Circe's Recruits 2: Zack and Ace (4 page)

The Pentagon demanded answers and someone’s head on a stick. Elliot Pearl took the heat. Project Dawn was scrapped, and Doc, sick of what the end result had turned out to be, quietly left the group with the remaining Recruits. He’d promised them a place in society with a purpose. He’d defended them when the government wanted to terminate “what was left” of the program. And he’d provided them with a home and each other, friendships Ace would kill to keep.

He glanced down at the man nearly purring under his hands. Zack was no pushover, but when it came to Ace’s wants, he normally didn’t argue. Surprised by that observation, Ace considered his friend.

“Still hurts,” Zack grumbled and flexed his delts.

Ace’s loins tingled. By thinking about the squad, he’d been able to tune out what Zack felt like under his hands. Now he couldn’t think about anything else. I’m not gay. I’m not.

Maybe not for anyone else. But when it came to Zack, his body knew what it wanted.

Pushing harder over the spot on Zack’s back that needed attention, Ace worked the area.

“That’s good,” Zack growled and turned his head, his eyes closed.

Ace stared at the spiky lashes shadowing Zack’s cheek. His square jawbone, straight nose, and dimpled chin should have hinted at a stubborn man. But Zack was all about pleasure…Ace’s pleasure, actually. Maybe it was time to give back for once.

Though nervous, Ace wanted to see to Zack’s needs. It was more than thanking Zack for saving him. It was a chance to get closer to his best friend, someone he hadn’t treated right for a very long time. Ace wasn’t sure why he knew it was the right thing to do, but he didn’t question his instincts. He’d ignored them for too long as it was.

“Wait one.” Ace hurried to the bedroom door and locked it. A glance over his shoulder showed him Zack hadn’t stirred. He hurried back and carefully straddled Zack’s ass.

“What the hell?”

“It’s easier for me to apply the right pressure if I’m over you.” Ace smoothed more lotion on his palms and rubbed deeper into the silky skin under his hands. “This doesn’t hurt, does it?” He made sure to avoid Zack’s bandaged side.

“No.” Zack’s gruff answer made Ace smile. If he didn’t know better, he’d say Zack was aroused. God knew he was.

He stared down at his tented underwear and sighed. No, I’m not ready for all of this, not yet. Baby steps. Besides, this is for Zack, not me.

Settling over Zack’s tight ass, Ace continued to massage his friend’s back. Zack’s breathing grew raspy. The scent of arousal filled the air. Zack moved his head down, his face into the pillow once more. Ace squirmed over Zack’s ass and heard a faint moan. No question, this was arousing both of them.

In an effort to lighten the mood, he said, “You know, I hate to say it, but I think you’re getting bigger.”

“What?”

“Your back. Your lats are bigger than mine. I’m going to have to work on that. You still have nothing on my guns, though.” His biceps rocked.

“Oh, right.” Zack snorted. He didn’t quite mask the flex of his ass. The bed had to be hell on his cock.

Ace smirked and scooted back.

“Thanks,” Zack said in a thick voice. “I feel much better.”

“I’m not done yet. Unless you want me to stop?”

“Hell, no. I haven’t had a massage in too long. And after yesterday, I feel like a human punching bag.” He quieted. “You sure you’re feeling okay to do this? You took a pounding too.”

“Not as bad as you. Some scratches that bled a lot, a few minor bruises. To be honest, it’s my hand that hurts the most. The rest of me feels fine.” He felt energized, truth be told.

Being near Zack aroused his energy as well as his libido.

“Well, finish me then.”

God help me, but I intend to. When Ace reached for Zack’s briefs, Zack froze.

“What are you doing?”

“Just trying to move your clothes out of the way so I can hit skin. I’m not gonna hurt you, Zack,” he scoffed. His heart raced. He’d never done this before. What if Zack said no?

Worse, what if Zack saw him hard and aching and said no?

But his buddy kept his head down in the pillow. “Whatever. I’m not scared of you, cub.”

I’ll give you cub. Whereas Zack’s play on his last name normally irritated him, right now, it sounded like an endearment. Still, Ace gave him the expected response. “It’s Two Bears, dickhead.”

“It’s Cree,” they both said at the same time.

Ace shook his head, grinning, and eased Zack’s underwear down his legs and onto the floor.

God, his ass was tight. Images of sliding his cock between those cheeks, of sticking his dick in that dark hole, consumed him. Zack had taken him so many times before, but only when changed. What would it be like to be the one doing the taking? And in normal skin?

Fangs pierced his gums, and his arms began to ripple.

“Man, you okay?” Zack lifted his head, and Ace forced his change back.

“Fine,” he answered in a hoarse voice and jumped forward to shove Zack’s head down on the bed. “Just, ah, lie down and enjoy, okay?”

“Sure.” Zack didn’t move again, for which Ace was grateful.

Ace knelt on the bed between Zack’s legs. He drew in a deep breath and placed his hands on Zack’s ass.

Zack’s entire body locked up.

“Relax.” Ace kneaded the hard muscle, unconsciously rubbing with a sensual touch.

“You want it to feel good, don’t you?” he asked in a low voice.

Zack grunted and relaxed.

Ace continued to massage him, pushing his hands down to Zack’s thighs and calves. His dick was so hard, it hurt, and his underwear stuck to the wet patch growing over his shaft.

“Feel good?” he asked.

“Mmm.”

“Spread your legs wider for me.”

Zack did so immediately.

Ace ran his hands between Zack’s thighs, grazing his hard sac. Zack hissed his pleasure.

“Still feels good?”

“Oh, yeah.” Zack’s thick voice drove Ace wild, and he had to work to control the urge to fuck that ass.

Gone was any reticence about being sexual with another male. Only Zack mattered right now. Zack’s pleasure, not mine.

Ace stroked up and down Zack’s thighs, making sure the tips of his thumbs continued to brush Zack’s balls. Then he eased his hands between Zack’s legs, rubbing constantly against his sac and the base of his shaft.

With each push of his fingers, Zack shoved against the bed. Ace had a feeling if he slid his hand under his friend, he’d find Zack as wet as he was.

Leaving Zack’s groin, he circled again to Zack’s ass. Rubbing the cheeks wasn’t enough.

Ace wanted to see that hole. He glided closer and closer to Zack’s crease, no longer pretending this was about a simple massage.

Zack was humping his bed, his arousal saturating the room. Ace pushed his ass cheeks wide and stared at his hole.

“God, what are you doing?” Zack groaned.

“Making you feel good.” Ace rubbed that ass for all he was worth, sliding his thumbs closer and closer to Zack’s anus. Finally having had enough, he shoved a thumb inside, marveling at the heat and tightness of that flesh.

“Fuck.” Zack pumped again and shuddered, moaning. The scent of cum filled the air, and Ace knew a moment of peace as Zack found release. I gave him that.

Before he could take care of himself, Zack rasped, “I think I need more lotion.” Ace blinked in confusion.

“On my ass. It’s especially sensitive where you put your thumb,” Zack emphasized and tilted his ass in the air, like waving a red flag. “More lotion would help,” he said in a gritty voice.

Understanding dawned. Ace knelt and pushed his underwear down to free his cock. He gripped himself tight and began masturbating.

“I’ll make sure it’s warm.” He grunted as he neared his climax, so ready he felt like he’d come forever.

“Warm is good.”

Ace held a finger just inside Zack’s ass and pulled his cheek away as he came hard, covering Zack’s hole with cum. “Oh, oh yeah.” He groaned as he spewed all over that ass. He rubbed his finger in his cum and used it to push inside. Much as he wanted his cock there, seeing his finger disappear inside Zack was its own reward.

“Shit, Ace. You’re killing me.” Zack arched up, pushing Ace’s finger deeper.

As they both caught their breath, Ace realized his friend was covered in his cum with a finger -- his finger -- up his ass. Instead of repulsing him, the sight stimulated him. But still, something was missing.

He gently pulled his finger away. “Hold still.” Ace left and returned with a warm, soapy washcloth and a towel. After cleaning the mess on Zack’s ass, he left the bed and helped his friend to his feet. Not able to meet his eyes, Ace continued to clean Zack, removing the cum that covered Zack’s cock, balls, and belly while Zack remained still.

“Ace?”

When Ace felt fingers beneath his chin, he glanced up. To his surprise, he couldn’t read a thing on Zack’s face.

“Thanks for the massage,” Zack said softly. He caressed Ace’s cheek, then left through the bathroom door and closed it behind him.

Sated, confused, and oddly content, Ace would have flopped back onto his bed were it not for the wet spot in the middle. He stared at it for several minutes, needing to change the sheets but loath to remove Zack’s scent from his room.

It was some time before he stripped his bed.

After taking a day to recover from what had been an isolated incident, Kelly decided to ask Doc for help. The odd symptoms that had plagued her as a teenager had vanished, thanks to Doc’s miracle medicine. Though she had to increase the frequency of her doses, she’d never before needed another shot so quickly.

She normally only took her meds once a month. Considering she’d received her last shot two weeks ago, something was very wrong.

Now, sitting next to Doc in his private study, she prayed he could once again find something to help her over this hurdle. A minor obstacle, she could hear her mother whisper. A Malloy never quits. Get up and get moving.

“Kelly, we’ve known each other for how long?” Doc asked quietly.

Shit. That soft voice meant trouble. “Hell, Doc. Since I was a kid.”

“And in all that time, I’ve taken care of you. Will you trust me when I say I’m sorry?”

“Sorry for what?” Anxiety flared.

“For not telling you the full truth when this started.” Doc sighed and faced away from her. Kelly clutched the arms of her chair, scared at this turn of events. “A long time ago, your parents went through a rough spell. Your father didn’t like your mother working for Pearson Labs.”

She knew that. She remembered her parents arguing about it when she was younger, even after her mother had left the job.

“Shortly after you turned four, she quit. Your father moved you all far away. I hadn’t heard from them in years when your mother contacted me again. You were nine, and you’d gotten sick. They had no idea what was wrong with you.” Nine? She hadn’t become ill until much later.

Doc fiddled with his glasses and turned around to face her again. “I was good friends with your parents, and they needed someone they could trust. They brought you to me for some tests. Your mother had her suspicions and didn’t want to take you to a civilian doctor.

She knew I’d never tell Elliot what I found. To our relief, you checked out to be perfectly normal. At least, until you turned thirteen.” At thirteen, she’d gotten her first period. Not a joyous experience celebrating her entry into womanhood. Kelly’s first cycle had pushed her nearly to madness. PMS to the extreme.

Her joints had ached all the time. Her headaches had become migraines, sure to split her skull wide open, to say nothing of her out-of-control sensory experiences. Enhanced sight, smell, and hearing bombarded her with too much all at once.

“The injections I gave you took care of any discomfort. You graduated high school and attended college without any issues.”

“And then my symptoms reappeared. The yearly injections weren’t enough.” Too easily, she remembered the pain.

“Upping your dose worked. But it wasn’t until you surrounded yourself with Circs that you truly found some peace.”

“What?”

“Think about it, Kelly. After college, you could have gone anywhere, yet you moved near me, or more specifically, near Project Dawn. You worked hard for that law firm for years but left on a moment’s notice when Project Dawn broke up, and I moved north. While I’m pleased that you think of me as family, we both know you didn’t leave a great job just to work for me here.”

He had a point, now that she thought about it. She had done what her parents wanted and graduated college. She could have lived anywhere after school, but she chose to live on the coast of North Carolina. Near Doc. At the time, she’d reasoned that she liked living near the ocean. The secretarial job with a well-known law firm in town had been a godsend, but she would have done anything she could to stay near Doc.

“Spit it out, Doc.” She loved Doc. He’d always been there for her when she needed him, like an adopted uncle. Without those shots of his, she would have lived in a lot of pain. But when Doc talked around an issue, he drove her nuts.

“Kelly, the shot you receive suppresses the Circe serum from overtaking your blood.”

“What?”

“When you hit puberty, the serum began a quick takeover of your body. When you first took sick, I didn’t think to give you any blockers because you checked out normal. But after that first incident, your mother suspected what you were; as did I. Elliot Pearl did a lot of things he should regret. Infecting your mother was just the tip of the iceberg. She never knew how he’d infected her with the virus carrying the Circe formula. And by then it didn’t matter, because you carried the effects of the serum in your blood.”

“You and Mom knew.” Kelly was stunned.

He nodded.

“Dad?”

“She never told your father.”

Kelly didn’t know why she was so shocked. She knew what Doc did. Hell, she’d known him more than half her life. She’d worked for him for the past three years. Though she had little to do with his actual research and the operational aspects of his work, she knew the gist of what Circe’s Recruits were, what they’d done. And nobody, certainly not her, could ignore five larger-than-life, gorgeous men bound together under one roof.