Page 81 of Redemption
But if I can get hard with only Cole in the room...
My mind whirls with questions I don’t have answers to, all the while my dick is getting harder and harder. Our gazes meet for a moment before we return our focus to the star of the show. My balls start to tighten under his gaze, the tension weighing heavily between us.
That is, until it becomes too much for me to handle. His gaze is unwavering to the point I’m halfway to taking this further than we’ve ever gone before. But we can’t do that here, so I make my dick jump instead. I gasp and spread my hands on either side of my cock, acting like it was a magic trick as I feign surprise and exhilaration. “It’s alive!”
Cole throws his head back, laughing at my bullshit redirection. He wipes a tear from his eye and, when he’s finally able to get control over his laughing fit, returns his gaze to mine.“You know we’re going to have to tell everyone your cock is officially a zombie now, right?”
I push him off my dick with a playful, “Fuck off,” and then resituate myself as gently as I can beneath the covers. “So, what do we got today, Doc? Give me the scoop.”
He takes a quick look at the closed door before turning back to me, but he remains silent for some reason.
At his hesitation, I lean forward and whisper, “Cole, please tell me you’ve found something. It’s been three days.”
He sighs dejectedly in return, but nods shortly thereafter, his gaze turning serious as he says, “I have a plan.”
I perk up at the thought. “Do you know where they are? Aly? Where is she? Let’s go get her! Now!” I kick my legs, flinging the blanket off until I’m free of their confines and able to swing my legs over the opposite side, the burst of adrenaline temporarily dulling the pain of moving so quickly. The need to get to her, to find her in this shit heap, overwhelms all of my senses and dismisses any other unnecessary concerns.
My naked ass and still half-hard cock excitedly greet the open air when Cole grabs me by my shoulders. Not harshly, just firm enough to keep me from going manic. “No, Hawk. Listen to me. You need to stay here and get better. I can’t let you go out there in this condition, let alone split up and lose track of you in the chaos. At least here, I know where you are. Right now, you’re a constant in the experiment. I don’t need any other variables potentially altering the outcome.”
My brows furrow at his immediate rejection of my assistance. “Cole, they’re my family too,” I say in a low, slow, and threatening tone. “You can’t expect me to just sit here and continue not doing anything. It’s fucking killing me, bro! I can’t stay in here wondering day in and day out if they’re even stillalive. If you know where they are, Ineedto see that they’re ok!” I blow out a frustrated breath, wincing when my...everything... begins to hurt again, and sit back down. “Even if it’s just for a moment.”
Understanding my concern and agitation, Cole puts a hand around the back of my head and presses our foreheads together. “I know. I know. It’s killing me too. But it’ll kill me more if I let you go out on a fucking suicide mission to find them and you don’t come back.” He pulls back, palming my cheek. His head tilts, eyes glazing over as he regards me with a heavy sigh. “Look at what they’ve already done to you. I can’t bear to have you put yourself back in harm’s way. Not when I can find them just as well as you can, all while drawing the least amount of suspicion our way.”
His thumb draws a line from my jaw upward and then back down again, the feeling almost hypnotic. It draws me in, forcing me to understand and accept his reasoning even though I hate the fact that he’s right.
In my state, I’m a liability. Sure, I feel like I can climb a mountain right now, but I’m positive in a few minutes I’ll feel like a drowned rat after the adrenaline inevitably dissipates. I need to rest up, let my body reset itself so that when we finally do find Jax and Aly, as well as a way out, I won’t be holding anyone back. “Fine,” I relent, “But, come on, man. I’m going stir-crazy in here. You know how much I hate hospitals. I know this isn’t an actual one but, for fuck’s sake, I can’t take much more of this.” My teeth clench at the thought of being trapped in this place another day. Unable to escape. Unable to save them. Unable to do a damn thing but hope and pray. I lift my splayed palm as it shakes between us. “My skin... it feels like it’s crawling every time one ofthemstalks past my doorway. I gotta do something. Please, give me some—”
His lips meet mine, the firm pressure instantly relaxing my anxious thoughts. It’s not sexual. Not anything that would lead to anything else, even though my dick practically demands it at the moment. It’s just... comforting. Soothing.
Home.
Hands cradling my face, he surrounds me with a sense of safety and every bit of compassion and reassurance I need to get through this. All too soon, however, our lips part, and the room turns silent again. But, as we stare into one another’s eyes, lingering in that charged space, there’s a truth that doesn’t need to be voiced by words.
I love you.
Just stay safe.
With my face still held lovingly in one of his hands, he uses the other to replace the blanket across my lap just before the door opens behind him—another worker bee entering without knocking. “So, Lazarus. Anything new?”
Without missing a beat, Cole answers, “Nope. Everything’s looking good, Stitch. Just running through a few BESS & VOMS tests.” The interloper nods in apparent understanding before striding over to Cole’s side to observe. Undeterred, Cole continues “assessing” me, turning my head this way and that, shining a light into my eyes, and making me follow his fingertip left and right, then up and down, fulfilling his “role” as a medical professional.
Satisfied with Cole’s treatment, Stitch pats Cole on the back. “Alright then, looks like you’ve got this all handled. I have a few things I need to do at one of our other buildings. Think you’ll be ok here by yourself for a little bit?”
Without turning his gaze away from mine, Cole mutters in response, “Yes, sir. I’m just gonna hit the other rooms right after this one and then take a break. Locke and some of the others should be here by then. Maybe I’ll get some lunch depending on the time before I restart my rounds.” The confirmation that I’ll see him in just a few more hours gives me a boost of hope. He’ll do his job, both of them—playing the part of dutiful doctor as well as looking for Aly and Jax—and I’ll get my update later.
My faith in Cole is astronomical. I know that, out of all of us, he would have the tenacity, determination, fuck... the stubbornness, to find the others. He can do this. If Aly and Jax are being kept here as we are, he’ll be the one to find them.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Jax
We were wrong.
We were so wrong.
Even though we had a hunch there was something else going on, these people, this...community, is far more than anything we could’ve imagined.
Lineman duty.
