Page 22 of Outbreak

That did not go how I thought it would. I wasn't expecting my little Death to get jealous over another woman's attention on me. I couldn’t be less interested in another woman if I fucking tried. But her reaction to the flirty waitress does funny things inside my chest.

She wants me.

As happy as that makes me, it also pisses me off. She doesn't know it’sme. I could be just any Joe Blow off the street in a mask. The thought of any other man taking her and touching her makes me feel more murderous than I ever have before. She’s mine. All fucking mine. I’ll be the only masked fucker to kidnap her in this life and the next.

After blowing off the waitress at the counter, we walked back to the truck. I was tempted to make her crawl back just for shits and giggles, but the overwhelming need to get her back in the confines of my truck and all to myself has me leading her out by the leash in a rush. When I pick her up and sit her inside, it physically pains me to let her go and break the connection we seemed to have found sitting at that table. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she enjoyed being leashed and led around inpublic. If I were to slide my hand inside her leggings, would I find her dripping for me?

Soon. Very soon.

When I get back inside the truck, I find her tapping her nails on her thighs anxiously. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just… I need my vape. It was in my pocket when you took me, but it must have fallen out when…”

She doesn’t finish her sentence. She doesn't need to. We both know what happened. But she’s wrong. It didn’t fall out. I have it. And because she kept her word and behaved in the diner, I’ll reward her.

Opening my door back up, I grab my bag from the truck bed and sit it on the edge, pulling out her vape from the side pocket. Her eyes light up like Christmas morning when I slide back inside with the little blue addiction in my hand. “You earned this,” I tell her, handing it over. Her fingers brush mine when she takes it, and the sparks that ignite on my skin feel euphoric.

“Oh, I could fucking kiss you right now." She exclaims excitedly, putting it to her lips and sucking in an enormous lung full. The truck fills with white vapor smoke, disappearing almost as quickly, leaving behind hints of berries and ice. I barely notice because I’m still stuck on the words she just said. I want nothing more than to hold her to that. I've never kissed anyone on the lips. I’ve known since I was 13 years old that the only lips I wanted to ever touch mine would be hers. Even with all the women I fucked over the last four years, that was always a hard limit for me. I hate myself for even fucking them, but I was trying to burn her out of my mind. I didn’t realize she’s buried herself so deep inside my soul that no one could ever compare. I know she’s fucked other people, too. Had her lips on theirs. I’d like to cut their lips off and shove them up their assholes for having touched what is mine. But with the way the world is right now, they probably won’t be around much longer anyway.

“Thank you, Ghost,” she says, pulling me out of my murderous thoughts and back into the present moment as she sits back, closing her eyes and sighing deeply.

“You’re welcome, baby girl.” I don’t know where this new nickname came from, but it feels right. She let it slide in front of the flirty waitress, but I don’t know how she’ll react to it now that we’re alone. She’ll get over it, either way. I can’t call her what I really want yet—her true nickname. She’ll know it’s me immediately.

Pulling out my phone, I do a quick search of the area for any grocery stores. We need to stock up on supplies while we can. I have a feeling in the pit of my stomach about the rest of our trip. I won’t allow her to go hungry because of poor planning. I’m still not a hundred percent sure what’s actually going on, but I’d rather be safe than sorry.

“There’s a grocery store about 10 minutes away,” I say, putting my phone between my legs on the seat and putting the key in the ignition. “We’ll grab some supplies and food, just in case.”

She nods, never opening her eyes as she sucks the life from her vape like she might die without it. I’ve never been jealous of an inanimate object before, but I guess there’s a first time for everything. I want to be the thing she needs pressed against her lips—filling her body with me because she can’t go another second without me. I consider taking it away, but it does calm her down, and that can’t be a bad thing in the midst of everything we’re facing.

The drive to the store is silent but comfortable. The parking lot is similar to the diner, nearly deserted with only a few cars parked sparsely throughout. Anxiety builds at the unknown– I have no idea what we’re walking into here. I want to leave her in the truck, but I can’t trust her not to run off, and I don’t think it’s safe to leave her cuffed and vulnerable anymore. She won’tbe able to defend herself or get away if someone—or something—tries to attack her.

When I put the truck in park, she shocks the shit out of me as she reaches down the door pocket and pulls the leash out, clipping it to her collar.I think she likes it.I stare at her for so long that she finally turns to me.

“What? Just giving you a helping hand,” she throws my own words back at me from last night.

“Uh-huh.” I can’t help but give her a shit-eating grin from beneath my mask as I get out, laughing as I walk around the truck to get her out. At least she waits for me to do that.

Taking the leash from her as I sit her on her feet and close her door, I wrap it around my hand a few times to shorten it as we walk towards the building. She’s earned a little bit of trust, but I don’t trust everyone else. I want her close in case we run into trouble. “In and out. Stay close and keep your eyes open.”

“Yes, Sir,” she says, and somehow it lacks the sarcasm she normally says it with.Hmm. Interesting.

The automatic door swooshes open, and Rue stops in her tracks. “What is it?”

“Something… umm. Something feelsoff,” she says, rubbing her hand up and down her arm as if to rub the feeling away.

Taking a look around the store, nothing is particularly out of place. It just looks abandoned—no cashiers at the registers, no manager behind the big counter, no customers walking around filling their cart. Deciding we need the supplies and if no one is here, it’s worth the risk, I shove the anxiety down and try to reassure her. “Looks like no one is here. Let’s grab some buggies and make it quick.”

“In and out?” She looks up at me, more vulnerable than I’ve seen her in a long time, reminding me of the girl she once was.

“Yes. I promise.”

She straightens herself, dropping her arms and taking a deep breath. She’s scared, and I don’t blame her. I know she feels things differently than others. We each grab a buggy and stay side by side as we make our way past the registers with our guards up. Soft music playing across the speakers is the only sound besides our footfalls and squeaky wheels as I lead us towards the non perishable groceries.

“Just fill it up with anything you want that won’t go bad,” I tell her when she looks at me, unsure of what to do. “Enough to last a few days until we get to where we’re going.”

I can tell the information piques her interest, but she doesn't ask questions as she nods quickly and starts tossing things inside. We move up and down the abandoned isles side by side. Once the carts are full of non perishable items—canned foods, protein bars, water, etc.—I navigate us back to the essentials. Rue grabs some toilet paper while I squat down and inspect the wide array of feminine products she might need. There’s too many options, but rather than asking her what she needs because I want to do this on my own, I start tossing one of each into the already overflowing buggy.

“Ummm, unless you know of some other multipurpose use for those, we don’t need them,” she says, noticing what I’m doing.

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