Page 10 of Desiderium (Devil Dogs of the Apocalypse #2)

“Ooh! Yes, sweetheart. Such a good girl. Keep doing that. Just like that...,” I groan as I feel her throat clamp down around my shaft, doing exactly what Jax instructed.

She feels so good. So fucking good. I grasp her chin and the back of her head, lifting her face slightly to gain a better angle for both of us, and slowly pump my cock in and out of her filthy mouth.

The wet, tight heat of her throat makes me tense up, eager to come, but I don’t want this to end yet.

Fuck me, she sucks my dick so well.

I have all I can do to force my eyes to open back up, but when I do, I see Cole fumbling at his own pants, straining to gain access to his own cock.

When he finally frees the beast, he gives Aly further direction.

“Aly, our beautiful little doll, let’s see how much more you can take in that pretty little mouth.

Open wide and swallow us both.” I tilt my head to make sure I’m understanding because her hands are literally tied behind her back.

He sees my confusion, however, and elaborates. “Hawk, don’t be shy, help her out.”

Well, alrighty then...

I move closer, straddling one of Cole’s thighs as I grab his dick in my hand and hold it flush to my own, offering them both to Aly’s tantalizing mouth. She moans at the sight before letting her head fall, her juicy lips surrounding both heads of our cocks. It’s a tight fit, but holy fuck....

Makes my nethers all tingly just thinking about it. I force down a shiver and blacken out my mind before I get caught with a boner while staring at Cole….

I look up and wonder what the bedroom configuration might turn into this evening and make a note to call shotgun with respect to Aly privileges tonight. For all we know there might only be two twin size beds up there.

While I’ve been getting more and more comfortable with Cole and Jax as the months and days pass—sleeping in a giant dog pile every night—if I get a chance to have my own bed for the first time in months AND get to choose who my cuddle partner is going to be, I’m going to pick Aly.

All day, every day, hands down, no arguments.

Even if Cole is my official cuddle buddy for life . Sorry, not sorry, dude.

I sigh and turn my mind away from the evening’s potential sleeping arrangements, crouching down again to search through the cupboards.

During my little brain break, Jax has already started mixing things and throwing them into the skillet on top of the wood stove.

Just a couple of pieces of wood and the thing is heating up like a fucking crucible—perfect to cook dinner on .

I reach my hand to the far corner at the very back of the cupboard and feel… something …. I wrap my hands around the item and slowly pull it out. When it comes into view, my mouth drops open in excitement.

Oh, it’s game time

Rip-its. I haven’t seen these little fuckers since we were overseas years ago.

They were fucking awesome then and they’re just as awesome now.

Imagine an energy drink so packed with concentrated fuel that it kept you up for twenty-four hours straight like a cracked-out Tazmanian Devil.

Fucking go-go juice. There’s a handful hidden back there and I manage to dig out every last one.

I place them all on the counter except for one, shaking it in Jax and Cole’s direction.

“Look what Santa left me under the tree, boys.” They look over, smiling at whatever they were just talking about, but when they see what I’m holding, their smiles drop right to the floor.

“Ah fuck, put it down Hawk,” Cole says which makes me smile back connivingly. He remembers what happened the last time I had just one of these.

It was only supposed to keep me awake and alert through evening fire watch.

Instead, it kept me up on a severe caffeine rush for over an entire day and night and well into the next morning.

Shit makes you feel like you can run a marathon without any training whatsoever.

And would you look at that, there’s enough here for each of us to get one.

“Imagine all the stuff we could accomplish!” I throw in a karate kick and a ‘hay-yah!’ for emphasis because, fuck yeah, there’ll be some freaking Bruce Lee type shit up in this bitch if the Rip-its have any say in the matter. They run the show, not me.

Imagine the fuck fest we could have while cranked out on them….

Before I can get too carried away, Cole and Jax both give me raised eyebrows, letting me know they’re being serious.

I sigh and turn, moving as if I'm setting the cans back into the cupboard but instead swaddle the little bubble babies in a t-shirt, and pack them in my bag like a sneaky little ninja.

They’ll thank me for it later. They’ll see.

After another half-an-hour of rummaging through dusty cupboards, it’s apparent that there’s nothing else of real use hidden in the kitchen.

I stand, dusting off my pants just as Jax announces that dinner’s ready and to prep the table.

I pull down a stack of plates and forks, setting them down just as Jax sets the cast iron on a mat in the center.

Fuck that looks good. I don’t even know what it is but it looks like some sort of meat-potato-casserole type shit. My stomach rumbles in appreciation.

“Shepard’s pie,” he says triumphantly while pointing to the skillet. “Well… not true shepard’s pie but it’s about as close as it’s gonna get nowadays unless we find a butcher and a cow or a lamb.” He shrugs as if he’s a little disappointed he couldn’t do better.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” I reply. “This looks amazing! Meat, potatoes, vegetables…” Jax ignores me and starts pouring us each a glass of whiskey from a bo ttle he got from only God knows where. “ And fucking hooch! Man… we’re just a spoiled bunch of bastards.”

He shrugs again, not convinced he’s the shit.

I get it, though. He’s always been the one to take care of us.

To look out for us. When he can’t do something or doesn’t feel like he’s done enough, regardless of the circumstances, it gets to him.

Makes him feel like he’s not contributing enough.

Which is bullshit if I have anything to say about it.

“Bro. Seriously. It’s the end of the fucking world.

We could be eating dirt or grass right now and you’re making us fucking meals.

Full on pre-apocalypse type shit, man! Who the fuck cares that it isn’t exactly how you would have made it before?

” I step up next to him and grasp his shoulder.

“This is perfect, Jax. Thank you for taking such good care of us.”

“Ditto. This looks awesome, man,” Cole says quietly as he walks over with a still sleeping Aly in his arms and sits at one of the chairs. The hike must have really taken it out of her if she’s this tired. Granted, our packs are pretty full and weigh about as much as the person carrying them.

While me and the boys are used to forced ruck marches in the military, Aly isn’t.

I didn’t think we packed her backpack that heavy but obviously, we were all wrong.

We’re gonna have to take that into account for the rest of the trip.

That’s ok, though. No one here is in a real rush to get anywhere.

Especially when our ‘home’ is already with us.

We each take a portion of the meal Jax prepared, leaving some for Aly for when she wakes up.

Jax lifts his glass of whiskey, bringing it to each of ours before saying, “To finding our next little patch of Heaven.” We echo his toast and down the measure of alcohol before he pours another round, the heat of the liquor warming my insides almost instantly.

“What do you think it’ll be like?” Cole asks as he digs in.

“Apart from the cabin, we’ve never really left the estate or the town ever since all this shit started.

What are we going to do if we come across a horde?

There’s not exactly a convenient place to take cover if we get surrounded in a field. ”

Jax takes a bite before answering. “I think we’ll just have to rely on our instincts and previous training to get us through.

When we were overseas, there were plenty of times that we knew there would be potential danger around every turn.

It’s the same here, just on our home turf.

The most we can do is keep our weapons ready and be vigilant.

Never get complacent when we’re on the move. Even more so now that Aly’s with us.”

Cole and I nod. A somber memory creeps into my brain, however. “Man, not that I’m complaining, but it would be so much easier if our fourth was still around.”

Jax looks at me curiously. “What do you mean?”

I put down my fork, tenting my fingers in front of my plate.

“Out on missions, we were always used to having four-man fire teams. Think about it, we could have used a diamond formation the whole way to New Bern—put Aly right in the middle of us. No worries about her being flanked or taken from behind. With only three of us, it leaves an opening. Not that we can’t handle it.

I’m positive we can take care of our girl and each other but… . ”

Our fourth… Cruz. Not the fourth in our fire team, but fourth in our group of friends—Me, Cole, Jax... and Cruz. He was in the same squad as us, though. And when we were together, we were thick as thieves. Inseparable.

But all that changed in an instant when he chose to stay in.

Even when the shit hit the fan with all the virus outbreak stuff, he never turned away from the job.

‘ They’re gonna need all the help they can get, ’ is what he said the last time I talked to him.

He never left his post here in North Carolina. I guess, now, he never will.

The base was one of the first places to be completely taken over during the spread. They locked everything down, keeping all the personnel that was in, in ... and everyone else out. Unfortunately, the virus was already there. I’ve no doubt he probably didn’t make it.

“Damn, I miss him…,” I continue, hanging my head and taking another swig of the whiskey in front of me.

“To Cruz….” Cole raises his glass and we toast to our fallen brother in arms.

Jax snorts a little after he downs his and shakes his head. “Aly would’ve loved him.”

I laugh under my breath. “Of course, she would have. All the ladies loved his Puerto Rican ass.” And he loved women.

Not to go to bed with or anything like that, but just women in general.

Cruz had an infatuation with the beauty that women simply were, deep down.

He took it upon himself to make every woman he met feel safe and powerful and sexy and know they were a verifiable force to be reckoned with.

He’s right. Aly would have loved him.