He’d kissed Rebel Case and made her come. Hard.

Rebel Case, the movie star. The woman who was his secret fantasy. The woman now in his arms.

Jesus H. Christ.

“Trevor,” she sighed, her cheek pressed against his chest. “I like that name.”

He chuckled. “Good thing, cause I’m not changing it.”

His dick throbbed in his jeans, begging for attention, but it would have to wait. He wanted her in his bed, begging for it. He could wait for that. Any man would wait for that.

Back on the farm where he lived, there were two women in their small band of survivors—and both of them were claimed by other men in their group. So he’d volunteered for this job, making first contact with these strangers out here at this rest stop, hoping like hell he’d find a woman of his own and get lucky. But never in his wildest dreams did he think he’d get this goddamn lucky. Trevor smiled, because for once, this post-apocalyptic life was starting to look up.

“I can’t believe we just did that, you know…” She looked up at him with that trademark Rebel Case heavy-lidded look. But now, shit, that disarming look wasn’t on the big screen for millions to enjoy, this time it was just for him. “I mean, so quick,” she said. “I didn’t even take a moment to find out your name before you…”

“Fingered you to orgasm?”

“Is that rude?”

“Nope.” He shook his head. “It’s decisive. You knew what you wanted and you went for it. You came, you saw, you conquered.” He smirked.

“Well, I definitely came,” she replied, using that distinctive voice he’d heard so many times before.

“Damn sure.” He pinched her chin, lifting it up so he could capture her mouth in a rough kiss, letting her know he thought she was the fucking sexiest woman he’d ever seen. She met his lips, kiss for kiss, her fingers digging into his biceps. Finally, he came up for air.

“As soon as I get you settled in my apartment back on the farm, I’m taking you to my bed and we’ll see if you trust me any better by then,” he told her.

“Okay,” she breathed. Her face flushed; her chest rose and fell with erratic breaths. He watched every movement, mesmerized by her beauty, imagining her in his bed with her hair spread out on the pillow. A troubling warmth began to radiate from his stone-cold chest. Gazing into her sparkling hazel eyes, there was no mistaking that bit of happiness skimming throughout his body, rebooting parts of him he thought were long-dead.

He’d known her for maybe thirty minutes.

Fuck, this woman might be the death of him.

But what a way to go.

He couldn’t stop grinning. He helped her lower her legs and watched her adjust her clothes and smooth her hair. He’d always loved her eyes, those expressive, wide-open eyes, and Jesus, those lips. Her lips were swollen from his kisses, and sensual, just the sexiest mouth he’d ever seen. He wanted those lips around his cock, ASAP.

He liked what he saw, what he’d touched, but he also admired a woman willing to shove a Glock in his face and moments later, come on his hand. Rebel Case might look like an innocent Tinkerbell pixie a man could take home to meet his conservative parents, but inside he knew she was an experienced, no-nonsense, sexually aggressive woman. His kinda woman. And she wasn’t a virgin, thank fuck. That never would’ve worked.

This was why Rebel Case had always been his favorite actress. He wasn’t playin’ her in any way when he’d said that—he really was a fan. He’d watched her movies over and over again. She was an amazing actress and singer…but she’d always been the image in his mind that he’d jacked off to late at night or in the shower, a woman just like her.

He’d always loved the fantasy of a good girl with a streak of bad. A woman who was adventurous in bed, experienced, who’d fucked as many men as he’d fucked women. He’d always wanted someone over-the-top sweet on the outside, a woman who looked like she could work at Disneyland, with a princess outfit on, taking tender-sweet pictures with little girls. And yet, damn, she could turn on a dime into a woman who was insatiable for cock. His cock. Only his cock. And now that he’d had Rebel in his arms, she really was his fantasy come to life.

A woman taking what she wanted…they were so much alike it was intimidating.

He took a step back, reminding himself he’d have more of this later, that she was his—and this time, there’d be no goddamn sharing. A woman all his own on this lonely planet—it was nothing short of a miracle.

Speaking of that…

“Who is this guy you mentioned earlier? Are you traveling with him, or did you just meet?” he asked. “This guy who isn’t your man?”

“Justin?” she answered, tossing her silky hair over her shoulder, causing his dick to take notice and thicken, ready as usual to sink into her pussy. “We’re friends. We’ve been living together in Carmel this whole time. We found each other on the freeway north of Santa Cruz after the end. We left Carmel yesterday and drove here, and I woke up this morning wanting to have a look around, just to stretch my legs. Justin was still asleep, so I decided not to wake him, and go outside and check on the area a bit. When I heard your car pull in I ran here to hide because I knew I couldn’t make it back without you seeing me.”

Trevor turned and glanced back at the large, beige RV parked by itself in the shade, under a stand of trees. “You’ve been living with him, just the two of you since the end, and he’s not your man?” he asked, confused. “You’re not fucking him?” What was wrong with the guy that he wasn’t all over this woman? Was his dick broken? It didn’t make any sense.

“No,” she sighed. “I’m not fucking him. We’re just close friends.” She mumbled something under her breath.

“What?” he asked.

She glanced away then looked back at him and frowned. “I said, it wasn’t for lack of trying on my part.”

“Hold on. You’re telling me you wanted this guy, made the moves on him, and he refused you? You? Rebel Case?” What man refused to have sex with a gorgeous woman like this, especially when the two of them had been isolated? “What the fuck? Is he gay or something?”

“Yes,” she sighed.

“Yes, what?”

“Yes, he’s gay,” she answered.

Trevor blinked, startled, then threw back his head and laughed. “The world ended and you were left with one man, just one man and no one else, and that man turned out to be gay?” Oh fuck, it was too much. He kept laughing, not able to hold it in, no matter the anger clouding Rebel’s face.

She punched him in the shoulder. “Stop it,” she hissed. “It’s not funny. Do you know what it’s like, wanting to have sex, wanting to blow off steam and connect with someone, and living with a nice man who is of the right age, right there, day after day, in front of you, and that person doesn’t want you that way? It was terrible! He was so sweet about it, too, so apologetic. That almost made it worse.”

“I know exactly what that’s like,” he remarked with a gruff voice, his mind flashing back to the happily-in-love couple he lived with. He’d originally sweet-talked his way into a threesome with Adam and Rachel and was invited into their bed a few times for some scorching hot sex while he and Adam played out Rachel’s fantasies. But they’d married recently and Rachel was pregnant now, so lately, he was odd man out, jacking off alone in his room at night.

Which was exactly why he’d jumped at the chance to come alone to this meet-up. The world was small now, most people were dead. The first few weeks after the virus struck he’d traveled all over the state, trying to find anyone else alive. And so far, there were only a few small groups he knew of, with fewer women than men. He’d heard a woman’s voice over the radio broadcast system they had set up at the farm and quickly offered to be the contact person for their group, hoping like hell she was young and unattached.

He wanted a woman of his own.

“And anyway, it’s been just as terrible for him. He was stuck at the end with a heterosexual woman. He’s like me, completely frustrated that it ended up that way. One night we were staying up late, drinking too much and playing this game where we were saying names of famous people we wish we’d ended up with at the end. I asked him who he’d pick as a lover to be randomly left with at the end of the world and he said Ricky Martin.”

Trevor grinned.

“You can’t fault the guy for good taste,” Rebel said. “Ricky Martin’s hot and he seems like a sweet man. Well, seemed like a sweet man…was a sweet man…” She broke off awkwardly.

Trevor shrugged. His mind was only on one person, the woman standing before him. He narrowed his eyes. “Who did you say you wanted to be left with?” he asked.

“Oh,” she said absently. “George Clooney, I guess.”

Trevor snorted. “He’s old.”

She crooked an eyebrow. “I’ve met him. He’s not that old. And believe me, he’s still got it goin’ on.”

He shook his head.

“Am I the first woman you’ve seen since the end?” she asked, deftly changing the subject.

“No,” he answered, grabbing her hand and threading his fingers through hers. Needing to the reassurance of her touch. The feel of her skin against his. “There’s been one woman in our group since we all first found each other, and a second recently joined us. One of our women, Rachel, recently married Adam, he’s the guy you were talking to on the radio.”

“Married,” she gasped. Her eyes went wide. He couldn’t help but stare into the hazel depths because, Christ, this woman was beautiful. “They got married…now?” Wonder tinged her voice. “With this, the apocalypse, all around? With everyone gone, with the world destroyed. They still got married?”

“I think Rachel finding out she was pregnant had something to do with it.”

“Oh my gosh,” Rebel gasped again. “She’s pregnant? Pregnant… Wow. How far along is she?”

“Just a few months.” He shrugged.

“But she got pregnant after the apocalypse, not before, right?”

“Yes. Adam is the father of the baby and she didn’t meet him until after the end.”

“Okay…how many people are in your group?”

“Seven. There’s seven of us. Christian and I, Rachel and Adam, and there’s Sebastian and Phoebe, and Josie, too. Josie is a child, she’s only seven years old.”

“A child,” Rebel squeaked. “A child survived?” She placed a hand over her heart. Her eyes watered. “I thought they’d all died. A haven’t seen a child in months. Now I know at least one survived, it’s possible that there are more children out there.”

“Maybe.” He’d been living with the little girl in their life for a few weeks, so the whole “a kid” thing didn’t shock him anymore. But yeah, at first he’d also felt a wave of relief and warmth in his heart. Having a kid in their group was nice. Also, Rachel’s pregnancy—it gave them a little hope that there might actually be a future after all.

“So that’s it, that’s your group? Have you seen anyone else who survived the apocalypse?”

He scowled. “Yeah, there’s a group of assholes we’ve had some dealings with recently. Whenever we’ve met up with them it hasn’t gone well. They’re living together up in the mountains, ex-cons banding together from the look of it. Not sure how many of them are out there, but I know they’re bad news. We have no contact with them.”

Her nose wrinkled. “Oh great, just what we need, men behaving badly. I want absolutely nothing to do with people who used to be in prison.”

His nostrils flared.

Maybe he shouldn’t have referred to those men as ex-cons; he didn’t know if all of them were, just one of them in particular. But…didn’t she see his own tats? He might as well have the word “convict” inked on his forehead. One thing this conversation exposed—in some ways Rebel was as innocent as she looked. Well, innocent of things that didn’t matter to normal people, to people who never had dealings with the dark underside of life. A person with zero knowledge of prisons or gangs, because they’d never been around anyone like that, this wasn’t a bad thing. He was happy for her that she’d led that type of life. And he planned on keeping her future just as worry-free.

“I just want to stay around people like you and Justin. Men…and women, too…who are honorable and will do the right thing. Okay?” She blinked up at him, those pretty eyes full of trust.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

First of all, he was weak-kneed over the idea that Rebel Case considered him honorable. Hell, that anyone on the planet considered him honorable. And fuck, it felt good. So good he never wanted this to end. He wanted to be the man she thought he was. He’d been trying, working toward that change.

Now that he’d found Rebel, he’d try harder.

Trevor felt a wave of rock-solid certainty enter his mind. He made a mental note to never tell Rebel about his past life in Avenal State Prison. She didn’t need to know he’d walked out of death row just three months ago. He’d never told the others the specifics—only Adam knew any details—but Trevor knew his secret was safe with him.

This new and improved Trevor was going to be the only Trevor she knew. The only Trevor any of them knew.

He squeezed her hand. “Okay, sweetheart. I understand.”

She nodded and gave him a blinding smile that caused his heart to stutter.

And also…maybe now wasn’t the time to tell her about how Rachel had been kidnapped by those assholes in the mountains, or how they’d raped Phoebe. Yep. One thing at a time. Baby steps. He didn’t want to scare her away, give her or this guy Justin any reason to not come and visit at the farm. Besides, he’d take care of her, protect her, and he could do that easier if she was right next to him, in his bed.

“When we go back I want you living with me, sleeping in my bed,” he told her.

“Okay,” she answered, simply.

He felt a kick in his gut, warmth in his chest. Christ, she was so trusting, accepting of the man she saw before her. It was the first time he’d had a woman judge him for the man he was now and find him worthy of companionship, closeness. She didn’t have anyone whispering caution in her ear, and she just seemed to see straight inside of him, past the exterior and into the real Trevor.

Never, never would he do anything to shatter this illusion.

“I’d love to stay with you while we’re visiting,” she said. “But…where are we going, where do you live?”

Visiting? He took a deep breath, trying to hide his disappointment. “We live on the edge of the San Joaquin Valley, next to the mountains. On a farm.”

She lifted an eyebrow. “On a farm?”

“Yeah,” he sighed. Fuck, how was he going to sell this to her? He didn’t even want to live there on that farm in the middle of nowhere and he wanted her to stay, not visit.

“A farm?” she said again, like it was the most ludicrous thing she’d ever heard. “What the hell for? Out of all the amazing places you could live in California, you guys picked a farm in the middle of nowhere?”

“I know.” His hand went up to rub the back of his neck. “I was out-voted. The others wanted to raise livestock and grow a garden, and the farm was loaded with solar and wind power and a well that’s tapped into an underground aquifer. We went to a university library and looked up demonstration farms that were free range and off the grid and found this one. It’s in a bad location, but I have to admit we’re pretty self-sufficient out there.”

“Well…that doesn’t sound too bad. A garden does sound like a good idea. Fresh vegetables…I was thinking of starting one myself where I live, I just had no idea how to get going. I’ve never exactly been a green thumb kind of person, and Justin is just as bad as I am at that stuff. Okay, I’m willing to give it a try. Sounds like I could learn from you guys.”

“Where were you living at in Carmel?” he asked her.

“On 17-Mile Drive,” she answered, like he was stupid and should’ve known that.

“In a seaside mansion?” he asked wistfully.

“Yeah, of course. It’s beautiful. And it’s got solar panels, and we have a back-up generator and cisterns for rain water. I’m not sure you can lure Justin and me into staying permanently with you. We enjoy where we live and are planning on going back, but we’re definitely up for a visit.”

He noticed then that she was dressed in what had to be designer clothes, and on her feet were sparkly, expensive-looking sandals. He smiled. Holy hell, a woman after his own heart. At the end of the world why bother with Walmart when you could just waltz into every store on Rodeo Drive? He was constantly trying to explain this logic to the people he lived with, but they laughed him off. Meanwhile he sipped beer out of crystal pilsners and they continued to use plastic cups.

Ridiculous.

“Visit?” He met her gaze. “This isn’t just a visit. You’re staying with me permanently.”

Her eyes softened. She reached up and cupped his face with a hand, rubbing her thumb on a dimple. “Trevor, I know you think you know me because you watched me in all those movies, but you don’t. I’m not a movie star anymore. I don’t have stylists, salons, and photographers airbrushing me. Don’t speak so soon about wanting to stay with me forever. I feel it, too, this thing between us. It’s wonderful being with you. It’s exciting. But wait until you get to know me, the real me, and then decide if you want me to stay. Okay?”

“I can’t imagine changing my mind.”

“You might. I’m not an angel. I can be difficult.”

“Difficult doesn’t bother me. I’m not exactly easy myself.”

She chuckled. “I bet you aren’t.”

“Come on,” he said, rubbing her pulse point with his thumb. “How about you show me the inside of that RV of yours? It’s time I met Justin. Let’s get this party started.”

“Sure,” she answered. He watched as she looked down at their joined hands, then back up at him and grinned. “Sounds like a plan.”