The Lust of Us (Patreon)

Ellie had never thought of herself as saving Joel. She’d heard him say that to Tommy once, that she’d saved him, but he didn’t mean it like a real thing. He meant it like before the virus, when saving and dying were just metaphors. ‘Oh, couldn’t you just die?’ Ellie had read that in a comic book once. As it turned out, yeah, you could.

Then came those assholes from Seattle. And it turned out Ellie was one of those people like in the comic books, who could just die. Who didn’t know what all was real. She’d just thought of the world in terms of protecting and attacking. People tried to kill you because they wanted your stuff. You killed them to not die. She wouldn’t have thought there were people now, when everything was already so shit, who would torture someone to death.

Still, at least that’d given her a chance to save Joel. She’d seen him on the ground and started shooting and even if it took a whole clip to put down the female rhinoceros that was leading them, she managed. Maybe they were freakier freaks than usual, wanting to golf club someone to death, but they went out to bullets in the head just the same. And now the bruises had almost faded from Joel.

But that didn’t mean things were back to normal. She’d saved him. It’d happened before, of course, but Ellie’d always thought of that as just helping him. It wasn’t anymore. He was getting old and she was getting old. She wasn’t his to protect anymore. At least, no more than he was Ellie’s.

“Baby girl, you look like you’re thinking at all the problems in the world,” Joel said, grinning at Ellie. “We’re done, aren’t we? We’re safe. Here in Jackson, we’ve only got math problems. How to divide up all the food and add up all the chores. Can I get a look from you that’s more math?”

Ellie stuck out her tongue at him—but first she blushed, wondering if he’d known her for so long that he could tell what she was thinking as she sunned herself, her slight and girlish body near-naked, except for the bikini hiding the parts of her body that weren’t tanning. Something strange and exciting tingled through her bare skin as she thought of matter-of-factly telling Joel what she’d really been thinking, just as her brow got nice and furrowed.

She’d been wondering what it’d be like if instead of giving her a fatherly peck on the head, he gave her a real kiss, his tongue deep in her mouth in that way that seemed so intimate to her. He’d be inside her a little ways—the only place more tender her pussy—she’d feel him where she’d never forget his touch. But she could never admit that to Joel.

“You’re going to have to can the math jokes,” Ellie laughed. “I’ve been through high school, old-timer, or at least the closest thing they’ve got. I know all about math now, fresh from the factory. I bet you don’t even remember the difference between the nominator and the denominator.”

“It’s a thin line,” Joel commented, scratching at his stubble. “Alright, you work on your tan—don’t tell me what’s got you all brooding.”

“I have been working on my tan. Look!”

Joel looked. Looked as Ellie pushed down the waistband of her bikini bottoms, showing him the strip of snow white flesh on her so-taut belly where the sun hadn’t touched, contrasting richly with the bronze tan surrounding it. But more than that, she showed him the fringe of her pubic thatch—and Joel’s eager eyes couldn’t help themselves.

He kept up an amused poker face, but Ellie was quick to notice the arousal bulging out the front of his jeans with a firmness that couldn’t be mistaken for the denim bunching up. The thought that she had been the cause of all that firm flesh gave Ellie a sense of power—and trepidation. It seemed dangerous to be able to cause such a change in a man with a little bit of her skin. The kind of danger that thrilled her.

“Yeah, yeah, Ellie, you’ve worked up a beautiful tan for yourself.” Joel’s words were normal for him, kind and supportive, but his tone was low and honeyed in a way Ellie didn’t recognize. It made her feel weak, warm, and she felt that way in the pit of her stomach. “Long as you’re feeling so talkative, c’mon, out with it. Let’s hash this out. What’s got you so hot and bothered?”

Ellie shook her head, her lengthening brown hair scratched at her darkened shoulders. She smiled up at her father figure and again felt an odd confidence, a tingle, like maybe this smile meant more than usual. Like maybe she had enough behind it to do something to him. “Guess.”

“Your boyfriend?”

“Ooh, wrong guess! It has been a long time since higher education.”

“So not boyfriend.”

“Nah.”

“Can’t say that bothers me,” Joel said, making Ellie’s heart skip a beat. “But you’re a good-looking gal, Ellie. There must be all kinds wanting to be your man.”

“Yeah, it’s not like I can’t get one. It’s just…” Ellie suddenly didn’t want to talk about boys, not with Joel, not even think about them. She changed the subject. “If I did have a boyfriend, you olds would all do the same thing. Talk about how cute we are together and how adorable we look—bullshit like that. Like we were two preschoolers holding hands.”

“I don’t treat you like a kid, do I? I know you’re all grown up now.”

Ellie felt Joel’s eyes run over her lithe, darkly-hued body. His gaze seemed intense, meaningful. It scared her—in a pleasant way—but she made herself meet Joel’s eyes. Tremors teased their way through her swelling cunt. She didn’t know quite what was happening but Ellie followed the urges of her body, giving Joel a hopeful smile and wiggling her firm little hips as if getting comfortable.

“I know, Joel. Not you. You treat me like I want to be treated. But everyone else thinks I can’t handle myself, just because I’m short and young. That’s why I like spending time with you.”

“I know what you mean, baby girl. Heh.” He laughed at his own slip of the tongue. “I know I call you that a lot, but you’re a woman. You’ve got the body of a woman… high time everyone gets used to treating you like an adult.”

“Exactly!” Ellie exclaimed. “So how about giving me a beer?”

Joel chuckled again. “I’ll fix you something light while I get myself something.”

“Just so long as it has actual alcohol in it.”

Joel walked over to the cabana bar. One upside of the apocalypse—it was a buyer’s market for real estate. The few people left in Jackson had taken over the nice part of town, fortifying it, everyone living in mansions and two-story houses. You still got loud neighbors, as common sense dictated they all cluster together so that they could defend themselves if there was an attack, but like the old saying went, it was better to cry in a Porsche than in a Volvo.

Ellie kept feeling Joel’s dark eyes on her as he dropped ice into two glasses and then worked a couple different bottles into them. Straight whiskey for him and something more elaborately fruity for her.

Questions filled Ellie’s mind. Had he agreed to let her have a drink because he was hoping to loosen her inhibitions? If so, for what?

The idea that he might want her ripe for seduction made her pussy quicken with arousal, darkening the crotch of her bikini bottoms. Ellie rolled over onto her belly to hide the moisture, only then realizing that her bottoms showed off nearly all of her trim, shapely ass.

Joel had to notice, but he didn’t say anything, though his gaze was fixed on her overturned body as he came back with the drinks. Ellie gave him a half-smile, like she’d meant to show off her thong. The lie, even internally, made her feel daring. Her ass felt like a nice ripe peach, daring Joel to take a bite.

“Need some help putting your lotion on?” he asked Ellie as he handed the young woman her drink.

Ellie nearly gasped, gap-mouthed, eyes wide as she panted out an answer. “I put some on already.”

“Okay then, baby girl. S’long as you don’t burn.”

Ellie hurriedly downed some of her drink. She felt like she was burning a little already.

Joel laid down beside her on the picnic blanket instead of sitting back down in the patio chair. His hand brushed casually along the sculpted curve of Ellie’s bare thigh. As accidental as the contact was, Ellie felt goosebumps churning on her skin. She had no reason to think so, but the sheer feel of the touch convinced her it was deliberate.

Ellie knew perfectly well that boys liked to touch her legs. She’d had them put their hands nearly under her dress, and at a school dance, one had held her so close she had felt his erection rub against her groin. But she’d never felt the skyrocketing arousal she did now.

Despite her protestations of how mature she was, it didn’t seem like she had learned enough to handle the intensity of the sensation. It wasn’t fair that Joel knew so much more about a woman’s body than she did, his age and experience trumping her mere ownership. But that very fact also excited her. Her own wants were nebulous and unspoken, yet he still knew how to satisfy them.

“Thanks for the drink,” Ellie said, unsure what else to say as she took a big swig.

Joel sipped his slowly, coolly, looking over at Ellie with a small and licentious smile dancing over his lips. Ellie was certain now that the light touch had been purposeful. She wanted to tell him that he could do more, but she didn’t have the words. She wished instead that he would just keep going.

Either Joel knew what she wanted or he was simply very firm about what he wanted. He rolled over onto his side, now only inches from Ellie’s bare, tanning skin. His hand reached over and playfully shook her knee. Ellie’s flesh quivered under his fingers, even where he wasn’t touching her. She could see that Joel was equally aware of how horny he was making her. Neither of them would admit it, but Joel would damn sure do something about it.

Joel squeezed Ellie’s knee, then thoughtfully moved his hand up her thigh. “Now, baby girl, long as we’re talking to each other like we’re both old enough to drink, don’t you think you ought to give me an answer to my question?”

“What… what question?” It was hard for Ellie to focus on anything but her naked leg and what Joel was doing to it. Waves of urgent passion shot down to tingle in her toes and went up to her hotly aroused pussy. She stared at the ice in her glass to keep from turning around and watching what Joel was doing to her body.

“What had you so dark and stormy, a few minutes ago, when you were all far off in the eyes?”