret death matches.

  Pyro groaned and slid his arms around Boar. “What are you talking about? Just give me the keys, and I’ll go to the gas station. It’s only fifteen minutes away.” It would be a challenge, since he hadn’t even seen beer since they’d bugged in here, but he’d be in and out of the store. He would manage.

  Boar licked his lips and squeezed Pyro’s hand, which instantly raised all the alarms in his brain. Pyro knew exactly what Boar would say next, and the fact that he wouldn’t let Pyro take care of him out of a sense of misguided protectiveness had his blood boiling. Boar had been there for Pyro through so many low points, so why was Pyro not yet allowed to return the favor?

  “Is it such a good idea right now, babe? I can wait. I’ve been through much worse in the last months. This is nothing. This is good. I’ve got a blanket, birds singing, and you,” Boar whispered.

  Pyro didn’t want to get angry, but heat was already turning his brain into vapor. “You think I’m incapable of buying you painkillers without snorting a line off a public toilet seat? Is that what you’re implying?”

  Boar groaned and turned his face away. “I don’t want you around painkillers either. You’re doing so well. Let’s keep that streak, okay?”

  “It’s been two weeks. I gotta go back to living a normal life at some point,” Pyro muttered, but didn’t follow his initial impulse to storm off. A week back, he would have, too wrapped up in his anger and frustration to realize that while Boar was treating him like a child who couldn’t resist candy, he did it out of love.

  “You will. God knows what news Drake will bring. Soon enough, we will be on the move, and you’ll be back in the thick of it, so why not just enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasts?”

  A deep exhale left Pyro’s chest as he kneeled by the chair and placed his head in Boar’s lap, smiling despite his annoyance, when thick fingers swirled against his scalp in a familiar way. “I can’t relax when you’re unwell. I still miss you, even though you’re back.”

  Boar offered him a weak smile. “Then I guess we’re in a conundrum because of caring about each other too much. Doesn’t sound that bad to me. How about you just stay here, and I try to sleep it off? I relax around you. When I can feel your hand in mine, I know I’m back home.”

  Pyro sighed, shutting his eyes as Boar continued to stroke him. There was a wonderful rhythm to it, which made his annoyance subside. “Without you, everything goes to shit. You’re important. Should have told us earlier that you needed more pills.”

  “Are you saying I demand less than I deserve? Sounds like someone I know.”

  “I’m no one special.”

  Boar shook his head. “You are to me. You are to Clover. To Drake and Tank, too. And who else matters? None of us is important to the world. What counts is that we’re important to each other.”

  There was no point in arguing with him, so Pyro took it in stride and held on to one of Boar’s hands, enjoying its warm touch. “Just tell me if you want anything.”

  “I will, thank you.” Boar closed his eyes, and Pyro couldn’t help but stare at the four deep scars that cut through his familiar features.

  He’d only need face paint to look like a barbarian heading for a siege, yet Pyro knew aggression wasn’t a component of his lover’s personality.

  “Boar?” he whispered. “You asleep yet?”

  Boar smiled. “Idiot. I barely closed my eyes.”

  “If you could do something else. Anything really. What would you want to do in life?”

  The handsome mouth crooked into a smile. “You taught me I actually really like excitement and adventure. Extreme sports maybe? And I’d get a dog.”

  A smile pulled at Pyro’s lips. There were days when he felt guilty over taking away Boar’s chance at a normal life, but maybe being a good boy all the time wasn’t Boar’s nature after all. “What kind of dog?”

  “A good dog.” Boar kept his eyes closed, but the smile was still present on his lips. “A Golden Retriever. I’d teach it tricks and have him w
atch over Clover.”

  “Didn’t your family have one when you were growing up?” Pyro asked, ignoring the way his heart clenched.

  “We did. I had to leave him behind when they told ‘just not be gay’ if I wanted to stay.” Boar squeezed Pyro’s hand tighter. “When I was fighting for Tyrone, I saw so many dogs abused, forced into fights. I couldn’t do anything for them. I think I’d want a rescue.”

  Pyro’s chest was heavy. He’d wanted a dog as a kid, but his parents wouldn’t allow it, too afraid of fur and dirt in the house. “That’s awful. But it wasn’t your fault. We can get a rescue. Or a stray. Whatever kind of dog you like,” he said and pressed a kiss to Boar’s hand.

  “What would you be now if your life was different? Rock star?”

  Pyro laughed. “Without you, I’d have OD’d before I could have become a star.”

  “Love you.”

  Pyro smiled and kissed Boar’s knuckles. They went quiet, and Pyro just sat there with his head against Boar’s knee, like a guard dog by his master.

  He’d fucked up so many times, and Boar had always stood by him. He’d make it all up to him some day, and their lives would no longer be affected by fear or pain.

  As time passed, Boar’s breathing slowed down, and when Pyro gently pulled away to look at his face in the glow of the light inside the cabin, its relaxed features told him Boar had forgotten his ailments and fallen asleep.

  He took a deep breath and stretched his muscles, in dire need of movement. The cake was calling out to him yet again, so he grabbed the slice. They reminded him of having pot brownies, so it was a great way to cheat his brain. Carefully, so as not to wake up Boar, he walked off the porch, intending to go for a brief run to burn off some steam.

  With the brownie in hand, he dashed forward and ran between the trees growing along the narrow road connecting the cabin with the outside world. It was light enough that he could see his path, and soon moved at top speed, trying to purge his brain of voices that kept reminding him of his many failures. Of being a burden to Boar, of not being able to help, of hurting Clover many times, of Tank’s anger, and Drake’s resentment. It all faded when his muscles started to ache from the effort.

  He breathed in the fresh air, listened to the birds, and didn’t even have to make decisions about directions, following a route they often took around the small lake close to the cabin.

  The only bad thing about this area was that it reminded him of Tank’s house. The one he’d burned down. He didn’t want to wallow in self-pity and guilt, but once again promised himself he’d pay Tank back every cent. The guy was a saint for putting up with him. In Tank’s place, he might have put a bullet in the arsonist’s head then and there.

  But as he descended down the slope toward the lake, where he’d intended to sit down for a bit and have his snack, movement nearby made him stiffen and crouch in a bush, just in case. The stars and a full moon reflecting in the black surface of the water would not protect him from harm. “Who’s there?”

  Clover’s familiar silhouette emerged from behind a tree. “Oh. It’s you.”

  Pyro’s expression turned into a scowl when he realized that he was intruding. “Is this… a bad time, or something?”

  Clover shook his head and walked over to a bench by the water. “No, I just wasn’t expecting anyone. I keep reading these stupid coded texts from Tank. I don’t even know why I’m doing this to myself.”

  Pyro’s shoulders hunched. He didn’t want to step between Clover and his longing for another guy, but on the other hand, he’d lately done pretty much everything in his power to push the boy away. Stuck in a conundrum of indecision, he cleared his throat. He’d always been so bad at the sentimental shit.

  “You wanna talk about it?

  Clover shifted on the bench, making more room for Pyro. When he looked back in the moonlight, his hair bright again and the glasses sitting on his nose, he seemed so awfully vulnerable and young. “We barely managed to get Boar back, and now it once again feels like there’s a hole in my heart.”

  Pyro joined him, not without hesitation, but despite the stiffness an emotional conversation tended to bring out in him, he cared for Clover too much to leave him alone with his thoughts. He glanced at the brownie he was still holding and offered it to Clover. “Seems you might need this more than I do. I’ll just take the bit where I was holding it,” he proposed, looking at the moonlit features.

  “Just take half.” Clover snorted and tore off his part of the brownie. “I drink your cum and kiss you. I’m not disgusted by a bit of cake you touched.”

  Pyro groaned, slumping forward, gaze focused on the trembling surface of the water. “Just let me be a gentleman for once.”

  Clover kissed Pyro’s cheek as if he were a blushing maiden eager to show her affection to her crush. “Fine, I’ll take all of it. Boar made it, right?”

  “He’s in pain, and I can’t help. I think… maybe I might be more useful here?” he asked, carefully meeting Clover’s gaze in the dark.

  Clover stuffed his face with brownie and took his time to swallow, but his fingers found Pyro’s. No matter what a pain in the ass Pyro had been at times, Clover still cared about him. Pyro had been such an idiot to overlook all the tender gestures. Maybe it was a self-worth issue, because by the time Clover was so ready to shoulder his pain following Boar’s disappearance, he should have really understood the boy loved him as much as the others. He’d never been just a dick, just a distraction, and he’d support the sweet boy with all he had.

  “I just…” Clover had to take a deep breath. “What if Tank doesn’t come back? And I’m not even talking about it being my fault, Tank’s made his own choice. But if he doesn’t come back, it wouldn’t even matter whose fault it is. He’d still be gone.”

  Pyro was hesitant whether he should do anything, but Clover had initiated touch many times already, so he slung his arm around the hunched shoulders. “I-uh… let’s hope it doesn’t happen. Does it help you to think of those negative scenarios? Because for me, it’s a shit solution. Makes me feel even worse.”

  Clover cuddled up to him with so much need it nearly broke Pyro’s heart. Boar was so much better at being in tune with people while he always noticed problems when it was too late. Clover looked to him for support and affection, and he was slowly realizing that he could provide it, just like any of the other guys. Not only that. He should provide it. Clover was capable but still young, and without Tank to give the kind of support the boy needed, he seemed so vulnerable. So much younger, still inexperienced and recovering from what Apollo had done to him, he really was someone Pyro needed to protect.

  Clover sighed. “What are you saying? Should I imagine us going in there guns blazing, slitting Apollo’s throat, dancing on his corpse then walking away with an explosion behind us?”

  “Whatever helps. Your worry doesn’t help Tank, it only makes you feel bad. You know he’s a tough bastard. I’m sure he’ll be back in one piece,” Pyro said, pulling Clover to his chest as they watched the night sky reflect in the smooth surface of the lake. “We met when I fucked up, Boar got captured by this fucking drug dealer, and I was about to just storm in there because I didn’t know what else to do. I went to a bar for a drink to psych myself up, and I met Tank. He was just having a whiskey, Drake by his side, eyeing me with those dagger-eyes.

  “I had nothing to lose at that point, so when we got talking, I told them my boyfriend was in trouble. Drake was having none of it, but Tank listened, even though to him I probably looked like a total whack job. He said he’d help bust Boar out for a fee. Now that I know the kind of money he earns, I realize he was giving me a steep discount anyway, but I didn’t even have that much, so I offered to work for him instead.” Pyro snorted and rubbed Clover’s shoulder. “You should have seen Drake. He bristled up like a cat thrown into a bathtub. But my point is not just about Tank’s good character, but that when he went in there, Drake and I weren’t even needed. He took on all the guys in there, k
illed two, and got Boar out without a scratch. He will be fine.”

  Clover leaned against Pyro. “Thank you.”

  “For what?”

  “For just being here for me. It helps.”

  Pyro relaxed. Maybe it was silly, but the fact that Clover appreciated his support when he couldn’t provide real help meant a lot to him. He could see now that Clover needed him as much as he needed the others, even if their relationship was usually more about hot sex and fun than care, and teaching, and all that serious bullshit. Maybe Pyro’s presence was less of an obstruction but a buffer to all that? Either way, the fact that it had taken him a year and a half to realize that he wasn’t just a sexual partner/friend to Clover made him feel like an idiot.

  “I’d do all it takes for you. You know that, right?”

  Clover looked up at him with a cute little smile Pyro had to kiss. “I know. You can be a menace, but a loyal one.”

  “That’s right. I’m your vicious dog. Might pee on the couch but will rip throats out for you,” Pyro said, watching Clover in the dark while his heart drummed in celebration of the boy. He’d never before had a relationship quite like this one. Not because of the poly aspect, but because he’d never been with someone as gentle. Sure, Clover was no flower, he was brave and tried to get shit done, but he was even more sensitive than Boar, and that quality was something Pyro was learning to value.

  Clover’s smile widened, and he gave Pyro another kiss. “I’ve always wanted a dog.”

  His words resonated with what Boar had said before. Pyro’s heart skipped a beat, but before he could tell Clover about it, both their phones beeped.

  “A Golden Retriever?” he asked absent-mindedly as he opened the message.

  “Drake’s back. And he has Boar’s pills,” Clover said. He must have gotten the same message in their group chat.

  [Drake: Everything is okay, but we are moving tomorrow.]