Page 31

Chapter Thirty-one

T he first day of travel passes, remarkably, without incident. If, by without incident, you mean casually slaughtering a handful of zombies and having to be carried by one of the guys for most of the day due to my leg injury. Which, by the way is, very sadly, my definition of without incident at the moment.

As the light starts to fade Hunter leads us to a homey looking log cabin, nestled majestically against a sheer cliff wall. We had been traveling steadily upwards for most of the day, traversing dips and rises as the countryside gradually became rockier and wilder. The cabin makes me immediately anxious. It’s only one storey. Surely, we can’t be staying on the ground tonight. The woods are crawling with dead, and Caleb could stage an ambush at any time. I tug urgently on Hunter’s shirt as he strides purposefully toward the little structure. I am cradled in his arms, bridal style, as I have been since he stole me from Nate’s grasp an hour ago. He glances down to give me a reassuring smile as he bypasses the neat little structure and heads around the side of the cabin. I can’t help but let out an awed gasp as our real destination comes into view.

It’s a tree house!

But not just any tree house, no, this one is an adult tree house. It’s huge, using at least three massive trunks for support and with its own little pitched roof and paned windows. There is a narrow set of stairs leading up to a cozy little porch and the whole thing is set at least ten feet off the ground. Hunter switches me around so I am getting piggy backed and heads up the tiny staircase. Inside is a large single room with a loft built in above an area obviously designed to be a lounge ‘room’. Two of the windows have been shattered and there has clearly been an animal living in the space for quite some time. Maybe a few animals. But I instantly fall in love with what it could be. What it probably was before the apocalypse. The floor boards are dirty but still solid, even after being exposed to the elements in places. And there is a small kitchen bench set against one wall, overlooking the forest below. What’s left of the furniture is in tatters, probably being used as nesting material for any number of small and not so small creatures.

Once everyone is safely up the rickety stairs, we spend a few minutes laying out a bed roll and unpacking some of our supplies for dinner. As Chase pulls out dried meat and canned vegetables, with bottled water as desert, I miss what I had come to think of as our house already. That fucker Caleb better not take Jacob and his men back there. The guys had locked it up tight before we left, including replacing the chain and lock Caleb had used to close the back gate, but I wouldn’t put it past Jacob to burn it to the ground just to spite me.

I steal a seat on the bedroll to chew down my food, the dried deer meat particularly tough after having eaten fresh cooked stuff for the last week or so. Before long Nate saunters over to me, pulling my injured leg into his lap without preamble. He has been obsessively checking the stitches throughout the day. Any little stop or delay and he would lift the bandage and check the skin wasn’t turning red or weepy. At one point he even checked the leg while Hunter and Chase battled four zombies. Battled might be a strong word for it though. More like…dispatched.

He’s just lucky it was hot enough to wear shorts today or he wouldn’t have been able to check me so often. Who am I kidding? He probably would have just cut a hole in my jeans to ease his obsessive need to check.

He unwinds the bandage on my thigh slowly and carefully, his long fingers brushing against my skin with each pass. After the first layer is removed it reveals a few splotches of blood on the bandage underneath and Nate makes a grumbling sound in the back of his throat at the sight.

“Don’t even start.” I warn him pre-emptively. “I did literally everything you told me to do today! This was not my fault.”

Nate takes a moment to look up at me in confusion. He studies my face for a moment, and I can practically see him thinking through all the times he has chastised me for souring his work in one way or another. He flashes me a shit eating grin that for some reason sends heat straight to my core.

“Relax, Trouble. I think this is just ooze from the sutures pulling…” he finishes unwrapping my leg and ducks his head to get a closer look, one hand near my knee and the other wrapped around my upper thigh, pinning my leg in place for his inspection. I try not to wiggle and fidget as I realise just how close his hand is to my center. “Yeah,” he eventually says after his inspection “looks like this stitch here pulled through a little, that’s where the blood came from.” He declares. I hear twin sighs of relief from over my shoulder and turn to see Hunter and Chase hovering over the bed. I give them both a gentle smile and reach a hand out. Hunter takes it and I pull him down towards me, fitting him against my back so I can lean on him. He comes easily and bundles me up in his arms as I relax against him, careful not to disturb Nate as he cleans the wound with antibacterial wipes, and Hunter gives me a soft kiss on the top of my head.

I shoot Chase a questioning look as he moves to one of the windows not too far from us and takes a seat, he sends me back a reassuring smile before turning to the outside world to keep watch. Satisfied he’s not upset; I resettle against Hunter as Nate begins to rewrap my leg with clean bandages.

I try my best not to move, but maybe having Hunter at my back was a terrible idea, because sandwiched between the two of them, with Nates fingers brushing the sensitive skin of my thigh and Hunter pulling his fingers through the short locks of my hair, I find it impossible to relax. When Nates fingers pass particularly close to my heat, I let out a breathy whine that is entirely foreign to me. Both sets of hands still on my body and I hold my breath, embarrassment heating my cheeks.

“S-sorry.” I stutter out, my voice a husky whisper that I swear belongs to a stranger.

“Doc,” Hunter rumbles behind me after a pause, “I think your patient might be needing your attention…” he teases. But his voice is dark and rumbling and the evidence of his growing interest pushes against my back, so I know he’s not being a dickhead.

“Well,” Nate says slowly, taking in my lust filled expression and flushed cheeks. “We can’t have that. I do pride myself on patient care.” He murmurs and I can’t help but snort. This guy has the worst bedside manner ever. But then he returns to finish my new bandage, and he lets his fingers graze deliberately across my core. I let out another sound that belongs in an adult film, not an apocalypse, and Hunter tips my head back to kiss me deeply as Nate completes the wrap around my thigh and allows his hands to travel up and across the seam of my shorts.

Every slight graze of his fingers has me gasping into Hunter’s mouth and I roll my hips encouragingly, trying to push down harder and ride his hand, as I greedily chase my release. Nate growls and uses his free hand to still my hips, pushing me into the bed, denying me the pressure I need as he continues to glide his fingers across me in feather light touches, a complete contrast to the dominating hold he has on my hips.

For a moment I tense under Nate’s hand, my mind flinging me back to dark memories, but then Hunter breaks our kiss and starts to murmur sweet nothings in my ear. His deep rumbling voice soothes away the nightmares and I relax back into Nate’s hold. He waits for me to meet his eyes before he continues and I give him a small nod of encouragement, even as I tilt my head to the side and expose my neck for Hunter’s kisses. Soon, I’m lost to the sensations again as Nate teases against my shorts before popping the button open and skimming his finger underneath. Hunter grips my chin in his hand and turns my head to the side. I open my eyes and my gaze clashes with Chase’s storm grey eyes as he watches me hungrily from his seat by the window. I keep my eyes on Chase and let him ground me as Nate slides his hand inside my pants and grazes his fingers across my nerves.

I let out a wanton moan that is echoed around the room as Nate rubs light circles around my clit, still teasing me. His grip on my hip is near bruising to keep me from moving and I think I may end up with a handprint bruise to match my busted side, but I can’t help testing his strength as I chase the pressure I desperately need. He holds me effortlessly and rewards me with a dark chuckle.

“So impatient, Trouble.” He admonishes and I whine in frustration but don’t take my eyes away from Chase. Hunter nibbles and sucks along my neck, his hands fisted in my hair and keeping me in place. When he hears me whine again, he removes a hand and trails it down my body to pluck at my pebbled nipple through my clothes. I gasp at the contact, pupils blowing wide and Chase grunts, reaching down to readjust his length in his jeans. I keep my eyes glued to Chase as Hunter and Nate tease me with light touches and gentle grazes. When Chase begins to rub his hand over his trapped dick I moan and arch my back to rub against Hunter’s length behind me. He growls and bites at my neck and I curse.

“Fuck. Please, please Nate.” I cry. I break eye contact with Chase to look down at Nate, letting him see how close to unravelling I am.

His blue eyes glitter dangerously as he purrs, “Please, what?” He continues his torturous touches as I squirm with embarrassment. Hunter chooses that moment to roll my nipple firmly between his fingers and I only just manage to muffle a yell. Fuck it. Nate wants me to talk dirty? Fine. I can totally do that.

“Please make me cum on your perfect, talented fingers while Hunter plays with my nipples, and I watch Chase stroke his huge cock.” I say in as sultry voice as I can manage, then as an afterthought I add, “Sir.” I get to see his eyes darken with lust and then Hunter rips my head to the side so I’m staring at Chase again and Nate murmurs “Fuck.” Before he plunges two fingers deep inside me and grinds his palm down against my clit. I let out a yelp at the sudden impact and Nate releases my hips, allowing me to buck underneath him as he sets a punishing rhythm that Hunter mimics on my breasts.

They have me wound so tight that when Nate crooks his finger inside of me, hitting that sweet spot, I explode. Stars dance in my vision as I turn to jelly in Hunter’s arms and Nate slows his thrusts, stroking me through to the last trembling remains of my mind-bending release. Chase drinks up every emotion on my face throughout it all and the feeling of someone watching me come undone so closely, has me giddy. I come back down to earth slowly, my body feeling like lead spaghetti, and let Hunter bundle me up against him as Nate removes his fingers from my slick pussy and sticks them in his mouth. Fuck. I thought they only did that in adult films and novels. Way fucking hotter in real life though.

I blush at the sight and turn my head back to Chase to escape the heat in Nate’s eyes as he tastes me. But Chase is no longer there, and I catch him slinking out the tree house door. I move to go after him, but Hunter catches me around my waist.

“Give him a moment, precious” he says into my ear, the new nickname rolling off his tongue like it has always belonged to me, “I have a feeling he needs just a moment, uh, alone… if you catch my drift?”

For an embarrassingly long moment I do not, in fact, ‘catch his drift’ but then I hear Chase give a sexy grunt from outside and my mouth forms an ‘o’ of comprehension. My face flushes red with arousal and embarrassment and I can’t decide if I want to hide or call him back in so I can watch.

Thankfully, Nate distracts me by buttoning my pants and placing a kiss on the skin just above before reaching up and taking my lips in a gentle, searing kiss that makes me want to do that whole thing all over again, but without clothes this time. He smiles against my mouth as though he knows exactly where my thoughts are and nips my bottom lip as he pulls away to look into my eyes. Whatever he sees there only has his grin growing and he tucks a stray hair back into place as I lean into Hunter and gaze back at him.

“Good girl, Trouble.” He murmurs in a husky voice and my core clenches as though I could come again just from those words alone. Hot damn. That’s a kink I didn’t know I had.

“Thank you… Sir.” I whisper back and his eyes light up. Oh yeah, he definitely liked that.

Hunter coughs out a laugh behind me and the moment is broken as Nate leans in to nip at my mouth again before retreating to unbandage my other wound on my calf. Chase slips back in a moment later and crosses the room to give me a deep, passionate kiss that leaves me spinning, before he takes his place by the window again with a sheepish look.

Nate curses viciously as the last of the bandage falls away from my calf wound and I tear my attention from Chase to see what the problem is. I see immediately, even without a medical history. The long, jagged wound is leaking a cream-colored liquid from around the center and the skin is looking redder and puffy around the stitches. I eye the wound curiously as Nate sets about cleaning it in a hurry, scrubbing at the gathered liquid and barking at anyone that tries to interrupt him. I’m the only one that doesn’t bother to say anything. I’ve seen this happen before, to a few of my smaller cuts when I first started training and I thought it might be easier to just die from infection. The girls would always notice though and scrub me up day after day until they healed. But I don’t think this wound is going to heal like they did, for starters it’s much deeper than those cuts and the blades that made the old ones had nowhere near the amount of bacteria as the bones on that old corpse.

“It’s the start of infection.” Nate declares finally, worry clearly etched in his features as he looks to each of us. Chase and Hunter both curse, their worry reflecting his own, but I just nod as Hunter’s grip tightens on me, as if he can squeeze the infection out of me by force.

“What do we need to do?” Chase asks the question on everyone’s mind.

“We need to get her home. I need to get her back on antibiotics, the hard stuff, and undo these stitches and flush the wound better if we are going to… if we have a chance of stopping it.” Nate states matter-of-factly. “And it needs to happen as soon as possible. Now preferably.” Hunter lets out a noise of frustration behind me and I soothe my hand down his arm that’s still wrapped securely around my waist. He nuzzles into my shoulder at the contact.

“Why are you so calm darlin’?” he asks, “It’s your health we’re talking ‘bout.”

I shrug in his arms, but then notice the others are looking at me for an answer too, so I decide to go with honesty.

“I don’t really know. I guess… I’ve had this before and I survived and I mean, I have Nate now. I trust you guys completely; I know you won’t let anything happen to me if you can help it. And, well, if you can’t help it… there’s not much point in worrying about that either.” I smile as they all straighten just a little bit under my declaration of faith, then add “I guess it doesn’t hurt that I’m still in a post orgasm state of bliss either.” That earns a laugh from each of them and the tension is broken.

Nate replaces my bandage and adds in a new poultice to try to draw out as much infection as possible and Hunter lays me down on the bed with him while Nate and Chase take up positions on opposite sides of the tree house for watch. While everyone seems to have calmed a little bit, worry still floats heavy in the air and I can tell they are all anxious to get moving again. While Hunter lays restless against my side, I have no trouble falling into a dreamless slumber.