"Yeah." How in the world could he to train to become dominant? Alex felt as dominant as a field mouse; would he really become what he dreamed? At least one part of his body was ready for this new adventure. Even after all the donations this morning, his p.e.n.i.s had become erect, seemed to have a heartbeat, and was very interested in the topic at hand.
He crossed his legs to hide his embarra.s.sment, his mind made up. He would do this not only for himself, but for his mates as well. "What do I need to do?"
Chapter Six.
Uli woke up feeling absolutely exhausted. Over the past week or two, he"d been feeling more and more drained. Kai told him not to worry about feeling tired, because after he ingested the medicine he"d feel incredible. His cousin still continued to refer to e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.e as "medicine". In a way, medicine was an accurate description, because without the fluid zombies would cease to function and would die.
Today his five-year transition into becoming a full zombie began. From now on he"d need male essence on a daily basis. Thankfully, he didn"t have to worry about the losing his ability to o.r.g.a.s.m, because he"d found his mate before he turned twenty-three. Cutler Morgan. Ah, Cutter was his mate.
But Cutter wouldn"t be home until later tonight. Cutter and Storm planned to stop over and celebrate his birthday. Kai was completely opposed to Uli having the usual type of zombie party. So even though Cutter and Storm weren"t Kai"s favorite people, he"d gained permission for them to do a sleepover. Cutter and Storm could stay in their apartment but needed to stay behind a locked door until at least ten the next morning.
Lafayette had been clear this exception was an anomaly. Keeping out non-zombies might be the only rule he and Beau truly enforced. Non-zombies were kept out of the residential area to lessen the risk of exposure to the zombie world and to ensure everyone"s privacy.
Uli was excited to be with Cutter again. Cutter was sweet, funny, and had a vulnerability that made Uli want to protect him. He blocked out the image of a dark and s.e.xy Storm as his heart raced at the thought of seeing him again too. He ignored his desire to drop to his knees and suck Alex off just to be the one to make him scream with pleasure.
Cutter, Uli wanted to savor Cutter"s essence. As another wave of confusion swept through him, Uli realized he wouldn"t be able to wait until Cut got back. He needed essence now.
Alex was right across the hall. Beautiful, innocent Alex, who was probably hard since they hadn"t been to the Extraction room yet, would have the essence Ulrich needed. How could the guy have never m.a.s.t.u.r.b.a.t.ed? He could walk into Alex"s bedroom, drop to his knees, and get what he required straight from the source.
Uli struggled to an upright position in bed and pushed off the covers. He was certain his eagerness would outshine the milking device. No. He wouldn"t cross that line, no matter how sensational the experience of drinking Alex would be; the guilt would spoil the pleasure. He should feel ashamed for wanting to do things to both Alex and Storm, but somehow the guilt was absent.
However, he felt no negative emotions about making out with Alex or letting him control the dials of pleasure the milking device doled out. Somehow being with Alex in this way felt right. Why did nothing make sense? His head was too muzzy to puzzle out the dilemma.
Uli skimmed a hand down his body to locate his semi-erect c.o.c.k and cup the shaft. Nice, but his c.o.c.k didn"t even harden fully. He definitely needed to get to the doctor"s. Dragging himself out of bed, he stumbled to his closet. He pulled out a pair of faded blue jeans and a red b.u.t.ton-up shirt. He grabbed a pair of red cotton underwear and sat down to pull them on before he fell. Struggling, he got into his jeans. d.a.m.n, he wanted to lie down and sleep for a year. He pulled on his shirt and didn"t try to b.u.t.ton it before heading out to find Alex.
Alex was already up, in the kitchen and making breakfast. When he spotted Uli, he started singing in a rich baritone. "Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you." Alex"s voice became a bit breathy, which only added to its appeal. "Happppppy birthday! Dear Ulllllllll-rrrrrriiiiiiiiiicccccccchhhhhhhhhhhh!" He took a big inhale. "Happy birthday to you."
Ulrich applauded his appreciation with a great deal of effort, then he grabbed the back of the chair. He must"ve appeared quite pitiful, holding onto the chair for support. Alex hurried over to him. "Here, let me." Long, agile fingers b.u.t.toned the red b.u.t.tons of his shirt, warm fingertips accidentally brushing against his chest. Uli"s body attempted to respond, but his exhaustion prevented the unwanted hard-on.
Alex helped him sit down before Uli hit the floor. "I thought you might be hungry." Alex caressed Uli"s face. Uli couldn"t stop himself from leaning into the attention. Alex had grown into so much more than just his best friend. "Oh, I remember exactly how you feel." Alex"s all-black clothing highlighted his pale skin and gave him a vampiric appearance. With a small frown he slid back in his chair. "After you eat, we"ll go to the doctor"s office."
The doctor, right. Alex wasn"t his mate. Uli pulled back from the caress. "Yeah, okay." He shouldn"t mourn the fact Alex hadn"t offered to give him what he needed. It was stupid to desire him to provide essence. Alex wasn"t his mate. Uli ate the lovely breakfast of pancakes and sausage without really tasting the b.u.t.tery syrupy goodness. He decided his cravings would be more directed on his mate once Cutter got back. He"d be able to deal with his weird attachment to Alex, which seemed to only get stronger by the day.
After breakfast, Alex walked with Uli to the doctor"s office. Nurse Roberts greeted them and wished Uli a happy transition day. He handed each of them delicate champagne flutes. The spiral etching in the crystal sparkled in the sunlight.
His apartment-mate appeared to be blushing as he stared at his gla.s.s. "I guess he wanted to make your first time special."
Uli smelled the aroma wafting from his flute, which sharpened his urgent need for what the fragile gla.s.s contained. He lifted his gla.s.s for a toast out of habit.
"May you have a very happy birthday, Uli. Thank you for brightening every one of my days. I"m very grateful you"re my best friend. I love you."
Uli teared up. Drained, confused, and exhausted but Alex"s simple words touched his soul. He loved Alex, too, probably more than he should, but he couldn"t stop his feelings. He shifted forward. Alex met him halfway, pressing his lips against his, and within seconds the chaste, sweet kiss turned into pa.s.sion. His coordination and balance were off, but he was ready for more of those wet kisses. Alex pulled back and clinked their gla.s.ses. "Drink."
The scent pulled his focus to his craving to ingest the creamy substance. He tipped the flute back and swallowed the rich cream. "Mm mm," he moaned. Energy zapped into him and made him feel alive. He felt invincible and his c.o.c.k hardened as he finished the fluid. Only Alex"s chuckle made him pull his tongue out of the gla.s.s. He had gotten most of e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.e, but some clung to the very bottom of the gla.s.s.
Shaking with pleasure and l.u.s.t, he set the gla.s.s down. "I feel d.a.m.ned good." He reached down and adjusted his erection. Alex"s elegantly arched eyebrow at his bold rearrangement of his pants made him shrug. "We should go to the Extraction room."
Alex glanced away but nodded his agreement.
Finally, Cutter"s treatment was deemed complete. Storm was thrilled to spring Cutter from the facility. Storm hoped like f.u.c.k his Cut was cured, though he"d watch him like a hawk to help derail any cutting behavior. He couldn"t lose Cutter, he just couldn"t.
He forced himself to think on the positive. He and Cutter were both invited to Uli"s birthday party. So instead of going home, he drove straight to Club Zombie. Apparently, Alex would be the only other guest. It would be just the four of them, which was fine by him. He needed no one else.
Once they arrived Cutter handed over the present Storm had picked up from both of them. He"d never seen anyone so thrilled by a present before. Ulrich didn"t shake it or try to guess what it was, none of that seemed to matter. The kid just hugged it tight and thanked them.
"Open it," Cutter demanded.
"Oh, right." Ulrich grinned and the wrapping paper and ribbons started flying.
Uli shrieked with delight and he ripped off his own shirt, revealing a nearly hairless torso. Storm guessed his body was lightly muscled from years of work on his family"s vineyard in Germany. Storm couldn"t help but compare it to Cutter"s. They had the same frame and s.e.xy build. Did he like it a little rough like Cutter?
Shaking off those thoughts, Storm watched the strip tease in reverse as Uli covered up his goods by putting on the vintage concert shirt Storm and Cutter had gotten him for his birthday. "Thanks so much. I love it."
Storm tried to ignore the delicious sensation of holding Uli in his arms as the sweet little German gave them both big hugs. He felt a stab of guilt as he once again thought about how it compared to Cutter"s hugs. He wished he didn"t have to choose between them because they each offered something different. Cutter"s hugs were desperate, clinging, and full of love. Uli"s hugs were playful, joyous, and honeyed.
Cutter"s voice drew him out of his own head. "It fits perfectly, Uli." His fingers seemed to linger on Ulrich"s stomach by his waistband.
"Yeah, you are rocking it," Storm muttered, hoping to break up the touch-fest in progress.
Uli grinned as he held out his hand, presenting a view of his new thumb ring. "Look what Alex made me." He glanced over at the shy man to say for the hundredth time, "I really love it."
Storm didn"t like that Alex gave Uli a hammered silver thumb ring. For some reason, he wished he and Cutter had thought of something better than the t-shirt, but there hadn"t been time.
He also wished the model-like Alex wasn"t so d.a.m.ned perfect. His heart-shaped face and bowed pink lips made Storm want to...well, slide between them. He was going straight to h.e.l.l, because f.u.c.k if he didn"t want all three of them.
"He made it." Uli beamed while he let Cutter have a closer look. s.h.i.t! No competing with a cool handmade gift.
Alex set out cups and filled them with sparkling apple cider.
"What the f.u.c.k? Is this a kiddie party?" Storm asked with a tad of snark, which earned him a scathing glare from Cut.
"It"s from his cousin, Kai," Alex told him. The blond tossed his long, almost-white hair over his shoulder. A hand on Alex"s hip seemed to dare Storm to say something disparaging, but for some reason he didn"t. Oddly enough, he didn"t even want to say something stupid.
However, Storm walked over to where their coats hung to pull out a bottle of Jack Daniels from a coat pocket. He reached into Cutter"s coat and procured four shot gla.s.ses. "This is what"s served at a party."
Uli clapped him on the back. "Thanks, man."
Was it his imagination or did Ulrich leave his hands on him longer than necessary? What? Oh, he certainly did not imagine the palm of Ulrich"s hand brush across his a.s.s. "Come on, let"s sit down." He hadn"t conjured up the grope, because the guy actually squeezed his a.s.s cheek before walking away.
f.u.c.k me. He smiled to himself. He"d never felt like a party favor before, but he rather liked being fondled by the birthday boy. Cutter had noticed and wasn"t smiling. d.a.m.n.
Cutter helped Alex pour chips, cookies, and cheesy snacks in bowls and set them out. The four of them then plopped down around the coffee table, Uli and Alex on one side and Storm and Cutter on the opposite as if they had picked teams according to best friend status.
Storm filled everyone"s gla.s.s up with Jack Daniel"s cheapest. "Ever play "I Never"?" He pointedly ignored Cutter"s whine and directed all of his attention onto Alex and Uli as he crunched on a chocolate chip cookie sandwiched between two potato chips. When they both shook their heads, he proceeded to explain, "Well, you make a statement of something you"ve never done and anyone else who has done the deed, so to speak, drinks. Make sense?"
"I like American games and this one sounds easy." Uli grinned at Cutter while he pressed up against Alex.
"We shouldn"t be drinking, we"re all under age." Jesus, Alex sounded like a grandma and nothing like the cover model he looked like.
"It"s only a little whiskey. I"m still a German citizen so under German law I can drink." Uli chortled.
"Actually, I think you follow the laws of the country you"re in," Cutter said, smiling at Alex as if he were looking for credit.
"It"s my birthday," Uli announced as if to pointedly ignore the party p.o.o.pers present.
Cutter and Storm nodded while Alex shook his head. "True, but your cousin won"t like it."
"I"d never do something because someone else wants me to do it," Storm quipped. He pointed to the rest of them. "Drink!"
Cutter shook his head. "Ain"t that the truth?" He took a sip and grimaced.
Uli laughed and tossed back the shot.
Alex gasped and demanded in a deep voice, "Go easy."
Cutter"s head shot up. He shivered as he stared openmouthed at Alex for some reason. Uli cuddled in closer to Alex and started to fiddle with the other man"s hands.
Uli shimmied. "Are you afraid if I drink too much someone will take advantage of me?"
Alex growled in response. What the f.u.c.k was that? The guy actually growled. Something definitely had gone down between the two of them while he and Cutter went MIA.
"I"ve never had s.e.x," Uli blurted out.
Cutter"s eyes snapped away from the apparently fascinating Alex to stare at Uli. "Never?"
"You have to be specific. What kind of s.e.x?" Storm wanted to make sure there was no confusion. The guy couldn"t be completely without experience, could he? Why the h.e.l.l did Storm care?
Uli peeked up at Storm through a lock of golden-blond hair with his innocent blue eyes. The glance hit Storm right in the gut. Usually only Cutter could make his insides somersault like when they rode the rickety loop coaster at the carnival. Sighing, Uli shrugged. "Pick one." s.h.i.t! The guy was a total virgin.
Cutter"s head swiveled away from Storm and he cleared his throat. "a.n.a.l s.e.x?"
Uli accent seemed more p.r.o.nounced. "Okay. I"ve never had a.n.a.l s.e.x."
Storm turned to catch Cutter"s attention, but his best friend concentrated on stacking cookies one on top of the other. Storm didn"t like being ignored. Payback. Alex and Uli both took a drink.
Storm watched Alex"s azure eyes widen with knowledge as he realized why Cutter and Storm didn"t drink.
Uli opened his cupid-bow mouth. "So, both of you have done it?" After Cutter nodded his head, he turned slightly toward Storm, and the painful expression that followed was enough to tell their story. "Together?"
Yes! Storm wanted to shout along with He"s mine! Instead he got a front row seat to rewatch a quick replay of the fumbling grope session that concluded in painful penetration without lube or protection. In a way, he was glad s.e.x ended almost before it began. But it was all kinds of wrong, their virginities lost to inexperience and desperation.
The group remained silent as they stared at each other. Maybe "I Never" wasn"t the best idea he"d ever had.
Cutter said, "Your turn, Alex." Why the f.u.c.k did that bring a blush to Cutter"s face?
"I don"t know. I"ve not done a lot of things." Alex batted his eyelashes in Uli"s direction, but he didn"t notice because the German was licking his lips and staring at Cutter.
The smile Cut gave Alex would have melted Storm. "You"ve got plenty of time." Why did that sound like a cheap offer to help him gain experience?
After more encouragement from Cutter and Uli, Alex threw out a gem, "I never had a b.l.o.w.j.o.b." His voice cracked a little. No one lifted his gla.s.s.
"Why aren"t you drinking?" Cutter stared at Storm with grimace.
"Cause the game is "I Never" and I never..." Storm rolled his eyes. The rules were simple. He knew Cut played it before.
A big-eyed stare followed by a big smile crossed Cut"s face. "I thought you...the first night we met these guys." His white teeth disappeared into a frown.
"What? You thought I"d let some stranger eat thousands of my babies?" Why did everyone believe he went off to the back rooms for a b.l.o.w.j.o.b? Geez, he only said it to be annoying; he didn"t expect they"d take him seriously.
"You"re disgusting." Cut smacked him, but he was wearing a big-a.s.sed happy grin.
Alex reached out to squeeze Storm"s knee. Everyone seemed more comfortable after his admission. Even Uli grinned at him with some sort of weird approval.
"Your turn, Cut."
One glance at Cutter"s evil smile and Storm realized trouble was headed straight for him. Bring it, baby.
"I never text in the bathroom."
"One time! Once!" He shook his head, not believing his so-called best friend went there. That was low. "You sounded upset."
The birthday boy, who steadily sipped his Jack shots even when he didn"t have to, sn.i.g.g.e.red. "Hope you washed your hands first." He collapsed into Alex with a big "Ewwwwww!"
"You"re gonna get it!" Storm impotently waved his finger with the empty threat.
"Promises, promises." Cutter gave him his best brat voice, but his glance seemed to race to Alex who emitted a low growl, which put Uli in a fit of drunken giggles. Cutter sat up straighter, c.o.c.ked his head, and dared more than asked, "Yes? Something to add, Alex."
Alex"s eyes narrowed and his demeanor suggested Cut enjoyed playing with fire. However, Storm studied his best friend; not only did Cutter realize what he was doing, he courted the outcome. "Little boys should be careful what they wish for..."
"More like fantasize..." Cutter mumbled.
"I see you, Cutler Morgan." Alex leaned forward. The movement caused a protest from Uli at having lost his nesting place.
An audible sigh expelled with the breath Cutter must have been holding. What the f.u.c.k did he mean? Everyone saw Cutter. For Christ"s sake, he was sitting right on the f.u.c.king floor. He was hard to miss.
Uli shifted to lay his head against Alex"s shoulder as he stared at Cutter. Storm wasn"t sure if he was laying claim or couldn"t hold up his head. "Your turn, Storm," Uli sang out.
"I never had a s.e.x dream about Uli." It was a simple statement. He didn"t have any dreams about the guy while he slept. Did Uli occasionally star in his awake spank-bank movie selection? h.e.l.l, yeah. But there was a difference between conscious fantasy and unconscious dream.
Peals of laughter exploded from the German, who was now officially drunk. He cackled until tears rolled down his face, though he seemed to sober up and get pensive when both Cutter and Alex drank.