Pandemic Read online

  “Laurie? When will we make love?”

  “After you recover from the concussion.”

  “We don’t really know it’s a concussion.”

  “You were unconscious when I found you, and you had a headache that was bad enough to make you throw up. That’s as close to an actual diagnosis as we can get without an actual doctor.”

  “But my headache’s gone—” Almost. “—and I feel one hundred percent.” Again, almost.

  Laurie gave him a skeptical glance.

  “Okay, seventy-five percent.”

  “Not close enough.” Laurie shook his head, went to the chest with the linens, and took out a towel. “Why are you still standing there? Shoo.”

  Wheat took the towel and strolled toward the bathroom. “Maybe I’ll just jerk off while I’m in there.” He glanced over his shoulder. Laurie stood with his jaw agape and a glazed look in his eyes.

  It was nice to be appreciated like that.

  He decided not to jerk off in the shower, though; they didn’t have water to waste. And truthfully, it was lonely without Laurie. He’d wait.

  Chapter 12

  It was odd they’d grown so close in the past four days, Wheat thought, but maybe, because of the situation, it did make sense. They hadn’t become lovers yet, but he knew it was just a matter of time. He liked Laurie, and not simply because he was a good-looking man who wouldn’t object to a little spanking—Wheat wasn’t as shallow as all that. Laurie was the sort of man you could trust to have your back.

  “You were right about Lync,” Wheat said. “He did know what he was doing.” The second cedar chest held an assortment of jeans and shirts, as well as outerwear and underwear. Fortunately, they would fit Laurie. Wheat had his own clothes, and he was truly grateful he’d automatically packed for the mountains. The weather would still be too cool for shorts and swimsuits.

  “Yeah. I mean, I wasn’t surprised Lync stored a generator here, but a washer and dryer? I have to admit I didn’t expect them.” Laurie had found them later that first morning, and he’d been able to get the generator running so they didn’t have to rely on the lanterns. The washer and dryer were small, the stackable variety, and were in the outer area, along with the generator and containers of gasoline. “I could kick myself for not seeing them that first day.”

  “It’s okay. You had a lot to take care of. And…the lantern light was romantic.”

  “You liked it?”

  “I did.”

  “It’s just as well, since we have to go easy using the generator.” Laurie had told him they’d need to use it sparingly, in order to conserve their gasoline. “So we’ll hold off washing the clothes we wore when we got here.” It was warm enough in the bunker that they could wear just their underwear.

  “That sounds like a good plan.”

  Laurie blushed and beamed at him. “I’m good at that.”

  “Yes, you are.”

  Another of Laurie’s plans was to use the supplies that were stocked in the bunker.

  “I don’t know what we’re going to find once we leave here,” Laurie had said that first morning. As they repacked the bugout bag, they talked about family, friends, and what the future might have held for them if this disaster hadn’t happened.

  Finally, Wheat glanced up at him. “You’re right about conserving what we’ve got. I’m afraid there won’t be much once we get to my family’s cottage. We don’t usually go there until later in the summer.”

  “So no food?”

  “I don’t think so, although I can’t tell for certain. A local woman comes in to do the cooking and cleaning when we’re there. Normally she’d stock the fridge and pantry, but this is too early in the season, and she wouldn’t be expecting us. And then, of course, this happened.”

  “What about last year’s supplies?”

  “No. Mother gave Mrs. Rodriguez permission to take whatever was still there.”

  “Well, it makes sense. It would spoil before you went back.”

  It was more than that, though. Mrs. Rodriguez’s husband had been killed eight years before by a drunk driver shortly after their youngest child had been born, and she’d been raising six children on her own since then. Mother always made sure there was extra.

  “If we take my suitcase, we can fill it with enough MRE’s and water to last us for weeks.”

  Laurie shook his head. “I’m sorry, it’s just too awkward. If we can’t find transportation, it will be a serious pain to drag that thing along after us.”

  “Especially if we need to move fast? It’s okay.” Wheat went to him and patted his shoulder. “It was just a thought. We’re taking the pharmacy bag, though, aren’t we?”

  “You bet. I’d never leave behind our bottomless bag.”

  “Then we’ll be fine.”

  * * * *

  They were pretty much packed now and just waiting for Laurie to give the go ahead.

  “Sloppy Joes for lunch?” Wheat asked as he hovered over the selection.

  “Mmm.” But Laurie seemed distracted.

  “What’s bothering you?”

  “I was wondering…” Laurie worried his lower lip. “That is…Can we…uh…make love before we go?”

  “Yes.” Wheat wasn’t going to object to that in the least, especially if Laurie saw it as making love and not as fucking. For the past three days, Wheat had been feeling fine—he had been serious about his rapid recovery time. In addition, there was no telling what awaited them outside the shelter of the bunker. They might never have another opportunity. Wheat left the MRE’s on the shelf and reached for him.

  Laurie abruptly backed away and began to swear.

  “What?”

  “No supplies.” The poor man looked depressed.

  “Don’t worry about it.” Wheat took him in his arms.

  “Seriously, Wheat?” Laurie smacked his shoulder. “We’ve both grown up in the age of HIV.”

  “No, I just meant I’m prepared.” He went to his suitcase and took out a strip of condoms and a bottle of lube.

  “Hoping to get lucky, Mr. Dupuis?”

  “More I expected to use the lube jerking off. I just grabbed the condoms without realizing what I was doing.”

  “A little absentminded, are we?”

  Wheat grinned, almost giddy with excitement. “Disappointed?”

  “Hell, no!” Laurie reached for the hem of the violet T-shirt that brought out the color of his eyes and yanked it off over his head, then paused. “Aren’t you planning on joining me?”

  “Huh? Oh, hell to the yes.” Wheat skimmed off his gray boxer briefs, but then held up his hand to keep Laurie from jumping him. “Just a second,” he said sternly. “You’ve been a bad boy, and you need to be punished.”

  Laurie’s lips parted and his eyes grew wide and glazed. He gave a jerky nod.

  “All right. Turn around and brace yourself on the seat.” Wheat retrieved his shaving kit, and unzipped it. It didn’t just hold a disposable razor and shaving gel. “I don’t think we’ll do anything where we’ll need a safe word just yet, but it might be a good idea to choose one.” He was pleased to see Laurie positioning himself without any objection. He took out one of his favorite butt plugs and lubed it up. “Do you have a word you’d like to use, or do you want me to pick it?”

  “I…I’d like to, if it’s okay?”

  “Go ahead.”

  “Um…” Laurie straightened and turned to face Wheat, and for a second, Wheat’s mouth went dry and he couldn’t catch his breath. Laurie was aroused, his dick jutting up from the thatch of strawberry blond curls at his groin. Precome glistened at the tip of his dick and began to slide down his shaft. He wasn’t cut, the only lover Wheat had ever had who had his foreskin intact, and Wheat couldn’t wait to explore it. But that would wait for another time. “Invictus”

  Huh? Oh, yeah, the safe word.

  “He’s my sister Jo’s dog.”

  “Invictus it is.”

  Laurie smiled and resumed his posi
tion. Wheat admired the smooth curves of his ass and the shadowy crevice that separated them.

  “Spread your legs a little.”

  Laurie did as he was told, and Wheat licked his lips at the sight of his lover’s balls.

  “Nice. Very nice. Now I’m going to insert a butt plug. This might be a little uncomfortable to begin with, but I know you can handle it.”

  “I can. I…uh…I have—had—one of my own.” He sighed. “It was a real nice one.”

  “You left it behind?” He approached and ran his palm over Laurie’s spine, letting him know Wheat was there.

  “I had to. Like I said, I wasn’t home, and to tell the truth, I didn’t even think of it.”

  “Did you want to stop at your place to get it?” Wheat separated those tempting cheeks and teased the pale beige hole with the tip of the butt plug.

  “Mmm. That’s nice. Or maybe I think so because I know what you’re going to do to me.” Laurie shivered, folded his arms on the seat, and lowered his head to rest on them. “I guess…if the piece of shit runs and we have time, maybe we could?”

  “Sure.” Wheat began to press the butt plug into Laurie, pleased when his lover moaned and spread his legs wider apart. “That’s my good boy. Is this too much?”

  “Not enough. Fuck me with it.” Laurie angled his hips higher and gave a wriggle, encouraging Wheat to plunge the butt plug in as deep as it would go.

  “So greedy.” Wheat lightly slapped an ass cheek. “Did I give you permission to do that?”

  “N-no. I’m sorry.”

  “I don’t think you are. Remember I told you I was going to punish you?”

  “Yes.” A deep red flush ran up Laurie’s back, and Wheat was thrilled. It had been a while since he’d been able to play. His dick was hard and starting to leak precome, but he didn’t want to take this to the ultimate outcome just yet.

  “Stand up.”

  Laurie obeyed him, a dreamy expression flooding his face as the plug must have given his prostate a good nudge.

  “All right.” Wheat settled himself on the seat, spread his legs, and patted his thighs. “Lay across them.”

  Laurie licked his lips and carefully angled himself on Wheat’s lap. Wheat separated his thighs a little more, and Laurie’s dick nestled between them as if it were looking for a home.

  “Good boy,” he praised again. He rested an arm lightly on Laurie’s lower back and began stroking first one cheek and then the other with his free hand. He could feel the tension vibrating through Laurie’s body, and he continued petting him. Finally, when Laurie seemed to go boneless under his ministrations, Wheat brought his hand down with just enough force to startle his lover. He waited to see if Laurie might change his mind, but he seemed to settle deeper onto Wheat’s lap.

  “More, please,” he whispered.

  Wheat leaned forward and brushed a kiss against the hollow at the base of Laurie’s skull. “No Invictus?”

  “No.”

  Without warning, Wheat smacked Laurie’s other ass cheek, and Laurie shuddered and angled his hips higher. That was the only signal Wheat needed. He began a barrage of spanks, alternating cheeks and the amount of force for each one, although never too much, and Laurie shivered and whimpered, but made no effort to escape Wheat’s hand.

  “Wh-Wheat. I’m gonna—”

  “No, you’re not. Not until I’m in you.”

  Laurie moaned, but Wheat was pleased to see he managed to keep from climaxing.

  Wheat removed the butt plug. “Okay, stand up.”

  It took Laurie a moment, but he was finally on his feet. Wheat turned him gently, and his gaze dropped to Laurie’s butt. He ran his palm over the bright red cheeks; they were warm to the touch, and Wheat couldn’t prevent a shiver of his own at how hot the experience had been.

  “Wheat? Did I do something wrong?”

  “Why would you think that?”

  “You said you were going to fuck me. And…well…” He gestured to his dick which looked achingly hard and almost appeared to be straining toward Wheat, begging for his touch.

  “I’ll take care of you, Laurie. I always will.”

  “And I’ll take care of you, too.”

  Before Wheat could say that wasn’t necessary, Laurie grabbed up a condom, freed it from its foil wrapper, and smoothed it down over Wheat’s dick. Wheat gripped the seat and shuddered as Laurie squeezed some lube into his palm and coated Wheat’s dick with the slick stuff.

  “How do you want me?”

  “Can you sit on me? Is your ass too sore?”

  Laurie gave him a heated smile. “It’s fine.” He settled himself over Wheat’s thighs, and began to lower himself.

  “Yes,” Wheat hissed as Laurie slowly encased Wheat’s dick in his velvet heat. Of course the latex of the condom blunted the heat, but Wheat wasn’t one to be careless with his health, no matter how hot his companion.

  It took a minute before Laurie bottomed out and rested his butt on Wheat’s thighs. Wheat’s heart pounded so hard he thought it would explode from his chest.

  “You…you st-stay still,” Laurie panted as he buried his face against Wheat’s neck. “You’re st-still recuperating.” He rose up, paused at the apex, then lowered himself in an easy glide.

  “Laurie.” Wheat groaned as his hips bucked up, driving him against Laurie’s prostate. Wasn’t he supposed to be the one in charge? How was it this man was twisting him inside and out so easily?

  “Shh.” Laurie repeated his action, then draped his arms over Wheat’s shoulders and ran his lips along the side of Wheat’s throat. Wheat had always found that arousing, and somehow Laurie had known, without him saying a word.

  He reached between them and pinched and teased Laurie’s hardening nipples, pleased when Laurie began to speed up his movements.

  “Yes,” Laurie gasped. “Harder.”

  Wheat smiled into his lover’s soft hair and gave a little twist to the nipple between his fingertips, relishing the sound of Laurie’s breathless little whine. He lowered his mouth to Laurie’s ear, nibbled on his earlobe, and flicked his tongue into the shell of his lover’s ear. Laurie shivered at the onslaught, made little panting noises but Wheat wasn’t done with him. He drew back enough to blow gently into Laurie’s ear.

  “Wheat. Wheat. Wheat,” Laurie chanted, his movements becoming erratic.

  Wheat wrapped his free hand around Laurie’s dick and used the precome oozing from the tip to lubricate the hard shaft. He kept his grip loose and teasing, toying with the foreskin, and he enjoyed how desperate Laurie was becoming, but finally he took pity on him. “Come for me,” he whispered, pleased when liquid heat spattered his torso.

  Laurie moaned and shivered once again as a final spurt of come shot from his dick. Wheat was smugly proud he’d shredded the man’s control. He’d never felt like this before, as if he were king of the world. And with a lover like Laurie, he could go all night long.

  That was, until Laurie clenched his internal muscles and ground himself down on Wheat’s dick. Then it was Wheat who was shredded, and he grunted and thrust upward and spilled into the condom.

  Gradually they came down from that high, but they didn’t move, just sat there holding each other.

  They stayed like that for a while before Laurie raised his head and met Wheat’s gaze, which Wheat was sure had to be as sleepily satisfied as Laurie’s.

  “Thank you,” Laurie murmured. “That was perfect. Except…”

  “Except?”

  “You didn’t tie me up.”

  “Next time, I promise you.”

  “Thank you.” And Laurie wrapped his arms around Wheat and nestled against him.

  Wheat heaved a deep, contented sigh. Without a doubt, best. Feeling. Ever.

  Chapter 13

  Laurie watched as Wheat stood by the outermost door of the bunker and cocked his head, an action Laurie found endearing. He knew Wheat was listening for the rhythmic patter of rain beating down on the trees that sheltered the opening. He
was growing more and more worried about his parents and was impatient to leave.

  Wheat was better—he’d bounced back unbelievably fast—but Laurie had flatly refused to leave if it was still raining. It was a good thing he could be stubborn when he had to, because when they’d awakened their first morning here, it was to find the rain had eased off, and by lunchtime, it had stopped completely.

  Laurie still insisted they wait a few days. Even their bouts of lovemaking hadn’t convinced him Wheat was well enough to travel. Laurie remembered the trip from his parents’ house to Last Chance. It hadn’t been fun then, and who knew how bad it was going to be now?

  But now…yeah, it looked like it was about time to head out.

  He came up behind Wheat, wrapped both arms around his lover’s waist, and rested his head on Wheat’s shoulder. “How are you feeling?”

  Wheat turned his head and smiled at him, and Laurie could hardly catch his breath. How had he been so lucky to find such an amazing man; such an amazing lover?

  “I’m fine. I told you I heal very rapidly.”

  “Okay, I’ll trust you to know that.”

  “But you’d prefer to Google how long it takes for someone to recover from a concussion?”

  “Well…yeah.”

  Wheat laughed and leaned against Laurie, and Laurie looked beyond him to the small clearing. He didn’t bother poking his head out and looking up at the sky, since it would be concealed by the heavy growth of trees.

  “It hasn’t rained for a few days. Do you think—”

  “That it’s time to leave? Yeah.”

  They’d already washed the clothes they’d worn, and the bugout bag and the extra backpack had been packed with clothes for both Laurie and Wheat and ready to go for a few days.

  “Okay, what do we do?” Wheat asked as he ran his fingertips up Laurie’s chest to cup his neck.

  “Shower, eat something, pack up the pharmacy bag, and then tidy the bunker in case someone else is able to find it and needs to use it. Then we hit the road.” Laurie had insisted on tidying up after themselves from the beginning. He’d told Wheat how his mother had required it, even though he was one of two males in the household. He waited until Wheat moved away from the door, then closed and barred it. “No point in taking chances.” They had no idea what it was like on the outside now.