Page 45

CHAPTER 44

Noah

T he sun was poking through the closed curtains when I finally woke up. I was no longer wrapped around Reed, but I could still feel him beside me. I reach up to rub my eyes, letting out a yawn.

“How are you feeling?” His voice was rough.

“Like I’ve been hit by a truck,” I mumble sleepily.

“You’ve been asleep for a long time.”

Peeking up at Reed, his back sits against the bed, a smirk playing at his lips. I smile at him, cringing when I’m hit with morning breath.

“I’m used to sleeping at least twelve hours. Used to drive Mallory crazy.” I chuckle, thinking back to how mad she would get.

“Tell me about them.”

I gaze up, rolling my head to the side so I can see him better. He reaches over, tucking a piece of my blond curly hair behind my ear.

“Rue and I used to take naps together. I didn’t like being alone, and while she was a hardass, she didn’t either. It drove Mallory crazy; she was always telling us we were wasting daylight. But neither of us liked to party much, especially Rue. We always had to drag her out. Mallory, man, she was the typical popular girl. Or so I thought until me and Rue found her crying because she hated keeping the facade of being perfect.”

“You’ll see them soon.”

Blowing out a breath, I squeeze my eyes shut before turning my focus to the far wall of the bedroom. I didn’t want to cry, not after falling apart yesterday. I didn’t want to think about not seeing them again.

“I texted our group chat when the outbreak started. I told them to go to Oasis, my parents, they own the island. My father works in security, owns the company. There’s no way zombies can get across the water to them. I–I’m just hoping they got it before their phone died or the power stopped.”

Reed shifts down the bed so he’s lying next to me. Reaching over, he cups my throat, giving me a little squeeze. My cock jumps at the sudden touch.

“We’ll find them, love, even if we have to search the entire country; I’ll find them for you.” Reed vows.

Tears gather in my eyes, threatening to fall. Blinking, I will them to go away; I’m tired of crying.

“Noah.” His voice was low and heavy with emotion. “Kiss me.”

I sit up on my elbows. “I–I, let me brush my teeth.”

“I don’t care about your morning breath. Kiss me.”

I open my mouth to argue, but one look from him tells me it’s better not to argue. Swallowing around the lump in my throat, I roll to my side. Fire burns in my stomach as I lean forward, capturing his lips in mine. Our mouths open immediately, tongues meeting like magnets. My cock twitches, hardening in a rush against my jeans. His long fingers slip into my hair, pulling me against him. Reed hisses against my mouth, reminding me of his gun wound.

I rip my mouth away from him, “We shouldn’t. You’re hurt and I don’t want to?—”

“The only thing that’s hurting me right now is not kissing you. Be a good nurse and make out with me.”

Rolling my eyes, I open my mouth to argue when he grabs the nape of my neck and pulls me back to him. His tongue immediately seeks entry, and I’m weak because I don’t stop him. I give Reed all control, not that it’s hard to.

I groan into his mouth, my hips bucking forward, needing some kind of friction. His hand slips beneath the band of my pants, gliding down to my hard cock. He doesn’t stop until he curls his fingers around my length. I grunt, pre-cum leaking from my tip.

“Please,” I beg. Thankfully Reed doesn’t make me wait; his palm moves up my cock. His mouth moves to the corner of my mouth, to my jaw, until I move my head to the side, giving him better access to my neck. The moment he latches onto my throat, sucking, my balls draw up tight, cum shooting.

I let out a shuddering breath, my heart thumping against my ribcage. Without warning, I sit up, moving down the bed.

“What are you doing?” He asks.

I don’t bother answering him. Grabbing the band of his pants and underwear, Reed lifts his hips up, helping me yank them down. I don’t waste time; wrapping my hand around his length, I give him a tug. Reed groans through clenched teeth, his thighs tensing. Leaning down, I kiss his hipbone, trailing my mouth over his pubic bone. It’s been too long since I’ve sucked his cock, and I miss it. I fight between wanting to suck his length down my throat or going slow so that it drives him insane. I want to know how fast I could get him to cum. Forty-five seconds has been my record. But with Reed, I want to taste him; I want to feel him lose himself under me. It’s not like with others, where it was just me returning the favor or not wanting to hear them complain.

I want to taste Reed on my tongue.

Pushing his cock up against his stomach, I lick from the bottom of his balls to the tip of his length. Pre-cum coats my tongue, making me moan. Reed groans as his hands reach down to the back of my head. Smiling to myself, I repeat licking up his length, coating him in my saliva. It's not until I hear him growl that I finally take him in my mouth, all the way to the back of my throat. I hold him there, swallowing around his tip.

“Fuck,” Reeds voice is rough and heavy. Flattening my tongue, I ease back only to swallow him whole again. Bobbing my head, I suck softly, stroking his cock at the same time.

When he tries to buck his hips, he hisses in pain. I lift my head, letting him slip from my mouth.

“Don’t move, or I’ll stop.”

Reed raises a brow, surprised at me ordering him. When he doesn’t move, I move my head back down, circling my tongue around his tip again. His hands flex against the back of my head. Gathering more saliva in my mouth, I let it slide down his length. Using my other hand, I cup his balls, earning a pleasurable hiss from him. Tugging on them, I take him to the back of my throat, working him over.

I lifted my gaze, finding him already staring at me, mouth parted. One look from him has my cock twitching again. But right now I’m more focused on making him cum. Doubling down on my efforts, I flatten my tongue against his cock.

“Fuck, love, s–shit. I’m going to cum,” he groans.

Pleasure burns low in my stomach as I bob my head faster. Reed holds my head against him, my mouth straining to take all of him in. His legs flex moments before he explodes down my throat. I swallow hungrily, making sure not to miss any.

It’s not until he stops that he removes his hand, letting me go. Moving back, I gasped for air.

“You okay?” Reed asks, his voice hoarse.

I nod, unable to speak just yet. Moving up the bed, I lay my head against the pillow, turning on my side.

“I’m good,” I finally whisper. “I’m good.”

* * *

We stayed at the house for another night, cleaning up and using some stuff the people who used to live here left. We barely left the bed after that, only to eat canned food we found in the pantry. Eventually we couldn’t stay here any longer and set off to Florida.

The moment we left the house, Reed held my hand, even though it was hotter than Satan's ass crack. He never let go. It warmed my heart, and each time he glanced down at me, my stomach swarmed with butterflies.

Every time we stopped for the evening, we couldn’t keep our hands off each other. Only after making each other cum would I fall asleep well before him. I almost doubted he slept, but when I would wake up from a nightmare, his voice would be laced with sleep.

It wasn’t until we crossed the Georgia border into Florida that I felt this strange nervousness. My chest felt tight and my hands trembled. I did my best to think of anything else but meeting my parents, but with each step it was this overwhelming doom sitting against my heart.

I’m bringing Reed to meet my parents. One might feel proud, joyful, literally anything but this disaster I feel. I already know how this is going to go. My parents never cared about me, not in the way they should. Not in a way I needed them.

And yet, I still seek their approval. Even though I’ve never gotten it. For some reason with Reed, I want them to like him. I shouldn’t want their approval, but some part of me thinks that if they finally do, it’ll mean they care. That it would make up for years of silence, the missed birthday, and the silent treatment I got.

But it brings up the fear that they might not even be there. While I know logically it wouldn’t make sense. The island is the safest place. Mom is a scientist and would know better than to leave the safety of their home. And Dad, owner of his security, would know better than to leave as well.

But what if they weren’t there?

Thankfully, before I would get too wrapped up in my head, Reed pulls me out. He asked questions about Rue and Mallory, college, and what I was going to school for.

It was nice to just talk. It was almost like the world wasn’t ending and zombies weren’t chewing on us like a happy meal.

So when we finally hit the home stretch, nearly a mile from the boats, I could feel the bile rising in my throat.

“I can feel your anxiety, love.”

I roll my eyes, taking a swig of my water.

“How about this; we check if your friends are here, and if they are, wonderful. We’ll plan our next move?—”

“And if they’re not?” I dare to ask.

“Then we leave and get back to the cabin.”

I try to smile, but my lips don’t quite tip up enough.

“I promise you, Noah, we’ll find them. No matter what.” Reed grabs my chin, forcing me to tilt my head up. Meeting his gaze, I see the seriousness in his eyes.

“I’m behind you, a hundred percent of the way,” he whispers before leaning down, pressing his lips against mine.

As long as I had Reed, it was enough.