by Snow, Jenika
Malachi didn’t know what to make of Tree Man’s sudden change in talk. He started off all shaken as if he’d seen something no one else had, but then pushed it aside and was normal again.
“I speak nothing but the truth.”
“I need you to act normal otherwise Sasha is not going north,” Malachi growled out.
“No! She has to go north. It’s the only way Lucy and you and her can survive. It’s going to get bad, Malachi. Really bad. We have to save them. For all of you. It’s the only way. I can be sane. I can be normal. I can stop the voices that want to get out. I can. I can.”
“Enough,” Malachi said, grabbing his arms. “I said for you to be fucking normal, not to make this a whole lot fucking worse.”
He looked behind him but Sasha was outside, keeping watch as Lucy played with the dog.
“Be cool and be normal. We’re going up north but only if you keep your motherfucking rambling in check. You got it?”
“Yes, yes, I got it. Shut up, Tree Man. I get it. I will be silent.”
Fuck, was this even the right thing to do, trust this man that there was a safe place, that they could finally settle down and not be on the move constantly?
“Just make Lucy happy. That’s all I ask. She deserves it.”
“That girl is a sweet soul. We have to protect it with our lives, Malachi.”
“I will. I promise.” He’d never stuck around to see shit like this through but he was more than willing to do this for Sasha, and for a chance to find the happiness he’d been seeking.
“We have to get supplies,” Tree Man said.
“Then let’s go and get them.
Chapter Forty
Sometimes you just have to finally say fuck it
They’d found themselves holed up for the night in a dentist’s office, with Lucy going to each room and commenting on all the “dentist gadgets” that she found.
Sasha set her backpack on the floor of the waiting room, plopped her ass on one of the plush chairs, and exhaled slowly. The vinyl made a soft swishing sound underneath her as she shifted slightly, and she stared across the room at a picture on the wall.
It was a mother and son smiling as they sat at a picnic bench. Underneath it was a caption about how gingivitis can destroy your life.
“Wow. Morbid,” she muttered under her breath.
She felt her body relax further against the chair, continued to listen to Lucy get excited over the littlest things, and heard Malachi coming back from the rear of the office.
He set his bag down. “Back door is secured, as are the windows. I did find some bags of pretzels in the break room, no doubt stale as fuck, but hey, it’s good.” He tossed the handful of bags on the reception desk. “He still gone?” Malachi asked, referring to Tree Man.
She nodded. “He said he’d be back with food, although I’m doubtful.”
“Well, let’s hope he finds something, because if not I’m gonna have to go out because we are seriously low on everything.” Malachi faced her and leaned against the desk, crossing his arms over his chest and looking like the intimidating alpha she knew he was.
She leaned her head back against the wall and closed her eyes for a moment. Sasha could’ve gone to sleep like this, just letting the soft sounds of Lucy’s giggles in the next room relax her and the presence of Malachi make her feel safe.
“I call dibs on this room, Sasha.”
She heard Lucy come running closer and opened her eyes, looking over at her. She stood, the door propped open with the chair. “Any room you want, sweetie.”
Lucy grinned. “I always hated the dentist before, but now it’s kind of fun,” she said in a chipper voice. “It even has the chair reclined all the way back so it’s like a bed.”
Sasha smiled and nodded. She was happy to see Lucy excited about something so small as the dentist chair. “Do you want me to help you set up?”
Lucy shook her head. “No way. I’m going to make it all cool in there all by myself.” Lucy got even more excited as she clearly thought of something else. “Malachi, come and check it out. It even has a window that overlooks a little pond.”
Lucy was hauling ass back to the room before Malachi could even respond. He was chuckling softly as he looked over at Sasha.
“It’s good to hear her happy.”
Sasha nodded. “It really is.” They stared at each other for long moments, and Sasha felt the heat start to build between them. She thought about them together, all the things she wanted to do, all the things they could’ve done. But she was glad they’d waited. She knew when they were finally together it would be explosive.
And she wanted that time to be tonight. She wanted that desperately.
She wanted it to be special, wanted everything perfect even when they were in a less than perfect new world.
He cleared his throat and lifted his hand to scratch his cheek. He was so rugged and masculine, so unhinged looking. She knew if she’d seen him on the side of the street before all of this had happened, she would have been afraid, thinking all kinds of awful thoughts about him.
No doubt he would’ve been dangerous, a bad man. But now… now everything had changed.
He headed toward where Lucy was, and once he was in the room with her, Sasha could hear Lucy’s excited voice as she described everything to him. Sasha even heard her telling him about a time she’d gone to the dentist, and how they had cleaned her teeth with bubblegum flavored toothpaste.
Sasha felt herself smile, and for just a moment got lost in the memory.
But then she heard someone approaching from the outside. She straightened, about to call Malachi but he was already there, obviously picking up the sound as if he were a predator listening for the slightest noise. He had his gun raised and pointed toward the door, and although Sasha assumed it was probably Tree Man coming back, she had her knife in her hand, ready as well.
“It’s just me,” Tree Man said in this childlike voice. “Just me with the goods and the sweets and the treats.” The words came out melodic. “And all the things that come before and after that.”
Sasha relaxed and looked at Malachi. He lowered his gun and she saw him exhale.
Malachi unlocked the door and pulled it open. Tree Man had a dirty looking pillowcase slung over his shoulder, and once the door was shut and locked behind him, he set it on the ground. The sounds of cans clanking together could be heard.
Malachi went over and started looking at the cans. Most of them didn’t have labels on them, but it didn’t matter. Hell, if it came down to it and they had to share the cans of dog food with Lucy’s dog, that would just be the route they had to take.
“Lucy, come get something to eat,” Sasha called out, and a moment later she came running over, still talking about the dentist room and chair, and how they’d just hit the “jackpot.”
Although Sasha loved seeing her sister like this, wished she could tell her that they’d stay, that this could be where they put their roots down, the truth was they were still on the move. And they’d still be on the move until they got up north and hopefully found that safe haven that had been promised.
* * *
It was late, and Sasha wished she could fall asleep. She was tired, but ever since leaving home, which seemed like a lifetime ago, since this new world had taken nearly everything from her, Sasha had become fast friends with her occasional insomnia.
Her mind worked overtime, her body feeling like she’d run a marathon.
She sat up, grabbing her jacket and putting it on. The nights were getting a little chilly, but now she’d put it on because it was more of a habit ... keeping those layers on in case they had to move quickly.
Sasha looked over to the other side of the room, where Tree Man slept, pressed against the corner. He snored softly, a pile of ratty-looking blankets strewn on top of him, his wild hair poking out from underneath them.
She stood and walked toward the room Lucy had insisted on sleeping in. She leaned against the door frame an
d watched her sister sleep, the rise and fall of her chest calming. Malachi had pushed a filing cabinet in front of the window, something Lucy hadn’t been too happy about, but they’d told her if she wanted to be alone in here, this was a no compromise situation.
It was probably overkill, but that wasn’t the point. It helped to ease some of Sasha’s constant worry over her sister, and she knew it calmed Malachi as well.
She looked up at the ceiling and saw one of the panels had been replaced with an underwater scene. She could imagine laying in that chair, getting her teeth cleaned, staring up at the scene, something that would’ve helped to take her mind off everything, given her something to look at instead of a beige tile.
She pushed away from the door and walked down the hallway, looking into each room, sucking up some time because it was better than lying there and letting her thoughts consume her.
She looked behind the front desk, then made her way toward the break room. There was a small table in the center, the chairs knocked over and laying on their sides on the floor. She continued back down the hall until she found a storage room. She knew Malachi had already searched it but hadn’t found anything too useful, just some pens, and some printer paper. But he had hit gold, in her opinion.
He’d found a few toothbrushes and sample toothpaste tubes. That had been enough to make Sasha giddy, if she were being honest. They’d been able to brush their teeth before bed, like really brush them clean, something she felt she hadn’t been able to do in forever.
She could still taste the minty flavor on her tongue.
Sasha stepped into the storage room and peeked in one of the boxes, seeing all the “treasure” in there, which really was just cheap plastic toys that were probably given to the children after they got their teeth cleaned.
The feeling of someone standing behind her had Sasha turning around. She knew it was Malachi instantly even though she couldn’t see his face clearly. The shadows were too thick, and despite the glow from the full moon coming through the small window in the room, his presence was shrouded. But she’d know Malachi anywhere, even if she were blindfolded. His presence was that consuming.
He stepped into the room, blocking the entrance, having her heart race in excitement.
“What are you doing?” he asked softly, his voice so deep it sent shivers along her body.
“I couldn’t sleep.”
He stepped closer to her but she refused to retreat. She wanted him pressed right up against her.
“You’re not tired?” she asked, her throat suddenly tight, dry.
“I rarely sleep anymore, maybe a couple hours a night.”
She knew that, to an extent. Although he might appear to be asleep, Malachi was always on alert.
All she could think about was being with him, secluded in this room, enough privacy that they could do whatever they wanted, that they could do what she desperately needed.
She parted her mouth, maybe to say just that, maybe to tell him that she needed to go further, that she cared about him so much, that they were in this together. She couldn’t see her life without him in it, and as fast as all of this had seemed to happen, that was the truth, their reality.
It was her reality.
There was a change in him, a shift in the air around them. She felt it, sensed it. He stepped closer and she moved back a little. His gaze was locked on her as he reached out and closed the supply room door, not fully, but enough that it would give them privacy, but still allow them to hear if something went down.
“Malachi,” she whispered and he let off this low, deep growl. “I need you,” that’s all she could say, the only thing she could muster. Her arousal was intense, addicting. It had been building, slowly increasing as the little samples of passion he gave her made Sasha drunk for more.
He pushed her up against the wall then and the breath left her, the pleasure so consuming she couldn’t think straight, could barely find the strength to breathe.
Malachi stared down at her, this hungry look on his face.
“Sasha.” He groaned her name softly, even though no one would be able to hear them. “Tell me again what you want. Tell me everything you want.”
Could she say it? Could she finally give in? Would he finally give her what she wanted?
“Tell me, baby.” He lowered his gaze and looked at her mouth, and she involuntarily licked her lips.
“I want you, Malachi.” She breathed out slowly. “I want all of you. Right here. Right now.” She stared into his eyes. “Finally.”
Chapter Forty-One
She would be his
Malachi knew deep down he shouldn’t be touching this woman before him. If they were not facing chaos and extinction, he wouldn’t even go near her. She was too young, too sweet, too … innocent. She’d killed men but beneath the tough girl exterior, she was still an innocent at heart. Once he got his hands on her, though, he didn’t know if he’d ever be able to stop.
Running his fingers through his hair, he took another step closer. Even though she said she wanted him, she took another step back.
“You want me, Sasha?”
“Yes.”
“Then you’re going to have to stop running or I’m going to have no choice but to walk away.”
“You look like you want to eat me.” She sounded breathless, not afraid.
“I do want to eat you. You think I’m some teenage boy that’s going to fuck you and leave you hanging? No, Sasha, I intend to eat you. I’m going to suck on your sweet nipples. Let my tongue roll across those delicious peaks before sucking them into my mouth. Then I’m going to work down to your pussy. You’re a virgin so your first time is not going to be pain free. It’s going to hurt and I’m not going to be the one to allow that to happen without you feeling something first.”
“What will you do? Why not just get the pain out of the way?”
“It sounds easy enough, doesn’t it? Just fuck you. Spread those thighs, shove my dick in your cunt and be rid of that precious little cherry.” She’d stopped moving away from him.
He cupped her face, but she didn’t flinch away from him once. Success.
Tilting her head back so he could look into her eyes, he smiled. “You’re not running away.”
“I’ve got no reason to run anywhere. I’m not afraid of you, Malachi. I know you’ll do whatever you can to protect me and my sister.”
“Are you willing to fuck me for that protection?”
“No. I know it comes free, without charge.” Her hands went to his chest, her palm resting against his heart. “Do you want me to owe you? Is that what you need to take what you want?”
He pressed her up against the wall. He lifted her hands off him, putting them right above her head. “I don’t need to have anything to take what I want.” Holding both of her hands up, he stroked the tips of his fingers down her arm. Slowly, taking his time.
A woman like Sasha deserved to be savored. It would be so easy to spread her thighs and fuck her hard, filling her with his cum, but it was the last thing he wanted to do. When he got to the mounds of her tits, he didn’t cup them, he traced across the edge of where her bra should be.
“Where’s your underwear?”
“I’m not wearing any.”
Damn, this woman was going to give him a freaking heart attack. His cock was already rock hard, pressing against the seam of his pants, and she wanted to tease him with this information.
She only wore a large shirt and right now, he was pissed. “You think it’s funny walking around like this?”
“I don’t have a choice. I can’t sleep with so many clothes on.”
“You’re not sleeping now.”
“Because I wanted you to fucking finish what you started, and not leave me hanging.”
He smirked. “You think I left you hanging? Last time I checked, you had come for me. If Lucy hadn’t been so close, you’d have been screaming my name.”
“Yeah, well, I didn’t, did I?”
“You�
��re trying to piss me off. Only good girls get a nice big fat cock. Bad girls like you get a spanking.”
He watched her lick her lips. The hard points of her nipples pushed against the front of her shirt, and he knew if he cupped her sweet pussy, she’d be soaking wet. He didn’t want to just have her wet. No, what he wanted was for her to be so completely enthralled by him, she couldn’t think without craving his touch, yearning for him in so many different ways.
If they were alone right now, she’d already be screaming in pleasure. As it was, no matter what they did, she’d have to be quiet.
“I’ll be a good girl,” she said.
The words whispered under her breath were so sinful.
Cupping her tit, he ran his thumb back and forth across the nipple, the fabric getting in the way of actually touching her, skin on skin.
“Whatever we do right now, you’re going to have to be so quiet.”
“I can be.” She mouthed the words and he pinched her nipple.
The faintest gasp escaped her mouth and he released the hardened point. Leaning forward, brushing his lips against her ear, he was tempted to make it impossible for her to keep those pretty lips shut, but he didn’t have that kind of will power. At any point they could be caught, attacked, or need to go and protect Tree Man and Lucy.
“Then you better start learning.”
Gripping the edge of her shirt, he pulled it over her head, throwing it across the room. She stood before him a naked goddess, and she was so fucking perfect. Even better than he could have ever imagined.
“Keep those arms above your head.”