A/N: Hehehe. This is where the M rating kicks in. I think this chapter could be classified as porn. XP Enjoy!
Although Tool begged them to, The Expendables and Erin decided against dropping by a bar, concerned more with Tool's erratic driving rather than their craving for alcohol. They rode, instead, to a park void of human life. Not their usual rendezvous, they nevertheless caved in to Erin's pleas and parked their bikes in the nearby parking lot. The grass, lush beneath their feet, glowed scarlet-red in the beginnings of the sunset, the rippling plot of land alight with golden fire. The group settled down in the middle of the park, Tool on the verge of dropping into sleep already. Toll Road and Hale wrestled a bit, snapping at each other with their feet, tumbling head over heels as Tool and Gunner looked on and laughed, cheering for whomever was winning. Erin sat herself a little ways away, flanked by Ross and Christmas on both sides. She gazed off into the sunset, admiring the orange hues.
"The sunset is gorgeous in Cuba," she commented, leaning back against a tree trunk. "The Ravenous and I were sent there to take out the army of men in charge of Cuba's nuclear missiles. The job was rough and grueling, but we got it done, at least for a while. We were paid nine fucking million. A million per merc." She smiled, shook her head. "A quarter of that went into my Harley, the rest on an offshore account that I tap from time to time, like when I bought the house out here. The job was worth the sunset the last day, though. After all that slaughter," she faltered on the last word, "it was the most welcoming sight in the world."
"I can imagine," Ross mumbled, rubbing his temples wearily. "How many men?"
"Oh, I'd say about two hundred. Small army, really. They need a shitload of scientists to man the nuclear plant." Erin shook her head. "Teddy was joking the whole damn time with Rover, just begging him to do something stupid. They ended up blowing up the non-nuclear part of the plant." Erin laughed, voice hoarse. "We were in a shitload of trouble then. But, we managed to come out of there alive."
"Sounds like fun," Lee commented dryly.
"I suppose," Erin agreed, shrugging. "At least you guys are fun to look at. You all have pretty faces."
Ross and Christmas glanced at each other over Erin's head, eyebrows arched in surprise.
"Except Yang, I guess," Erin continued. "Then again, I don't think Asians look nice. I'm so prejudiced, sheesh."
"I'd say you're racist," Christmas muttered; Erin punched his shoulder hard.
"Oh, can it," she cried, smirking in spite of herself. "You're just like Phantom sometimes."
"How was your old team?" Ross asked hesitantly.
"The Ravenous?" Erin pursed her lips, her eyes starting to become unfocused. "Oh, boy, were they a group, I'm telling you. I'd say they were three times as foolish as Hale over there. They were always pulling stupid stunts, sometimes on the job, mostly on vacation. And they were grown men, too! Phil and George were the most serious of the group, although, when you got them drunk, they were fucking hilarious. Leroy…I think he was the only one with his head on straight. He kept us all in line, negotiated deals, stuff like that. He was always looking out for us."
"Sounds like a dad," Christmas commented, scratching the back of his head absentmindedly.
"In a way, he was. Mostly, he was like a military sergeant. He had a helluva time making us haul ass, and he enjoyed every minute of it. I guess he was a bit sadistic, now that I think about it." Erin smiled, eyes still staring off into space. "When I first joined the team, all those boys thought I was psycho. 'A woman mercenary?' they would ask themselves. 'No fucking way.' They expected me to either die on my first job or back of it. I did neither." Her smiled widened. "'We came, we saw, we kicked ass!' That was my motto, and the team loved it. When they realized I was good, they couldn't keep themselves away from me. Lord forbid I wanted to go home early to catch some sleep. Nuh-uh. They wanted to throw knives with me, test out my accuracy, mess around with my head. Yep, they were one big pile of jokers alright."
A cool night breeze started up, ruffled Erin's hair. She closed her eyes, let her head tilt back so she could enjoy the last few minutes of the sun's warmth and the wind. Ross glanced at the curve of her neck, imagined his lips pressed against it. He shook his head, forced himself to look away. Lee's gaze traveled from the curve of Erin's neck, sloped down her torso, followed the long lines of her jean-clad legs.
I love Lacy, he told himself. I love Lacy. I love Lacy, dammit!
"It's been awhile since I last saw the sun set," Erin said, watching the sun finally sink behind the horizon. "Not since the team was killed…" She leaned forward, arms propped against her thighs, and fiddled with some grass. "I was at home watching the sunset when they died. It would've been dawn over there in Iraq. While I enjoyed the sunset, The Ravenous cursed the sunrise…"
"How'd you find out?" Ross asked, voice quiet, tentative.
"I guess I sensed it. When you've been around people for years, you begin to develop this connection with them. When night fell three years ago, I felt this horrendous pain in my chest. The next morning, I called up one of my Iraqi contacts, and they were dead."
"At least you weren't there to see it," Lee muttered. "It's no fun watching your teammates die while you survive. I would know."
"Same here," Ross said. "Tool and I thought we were gonna die. We were the only ones who came out of Nigeria alive."
"I hate explosions," Christmas growled, shaking his head. "Too many of my pilot friends were shot out of the sky. The explosions from their planes when they hit the ground were awful. I could hardly stand blowing up the general's house in Vilena."
"We're all afraid of something." Erin chuckled bitterly. "Funny thing is, I'm terrified of death, and yet I would give up my life for The Ravenous. I guess that's why I fight so hard to live. I just don't want to die."
"Fuck! That was a low blow!" Hale cried, staggering away from Toll Road. "Hey, man, I want children some day!"
"You play, you pay," the ex-wrestler quipped, wiping the sweat off his face.
"I think it's time we head back," Erin said, pulling herself onto her feet. "I'm getting hungry, and I've got some Heinekens waiting in the fridge back home. Can't you hear them calling?"
Erin helped Ross and Christmas to their feet, practically yanking them forward. She cast one last glance at the horizon, now fading to an aquamarine, and murmured, "Miss you guys." With a small sigh, she hooked her arms through Ross's and Lee's arms, nearly dragged them towards Tool and the rest of the gang.
"Let's go!" she cried, rapping the top of Tool's head with her knuckles. "I'm starving!"
Gunner stepped between Hale and Toll Road, ending the fight. He called it a tie, winced as he received the familiar yells of protest from both men. The team wandered back to their bikes, straddled them, hit the road again, Erin in the lead this time. Curving with the road, she reveled in the cold air that nipped her skin, growled deep inside with the throaty Harley engine. The rest of the team kept up with her pace, Lee and Ross flanking her sides again. Face aglow with freedom, her expression that of deep concentration, Erin guided the men back to the shop, navigating the streets with ease. One by one, they rolled into the garage, killed their engines. Hale rushed to the fridge in the corner, scrambled to find something to eat. He brought out leftover pizza, much of it coated with anchovies. He grimaced, tossed the box onto a table.
"Anybody hungry for anchovies?" he called.
"Why the fuck are you asking?" Toll Road snapped. He opened the pizza box, stumbled away, cringing. "Nevermind."
"Why don't we ever have food in this joint?" Hale cried, throwing his hands up in the air.
"Tool eats it all," Gunner stated, giving the pizza box a wide berth. "That's why."
"It's not my fault you guys order food and don't eat it all," Tool exclaimed. "I don't like letting good food go to waste!"
"Sure, sure. Settle down, gramps." Hale laughed. "You offer any of the food to the broads you fuck?"
"I've only got one thing to offer them," Tool slurred. "And that's in my pants."
The men spluttered into laughter. Christmas chuckled, and Erin suppressed the guffaws that welled in her chest. She glanced at the time, thought for a moment.
"When's Yang getting here?" she asked. "I want to go home."
"He's in China," Ross answered, pulling off one of his gloves. "Won't be back until next week. Lee's covering his shift."
"Ah." Erin glanced at Christmas. "I've got food in the fridge at home," she said, keeping her voice low. "Or do you want to stick around here?"
"Well…" Lee desperately wanted to stay, in hopes of convincing Ross to cover the shift instead. One look at Erin's pleading expression deemed otherwise. "Food sounds good," he grumbled reluctantly.
"Brilliant." Erin clapped him on the shoulder, offered him a broad smile, and chuckled. "I just want to get to the good booze." She turned to Ross. "See you tomorrow, then."
The phone rang with its annoying trill, killing all the noise in the shop. Tool lumbered over to the machine, picked the phone up out of its cradle as it rang again.
"Y'ello," he answered. "This is Tool." He paused, pursed his lips. "Uh-huh. Yep. Yep. Should be. Sounds good." The tattoo artist set the phone back in its cradle, regarded the men with a solemn gaze. "Looks like you've got yourselves a job," he said. "Sounds high-end, too."
"Walk in the park?" Ross asked. "Or hell and back again?"
"Walk in the park."
"Arrange the meeting."
"Already done." Tool picked up his long pipe, patted down the tobacco, lit it. "Saturday night, at the Hyatt. You need to be in black tie."
"Black tie?" Hale asked incredulously. "Black tie my ass! What the fuck for?"
"Meeting under the guise of businessmen, I guess," Tool muttered. "It's gonna be packed full of people, too. All elegant and everything."
"This Saturday?" Ross scratched his beard. "Christmas and I'll go."
"Me, too." Erin rolled her shoulders, glanced between Tool and Ross. "I could come in handy. I'm quite familiar with black tie events."
Ross wasn't in the mood to argue. He nodded his head. "Alright. Saturday. Two days from now."
"Come on, Christmas," Erin said, tugging on the Brit's sleeve. "Let's go."
The men throwing good-byes as she left, Erin and Lee drove their bikes to her house, parked them in the garage. Erin tugged the tarp over the Harley before slipping into the house. Clicking on the lights, she scouted through the house, Christmas following up behind her. Once she deemed the premises was clear, Erin hastened to the kitchen, yanked open the refrigerator door. She looked over her shoulder at Lee sheepishly.
"Do you cook any good?" she asked.
"Depends," Christmas asked. "Why?"
"'Cause I can't cook for shit. I've told you that before." Erin rummaged through her fridge, pulled out two packets of lasagna, tossed them into the microwave. "God, a cake sounds so good right now. Red velvet, yum."
Christmas settled down at the kitchen table, rubbed his hands over his balding head. The microwave beeped. Erin removed the lasagna, tossed one of the steaming packets to Lee, a fork following a moment after. The two mercs dove into their food with vigor, ate the pasta in a matter of minutes. Erin leaned back in her chair, belched, wiped the back of her hand across her mouth. Lee pushed his lasagna container aside, burped quietly in comparison as the food settled in his stomach. He brooded for a moment, stared down at ceramic tile of the old table.
"You shouldn't come with us," he growled. "You'll get in the way."
"Oh, Jesus, Christmas, you're not gonna start up again, are you?" Erin rubbed her eyes wearily. "Why not?"
"You'll just get in the way."
"It's the only way I can prove my worth to you guys."
"You shouldn't join the team."
Erin slammed her fist against the table. "Why are you so fucking against me?"
"If I knew, I would tell you!"
"Bullshit!"
"We don't need you on the fucking team."
"I have every right to join the team."
"No, you don't."
"Listen." A dangerous glint entered Erin's eyes, her lips pulling back into a snarl. "I am not a fucking punching bag! You don't have the right to take all your fucking anger out on me just because Lacy's done with you!"
Christmas leapt to his feet, knocked his chair over. "You don't know shit about Lacy!"
Erin was on her feet just as quick. "Oh, yeah? She can't trust you because of your job! How does it feel, lying to her all the time?"
"Fuck you!" The rage flared up in Christmas's veins unchecked.
"Go fuck yourself!"
Lee stormed from the room, cussing vehemently. He punched the button for the garage door, kicked his race bike into gear. Erin appeared at the door, yelling, "You've got your dick shoved so far up your ass that you can't accept the fucking truth, Lee!"
Christmas shot out of the garage, skidded on the pavement and asphalt, barely corrected himself in time. Leaving behind the smell of burnt rubber, smoke trailing in his wake, he gunned the bike down the road, engine shrieking like a banshee. The motorcycle wavered unsteadily beneath him, threatened to fly out from under him.
"Bitch," he snarled to himself. "Bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch!"
He swerved at the end of the street, yanked the handlebars around, hooked a hard U-turn. The bike raced back to Erin's house, screaming bloody murder. He jumped off the bike, tore the helmet off his head, barreled into the house. He found Erin in the kitchen, righting the fallen chairs. She scowled at him, brow furrowed, eyes flashing, challenging him. Lee's thoughts crashed together, logic overruled by fury. He stormed over to Erin. She stood her ground, glared into his stony face. Knocking over plates and pans, the Brit shoved her against the kitchen counter and crushed his lips against hers.
She fought him momentarily, clawed his shoulders, his back. He pushed her into the counter, body pressed into hers. He bit her lip, forced his tongue into her mouth. She met him with equal force, bit him in return, tongue pushing deep into his mouth. His hands found her hips, gripped her ass. They gasped for air in unison, Christmas pressing his mouth against Erin's not a second thereafter. Grinding his pelvis into hers, Lee grabbed her by the hair, shoved his tongue deeper into Erin's throat. One hand pulling down on his neck, Erin reached down, grabbed Lee's crotch.
"Fuck," he moaned, body shuddering in response.
He lifted Erin off the ground, her legs wrapping around his waist. He staggered away from the counter, sucked on Erin's neck. She moaned, shivered against him. She reached down, bit into his neck, hard enough for a response. They fell together at the bottom of the stairs, Christmas unable to carry the woman upstairs safely. She tugged at his shirt, ripped it apart at the seams. Lee yanked the tank top off Erin's body, tossed it aside, kissed the woman down the chest, between her breasts, inching towards the top of her pants. She squirmed beneath him, fingers grasping his head. Lee fumbled with the jean's button, tore it away viciously. Tugging the pants off Erin's legs, he covered her mouth with his again, hands kneading Erin's flesh. She pulled at his pants, felt the zipper break beneath her fingers. Christmas kicked the pants off, bit Erin's lip again, tongue sliding out of her mouth and down her neck. His hard-on throbbed against Erin's thigh; she ripped the thin fabric from his pelvis, his dick hot on her skin. Lee's fingers snapped the elastic band of Erin's panties, tore them in half. Erin shoved her pelvis onto his, whimpering. Lee grabbed Erin's ass, thrust himself into her, legs wrapping tight around his waist.
Breathing heavily into Erin's face, Lee pounded into her, in a frenzy. Moans and cries bounced off the walls of the house, the wooden floor creaking and straining between the two sweating bodies. Erin clutched Christmas closer, cried, "Harder, harder!" Fire broiled in Lee's abdomen, compelled him into a deeper thrusts, Erin's body bucking wildly beneath him.
"Aggggggghhhhhhhh!"
Christmas's back arched as he climaxed, Erin crying out beneath him as the orgasm swept her away. Muscles straining, Lee gasped for air, quivering in delicious release. It lasted an eternity, his vision covered with white bursts. He slumped against Erin, shivered as he relaxed. Erin's muscles loosened beneath him, her ragged breath falling into a calmer rhythm. The darkness swirled around them, enveloped their entwined limbs, the only light emanating from the kitchen. Christmas wrapped his arms around Erin, pulled her as close as possible.
The wolves rippled beneath his touch.