Zero

****

Zero’s weight was bearable. Prue stroked his back feeling the heat of his breath on her neck. Closing her eyes, she tried to stop the thoughts and emotions that were building inside her. Life was a lot easier if she didn’t give them time to manifest.

There were no promises or commitments, only one night of undeniable pleasure.

He pulled away first. She stared up at him as he looked down at her.

Fingers stroked her cheek then moved down to her lip. She opened her mouth, and he plunged a finger inside. Prue tasted her juices on his digit. Moaning, she sealed her mouth around the invading finger and sucked hard.

His c**k kicked back into action.

She felt the jerk of his arousal inside her.

“I need to get rid of the condom. You’re a f**king temptress.” He removed his hand, dropping a kiss to her lips. “I’ll be back.”

Zero eased out of her body. The action made her wince. She hadn’t f**ked in such a long time. Unused muscles protested at being used once again after a long year of celibacy.

Prue watched him enter the bathroom. She heard the tap running followed by the flush of the toilet.

The line had been crossed. There was no going back to being simply friends.

Rolling over, she stared at the wall that faced her. There were no answers to her questions staring back at her.

Pushing hair off her face, she wondered what she was going to do when all this was over. For a few minutes she was able to forget about the threat to both of their lives. Right now, the reality of what they faced crashed inside her brain.

The bed dipped as he joined her. His arm banded around her waist, and he leaned in close kissing her neck. “Stop it,” he said.

Jerking toward him, she stared into his eyes. “What?”

“Stop thinking about all the shit out there. Alan will wait. The f**ked up shit he’s got planned for us will wait another day. I’ve got you na**d in my bed. I’ve just tasted and f**ked your pu**y. Life, right now, is good. Don’t spoil it for shit in your head.” He tightened his arm around her as she made to fight him.

“Let go of me.”

“No.”

They fought in the bed, but Prue was nowhere near as strong as Zero. He had her pressed to the bed. His large body was between her thighs as he held her hands beside her head. She wriggled, trying to get him off her. Nothing would budge him.

Exhausted, she remained still underneath him. Prue chose to glare at him instead.

“Are you done?” he asked.

“No.”

“Then go ahead. Wriggle away. This is far more fun for me than it is you. I get to feel your body move underneath me.” He pressed his hard c**k against her pu**y.

Moaning, she stopped. His c**k was too inviting to resist.

“Now, I’m not going to do anything to you until you tell me what the f**k that was all about,” he said.

“We … crossed … a … line.” She spat each word at him, taking time to say them.

Zero’s gaze landed on her. He didn’t look confused or show any sign of misreading what she said. “The line was drawn by us, Prue. It can be knocked down by either one of us.”

Her anger spiked. Fisting her palms, she wished she could slam it against his face.

“I will not be a notch on your bedpost or like some whore you use,” she said.

He reared back, releasing her arms. She went to her elbows, but the rest of her was trapped by his large body. “Do I look like I’m treating you as some whore or a woman I’m only interested in having a good time with?” Zero looked angry. She’d seen him angry many times but never like this. “Any other woman I would take what I want and send her on her f**king way. I don’t take time to linger with cuddles or talk. You’re different, Prue. We’re different.”

Hope filled her at his words. They were different, but she always believed only she thought that way. When she heard about Sophia and saw the other woman, Prue knew she didn’t stand a chance of competing.

Sophia was utterly feminine whereas Prue had grown up with Trevor and Zero. They taught her how to fight, shoot, play pool, and deal cards. She liked getting dirty under the hood of her car. Being a teacher was rewarding, and she loved her work. At the weekends it was her downtime where she got to do what she loved.

“You are not and will never be a notch on my bedpost. You mean too much to me.”

“What about Sophia?”

“She was … a mistake. Since you’ve been here I haven’t given her a thought, that’s how unimportant she is to me. I don’t even think about her. I care about her, but as Nash’s woman and part of the club.”

Don’t let yourself hope.

Prue couldn’t stop the new feelings invading her heart. She’d always loved Zero. He was her best friend. The guy she had grown up with and learned to depend upon. Only when she got older did her feelings deepen. She knew they would never be returned and so hadn’t waited for him like some love-struck virgin. Prue lived her life without expecting anything from him in return.

“You fancied yourself in love with her,” she said.

“Can’t a man make a mistake?”

“You’ve changed your mind too quickly.”

He smiled. “We were not going to do this, and yet we’re here.”

“This is different,” she said.

“Why? Because you want to f**k whereas you don’t want to trust me when I say I no longer love another woman?” he asked.

Zero had a point.

“What do you want me to do?” The words were hard to say. She was so used to being on her own. Zero visited her sporadically. She didn’t have anyone in the world to trust or confide in. For ten years it had been her fighting for her life. It was nice being Prue once again. Ten years of being another woman hadn’t been easy. There were times she didn’t respond to the name Lilly.

“I want you to give me a chance, to give us a chance. I’m in this for the long haul,” he said, touching her cheek. His finger ran across her lip.

She chuckled. The noise sounded hollow, and she didn’t feel any humor.

“What’s so funny?”

“You’re saying this now, and yet Alan is intent on killing the both of us. We’re not exactly going to have a long haul,” she said, feeling depressed.

“Hey.” He gripped her face, forcing her to look at him. “Alan is out there, and I can’t promise you we will survive. What I will promise you is that I’ll do everything in my power to keep us both alive. He’s not going to win this fight. I won’t let him.”