Catching Hell (Complete Collection) Read online

  “Was it weird?” asked Shane, his gaze on Jamar as his head lowered so he could take one of my nipples in his mouth. He sucked firmly before flicking his tongue over the tip, making my breath hiss through my teeth.

  “It was to start with, but by the end of the evening, everybody was having a good time.”

  “Was it like this? Two guys and a girl?” I asked in a breathless whisper as Jamar bent his head to pay attention to my other breast. There were two mouths sucking on my nipples at the same time, and I writhed helplessly, searching for something to fill the ache between my thighs.

  He lifted his head before answering. “I’ve actually had each. I was with a girl who wanted to try a threesome with a second guy, so I told her I’d do it, but only if she was willing to reciprocate and bring in another girl too. The relationship didn’t last long, but we had some fun and kinky times with our friends during the few weeks we were together.”

  “What happened?”

  He hesitated for a moment, looking torn about answering. Finally, with a shrug, he said, “Things got awkward. I could tell my buddy was starting to develop feelings for her, and she was getting jealous of her friend, the one she’d introduced as the female for our threesomes. There was nothing between Angela and myself besides the sex, but Shantae refused to believe it. I suggested we stop threesomes or anything else that involved other people besides ourselves and try to fix the problems in our relationship, but she told me she knew I wanted to be with Angela, so she cut me loose.” He sneered for a moment, looking slightly bitter. “Turns out she hooked up with my buddy a few weeks later. Last I heard, they’d gotten married, but that was a couple years ago. They’re probably both dead now.”

  “That worries me,” I whispered.

  “We’re all worried about dying, but we have to keep living,” said Shane, part of my nipple in his mouth obscuring the clarity of his words.

  “I’m afraid of that too, but I meant I don’t want anything to happen to our relationship. You both mean so much to me, and I don’t want anybody to get jealous or weird.”

  Shane lifted his hand ahead, his hand curving over my abdomen as he looked down at me with a serious expression. “I don’t think you can have this kind of relationship and not have some jealousy. Right now, I’m jealous as hell that Jamar’s mouth is on your tit, and my mouth was just on the other one. I don’t like to share, but it’s a different world now, and if I’m going to be in this kind of relationship, at least it’s with one of my brothers-in-arms.”

  Biting my lip, I looked at Jamar, who was watching us, though his tongue was engaged with keeping my nipple tingly and stimulated. “Do you feel the same way?”

  He nodded, looking regretful as he pulled away from my pale skin and pink nipple. “Yeah, it’s inevitable to feel some jealousy. But I think we’ll work out the kinks.” He winked at me as he made a pun, whether inadvertent or not. “I think we can make this work. For you, to have you, I’m certainly willing to try. Shane and I have talked about it, and—”

  I stiffened in surprise. “You talked about me? About this?”

  “Yeah, we talked last night while you slept.” Shane moved his hand on my stomach down to my pussy, but not yet touching me. He was just increasing my anticipation. “I think we worked out our major issues. It’s important we all maintain open communication if we’re going to make this work, but other than some jealousy, I think it will. We both want to make you happy.”

  I blinked back unexpected tears, feeling like an idiot for wanting to cry at the moment. I sniffled before speaking. “I want to make you two happy as well. I really want you, both of you, but if it’s easier, we can keep as we have been, with separate times.”

  Jamar grinned at me. “Sugar, why do you think we’re both here with you? We planned to fuck you like crazy this morning if you were up for it. It made it awfully hard to sleep with a hard dick as we waited for you to wake up and see how you felt this morning.”

  I grinned at them, amused by their plan. “You both planned to take advantage of me?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” said Shane with a wink.

  “You’d better get to it then,” I said in a firm tone.

  “Yes, ma’am,” echoed Jamar with a chuckle.

  Shane moved up, and Jamar move down. His lips captured mine in a long kiss as my other lover parted my thighs, moving me carefully so as not to turn my back as his tongue squirmed between my folds. I pressed hard against Jamar’s mouth as Shane kissed me deeply while one of his fingers idly toyed with my nipple, plucking it in a random fashion that made me buck my hips and thrust my back up. I whimpered at the pain, and they immediately stilled. I lifted a hand, making a gesture for them to continue, and forced my back to relax against the thin mattress. As long as I didn’t move too much, I’d be fine.

  Shane continued moving upward, and I soon realized he was positioning himself so that his shaft could brush my lips. I opened them in invitation, and he slipped inside. It was a strange and overwhelming sensation to have Shane’s erection in my mouth while Jamar’s tongue was in my slit. It was harder to remember to suck Shane as Jamar stirred my excitement, pushing me to a fever pitch. As I started to come, I did remember not to bite down, a fact for which I was certain Shane was grateful.

  Jamar continued licking me, lightening his pressure for a moment until most of my spasms had passed before initiating me into a new round of excitement.

  I lost track, but I think it was three orgasms that he gave me in the time he was between my legs. It took me that long to coax Shane to come, and though I choked slightly on the cum shooting down my throat, I managed to swallow it all. I had the inappropriate thought of telling Han I was a swallower, but immediately pushed that thought away. He didn’t want to be here, and he didn’t want to share me, so he had no place in my thoughts when I was with Shane and Jamar.

  I was still convulsing, my pussy feeling slick but achy, and Jamar carefully shifted my hips so he could get between my legs and thrust into me. He wasn’t gentle with his thrusts, but he was careful not to jar my back excessively. Shane had pulled out of my mouth and was now back to licking my nipple, and though I was certain I was too exhausted to come again, I still managed to when his mouth tugged rhythmically at my nipple as Jamar thrust in and out of me while playing with my clit.

  I let out a keening moan, sounding a bit like a porno actress, to my horror, but unable to stifle the sound or care about what it revealed at the moment. I was sure Wesley and Han had already figured out what the three of us were doing, and while I didn’t want to rub it in anyone’s faces, I was too far gone in my pleasure to be excessively concerned with hiding what I was doing. I had no reason to hide, because I wasn’t doing anything wrong. Neither were Shane and Jamar, and if Han and Wesley had an issue with it, it was their problem, not ours.

  Chapter Four

  After that first morning, Jamar and Shane had technically moved in, and they never moved out. A few days after the three of us had become lovers together, they returned with a king-size bed scavenged from a department store display. It wasn’t as beautiful as the one my mom had made me, but it was a lot more comfortable than the foldout sofa, especially when I was sharing the space with two large male bodies. It was easy, surprisingly so, how we all blended together into one relationship.

  As soon as my back was better, I returned to my usual fitness routine, and I kept up gun practice until Miranda felt like an extension of my right hand. Shane had taken over my martial arts training, and I tried not to feel an emptiness when I looked at Han, wishing he would join our triad and make it a quartet. It wasn’t like I was unsatisfied with the lovers I had, and I was starting to feel a lot more for them than I’d planned. I wasn’t ready to use anything close to the “L” word, but there were definitely feelings developing between all three of us. Things were good, and I was good.

  I was doing so well that after a week of hard training, Shane told me that night at dinner I was going on the run with them the next day. I li
cked my lips, feeling nervous, but also excited. I hadn’t been off the base since they’d brought me here more than two weeks ago. I was going a bit stir crazy, but I was also frightened. What if I messed up? What if I got hurt, or I got one of them hurt? What if I lost them?

  I took a deep breath, trying to control my panic and focus on what they’d been teaching me. I wasn’t anywhere near their levels of proficiency yet, but I was competent, and with them at my back, surely everything would be all right. I probably could have refused to go, but I didn’t want to. When they’d taken me in, it was with the proviso I become a useful member of the team. I’d finally reached that level, and I couldn’t let them down or try to go back on my word. Just because I shared the bed of two of them was no reason to expect to remain safely behind and let them do all the hard work, risking their lives to keep me safe.

  It would be different if I were pregnant or something, but since that wasn’t even a possibility, I had no excuse besides my own fear holding me back. I considered that a paltry justification at best, so I took the news with as much equanimity as I could and tried to pretend I wasn’t frightened out of my mind. Things would be all right. I just had to remember what I’d learned and rely on my teammates.

  We set out early the next morning, as was the pattern. Since they were going farther from the base now, there were usually two or three, sometimes more, hours of driving involved before reaching an area they hadn’t explored yet.

  We entered the city, and my stomach churned with nausea as the smell hit me. It should have been muted by now, and it probably was. I imagined the stench had been even worse during the first round of infection, but it was still an overwhelming miasma that made my eyes water and my gut heave.

  Without a word, Han reached into his pack and withdrew a container of Vicks. I looked at it doubtfully. “I’m not congested, but thanks. Wish I were.”

  He surprised me with a laugh. “Put it under your nose, and it will help block out some of the smell.”

  I did as he suggested, noting none of the others bothered. I felt kind of weak, but then I reminded myself I hadn’t yet ventured into the city since the outbreak. My parents and I had lived in a smaller town, and our nearest city still only had a population of sixty thousand. I hadn’t been in a place with hundreds of thousands of dead people yet, so I should cut myself some slack.

  After stowing the Vicks back in his bag, Han turned away from me again. Somehow, I’d found myself seated beside him, and each time our thighs rubbed together as the Humvee jolted, I had to catch my breath and remind myself not to reach out to touch him. I was starting to feel like a greedy girl, blessed to have the attention and affection of two wonderful men, but still craving a third as well.

  Since I didn’t want him instead of, but in addition to, I knew it wasn’t happening, so I tried to keep my thoughts in check and made a point of keeping my hands to myself by gripping the strap of my rifle as we drove along. Miranda was secure at my hip, but Jamar had given me the extra weapon before we’d left base.

  Wesley—who wasn’t acting nearly as lecherous since I’d moved into a private room with Jamar and Shane—was behind the wheel, and he seemed to know exactly where he was going. I figured they’d cleared a route on previous trips, perhaps the day when they’d come back tired and sweaty after clearing debris. As we rounded a corner, I saw a hospital and pointed to it. “Have you guys checked there? It might have medicine.”

  Jamar sat on my other side. He put his hand on my thigh and squeezed gently. “The hospitals were a mess, babe. It’s where most of the sick people went to die, and I doubt there are any supplies left. We thought about checking it out, but when we looked through the binoculars, we could see the dead piled four deep in some places in the waiting room. There’s too much risk of disease and just general disgusting shit to go in there. Instead, we’ve been trying to hit urgent care clinics and vet hospitals, along with pharmacies, to collect medical supplies. Hospitals are a no-go unless we absolutely need some kind of equipment we could only find there, and none of us are field surgeons.”

  I grinned at him. “That reminds me. I’ve been meaning to pick up some medical books and see what I can learn.”

  Shane, seated in the front beside Wesley, started laughing. “We’re going to have a self-taught surgeon among us. Who’s the first patient?”

  I stuck my tongue out at him. “Laugh it up, but when I take out your appendix someday, you’ll thank me.”

  “I think the important question is, does it need to come out, or is it just a punishment?” asked Han, his tone lighter and easier than I’d heard in a long time.

  I laughed, though the joke was somewhat at my expense. “I haven’t decided yet. I guess that part depends on his behavior.”

  Shane sent me a smoldering look. “Remind me to stay on your good side, Lyss.”

  I grinned at him. “I’m sure that won’t be a problem.”

  All too soon, Wesley had parked the Humvee in a secluded parking lot, taking advantage of a large tree growing over into the area to semi-shield the vehicle. I slid out, briefly squeezing Jamar’s hand before letting go and slipping into soldier-mode. I could do this. I was ready, and I had at least as much training as the average basic training graduate. I probably knew even more than that, because the men had been diligent with instructing me and teaching me, clearly wanting to keep me alive. I wanted that too, so I’d done my best. It was time to see now if that was good enough.

  Shouldering my gun, I followed behind them, already knowing we wouldn’t split up. I’d heard enough of their strategy talks to know they usually broke apart to hit separate buildings, but we’d gone over our plan back at the base, and for today at least, we were all moving together as a group, exploring one building at a time. I was sure they were doing it for me, but I was happy to have all four of them around me as I embarked on my first mission.

  That sounded so official and soldier-like. In a completely contradictory reaction, I had the urge to giggle madly as a wave of giddiness over me. Somehow, I managed to control the urge and kept my expression serious until the inappropriate humor had faded. Then I locked down my expression and tried to become all business. I refused to endanger any of the men from my own careless stupidity.

  “We’ve been scavenging houses, looking for supplies left behind by people who died. We’re going to continue that today. Stay close to Jamar,” said Shane. “He’s your partner in this. We’re all here, but he’s your tether. You don’t leave his side. Understand?”

  I nodded, responding to the firm command instinctively. I’d heard it in a slightly softened way sometimes while making love with him, but it was the first time I’d heard the full-on Captain-mode to directed at me. I couldn’t help but respond. I nearly even saluted.

  We started with the house closest to the Humvee, and I stuck close to Jamar, as ordered. The house didn’t appear to have been disturbed, but whoever had owned it hadn’t kept much on hand. Either that, or they’d depleted most of their food stores before they got sick. It was difficult to tell, because it was getting harder to determine who had gone out in the first or the second wave with the level of decay ramped up due to the passage of time.

  It looked like someone in the first bedroom had died all alone, but I couldn’t tell if she’d bled out first. The room was hot and humid and disgusting, accelerating the progression of decay until there wasn’t much left to identify. I only knew it was a woman because of the frilly once-white gown, now painted with her bodily fluids, draping the corpse.

  Jamar directed me to check the closet as he went to the nightstands, and I did so. She must have lived alone, or at least hadn’t share this room with anyone, because the closet was full of female clothes. She was bigger than me, but we shared a close enough shoe size that I was able to find a pair of boots I could put back for reserves. They looked like they’d had very little use, so that was a good find. There was also a raincoat and a heavier coat, and I took both. The nights were starting to get cooler,
and the days were too. Today, I wore a sweater, which provided plenty of protection from the chill in the air, but it wouldn’t be long before I’d need a coat, and I hadn’t found any at the big-box store. It had been the wrong season for that when the virus had hit full force.

  We rendezvoused with Shane and Wesley in the kitchen, and Han emerged from the pantry a moment later. He was holding a box of powdered milk, and that was about it. I looked at Shane, arching a brow, and he shook his head. I took it to mean they’d had little luck with this house.

  After leaving that house, we stopped long enough to return the items to the Humvee before continuing on. It was a clunky system, and I wished I had a shopping cart or one of those flat ones they used at Home Depot for larger items. I imagined there wasn’t room to haul one practically with the Humvee, but it’d be nice if I could find a basket that folded up or something.

  It took us two hours to clear ten houses, and then we returned to the Humvee for a light morning snack, so we could keep going. I chewed my very hard jerky and washed it down with water as I psyched myself for the next part of the mission. We’d spotted a drugstore a block-and-a-half over, and that was our next destination. I could tell they didn’t expect to mind find much, but I was hopeful there’d be something useful.

  As I was quickly discovering, runs were mostly boring and tedious, mixed with a strong dose of hard labor. How I missed the days when I could pick up the phone and call for pizza, and someone would bring it to my door. Looking after ourselves for everything really sucked.

  After our snack, Wesley moved the SUV closer to the drugstore. We wanted to make a quick escape if necessary. When we pulled up to the parking lot, it was filled with cars, but they all appeared deserted. A few held dead bodies, and I wondered if they’d come to the drugstore, desperate and sick, hoping to find something to magically cure them, but had been too weak to get out of the car when they arrived. It was a sad thought, to die in front of the drugstore and have no one around to bury you or dispose of your body in at least a semi-appropriate way.