The Withered Series (Book 1): Wither (25 page)

He
reaches up and cups my cheek.  His gaze still holds the haze of
passion but there is a deeper emotion hovering just below the
surface.  I know that I should turn away, ignore that I see it,
but he won’t let me look away as he smiles. “Who said
we’re done?”

I
arch my eyebrows as he untangles himself from my arms and crawls
backward, his tongue trailing between my breasts and over my abdomen.
He pauses as he comes to rest between my legs and presses a kiss
against my inner thigh. As he nestles closer, I close my eyes and
lose myself to the moment.

When
I wake sometime later the sun seems wrong, too bright and hidden from
the windows before me.  I groan and rub my eyes, feeling sore
and exhausted.

“You
know, if you’re going to have sex the least you can do is
scream louder so I can enjoy it too.”  I bolt upright.
Cable’s hand falls away from my bare breast and I struggle to
yank the tangled sheets out from under him to cover myself in front
of Sal.

“Do
you mind?”

“Not
at all.” He leans against the banister and stares openly.

“Cable,”
I hiss and smack him on the arm.  He rouses and my stomach
tightens at how good the tousled look is on him first thing in the
morning.

“What?”
 He grabs the pillow and tries to tug it over his eyes.

“I
need your help.”

Cable
tenses at the tone in my voice.  He emerges to find Sal grinning
down at us.  His tanned skin darkens as he moves toward the edge
of the bed. I quickly tuck the sheet around me.  Cable doesn’t
seem to need it at the moment. “You have three seconds to get
your ass back down that ladder before I toss you over that railing.”

“Fine.”
Sal raises his hands in mock surrender, pausing long enough to try to
get another good look at me.  “I just thought you might
like to know we’re leaving.”

“Leaving?”
I tuck the sheet around my legs for good measure.  “Who
the hell decided that?”

Sal
shoots me a wink.  “Wouldn’t you like to know? I’d
be willing to let you in on that delicious little secret if you lower
that sheet just another smidgen.”

Cable
growls and surges to his feet. Sal’s eyes open wide, but he
quickly sinks into a knowing smirk, tsking as he shakes his head.  “I
expected more from you, Avery.  Any girl should have been
screaming with that guy in bed with you.”

Grabbing
the front of his shirt, Cable shoves Sal back.  His heels come
off the floor and for a moment I’m convinced he intends to
follow through on his threat.

“Cable!”
 His arms flex.  I try not to notice the curve of his
backside as he turns to look at me.  The tattoo that I spied
ages ago peeking through his shirt trails down from shoulder to
waist.  A waterfall of ink in the shape of a rugged looking
cross spans the breadth of his back.  The sight of it surprises
me. I never took Cable as a religious man. “He’s not
worth it.”

“Aw.
Sticks and stones, love.” Sal blows me a kiss.  “When
you get tired of him you know where to find me.”

With
a vicious growl, Cable shoves him off the balcony.  I watch as
Sal’s arms pinwheel and listen as his scream is cut off with a
loud whump.  

“What
did you do?” I yank the bed sheet off and hurry to the ladder.
Alex peers questionably up at us from beneath the loft and I cower
behind Cable for cover.  Alex’s hair is damp, his face
ruddy from a recent washing.  It must be later than I realized
for him to have time to bring water back from the stream and boil it.

“He’s
fine.” Cable turns and walks away.  His fists clench at
his sides. It’s obvious just how hard it is for him to get
himself under control.

Sal
shouts as he fights to right himself, his fall broken by the couch.
 I meet Alex’s gaze before I return to Cable’s side.
 I place my hand on his arm and he flinches.  

“Sorry,”
I whisper and draw back. I turn away from him to find my clothes but
he pulls me back.  He wraps his arms around me, my back pressed
to his chest as he rests his head on top of mine.

“I
don’t want to pull away from you. Not like this.  I’d
planned for something a little less drama based.”

I
close my eyes, knowing this moment would come.  I just didn’t
have time to prepare myself for this awkward moment when lovers
become friends once more.  “You don’t have to.  At
least not too far.”

He
presses his lips to the back of my head and releases me.  I walk
away from him, attempting to put the events of the night behind me,
but some things are harder to forget.  Cable touched me in ways
no man ever has, deeper, more intimate.  Not in the physical
realm, but emotional.  I told myself in the early hours of the
morning as he slept beside me that nothing would change. I wish I
still believed that.

I
scowl at Sal as I hit the bottom rung of the ladder after dressing in
silence with my back turned to Cable.  My footsteps sound
unnaturally loud in the quiet cabin as I pass by him to face off with
Alex.  

“You
saw what he did?”  

Alex
nods and stirs his spoon around the lip of his metal coffee mug.
 It’s filled with only hot water but I’ve discovered
over the past few days since being here that in his mind, it’s
almost like having the real thing.  “Saw what Cable did
too.”

He
doesn’t say an accusing word about Sal’s untimely fall
from the loft, or the events that led up to them.  I can tell by
the deep blush riding high on Victoria’s cheeks behind him that
my tryst with Cable before dawn didn’t go unnoticed by anyone
in the house.

“So
that’s it?  Just brush it off like it’s not the
creepiest thing in the world to have a guy watching you while you
sleep.”

“While
you are naked, you mean?”  As he turns his gaze away and
takes a sip I notice that the tips of his ears are red with
embarrassment, or anger.  I can’t really decide which..

“That’s...that’s
really not the issue at this point,” I stammer and wrap my arms
around my waist.  

“The
pre-dawn wake up moans say otherwise,” Sal quips.  

“Go
fuck yourself,” I snarl, turning to glare at him.  

“Alright,”
Alex sets his mug down.  “That’s enough, you two.
 We all have to live under the same roof.  Obviously we are
going to have to make some...adjustments to make it all work.”

My
fingers dig into my sides as I shake my head, letting my hair shield
me from Alex’s gaze.  The need to retreat, to rush out
into the woods and hyperventilate over this morbid embarrassment is
unbearable.  “There’s no need,” I mutter.  “It
won’t happen again.”

Alex
grabs my arm and draws me back as I try to move away from him.  “What
happened happened. I’ve got no say in that.  I just want
you to be careful.”

“I
am.”

“Are
you?”  In the late morning light I notice that the blond
hairs along his chin, jaw and cheeks have begun to fill into a beard
now.  I can’t say that it seems all that fitting for the
fly boy airline pilot but he seems more down to earth now. More
likeable. I think this new life, as crazy as it sounds, suits him
better.  

“Cable
and I have an understanding.” I stare down at his hand on my
arm until he releases me and steps back.

“Those
have a way of being forgotten. I should know.  I was the king of
one night stands that ended badly.”

“Who
said it was a one-night stand?” I challenge.

Victoria
stares hard at the counter before her.  There’s no food
left to eat, but I’d bet she’d rather bury her face in
that hunting book I found yesterday than be stuck standing here in
the middle of our discussion.  “I know your type, Avery.
 You don’t settle down.”

“Maybe
I do. Maybe I don’t.  That’s none of your business
either, now is it?”

“Not
normally.”  He shakes his head.  “But it
becomes my business when other people are involved.”

I
glare over my shoulder at Sal. He wiggles his fingers at me and blows
another kiss.  Anger simmers low in my belly but I don’t
show it. I don’t want to add fuel to Alex’s fire. “Cable
and I have nothing to do with any of you.”

“You’re
wrong.”  I turn back to look at Alex, surprised by the
tension in his voice.  “When were you going to tell me you
two were followed last night?”

“Followed?”
 I glance toward Victoria, noting that her head has raised up a
bit.  “Followed by who?”

“I
was hoping you could tell us. What I do know is that there were four
sets of prints out there this morning when I woke.  Yours,
Cable’s, mine and another guy.  Sal pissed in the corner
when he woke up so it wasn’t him and Vicky here has tiny feet.
So that leaves a stranger stomping up to our doorstep while we slept.
I don’t know about you, but I’m not too keen on that
idea.”

I
push back against the counter, needing the pressure of it to keep me
grounded. “I saw a Moaner in the woods last night.”

“So?”
 I blink, surprised to hear Victoria speak. It’s been so
long since she joined in an actual conversation I’d almost
begun to wonder if she was really present at all.

“So
it followed me.  Or at least it watched me from a distance.”

Sal
snorts and pulls the lever of the recliner. He pushes it out to its
full length, laying back and crossing his hands under his head. Even
from this distance I regard the rash that has grown down his arm.
 His eyes look hazier than normal. “Little Moaner got you
scared?  I’d have thought a tough girl like you could take
one on.”

I
start to snap back at him but a voice calling from above stops me.
“Avery’s right. There was someone in the woods last night
and they didn't just pass through.  They stopped and watched.
 That tells me that whoever it was took a bit too much interest
in us for my liking.”  Cable’s boots clunk as he
leaps down the final three steps of the ladder.  

His
pack is slung on his back. His hat is firmly in place, tugged low
enough that I can’t quite make out the direction of his gaze,
but I feel like it’s firmly focused on me.

“What
was it watching?” Alex tugs at his sleeves.  The chill on
the air is more prevalent this morning.  Only wisps of smoke
coil up from the fire now. I guess there was no need to keep it going
since Alex decided to ship out.

“Me
bathing.”  My cheeks flush red as I hop up onto the
counter.  The Formica is old and peeling away from the wall.
 Not the most stable seat in the room but it’s the
nearest. If I’m walking all day I might as well get the last
few ounces of rest in that I can.

“Wait
a second.” Alex holds up his hands.  He takes turns
between staring in disbelief toward Cable and accusingly at me.
 “You’re telling me that you think some Moaner
stopped for a peep show last night, then followed you back here?”

“Almost
impossible to believe, right Avery?” Sal chortles.  

Cable
adjusts his pack, buckling it around his waist to even the weight.
 Without food the pack caves in at the top.  His boots are
laced high to support his ankles on the hike.  I can tell by the
way he’s standing that he’s wrapped his ribs up nice and
tight, though he didn’t seem too concerned with them last
night.

“Avery?”

“That’s
what I saw, Alex.”

“Cable?”
 He only shrugs in response to Alex’s question.  I
can tell by the hard set of his jaw that it’s taking every
ounce of restraint he possesses not to go and throttle Sal.  

Alex
scoffs, shaking his head.  “Fine. If you two don’t
want to tell me the truth, that’s fine. Grab your shit. I’m
done with this place.”

“Alex,
we’re not—”

“Save
it.”  He glares openly at me.  I’m taken back
by his hostility.  “If there’s one thing I can’t
stand, it’s liars.  I should know.  I’m one of
the worst, but this...this is different.”

I
look to Cable for support but he shakes his head and turns his back.
 I sigh and leap down from the counter, resigned to face a
really long day.  

We
hike through the afternoon, pausing only for small sips of water we
discover seeping through the sediment at the base of a large set of
stone steps naturally carved into the rock. It tastes earthy but
clean.  A path winds through the large boulders, making our
passage easier, but we veer away when the trail begins to head back
toward our previous direction.

South—it
is the only direction that matters at the moment.  I never
really asked Cable or Alex why this was the decision. East or West
seem just as good a candidate as any.  I’d veto North in a
heartbeat unless that whole bit about Moaners hating cold turned out
to be true.

Sal
marches at the head of the pack, his mouth running faster than his
feet.  He rambles about nothing and everything, all at the top
of his voice.  I’ve seen Alex trying to talk to him but
Sal shoves him away and continues on.  

I
exchange worried glances with Cable but say nothing. I know he is
thinking the same thing I am: if there are any survivors in the area
Sal will bring them down on top of us.

The
sun beats relentlessly from overhead.  Beads of sweat trickle
along my spine beneath the thick layers of clothes and the bulk of my
pack.  I had hoped once all of the food was gone that it would
be an easier load to bear, but the lack of nourishment only makes the
trek that much harder.

Cable
remains behind me, drawing near only when we reach a steep slope. His
presence is both welcoming and unnerving at the same time. Each time
he grasps my arm to ease me down another boulder, a tingle begins
beneath his fingers and I’m instantly swept back into the
memory of sleeping in his arms.

I
know he feels it too.  It’s obvious in the way he releases
me the second he knows I’m safe, snatching his hand back as if
I’ve burned him.  He helps Victoria from time to time as
well.  I guess he’s trying to prove that it’s not
favoritism or some crap like that.