Fraternizing

CC Brown

USMC Enlisted Rank Structure

Dedication

To my husband, my “ALEX”… without you, this book would not have been possible.

I love you!

Playlist

Headstrong- Trapt

Change Clothes- Jay Z ft. Pharrell

Yeah- Usher ft. Lil John & Ludacris

Blurred Lines- Robin Thicke ft. Pharrell and T.I.

Man in the Box- Alice in Chains

You Send Me Swingin’- Mint Condition

Tainted Love- Marilyn Manson

Linger- The Cranberries

Closer- Nine Inch Nails

The Ghost of You- My Chemical Romance

Every Rose Has Its Thorn- Poison

Better Than Me- Hinder

Blurry- Puddle of Mud

Bat Country- Avenged Sevenfold

Fuel- Metallica

Radio/Video- System of a Down

Fall For You- Secondhand Serenade

Comedown-Bush

Lady Lay Your Body- Carl Thomas

Suavemente- Elvis Crespo

Shameless- Garth Brooks

Machinehead- Bush

Daylight- Maroon 5

Gorilla- Bruno Mars

Promiscuous Girl- Nelly Furtado ft. Timbaland

Bodies- Drowning Pool

To Make You Feel My Love- Garth Brooks

The Pretender- Foo Fighters

Nothing Else Matters- Metallica

Chapter 1

Alex

"Shots… shots… shots…shots…" It was all I heard as I threw back tequila shot after tequila shot. My head was pounding with every chant that left those fucker's mouths and I knew at any second I was probably going to puke every ounce of that shit up, but through the incessant bangs in my head, I told myself not to give these assholes the satisfaction. I would keep that shit down if it killed me.

"Come on Staff Sergeant select, throw em' back, motherfucker." God, I loved my brothers, but half the time, I hated them.

Like now.

Finding out I was selected to pick up Staff Sergeant in the Marine Corps was not only a reason to celebrate; it was a reason to get downright trashed. These guys, my brothers in arms, promised me, from the second I received the good news that tonight would be the night that I cleaned the bar out, and by the looks of things, they weren't lying.

Coyotes was jam packed. Not only was it a Friday night, but with selection news being thrown around, and being stationed in the fucking boonies of Twentynine Palms, everybody had a reason to come out and party. This place was the Marines hang-out. There was always the Enlisted Club--or E-Club--on base, but fuck it, we were too restricted there, and these fuckers wanted to kill my liver tonight, so out in town we went.

The usual suspects had packed the bar. As always, there were the boot, or new Marines who waited every payday to come blow their pay checks on alcohol, only to have to sit in their lonely ass barracks rooms playing Call of Duty and other simulated war shit when they ran out of money. Who was I to stop them? They hadn't seen a lick of combat and wanted to live it through their television screens. Have at it.

Then there were the military groupies, tag chasers, or whatever name you felt like calling them. Yes, they exist. All they want to do is fuck anything in uniform in hopes that they can land themselves some benefits and a stay at home gig. They scour military hangouts in military towns, and in Twentynine, any bar is a military hang out. Normally, I steer clear of these 'ladies', but occasionally, my weakness prevails and I end up giving in, but I always protect my shit. Babies with one of these types would be my worst nightmare come true.

Tonight they were all over the place. Tiny mini-skirts barely covering the cheeks of their ass, pieces of material used to cover tits, and plenty of make-up, hoping to attract some dude in need of a quick fuck, with hidden, long term consequences. Most of them, in this town anyway, were divorced from another Marine and hung around in hopes of nailing another one. They disgusted me to no end, but hey, sometimes I just needed a quick lay and if they were available, why not?

Then, there were the guys like me; the single Marines who had been around for a bit, letting loose and having a good time. Even if that fun meant I might end up in the ER getting my stomach pumped. I didn't care, I was moving up the ranks faster than I could have ever imagined.

When I set out to join the Marine Corps, it was out of sheer luck that I got in and it changed my life for the better. My career in the Corps was owed to my recruiter, who worked tirelessly for me, pulling so many fucking strings for me, and making sure that I knew that his name was on my shit and that he would find me if I ever embarrassed him. I knew then that I had made the right choice and that I wanted to uphold the Marine Corps mantra of Honor, Courage, and Commitment. I've poured every ounce of my being into my career, volunteering for combat deployments, leading Jr. Marines, mentoring, and now, teaching.

Being an instructor at the School of Communications was not my dream assignment, but I took it in stride, because like anything with the Corps, they assign you where you're needed and I knew that. Although it wasn't what I wanted, it was where I was needed; so when the orders were passed down to me, I packed up, shut my fucking mouth, and did what I was told to do.

Picking up Staff Sergeant in just six short years wasn't on my list of goals. I knew it could happen, but I never expected it to happen. Now that it had, I was beyond fucking thrilled and needed to party the way these assholes had intended for me to do, because it was worth it. The pain and suffering I would feel in the morning was well worth the bullshit I was putting my body through tonight.

"This night is to Sergeant Alejandro Cruz, Staff Sergeant select," Riley shouted, throwing back another shot. I took another, but winced as the burning liquid made its way down. I was damn near sure that after fifteen of these little shits, my insides were being singed with every drop that went down my throat.

Sergeant Christopher Riley, or Riley as we called him, was one of the guys I had known the longest. I'd met him in boot camp and instantly hated him. He was loud, goofy, and always in my space. I'd grown up fighting guys like him. But after our brawl in bootcamp one night, after the lights went out, I grew to respect him. He was a skinny white boy, too pretty to be a Marine, I thought, and even though I kicked his ass, he held his own and made me work for it. After that night, we actually forged a friendship, eventually becoming roommates.

"I don't think I can take much more. Fuck, you guys are killing me," I stammered out, half drunk, half mortified. I did not want to bitch out, but I was beginning to feel the effects of my limits being reached and it wasn't shaping up to be pretty.

"Fuck that. We're clearing this place out tonight," Jensen yelled, shoving another shot into my face.

Brandon Jensen, Jensen for short, was one of the first guys I met when I checked into the Comm School, I instantly liked him, making him my roommate as well. He was a lot like me. He loved the Corps and it was evident in the way he carried himself. He, unlike a lot of the guys I had run into over the course of my six year career, believed in the rules and regulations and set out to uphold them at every turn. I quickly realized that looking at Jensen was a lot like looking at myself, only he was taller, part Mexican with some black mixed in, and probably a little better looking than I was. Chicks seemed to flock to him, and while I caught my fair share, Jensen was like a pussy magnet. They lined up, but he was always selective, which made me respect him even more.

"Don't pussy out, Cruz. You've earned this shit," Smith chimed in, patting me on the back.

"Yeah. Plus, you're paying for this, so you better drink up," Newsome threw out, causing me to turn my drunken gaze on him.

Part of me wanted to lunge across the table at him; another part wanted me to sit my ass down since my head was spinning out of control by this point. All liquor and no food was making me feel like a lightweight. I hated it, but I wasn't sure how much longer I could keep up the tough guy charade.

"Don't pay him any attention," Jensen said, helping me into a seat and shoving a beer into my hand, "he's paying tonight. He just doesn't know it yet."

I sat back in the chair and sipped the beer in my hand. Being overly intoxicated to the point of almost blacking out, or so I felt, left me no other choice but to become a bystander in this very crowded bar.

Smith and Newsome were two peas in the same pod. Caleb Smith and Andrew Newsome were both from some small, podunk town in Nebraska and joined the Corps together. After being sworn into the buddy program and going through bootcamp, Marine Combat Training, and Comm School together, they were separated but finally made their way back to one another in the form of Comm School instructors. They were a couple of bullshitters, but pulled chicks just like the rest of us. Their beach boy looks had me believing they were from California or Florida when I first met them, but alas, they convinced me they were from Nebraska and we've been friends ever since.

"Check out those girls over there," Riley goofily pointed out. He wasn't near as wasted as I was, but he was still completely fucking awkward.  I tried my hardest to focus in the direction that he was pointing in, but all I could make out were a couple of groupies. Riley laughed and smiled, hitting me on the shoulder asking me if I wanted one.

"Fuck no," I quickly responded, throwing back more of the beer. There was no amount of alcohol that could make me want to get inside of anything he was pointing at. One of them had a tattoo that I could have sworn had the rank and last name of another fucking guy. Groupie if I ever saw one.

"You good here man?" Jensen asked. Some random Asian chick was wrapped around his arm, standing behind him.

"Yeah. I'm good. Go on."

With Jensen's caramel brown skin, and those pretty boy green eyes, women were always on his ass. He didn't discriminate, and unlike sorry ass Riley, Jensen's chick looked respectable.

Some Jay-Z song came blaring through the speakers and while I bobbed my head, humming lowly to the words, two chicks I had never seen before caught my eye as they sauntered out onto the dance floor. They didn't look like groupies, but you could never be sure. One was a well-built Latina, long thick brown hair, full pouty lips, sporting a warm golden complexion. She had a bangin' ass body, and while her jeans hugged in all the right spots, it was her friend that caught my eye. The long legs on this fucking blonde beauty were on full display. Thoughts of throwing those damn things around my waist and pounding my way into her were beginning to consume my mind, making me suddenly sweat. Sweating like a fucking pig. Was it the alcohol or my dreams of fucking the shit out of Blondie that had my shirt soaked and was making me lose all of my bearings? She danced with her friend, swaying those petite hips, making me think of a million and one ways that I could use them for my satisfaction.

Her smile lit up the room, the innocence behind it smothering me, and at one point, I believe she turned her head and looked at me, making my cock twitch beneath my jeans.

I bit down on my bottom lip… hard. After gulping down the rest of the beer I was holding, I rubbed my sweaty hand over my close cut hair, then adjusted myself as nonchalantly as I possibly could, which meant I was overly obvious with it, but I didn't give a fuck. Blondie looked at me and made me all sorts of uncomfortable, and I needed relief.

"What the fucks got you in a trance, Alex?" Jensen asked, coming back to the table.

"Nothing. Where's your chick?" I asked, trying to take my eyes off the only female in this bar that had ever made me lose myself.

"She went outside to check on her friend," Jensen responded, narrowing his eyes and following my line of sight. "Why don't you go and talk to her?"

"To who?" I quickly asked, turning my head back in his direction.

"Don't play dumb with me, asshole. It's got to be one of those chicks. My guess is probably the Latin one, but either will do."

I glared at him. For some reason, the way he brushed her off as any other chick in this bar really got under my skin, making me want to punch him and make him realize that she was much more than that. Or was she? How would I know? All I knew about her was that she owned a pair of perfectly toned legs, long golden blonde hair that I could only imagine wrapping in my hands as I had my way with her, and a fucking smile that was heating me up while melting me at the same time. Other than that, I didn’t know a damn thing about her.

"Sorry, man," Jensen apologized. I eased up a little, feeling ridiculous for allowing myself to get so riled up in the first place. "Anna's coming back, so I'm going to dance. I hope you get your ass off that chair and have some fun tonight." He smacked my head just as Anna, his chick of the night, was pulling him back onto the dance floor.

Some techno shit blared through the speakers and to combat the pounding thrums in my head, I ordered another beer from a floating waitress, hoping it would calm my headache and cool me down.

It really did neither.

Blondie was having the time of her life out there on the dance floor with her friend and every time she stole a glance over at me, or so my inebriated mind was telling me she was doing, I grew more and more agitated. She dipped low and her tight fitting skirt hugged her hips nicely, fitting like a second layer of skin. It stretched to accommodate the move, outlining the shapely ass that she possessed. I shifted in the chair, needing to break away from the daydream that this girl had pulled me into.

The beer I was babysitting was removed from my hand and placed down on the table. I looked up to find Leticia Castillo, or Sgt. Castillo as she's known around the schoolhouse, standing there looking at me with a sly grin on her face.

"You came to people watch or what?"

"Isn't that what I always do?" I asked, finding myself yelling over the raging techno beat. My head was finally settling, even with the copious amounts of people yelling over the music just to be heard in such a small space.

"Well, Staff Sergeant select, you aren't people watching tonight." She grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the seat and onto the dance floor. Thankfully, just as we found our place the music switched and moved to something much more tolerable. Yeah by Usher came on, sending everyone from no rhythm to too much rhythm onto the dance floor. Castillo danced around me, sending flirtatious movements my way and I played along. It was a party song, it had me amped and thankfully, my impending hangover seemed to be fading away with every movement.

A couple of minutes into the song, Castillo was pulled away by some guy I had never seen before, leaving me standing like a loner out there on the dance floor. Luckily, that didn't last too long, as Blondie's friend shimmied her way over to me, her eyes low and wanting. When she got close enough, she threw a hand up to my chest and stroked her hips fluidly, as if she were simulating a very dominating sexual act. Her eyes never left mine and her perfectly full lips pouted even more, as she intensely gyrated herself up against me. I didn't give a shit. She was hot and so were her movements. She wasn't what or who I wanted, but she had guts, so I rolled with it.

Before long, Blondie strolled up, looking even more fuckable up close. That pretty face I saw from afar was magnified now that she was within arm's reach. She stared her bright green eyes into mine, smiling that carefree smile at me as she did so. My cock twitched again at the sight of her and as she took her friend's spot just in front of me, I felt it spring to life. Fuck. I couldn't stand out there on that dance floor, with this girl grinding on me, with wood for days. This was some embarrassing shit.

Blondie took the front, leaving her friend to take the back. We danced and touched like we had known each other for years. Pretty soon, I was finding it quite easy to forget about what was happening behind me and just focus on what was standing before me. She bent over, rubbing her ass over my already hardened cock, and left it there, grinding against the rock hard erection that was filling my pants. My mind flashed to how badly I wanted to bend her over with no clothes inhibiting us, but I quickly shook the thought away and just grabbed onto her hips and moved with her. As she made her way back up, she reached behind her and grabbed my neck, pulling my head down to hers as she swayed to the music. My hands were anywhere and everywhere all at once. I didn't know this girl, but she was inviting me to do things that I'd been daydreaming about only a couple of minutes earlier and if she wasn't careful, I felt myself ready to act on them.

I nuzzled my nose in her neck, taking in the sweet, decadent scent of vanilla and something else fruity that was radiating from her sun-kissed skin. That smell sent my already excited cock into overdrive, bulging and straining against her, begging me to release it. I wanted to, I really did, but in a crowded bar, that just wasn't going to happen.

Song after song played and we danced together like no one else was around. My hands had made their way over to her rock solid abdomen, indicating that she worked out. I loved it; it was a definite turn on for me. Making my way up her chest, I stopped at her ample tits, full and perky, inviting me to have my way with them. As I worked my hands over them, she used her hands to quickly move them away, placing them back down on her hips. She was a tease, but I was certain that tonight I would get my fill of her.

After about the fourth song, I finally asked her if she wanted something to drink. She declined, stating that she was DD for the night, so I helped myself to a beer, feeling the urge to calm myself after practically fucking her out on the floor. When I finished it, I found her dancing with some prick who couldn't tell his left from his right. She wasn't dancing anything like the way she was dancing with me, but it irritated the fuck out of me that this dude thought he had a chance with her. I smoothly walked over in their direction and grabbed her hips stating, "Thanks, man," as I pulled her back over to me to go in for round two.

She smiled, that fucking heart melting, cock twitching smile. "Well that was unexpected." Her voice was soft and delicate, just like she was.

I managed a quick smile. "You're mine tonight," I lowly rumbled, catching her off guard. After it sank in, she smiled again, then turned around, going back to the moves that had successfully driven me crazy in our first bout.

Blurred Lines by Robin Thicke came on, speeding up the vibe of the bar. As I swayed to the music with her, my hands made their way down her torso, stopping at the hem of her shirt, begging to be invited in. I wasn't so I moved on elsewhere, snaking my hands back up and over her tightly defined abs, over and around her teasing rack that was now showcasing a couple of hardened nipples. It made me smile to know that I was affecting her just as much as she was affecting me. A one way show was not going to happen tonight.

The song was sex to lyrics. Fuck, if I could have had Blondie anywhere else when that song came on, clothes would have been an after-thought and I would have been deep inside of her by the time the first verse started. Instead, I had to settle for a grinding session on a dance floor with too many people around for my liking.

By the time the song was halfway through, I was near certain we were dry fucking out on the dance floor for everyone to see. I didn't give a shit because if I had my way, this girl would be going home with me tonight.

My hands moved to her sweet smelling, dainty neck and just as she turned her head, I took my opportunity to crash my mouth down to hers, thrusting my tongue between those delicately soft, pink lips she possessed. She didn't object, opening her mouth just a tad bit more to give me all the space that I needed. The minty freshness coming off of her tongue excited me much like the vanilla scent had done earlier. My tequila and beer breath couldn't have been doing much for her, but if she didn’t like it, she wasn't showing it.

Just as our kiss was intensifying, her tongue matching my own thrust for thrust, and she was turning her body around to stand face to face with me, Jensen came barreling into me, almost knocking both me and Blondie over. We broke from our kiss and I turned to him, wild fury in my eyes, hoping he had a good excuse for his cock block.

"We have to go. Now! Newsome got into a fight and the cops were called. We have to get him out of here."

"Fuck," I shouted, annoyed and concerned at the same time. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you later, but we need to get him out of here," Jensen said, urgency completely taking over his voice. He was always very by the book and knew that Newsome would be in a world of trouble on Monday if he were to get into any sort of tangle with the cops.

"Hold on a sec," I shouted over all of the commotion.

"No! We have to go now."

Annoyance pelted me, sending flushes of red over my sweat slicked skin, but Newsome was my brother, so there was no way I was going to leave him hanging. I'd just have to hook up with Blondie another time. Unfortunately, when I turned around, she was gone. I looked all around the bar, hoping she had only stepped away from a very intense Jensen, but that wasn't the case. I couldn’t even find her friend. As disappointment pierced through me, I ran out of the bar with Jensen, hopping into the backseat of Riley's truck. Newsome had a couple of marks on his face, but nothing too bad that would have to be explained on Monday morning. Just as we were pulling out of the back entry way, the cop lights and sirens came blaring through the front.

Driving into the dark, deserted desert before us, I breathed a sigh of relief that we had just missed them, but got pissed all over again that I had also missed out on Blondie.

Chapter 2

Cassie

What a night. My first weekend in Twentynine had been more exciting than I ever imagined it could be. Sure, this place was in the middle of nowhere with cactus and bushes stretching out as far as the eye could see, but the excitement felt at that bar on Friday night had me almost bursting at the seams. If that encounter was any indication of what the next six weeks held, I was more than ready to move things along.

I had never done anything like that. No, usually that sort of behavior was reserved for my friends, back home. They knew what they wanted and made sure to go after it. I normally knew what I wanted, but stewed on the sidelines, hoping it would come to me instead. I guess hanging out with Angelica, and watching her flaunt everything she had, made me want to break free from my usual confines.

I'd noticed that hot as sin guy sitting there, nursing his beer, and apparently she had too. I thought for sure when she found her way over to him that I’d missed my chance, but apparently he was eyeing me, so when I saw my opportunity I threw caution to the wind and pounced.

Only now, I have no clue who he is, where he is, or how to get in touch with him. That kiss seared me, in all of its luscious tequila and beer filled glory. Those soft, full lips crashing down on mine, his strong and aggressive tongue overpowering my own, claiming me out on that dance floor... it excited me in ways that I had never experienced before.

I felt his erection growing and noticed the twitch when I rubbed against him, he wanted me, and even if I were going against my rational thinking mind, I wanted him too. If his kiss and the aggressiveness of it were any indication of what he could do to me in bed, I was definitely willing to test him out.

Unfortunately, because his friend was a drunken dipshit, he had to run out of there before we could exchange names.

Damn!

My sole regret from that night.

I was certain that he was a Marine. We were stuck in a military town, and if the low haircut, his clean shaven face, and well put together ensemble were any indication, he had been in for a while. Of course, he was stationed at the base here, but honestly, how easy would it be to find him?           Not easy at all. Not with thousands of Marines walking around.

"You ready for this?" Angelica asked in a rather curt tone. We had only met one another a few days ago—that Friday, in fact. She was my barracks roommate, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a tad bit intimidated by her when I first saw her. She was gorgeous; tall and curvy, with beautiful golden skin, and hair from the shampoo commercials. She looked model worthy, with Marine Corps confidence to go along with it.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I replied with a smile.

Angelica was pissed at me from Friday, her Latin temper flying off of her tongue as she chided me, crying about how she'd seen that guy first and how I'd snuck in and stolen him away. But I hadn’t. He seemed to have chosen me. Plain and simple.

Standing in front of the mirror, brushing my long, blonde hair back and laboriously working it into a sleek bun, I added a light spritz of hairspray to tame the loose strands, then grabbed my cover, or the Marine Corps equivalent of a cap. Angelica finished up whatever she was doing and made her way to her side of the room and threw on her blouse, then we walked out the door.

Standing in formation, the scalding heat from the desert morning was hitting my face, making me painfully aware that we were, in fact, stuck in this poor excuse for a town for the next six weeks. I stood next to Angelica, waiting to get our day started.

I was ready.

Going through thirteen weeks of hell for bootcamp, four weeks of combat training, and now finally Military Occupational School—MOS school— I was now one step closer to becoming a fleet Marine.

"Attention!" a female voice called out, prompting all of us to stand rigid and erect. Nerves began swirling around inside of me as the next chapter was slated to begin. This dream of mine was finally becoming a reality.

I’d dreamed of becoming a Marine ever since I screwed myself out of college. When my mom came down on me, telling me how much of a disappointment I was to her, and how I would never amount to anything, I took that as a challenge and set my sights on becoming one of the best. Even then, she told me that I’d never make it; that it would be too hard, and I would quit.

But I didn't quit.

I proved her wrong every step of the way, and now there was only six weeks until I was out of school. Then I’d be able to finally flip her my pretty little middle finger while smiling and telling her, "I told you so."

"At ease," the woman said, striding out front and center. "I am Sgt. Castillo," she belted out, her cold, dark eyes scanning the rows of students standing before her. "I work in the admin section here at Comm School. Any and all paperwork will go through my section. If you need something, let your instructors know and they will get it taken care of for you."

She was a short Hispanic woman—young, probably slightly older than me, but had obviously joined straight out of high school. The confidence she exuded while speaking to a group of new Marines who towered over her was on par with what I had grown accustomed to in bootcamp. It was remarkable.

"I'm turning you over to your instructors now. Welcome to Twentynine," Castillo said, making a sharp turn and walking away from the formation.

Standing there waiting, even if it was only 7AM, was torture in the morning heat. Fire bearing rays raced down from the sun and connected with my long, thick cotton cammies, inducing a sweat worthy of an intense workout session. And I hadn't even exerted an ounce of energy.

A tall, slender man walked out, followed by two other males. They took their spots in front of the formation, glaring ravenous eyes at us all as if they were ready to pounce and eat us for breakfast. I had been warned that even though we'd made it through bootcamp and were now Marines, to the veterans we were still a bunch of nobodies.

"Attention!" he barked out, his low, gruff voice startling me out of my sweating pity party. I swallowed and stood straight, looking forward but at no one in particular.

"I am Sergeant Newsome, one of your instructors here at Comm School, and this is Sergeant Jensen and Sergeant Cruz," he said, pointing to the two men behind him. The rest of whatever he said fell on deaf ears as I fixed my eyes on the two accompanying instructors, instantly recognizing them as the two guys from the bar on Friday night. My heart sank and a heavy, throbbing lump lodged in my throat, making me stifle a choke as I immediately remembered that Cruz--now that I knew his name--was my bump and grind, tongue twirling, lip smacking partner from that excitement filled night.

"Shit. Better you than me. I ain't mad anymore," Angelica whispered to me, smirking as she said it.

If I could have, I would have smacked the smirk from her face. I was slowly sinking in my own embarrassment and lust.

The feelings I’d felt on Friday came crashing back like tidal waves. Cruz was sexy as sin at the bar, dressed in jeans and a tight fitting t-shirt, but in uniform he looked good enough to taste and then go back for seconds. His cover was pulled low on his head, hiding his beautiful hazel eyes, and his face was held tight, probably trying to appear rough and unapproachable. His bulging arms stood out from his rolled up blouse sleeves, showing just a slight hint of a tattoo underneath the material. His posture was of a stocky bulldog, waiting to be unleashed on a bunch on unsuspecting students who all appeared firmly afraid.

I wasn't afraid of him, per se. I was afraid that he would remember me and that this would instantly turn awkward and somehow wreck my budding career. Of course, he was about three sheets to the wind that night and quite eager to get into my pants, so chances were good that he wouldn't remember me from any other girl he normally went for.

I could only hope.

"In the next six weeks, you will go through a series of coursework, tests, and field trainings. If you fail Comm School, you will be recycled to a new MOS not of your choosing," Jensen barked. He was tall and quite good looking. He was also very stiff, never once relenting on the deep scowl that seemed to be permanently embedded into his face. I remembered him as the one who broke our earth shattering kiss just before I was sure that I was about to be whisked off somewhere and fucked until my brains spilled out. We never got that far.

And now I was certain that we would never get that far again.

"I'm Sergeant Cruz, lead instructor for Alpha company," he said, his perfectly plump lips moving with each word spoken, further drawing me in. He walked forward, with perfect posture and a stoic face. His voice rumbled as he spoke, instantly taking me back to the bar where he gruffly said, "You're mine tonight," in my ear, sending tingles aggressively shooting up and down my legs He didn't know it in that moment, but I would have gladly surrendered myself to him if we had gotten the opportunity.

"…sound off as I call your name," Sgt. Cruz commanded, throwing more force behind his already intimidating voice.

My mind began to wander again, wondering how I would make it through the next six weeks unscathed by my thoughtless actions. If even half of my brain had been with me that night, I would have never allowed myself to go to places I didn't normally go. I would have never allowed that dance session to take place, and I certainly wouldn't have allowed myself to get swept up in that kiss that I swore took my breath away. What the hell was I thinking? Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but in a military town I should have known better.

"… Private First Class Cassie Bennett." My name came out of his mouth, and I lifted my head ever so slightly to meet his hardened gaze, silently praying that I was unrecognizable to him.

"Here, Sergeant," I sounded off, turning my head away and catching a glimpse of Sgt. Jensen's face. Dammit. He recognized me almost instantly. His eyes lowered, and his face twitched, making me nervous as sweat beads began trickling down the back of my neck. I tried hard to remain calm, not wanting to look like a total ass in front of the entire class, but Jensen's gaze seared me on the spot, indicating that Sgt. Cruz would be next.

Now my heart was pumping overtime, beating to a very erratic drum. As I stood with my hands clenched, the sweat began pouring out, and I felt the sudden urge to pee.

Only I couldn't move because I was stuck under the watchful eye of Sgt. Jensen.

When I finally gathered up the courage to look back to Cruz, he was fixed on me, furious lust filling his eyes. My eyes locked with his, and even though they were hooded by the brim of his cover, I could feel the intensity his gaze poured into me, damn near stifling all of the air from my outdoor surroundings. I didn't know what to do or what to say as he stood there like a hungry wolf, ready to devour its prey. He had definitely recognized me, and all I could hope for was that we could move on like mature adults.

Cruz swallowed hard, accentuating the large Adam's apple poking out in his throat. He cleared his throat and continued on.

"Private First Class Angelica Ruiz," he bellowed out, annoyance seeming to seep into his voice this time.

"Here, Sergeant," Angelica called out, her smirk slowly creeping back in.

Cruz quickly moved on, not even bothering to look at her a second longer than he had to.

My skin began to tingle as parts of my body went numb, and I felt the color drain from my face. This was not a good situation I had found myself in, and I just wasn't sure how I was going to work my way out of it. I hadn't slept with my instructor, but I’d got pretty damn close.

"Be back here at zero eight with your binders," Cruz roughly commanded. The brashness of his tone brought feeling back to me, even though it should have done nothing of the sort.

"Yes Sergeant," we all yelled in unison, only I barely contributed since I was feeling weak and feeble. I mouthed it to make it look believable.

"Dismissed," he barked, standing almost directly in front of me with both hands behind his back. Our eyes locked again, only this time a sinister, seductive gleam went off in his, almost like the gaze he gave off at the bar. He didn't look away, and neither did I. His tall, muscular body was highlighted in his cammies, causing dark, enticing thoughts to scour my brain.

Sgt. Jensen walked up behind him and whispered something into his ear, finally breaking our stare down. He slightly turned his head to listen to what was being said then nodded, looking back at me with narrowed eyes before turning and walking off in the opposite direction with Jensen.

"Well, damn. If you haven't been fucked twice by Sgt. Cruz in only a matter of days," Angelica said, laughing wildly.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play stupid. You've been dry fucked and eye fucked by that man."

"That doesn't even matter. We have jobs to do."

"Right. We have jobs to do, and none of these lustrous feelings you two have are going to get in the way." She laughed again. "Like I said, glad it was you and not me. For once, I'm happy I didn't get the guy."

"Right. Because your attitude all weekend proves how badly you didn't want him," I sarcastically retorted, annoyed by the fact that she seemed to be taking pleasure in my torment.

She rolled her eyes and walked off, leaving me standing there, pissed at myself and turned on at the same time. I looked at my watch and realized it was 7:30AM, leaving me only thirty minutes before I had to be back.

All feeling had come back to my body, leaving my nipples standing so hard from our intense stare down that they were beginning to throb. I kicked the cement pillar next to me, my boot making a low thud, hoping to let out some of the sexual tension and frustration that had crept into my body just a few minutes before. I ached with need, hunger and want.

And none of the three looked like they'd be quelled anytime soon.

Chapter 3

Alex

"Fuck!" I yelled, anger touching on every nerve ending in me. How the fuck did I allow myself to get into this situation? As soon as I was back in my shared office, I yanked my now sweat slicked cover off of my head and heaved it onto the desk before violently thrusting my body down into my chair. Leaning my head back and shutting my eyes, I thought about that night and how I missed the fact that she was a Marine because I was too fucking drunk for my own good. Nothing good comes from being that plastered. Nothing.

"Shut this shit down now!" Jensen snarled, removing his cover and slamming the door behind him. His eyes were full of fury, and I couldn't blame him. I felt the same way. "What the fuck were you thinking?"

"I wasn't thinking," I bit back, finally sitting up in my chair. "It doesn't fucking matter anyway. It didn't go very far, and that's where it ends."

"You're damn right about that," he quickly responded, taking a seat in his own chair.

The realization that I had just embarked on one of the biggest forbidden regulations in the Marine Corps made me sick to my stomach. I felt sicker than I had at Coyotes on Friday night. The walls felt as if they were closing in on me, and at any second I was going to throw up in hopes of quelling the sudden nausea that had overtaken me.

Fraternization was a serious offense, one that could derail everything that I had worked so hard for up to this point. Even though I had kissed her without knowledge of who she was, it didn't matter. If anyone said anything, especially with her being in my class, I could lose everything. I had to make sure that she--and her fucking friend--didn’t say a word.

"I have to get her out of my class," I lowly growled, standing to retrieve a bottle of water, downing the contents in one large gulp. My throat felt as if someone had shoved it full of glass shards.

"What? Why?"

"Because, I can't remain her instructor after what happened on Friday night. It's fuckin' awkward, man."

Jensen stood and walked over to me. "She remains in the class. If you go to First Sergeant and request that she be removed, questions will be asked, and you'll rat yourself out. Think, man!"

"I can't fuckin' think when she's around me," I bellowed out, growing more and more frustrated by the second. "My dick swelled up out there. How do you think I'll make it through six weeks of having to look at her every fucking day?"

"Because you need to remember that a pussy isn't worth throwing everything down the drain. You're about to pick up Staff Sergeant in six very short fuckin' years. That the oath you took when you swore to protect your country and the promise to uphold the morals and values of the Marine Corps means more than some chick who gets your dick excited." Thick, angry and over worked veins bulged from his neck as he spoke, his eyes filled with rage.

I knew he was right, but it was my brain that was aware of everything I stood to lose. My cock didn't seem to care because, from the second that our eyes locked on one another in that formation, it jolted to attention and throbbed at the need to get inside of someone.

And that someone was none other than Pfc. Cassie Bennett.

"I know all of that, man--"

"Then shut this shit down," Jensen briskly interrupted. He moved back to his chair, seemingly satisfied with the fact that I seemed to have everything back in perspective. "You need to set some ground rules for these students. Limit these chance encounters."

"I know. As soon as we get back out there, I'm laying everything out. This shit isn't happening again."

"Good, man." He stood. "Your career means more than some chick who knows nothing about the Corps and everything it's done for you."

I nodded, signaling to Jensen that he could leave. He shut the door behind him, leaving me to my contradictory thoughts. I knew that my career was worth everything, but for some strange reason, that fucking Pfc. had gotten to me, and it didn't look as if it would be easy to remove her from my mind.

I was fucked.

Standing before the class, I let Jensen do the roll call while I stood in the back, stealing glances at Bennett every now and then.

The sun was barreling down on us as we stood outside the schoolhouse building, roasting us where we stood, but that wasn't what had me sweating.

Her...standing there...images of her body up against mine...her hardened nipples begging me to rip her shirt off and devour them...

It had me sweating like I’d just run three miles uphill on the mountainous terrain that surrounded us.

I hated it.

I hated everything about the feeling.

No chick had ever gotten me to lose my bearings with just the sight of them. I wasn't sure what it was about this one, but I was finding it hard to reign myself in.

After roll call, I walked the students into class, the air conditioned building, helping me feel a bit more composed. This building was my safe place; where I was in control.

"First things first," I said, walking through the rows of students. "Any bars or clubs, on base or off, are off-limits to all students in Alpha Company. Even if you are of age, bars are now restricted." I stole a quick glance in her direction, and she swallowed, but unless you knew why the swallow came at that moment, it wouldn’t seem like anything out of the ordinary.

"While you are students, your number one priority is making sure that you pass this school and get assigned to a unit. Bars and clubs are distractions, and as your instructor, I am here to keep you focused." I made a quick left, avoiding her seat and making my way back up to the front of the room. I noticed her friend, Ruiz, smirking in her direction. This might be harder than I thought.

"Throughout the week, barracks checks will take place at twenty hundred, meaning you don't have free reign to be out and about at all hours of the night. On weekends, twenty-two hundred. Do we understand?" Jensen quipped.

"Yes, Sergeant," the class yelled in unison.

Eight in the evening seemed reasonable for a school night while ten in the evening on weekends was more than enough. It was the best way to keep these students tied to their barracks where we wouldn't have to run into them.

"We are not here to babysit you. We are here to teach you. If you can't follow orders, your time here will be a living hell. And I will personally make sure of it," Jensen threw in for good measure.

Newsome stood in his corner, surveying the room but not saying anything. He was never much of a talker, so having him and his intimidating presence was all that was really needed.

"Open your binders and take out your duty station preference sheet," I commanded, walking up and down the rows again. "You will select three preferences, but keep in mind that your preference doesn't mean a thing to the Corps, so you will be placed where you are needed. Some of you will get the duty station of your dreams, and some of you will end up in your worst nightmare. I don't give a shit where you end up because it isn't my job to care, so when those assignments come out, do not come crying to me or any other instructor. It won't be our doing where you end up, and we will have no power to change it."

The class got to work on their sheets, marking shit that more than likely wouldn't matter to Headquarters, but they had to do it anyway. Jensen, Newsome, and I strolled up and down the rows, checking on selections and answering any questions that the students had.

"Why can't I select Germany, Sergeant?" some twerp asked, instantly annoying me.

"Because this is the Marine Corps, not the Army. We are amphibious by nature, so most of your duty choices are going to be on the coasts," I lowly responded with irritating malice.

Most of the students were selecting places like Hawaii and overseas, with hopes of living a carefree life.  Little did they know that the Hawaii duty station was slim, but I wasn't about to fill them in on reality. They would quickly learn for themselves.

Strolling the classroom, I found myself standing over Bennett and looking down at her paper. She selected West Coast, Hawaii, and the East Coast as her preferences. Her pen stopped moving as she noticed my presence, but she didn't look up to me. I stood there, hoping that she would look up. When she finally did, a nervous grin was spread across her face.

It was refreshing to know that I wasn't the only one affected by our encounters. At the same time, it was exhaustingly frustrating that I couldn't do anything about it, or make the feeling go away.

"I need to speak to you," I whispered to her, moving away from her desk before she even had the time to realize what I’d said. Looking back, she seemed flustered, and her cheeks were red as she looked around the room, probably hoping no one was aware of what was going on. The only other person who did know was Ruiz, and I also had to make sure that she kept her fucking mouth shut.

I made my way back over to Jensen and let him know that I’d told Bennett I needed to speak to her, and that I would need to speak with Ruiz as well. He offered to handle Ruiz, stating that I probably didn't want to handle both of them and rouse suspicion. I agreed, not really caring because all I wanted to do was speak to Bennett and shut this shit down.

Before long, it was time for lunch. The morning had seemingly flown by, and I was somehow able to contain my sporadic erections whenever I looked over at Bennett, but the frustration that had my body locked up like a stiff board was making me uncomfortable.

"Attention!" I called out, prompting the students to stand. "You are to return to the classroom for a thirteen hundred formation. You are dismissed."

Everyone filed out of the room, and while it seemed Bennett lingered a bit, I tried hard not to look at her, instead focusing on the guys who were discussing lunch plans.

"I'm headed off to Subway. You guys want anything?" Newsome asked.

"No, I'm good. I'm going to the gym," I replied, feeling the need to burn the tension away. It was now noon, and given that I had allotted an hour for lunch, I felt I could do some damage with that amount of time.

"I'll go with you, man. You sure don't want anything Alex?" Jensen asked, eyeing me suspiciously.

"Bring me back an Italian BLT with loads of onions and peppers. I really need to hit the gym." I gave Jensen a pointed look, and he caught on, understanding why I was anxious about getting away from everyone and everything associated with this schoolhouse. He nodded his head, and the two of them made their way out of the building.

I jogged out to my truck— a black, lifted Dodge Ram—and hopped in, making my way over to the gym and quickly changing before throwing myself down on the flat bench and bench pressing my frustrations away.

I needed a strict game plan on how to handle Bennett, and I needed it quickly. Trying to come up with a way to handle her and keep my focus on my job was becoming more of a task than I wanted it to be. I couldn't form any coherent thoughts; all I saw were her toned legs, and her beautiful ass that rubbed against me, making me harder than a fucking rock. Her long, flowing blonde hair, and that sultry vanilla and fruit flavored smell came back to me in waves, and I yelled out as I finished a rep and placed the bar back on the stand.

"Need a spotter?" a familiar voice asked. I turned to find Castillo standing there. She had a smile on her face that I couldn't reciprocate. I was too wound up, too frustrated, and it showed through my short pants and sweat filled face.

"Not really, but you can spot me if you want."

"You look like you need a drink," she joked, instantly making me freeze.

I looked at her, breathing hard, but not saying a word. Instead, I added another twenty-five pounds to each side of the bar, bringing my grand total to two-hundred and fifty pounds, and laid down, taking the bar from her and trying to lift my frustrations away for the second time.

I lifted furiously, breathing short, hard breaths with every lift. Castillo tried a few times to take the bar after ten reps, but I couldn't stop. The extra weight seemed to be doing the trick, so I kept going, focusing only the bar and staring up at the gym lights that shone down on me.

"Done!" I breathed, holding up the bar for Castillo to take. She took it, placing it back in the holder and handing me a towel.

"What's got you so riled up?"

"Nothing," I said, glancing up to her and finding her unconvinced. "It’s Monday, and I drank too much this weekend. I need to burn it off." I wiped my sweat off with the towel, turning and throwing it into the bin before standing and walking over to the punching bags in the far left corner.

"Friday was crazy. Is Newsome alright? I saw what happened."

I began punching the bag relentlessly, picturing my own face and drilling it harder and harder with each punch, figuratively punishing myself for getting caught up and not being around to protect my brother.

"He's fine," I said through a short breath, landing more and more punches on the bag. "What happened anyway?"

"I don't know how it started, but I saw some guy push him in the back, and he turned and punched him in the face. The guy punched him back, then fists were being thrown everywhere. Smith grabbed Newsome, and Jensen ordered them out of the bar while he went to look for you." She paused for a second. "Where were you anyway?"

I stopped punching and looked at her, breathing hard as sweat beads rolled down my face. "I was nursing a beer and trying not to puke all over that bar," I lied, but it seemed to placate her as she laughed and took her stare off of me.

"Alex Cruz--drunk off his ass--having to nurse a beer. Never thought I would see the day."

"Yeah, well, those days are over. Never again," I said, throwing short, quick, but powerful punches into the bag, releasing the pent up aggression that had manifested itself in me since the morning. "Nothing good comes from that shit, and as it is, Newsome could have gotten into some serious trouble."

"Well, Smith was there with him, so I'm sure you're forgiven."

"I know, but I don't like leaving my brothers like that. I had my celebratory night, so I'm good."

"Suit yourself. I'm off to the treadmill. Care to join me?"

"Naw. I need to shower and get back, lunch is waiting on me."

"Sounds good. See you later."

"See ya."

I hustled off to the showers and threw myself under the cold water. The workout on the punching bag had definitely alleviated stress, but it hadn't taken it all away. While beating my face to a pulp felt good, the impending thought of seeing Cassie Bennett was back and looming large, causing all of that tension to seep back into my body. I stood under the water, pleading with myself to figure out a way to see her as just another student. It didn't work because as soon as I was dressed and back in my truck, my thoughts shifted to her long blonde hair in my hands while I worked my way inside of her. I wanted to peel out of the parking lot and floor it back to the schoolhouse, but there were strict speed limits and military police scattered all over the fucking place, so I drove back going twenty miles per hour while thoughts of the girl who I wanted to erase from my memory were moving a mile a minute.

Back at the schoolhouse, I marched out to the formation without so much as looking in her direction. I hated that she had such a powerful effect on me with only the sight of her. We made our way in and Newsome started with the introductory chapter on radio communications in the Marine Corps. I sat in the back, plugging things into the computer while he and Jensen took over the class. I wasn’t in the mood to stand before students today, so being the head instructor, I shifted the lectures over to the guys, freeing myself up.

Before long, it was 1530, and time to release the class for the day. I had never been so thankful—thankful to get her out of my presence and thankful to find my bearings and get a hold of myself.

Hopefully.

"Tomorrow, at zero five thirty, you are to meet in front of the schoolhouse, in your PT gear. That means your green, unmarked t-shirt and green shorts. You will run your preliminary physical fitness test consisting of pull-ups, crunches, and a three mile run. You fail, and you will find yourself with extra workouts until we feel you are ready to run it again. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, Sergeant," the class yelled.

"Dismissed."

The class filed out, all too excited to leave for the day. I noticed Bennett and Ruiz straggling behind, so I motioned for Jensen to come and handle the one who wasn't driving me bat shit crazy.

"Follow me to my office please, Pfc. Bennett," I called out as I walked out of the classroom. She lagged a bit, but shortly after I heard her boots pounding the pavement as she strode behind me.

"Hey, Bennett," another voice called, making me slow my steps. I tried not to be obvious by turning around to see who it was, but I couldn't help myself. It was another male, and that annoyed the living shit out of me.

"I'll catch ya in a minute," she responded, never breaking her stride.

From my glance back, I noticed that it was some shithead student by the name of Pfc. Dalton. I recognized him from Smith's Data class. He was tall and slender, and looked harmless, but the fact the he was waiting for her just didn't sit well with me.

I made my way into my office, making sure to leave the door cracked open so as not to leave myself in another compromising situation.

"Take a seat," I ordered, motioning for her to sit in the chair directly beside my desk. "Let's not pretend that we don't know who each other is," I started, coming across much more harshly than I intended to. "We had a night at the bar that will never happen again."

She sat still, looking directly at me but never saying a word. Her big, doe-like eyes were making me lose my self-restraint, and I swallowed hard before continuing.

"I should have found out who you were before I ever made a move on you, and I apologize for that. But we have a job to do, and professionalism is paramount here, so as long as we know where we stand, and that those boundaries will never be crossed again, we should be good. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, Sergeant Cruz," she responded in that fair and delicate voice that made my cock twitch again.

"Good," I said, trying to keep my erection from bursting through my pants. I could preach to her about how that night was a mistake, but the reaction I had to her was telling me otherwise. "And please remember the Marine Corps order on fraternizing. We both stand to get in a world of fuckin' trouble if this ever gets out. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, Sergeant, I do." Her response and her expression weren't matching. She said she understood, but that lustful gaze she had trained on me told me that if she could, she'd lay down right here and let me fuck her until my name was all she could remember.

I needed to get her out of my office before I did something I’d regret.

"Good. Have a good evening. See you bright and early."

"See you in the morning."

She stood and walked out of the office. I followed behind, stopping at the door. I didn't want to tell her how much of a mistake Friday night was. I didn't want to spout out the Marine Corps rules and regulations to her. No, I wanted to pin her ass up against the wall and explore every inch of her enticing body.

Only I couldn't.

I couldn’t do anything that had been filtering through my head since Friday. As I stopped at the door, I heard Dalton greet her, further pissing me the fuck off.

"Is everything alright?" he asked her.

"Yeah. I just needed to fix some paperwork, that's all," she casually responded, putting me at ease.

"Cool. Well hey, pizza and Mortal Kombat in my room tonight. Classic style."

"Sweet. I'll be there. Did you tell Angelica?"

"Yeah. She already knows."

They were walking away from the building as the conversation continued and that was the last that I heard. I couldn't be more pissed. Dalton seemed to be worming his way into her, and their brief interaction, the smile he gave her when he saw her walking his way, was enough to put my irritation on overdrive. I walked back into the office, slammed the door, then threw myself into the preference sheets to send up to Admin in the morning.

Chapter 4

Cassie

"Ugh!" Angelica yelled, viciously shutting the door to our barracks room. She walked further in, ripping her cover from her head and tossing it onto her bed. I stood, watching her overly dramatic display. She got out of her cammies, leaving her green t-shirt on while throwing on a pair of gym shorts. I started to walk back to the bathroom when she stopped me.

"Yeah, thanks a ton, Cassie. Thanks to you, we'll practically have no life while we're stuck in this shit hole town for the next six weeks."

I was already frustrated enough with the way things had panned out, and her shit wasn't making things any easier.

"Excuse me?' I asked, deeply annoyed while moving closer to her. She had her arms folded across her chest, glaring at me. "If I remember correctly, that could have very easily been you in my shoes since you had no problem throwing yourself all over Sgt. Cruz that night to begin with."

"Yeah, well it wasn't me. And now, thanks to you, we get to be treated like kids while we sit around and do nothing here in this hot ass desert. Why'd you have to kiss him anyway?"

"I didn't kiss him. He kissed me. And besides, that's really none of your fucking business."

"It is now. Now that my life is being directly affected because of it." She pulled her ponytail holder out of her hair and undid her bun, roughly running her fingers through her lustrously long brown hair. "No one in that class knows why all of our club and bar privileges have been suddenly revoked except for me-- oh, and Sgt. Jensen-- since he practically threatened me and all." She rolled her eyes as she brushed past me into the bathroom to retrieve her hair brush.

"Threatened you?" I asked, moving closer into the bathroom.

"Yes. Threatened me." She stopped brushing her hair and looked at me through the mirror. "Basically, my baby career in the Marine Corps could be wrecked if I run my mouth." She started brushing her hair again. "He's hot as shit, but he's a dick. And I have a feeling Cruz is too."

Cruz being a dick had not crossed my mind.

"Whatever. There isn't anything to tell. We didn't know who the other was when we made out. Now that we know, it's nothing more than an awkward situation that we've acknowledged and moved on from."

"I sure hope so."

"It is," I bluntly responded with finality.

I brushed past her, moving to my wall locker to pull out some shorts and a t-shirt.

"Are you going to Dalton's room?" I asked while undressing.

"Yeah. I'll meet you over there."

Throwing my shirt over my head and stepping into my sandals, I walked out of the room, leaving Angelica to stew over whatever it was that Jensen had said to her. By the sound of things, he had come across much worse than Cruz had with me. He was an intense man, so I had no doubt that whatever he said, and however he said it, it was surely meant to scare her into submission.

I could only hope that it would work.

Music playing, Mortal Kombat flashing on the TV screen, and about six other Marines hooting, hollering, and laughing was the scene that I walked into as I gently knocked and let myself into Dalton's barrack's room. He shared the room with another Private First Class from his Data class, and even though I didn't know the guy, he was friendly and welcomed me into the room while shoving a piece of pizza in my face.

"We've been waiting on you," Dalton yelled out, looking over his shoulder at me. That brief move caused him to lose focus on his game, and he lost with one quick move from his opponent.

He threw down the controller and hopped out of his chair.

"How are you?"

"I'm okay.

"Do you play? You want a turn?" he asked, grinning at me, obviously hoping I would take him up on the offer.

"No. I'm good. I came to watch."

"Alright. That's cool." He stopped and looked around the room. "Where is Ruiz?"

"She said she'd meet me here," I answered, shrugging my shoulders.

Dalton led me over to the TV area, moving one of the guys, and making room for me to sit down. The Mortal Kombat tournament was in full swing when one of the guys threw the controller to the ground and started shouting at the guy who had just beat him. I recognized him from our class--Private Allen.  He was a large, burly guy with light brown hair and matching eyes. Even with my height he towered over me, and had the bulging muscles to complete his overly large and intimidating frame.

"Fuck this game. Fuck this school. Fuck those shitty ass instructors," he yelled, making the rest of us turn and look at him. "What?" he asked, looking unaware that he had said anything wrong.

"Cut him off, Pete," Dalton called out, making me turn my head in his direction. He looked at me as if I should have been aware.

"Is he drunk?"

"Yeah. He's been mixing, but I think he may have gotten started before he even got here."

I nodded my head, knowing full well that alcohol consumption or possession in the barracks was definitely not allowed. Dalton's roommate, who I learned was, in fact, Pete, took Allen, sat him down on one of the beds, and put a large jug of water in his hands, helping him gulp it down. It looked almost comical to find this overly large man sitting on the bed, being nursed back to sobriety by such a small and nerdy looking guy.

I stopped focusing on them and went back to the Mortal Kombat tournament, rooting on Dalton before having the controller shoved into my hands. I never played video games as a kid. I never owned anything like that, so I felt a bit out of place with all of the video game aficionados knowing every move, trick, and cheat that there was. Dalton instructed me on what to do, and before long I was holding my own in the tournament.

"Let me take on the pretty little girl," a half sober Allen barked as he made his way back over to where we were. He snatched the controller from the guy I was playing against and sat down in one of the empty chairs. The sinister look in his light brown eyes sent chills down my spine, but I straightened up, not wanting to show him that he was making me completely uncomfortable.

"Alright. Here's the deal," he said, speaking much too loud, and annoying me more than I already was. "If I win, you get to blow me, and if you win--" he paused, pondering what it was he wanted to say. "Yeah, if you win, you get to blow me." He laughed as if he had just told the world's funniest joke.

"How about if I win, I get to kick you in the nuts, and if you win, I still get to kick you in the nuts?" I smiled a bitchy smile at him, making him stop the obnoxious laughter that had erupted from him after offering up such an immature wager.

"Must be a lesbian," Allen quipped, turning in his chair.

"Nope. I like dick just as much as the next chick. I just don't think you have much, so I'm not even willing to go there with you."

The guys crooned, "Ooohhh," as I countered, pissing Allen off even further.

We started playing, and after going 1-1 on the two rounds we fought, somehow I managed to land a crushing blow on Allen's man, knocking him to the ground and securing a victory. I dropped the controller to the ground, cocky as ever, strutting around the space while the guy's high-fived me.

"Fuck this shit. I want a fucking rematch!" Allen yelled, staring in my direction. Raw anger radiated from his eyes as he stared at me, He was breathing hard while the bulging veins in his neck looked as if they would give way to the mounting pressure and burst. The look scared me, but I felt secure with the amount of other guys around me.

"Pete, help me get Allen to his room, please," Dalton called out, signaling for the scrawny guy to take one side of the rabid beast of a man who looked as if he was ready to attack on command.

Dalton and Pete grabbed him, and he didn't resist. Instead, he yelled things at me, in an attempt to frighten me even more.

"You'll pay, bitch. I want a rematch. I want a fucking rematch."

I sat down and sighed as they walked him out, thankful that he was out of the room and away from me. The few people who were left sat in silence, probably just as stunned as I was that someone could get that angry over a silly video game. Yes, he had been drinking, but to get to the point of threats just seemed a bit excessive.

I walked out of the room, ready to call it a night since we had an early morning awaiting us. Just as I turned left to head back to my room, Dalton came running after me, calling for me to slow down.

"Let me walk you back."

I turned and looked back at him.

"I'm just up the stairs. You don't need to walk me back."

"Yes I do. After Allen's little outburst, I feel the need to. I'm really sorry about that."

I didn't put up any more of an argument. He was right. Allen acted like a complete psycho in the room.

"What are you sorry about? That wasn't you talking like that."

"I know. But he was there, in my room. I've known him since bootcamp, and from what I gather he hates that women are in the Marine Corps. I'm not sure why he chose Communications since there are women in this field. He probably should have gone Infantry or something, where women aren't allowed."

"Yeah, well I don't care what his deal is. As long as he stays away from me, we'll be fine," I calmly replied, hoping I wouldn't have to deal with Allen very often.

"Well, thanks for coming. Sorry you were the only female. I thought Ruiz was going to come over."

"I thought so, too," I said, pulling out my key and unlocking the door to my room. I looked inside and found the room empty. Wherever Angelica went, she’d left me hanging for the night, probably still angry with whatever it was that Jensen had said to her earlier in the day.

"I guess I'll see you in the morning."

"Yeah, ready to run," he replied much too enthusiastically.

"Don't remind me. I hate running," I said, making a face that made Dalton laugh hysterically.

"See you in the morning."

"Yeah. See ya."

I stepped into my room and shut the door behind me. Allen’s demeanor from earlier in the evening rattled my nerves a bit. I just wanted to fall asleep and forget about the fact that Angelica completely ditched me and that another Marine all but wanted to kick my ass over a stupid video game. This day was one that I couldn't wait to drift away from, in hopes of the next one being much, much better.

0445 came much too soon. My screeching alarm clock jolted me out of bed, making me painfully aware of what was awaiting me. The PFT had never been a favorite of mine. I always scored well, but the process was tortuous, and running long distances was not my strong suit.

I looked over to Angelica's bed to find her sound asleep. The noise of the alarm seemed to have had little effect on her. I made my way back to the bathroom and quickly washed my face and brushed my teeth, before pulling my hair back into my quintessential bun. By the time I made my way out of the bathroom, Angelica was up and moving about. We both got dressed in our PT gear, an awkward silence filling the room. The tension filling the space could have been sliced with a fingernail. I was a bit annoyed that she hadn't come by Dalton's room last night like she'd said, leaving me as the sole female in attendance.

"Hey, sorry about last night. I needed to blow some steam," she quietly said, making her way to the bathroom.

"No biggie. I had a good time anyway. Where'd you go?"

"That's good. I took my binder and went to the food court for a small dinner and study session." She rubbed a towel over her face, turning to look back at me. "I saw Sgt. Cruz there. He was with Sgt. Castillo and they were out of uniform. I think they were on a date." A slight grin caressed her lips and a twinkle went off in her eyes. For some strange reason, it made goose bumps pop up all over my arms.

"Well, he is entitled to that," I responded, not wanting her to see that the bit of news had definitely pinched a nerve.

"Yes. That he is. Just thought you'd want to know. He seems like a playboy, so I hope you're serious about wanting to stay away from him."

The faux smile she gave me while walking back to her bed and putting on her running shoes was boiling my blood. I didn't have any claim to Cruz, but for some reason hearing that he was out with someone else was turning me a deep shade of green—green with absolute envy.

"You just worry about you, Angelica. I've got me taken care of."

I walked out of the room, letting the fresh, warm morning air steal my breath like a thief in the night. I wasn't sure if I would ever get used to such a dry climate.

Angelica was presenting herself as a challenge. Even her apology came with some snide comment or rude retort. It was becoming blatantly obvious that I would have to limit my time around her if I wanted to keep my composure.

Standing before all of the PT gear clad instructors in the wee hours of the morning, we were led over to the pull-up bars. Dalton came up behind me, placing his hand on my shoulder.

"You ready?" he asked with a smile that could have lit up the dusky, morning sky.

"I guess so," I responded, giving him my first genuine smile of the morning. He was about to say something more, when I heard the deep rumble of Sgt. Cruz's voice bellowing out to the crowd.

"Good morning, Radio and Data," he said, looking around the group and never once loosening the tense muscles that held the scowl on his face. "We are starting your morning out with your preliminary PFT. Males will go to the left, females to the right. You should all be aiming for a first class PFT today."

I watched the Adam's apple in his throat protrude with every word he spoke. Thoughts of running my tongue over and around it bombarded me, taking me away for a minute before I regained my focus.

"Males will be performing pull-ups, females will be performing the flexed arm hang. Males, you will start with your body at a dead hang, your chin must pass the bar, and you must come back down to a dead hang for each pull up to count. Aim to max out at twenty." He moved aside and out came a female instructor that I had not yet met.

"I am Corporal Collins, and I work in the Data section. Females, your flexed arm hang, unlike the male pull-ups, is timed. You are to start with your chin above the bar. The time will stop when your arms become fully extended. Aim to hold your body up for seventy seconds for maximum points."

As soon as she was finished speaking, Sgt. Jensen stepped out, giving the order for us to move to our respective sides. As I moved to the female line, Cruz's eyes landed on me, narrowing into dark little slits the longer we were eye locked on one another. Prickles began coating my arms, even though it was probably about eighty degrees out in the desert already. Castillo walked up behind him, tapping him on the shoulder, which effectively broke our stare. She whispered something to him, making him nod as he strode away. I looked back to find her eyes on me, inquisition laced throughout like she was trying to figure me out. The moment turned awkward in a heartbeat, so I turned my head back around and made my way into my line to start my PFT.

Angelica was one of the first to jump up onto the bar, hanging for a full minute before the weight of her own body gave way and her arms were fully extended. She let go of the bar, dropping to the ground yelling, "Shit!" as she angrily rubbed her moist hands on her t-shirt.

"Good job, Ruiz," Collins said to her, prompting Angelica to give a very tightened response of thank you.

After a few more females, it was finally my turn. I looked around before stating my rank and name, waiting to be given the all clear to get up on the bar. Just as Cpl. Collins gave the go ahead, I looked around and my eyes landed on Cruz, who was standing about fifty feet away, arms locked over his chest, eyes focused with his expressionless face fixated on me. My nerves began to jumble as I gripped the bar, trying hard to steady my weight when the weight of his gaze on me seemed like it was pressing me down.

Once I situated myself, and Collins gave the command to start, I tried hard to erase him and his intimidating, yet, alluring gaze from my mind. I began singing lyrics in my mind, but as I did that, the lyrics to Blurred Lines came rushing back to me, filling my head with his hands all over me, his cock stabbing into my ass. I was beginning to falter, losing the ability to focus on the task at hand. Luckily, I was able to hold tight to my grip, and I quickly moved on to singing a Marine Corps cadence that was taught to us in bootcamp, refocusing my attention to where it needed to be.

Before long, the sweat forming on my hands was beginning to make the bar slick, and the sweat trickling down my forehead was making my face itch. I didn't want to give up. I wanted a max score. Not only because I had yet to attain it but because I was also aware of a pair of devilish eyes that were hooked on me. My facial muscles contorted as I worked feverishly to keep myself up, not wanting to allow my arms to fully extend before time was called. I gritted my teeth and yelled, trying to do anything to combat the hurt expelling itself throughout my muscles as I worked tirelessly to hold my body weight up.

My arms began shaking as I felt my muscles begin to break down from the excessive weight. My body began lowering as I tried in vain to keep it up, but before I knew it, my arms had fully extended and Cpl. Collins was yelling, "Time."

"Sixty five seconds, Bennett. Good job!"

"Thank you, Cpl. Collins," I said through short, quick, breaths.

I pulled the neck of my t-shirt up to my face to wipe the excess sweat away. As I pulled it back down, my eyes met with Cruz. He sent a wicked smirk in my direction before turning and making his way back over to the male side of the field.

"Sixty five seconds. That's bad ass, Bennett," Dalton said, high-fiving me.

"It's my best yet. In bootcamp, the best I ever did was a full minute."

"Sweet. Before long, you'll hit seventy seconds and max out on points. Let me know if you want to work out with me. I'll get ya there."

"Will do."

Our conversation was broken up by death harrowing cries that came from none other than Allen leaving the pull-up bar. He had maxed out his twenty pull-ups and was celebrating his feat with caveman-like cries that seemed to garner the attention of everyone in attendance. Jensen walked up to him, patting him on the back while whispering something in his ear. He smiled and laughed before making his way over to the water station to hydrate. I had no desire to get tangled up with him again, so I quickly turned my head around before he could catch my stare.

Next was the crunches portion of the test. We were all herded to the grassy area not far from the pull-up station and instructed to grab a partner to count our pull-ups. Once again, Sgt. Cruz took the lead, barking out the directions.

"You will have two minutes to belt out as many crunches as possible. Remember, your arms must stay folded over your chest, your butt must stay in contact with the ground, your feet must remain in contact with the ground, and your elbows must touch your thighs and then back down to the ground in order for it to count. Partners, do not count them if they are not executed correctly. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, Sergeant!" we all yelled.

"Go!"

I partnered up with Angelica since she was near me. She seemed to be taking her frustrations from the bar out on her crunches because she was moving like a well-oiled machine. She worked fast and furiously, taking slight breaths with every upward motion that her body made. At the call of the end of two minutes, Angelica had easily knocked out one hundred, flawless crunches.

"Your turn," she said, grinning at me. I wasn't sure if she felt like she was in competition with me since I had lasted longer than she had on the bar, but honestly, my effort on that apparatus had nothing to do with her.

The call to begin was given by Sgt. Castillo and I got to work, pumping out crunch after crunch as easily as I breathed. This event was much less strenuous for me than the flexed arm hang had been, and shortly after beginning, I heard Castillo's voice call time. By my own count, I had matched Angelica with one hundred crunches.

When our scores were taken by the instructors walking through the row, I gave the one hundred count for Angelica, but when they turned to her to get my count, she called out, "ninety." My mouth hit the floor.

"Ninety?" I shrieked, pissed off at her.

"Yeah, some of those didn't count. You lifted your butt off the ground."

"Bullshit. I did every single one of them perfectly, and you know it."

She pouted her plump lips. "Maybe you thought you did them perfectly, but Sgt. Cruz wasn't far behind, so I don’t know if you thought him seeing your ass would help, but for this, they don't count."

I wanted to slap the smirk off of her face, but that wouldn't help matters.

"You're a fucking bitch," I blew out, trying to keep my voice down.

I got up and walked away, feeling like I would let out every ounce of wrath that had suddenly piled up inside of me if I didn't get some space between us. She knew exactly what she was doing. If she was pissed about Sgt. Cruz, Sgt. Jensen, or the fact that I had performed better than her on the bar, she was being petty, and it was beginning to wear thin on me. Unfortunately, before I could figure out how to handle her, I had to get my mind right because we were heading over to the water station to hydrate and stretch before making our way to the three mile run course.

"You ready to give me a run for my money?" Dalton asked as we snapped our reflective belts around our waists. Part of the run course ran alongside the road, and base orders stated that we must wear reflectives anytime we ran before or after daylight as a safety precaution.

"I'm not sure about that. Long distance running has never been my thing," I responded, trying to be honest about my shortcoming.

"Try to keep up with me. Running with a partner will sometimes surprise the hell out of you."

"Will do."

We stood at the line, waiting to be given the command to start.

"You will have twenty-eight minutes to complete your three mile run. One second beyond twenty-eight minutes and you fail. Pace yourselves so that you don't burn out too quickly. Go!" Cruz said, leaving his husky voice as the last thing on my mind as I took off with Dalton by my side.

We started at a medium pace, not too slow, but definitely not as fast as some of the others. Angelica was one of the first off the line, almost moving in a dead sprint as she started her run. That didn't appeal to me at all, knowing if I started that way, I would definitely burn-out by the second mile.

The sun was beginning to rise as we ran, sending scorching rays of heat down on us. My t-shirt and my shorts filled with sweat as I ran, trying desperately to focus on the course instead of the voice of sex coming from Cruz's mouth into my ears. Dalton spoke to me as we ran, but between the living inferno we were running in, and the voice that was assisting in the task of melting me, I could barely make out what he was saying.

We hit mile three, and my legs were beginning to turn into jello. My skin had turned a lobster's shade of red, the sweat acting as a second layer of skin, coating every inch of my body, sealing my t-shirt and my shorts to me while my lips began to chafe and burn. I was slowing down, and even though I knew we only had one mile to go, I was finding it difficult to keep up the pace that Dalton had set for us.

"Come on, Bennett," he said, through short, deep breaths. "You can do this. Let's go."

"Go ahead of me," I blew out through labored pants. I didn't want him getting a worse time because he was trying to keep me on pace with him.

"You sure?"

"Yeah. I'll be fine."

With that, Dalton picked up the pace, moving with the ease of a gazelle. He easily glided past other runners, almost as if he hadn't exerted a bit of energy already. I kept to my pace, figuring all I had to do was get to the finish line before twenty-eight minutes struck on the clock.

As I made the final turn, I saw Dalton at the line, calling my name, rooting me on. Angelica wasn't far behind him, staring at me as I inched closer and closer to the finish line.

"Come on, Bennett. You've got this," he called out, just as I passed the line.

"Twenty-six fifteen," Castillo called out. I had never been so thrilled. Usually my run time was inching closer to the cut-off mark. Running with Dalton had helped me, even if he finished minutes before I had.

I was panting, desperate for breath and water, when Dalton walked over to me, handing me a water bottle. I gulped it down, almost like it was the last drink I would ever take. He patted me on the back and then walked away. I was much too fatigued to look up and figure out where he was going, but just as I felt like I could breathe again, and the overwhelming need to hurl left my body, a deep, rumbling voice filled my ears.

"Stand up," he ordered. "You don't want to get cramps."

I looked up to find the hazel eyes of Cruz glowing at me, his face still held firmly tight.

"Good job out there today."

The breath I had worked so hard to catch had escaped me again with his presence and his words alone. I breathed deep and hard, trying desperately to get it back so I could say something in response to him.

He leaned in closer to me, damn near nibbling on my ear lobe as I felt the soft touch of his full, sensual lips graze my ear. My nipples worked themselves into two solid pebbles, sticking out against the sweat soaked t-shirt clinging to my chest.

"You're much too exhausted after this run. I might need to work you out!"

His words grew deeper and harsher with the end of his statement. The way he looked at me, and the inflection on the words, meant so much more than what they appeared to mean. My heart rate spiked again, and my breath caught just as I was fixing my lips to say something to him in response.

"Stay focused. Don't be the barracks whore either. You've got too much going for you."

That shocked me.

"What?" I questioned, completely caught off guard.

"Don't hang out in barracks rooms where you're the only female. That's how rumors get started."

I swallowed hard, not sure how he knew of my whereabouts, and a bit embarrassed by them at the same time.

"Good job out there today," he reiterated, this time a wicked gleam went off in his eyes. He used them to rake over my entire body. I wanted so badly to grab him and let him have his way with me, but reality quickly set in. He blinked, took a few steps away from me, then turned on his heel and walked away. His muscular back outlined by the tight confines of the t-shirt molded onto his body. His legs, toned and tanned, with a tattoo of a depraved looking Marine Corps bulldog, carried him away from me, making me wish he would turn around and take me off somewhere to cure the ache that his presence seemed to inflict on my body.

I took another long gulp of the water in my hands, trying to squelch the flames in my body that had nothing to do with the heat from the rising sun. When the world finally stopped spinning around me, I focused, only long enough to find Sgt. Castillo's gaze fixed on me, a deep scowl accompanying it. She didn't turn away when my eyes landed on hers, and neither did I. For what seemed like a long couple of minutes we stood, in the middle of a field, glaring at one another.

She walked over in my direction, her perfect posture and swift movements taking me by surprise.

"Good job out there today, Bennett," she said, a sly grin spreading across her petite face.

"Thank you, Sgt. Castillo," I replied, unsure of her motive. She looked me over, her eyes landing on my chest that was still standing erect thanks to my hardened nipples that were on display for everyone to see.

"I'm watching you. Just be aware of that," she quickly added, no hint of friendliness in her voice whatsoever. She turned and walked away, leaving me angry and confused. If what Angelica had said about her and Cruz were true, maybe she saw me as a threat.

I wasn't sure what she knew, or what she thought she knew, but she was beginning to make me very uncomfortable.

Chapter 5

Alex

Sitting in my office, staring at my computer screen, it dawned on me that I was probably much too close for appropriate instructor/student contact, and I had to work even harder at staying away from Cassie Bennett in any capacity that could get me caught up. The only problem was, I liked the magnetic pull she had on me. Her scent seemed to linger in the air, reeling me in like a bee drawn to honey. I was beginning to think that there was no way I’d be able to function in my normal capacity, not with her figure popping up on my radar with every turn I took.

Watching her bend over out there, even if it was out of sheer exhaustion, put pictures in my mind that had me wanting to yank her somewhere and hide her away until I could fulfill every sordid fantasy I had about her.

Her PT gear, although unflattering and scruffy on most, still showcased the most ample set of tits I think I have ever had the pleasure of setting my sights on, and her ass-- oh her ass-- invited me over with each inch that she bent over. How I managed to keep my composure with her standing and bending, showing off and enticing, had me racking my own brain. I knew the kind of blunt asshole I could be, so I shocked myself by refraining. It just wasn't something that I would normally do.

Irritation settled within me the second I heard her yell out while up on that pull-up bar. Hearing her cry out like that put thoughts in my head, all of which started and ended with me and her, tangled up somewhere.

Me, driving in and out of her...her, yelling my name being the sound oozing from her lips...            Frustration of the highest caliber washed over me as I walked away from her, and I couldn't quite put my finger on what had me so riled up. Was it the fact that I wanted to take her and do all sorts of dirty shit to her, or was it that fuckin' Dalton kid? Just thinking about him set me off, so part of it must have been him. He reminded me so much of Riley and the way he’d irked me when I’d first met him. He was always around, always smiling, and always pissing me off. Dalton had the same affect, only my annoyance with him was that he was snaking his way into the girl that I wanted to get into, and there was no fucking way in hell I was about to let that happen.

The fact that I had found out that she was the only female in that barracks room put me in a bad place. I wanted to jump up from my meal and run over there, then pull her out and spank her ass for putting herself into that sort of situation. Young male Marines—especially overly testosterone, two second nutters—were not to be trusted when they found themselves in a situation like the one that Bennett put herself into. Her naive mind had me angry and excited at the same time. I'm sure she saw it as just another way to make friends in this shit hole town, while curing the ceaseless spouts of boredom that often times crept in. But for me, it was a punch in the gut, a kick to the chin, a stab in the heart.

My appetite was lost at the news of her being in that room without anyone there to properly defend her. I couldn't let Castillo know that it had damn near sucker punched me, but it had, and I wanted to tear out of there at the sound of it. Sure that Dalton kid was there, and I guess she looked at him like a friend, but honestly, something about that kid had me puzzled. I wasn't sure if I could trust him around her the way that she trusted herself around him.

A quick knock on the door broke me from my thoughts, prompting me to fix myself and remove the sweat from my brow before Smith came striding into the room.

"Riley said you wanted to see me, man."

"Yeah. Just got a quick question. That Dalton kid from your class, what do you know about him?"

Smith pondered for a minute before Dalton apparently popped into his head, sparking his memory.

"He's a good kid from Wisconsin. Company Honorman in bootcamp. That's all that really stood out to me. Why?"

"Just wondering. He's on my radar and I just wanted to know what you knew."

"Nothing bad from what can I tell."

I nodded, but deep down I still wasn't convinced. An aching in my gut was telling me that there was something about this kid that he was hiding.

"Anyway, man. We're hitting up the bowling alley at lunch. You coming? Dollar games during the lunch hour for military in uniform."

"Yeah, I'll be there. Puttin' you assholes to shame."

"Right. We aren't putting the bumpers up, man. Gutter balls count."

"Fuck off," I replied, finally able to laugh.

Smith turned and walked out of my office. I quickly changed over to my cammies, grabbing my cover and placing it on my head as I strolled out, trying to think of anything other than the fucking student who had done nothing but mentally destroy me since I first laid eyes on her.

Back at the schoolhouse, I went ahead and got the class started for the day, focusing on the various types of radio communications we used in the fleet and in what capacity they would be used. Newsome worked tirelessly in the corner, putting together the test packets for the first test that the students would take later in the week in neat and orderly piles.

"What is the job of a zero-six in the Marine Corps, Bennett?"

Her eyes widened as she looked up from her manual.

"To set up and operate all radio equipment for field missions."

I looked at her with lustful, unrelenting eyes, nodding my head before going into my spiel about how, without communications, people die. I had given the speech quite a few times, and in all actuality, it was true.

Jensen went more in depth with the functions of each radio system that was commonly used in the fleet while I took over the roaming of the classroom, making sure that every bit of pertinent information was being written down so as not to fail their test later in the week.

Allen, the beast from the PFT who was screaming his head off like he'd just murdered and eaten something after his pull-ups, wasn't taking down very many notes, prompting me to keep an eye on him. He seemed to possess brute strength, but his classroom skills were not on par. He was definitely one to look out for.

I took a seat in the back of the room, studying the class while trying to mentally place them into the categories that I thought they fit into. Most of them were pretty easy to distinguish. There were the obvious science nerds who loved anything with numbers and currents, then there were those who were willing to do anything other than infantry, and then there was Allen, Ruiz, and Bennett. None of them seemed to fit into any category. Allen, in my opinion, seemed like a picture perfect infantry man. He was big, rugged, and tough, so it puzzled me as to how he ended up in Comm. Ruiz and Bennett were odd ones here because if I had met them in bootcamp, I would have pegged them for Admin girls. Ruiz and her grit out on the PFT field showed that she had a rugged side, but Bennett, I didn't want to see anything rugged about her, except maybe for how well she could hold up against me in bed. Besides that, I wanted to see her as the sweet smelling flower that plastered smiles on my face, perked up my day, and brightened my night.

"You'll have an hour for chow today.  Be back here at thirteen thirty," Jensen called out, promptly dismissing the class.

I seemed to have gotten lost in my thoughts in the back of the room and lost track of time.

"You coming to the bowling alley, Cruz?" Jensen asked.

I swallowed, trying to bring myself back into the here and now.

"Yeah, let's go."

We walked out of the schoolhouse, sunglasses pulled down over our eyes, covers thankfully protecting our heads from the broiling rays of the sun as we made our way over to the base bowling alley. When we walked in, Castillo and Collins were already sitting down at one of the lanes, motioning for us to join them. Shortly after we sat down and got situated, Riley, Newsome, and Smith walked in, meeting us in our area.

"Let's put a friendly wager on today's game," Riley called out, making the rest of us shake our heads. "Whoever scores the lowest is footing the bill all night at Coyotes on Friday."

"That's not a good bet. Cruz has duty Friday night. He won't be around to pay for our binge fest," Jensen answered, making everyone break out in laughter, including me.

"I'm not that fucking bad. And I'll take your shitty little wager, Riley, because I'm damn near certain that it won't be me paying up to kill your livers."

Everyone else nodded their heads, agreeing to the bet.

Before long, we were five frames into the game and I was holding on to second to last place. Collins, luckily, was pulling up the rear. It was my turn to throw when I heard that annoying voice of Pfc. Dalton making his way into the bowling alley. When I turned around, I found Bennett and two other Marines whom I didn't know walking in with him. The female I had never seen before, but the male looked like he was in Smith's and Riley's class; perhaps a friend of the kid who made me want to spit nails.

I turned and cracked my neck, trying to erase her presence from my mind. It wasn't an easy task. In fact, it was downright shitty because the more I tried not to think about her, the more she was there, smiling that perfect little naïve smile that had hooked me from the very beginning.

I walked up to the lane, throwing my ball and cursing aloud as the ball made its way to the gutter for the first time in the game. Of course it would have to happen when she was around, possibly looking over at me.

"You better hope Collins rolls a gutter too, or else your ass is flying solo in last place, Cruz," Riley yelled out. My eyes narrowed at him, or so he thought it was him, but truth be told my eyes were focusing in on Bennett in the background, getting what looked like a back rub from Dalton as she prepared to make her first throw.

Son of a bitch.

My insides were turning, pushing me to stomp over there and remove his hand from any part of her body. Innocent or not, it was pissing me off that he could touch her and I couldn't. And I hated being told no.

She stood, grabbed a ball, then walked up the lane and situated herself. When she threw, she knocked down seven pins, leaving a very simple spare to pick up extra points. Dalton made sure to high-five her, holding on to her hand a bit too long for my liking. I had completely checked out of our game as I remained focused on what was happening down the row from us. She threw her second ball and easily picked up the spare, throwing her hands into the air while the rest of them clapped and hollered for her. Her easy going nature had me wrapped around her finger without her even having to say much to me. She was so different from me, so carefree, and I liked it.

Fuck, I loved it.

I tried hard to come back to our game, but I couldn't get my mind or my eyes to keep from wandering to where Bennett was driving me mad, even though she was unaware of the affect she had on me. She high- fived Dalton when he walked back after throwing a strike, their fingers lingering as they pulled away. His excessive celebration was grating my nerves, and even if there was technically nothing wrong with what they were doing, I just couldn't take his flirtations with her any longer.

"You all need to keep it down. This is still a place of business," I growled, standing over the four of them. Bennett's eyes loomed large as she looked up to me. My presence must have caught her off guard as shock filled her face, almost as if she had no idea that I was in the building.

"I'm sorry, Sergeant," Dalton offered up, further pissing me off by his cordial demeanor when I was anything but. "We'll try and keep it down."

"It's fine," I backtracked, realizing that I was losing my shit in front of her. "Just bring it down a notch. You don't want to get too rowdy in here," I lied. They all nodded and answered. I looked back down to Bennett, her bottom lip tucked into her mouth, held down by the top row of her teeth. The look sent blood streaming down to my cock, exciting me in a way that I couldn't deal with, not in public anyway. I closed my eyes and exhaled, quickly turning and walking back over to where my own group sat.

"I'll catch you guys later. I'll take this loss and pay for your shit, I just have to get out of here," I said, quickly gathering my things before walking out of the bowling alley. Before I walked out, I turned back to catch a glimpse of Bennett who still had her gaze hooked on me. She sucked on that bottom lip of hers again, this time making me do the same.

I wanted her so bad. I wanted to show her just how much she affected me, but I couldn't. I couldn't do a God damned thing about the lust, the friction, or the crazy erections that she often times gave me. No, all I could do was walk back out into the searing sun and stew on my thoughts that were never going to become a reality because the Marine Corps made sure that I couldn't act on them without losing everything that I had worked so hard for.

If someone had asked me a year ago if I could disobey a Marine Corps order, I would have laughed in their face and offered them a punch to the gut for such an idiotic fucking question. The Corps was everything I have ever wanted to be, and it's made me everything that I am. The rules and regulations were set in place to maintain proper conduct and order, two necessary components for running the world's most elite branch of war fighters.

Now, after meeting Bennett and going half way with her—and desperately wanting to taste that second half— I'm not so sure those rules and regulations weren't set in place to test me and make my life a living hell. Could I turn my back on the Corps and what it stands for? For Cassie Bennett, I wasn't sure, but this was more than just saying no as I would for almost every other female. This was a dire straits game of tug-o-war, a self-depraving inner struggle, a test of wills. On the outside, I was winning, but deep inside...deep inside I knew I was losing badly.

My mind was swirling and jumbling with the thought of betraying one of the main rules that had been put in place to protect all parties involved. For the first time in my career, I wasn't ready to staunchly defend an order that had been given. I was ready to toss that bitch aside and forget that it even existed if that meant I could finally taste Bennett and every ounce of her vanilla and fruit scented body.

I hated what she was doing to me in terms of who I was as a Marine and my standing within the Corps. I didn't make it to where I was because I cut corners to get there. I worked hard, never taking shortcuts or doing shit in secret. But now, not only was my mind grappling with the idea of doing those things, I was fucking salivating at the opportunity to break that one, cock blocking rule. Because by not breaking that rule, it was destroying my mind while also slowly, tortuously breaking down my will power.

Chapter 6

Cassie

The bowling alley was completely and utterly frustrating. What started out as a fun idea to quickly pass along the lunch hour, turned into a panty wetting, lip biting, image-producing fiasco within my own mind. I pictured Sgt. Cruz's lips on mine, biting and tugging as I bit down on my own. His response was not lost on me, and I could only hope that it wasn't that obvious to everyone else in attendance. If Sgt. Cruz was serious about forgetting what had happened that night at Coyotes, he wasn't making it easy on me. He could have very well stayed away from us because honestly, we weren't that loud. And even if we were, it was a bowling alley for crying out loud; people get loud and rowdy in there.

Unlike the other three people I was with, I knew the real reason he had made his way over to us. He wanted to make his presence known. I had no clue he was there until he walked over, using his burly voice that reminded me of pure and unadulterated sex, to bark out orders that he knew he had no business giving. The sight of him did things to my body that felt foreign to me. How I couldn't contain my excitement whenever he came near was baffling. I was never that girl-- the one who lost her bearings at the mere sight of a good looking guy. But Sgt. Cruz was so much more than just good-looking. He oozed sex appeal and confidence, and his disposition was weakening me with every encounter.

I was usually much more in control than what I'd been showing, but somehow, whenever he got near me, everything I ever knew washed away, leaving me stupefied.

Even with his abrupt exit his presence lingered, making me wholly uncomfortable and unable to concentrate. The frequent questions from Dalton, and the incessant stares from Jensen and Castillo, had me on pins and needles. Dalton had no clue what was going on, and I was hoping to keep it that way. Jensen and Castillo knew and were in a position to make things very difficult for me if I tried to act on it.  It was a delicate balancing act that I was faltering with.

As much as I wanted to believe that we could be mature adults about what had happened, there was much more to this that was clouding that prospect. For starters, the feelings involved, whether simple attraction or lust, were consuming me. It was on my mind from the moment that I woke in the morning until I went to bed at night, and having to see and interact with him throughout the day was driving me crazy.

So many times as I sat in my seat trying hard to focus on the lesson for the day, my mind would wander off and thoughts of those large hands grabbing and groping my body, lifting me and tossing me down on the bed while raking over every inch of me, would crash into my mind, diverting my attention and sending my clit into a violent, throbbing mess. It always seemed that just after coming back from my daydream I'd find Sgt. Cruz's eyes glued to me, almost as if he knew or felt exactly what it was that I was seeing and feeling. A few times I caught him wiping his brow, indicating that some lustrous thought had been rummaging through his mind as well.

My frequent bathroom breaks had nothing to do with actually needing to use the bathroom, but more so to catch my breath, wipe my sweat away, and soothe the ache building within me, yearning for a release that never truly came because I still hadn't had the remedy to dispose of it. No matter how difficult I thought it would be to turn my thoughts and my libido away from Sgt. Cruz, I was finding the actual act of trying to forget about him ten times more difficult. It was slow torture, like someone taking you to the brink of an earth shattering orgasm and then abruptly pulling away, leaving you to try and obtain a feat that you knew would never come. The frustration within me was beginning to build, and I was running out of ways to quell it.

Thursday evening came and with it came our first official Field Day, or the detailed cleaning of our barracks rooms with an instructor inspection to follow.  Angelica and I did a meticulous job of cleaning and making sure that nothing was out of place.

We stood at the entrance of our room, still in uniform, nervous as shit that something was going to be out of place and that we would fail, probably furthering the strife already festering between us.

Sgts. Newsome and Jensen walked up, looking like two angry pit bulls ready to attack on command. They stopped at the door, greeting both Angelica and me, before removing their covers and walking into the room, scouring every inch of it. My breath caught as nerves settled within me.  I thought Sgt. Cruz's absence would quell the nervous flutters inside of me, but it did quite the opposite-- it intensified them. I knew he was around, I just didn't know where or when he would pop up, and that uncertainty escalated my anxiety.

After waiting in the hallway for what felt like a lifetime, Sgts. Newsome and Jensen were finally making their way back to the entrance of the room, effectively signaling that we had passed our inspection. Just as I exhaled the daunting breath that I had been holding, I saw Sgt. Newsome turn his head and begin yelling.

"Why the fuck is this wall locker not secured?"

His thunderous voice shook me, sending ice through my veins as I knew he was referring to my locker. I was certain that I had locked it up.

"Pfc. Bennett," he called out, jolting me back into the room.

"Yes, Sgt. Newsome?"

"Is this your wall locker?"

"Yes, Sgt."

"Then why in the fuck is it not secured?" The veins in his forehead were beginning to bulge as his entire face went beet red.

"I thought it was, Sgt."

His eyebrows twitched as flash of anger went off in his face.

"You thought?" he yelled out, moving closer to the locker before placing his hand and on the unsecured lock. "When you think without follow-up, people die, Bennett. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, Sergeant," I quickly replied.

Without another word, he opened the locker, looking around at the contents before grabbing and violently flinging it down onto the ground, expelling all of my personal belongings from inside. There were clothes, body sprays, lotions, hair essentials, make-up, jewelry, detergent, books, and many other things that lay strewn on the ground. I wasn't sure if I should move to pick them up or wait until I was given the order to do so. Instead, I stood there, eyes locked on Sgt. Newsome as he went into a long tirade on how sloppy I was and how my absentmindedness could someday cost the lives of my fellow Marines.

When he finished, he ordered that I clean up the mess and secure my fucking wall locker before stalking out of the room. Jensen followed, never saying a word to me while Angelica stood to the side, probably unsure of where she fit into all of this, but glad to see me being ripped in half.

"Well, I'm cleared, so I'm going to run down to the vending machine. Thank God he didn't trash my shit too, or I would have been pissed at you."

I turned to look at her, her shit stain smirk properly staining her face.

"Shut the fuck up, Angelica," I said, standing to place my wall locker back to its upright position. "My wall locker was secured. You probably unlocked it in hopes of this happening. Well, it happened. You happy? Congratulations."

"I didn't do shit," she quickly defended.

"Right. Casper came in here and did it."

She turned and walked out of the room without another word. I was pissed and damn near certain that she'd had something to do with that. I knew I had secured my wall locker, so for it to just magically be unlocked wasn't adding up for me.

"Private First Class Bennett," a voice growled, making me freeze in my tracks. It wasn't the voice of intimidation; it was the sex oozing voice that had done nothing but distract me since I had first heard it, and now was no exception. "My instructor tells me that you had an unsecured wall locker."

"Yes, Sgt. Cruz. I did," I replied, taking hold of my shaky voice. "It won't happen again."

He moved further into the room, determination shelling every inch of him. My heart began beating erratically as tiny droplets of perspiration coated my hands, neck, and face. He was only inches away from me, that strong, husky scent of his infiltrating my nostrils, sending my overworked and unsatisfied libido into a tortuous overdrive.

"It won't happen again. I already know that." He moved even closer, his rock hard chest skimming my shoulder as he stepped around and to the back of me. "Do you know why I know that?"

"No, Sergeant, I don't," I replied in an embarrassingly breathy tone, taking quick swallows and trying desperately to rid myself of the nerves that had flushed in like a catastrophic wave.

His lips were at the nape of my neck, making the hair stand up. All blood in my body seemed to be rushing to my clit, making it nearly impossible to continue standing there holding on to what little self-control I had left.

He placed his lips on my neck, the moist plumpness thrilling every inch of me with the boldness of the move. He gently skimmed, sending prickles all over my skin. My breathing picked up, and I shut my eyes, hoping I could reign myself back in, but that wasn't happening. I was falling deeper and deeper into the trap that this man seemed to have set for me, and I wanted him to just take me. I wanted him to forget about all of the boundaries and just make good on the desire that we were both withholding from one another.

"You won't do it again because I said you won't, and I can already tell the effect I have over your mind and body whenever I say anything to you," he huskily whispered, further weakening my already fragile hold on self-control.

His answer was certainly not what I had in mind.

I had no response.

I stood there, awestruck and yearning, hoping he would throw caution to the wind and rip my clothes from my body and lay into me.

That didn't happen either.

Instead, his hand made its way to my hip and gently slid up my torso, stopping in between my breasts. His lips were still gently placed on my neck, expelling small breaths that were working to unravel what little composure I seemed to have left. My head drifted back to meet his and I ever so softly placed my hand on his, guiding it over my now rock hard breasts that desperately wanted to be licked, sucked, and manhandled. I felt his cock spring to life and just as I reached back with my free hand to grab it, Angelica's voice startled us out of our moment.

"Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow," she called out, just before stepping into the room. Her eyes were full of suspicion, looking from me to Sgt. Cruz, then back to me again.

Luckily, he had moved ever so slightly away from me, and I grabbed the first thing I saw and acted as if I were still stacking things back into my wall locker.

Sgt. Cruz cleared his throat. "Make sure you keep your wall locker secured whenever you are out of the room, you understand that?"

"Yes, Sgt. Cruz," I answered feebly, making Angelica narrow her eyes at me.

I watched him stride toward the door, his big, strong hands dangling on the side of him before he placed his cover on his head just as he made his way outside. I swallowed hard, amazed that we had done what we had done without a care in the world for the burdensome consequences that could have followed our getting caught.

Angelica sat down on her bed, her lips puckered as she watched me move about the room. I didn't want to look at her, not because I was afraid of what she might have to say, but because I couldn't wipe the smile from my face at the thought of what took place, and what could have taken place, had we been in a different location with more time. As much as I knew that our interaction could cost both of us greatly, I was knee deep with longing, needing to get a taste of Sgt. Cruz to crush that feeling.

Friday morning came with little to no sleep. Flashbacks of Sgt. Cruz's hands and lips enticing my body were all I saw every time I closed my eyes, and I showered at least twice in the middle of the night, trying desperately to calm the urge to have him inside of me long after he left.

I had planned to do a cram session for our first test that was scheduled for today, but that never happened. Every word I read from the manuals was read to me in his voice, sending me to a place that rendered me mindless. I knew for certain that the only way to get things back on track would be for us to finally fulfill what we both wanted so badly. But with that, and the rules of the Marine Corps, came an entirely different set of problems.

I awoke from about two hours of sleep, quickly making my way to the bathroom and washing my face, hoping to appear well rested even though I was quite the opposite. Angelica must have been up early because she was already dressed in Service Charlies, the uniform of the day. Her short sleeved khaki shirt with rank insignia on the side of her arms was matched with green pants and shiny, black shoes. Her service ribbon sat on the left side of her chest as she held her green cover in her hands. She had been up for a while, and thankfully looked to be on her way out.

"I'm off to the chow hall for breakfast. You slept too late, and I wasn't sure if I should wake you," she said, standing in the mirror checking over her uniform.

"It's cool. I'll eat something on my own," I answered coldly, still irritated with the fact that I was all but certain that she had deliberately sabotaged me the night before.

She shrugged her shoulders and grabbed her binder, then walked out of the room, leaving me standing in the bathroom and staring at my disheveled appearance in the mirror. I needed to get it together before I had to see him again. I was carrying around a heavy bag of mixed emotions. On the one hand, I couldn't wait to see him, to drink in the sight of him and revisit what it was that he was capable of doing to me. On the other hand, I didn't want to have to hold myself back any longer, and the more that I saw him, the more difficult that was becoming.

After fixing my hair into a perfectly styled bun, I dressed in my uniform and grabbed my binder, making my way out the door and down the stairs when I saw Allen walking out of his.

He looked back, catching my gaze on him and smiling wickedly. Luckily, Dalton came strolling out of his room shortly after Allen and I made eye contact. He looked between the two of us, his eyes flooded with worry as he made his way over to me.

"You okay? He hasn't done anything else since that night, has he?"

"I'm fine. Just keeping my distance, that's all."

We started walking, unfortunately passing Allen as he stood there, waiting for us to make our way past him. I looked up into his eyes as we walked by, showing him that I was neither afraid nor intimidated. He didn't say anything, just smirked as our eyes locked, revolting me even more. I had no clue what his problem was with me, but I was determined to make sure that he knew that I wouldn't be a pushover for him and his self-conscious ego.

Standing in the courtyard of the schoolhouse, I laughed with Dalton and the other two Marines who had been at the bowling alley, Pfc. Amanda Lane and Pfc. Michael Hutchins. We were still laughing when Allen and his crew began yelling out, disrupting every other conversation taking place that morning.

"Yeah, fuckin' chicks need to know their fuckin' place. Behind a Goddamned desk is where I see em'-- if we have to let em' in the military at all," he yelled out, he and his crew laughing like it was the funniest line ever spoken. I rolled my eyes, knowing that I was on his mind as he made the statement.

"Don't even worry about him, he's harmless. Just talks a lot of shit," Dalton said, placing his hand on my shoulder.

I looked at Lane and Hutchins, whose baffled stares made me smile.

"I know. I'm just sick of his shit. I've never done anything to him."

"I know. He's got his issues. I already told you that."

"What issues?" Hutchins asked, looking overly concerned. "I live next door to him."

Just as I was about to explain to him what had happened that night in Dalton's room, all of the instructors stepped out, calling for attention and prompting us to assemble ourselves in formation.

"You are taking your first test on the information that has been presented to you over the course of this last week. Hopefully you all studied because from here on out, the information will only come faster and will grow more and more difficult in succession," Jensen yelled, his characteristic bulldog persona on full display.

Sgt. Cruz stood there, scanning the crowd with his eyes, but holding his head steady so as not to gain any undue attention. When he spotted me, he licked and sucked on his bottom lip, putting my conscience on high alert as I tried inconspicuously to see if anyone else had caught on. No one seemed to notice until my eyes locked with Sgt. Castillo. Her eyes seared me as she looked between me and Sgt. Cruz, trying desperately to figure out what was going on between the two of us.

Before long, the formation was calling out, "Yes, Sergeant," and I missed it all because I was lost with my mind elsewhere.

The formation began breaking down with everyone moving to their respective classrooms. Dalton made his way over to me before turning right for his class and folded his arm, placing his elbow on my shoulder.

"Transformers is showing at the base theater tonight. You coming with us?"

"I hadn't even thought about it, I'll let you know," I replied since I had no idea what it was or what it was about.

Footsteps pounded the ground, bringing a strong presence closely behind me.

"You should be thinking about the test you're about to take," Cruz said lowly, surprising both Dalton and me as he stood firmly behind me, looking at Dalton.

Dalton's eyes enlarged, almost as if the fear of God had been put into him. He stepped back quickly, surprise and fear thickly laced in his eyes. I couldn't see Sgt. Cruz's face as he stood behind me, but from what I could read from Dalton, Cruz wasn't taking too kindly to his movie invite.

"Yes, Sgt. On my way now," Dalton said, giving me an inquisitive look before turning to make his way to his classroom. He looked back at me as he walked away, still puzzled by whatever had just transpired.

I slowly turned around to meet Cruz's all-encompassing stare, flames flaring up inside of me as I stood so close to him but unable to actually touch him. An internal battle struck as I had to remind myself that I couldn't just reach out and touch him, even though it was all my tingling hands wanted to do. The imaginary barrier placed between us, courtesy of the Marine Corps, had a strangle hold on me, causing my breath to hitch.

"Don't make me jealous with that little fuck," he said, trying to keep his voice down but unable to do so.

"Excuse me?" I asked, a bit taken aback by his statement. "What are you talking about?"

"You know what I mean. I don't play nice when someone tries to take what's mine," he whispered in my ear, then stepped back, smirking at me.

I took a deep breath, feeling every syllable of his words wash over me, flooding me in need and want. He had just stood there and claimed me, and I was all too willing to let it happen.

He turned and walked away, leaving me standing with a lazy grin, feeling like I had been left in a drunken stupor. I watched as he walked away in his Service Charlies, the three, heavily starched lines on the back of his khaki shirt bulging with every movement of his profoundly defined back. His green pants hugged his rock hard ass with every step he took, forcing my mind to think of what I would do if I were ever given the opportunity to grab a hold of it.

Finally realizing that I was one of the last few to make my way inside, I picked up my binder and turned in the direction of my classroom, my eyes landing on Sgt. Castillo who looked like she was ready to attack. She had seen our interaction, and the ferocious glare she shot in my direction served as a warning that things were probably about to become a bit more challenging.

Chapter 7

Alex

I was beginning to get a tad bit too cocky for my own fucking good, but even with that acknowledgement, I couldn't find the self-restraint to hold myself back from testing the waters and seeing just how far I could get with Bennett. Sure, my fucking promotion would be snatched away from me quicker than I could take my next breath, and I could quite possibly lose my current rank, my pay, and be court martialed, but none of that seemed to matter whenever she was around. Her presence was the fog on my brain that left me unable to think. I tried to forget about her, but it drove me fucking insane.

Every free moment I had somehow drifted to her. Her long flowing hair, that gorgeous fucking smile, and the sweet, soothing sound of her voice, all of it had me in a trance, one that I didn't know how, nor did I want to find my way out of.

With the vigorous restrictions set up to prevent situations like the one that I now found myself in, I had to get creative with ways to get some alone time with Bennett. Unbeknownst to her, Newsome was sent into her room to find something, or in this case, create something that could turn into a screaming rage fest for him, thus bringing me into the room. I heard his tirade as he laid into her, and even though he thought she was just the lucky one that I had picked to make an example out of, he enjoyed that shit far too much and I had to keep myself from running into that room and bashing his face into the ground. He had done what I'd instructed him to do, but I didn't like the level that he took it to, and it pissed me off thinking of how angry or scared she may have been in that moment. Newsome is a big guy who can come off as an overly intimidating asshole.

The second I was able to be alone with her, all of the anger subsided, bringing a relative calm over me. That calm was the fucking problem because when it struck, it put my thought process on hold and allowed me to do shit that I knew for a fact I shouldn't be doing, like running my hands up her torso while I kissed her sweet fucking neck. Doors were wide ass open as I stood there, ready to seep into her, knowing damn well that I wouldn't be able to. All common sense escaped me when she came near, making me do stupid shit that could jeopardize everything for the both of us. I needed to reign my shit back in, but I found I was severely lacking the will power, and it would ultimately destroy me.

I just knew it would.

Sitting in the back of the classroom as they took their tests, my mind wandered back to Dalton and the smile that seemed to creep onto his face every time he got near her. His fucking hands, no matter how harmlessly they touched her, sent my mind to a place that I didn't need it to be. I meant what I said about not playing nice when someone tries to take something of mine, and even though I may have come on too strong, or overly aggressive, I was done with the bullshit. It was time to stake my claim and cement that shit.

Thinking about sitting on duty all night on a fucking Friday night when all of the guys would be at Coyotes, and she would be off enjoying her time with that little dipshit, was frustrating me all over again. Could I make her stay in? As her instructor, absolutely. Would I? No. But that didn't mean that I couldn't find some way to steal some time away with her.

"Time," Jensen shouted as the timer on the desk went off.

I stood in the back of the room near the door, waiting for the students to turn in their papers before walking out for their break.

"You will have a fifteen minute break before we start the next session. Turn your papers in to Sgt. Cruz on your way out," Jensen said.

The class filed out, dropping their papers off with me as they made their way out the door. Ruiz was directly behind Bennett as they approached, making it difficult to get her to steal away for a minute with me. Bennett reached me and stopped, placing her paper on top of the pile as I tried to nonchalantly nod my head in the direction of the room that would take us away from everyone else. She looked as if she got it, softly smiling as our eyes left one another. Ruiz moved forward, dropping off her paper and giving me a suspicious glare which I gladly returned. Whatever the fuck it was that she thought she knew, I needed to make sure that she stayed a few steps behind us.

As soon as Ruiz walked out of the room, I turned my attention back over to Jensen and Newsome, who I needed to get out of the room as well.

"Hey, man. We're going to make a quick turnaround trip to Vegas tomorrow. You comin'?" Newsome asked, taking a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. I had never been so thankful that this fucker smoked.

"Fuck, I've got duty all night, so no, I won't be up and ready to go to Vegas in the morning."

"Sucks for you, man. Friday night duty. I'll drink a few in your honor," Jensen chimed in. "But right now, I need to take a monstrous piss. Too much coffee this morning."

He tore out of the room before either of us had the chance to say anything more to him. I didn't care since it left me with one less person to have to get rid of.

Finally, I had the room all to myself. I stridently walked over to the side that held a door which remained locked from the outside. I gently pushed it open, not wanting to alert anyone who may have been nearby that someone was using that entrance. Bennett stood there, hidden by the wall that lay adjacent to the door, her soul sucking green eyes pulling me in the second that our eyes locked. I pulled her into the room, pressing her against the wall as I ran my lips up and down her tiny, delicate neck. That familiar vanilla and fruit flavored smell overcame me, sending me back to Coyotes and all of the excitement that took place there. She eagerly tilted her head to the side, giving me further access to her neck as I worked my lips up and down, kissing and suckling every inch of skin exposed to me.

Our chests moved in erratic succession, both of us breathing hard as the need to let go of some of this sexual tension mounted. Her hands wrapped around my head, pulling me even closer to her as one of my hands lay on her cheek while the other snaked down and firmly clasped onto her ass. I paused to pull back, needing to look at her, to drink her in.

"Are you crazy?" she asked, still breathing hard while trying to catch her breath.

I sucked on my bottom lip, wanting to cut the chit chat and take advantage of every second that I had with her.

"I must be, because right now, nothing else fucking matters but you," I lowly grumbled, hoping to get back to fulfilling my need to touch her, to taste her, to be with her.

"You know we could--"

My mouth crashed down on hers just as she was about to beat me over the head with a dose of reality. I didn't want to hear what could happen should anyone catch us, I didn't give a shit in that moment. I just wanted her, and I wasn't about to waste another second denying myself of her any longer.

My tongue moved aggressively with hers, swirling around in her mouth and trying to taste every inch of her. Her hands held strong to the back of my neck, prompting me to place both of mine on her ass, squeezing and lifting her off the ground. My hard cock was pounding with an aching need to get inside of her, and as it sat at the entrance of her pussy, clothing once again inhibiting us, I felt her gently beginning to rock to and fro, further taunting and teasing me.

"You don't want to do that," I growled, warning her that I was in a primal state, and there was no telling how far I would be willing to go.

She didn't stop, further rocking her hips over my cock, sending pain and pleasure from root to tip. Her movements were making it damn near unbearable to not rip her clothes off, bend her over, and fuck the living lights out of her.

"Yeah, start roundin' em' up," I heard Jensen call out, startling Bennett.

She stopped moving and stared into my eyes, the innocence putting a smile on my face.

"Me and You. Your room tonight," I told her through labored pants just as fear went off in her eyes.

"How can you? You're on duty? That's worse than right now."

I held her up with one arm and placed a finger over her lips.

"Don't doubt me, Blondie. I make shit happen."

She was just about to reply when I placed her down on the ground, helping her fix her uniform.

Gently pushing the side door open, I leaned in and kissed her sweet, soft lips again, my lips lingering on hers, not wanting to break our touch, before helping her out. Just as she stepped outside, a haze overcame me, blurring the sight of her while leaving me in a daze.

"Ahem," Jensen said. He and Newsome stared down at me with baffled expressions staining their faces.

I sat up, having fallen asleep in the back of the classroom. I wiped my eyes before running my fingertips over my lips, having sworn I had Bennett pinned up against a wall, tasting her beautifully sculpted body while she taunted me, letting go of her inhibitions and giving herself to me. Feeling the bulge that was my cock, I reached down to massage it, trying to discreetly ease the ache that had settled into what was turning into the most sensitive part of my body.

I was losing control. Never had I ever fallen asleep, drifted off, or lost my train of thought when it came to my job-- until now. My feral attraction to Bennett was beginning to destroy me. My psyche wouldn't allow me to move on from her. She was imprinted in my mind.

"What the fuck, man? Falling asleep in the classroom?" Jensen asked, looking absolutely disgusted. Thankfully the classroom was empty.

"I don't know what the fuck got into me," I lied, rubbing my hands over my eyes again.

"I know what the fucks gotten into you," Jensen sneered. "Get yourself together, Alex."

I abruptly stood up, my chair loudly scratching against the floor, bringing myself face to face with Jensen. Even though I was off my game, I was still his senior and wouldn't tolerate his shit.

"You better stand the fuck down, Jensen," I hissed.

Our breathing intensified as we stood glaring at one another, scowls deepening as neither of us wanted to back down.

"Whoa. Fill me in. I want to know what the fucks gotten into both of you," Newsome said, trying to diffuse the combustible situation we now found ourselves in.

"It's nothing, man," I said. "Nothing at all."

He didn't look convinced.

Jensen turned and walked out of the classroom, leaving Newsome and me standing there. I needed to let him know that he had gone too far with Bennett the night before.

"Hey, man. Just wanted to say thanks for yesterday." I grabbed the back of his neck, playfully gripping it.

A bright smile crept across his face. "Oh, no problem, man. I love picking out the example. It always feels good getting to blow out my frustrations by destroying shit."

He laughed, but I couldn't join in. He took one look at my face and stopped.

"I appreciate it, but don't go overboard like that next time."

"But, that's what we always--"

I stopped him, gripping just a bit harder.  "I know. But for a female, that was a bit too much. You understand that?" I responded, my voice growing more defense with every word spoken.

Confusion swept over him as he looked at me with piqued curiosity, but I didn't say anything further. I simply patted him on the shoulder and motioned for him to go on his way. He didn't say another word, instead strolling outside and lighting up his cigarette.

He was right. We did normally pick out an example and go ape shit on them, but where Bennett was concerned, that shit had rubbed me raw and pissed me off.

Staring at my watch, I realized I only had about ten minutes left of the fifteen minute break normally allotted to the students. I stepped into my office and slammed the door shut, throwing my cover on the desk and yelling out my frustrations. Perspiration coated my face as I ran my hands over it, trying to figure out a sensible way to drain the pent up aggression raging inside of me.

Sitting down in my chair, I blew out an exasperated breath while thoughts of Bennett came crashing back into my mind with the force of a wrecking ball. How this girl had mind fucked me with one brief encounter was beyond me. Ever since the day I swore into the Corps, nothing and no one, with the exception of family, had ever come before it. The shit they preached to you in bootcamp about the guy to the right and left of you being your brother was taken to heart. I would gladly take a bullet for any of these motherfuckers, and believed wholeheartedly in everything the Corps laid out before us.

Bennett challenged those beliefs and placed me between a rock and a hard place.  On one end, the rules mattered. They kept order in an often unorganized world, but on the other end, the rules were a roadblock to a very enticing prize at the end of a very winding road. They were the stern warning given to a dog who's just had a bone placed before him and told not to touch. Bennett was the warning that I didn't want to heed.

Looking down at my watch, I sat up, patiently awaiting composure to take hold of my body. There was no way I was going back into that classroom with my cock throbbing and mind wandering. After straightening my uniform, I walked out to the bathroom, leaning over to splash some cold water over my face. A cold shower would have been a much better choice, but the face splash was all I could accomplish at the moment.

I grabbed a few paper towels, wiping and drying off my face and hands, when Jensen walked in, stopping at the urinal. He finished his piss, then made his way over to the sinks, washing his hands while looking at me through the mirror.

"Have you fucked her?" he asked, putting me on guard with the high level of bite in his tone. He didn't look away after asking the question.

"That's none of your fucking business, Brandon."

He grabbed a few paper towels and dried his hands, turning to face me with pure malice in his eyes.

"It's my fucking business when it brings chaos into the schoolhouse. You understand better than most why these rules are put in place. You were the last person I ever thought I’d have to watch over when it came to shit like this."

"You don't need to watch over shit when it comes to me. I'm just fine," I hissed, growing more annoyed with every word he spoke.

"You sure about that? Because I can't remember that last time our lead instructor flirted with one of his students, set up field day failures to get near her, and fell asleep on the job.  You'd have someone's rank for falling asleep on duty. It's not like you, Alex"

"Like I've already said, there is nothing to fucking worry about," I grumbled, glaring at him before walking towards to the exit door.

"I'm just letting you know I won't stand by and lie about this shit."

I stopped just as my hand was grasping the knob.

"What did you say?"

"I won't lie about it. If a senior asks about this shit, I will not dishonor myself or my service. The Corps is bigger than one man."

My eyes dimmed as I walked back in his direction, stopping just before him.

"There won't be shit to tell because nothing has happened," I coldly responded, glaring my icy stare at him.

In body size, Jensen was my equal, so he showed no signs of being intimidated. We stood for what felt like a lifetime, staring at one another, willing the other to back down. With two alpha males in the same room, standing on opposite sides of the issue, the air was beginning to go stale.

"Let's just keep it that way," Jensen said, finally breaking the showdown before striding out.

All of my earlier attempts at putting my jumbled nerves on ice were completely thwarted. If it was this obvious for Jensen, then others must have noticed as well. It shocked me when that thought sprung to mind, but I couldn't find a fuck to give. Getting a taste of Bennett felt like a mission that I had to complete, and unfortunately for me, missions required a certain level of precision to attain, and I never abandoned one.

Ever.

On my way back to the classroom, Castillo stopped me, worry clouding her eyes as she stood before me.

"You alright, Cruz?"

"Just fine," I answered, not wanting to get into this with anyone else.

"Well hey, I know you've got duty tonight, I was thinking about skipping Coyotes. I can drop off dinner or something." A smile touched her lips, making me relax the rigidly held muscles in my face that had formed into a tight scowl.

"You really don't have to do that. I can manage."

She smiled again, this time larger.

"I know you can manage. Call it returning the favor. I owe you dinner, from our last date."

She smiled again, patting my shoulder as she walked by. We hadn't been on any dates, so I wasn't quite sure where that shit had come from.

My eyes followed her out of the courtyard, landing on Bennett not too far away—she had heard our conversation. The look on her face punched me in the gut, turning my stomach and making me weak. She looked at me with contempt in her eyes, and for the girl who I was ready to risk it all for, that was the last way I wanted her to see me. I wasn't about to let her slip through my fingers before I‘d even gotten the chance to have them explore her.

"Stay in tonight," I told her after casually making my way over to her. I didn't know what was going through her mind, but I was sick of fucking around with mine.

She looked at me, albeit briefly, then turned for the walkway as if nothing had ever even happened. I knew every time I got too close to her it was a reckless move, but I felt like I was losing ground. I needed her to know that I wasn't just having lewd thoughts about her; I wanted her. Even with the rules and consequences laid out before us, I was willing if it meant both of us getting to fulfill the ache that lay inside. I didn't want her giving that Dalton kid, or Castillo for that matter, another fucking thought, and by brazenly taking her and showing her that I meant business, I was pretty confident that I would accomplish my goal.

Chapter 8

Cassie

Sgt. Cruz must have thought I was a fucking idiot.

As much as Angelica infuriated me, she hadn’t been lying when she said she'd seen them together having dinner. Why would I have thought any differently? The way he’d come on to me at Coyotes could only mean he was aggressive in his confidence, and while he was intoxicatingly good looking, that confidence led me to believe that he had bedded plenty of women, so why would I be any different? He wanted in my pants from the moment he saw me. That wasn't the characteristic of a guy who wants to have a relationship.

The best part of all of this was that we hadn't gone too far, so my disgust with him would make it easier to avoid any more compromising situations. My focus should have been on passing this course and getting out and into a unit, not worrying about my instructor trying to fuck me, then turning around and fucking his co-worker. I don't know where I’d let my mind go, but it was time to reign it back in. Thinking about Cruz nonstop was taking its toll on me. My studies were being neglected, and it had showed in today's test. I couldn't think straight. My mind was all over the place, except for where it needed to be.

At one point, I’d even sat at my desk with his eyes burning into me from behind. Instead of focusing on radio signals and frequencies, my mind drifted to the kinetic energy that I wanted to create with him. His lips, besides other things that I've had the pleasure of feeling, were probably his best asset. Those lips had devoured me and sent chills up and down my spine with just the mere brush of them. Plump, moist, and soft, the next place I wanted them was in between my legs, sucking the life out of me. His tongue, the thick, moistness of it, held the same aggressive nature that he as a person, held. The way he used it, overpowering and inhibiting me, forced thoughts of it inside of me, licking and teasing my clit until I exploded all over him. These thoughts were consuming me, and in every way that counted, they were also destroying me.

He’d told me to stay in tonight, but after internally debating with myself and trying to channel my frustrations with him, there was no way that was going to happen. I would not allow myself to become my mother, waiting on the sidelines for a man while he was out exploring every piece of ass that walked his way. No fucking way. This had my mother written all over it. I didn't want to be anything like her, and my first step to distancing myself from her was joining the Marine Corps, even when she repeatedly belittled me, telling me how much of a failure I would be.

Those words were banging loud and clear. For the first time in a long time, something she had said to me was actually welcomed. Not in the sense that she was right, but her words were my reality check. Failure was not an option for me, but while I didn't have nearly as much to lose as Cruz, I did stand to lose something that I valued--my burgeoning career. As much I told myself that my career came first, I couldn't deny the pull that Cruz had on me and my body. When he spoke so brashly, my body responded, pleading with me to cure the ache and just let him ravish it. I had to work double time to stop the thoughts, to stop the feelings, and as difficult as it was proving to be, I was determined to get it done.

"Hey dreamer. You about ready?" Dalton asked, standing in the doorway of my room. He looked so much different out of uniform with his skinny jeans, black t-shirt, plain black slide-on Vans, and nerdy glasses. I couldn't help but smile at him.

"Yeah, I'm ready. Just let me lock up my locker."

"Shit. I heard about that. Sorry. Newsome can be kind of fucking crazy."

I laughed while locking up the locker and double checking to be sure that I wouldn't have another repeat of Field Day night.

"You're telling me. I thought he was going to put me through these brick walls in here."

"Well, his buddy isn't much better. Sergeant Smith chucked an apple at some Private's head today in class, then was on him like a bad rash after that, screaming in his face because he had dozed off. I thought he was going to pop a blood vessel."

My mind drifted to Cruz who had fallen asleep in class today. I couldn't be sure that anyone else had noticed, but I had, only because I kept stealing glances at him.

"So anyway, what about Sgt. Cruz?"

"What about him?" I asked, my voice stiff and defensive.

"He looked like he was going to smash my face in earlier today. What's his deal?"

I sighed. The last thing I wanted was for anyone to definitively find out that something had been going on between us.

"He's just intense. He's always telling us how our first priority is passing this course so that we can get to the fleet. That's all."

Dalton didn't look like he was buying a word of my lie. His eyebrows shot up, and a faint smile traced his lips, but I didn't feed it. As far as I was concerned, I was going to have nothing more to do with Sgt. Cruz than to listen to him teach me about radio communications so that I could get to a unit and do my job.

"Anyway. Transformers. What is this about?"

Dalton stopped walking and held his chest, breathing hard and pretending to be in shock.

"You're fucking kidding, right?"

"No. I don't know anything about it."

He took my hand and placed it on his chest. His heart wasn't beating any faster than normal, but he was playing up the part, trying to hit home the fact that I was desperately out of the loop.

"They were only my favorite action figures as a kid. I had every single Transformers toy ever made."

"Okay. So what is this movie about?"

"Robots, good and bad, caught in a battle for Earth." I looked half amused. "Trust me, it's kick ass. I've seen it twice already."

"Then why would you want to see it again?" I asked, laughing.

"Because of the pure awesomeness of it. You're going to love it too, rock girl."

"Rock girl?" I asked, confused by the nickname.

"Yeah, rock girl. You must have lived under a rock to not know what Transformers are."

I blushed, then awkwardly laughed. I had been living under a figurative rock with my mom, and not one that I'd wanted to come out from under either.

"Thanks to your depravity as a child, I'm treating you tonight. Movie, popcorn, aaannnddd a drink. Don't thank me, it's the least I can do."

I hit his shoulder and laughed again. "Don't splurge on me or anything, Dalton."

He folded and stiffened his arm, holding it out for me with a goofy grin on his face. I took it, then walked down the walkway, passing the duty room in the process. Looking in, Cruz was sitting at his desk speaking to another Marine. For that brief second that I was able to look into the room, our eyes locked, and I felt time stand still. His hazel eyes burned into me. His lips puckered ever so slightly, and he swallowed… hard, that clit stimulating Adam's apple protruding with the movement of his throat.

I turned away and continued down the walkway with Dalton. If I looked at him any longer, my weakness would prevail, and I would find some reason to stay in my room in hopes that he would make his way up and fuck me until I couldn't see straight. That wasn't going to happen, so rather than set myself up for disappointment, I tried as best I could to block any more thoughts of him from my mind. I needed to be able to see him and not think or feel any salacious thoughts and feelings. I needed to go back to being able to see him the way I had when I first saw him at Coyotes.

Who the fuck was I kidding? From the second I laid eyes on him at that bar, my thoughts wandered aimlessly to what I wanted him to do to me. I was hooked from the onset, so trying to find my way out of that hole was going to be a monumental task.

I was doing a piss poor job of listening to Dalton as we walked over to the movie theater. He had been talking a mile a minute, and unfortunately, I hadn't heard a lick of it.

"…yeah, and an axe murderer is going to come and chop us all up tonight, right?"

"Yeah," I quickly answered, trying to break free from the thoughts that were cruelly shackling my mind while simultaneously breaking me down."

"I knew you weren't listening to a word I said."

"Huh?"

"I just told you an axe murderer was going to come and chop us all up, and you agreed."

"Oh, shit. I'm sorry."

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just have a lot on my mind."

"I can tell." He paused as we were approaching the movie theater. "You sure you want to stay for this? Your mind seems to be elsewhere and, well, jackass of the year is here too." He nodded his head in the direction of the ticket window where Allen was standing with a couple of his buddies. All of them looked like meatheads with the behavior to match. They were yelling out, "I am Optimus Prime!" and other things that I was sure were in reference to the movie.

"I'm fine. He's loud and obnoxious, but I'm not letting him ruin my night."

"Alright. Sweet." He flashed a school boy grin, my facial muscles forming into a tight smile, trying hard to reciprocate the gesture.

We strolled up to the ticket window, standing in line when we caught Allen's attention. He made his way over to where we stood and I rolled my eyes, not in the mood to deal with him or any of his antics.

"You two on a date?" He looked us over, and I could see why he thought that. I was still holding on to Dalton's arm.

"Nope. Just enjoying a night away from the barracks with a friend," Dalton calmly answered.

"Well, good, because I think you should totally go out with me, Bennett. I'll show you what a real man is like, and I'll turn you into the lady that you need to be." He smiled, but there was no sincerity behind the smile. Only malice.

"That's okay. If I want to go out with a real man, I'll just have to keep looking. I don't think you're it." I smiled back, wiping the smug look of asshole right off of his face. He lowered his eyes then cracked his neck before Dalton pulled me up to the ticket counter with him.

Allen reminded me of the chauvinistic pricks who my mom often dated, and I couldn't find one single appealing thing about the guy.

"He's got some serious issues," I told Dalton as we walked into the lobby of the theater, making our way to the concession stand line.

"Yeah. He's just a prick. He's harmless, though. I'm telling you, he just has an issue with women in the Corps, but he doesn't hate women."

"Well, he might as well. I'm in the Corps. I'm not going anywhere."

"True. Just avoid him."

"I try. He hates me. There are other females around here, why me?"

"I assume because you don't back down, and you're top notch. He probably sees you as a challenge or something." He stopped and placed our food order. "Look, I don't want to get into his head. It's too fucked up, from what I can see. Just don't talk to him."

We grabbed our food and walked into the theater, making sure to avoid Allen and his caveman crew.

The movie was mildly entertaining for me, but Dalton, even though this was his third time watching it, was engrossed in it, reciting lines and cheering on the Autobots. I had picked up a few things here and there, but I wasn't pulled in the way he was.

Nearing the end of the movie my phone began buzzing in my back pocket. I took it out to find a text message from an unknown number.

Unknown: Hope you enjoyed that movie. I'll be coming by to see you tonight.

"What the fuck?" I whispered, apparently not low enough as I caught Dalton's attention. He looked over to me and I quickly stuffed my phone between my legs, looking up to him and smiling.

"You alright?"

"Yeah. Just a surprise text, that's all."

Dalton turned back to his movie, but I couldn't focus. What little focus I had before the text was gone now. I knew who it was from, but I couldn't find the right words to respond to him.

"I'll be right back," I whispered to Dalton, grabbing my phone and hurrying out of the theater. I walked into the bathroom and stopped just inside, leaning back against the wall before pulling my phone out and sending a text back to him.

Me: How did you get my number?

Almost immediately, a response buzzed in.

Unknown: Don't worry about that. I have it, and I want to see you. Don't go anywhere else with that pencil dick either. I'll be coming by.

His earlier interaction with Castillo popped back into my head and frustrated me all over again.

Me: Don't you have a dinner date?

Unknown: NO!

I didn't know what to make of that response.

I tucked my phone back into my pocket, then grabbed a few paper towels, wetting them and dabbing the small bits of moisture from my face. Staring at myself in the mirror, I searched hard for my will power. I needed it desperately. I didn't need Cruz crashing back into my life when I was finally able to recognize that I had lost my focus and needed to get it back. I was ready to do what it was I came to Comm School to do-- to learn and move on.

I walked back into the theater without another thought on him or his text messages.

Instead of going straight home, Dalton and I walked over to the food court and had an ice cream cone, then stopped at the mini mart not far from the barracks to grab soda, chips, and candy before making our way back to our rooms. Walking to the stairs that led to the upper floor rooms, we passed by the duty room again.

"That was made from scratch, with love. My tia taught me how to make those carne enchiladas. There's more where that came from."

"Thanks, Leti," I heard Cruz answer. "I haven't had a home cooked meal in a long ass time." I inched a bit closer and saw that Leti was, in fact, Sgt. Castillo. She was dressed casually, her hair down and make-up on her face. She was already an attractive chick, but seeing her out of uniform, looking more done up that usual, struck me with a pang of jealousy, making me falter on my goal of forgetting all about him.

"There's more where that came from." The smile on her face was anything but innocent and Sgt. Cruz smiled back, making my stomach turn.

She was leaning over to him as she sat in the seat next to him, both of them laughing while their bodies rubbed up against one another. My hands were beginning to ache, so I cracked my knuckles, and Dalton made his way over to me, concern etched on his face.

"You need to talk to Sgt. Cruz?" Dalton asked, breaking me from my bitter thoughts.

"No," I quickly answered. "I just smelled that delicious food, and it lured me in." I spoke up at that part, stepping further into their view, making sure that my voice could be heard.

Castillo, or, Leti, as Sgt. Cruz so casually called her, looked up and saw me. Her menacing eyes seared into me, but I stood my ground. My inner fighter wasn't about to take her shit lightly, even though she was my superior. Cruz looked up and saw me standing there, looking like I was ready to pounce.

"Can I help you, Bennett?" Cruz asked, his voice harsh but his eyes inviting.

"No. I just smelled that food, and it pulled me in. Smells good, Sergeant. We don't have anything like that around here." My gaze was stuck on him, but I managed to sneak a peek over to Castillo who looked like she would charge at any second.

Dalton moved further into the door frame beside me, much to Cruz's dismay. I couldn't find a reason to stand there any longer, enticing and infuriating my body at the same time, so I turned to Dalton, nodding my head and signaling for us to make our way out.

"Have a good night, Sergeant. Enjoy that meal." There was an undercurrent of sarcasm in my voice that was well intended. As I looked back to Sgts. Castillo and Cruz, they both seemed to have caught on to it. Cruz looked as though I had just given him the green light to come and fuck me while Castillo looked ready to rip my eyeballs out.

I walked up the stairs with Dalton, internally smiling as we walked.

"What the hell was that?"

"What?"

"That bitch fest."

I laughed at the accuracy of his terminology.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Keep saying that. You know exactly what I'm talking about. If Castillo could have, she would've bitch slapped you, and I think you would have done the same."

"Well, I don't know. You know how male Marines treat you guys like shit? Well, she's kind of doing the same with me."

Dalton rolled his eyes but didn't comment any further. When we reached my room, he stopped just before the door, standing aside so I could take out my key and unlock it. He waved his hand for me to lead the way, following in behind me.

I walked into the room and threw my bag of junk food down onto my bed, signaling for Dalton to take a seat. It was late, and Angelica still wasn't home which made me happy. I tried to spend the least amount of time with her as possible.

We sat down, laughing about my lack of knowledge on almost everything that was popular in our childhood. Although Dalton was only nineteen years old, making him two years younger than me, he was the one person who I found it very easy to relate to.

From what he told me, he came from a very well to do family in Kenosha, Wisconsin and had a brother who was currently serving in the U.S. Army. His dad was retired Air Force, so it was a no brainer that he would serve his country in some branch of the armed forces. He chose the Marines because it was a branch that no one else in his family had served in and he wanted the challenge.

We spent the next half hour just getting to know one another a little better, spilling a few personal tidbits here and there. At one point, Dalton got emotional, wiping tears that fell from his strikingly pure azure eyes at the mention of some things in his past. I swallowed hard, unsure how we had gotten to this point and wanting to quickly remove myself from it. I had learned a long time ago to build a fortress around my emotions, not showing any signs of weakness because they could be preyed on. Apparently, Dalton didn't have that same mindset, and it somewhat shocked me that a guy of his stature would cry, but I didn't judge. Instead, I reached over and hugged him.

As we pulled away, Dalton's face flushed red, a sure fire sign of embarrassment, and he wiped his last stray tear, smiling at me and warming my heart.

"It's twenty-two hundred, Marines. Time to get back to your own rooms," a young Private on fire watch called out as he stood out in the hallway looking into my room. I looked up, the face unrecognizable to me.

"I'll come by tomorrow. Run first thing in the morning," Dalton said, standing up and then hugging me.

The Private stood in his spot until Dalton was out of the room and walking down the hallway. I shut my door, then turned to make my way to my dresser, grabbing a t-shirt and shorts to change into for bed. I still wasn't sure where Angelica was, and honestly, I didn't really care. It was nice to not have to deal with her bullshit for a night.

Just as I was washing my face, my cell phone went off on my desk, prompting me to hurry over to it. When I looked down at it, I was a bit shocked by what was on the screen.

Unknown: 2200 is the rule for weekends, but much too late for YOU to have unworthy dicks in your room.  Good night!

My mind was racing to try and come up with a witty comeback but failed to do so. I couldn't think of anything that would show him that he wasn't affecting me, so I typed the first thing that came to mind.

Me: It's too late for any dicks, so I guess I will also bid YOU good night.

A quick response chimed on my phone.

Unknown: Don't make me show you how BIG of a DICK I can be. It's never too late for me. You'd be wise to pay attention to that.

A tight squeeze of my thighs was needed as a charge of sensation burst in between my legs, sending an ache accompanied by the thrill of an intense need pummeling down and into me. A light smiled caressed my lips as I found myself being sucked in by his dirty banter, which I wanted, and didn't want, all at the same time. I didn't need to go any further, even though I wanted to. Instead, I denied what my mind and body craved, and sent a text to quiet him down.

Sent: Good night, Sgt. Cruz.

After sending the text, I shut my phone off. I knew how weak I could be when he was around, and since I had earlier reconciled with myself that I would no longer be playing into his hands or giving in to his advances, I cut it off, then fell asleep watching pointless TV.

Chapter 9

Alex

Dammit. I was losing my touch. Castillo bringing me dinner, while satisfying, was definitely not what I needed tonight. Fuck if Bennett didn't see me, sitting there, enjoying what could be perceived as a date-- only it wasn't a date. It wasn't anywhere close to a date. I was simply stuck on duty, and Castillo showed up with food; home cooked food at that.

Who could pass that shit up?

What I didn't plan on was her sticking around, especially not long enough for Bennett to walk by and see us, and with that fucking Dalton kid at that. That look on his face made me see red, like a bull ready to take out a matador, but I’d composed myself. I wasn't about to show my ass in front of the private that I was stuck on duty with.

Bennett's little comments, coming from that sweet, yet smart ass mouth of hers, were nothing but a stimulant to my already hardened dick. The way she went toe to toe with Castillo, even though she's a junior Marine, made her even more appealing to me. The intensity in her eyes as she glared back at her, that quick wit coming off those innocent lips, excited every inch of me. How a girl with the delicacy of a flower could have the demeanor of a pit bull was a total mind fuck to me, one that was welcomed every day of the week. She stood there, looking like she wanted to know about the food, when deep inside I knew she wanted to know about me and the female sitting next to me. And Castillo knew it too. Laughter would have come pouring out of me if I hadn't found the poise to keep it locked down. The situation was comical, even if I was the only one to find the humor in it.

What I didn't find comical was finding out that Dalton was in Bennett's room up until 10pm-- alone. Ruiz had already been granted clearance to be out for the night, and even though I didn’t want to give it to her, I needed to. It was my way of getting to Bennett without the constant distraction. Good thing the firewatch for the night asked no questions and just did as told. I’d had a feeling Dalton might be there, but deep inside I’d wanted to be wrong. Fire ignited in my gut when I was radioed and told that the fucker was, in fact, in there and had to be told to leave. If I could have punched through walls, I would have.

2:24am, and the private on duty with me was asleep. It was time for him to wake the fuck up while I made my rounds.

"Hey, Private Rinaldi, wake up. I'm going on my rounds," I told him, standing over him with my radio in hand. He awoke in a hurry, blinking furiously as he tried to focus on my face with the bright lights of the barracks room shining down on him. "If you need me--radio. Under no circumstances are you to go to sleep or abandon your post while I'm out, you understand that?"

"Yes, Sergeant," he answered in a hurry.

I walked briskly out the door, turning to my right and circling the building before making my way up the stairs. Strolling the outside, I was thankful to find no late night/early morning barracks shenanigans taking place. Even if everyone wasn't asleep, the barracks were quiet which was always a welcomed sound.

As I turned the last corner of the walkway, I found myself only inches away from Bennett's room. My steps slowed, my hands began to sweat, and my stomach formed into a contortion of thick, tightly twisted knots, waiting for someone to come and end my fucking misery. Stretching my arms didn't help a damn thing, it actually made it worse. As I outstretched my arms, the tight material of my shirt clung to my biceps, the nervous perspiration helping to lock it down. I looked around, swallowed hard, then looked around again. My mind kept telling me to retreat, but the powerful feeling coming from the headstrong muscle in between my legs kept telling me to stop being a pussy and walk in there. It was time to finally get what it was that I had been denied for far too long. I wanted to listen to my cock and my cock only, but my mind was a powerful piece of shit, killing the thoughts of walking into that room and having my way with Bennett.

What if she didn't want it? There would be a sexual harassment charge waiting for me, ending my fucking career as I knew it and the end of me as a free man. It would mean the end of my life because without the Corps, I was nothing. As my mind began to power through the strangle hold that my cock had on me, I walked away from her room, rubbing my face at the disappointment that I had with myself for allowing my dick to lead the way. Nothing good comes when your cock does all of the thinking. Nothing.

I walked away, feeling defeated and triumphant, and sure as shit confused. Just as I was about to turn the corner, another thought popped into my head, forcing me to stop and turn around. If she didn't want me, then why would she put herself out there for me? The mixed signals were driving me bat-shit crazy, and I was going to burst out of my pants if I didn't figure this shit out soon.

I stood before her room, sweat coating my hands and now my face as I pulled out my key ring with the keys to all of the barracks rooms in the building. I fumbled with them, finding it hard to keep my grip as I moved key after key, trying desperately to find the one to her room and get inside before anyone could see me.

What was I going to do once I was inside? I wasn't sure on that, but at that moment all I wanted to do was get in there and satisfy the deep seated hunger and need that I had for her. Everything below my waist wanted to have her, to touch her, to feel her, to own her. I wasn't about to let this shit fester any longer. So without allowing my mind to give it another thought and somehow make me back out, I grabbed the key to her room, stuck it into the keyhole and turned. Slowly pushing the door open, I found myself in the doorway while she slept peacefully in her bed, the moonlight streaming into the room, hitting her and putting her angelic form on full display.

That sweet vanilla smell that always seemed to wrap me up and knock me senseless charged me at full force as I stepped further in, quietly closing the door behind me. Ruiz wasn't supposed to be back, but just in case, I did a quick sweep of the room to make sure my plans wouldn't be spoiled. She was out as planned, putting a sinister grin on my face. Thoughts of finally getting my hands all over Bennett's picture perfect body did that to me. As I strode over to her bed, I began wondering what the fuck my next move should be.

I'd wake her, only after stripping all of my own clothes off, and take her without her even being able to speak a word.

The second that thought entered my head, my cock jumped, but I abandoned it, knowing good and damn well that it was a horrible idea.

I couldn't just stand there like a perverted stalker; I had to think of something.

She tossed and turned a hell of a lot in her sleep. The tiny tank top and matching shorts that she wore, her gorgeous sun-kissed legs sprawled out all over the bed, had me staring at her for far too long. My eyes were enjoying the show, but my hands were beginning to itch now, and my cock, which was thrumming with need, wanted me to do something to end the agony piling up inside. Before I could give it another thought, I sat down on the edge of her bed, leaned over, and began trailing kisses from one shoulder over to the next. She squirmed a bit but didn't stop me.

As my lips made their way to her other shoulder and then back to the center, just below her neck, my hands trailed over her shoulders, pulling down the straps of the tank top that was so gracefully hindering my ability of getting to one of her most beautiful and luscious assets. She mumbled something that I couldn't make out, making me freeze for a second, but then continued to lie there, so I took it as my invitation to go even further.

As I worked the tank top down, her beautifully sculpted back was presented to me, and I wasted no time kissing every inch of her that I could get my lips on. The moonlight shining into the room highlighted small traces of her back, almost pointing out the areas that needed my attention most. I grabbed her beautiful blonde hair, the feel of it soothing something deep inside of me. Pushing it aside, I placed harder kisses on her back and up her neck while snaking my hands around and grabbing hold of her tit. The feel of it in my hands again after wanting it for so long caused me to lose my breath, sending my heart into an erratic beat that couldn't be slowed. I exhaled loudly, causing her to stir and turn over.

She gazed up at me.

"Shh…" I said, staring down into those beautiful green eyes that seemed to melt me every time they peered at me.

She looked around the room, a sense of panic going off in her eyes as I worked to calm her down.

"Ruiz is gone. No need to worry about her," I whispered, holding her face in one of my hands. Her baby soft skin was so incredibly addicting that I found my hand running up and down her cheek, loving the feel of it.

"What are you doing? We could get in so much trouble."

"I'm not worried about that right now," I quickly answered as I continued to remove her tank top from her body. Her tits sensually revealed from the confines of the fabric, begging me to place my mouth around them. Since I was such a gentleman, I had no desire to deny her of anything she wanted from me at the moment.

My mouth was on one tit while my hand squeezed and massaged the other. The way it filled every inch of my mouth, the silkiness of her skin, the firmness of her tit, sent my mind over the edge with excitement as I finally got to taste something that had been haunting me since I first laid eyes on it. Running my tongue around the outer edge of her nipple, her panting picked up as her hands gripped onto my back, tugging and pulling with each suckle that I gave. The more she tugged, the more vigorous I allowed my tongue to sweep over her. I didn't give two shits that I was still in uniform and that she was probably ruining it at this moment. All I cared about was ending this craving that I had for her and making sure that she enjoyed every fucking second of it.

I quickly swapped tits, moving to the other and giving it the attention from my mouth that its counterpart had just experienced. My hand grabbed the other, holding tightly as I licked her up like a lollipop. Her pants turned to low moans as her hands moved to my head, trying desperately to grab my hair. The sounds of her pleasure made me want to give her so much more— to challenge her, to challenge me, to see how far I could take us. I scraped my teeth over her, her nipple standing at attention every time I did so.

Aggression took over as I wanted to watch her buckle, to come apart beneath me. My hand picked up in intensity with the forceful sucking, my short nails gently scraping over her, feeling the goose bumps that had surfaced.

"You can't--"

"Can't what?" I cut her off, not wanting her to stop me before I even had the chance to do what I really wanted to do to her. "Don't stop what we both want, Blondie. I can't take anymore stares and lip sucks. I need to get inside of you, like fucking yesterday."

Her eyes narrowed, filling with exorbitant amounts of lust while a faint smile spread across her face.

"Blondie?" she asked, laughing slightly. "That's the second time you've called me that.”

"Yes, Blondie."

Before she could fix her lips to say anything else, I brought her mouth to mine, kissing her gently before she gave me an opening, allowing me to take it-- all of it. My tongue worked itself into her mouth, exploring every inch of her. I used one hand to pull her shorts down, and much to my pleasure I found that she wasn't wearing panties, leaving nothing inhibiting me from getting to what I needed so badly.

Our tongues worked over and around one another. She pulled back every so often, using her teeth to trap my bottom lip. I let her do it a few times before I took over and did it to her, biting on her lip while running my hands all through her silky, soft hair.

I continued kissing and licking her neck as my hands ravaged her hair, tugging as I sucked on what appeared to be her weak spot. She turned her head, giving me further access while soft moans escaped her.

"Shhh," I chided her, placing my fingers over her mouth. "Keep your voice down, or neither of us will be getting anything."

She didn’t respond, but her body did it for her. I lay between her legs as I took her neck, her cheek, her lips...

I went back to her tits, those beautiful, ample tits that seemed to constantly beg me to take them and have my way with them. She arched her back and brought her knees together as she tried in vain to stifle the moan coming out of her mouth. I knew it. I had her. I just needed to get her ready a bit more before I tore into her and fucked her to pieces. Her soft, gentle breaths hit my ears with every moan and exhale that she released, teasing my cock to the point that I was beginning to worry that she had the upper hand and would end up fucking the life out of me.

I used my knees to break her legs free and guided my dick up to the entrance of her pussy. She lifted her hips, inviting me to make my way inside, and I knew that I still had her.

I had no intention of giving in to what she was so obviously ready for.

My kisses trailed down her torso, that impressively solid part of her body that matched perfectly with the perkiness of her tits. I lingered around her navel, dipping my tongue inside and making her buck a bit as she tried to hold her legs closed again.

"Don't try that shit," I whispered, smiling at her. The longing in her eyes had my heart racing, sweat building, and my dick twitching.

I continued working in and around her navel, my sweat coated hands holding firm to her hips as she swiveled them, much like she did that night on the dance floor at Coyotes. My lips swept down to just above her pussy, kissing the triangular pattern leading to it. After a few kisses, I stopped, looking up at her and finding irritation in her eyes as she tried to force me back to her spot, but I held out.

"I run this shit, you understand that?"

She reluctantly nodded her head, still gasping and unable to speak. A slight laugh escaped me as I watched her lying there, lifting her hips, trying desperately for me to get my lips back in contact with her body.

"When you calm down, I'll go back."

"If I calm down, I may not want you to go back," she responded, shocking and exciting me at the same time. These were the first words she had been able to speak in quite some time, and the fact that she was challenging made me want to command her to give me every piece of her body.

But I didn't.

I just laid there, silently calling her bluff.

She lasted longer than I thought she would, but in the end she pulled my head back down to her sweet spot. I smiled, feeling like I had won a small victory in that moment. She was challenging, but she was no fucking match for me and I was ready to prove it to her.

I placed my nose at the entrance of her very succulent and already moist pussy, inhaling the sweet aroma of it as my mouth began to salivate at the very thought of getting a taste. Her hips moved up and down again and as I placed the tip of my tongue at her entrance.

My eyes caught a glimpse of a very intricate tattoo on her right hip. With only a hint of moonlight casting down onto it, I couldn’t make out exactly what the tattoo was, but I made a mental note to study it along with every inch of her body in greater detail later. At the moment, I just wanted to finally taste this girl who had been running circles in my mind over the course of the past week.

I removed one of my hands from her hip and traced my fingers down her thigh and over to her pussy. The lips seemed to be swelling with excitement and anticipation as I used my thumb and index finger to peel them back, giving my tongue the necessary space needed to dive in and explore the core of this mind blowing girl.

I backed her, forcing her legs up into the air while she used her elbows to steady her weight. I sat up on my knees, wrapped my arms around her thighs and grabbed hold of her, running my tongue from the middle of her thigh clear up to the top, stopping just before reaching her entrance. She was desperate for my tongue to get inside of her, so I moved over to her other thigh and did the same thing, only this time when I reached her entrance, I slowly sank my tongue in, causing her to gyrate her hips while moaning loud enough to wake up her neighbors next door.

"Don't make me have to quiet you down," I lightly threatened, stopping just long enough to sneak a peek at her—her bottom lip was tucked into her mouth, held firmly by the stiff bite of her teeth, and her eyes were tightly shut as she tried to control her moans, but failing miserably.

I snuck one finger and then another into her, feeling the clasping of her very tight walls lock onto them from the second they entered. I worked those two fingers inside of her, her hips rocking back and forth as slight whimpers now left her soft, plentiful mouth. With every sound she made, I felt my dick grow harder and harder, growing impatient with the need for an intense release.

My tongue was back inside of her. I ran it over her clit, those slight whimpers turning into pleas and cries for me to "shove my cock inside," as she called out. Her need egged me on as I removed my tongue and began exploring her tiny asshole, then back up to the entrance of her pussy and swirling my tongue around and moving it in and out as my fingers firmly massaged the lips that were swelling more and more with every touch. The moisture from inside of her grew more plentiful, and soon tiny white droplets were coating my tongue, pressing me to bring her orgasm full circle. I picked up the pace of my tongue, her hips doing the same thing. Her tits moved up and down, side to side, slapping against one another as I lapped and sucked her until those droplets turned into a gush of silky whiteness on my tongue, on my lips and down my chin. She tasted as sweet as she smelled, satisfying and teasing at the same time.

Shrieks left her as I fought with whether to make her shut the fuck up or scream louder. I knew good and damn well that having anyone catch us like this would be the end of us, but I couldn't help myself. I had found my Achilles heel, and it didn't seem like anything was going to stop me from having every bit of her.

Licking and savoring the release of her from my lips, I gently moved away from her. She fought hard to slow her breathing, staring at me with nothing but, "fuck me," in her eyes. She didn't need to say a damn word.

I removed my shirt with haste and tossed it on the end of her bed as she sat up and helped to pull my under shirt over my head. She sat back, softly biting her lip as her eyes raked me over. She reached up and placed her satiny hands on my chest, running her fingers over my most prized tattoo-- the picture of the rifle turned upside down standing between a pair of combat boots with a helmet and dog tags hanging from the gun. The names of my six brothers in arms who had died during my third combat tour in Iraq surrounded the gun, and her soft hands running all over it did something crazy to my mind as well as my body. She inched closer, an aroused and longing gaze filling her eyes as she kissed my abs, then slowly brought her tongue out, using the tip to lick the boundaries of each bulge. Her licks went lower and lower until she was at my pants line. She looked up to me, the innocence on her face making me smile ever so gently.

"You want it, you're gonna have to go get it," I told her, my voice spilling out in a rough rumble.

She wasted no time, almost as if she were asking permission to go after what I had deemed hers a while ago. She worked furiously to remove my belt, unsnapping my pants, pulling my boxer briefs down with them. My cock was finally free, the moonlight and fresh air hitting it, breaking it from the restrictions that had tortured it for far too long. She looked up to me and swallowed, exciting me with the idea that she would do just that. The pure and righteous look in her eyes made me shutter with excitement because I knew at any moment, she was about to suck the life out of my cock.

Her tiny, soft hand grabbed hold of it, stroking gently at first while I ran my fingers over her head. The harder she grasped and stroked, the harder I gripped onto her hair. She stroked me so hard that I thought I would come with just the movement of her hand alone, depriving me of the chance to have her perfectly beautiful little mouth around it, sucking and tugging until I came apart. I grabbed even harder onto her hair, guiding her head to my cock with firm tenacity. I was met with no hesitation as she opened her mouth and gracefully took me inside. I could have come with the warmth of her mouth alone. As she licked my cock from the base clear up to the tip, I worked hard to hold back and keep myself from prematurely spilling out all over her. I wanted more of what she had to offer, and by the overzealous movements coming from her, I knew she had so much more that she wanted to give me.

My hips began moving back and forth, pounding my cock in and out of her mouth. My hands held their strong hold on her hair, guiding her mouth where it needed to be. I pushed my cock deeper and deeper, gauging just how far I could get before she gagged on me and made me stop. To my delight and surprise, I got all the way to the back of her throat, and she took that shit like a champ. I had found a winner, and there was no way I was going to give her up easily. She took every bit of me without pulling away, gagging, or any other shit that so many girls I had come across had often done.

I pulled back a bit, and she sucked me in, tightening her lips around me and damn near pulling the orgasm out of me. I wasn't ready to come just yet, so I held off, making sure that I kept control and showed her that even though she had the mouth of a fucking Hoover, I wasn't going to let her own me-- not yet anyway.

Her sucks picked up, making me yank her head back and forth as my hips moved to the same rhythm. Moans began filtering out of me as I tried desperately to keep them to a minimum, but the task seemed like such an astronomical feat. She was sucking me off in a way that I had only imagined. I wasn't truly ready for it. I felt the tingle in my cock and knew that if I let her go a second longer, I was going to explode in her mouth, but it wasn't I wanted it to happen. She locked on even tighter, making me finally pull her head back as I stood there, breathing hard as fuck as she looked up at me.

"I'm not fucking coming like that right now. My first come with you is going to be inside of you, claiming you, where I can mark my spot, keeping all other dicks away."

The words came out through labored pants, and she understood, rising to her feet and sitting down on her bed, waiting for me to make the next move. I reached down into my pants and pulled out a condom, thrusting it into my mouth and tearing into the wrapper with my teeth like a rabid dog, then quickly rolling it onto my aching cock.

"I want you, Sergeant Cruz," she said in a lustful, breathy tone. The fact that she didn't even know my first name hadn't dawned on me.

"Alex," I quickly responded. "Call me Alex."

Before she could say another word I was over her, my pleading cock at her entrance, and my face between her perky tits. I pulled away for a split second and looked into her memorizing green eyes.

"I'm gonna fuck you until I get tired, and I won't stop--not a second sooner."

"Fuck me," she whispered, turning her head to the side and giving me her pretty little neck once again. I took it, licking and kissing just the way I had done earlier while positioning myself in the ready position to enter her tight little pussy.

Just as I was about to dive in, my radio went off.

"Sgt. Cruz, this is Private Rinaldi, you copy."

"FUCK!" I yelled in anger and utter frustration. No way was this shit happening just as I was finally going to get a taste of her with the one part of my body that needed her most.

Disappointment washed over her in an instant, further breaking me.

"I'm sorry. I have to get this shit," I told her, moving off the bed and leaning down to pick up the radio. "Sgt, Cruz. What is it?" I asked, my tone filled with anger.

"Fight on second deck, Sgt."

"I'm on my way."

I stared at my stubborn cock that showed no signs of breaking the need to be milked dry. Fuck. How was I supposed to get back to my post with this shit sticking out like it hadn't been given attention in years? Trying desperately to remove all thoughts of smashing someone's fucking teeth in when I finally got to this fight, I worked fast, re-dressing myself and trying to look as suitable as possible before making my way back out of her room.

"This isn't finished," I said as I tucked my shirt back into my pants and fastened my belt. "I'm coming for you in the morning."

"I can't. I have plans with Dalton in the morning."

Something about his name coming from her mouth, that very mouth that had just been on my cock, put a bad taste inside of me.

"Cancel them," I barked.

"I can't. He--"

"I'm off duty at zero seven, depending on how much shit I have to deal with right now. Figure a way out of your plans." I leaned down and kissed her, trying to touch and taste her for as long as I could. Our scents intermingled as we kissed, the taste of her on my lips and the taste of me on hers, supplying one another with the flavor of ourselves. She was fucking mine, I could taste it when I kissed her.

I poked my head out of the room, making sure no one was lurking about before walking out, striding angrily towards the scene of the fight that had that crazy fucking Allen kid sitting outside with another guy who I hadn't seen before.

"Who the fuck do you belong to?" I asked the unknown kid, feeling the frustration, anger, and build-up from the cock block.

"Data, Sgt."

I turned to Rinaldi who stood there with the MPs and a notebook in his hands. Grabbing onto his arm, I pulled him away from the scene.

"Why the fuck are there MPs here before I was notified?" I questioned, staring him down with the urge to beat his ass right there in front of everyone. He swallowed, fear going off in his eyes as he tried to step away from me.

"I tried calling for you, Sgt. I tried a few times. I couldn’t get you, and I didn't know exactly where you had gone on your rounds."

He swallowed again, his eyes still laced with fear as I calmed the fuck down. He had been left on his own, this fucking Private who maybe had four months in the Marine Corps. I had left him to deal with this shitty ass situation.

I patted him on the back.

"Thank you, Private," I said before moving over to the MPs to find out exactly what they knew so that it could be logged into the duty log book. After speaking with them for the next twenty minutes, the guys were led back to their rooms with restrictions placed on them, and a note that they would be dealt with by their commands in the morning.

"Private Rinaldi, go ahead and make notes in the log book. I'm running to the john."

He nodded his head, then sat down and got to work. I walked fiercely, desperately trying to combat the painful throb from my cock that had made its way up to my head. I needed a fucking release, and as I thought back to my opportunity to let loose with Cassie's mouth all over me, frustration seeped in even further. I made my way into the bathroom, slamming my hand on the door of the stall as I walked in and locked the door behind me. I thrust my pants down to my ankles and stood there, grabbing my cock with tremendous amounts of fury and aggression. I needed a release, but I was also pissed that I had left my post for pussy and that pussy was running around with another guy who irked the living fuck out of me. All of those thoughts at once had me jacking off hard and mad. Cassie was mine, and I’d be damned if that Dalton prick got any more of her time when I needed it so desperately.

What was happening to me? Abandoning a post in combat could lead to deaths, and we practice like we play, making sure that our duty time is treated like a combat situation. Cassie was weakening me, and the power of her pussy was overcoming my resolve. I loved it and hated it all at the same time. As I looked down at my now bulging cock being worked furiously by my angry hand, I beat the side of the stall with my fist until I came with loud groans through clenched teeth. Finally… finally feeling some sense of relief but still needing it to happen inside the walls of a very enticing, skillful, blonde beauty that had me wrapped around her finger.

I was fucked.

Chapter 10

Cassie

I woke up feeling like I had starred in my very own erotic dream, tasting and touching every inch of Sgt. Cruz-- Alex. The mere mention of his first name quickly reminded me that what I had experienced was no dream but, in fact, a healthy dose of pleasurable reality. I stood, making my way over to the bathroom when I noticed that Angelica still wasn't in her bed. Wherever she was, her absence was never more welcomed.

My legs felt like jello as I walked, so I slowed my steps to keep myself from falling over. Flashes of his tongue, his hands, those mesmerizing hazel eyes, and his incredibly demanding voice filtered through my mind as I finally made my way into the bathroom. His scent still lingered on me, that husky, manly, possessing scent that captivated me from the second I took a whiff of it. He had me, and I think by the smug smiles he kept throwing my way, he knew it.

My breasts ached, but with an ache that I had so desperately longed for. It wasn't long ago that I was hoping he would take me in and manhandle me, and it seems those wishes and hopes had become my reality.

Looking at my breasts in the mirror, I noticed that my normally pink nipples were a light shade of red with what looked like slight hints of teeth marks over them. He was an animal, and lucky for me, I hadn't been completely devoured just yet, so there was much more to come my way.

The ache between my legs brought on by Alex's swift exit didn't leave, even after I’d tried releasing the pent up aggression myself. My fingers were no substitute for his tongue, his large, thick, skillful fingers, or even the tip of his thunderous cock that was locked and loaded, ready to unleash tremendous amounts of fury on me.

He had me wrapped around his finger, his cock, his tongue...

And I knew...

I just knew that it would be a long fall if I ever thought about getting off.

Just as I was pulling a shirt over my head, a loud couple of knocks sounded on the door. I pulled it open, looking at a fresh faced Dalton at 0545.

"Ready to go kill this run?" he asked, much too cheerful for a Saturday morning.

I wiped my tired eyes, which were near bloodshot since I hadn't gotten more than a few hours of intermittent sleep all night. I was in no mood to go on some heart pounding, chest heaving, throat drying run with Dalton, and as I thought about how much I didn't want to go, Alex's orders to not spend time with him today came roaring back, fueling my rebellious side while encouraging me to do the exact opposite. If he was going to have anything with me, he needed to know that I wasn't a female who would cower at the whims of a man. I wanted to show him that he couldn't order me around-- except, of course, at work-- and I did need to run and improve my time if I wanted to boost my PFT score.

"As ready as I can be early on a Saturday morning," I dryly replied, yawning as I said it because I was in desperate need of some sleep.

"As soon as we get going, you'll be good as new," Dalton said, snapping a reflective belt around my waist. He pulled me out of the room and waited as I turned and locked the door, making sure that I wouldn't find myself in any sort of trouble with any of the instructors possibly roaming around the barracks.

"Where's Ruiz?" he softly asked.

I shrugged my shoulders. "Beats the hell out of me. If any of the instructors find out she stayed out all night long, she'll be in some serious trouble."

"Guess she doesn't care too much. Oh well, let's go."

We walked down the steps and past the duty room. It couldn't be avoided thanks to its location, purposely set aside to see every single person coming and going from the building. I glanced in, catching Alex's eye as I walked by. I didn't want to cause another scene, so I kept walking, not giving him the chance to say anything, or look at Dalton in any sort of way that could be threatening or intimidating since he had already made it clear that he didn't particularly care for my friend.

We took off towards the far back end of base, heading out to a trail that led to a rock filled mountain just behind the training area. As early as it was in the morning, the heat was already searing us as we ran. Moisture coated my chest as well as my back, reminding me of the sweat filled night that I’d had with Alex, his strong, dexterous hands all over me. When we made it up to the tallest peak of the mountain, Dalton stopped and allowed me to catch my breath. I tried hard not to lean over, the flame of the roasting morning sun penetrating my body, scalding my lungs and leaving me gasping for air.

"You okay?" Dalton asked, looking concerned as he made his way over to me.

"I'm fine," I replied. "I just hate long distance running, that’s all."

He smiled his heart-warming smile. "I know. That's why I plan on making you do more of it. You need to incorporate more strenuous activity into your workout plan. It'll help you build up endurance for your run."

If only he knew just what type of strenuous activity I had engaged in only a few hours prior. It seemed like Alex had all sorts of plans to get my endurance up, and if I were being honest with myself, I wanted that so much more than running up mountains and hills.

"What do you say we head back down, grab a shower, and get some breakfast?" I asked, wanting to end the torture and get out of the sweltering heat.

"Sounds like a plan to me."

We took off down the mountain which was much easier than the trek we made going up. On the way down, I had time to ponder exactly what it was that Alex and I found ourselves engaging in. Was this just a one-time thing? Would he be done with me as soon as he got the opportunity to fuck me? I didn't need to be used and abused again; I was done with that shit. But even with those thoughts, my body was telling me something totally different. My body wanted to have Alex any and every way that it could. He was the drug to satisfy my craving, my need, my intense want.

But what about my career?

I stepped out on a limb, throwing myself into one of the most challenging arenas I could think of to see what I was made of. I was proud of what I had accomplished thus far, but I knew that all of my hard work and dreams could be gone in the blink of an eye.

So why was I unable to drop him and move on? With all of the consequences for our actions dangling over our heads every step of the way, neither of us was willing to back off and save our careers; neither of us was willing to wait. The need to feel each other was too strong, and it became all too consuming with each passing second of every day that we had to deny ourselves of one another.

"Come on, Bennett, you've got this," Dalton called out from the bottom of the rocky mountain.

I pushed aside the consuming thoughts of Alex and pushed through, finally making it to the bottom to Dalton who had cheered me on every step of the way. I stood with my arms over my head, working feverishly to catch my breath as I paced the area and tried to keep from taking any direct sunlight from the blazing sun.

"You did well. You took that mountain in forty-eight minutes, not bad."

"Thanks, but I feel horrendous."

"Well, it's a step in the right direction," he said, smiling at me after patting me on the shoulder. "Now let's go and get cleaned up. You smell like a man."

My breath caught as I grew nervous with what he was possibly alluding to. Alex's scent lingered on me after our romp in the wee hours of the morning. Stupid of me to not shower and wash it away, but I was left in a flaccid state, lying in my bed and finger fucking myself to a heightened level of frustration, trying in vain to reach even the lowest of that euphoric level Alex had worked me into. I didn't get remotely close. Once I finally did fall asleep, it was time to get up and Dalton was at my door. I had no time to wash him away from me, and I honestly, wholeheartedly, didn't want to.

"What do you mean I smell like a man?" I asked, coming across overly defensive.

Dalton stopped walking and turned around to face me.

"It was a joke, tiger. Geez." Inquisition shelled his face as he stood there, obviously taken by surprise at the fierceness of my tone. "We're both sweating buckets out here. I didn't think we smelled like women, all delicate and frilly."

I relaxed at his response. I would need to get a grip on myself if I didn't want to unwillingly give myself away. Alex, his eyes, his words, his body...

He was pushing me over a cliff that I was all too willing to jump off of, and that scared me more than being caught or found out by anyone at the moment.

"I'm sorry. It's just--"

""No worries. Let's get back and get this day started, shall we?"

We took off, headed back to the barracks.

Passing the duty room, I glanced in again, only this time, there was another sergeant currently sitting in the duty chair-- Alex was gone. Relief washed over me as we passed. His penetrating eyes were thankfully nowhere to be found as Dalton and I made our way up the stairs. When we reached the top, Dalton made sure to walk me to my room before turning and heading for his.

"Catch you in about a half hour?" he asked, running his fingers over his dirty blonde hair.

"Yeah. Do you want to meet at the chow hall?"

"I can meet you right here if that's okay?"

"Fine with me."

He smiled and walked off. I turned to go into my room when I caught sight of Alex on the bottom floor, leaning on what I presumed to be his truck.  The big, black Ram fit his personality to a tee-- rough and rugged. A slight smile caressed my lips, but quickly faded away as I watched Castillo, or Leti as he had called her the night before, step out of a black Jeep with more food in her hands. They exchanged words before he took it, placed it in his truck, then turned around and spoke to her again. I wanted to run down there and let her know that she was stepping on dangerous territory, only I couldn't, not without severe consequences that could destroy me for the rest of my life. No, I had to stand around and continue to take her shit as she flaunted it in my face. And what the hell was his deal? I couldn't understand how he could be so possessive when it came to Dalton, yet he was so friendly with Castillo. The double standards weren't going to work with me.

I wanted to pull my eyes away from them, but I couldn't. It was like I was drawn to them, a true masochist in every since of the word as I stood up there, seething inside at the sight of them down below exchanging who knows what with one another.

Just when I was pulling away, I watched her hug him, lingering on him a bit too long for my liking. She ran her hand down his arm that was now free thanks to the muscle shirt he wore, and smiled at him as she made her way back and around to her Jeep. I laughed a little to myself, seeing Castillo for the desperate bitch that she was. There was no secret that she knew something was up between Alex and me, and I had a feeling that since she hadn't said anything up to this point, she wouldn't be saying anything at all. She wanted to play hardball, and somehow I found myself wanting to play right along with her. I watched Alex as he looked up and saw me standing there, then turned and jumped into his truck, the thunderous roar of the engine raging to life as he pulled out of the parking lot.

The shower was a refreshing escape from the morning, Alex, and Castillo. Both of them were beginning to get on my nerves. As much as I wanted Alex, I wasn't going to put up with any bullshit games of his. Either he was going to define what this was before us, or we just weren't going to have anything anymore. The fact that I couldn't do anything about Castillo was killing me softly, and I knew she was enjoying the agony as it festered inside of me.

I threw on a t-shirt and a pair of boy shorts underwear before strolling into the bathroom and blow drying my hair. I stared at myself in the mirror, not looking nearly as tired, but wondering how I'd gotten myself caught up in such a mess that I couldn't seem to work my way out of. If Castillo got fed up with Alex and his unwillingness to go any further with her, she could ruin me. I was setting myself up to have my life destroyed right in front of my eyes because I seemed to be in complete and utter lust with my instructor, who I would be leaving five weeks from now. I needed to talk myself into leaving him alone, but with every sight of him, every smell of his husky manliness, and every sound of his words, I found myself falling deeper and deeper into that hole with no way out and no ounce of panic at that realization within me.

A quick knock on the door had me scrambling for my shorts. Dalton was always punctual, leaving me in a frenzied mess to try and make myself presentable before opening the door and letting him in. I swung the door open, smiling my biggest, most charismatic smile. To my surprise, Dalton wasn't standing at my doorway.

It was Castillo, looking much too snide for such an early Saturday morning.

"May I come in, Pfc. Bennett?" She stepped into the room before I even had a chance to answer.

I turned to face her, closing the door slightly behind me.

"I'll make this quick because I see you're on your way out. I know there's something going on with you and Sgt. Cruz, or that you want something to go on. But let me remind you, the Corps has a strict order against fraternizing, and I like to see that all orders are followed. You catch my drift?"

My stomach ached at the sound of her words and the look of her soul-searing gaze. Her lips curved into an evil smile that sent chills down my spine with the tightening of my muscles.

"I don't think you know what you're talking about."

"Oh, I know. I'm watching you. I've already told you that. And if Alex's reaction to finding out you were acting like a walking mattress earlier in the week is any indication, I'd say something is definitely going on." The hairs on my arms were standing at attention, stiff enough to be cut clean off with one swipe of my finger.

"Now, Alex. He is a damn good Marine, one of the best I've known, and a very good friend of mine as well," her emphasis on the word very made me want to hurl, "so I would never get him caught up in this mess, but you--" she paused, looking me up and down, "--you, my dear, your baby career can be sent tumbling down the highest mountain if I open my mouth and let the higher ups know that you're trying to trap an instructor." She moved closer to me, circling while smiling in my face.

"Whatever it is you think you know, you couldn't be more wrong. And I'm pretty sure that instructors shouldn't be hooking up in the workplace, so don't think I won't run my pretty little mouth on you either."

My response surprised her, sending wrath and fury into her eyes, and replacing the earlier bitchiness that had been laid out before me.

"I'm giving you a fair fucking warning, Bennett. Watch your fucking step before I send your ass packing to whatever little piece of shit hometown you come from. I'm not one to be fucked with."

"You'd be wise to heed your own warning, Sgt. Castillo. Now please leave my room before I let the duty know that you came in here threatening me."

I held the door open for her and watched her walk out. My nerves were on high alert, frazzled and short circuiting, even though my demeanor didn't hint at it.

She was right.

If she decided to run her mouth, she could hurt me while protecting Alex, and what would he do? Would he fight for me, thus putting himself out on the line, or would he fall in line with her, saving his career while using me as cannon fodder? The thought was mind numbing, drilling home the reality that I was a nothing in the Corps and would be viewed as such should Castillo decide to run her mouth.

I stomped back into the bathroom, brushing my teeth and putting on a slight hint of mascara and chapstick. I grabbed my id card and forced it into my back pocket as I turned and swung the door open with all of my might to walk down to Dalton's room.

"Whoa! Where are you going?" Alex asked, catching me in his arms just as I was beginning to storm out the door. He caught me in total surprise, looking like he was just about to knock on the door.

"I'm off to the chow hall. I'm hungry, and not all of us have the luxury of home cooked fucking meals every day," I barked out, hanging on to his arm as he held me up under my chest while shutting the door behind him. It was an uncomfortable hold, and I wanted to get out of it, but he wouldn't let go, not until he had me near the bed and he was able to lie me down.

"Stop that shit, Blondie," he grumbled, his hazel eyes piercing into me from where he stood. "I didn't ask for this shit. In fact, I told her I didn't need her bringing me anything."

"Okay. So why are you here?"

"I got called back in and on my way out, I saw Castillo making her way down the stairs, so I knew I needed to see you. And because the rest of my fucking morning has been hell since I was interrupted just before finishing you off."

I sat up on the bed, still fuming mad at everything that seemed to be happening around us. And in that moment, I remembered that Dalton should have been there by now, but he wasn't. My mind drifted back to Alex and what he said about making shit happen. He could have done anything to keep him away from me this morning. Standing up, I paced the room, feeling the intensity of it closing in around us.

"Where is Dalton?"

"I'm not here to talk about him right now."

"I don't care. Where is he? He was supposed to be meeting me for breakfast, and he's not here. Where is he?"

He ran his hand over his freshly shaven face, blowing out a deep sigh as he did so.

"I've got him busy. You'll need to make new plans for breakfast this morning," he said, wryly twisting his lips into his characteristically smug grin, further angering me. He pulled me towards him, running his hands over my back and down to my ass before whispering in my ear.

"He's sniffing up the wrong tree. This one is already taken." He cocked his head to the side, the honey hue of his eyes growing darker by the second. "He'd be doing himself a favor by backing the fuck up."

The moist flesh of his delectable lips skimmed the bottom of my ear lobe, sending a flash of warmth through me.

"I want you, Cassie Bennett. I've wanted you since the night you rubbed that beautiful little ass all over me on that dance floor at Coyotes, and I'll be damned if you're going to tease me with that fucking prick to try and prove a point." Slow breaths left him, crashing down over me as he pulled away and burned his high intensity gaze into mine. "You've got me right where you want me, and I damn sure know I've got you, so stop with the games and tell that little dude to blow his load elsewhere."

Somehow those words made me excited.

And limp.

And angry!

He was so presumptuous, yet so right as well. I didn't need him seeing that he and his words, the feel of his lips, and the strong protectiveness of his arms had me hook, line, and sinker. No. As much as I wanted him, I wasn't going to fall at his feet as soon as he said something that enticed me.

"You couldn't be more wrong about Dalton, Alex," I said, finally letting out a laugh. I pulled out of his grip and moved a couple of steps away from him. "You should watch Leti," I bitterly responded, causing his eyes to narrow in snake like slits and his face to contort in anger.

He let out a haunting laugh that had me feeling on edge. "Don't take that tone or get too bold with me, Blondie. I have ways of shutting that shit down."

I shook my head. The arrogance in his tone was beginning to get under my skin. "Go fuck yourself, Alex," I called out, rolling my eyes at him.

He quickly detained me, moving with the fierceness of a ravenous animal and grabbing my waist, pulling me into him.

"I've tried fucking myself. It's not working. That's why I'm here." Anger was noticeably absent from his hazel eyes; seductive lust filling the void. "I. Need. To. Fuck. You." he rasped, our chests rising and falling in sweet succession. He placed soft kisses down my neck and over my collarbone as one of his hands worked its way through my hair, down my back, and over my ass. For a second, I gave into him and turned my head to give him more access, but I quickly remembered where we were and why this was still such a bad idea.

"Is that it?" I asked, working my way out of his arms. "You just want to fuck me and be done with me?"

He stepped closer, closing the gap between us while taking a tiny piece of my comfort zone with him, the darkness of his pointed eyes worrying me more than anything else at the moment.

"Well?" I asked.

He moved even closer, lecherous thoughts flashing through his eyes. I tried not to match his gaze, hoping to show him that he didn’t intimidate or entice me in my moment of anger. That sly grin crept back onto his face, further confusing and frustrating me when it came to him.

"Is that what you think? That I just want to fuck you and move on? Do you even realize what I stand to lose if anyone was to find out what we've got going on here? Even though I haven't had the pleasure of fucking you 'til you can't speak anymore?" His eyebrows shot up, almost as if he were waiting on a response. "I'm selected to pick up Staff Sergeant in a couple of months. That shit would be gone faster than I can blink. I'd probably be busted down in rank, restricted to the barracks, lose pay, and possibly face brig time all over frivolous fucking with some random student of mine." The words came out with a hiss, his teeth clenched as the veins bulged in his neck. "Now does this sound like the need to fuck and run to you?"

My mind couldn't quite wrap around what he was telling me. I knew the consequences would be steep, but the fact the he was due for a promotion and would so callously risk it to be with me, had me confused in ways that I couldn't quite understand.

"You have so much going for you. Why would you risk it to be with me?"

He looked me in the eye before answering.

"I don't know," he said, before pulling me back into his solid chest. "You're like a piece of forbidden fucking fruit, and somehow I just can't seem to stay from you."

My willpower was beginning to break down. I wanted to turn around and give myself to him, let him have me right where we stood so that the ache no longer burned inside of either or us.

"Now grab your things so I can replace your breakfast plans."

He backed away from me and sat down on the bed, his eyes stabbing into me with more intensity than the morning sun that had all but seared me out on that mountain.

"We can't go out on a breakfast date. Are you nuts?"

"Possibly. But like I already told you, I make shit happen. You understand that?" He stood and walked to the window, peeking out as I grabbed my wallet and purse from my night stand. "Meet me down at my truck in five. I'm in the back by the dumpsters."

He planted a wet, passion filled kiss on my lips, wrapping my hair in his hand, prompting me to grab for his, but I came up empty since his hair was much too short. He grabbed my ass, squeezing and tugging with each swirl and twirl of our tongues, and moaned out his pleasure as I felt the hardness of his cock poking into me.

"We better hurry up and get out of here," I breathed, trying to speak and catch my breath at the same time.

He pulled away, but not before planting two smaller kisses on my lips.

"Hurry up. I can't wait to get you out of here." And before I could say another word, the door flung open, sending Alex jumping back and waiting with me in blood curdling anticipation to see who was standing on the other side.

Chapter 11

Alex

My eyes shot open as I jumped back, feeling a burst of wind with the forceful opening of the door. I stood rigid as steel, eagerly anticipating the figure that would be stepping through the doorway and blowing the roof off of us. My heart was beating erratically, pounding on the walls of my chest, begging to be set free.  Whoever was about to set foot through that door was coming with nothing but a promise of bad news because the only two people who needed to know about Bennett and me were Bennett and me, and we were both standing right there in that room.

Stealing a quick glance at her, I watched her normally sun-kissed skin morph into a lobster shade of red, her innocently alluring green eyes sprout wide as a lotus flower while she swallowed incessantly. If I could have, I would have taken her and held her in my arms to shield her from whoever was coming, but half of my brain was still functioning by that point and I knew better than to be caught with any part of my body touching hers. It would be more ammunition to the already raging fire.

A gym bag was thrust into the room and then there she was, Pfc. Ruiz, strolling in, her eyes bulging at the site of me. Her lips instantly formed into a tight pout like she was plotting something that very instant. My blood began to boil. I knew that this girl would be up to no good and that whatever was about to come out of her mouth was probably going to be something that would take the restraints of a saint to hold me back from her.

"Well…well…well. What have we here?" she asked, her lips curving into a sinister grin.

There was no way in hell she was going to know that her presence affected me in the slightest little bit. No way.

"I thought something was going on between the two of you. I just didn't think you'd be stupid enough to do anything here on base."

"You don't know shit," I hissed, matching her cold and calculating gaze. We stood glaring at one another like an old fashioned staring contest. Neither of us wanted to blink and yield to the other, thus handing over the upper hand.

I sure as shit wasn't going to let this P.F.C., get under my skin and intimidate me. She could throw every accusation under the sun at me, and I'd fend them off like a warrior in battle, moving along and waiting for the next obstacle to come my way.

"Angelica, whatever you think you know, you couldn't be more wrong," Bennett managed to sputter out, her voice frail and mousey. Looking at her signified her fear in what stood before us, so I took the initiative to calm her down, showing her that there was nothing to be worried about.

"You don't need to convince anyone of anything, Blondie--"

"Blondie?" Ruiz laughed, a sick, stomach turning, knot inducing laugh. The devil himself would have flinched at the tone of her laugh. "Nothing is going on, but you have pet names? And a cute one, might I add?"

I glided over to her, feeling weightless in my moment of wrath and partial despair. I was beyond pissed off and overly annoyed with her games and was ready to squash whatever she had in mind like a fucking bug that served no purpose in my world.

"You better watch yourself and presumptions about an NCO and your instructor at that. False accusations can land you in a shitstorm of trouble, and don't think that, for one second, I wouldn't turn your life upside down for trying to destroy mine." My voice grew lower and gruffer with every word spoken, but the more I had to say, the more infuriated I became.

"And another thing, do you think your overnight absence won't be reported as UA because it can and more than likely will." Moving even closer, I leaned in close enough to touch her ear with my lips, working diligently to avoid doing so since that was an intimate move I often made with Cassie, and didn't want to spoil with the toxic flair that this chick passed off. "You fuck with me or her, and I'll fuck you, and not in the way that you want me to." Taking a few steps back, I stared her in the face and twisted my lips into a sardonic smile before striding out of the room without so much as a glance back.

That. Killed. Me.

While I wanted the satisfaction of seeing fear spread over her, I also wanted to take Cassie with me and get her out of the clutches of that evil that was in her midst. I was damn near certain that I had sealed her mouth as far as Cassie and I were concerned, but I couldn't be sure that Ruiz wouldn't try and make Cassie's life a living fucking nightmare. As I angrily stomped out of the barracks and down the stairs, I grew nauseous with the thought of her having to endure any undue stress thanks to my actions.

Thoughts of what to do next raced through my mind as I jogged out to my truck, finally settling on the one thing I didn't want to do, but knew I had to do-- I pulled out my cell phone and called Riley.

He answered on the second ring.

"What up, dickwad? You only had duty, not an all-night bingefest, so drive your own self home."

"Shut the fuck up, Riley. I'm in a bind, and I need you to hear me out. Is Jensen home?"

He went quiet for a second, picking up the intensity in my tone.

"Um, no. He went golfing this morning in Palm Springs with that Asian chick from Coyotes."

"Sweet. I'm on my way home. I need you to get ready to come to base to do a job for me.”

"Oh, shit. This sounds serious."

"It is. I'll be home in a bit. Be ready, please."

"Will do, man. I feel all covert right now. Hurry home, this is too cool." His goofy ass chuckle bellowed out. This dude couldn't be serious if you begged him to.

"Riley…"

"Yeah?"

"Shut the fuck up and be ready, please."

He laughed hard.

I angrily pressed end on the call, skimming through and calling the local taxi service that we sometimes frequented when we hit all of the area bars.

After the call, I shot a quick text to Cassie.

Me: Get out of that room and over to Subway ASAP. Don't let that bitch know where you're going.

She took a minute to respond, sending my anxiety level through the roof of my truck.

Blondie: She's in the shower. Haven't we trudged the ledge quite enough today?

Me: No. Get there! A taxi will pick you up.

I had to get her out of there.

My heart shattered into a thousand pieces, feeling like a sledgehammer had been taken to it from the moment I walked out of that room without Cassie's hand in mine. Deep inside, it felt like wolves had surrounded her, and I had left her there to fend for herself and she was failing miserably while they attacked, poached, and devoured her. Ruiz was only one person, but the eeriness of her tone sent an arctic chill over my bones, leaving me fearful of what she was capable of with someone less hardened than me.

Cassie didn't answer my text, so I parked in the parking lot of the movie theater, hidden under a few trees so as not to arouse suspicion when the taxi came to pick her up.

My mind was everywhere in that moment, searching for reasoning to the madness that I had so willfully thrust myself into. Normally, pussy was pussy. It was nothing to get excited about, lose my head about, or possibly destroy my career over.

But something here was different. Something here was worth all of the turmoil and so much more.

How my life had taken such a detour in a very short week was beyond me. Since I had joined the Corps, my life had been carefully planned out. I followed and enforced all rules, never skimping over or cutting corners to get things done. The Corps instilled honor, commitment, and courage into me, but somehow I had lost that. I had lost my ability to see things in the black and white that they used to be presented in. I had lost my way… and I couldn't be more relieved.

I felt a connection to her, all formality now leaving where she was concerned. Cassie was showing me that not everything comes in black and white, that our best laid plans don't always pan out and that sometimes you just have to take a leap because life isn't as unyielding as we would like for it to be.  I hadn't even fucked her yet and somehow she meant more to me than any other female I had explored every inch of. The scariest part about this whole scenario was that the feelings I felt for her weren't terrifying me. Since Evelyn, I had promised that no female would make their way to a special place with me, and yet here was Cassie in all of her vanilla scented glory, doing just that. The thought put a quaint smile on my face after such a horrendous morning.

Before long I saw her, strutting into the Subway and ordering some food to make her visit seem harmless. Just watching her from afar, her hair loose and long, not tied up in that stuffy bun, showcased the carefree spirit that I wanted all of. Waiting until she graduated wasn't an option because by then she could have orders halfway around the globe, stealing my chance to ever have something with her. I needed her now. I needed to feel her, to delight in her, to really explore all parts of her.

A few minutes after she sat down, the taxi pulled up, giving me the go ahead to leave. I raced off, trying to get home in time to hopefully fill Riley in before she got there.

Luckily, my house wasn't too far from base, and I got there in only twelve minutes. I jumped out, running into the house, looking for Riley. He was in his room, playing Xbox or some shit that took up too much of his time on a daily basis.

"Hey, man. We need to talk," I said, slightly out of breath from pure adrenaline filtering through every vein in my body.

He paused his game, turning to look at me with concern tightly held on his face.

"You look stressed, man. What's going on?"

I didn't answer him right away. My mind was drifting back to Cassie and what she could have possibly endured after I left the room. My stomach knotted with the visuals, making me want to kick my own ass even more.

"Alex--"

His call jerked me back into the here and now.

"Alright, Riley. I need you now more than ever," I started, knowing that as ridiculous as he could be, he was loyal, and right now, I needed it. He didn't say anything. Instead, he focused on me with sincerity and caution scouring his face as he awaited whatever was about to come out of my mouth. "Pfc. Cassie Bennett is on her way over here."

"What? Why?"

"Because," I stopped, running my hands over the back of my head while growing frustrated with myself for even allowing my dick and now my heart to get me to this point. "Because she and I have something and her bitch ass roommate found us."

"What the bejeebus, man? Are you fucking nuts?"

"A little bit, yes," I spit out, not wanting to deal with any questions at the moment.

"Okay, so you bring her here, and then what?"

"I don't know yet. I just needed to get her out of that barracks room for a bit. Are you sure Jensen went to Palm Springs?"

"Yeah. He sent me pics of his hot ass chick out on the green. She had some skimpy ass top and her tits, man--"

"Riley! I don't really want to hear about that right now."

"Oh, yeah. Sorry. What do you need me to do?"

My mind had been so focused on Cassie and her bitch ass roommate that I hadn't even thought about what Riley could do in this situation. Thoughts raced through my mind, but nothing stuck out in particular since everything was moving much too fast. Finally, it hit me.

And Riley would be the perfect man for the job.

"I need you to dig. Dig through everything at your disposal on Ruiz. I need ammo in case this bitch tries to go to war with us."

"You got it, man. But why is she so hell bent on destroying you?"

"Coyotes, the night of my selection celebration, she spotted me and had her ass all over me, but then Cassie came up and I was fucking gone.  Stupid as shit since I didn't even know either of them, but yeah, she must have been pissed because I've noticed her taking little jabs at Cassie ever since."

"Bitches. Catty little bitches. I'm so glad to be a dude."

I swooped over to him, landing just before him and grabbing him by his t-shirt.

"Don't ever call her a bitch," I barked, feeling like the insult against Cassie was a direct insult on me.

"Not her, man. Ruiz." Fear went off in his eyes in that moment, causing me to let go and back away from him. My feelings for Cassie were deeper that I had originally thought.

"Sorry. I don't know what came over me."

He fixed his shirt then stood upright, craning his neck to look at me, but I wouldn't let him. I was too ashamed of what I had become in his eyes, but also much too proud to have my heart land in the hands of such of incredibly amazing woman.

"Dude, you really have feelings for this chick, don’t you?"

I looked up at him, silence filling the space, but my facial expression doing all of the speaking necessary for him to get his answer.

"Shit, man. This isn't just another fuck and duck for you. You have feelings."

"Riley, shut the fuck up."

He flashed me a smile then patted me on the shoulder.

"I'm happy for you, man. You haven't been like this since Evelyn, so it's nice to see it. Even if it is a jail sentence waiting to happen." Laughter erupted from him, spurring me to do the same. In all of his silliness, he always had a way of being so profound. He was refreshing in every sense of the way that I was not. He was my polar opposite, but more so than that, he was loyal. And right now, I was going to need all of the loyalty that I could get.

"Enough sentiments, asshole. I'm going to jump in the shower before she gets here. If you're still here, let her in. If not, leave the door unlocked." I ripped my shirt over my head, turning to walk to my own bedroom.

"No need, she's here," he said, looking out of his bedroom window.

My heart rate escalated. Why I was so nervous to have her in my house was beyond me, but I was.

And I had the perspiration filled brow to prove it.

The doorbell rang, and I stood frozen, letting Riley answer it since he was closer anyway. He flung the door open, greeting her while moving aside and letting her walk into the living room.

"Hey, Cassie," he said, trying hard to be casual.

She looked at him and nodded, her eyes averting his while looking back to me.

"I'm off to take care of that job," Riley sputtered, looking from me to Cassie and then back to me. He was always awkward, so it didn't shock me, but Cassie's eyes shifted to him in surprise, probably unsure of what the job was and why he seemed so at ease.

I rushed her, taking her in my arms and squeezing like it was the last time I would get to hold her. She reluctantly hugged back, not nearly matching my intensity. It worried me.

"Are you okay?" I asked, my eyes searching and trying desperately to get a good read on her.

"I don't know. I don't know what's okay anymore."

I pulled her back into me, holding her head to my chest. Something had happened in that room after I left, and my feelings from earlier came back, haunting me in droves, driving home the point that I had fucked up. I had fucked up by being in there much too long, and I had doubly fucked up by leaving her.

"Hey! What's wrong?" I asked, taking her delicate hand and leading her into the kitchen. She took a seat at one of the stools at the island. I sat down on the stool next to her and turned her around to face me. I held on to her hands as I peered into her eyes, trying to find any trace of emotion, but coming up empty.

"What happened after I left?"

She looked at me with something, I couldn’t place it, but it was more than the barren gaze that she gave off since she'd set foot in the house.

"Sgt. Riley knows about us? What are you thinking?"

Confusion and anger seemed to be taking over, and the longer I let the thoughts fester, the more they grew.

"He's good to go. He’s on our side."

"How can you be sure? I don't trust anyone." The inflection on the word wasn't lost on me. She was sending me a message, and it came through loud and clear. My jaws tightened at her words. I swallowed hard, shutting my eyes and cracking my neck to relieve the tension that had suddenly lodged itself inside. This was going south in a hurry.

"What the fuck does that mean?"

"Exactly what I said, Alex!" she shouted, raising her voice and pulling her hands out of mine. Even though she was mad, she was arousing me and had no idea. "A little over a week ago, I was heading to Comm School to learn a trade, and now I'm worried every single second of every day that I'll be pulled in and read my rights. The stress is killing me."

"So what are you saying? You want to squash this? Because you and I both know that’s un-fucking-realistic. We've been down that road and turned right back around. What's next on your list?"

She stood in a hurry, her petite yet muscular arms flailing, sending that decadent vanilla aroma straight for me and teasing my senses. I slowly breathed it in, hoping to never lose the trail of the scent that had somehow become my latest addiction.

"Alex, you have no idea. You have protection. I don't."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, my eyes thinning into two tight slits as I moved closer to her. She put her hands up to keep me away, which I painfully obeyed.

"Your side chick, Castillo.”

The purse of her lips and the roll of her eyes sent rage flurrying through me. I wasn't sure what was about to come out of her mouth next, but I already knew it wasn't anything good.

"I saw her when I got off duty. She was down by my truck, you saw her. What are you talking about?" Annoyance was filling me faster than water on a sinking ship. It wasn't making sense, and it was pissing me off more and more by the second.

"She stopped by my room and made sure to let me know that you're the world's best Marine and that me and my bullshit career can be chucked out with the latest garbage."

The thick sarcasm laced in her words gutted me, making me want to find Castillo and check her ass right along with Ruiz. Threats to Cassie weren't going over well with me. I found myself easily offended every time I heard one, and little by little, they were breaking my will power to give a shit about what people knew-- or thought they knew.

"Fuck that shit. I'll be backing her off of you. Don't worry about it."

"Don't worry about it?" she shrieked, backing further away from me. "You don't even know what it's like to be in my shoes, Alex. I'm a nothing. A nobody. It won't be hard to get rid of someone like me."

I grabbed her wrist, pulling her back to me. "Don't ever fucking say that about yourself. You're a goddamned Marine. You've earned that shit! You are somebody. And, I don't think it's as easy or as hard as you think it is. We're in this shit together, whether you want to believe that or not. Word gets out about this, and they'll be chewing off their own fucking fingers to get rid of me. I'm an NCO, an instructor, and I'll be looked at like a predator. I've seen it happen."

"And yet you're still willing to keep going with this?"

"I sure am. Because when I want something, I don't give up. I'll fight the entire goddamned Marine Corps to be with you."

A bone chilling laugh crept out of her, freezing me on the spot. Confusion passed through me before I regained my bearings. She was baffling me with every statement, every movement. I had no idea what she was thinking.

Did she want me?

Or should I just let it all go?

There was no way I was going to let her go so easily. When shit gets tough, you fight your way through it.

"You have no idea what you are saying," she muttered, throwing a dismissive hand my way.

I swooped on her, cradling her face in my hands and holding her gaze as I tore into her.

"I know exactly what the fuck I'm saying. I know that the first night you swiveled those hips in my direction I jumped, and I haven't been able to get you out of my head ever since. I know that everything I believed in and thought was the gospel has been challenged and balked at since I met you. I know that I hate the thought of you sleeping in the same room with that evil bitch you call a roommate, and I damn sure know that I hate having to share you with that fucking prick, Dalton. He wants in your pants probably as badly as I do. And the fact that he can flaunt his time with you, with no one questioning it, is like sand in my throat. I hate all that shit."

A frown flitted across her lips.

"I feel all of this, and I haven't even fucked you, yet.

Passion erupted inside of me with those words. My insides were on fire, a smoldering blaze tearing through every inch of me, but not in anger, more like intense desire.

"You don't bring Dalton into this!" she yelled, her eyes darkening.

The look she gave off froze me, thrusting darts in my direction and hitting on every single try at the realization that there was something inside of her for him. Fury seeped in, hating the fact that, in only a week, that skinny jeans wearing twerp was able to break through and find a place within her that I was hoping was reserved only for me.

"Do you think I appreciate the fact that he can walk around, hanging all over you if he so chooses and yet, there isn't a damn thing I can do about it? Are you trying to make me jealous because I can assure you it's working. I don't mind a challenge, but I don't play fair, and he might get hurt in the process."

"You really want to bring jealously into this? Because I'm pretty sure your dates with Castillo qualify."

"I haven't been on a single date with her. Not one."

"Really? Your dinner date at the food court, or how about last night on duty? None of that counts?"

"How did you know about the food court?" Suspicion went off inside of me with the mention of the coincidental meet up.

"How did you know about me being in the barracks room that night?"

"Ruiz," we spit out in unison, both of our faces contorting in disgust as her toxic filled name left our lips.

"That bitch is about to be knocked down a few notches. You just wait."

I moved around the island to the fridge, pulling out a beer and using my teeth to rip the lid off. I offered it to her which she briskly declined.

"Now back to this fucking Dalton problem. Are you going to shut him down or am I going to have to squash his hopes of getting in your pants? Because I promise you, it'll be a cold day in hell before he gets to do that while I'm still around."

"You're out of control, you know that?"

"Yes, I do. I've been this way ever since you sauntered out in front of me. Now I'm your problem to deal with. So what's it gonna be?" A crooked smile curved on my lips. I wasn't against getting dirty to keep Dalton away from her, so it was probably in her best interest to let him know before I had to.

"What are you going to do about Castillo?" she countered, effectively throwing the ball back in my court.

Her stubbornness was one of the many things that I loved about her.

"This one sided shit doesn't work for me. You're not getting your cake and eating it too, Alex." The sass in her voice ignited a hunger inside of me that would only be quelled by her touch. I needed her on me, feeling me, caressing me, fucking me.

She was so much more than any other chick I had come across. Her attitude, her confidence, her demeanor...it was so appealing, and her physical attributes just added the icing on the cake. Standing there, looking at her, was beginning to suffocate me. One way or another, I needed to get my hands on her, every part of her.

"There is no need to worry about Castillo, I promise you. But that fucking Dalton, he's poking thorns in my side, and I'm about ready to go ape shit on him." I moved around the island and held her face in my hand. "You better tell him to back the fuck up, or shit is gonna get dirty."

"He doesn't want me, Alex!" she yelled, seemingly frustrated with my demands.

I didn't much care in that moment. As long as he was put in his fucking place, I was fine with it.

I dropped her face from my hand.

"Right, and my dick doesn't punish me every time I get near you and can't do shit about it."

"That's a personal problem," she quickly responded, laughing at my expense.

"I'm being fucking serious. I don't find any humor in it. You know how badly I want to be inside of you, feeling the warmth of you, and yet you keep bullshittin' with that kid."

"He's gay, Alex!" She blurted it out so loud and quickly that I wasn't t sure I had heard her correctly.

My gaze softened as the realization of what she had just said washed over me like a flood. Cooling liquid filled my veins, calming me down almost immediately.

"Now I feel like a horrible friend. He confided that to me. It's been hard for him because of his family, and now the Corps."

Embarrassment hit me like a wrecking ball. I'd just pulled all stops on the asshole train and finally made her spill it, something that she was probably uncomfortable telling me anyway.

"What do you mean the Corps?"

"He doesn't want to be ostracized by the Corps because he's gay. He's a damn good guy, Alex. Don’t do anything to jeopardize his career, please."

I laughed at her insinuation.

"You think I'd do something to him because he's gay?" I held my hands over my heart, feigning hurt. "I might be an asshole, but I don't give a shit who my Marines are fucking. Well, besides you."

Her entire body relaxed with my words. Did I really come off as that big of a dick?

"And furthermore, the days of don't ask don’t tell are over. If he wanted to grab his boyfriend and kiss him right in front of the entire class, there wouldn't be a fucking thing me or anybody else could do about it."

"I just don't feel right letting his secret out--"

"It's safe with me," I interrupted, creeping closer to her.

"Everything is just frustrating the hell out of me. We're still no closer to solving this Ruiz, Castillo, Marine Corps problem, and now I've just spilled the beans on my friend."

"You know what you need? It'll alleviate all of that frustration."

"What?" she asked in a very clipped tone, highly annoyed.

"Me. Inside of you, thrusting your frustrations away," I answered, grabbing my cock and gently shaking it.

"I'm being serious, Alex. Your cock has started most of these problems."

"And it'll help you forget about them." I moved quickly, picking her up and throwing her over my shoulder, my other hand pulling her shorts down and smacking her highly delectable ass with just enough sting to make her yelp. Her cry only provoked me. I massaged it just long enough to get to my bedroom and lay her down on my bed. I was ready to tear into her, relieving both of us of the stress that had been consuming us while simultaneously threatening to pull us apart. I was finally about to get my chance to claim her, and I couldn't have been more thrilled about it.

Chapter 12

Cassie

My clothes were off before I could even speak. Alex wasted no time removing and tossing them on the floor, never once taking his blood boiling gaze off of me. There was something more than lust in his eyes, something that I had yet to see from him. He wasn't the same guy who simply wanted into my pants that night at Coyotes; he was more engaged, more refined.

He sat up on the bed with his knees pressing down on the mattress while licking and sucking his lips as he peered down at me. I swallowed a few times, taking in his impressive form as it hung over me. The large memorial tattoo was on full display, along with two other impressive tattoos on the sides of his torso. On one side hung two dangling dog tags, outfitted with his name and what I presumed to be his date of entry into the Corps. On the other was his rank insignia, three chevrons with two crisscrossed rifles underneath, leaving plenty of room to add to it the further he went in his career.

Honey glazed eyes beamed down on me as I took him in, sparkling with delight at the chance to finally get his fill of me. I wanted him just as badly, if not more. A piercing stab struck my clit as he hovered over me, taunting me with his remarkable body.

"So what should I do to you?" he asked in a hushed tone. "You got kind of loud with me earlier, challenging me, and I don't take that too lightly."

Butterflies broke free in my stomach, making me nervous with the anticipation of whatever was running through his mind.

"I thought you said you liked a challenge."

"Oh, I do. I just have to figure out the best way to show you that you can't win with me. And I have to make it good because you should think twice before ever trying it again."

Just as I was about to speak, he swooped down and grabbed me by my waist, pulling me up towards him and filling his face with my pussy. He inhaled long and hard, before nuzzling his nose at my entrance, moving gently, luxuriating in the feel of it. My eyes shut tightly, my head going back on the pillow while my mouth hung open, basking in the intoxicating feel of him down on my most sensitive area.

Slowly he began to work his tongue on me, licking lightly, following an imaginary trail to my sweet spot. His tongue was so adept at what it was doing; I was near certain that it held a mind of its own. The slow trickle up the outer linings sent my hips swiveling, making him grip me tighter. His fingers dug into my skin, sending pleasurable shockwaves through my lower half with every touch of his moist, corpulent tongue.

As he reached my entrance, his licks turned to sucks, blowing and sucking his way into me, further breaking down my ability to hold fast to some sort of control.

My toes curled as my fingers grabbed and tugged on his bed covers. My grip on the covers tightened the harder he sucked, sending intense moans flying from my mouth, wanting him to end the torture that was building inside of me with each passing second.

"Fuck me, Alex," I breathed, sounding like a petulant teenager.

He laughed a slow, taunting laugh, pulling away ever so slightly from the spot where he was slowly and painfully making me come undone.

"I don't respond to your orders, Private First Class. You respond to mine."

Before I could counter him, his tongue was back inside of me, flipping and licking my core, tasting every inch of me as he gently pulled out, then dove back in for more. He kept up the tortuous pace, laughing every once in a while at the shrieks that left me, all thanks to the skillful talents of his tongue.

After building up my aching, impending orgasm, he lowered my hips back down on the bed. His eyes watched me, dark and menacing as he observed the wild movements of my body, desperate for his touch.

"Touch yourself," he commanded, smiling from down below.

I quickly placed one hand on my breasts, grabbing and tugging while he watched in amusement. My nipples stood erect, hard like steel, waiting to be devoured at any given moment. I swirled my finger around them, building the tension that was already laced inside from Alex's performance earlier below my waist.

He gently took my free hand, guiding it to my pussy and rubbing it over and around. I took a deep inhale at the feel of my own hand being steered by his, and by the time I was able to open my eyes, he had already placed two of my own fingers inside.

"Play with it," he said, sitting back.

My fingers moved at his command, gently moving in and out with the rhythm of my heartbeat.

His mouth was back on me, sucking and kissing his way from my thighs up to my hips, his fingers splayed out over my abs. He traced the butterfly tattoo on my hip with his tongue, kissing it softly every once in a while.

I moaned louder, feeling the rising pressure from my fingers mixed with an intense need to get him inside of me. He sat up, taking my fingers out of me and gently licking one side of each. His tongue soothed a heated desire that was beginning to drown me, taking my will with it.

"You taste so fucking good. I could eat you all day, every day."

I tried to smile, failing to do so with the agonizing need beginning to overwhelm me.

He brought my hands to my face, placing my fingers gently on my lips.

"Lick them. You deserve to know just how sweet your pussy really is."

I did as told, licking my fingers and tasting what he couldn't seem to get enough of. He forced my lips open, placing my fingers inside while commanding me to "suck."

His fingers slid into me as I did so, sending my body bucking at the intrusion of his profusely large fingers back into what was turning into my weakness. His thumb rubbed over my clit, igniting fireworks inside of me as I called out, feeling the ravaging pounds of an intense orgasm beginning to unleash within me.

Just as my body began to tremble, he pulled out, looking down at me as I came back from a soul searching high.

"Now, how should I fuck you? Do you want it nice and slow? Or bed breaking hard?"

I couldn't answer. All that flowed out was a short whimper, leaving him smiling derisively at me.

He stood from the bed, making his way over to his dresser where he pulled out a handful of condoms.

"I can tell we're going to need more than one," he said, holding them up in front of me.

I simply swallowed, nearly afraid of what I'd been wanting, but excited with it finally about to happen. He placed the condoms down on the bed, then turned and closed the drawer, showing off another impressive tattoo. This one was of two hands holding a cross in a praying position, names inscribed within the cross itself. I couldn't make any of them out, not with the haze that had settled over me in my erotic euphoria.

His pants were off in an instant, his boxer briefs down with them, showing off the threateningly thick and long cock that was only inches away from tearing into me. I licked my lips, almost afraid to let him in.

"You ready for this?" he asked before tearing into a condom and rolling it up his abundant shaft.

I nodded, sending him hovering over me as he placed his body down on mine.

His fingers moved the loose hairs away from my face, his hazel eyes staring down into mine.

"I've been waiting so long for this, Cassie Bennett."

I grabbed his head, pulling it down so our lips could meet. He kissed me, his fleshy lips pressing down on mine with just a hint of aggressiveness. He quickly moved to my neck, sucking and kissing his way up to my earlobe then back down. All I needed were his lips on me, sending my eyes rolling to the back of my head and muffled moans staggering out of my mouth. My fingers clung to his back, gripping and tugging with the movement of his mouth on my neck. He moved his body, trying to free my hands from destroying his back, when suddenly he stopped and sat up, looking down at me while making a rather chastising noise.

"I see I can't get your hands to behave, so I'm going to have to make them do so." He reached for his bedside nightstand, pulling open the drawer and sifting through until he smiled and called out, "Bingo."

In his hands were eight elastic, nylon green boot bands used to hold the cammie pants in place. Confusion swept through me at just what he thought he was going to accomplish with them, but I didn't ask. I was much too intrigued by whatever he had in mind.

"Turn over," he ordered, sending me turning before he was even done speaking. "These boot bands are going to hold you in place-- all of you."

He bound my ankles with one, then latched another onto it and connected that to the tiny spokes lining the metal footboard.  He swiftly moved up to my hands and proceeded to do the same. There was plenty of pull, given the elasticity of the bands, but I wasn't quite sure how he would keep me from breaking the miniature hook at the end of it.

"I know you can break these, but this is a test in self-restraint," he whispered. "You break them, I punish you. You understand that?"

I nodded my head, allowing a feeble, "Yes," to come out of my mouth.

He moved back to the edge of the bed, climbing on and maneuvering himself in between me, spread out for his enjoyment. I felt the very tip of his cock at my entrance, my heartbeat spiking at the anticipating of it alone. After a few agonizing seconds, he was in me, barreling his way inside and causing me to cry out in pain, enjoyment, and satisfaction. A low growl escaped him as he made his way in.

He lay down on my back, moving in and out with the rhythm of his slow, savoring breaths. Everything I had ever imagined was coming to life in that moment. He was large and commanding, yet gentle and accommodating.

"You like that?" he asked, nibbling on my ear.

Words in the form of small whimpers answered back, making him pick up the pace.

He dug deeper, sending lightening through my core and making me dip further into the mattress with each thrust. My hands were pulling from the bar, but his words came crashing back and I tried hard to hold them steady, fearing I would fail at proving that I did have some restraint about me.

His balls slapped my ass with every movement, sparking me to cry out with every smack. His tortuously slow pace gave way to harder, more commanding blows, shaking my resolve and sending my arms barreling down with force, breaking the hook on the end of the band.

"I knew you couldn't do it," he mocked, pulling out and taking me up with him. "Look what you've done to my beloved boot bands. I think you deserve to be punished."

"These things are--," I defended through hard breaths.

"Shhh…" he cut me off, laughing in the background.

He took my hands and placed them on the headboard, my fingers gripping it tight. I sat upright on my knees, waiting for whatever it was that he was planning to do to me. And before I could turn around, he was nibbling at my ass, causing me to flinch with the overwhelming sensation that his teeth elicited.  His mouth covered the spot where he bit, soothing it with smooth, sweet sucks before he removed it and sent his hand powering down in a thunderous slap right on the sensitive spot.

I cried out, feeling such passionate tingles with the meeting of his hand to my ass. He did it again, the entire routine before grabbing hold of my breasts from behind and burying himself into me. This time, he didn’t go slowly. He got right to business, pounding away at my core, sending all of the blood in my body racing straight for my clit. My screams and his grunts filled the room as he drummed away at me, making my head fall back, taking my ability to counter him with it. He let go of one breast, instead grabbing hold of my hair as he pounded harder and harder. That monstrous cock of his did not let up, controlling every movement while slowly burning down every wall inside of me.

"I'm so close, Blondie. I'm not coming without you."

His words undid me, all of the nerve endings in my body short circuiting, leaving me in a convulsing, shrieking mess in his hands. He pounded even harder, growling out his release as I screamed my own, the sweat now coating our skin and leaving us slipping against one another while our orgasms ripped through and dismantled us.

I fell forward, Alex falling with me. We lay quietly, trying hard to catch our breaths.  His cock still lay inside of me, occupying his conquest.

When we finally came down from our highs, Alex rolled off of me, lying on his back while pulling me to him on mine. He rested his nose on the top of my head, inhaling slowly as he worked his hands over my breasts. I lay my hands on his cock, still somewhat erect, feeling like he could go another round.

"Alexander the Great, that's what I'll call you," I whispered, finally breaking the silence.

"My name is Alejandro, but I'll take it. It fits me since I just conquered you and your body."

He continued playing with my breasts, squeezing my nipples while doing so.

"Alejandro Cruz. Has a nice ring to it. Why do you go by Alex?"

"It's easier. I've been going by Alex my entire life. The only people who call me Alejandro are my mom and my grandma. Everyone else gets the shortened version."

I lay quiet, not sure of where to go with this conversation, so I went with what naturally came to me.

"Are you close with your mom?"

"Yes," he quickly responded. "But I don't want to talk about my mom with my dick in your hands. If you don't mind?"

I laughed, remembering where we were and how ridiculous that conversation must have felt for him.

"You hungry?"

"I ate at Subway, but I could always go for more. You worked me into an appetite."

"Don't worry, I'm not finished with you yet. But first, you need some sustenance."

He sat up, easing his way out of the bed and reaching his hand down for me.

"Can I get a shower first?" I asked, gawking at his naked body standing before me.

"Why? I’m going right back in there as soon as we're done eating."

"I'm sticky as hell, and I'd rather not be," I quipped. Taking hold of his hand and moving out of the bed.

He led us over to the bathroom and started up the shower. Pulling off the used condom, he tossed it into the trashcan, then immediately ripped open another and slid it onto his stiffened cock.

Holding out his hand, he led me into the shower. I stepped in and immediately stood under the showerhead, allowing the water to pour down over me. Alex stepped in and took me from behind, dropping wet kisses down my neck as he snaked himself back inside. I held on to the sides of the walls, gripping as best I could on the slippery surface as he prepared to go for round two.

Alex finished me off in the shower, completely breaking me while alternating between hard and slow. In the past, I usually got the short end of the stick, left to my own devices to achieve an orgasm while they got off and moved on. Not with Alex. He alerted me to when he got close, then worked me to his level so that we could come together. It was amazing.

Sitting at the kitchen island where we’d had our heated discussion, the mood couldn't have been more different. Two sated people, sitting side by side, enjoying a home cooked meal, basking in the satisfaction of releasing all of our sexual tension.  Alex, among his many talents, also happened to be a very good cook. He threw some chicken on the grill, sautéed some onions and peppers, made his very own salsa from scratch, then put it all over a bed of Spanish rice. My astonishment at his abilities shocked him.

"You don't know too many guys that cook, I take it?"

"Nope," I said, trying hard not to speak with a full mouth. I didn't want to stop eating.

"Well, welcome to the wonderful world of Alex. I have a feeling I'll be shocking you with quite a few things." He winked at me before taking his plate over to the stove and filling it with seconds.

I studied him for a minute, the hands and cross tattoo on his back glaring at me. The names showing more clearly this time, but one was blackened out.

He turned around and caught me staring. His eyes darkened as he made his way back over to the stool and sat down, never taking his them off of me.

"What are you staring at?" he asked softly.

"Nothing," I lied, shaking my head.

He caught my face in his hands, gently smiling before saying, "don't lie to me, Blondie. There are questions swirling around in there. Ask them."

I cleared my throat and smiled, feeling like a chastised child for a second.

"I just noticed your tattoo."

He let go of my face, still turned and watching me.

"My cross?"

"Yes. Who are the names of those people?"

"Well, Guadalupe es mi abuela." He stopped and smiled at me. "Or, my grandma."

"I know what that means," I responded, laughing at him.

"That's right. You're from Arizona. You should know some Spanish."

I lowered my eyes at him.

"How did you know I was from Arizona?"

"Do you really have to ask that?" He winked at me again. "Imelda is my mom. And Adriana is my sister."

I noticed an accent in the pronunciation of their names. It was cute and added a bit more sex appeal to him if that were even possible.

"They mean a lot to you."

The statement came out more like a question. A large smile spread across his face, clearly giving me his answer.

"What about that part you had covered?"

His smile quickly faded. He took a deep breath, looking down at his plate before answering.

"That was my ex-wife, Evelyn."

His dark demeanor halted my questions. I could tell she wasn't a source of pride for him like the other women occupying areas of the cross, so I let it go, not wanting to sour our meal.

"Hey. Sorry to go there."

"Nothing to be sorry about." He picked up his fork and went back to work on his food. "Eat up. I've got round three to conquer."

"Round three?" I questioned, instantly feeling the tenderness of my very swollen area. "I think she's worn out."

"No such thing. Like anything else with physical activity, she just needs to be properly conditioned, and I am volunteering to be her trainer. Eat up. You need energy."

He went right back to shoving food in his mouth. His words tickled my clit, knowing that he was serious.

Riley came bursting through the door, a goofy smile spread across his face. He looked at me and nodded his head, making me feel at ease. Even though he was an instructor, and this was probably a bit odd for him, I liked him. I saw the devotion he had towards Alex, and it put a slight smile on my face.

"Hey, Cassie." Riley's voice was so casual this time, no awkwardness to be found, almost as if we were long-time friends.

"Hi, Sgt. Riley," I responded, not sure how I should address him.

"Just Riley, Blondie," Alex threw in, rubbing my thigh as he turned his attention to him.

"What's up, man?"

"It didn't take long. I found some shit. You want to come take a look at this?"

He held some papers up in his hand, putting a smile on Alex's face.

"We'll be right back," Alex said, quickly moving away from the island.

They walked into a back room and shut the door. I sat at the island, continuing to eat and pondering what was on those papers that had him so excited.

I stood and cleared my plate, washing it off and placing it in the dish rack. I stared out the kitchen window into the backyard, looking at a lush green lawn in the middle of two patios covered by awnings. There were horseshoes in the grass, making me smile as I pictured this being the party, hang out house on the guys' free time. Three single guys living in one house; there was no doubt in my mind that this was where the fun was had.

Just as I was turning around to clear the remnants of our meal from the island, I heard keys jingling at the front door. I quickly turned and took a few steps toward Alex's room when the door opened, leaving me out in the open for whoever was making their way in.

Chapter 13

Alex

"Pfc. Bennett, what are you doing here?"

Fuck! What the hell was Smith doing at my house? I jetted out of the back room, leaving Riley sitting there with his eyes damn near dangling out of his head. When I reached the front area, I found Cassie standing there, looking like a deer caught in headlights. Smith stood staring at her in confusion, obviously unaware of what a student would be doing at her instructor's home on a Saturday afternoon. I needed to fix this shit, and fix it right now.

"Hey, man. What are you doing here?"

Smith's confusion laced eyes shifted to me. I needed to stay cool.

"Jensen asked me to come here and grab some stuff for him since I'm headed down to Palm Springs tonight."

His eyes quickly swept back over to Cassie. She stood statuesque, tiny swallows making their way down her throat. Her nerves were fried. I could see the evidence of it piercing through her sparkling green eyes.

"What is Pfc. Bennett doing here?"

I wasn't about to lie to him, so I came right out and said it.

"She's here with me."

His mouth just about hit the floor as his eyes bulged from their sockets. To say he was in shock would be an understatement.

"What the fuck, man? Do you know how much shit you could land yourself in?"

He walked over to me, placing his hand on my shoulder and looking over to Cassie.

"Your promotion, Alex. What the fuck, dude?" The elevated tone of his voice eerily put me at ease. He was concerned for me, and where there was concern, there was loyalty.

"Caleb, calm down. I'm well aware of the repercussions."

"Then why?"

His eyes flashed between Cassie and me, then to Riley who was slowly making his way out of the back room.

"You knew about this, Riley? What the fuck?"

"Hey, man. I just found out about it today," Riley said, looking very defensive.

I coasted over to Cassie, who still looked a bit shell shocked, if not completely frazzled. Putting my arm around her, I calmly said, "Riley just found out and I already know what could happen to me. That's why I'm being very careful."

"Careful?" Smith shouted. "You call this careful? Having a fucking student in your house where fellow instructors live. Does Jensen know about this too?"

"Not really," I growled, growing more annoyed with him and all of his questions. "He thought something was up, but I shut him down."

"Well, does Newsome fucking know?" he mumbled, finally setting me off.

I turned to Cassie and whispered in her ear, "Go into the room while I handle this."

She looked at me with reluctance, but I didn't want her here when things got bad as I felt they were about to do.

"Go."

She turned and walked away. I waited until I heard the click of the door before I went to work on Smith.

"Look, man. This shit wasn't meant to happen. I didn't go in search of a student to start fucking. I met her at Coyotes that night and had no fucking clue who she was until Monday morning during formation."

"Then what? You just decided that since you'd already started something you'd go ahead and finish it?" He stopped for a second, the wheels whirling around in his head. "Wait. This is why you asked me about Pfc. Dalton, isn't it? You wanted to get your competition out of the way."

"Caleb." My stern, baritone voice bellowed out.

"What? You've either lost your mind, or you've gone fucking stupid."

"You better watch yourself, Caleb," I warned. I was beginning to feel like a wild animal backed into corner, and there was no telling what I was capable of if pushed too far.

"I think it's the other way around, Alex. Now you've pulled the rest of us into this mess, over what? Pussy? You can get pussy from anywhere. Why a goddamned student?"

"First of all, I didn't pull you into shit," I roared, my eyes zeroing in on him, the veins throbbing in my neck as I took slow, deliberate steps in his direction. "Secondly, she isn't just pussy, so you better watch how the fuck you refer to her. Believe me, I've gone over this shit in my own mind, wondering if it was even worth it, and every time I convinced myself it wasn't, something would come flying back, telling me it was."

"So you're willing to take the rest of us down with you?"

"I'm not doing shit with you. I didn't pull you into this. You, unfortunately, walked in on it. So now you can either stand with me, or against me."

He looked me over, occasionally taking glances at Riley who stood stoic, not flinching or making a sound. I could see the wheels of debate turning in his head,  the last thing I ever wanted to do was get these guys mangled up in it, thus putting their own careers on the line. But now that I was knee deep, I needed them to hold me, to make sure that my dirty fucking secret remained a secret until I could let it be out in the open.

Smith blew out a slow, deep breath. Running his hands over the back of his head, he finally said, "Fuck, man. You know I'm always gonna support you. I just wish it didn't have to be in fucking secret."

I discreetly blew out the breath holed up in me.

"Who the fuck you telling, man?" I finally allowed a smile to creep across my face. "But, you can't say shit to Jensen. So far, I don't think he'll back me."

He nodded briefly.

I pulled him into a guy hug, patting him on the back, then looked over at Riley.

"I have enough fucking problems at the moment, and this guy here," I said, motioning towards Riley, "is helping me out. The last thing I need is for you guys to blow the lid off of this for me."

"You've got my word, man," Smith sternly replied. I'd known him long enough to know that his word was everything. If he said he would back me, he would definitely back me.

"Alright. Better hurry up and get Jensen's shit. I better get back there to Cassie. She's probably scared shitless right now."

"Cassie, huh?” Smith asked, shaking his head and laughing slightly. “Well, I'm sorry if I scared the living fuck out of her. I was not expecting to see her hot ass standing in your house."

"Watch it, asshole," I jokingly warned. "That's my hot piece of ass you're talking about." He held up his hands in a mocking show of defense. "Have fun in Palm Springs. Riley, I'll get back to you in a minute."

I turned away from them and quickly made my way back to my room. When I opened the door, Cassie was lying face up on my bed, holding the broken boot bands in her hands, worry engrained in her.

"Hey. You okay?"

She sat up in the bed; her eyes looked like tears would erupt from them at any moment.

"Not really. But I'm more worried about you."

"Don't worry about me. I'm fine."

I sat down on the bed next to her, my hands instinctively making their way up to her face, gently moving her hair behind her ear.

"Smith isn't going to say anything. He's on our side too."

"How do you know that?" Her voice grew weak and shaky, splintering my heart with every sound she made.

"Because I know my boys. Right now, the only ones I know aren't with us are Newsome, but he doesn't know." I paused for a second. "And Jensen."

"I know. It's Jensen I'm worried about."

Her response made my blood boil.

"Why? What has he said to you?"

"He hasn't said anything to me directly. I just see the looks he gives me, like he hates me."

"He doesn't hate you. He just sees you as a student, and he is too fucking fixated on what the Marine Corps says. He forgets sometimes that we're human, and our thoughts don't always line up with what the Corps says-- I've been guilty of that too, up until now."

"I never planned on this. I never wanted to ruin anything for anyone--"

"And you aren’t. Stop that shit. I put myself exactly where I am. If anything, I could possibly be hurting you."

"No, you aren't. I wanted this too."

"Then that's it."

"What's it?"

"This. You and me." She stared at me in amazement. "Look, the Corps is designed so that we can't work. And up until a week or so ago, I backed it wholeheartedly. But I see shit now. The rose colored glasses are off."

"But you love the Marine Corps. It's who you are."

"I still love it. It's made me who I am, but with the rules comes the ability to learn to lead, and learning to lead means being able to think for yourself."

I needed her closer to me in that moment, so I pulled her to me, moving her to sit on my lap.

"Me and you, what we have, what we're doing, is a crime. But I want you. I chose you. And I'm ready to jump off this fucking bridge if you're ready to jump with me."

Her little nose wrinkled as she laughed— the first soul soothing laugh I had heard from her in what felt like forever.

"Now, take these clothes off. You've just given me the fucking erection from hell."

She made quick work of her clothes, needing the physical closeness just as badly as I did.

I sat on the bed in my same spot, taking in the show as she swiveled her hips to get out of her shorts. I twirled my finger before me, signaling for her to turn around. Her ass was a sight for sore eyes, and I reached out for her, running my hands over it as my dick sprung to life, eager to have her full and undivided attention. I roughly grabbed her, bringing her down on my awaiting cock that was damn near stabbing through my shorts.

"What are you going to do about those shorts?"

My eyebrows twitched in amusement.

"What are you going to do about them?" I asked, holding her around her waist with one hand while fondling her pretty, perky tit in the other.

She used her hands to free herself from my grip, placing them on my shorts in a matter of seconds, tugging away as I lifted my hips to give her room to fully remove them. Going commando worked in our favor since the second my shorts was disposed of, my dick stood erect and waiting to have her do with it as she pleased.

"It's yours. Do as you like."

She smiled, slowly dropping to her knees.

Anticipation was beginning to tear away at me. Seeing her shimmering green eyes staring up at me, that perfectly placed smile as she rubbed on my dick...it sent an ache throughout my body that took the patience of a saint to not urgently extinguish.

Silky smoothness rubbed over every inch of my cock, and I sucked in a long, soothing breath as she gently stroked, making my heart rate spike with the feel of it. I rested my hands on the sides of me, grabbing hold of the cover on the bed as she began to pick up the pace. A sensitive tingle exploded within me, making me realize that I wouldn't last too long once she got her mouth on me.

I felt the moist, warmth of the tip of her tongue, swirling around the tip of my cock, forcing sparks to shoot off within me. Her hand continued to stroke me as her tongue flirted with me, on edge and ready to explode. When she placed her full mouth around me, I was a fucking goner. She stole almost all of my control out of me with her first suck alone. My hands immediately left the bed, taking hold of her sensually, soft hair and forcefully guiding her up and down. My hips thrust to meet her moves, slamming into the back of her throat as I lost what little restraint I had left. Her ability to deep throat astonished me, and if I weren't contorting in a mixture of torture and pleasure, I would have smiled with pride.

An intense feeling exploded within me, signaling my imminent release. I grabbed harder onto her hair, pulling her head away from my cock while grabbing one of the unused condoms from the bed. Thrusting the wrapper into my mouth, I ripped it open, pulling the condom out and rolling it on, before pulling her back down, this time, facing me.

She grimaced with my entrance, putting a wicked smile on my face. I loved the feel of her moist, wet pussy around my dick, circling and collapsing down on it as it made its way inside of her.

Her body fell forward, her head resting on my shoulder as her hair covered her face. Gently pulling her back, I looked into what was left of her still scrunched eyes, and moved her hair out of the way.

"I want to watch you come undone," I muttered.

She didn't answer, just went to work, riding my cock as hard as she could. Her hips moved to and fro, twirling around as I buried my face in her tits, licking, sucking, and biting away at them. The harder I bit, the faster she rode, sending her back arching, bucking like she was riding an overly aggressive bull.

I grabbed her ass cheeks, digging deeply into the silky firmness of the most impeccable ass I had ever had the pleasure of laying hands on.

My cock was throbbing now, wanting to release the aggression she had successfully built up within me. I began chipping away at her core, letting go of one of her ass cheeks and placing my fingers on her clit instead.

"Ahhhhh… Alex, fuck me!" she screamed, stroking my ego with every word.

I rubbed furiously, continuing the torture, seeking more and more desire from her with every stroke.

"Look at me, Blondie," I harshly whispered, needing to look into her eyes when I finally came.

She didn't look right away, her eyes firmly shut as she tried to bravely take everything I was giving to her.

I removed my hand from her clit and smacked her ass as hard as I could, jolting her eyes open with a loud shriek from her pretty little mouth.

"I want you to see what you do to me," I told her.

She didn't respond, but I didn't need her to. I grabbed her waist with both hands, bouncing her up and down as I worked my way to coming. As it built, moving with thunderous speed, I fucked her with the speed and tenacity of a jackhammer, hammering away as her tits bounced and swayed in front me, my tongue out, licking and catching any piece of them that I could.

"I'm fucking coming," I breathlessly moaned.

Moans and shrieks were her response, no words filtering out as I stalled inside of her, violently filling the condom. When the last few spurts emptied out of me, I crashed my head on her chest. Her hands wrapped my head, holding me close as I listened to her heart beating rapidly as she breathed softly, trying to slow it down.

"You are a beast, Sgt."

I shook my head, hating the use of my rank, but seeing it as a flirtatious gesture on her part.

She stood, allowing me to stand as well. I marched into the bathroom and removed the filled condom, tossing it into the toilet and flushing it down. When I turned around, she was lying in the bed, twirling her hair around one of her fingers. I walked over and lay down with her, resting my head on her chest and nibbling on her tits.

"So what is this?" she asked, filling the silence that had overtaken the room.

"What is what?"

"This. Us."

I paused. I wasn't sure how she was expecting me to respond.

"No labels. It's us. We enjoy each other, so that’s what it is."

I looked up to her after answering, wanting to see her thoughts splayed all over her face. She showed them, nervous contentment seemed to be shining through.

"I know I definitely want to see what the next month holds for us," I threw in, feeling the need for her to know that I was interested in much more than just fucking her and running.

"Me too."

We lay in silence for a while, my head to her chest before I realized that her breathing had slowed, and she had fallen asleep. I sat up and stared at her for a minute, taking note of what seemed to be perfectly crafted features making up one impeccably gorgeous face. I placed a very light kiss on her lips before getting up and throwing on some shorts and leaving the room.

I found Riley back in the office, staring at the papers that he had come home from base with. He smirked at me. He had definitely heard every bit of what had taken place in my room, and I couldn't have been more proud.

"Oh, Alex, ooohhhh…." he mimicked, bouncing in the chair and rolling his eyes to the back of his head.

"Fuck off, Riley."

"Damn, dude. I thought one of you were going to come flying through the wall. Did you fucking kill her?"

"No, shithead. She's sleeping."

"Sounds like you put her to sleep. How are you feeling?"

"Don't worry about me. Tell me what you've got in these papers."

He went from all jokes to being serious. I knew there was something there that would benefit me greatly.

He sifted through them, pulling out one in particular.

"Alright. You ready for this? Because it's a fucking doozy."

He slid the paper over to me, my eyes landing on the heading. Humboldt County. I continued to read on, my interest in the contents growing with every written word.

Chapter 14

Cassie

Alex since we had been desperately trying to get at one another, it was that he always found a way to keep at me.

But in that second he wanted Laying around with Dalton all Sunday long was exactly what I needed after such a physically and emotionally exhausting Saturday. The run-ins with Castillo, Ruiz, and Smith had me on edge, leaving me gasping for air, even if my demeanor came off as completely calm and collected.

I was anything but.

Everywhere I turned, I was waiting for the hammer to drop. Smith walking through the door, while absolutely terrifying, was a relief. I had been praying hard that Jensen was not the person standing on the other side of the door. He just didn't give off a warm vibe where I was concerned, and I was near certain that he wouldn't have responded so diplomatically to me standing in his home.

Now, I had to figure out how to keep all of these sharks out of my space. Alex and I had definitely jumped as he'd said, and there really was no turning back. Sex has a way of furthering things emotionally, and what I already felt for him was now solidly held down inside of me. His protective nature, his domineering attitude, his Greek god of a body, all of it had me completely trapped and mesmerized with no way out.

After looking back, it's astounding and somewhat baffling that we had managed to get intertwined with one another in such a passionate way. I had thought that if I got a taste of him-- that would be it, but it was so much more. And now, my fears were elevated because with all of the joy and happiness comes secrecy and hiding. Our relationship, if that's what we want to call it, could be our lifelong demise. A discharge from the Corps for fraternizing would follow and hinder the both of us no matter what we embark on. Yet, even with that knowledge, I couldn't see myself turning away from him.

"Hey. You back from cloud nine?" Dalton's pretty smile was in my face, his hands waving in front of me as well.

I was floating. My day with Alex had been so invigorating that I couldn't seem to focus on anything else besides his body. But more so, his warm, compassionate, and soothing words in my moment of panic. His actions were completely opposite of what I was expecting, and the joy of it all was beginning to shine through me.

"I'm good. Just happy to have a day off."

"We had a day off yesterday. Where were you anyway?"

I tensed up. I hadn't planned on being asked that question, so I had no answer readily available. I blurted out the first thing that came to mind, praying that Dalton couldn't argue against it.

"I was in the library most of the day, studying.” My stomach twisted into a few tightly wound knots as I waited for his response.

"Oh, okay. I couldn't find you. After I was done babysitting Allen, that is."

"Allen? Why?"

"Beats me," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "I just know that he got into some shit in the wee hours of the night, and somehow I got called in to be a calming effect for him." He smiled apathetically.

Guilt instantly flooded me, filling me from head to toe. No one should have to spend unwanted time with Allen, and the only reason Dalton had been made to do it was so that Alex and I could carry on with what we were doing. I felt bad for my friend. I felt bad for what I was becoming, but eerily I couldn't feel bad for what I was doing.

"I'm sorry. He's a freakin' rabid dog. What did he do this time?"

"He had been drinking again, and I guess his roommate said something about it. A couple of wrong words and they were throwing blows at one another." Dalton rolled his eyes but continued on. "Allen got moved out of the room, closer to the duty hut. They should have moved him right next door, but there were no rooms available. I got stuck helping him move."

I couldn't help but laugh at the contortion of his face.

"Sorry to laugh at you, but I really couldn't imagine having to do that. You shouldn't be so nice, Dalton. Your reputation is preceding you."

The door opened and in strolled Angelica. She avoided my gaze, instead briskly walking past both Dalton and me while quietly muttering, "Hi."

"Hi," we answered back simultaneously.

Her behavior had me stumped. The day before, she was proudly and quite potently threatening to derail whatever it was she thought Alex and I had. Today, she couldn’t even bring herself to look at me. Something was definitely up.

"I'm going to the gym, and then to study," she said, throwing a new t-shirt on over her head.

Dalton and I exchange curious glances, but neither of us said a word.

"Bye," Angelica called out before slowly shutting the door.

"Well, that was strange," I said, breaking the awkward silence that Angelica had cast over the room. "She usually has nothing but venom for me."

"Don't sweat it. Relish it. Now get your binder out so we can study. We have more tests coming up this week."

I reluctantly stood, then moved over to my wall locker, pulling my binder out and thrusting it on my bed. The last thing I wanted to do right now was study because even in my binder, Alex and his sex oozing voice spilled out from deep inside of it.

Monday morning came much too soon. My relaxing day with Dalton and the absence of Angelica made Sunday one of my favorite days thus far. She seemed so dejected when she walked into the room, and if I actually liked her, I probably would have cared. All I knew was that her subdued demeanor oddly put me at ease, and whatever had taken her to that point was very welcomed.

Inside the classroom, I couldn't help but feel uneasy as Newsome stood behind Alex, scanning on the room and landing on me a few times. Maybe it was the fact that Alex and I had escalated our flirtations-- going all the way, but I had a sickening feeling that he knew, and it was sending my mind in all sorts of crazy directions. As far as I was aware, he didn't know about us, but my guilty conscience couldn't be sure. Intense heat suffocated me as he looked out at me, his eyes narrowing as if he was trying to steal information from my soul.

"…so your tests are coming back to you. A passing score is seventy-two percent, a C, which is average. We are Marines. We are exceptional, and anything but average, so if you find yourself down in this range, fix your shit."

Alex's voice shook me from my trance. Jensen took the liberty of passing back the tests, slapping a seventy-four percent down in front of me. Shame and embarrassment hit me as I looked from my paper up to the front of the room where Alex stood, glaring at me. He softly licked his lips, turning his head slightly to the side in a consequential manner, his eyes filling with lustful disappointment.

I couldn't take it. I turned away from him. After the test, I felt like I hadn't performed well. Something about the feel of it all, his eyes boring into me all while I took the exam, had shaken my core, utterly distracting me.

"Open your binders to the chapter on cryptographic codes and pay attention. You will have another test at the end of the week, and those of you that scored average will need to redeem yourselves to my satisfaction."

My eyes shot to Alex as he spoke, seemingly as if I were the only person he was speaking to, his statement filled with sexual innuendo.

My focus was gone. There was nothing that he said that didn’t feel like a direct threat to me, with sexual connotation thickly laced through it. All of the codes in the binder read like a foreign language with no way of deciphering them. As soon as Alex spoke, explicit thoughts caressed my mind. I’d finally had enough, so I excused myself to go to the restroom.

I rushed into the stall, locked the door and allowed my head to rest against the side wall. This just wasn't me. I wasn't this girl. Alex had gotten into me, figuratively and literally, and turned me upside down, shaking away the girl I once was and replacing me with some wanton creature that was unfamiliar even to me. My thoughts, my dreams, my desires all zeroed in on him and the feel of it all ripped through me, placing me on a steep ledge that left me dangling from the edge, on the verge of falling off and crashing down. As ominous as it was, like a train wreck happening before my eyes, I couldn't pull myself away from it.

I doused a bit of water on my face and dabbed it away with a paper towel before mentally bitch slapping myself to get it together. I walked into the classroom, feeling slightly better than I had before.

After staring at codes for what felt like forever, we were finally excused for lunch. I scurried out of the classroom, hoping to avoid Newsome who I swore was still peering at me every chance he got. Or maybe it was my overactive imagination that had me believing that. Either way, it made me wholly uncomfortable, and I needed a reprieve from it.

I spotted Dalton and made my way over to him.

"Hey. How did do on your test?" His smile was brighter than the blistering sun.

"Ehhh… not so good. I'm average," I joked. "What about you?"

His smile faded. "I was top scorer in my class. Ninety-eight percent."

Guilt seemed to overcome him, almost as if he shouldn't be sharing his good news when I had none to report back in return.

"Congrats, Dalton. And wipe that look off your face. I'll be fine. Just have to buckle down, that's all."

Lane and Hutchins walked over, inviting us out to Subway for lunch. Immediate thoughts of Saturday scraped my mind, taking me back to my pick-up spot as Alex waited for me and looked on from the distance.

"Yeah, I'm starving. Let's go."

We walked to Subway. Lane and Hutchins detailed their test scores and what it was that still had room to work on. I didn’t feel the need to throw around my paltry seventy-four. Compared to their eighties and nineties, I was ponderously pulling up the rear.

Subway was a crowded mess. I guess it was better than a run to the greasy burger joint on base, but it was so packed that it left barely any standing room, let alone anywhere to sit.

This time when the urge to go the restroom hit, I really had to use it. I gave Dalton my order before trying to navigate through the throngs of people, finally getting to the restroom where another crowd awaited me.

As I stood in line, making small talk with another female Marine, a buzz went off in my pocket. I pulled my phone out of the pocket of my cammie pants, fully expecting to find a question from Dalton.

Alex: A 74%? You're better than average. I would know. J I thought about punishing you like Saturday, but you enjoyed that too much.

The innuendo encrypted in his text made my heart race. I looked around at the other females who stood around me, hoping none of them had noticed my flushed skin as I stood staring and grinning at the words on my phone screen.

Me: Just a little bit. So what's the alternative?

Alex: I'm still thinking…

Me: I think my teacher needs to teach me a little more. I learn better in one on one settings.

A couple of minutes went by before he got back to me.

Alex: Hey… text you in a bit. Major Kinsley wants to see me.

For some reason, that last message worried me. It laid ice over my body, freezing me where I stood. Why would the Major want to see him? Had someone leaked something and now he was being confronted with it? I waited, impatiently, on pins and needles, anxiously anticipating his response.

But it never came.

After returning from the restroom, I sat down at one of the outside tables that Dalton, Lane, and Hutchins found, awaiting his reply. I kept checking my phone, lying about wanting to make sure that we gave ourselves enough time to eat and walk back to the schoolhouse, but I was secretly wanting to see another text pop up from Alex.

Maybe he had gotten tied up with something and couldn't respond, but the longer I went with nothing coming back from him, the more impatient I became. I wanted to believe anything other than trouble lurked about, but my mind wouldn't let me. Was he in there being read his rights, and I would be next?  Whatever the case, the thought of it was nauseating, and that was the last thing I needed to do was rile suspicion with unsuspecting people sitting around me.

When we were back at the schoolhouse, I stood outside next to the only pillar that even hinted at a piece of shade. Dalton stood next to me, rambling on about something that I paid no attention to. I glanced down at my phone a few more times, hoping that Alex had responded, and I had somehow missed it.

Still nothing.

I blew out a breath, letting it take my frustrations away, when a new set of annoyances came charging at me. Allen was bragging about being the top scorer on the test. He and his pompous attitude were enough, but now that he'd done something that warranted his overly boisterous bragging, I couldn't deal with it any longer.

I walked away, pinching the bridge of my nose. When I looked up, Alex, Jensen and Newsome were walking up, Castillo not far behind. They were patting Alex on the shoulder and smiling as they walked along.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen," I said out of necessity because not speaking to passing instructors would give Castillo, or even Jensen, ammunition to tear into me. It was also to catch Alex's attention. My voice came out much weaker than I had intended. Jensen and Newsome nodded their heads, acknowledging my greeting. Alex turned his head but gave nothing in return.

I stepped to the side, Castillo's eyes landing on mine. They were dipped in just the perfect amount of venom, trying hard to intimidate me, but I stood my ground, giving it back without being too obvious.

"Good afternoon to you too, Pfc. Bennett," she coldly greeted, the acid in her tone much too obvious.

I wanted to roll my eyes and turn and walk away from her, but the uniform I currently wore prohibited me from doing it. "Good afternoon to you as well, Sgt. Castillo." I couldn't wait to spit her name out. The feel of it rolling off my tongue put a bad taste in my mouth.

She sneered, grinning in such a pretentious manner as she stood with the guys, knowing full well that she was getting under my skin for a reason that couldn't be discussed out in the open. Annoyance took over, leaving my chest in a rampant, heaving mess. It was all I could do to release a bit of steam while still keeping my composure for any unwary eyes.

I looked to Alex, giving him a covert smile, but he simply looked through me as if I didn't exist.

My heart fell. I’d hoped he would look back, give me something to show that he had to put up an act around his colleagues, but he never did. I hated myself for feeling so much with that one little act, but if I had learned anything about nothing to do with me.

I walked back into the classroom dreading the second half of the day. Being encased in four walls with him and his sudden and erratic change in demeanor wasn't a pleasant thought. And I was right. The rest of the day had a very stale aura to it. When I left, he still hadn't looked at me, still hadn't sent any signals to me. I might as well have been just another student in the class to him because that was exactly what I felt like.

Chapter 15

Alex

Avoiding Cassie was harder than I’d imagined.

I thought for sure that if I told myself I could stay away from her, act like she had no effect on me and treat her like any other female Marine, that it'd get done.  Quite the opposite happened.

I was trying to get back on track since I'd been told that I was picked as NCO of the Quarter, and within that brief, minuscule minute, all of my indiscretions came roaring back at me like a rabid animal.

My mind replayed pictures of her. Her heart melting smile, her beautiful, naked body in my hands, those beaming green eyes…

All of it flashed through my head in a continuous cycle that was silently destroying me, but I had to stick to my guns. The more I thought about what we had progressed to, the more I realized just how wrong it all was.

I took my eyes off the ball because I was hell bent on getting a taste of something overly enticing. I should have followed my first instinct to just avoid her because now I was stuck with the fucking guilt of deviating from the Corps, my driving force in life, and putting myself in a predicament that would leave me emotionally exhausted no matter which way I turned.

I'd gotten all of Cassie that I could have ever wanted, and she certainly did not disappoint, but that wasn't the point. The point was that following the needs and wants of my dick, no matter how persuasive it could be, hadn't done me a bit of good. In fact, it had gotten me into more trouble than I'd probably seen in my entire childhood combined.

But I couldn't find the strength to just wash my hands and walk the fuck away.

I lay on my bed late Wednesday night, sifting through the text messages she'd sent me throughout the week with no response. As badly as I wanted to respond, I just couldn’t do it because by responding, I was thrusting myself back into the same spot that had mind fucked me, had ripped my integrity away, and left me worthless.

Cassie: Hey! Is everything okay?

Cassie: Text me to let me know you're good.

Cassie: Ignoring me through text and in person is so cool of you. Not sure what I did, but you shut down quickly. WTF?

Cassie: Well, thanks for being a prick, Alex.

The self-restraint I had somehow lost the second my eyes landed on Cassie had come back to me. As much as I wanted to respond, to even pick up the phone, call her, hear her soft and sensual voice, or even just listen to the light breaths leaving her delectable mouth, I just couldn’t do it.

Had I been everything I was supposed to be since meeting her? Fuck no. I had turned into quite the opposite, and I had no choice but to find myself, the old Alex, the overly motivated and gung-ho Alex, who let nothing come between me and the mission. Never before had I been tempted to such extremes and failed so miserably.

So why was finding myself killing me in the process? Had I become someone else? The answers to those questions didn't come easily. They played with my head, dangling me over a cliff, threatening to drop me with no help in sight. I was lost…lost without a soul around to help me through it.

A hard knock pounded on my bedroom door.

"Hey, man. Riley threw some steaks on the grill. Come and get some before we eat it all."

I fixed my hardened gaze on Jensen, not saying a word before his face scrunched.

"What the fuck, man? You got some incredible news. What's wrong with you? You've been coming home, locking yourself back here for the past few days."

My expression didn’t change. He was a serious source of contention for me. And even if things between us were back to being civil, deep inside I still harbored a bit of animosity towards him.

"Fuck it. If you want some, you know where to go."

He closed the door, leaving me to fester in my shit stain mood and billowing anger. This wasn't a good mixture, and I felt like at any moment I was going to combust, violently.

The next morning, standing in front of the class, I worked hard on the training that I had been giving myself for the past few days. I figured out how to scan the room without allowing my eyes to land directly on Cassie. If I did, it would be the end of me. I couldn't take looking at her because by looking at her, I knew I was only inviting myself to take the route back to self-destruction and that was the last thing I needed.

Or so I thought.

"Because so many of you performed less than exceptional on the last test, we have a bit of an incentive for you. Hopefully this will wake your asses up. I don’t want any of you in any unit with me, in combat, with average scores tagged onto your ass. If people can't communicate, we lose fellow Marines. You need to know your shit. You understand that?"

"Yes, Sergeant," the class called out. Cassie's voice, as soft and fragile as it could be at times, stood out amongst all of the rest. I tried blocking it out, not wanting it to seep in and knock me off my post again.

Sgt. Newsome stepped forward, giving the details for the challenge.

"Alright," he said, clapping his hands together, "the person who has the highest average for this last test and the next two coming up before the field training op, will be pulled from the duty rotation."

Chatter began to fill the room as excited and eager faces lit up at the prospect of escaping a night of duty.

As soon as the word duty hit my ears, my last duty night came crashing back into me. That night, the risk, the sweet reward, and the utter frustration at the end of it...it swept in like a tidal wave, taking my focus away from everything else in that moment.

I stole a quick glance in her direction, knowing ahead of time that I shouldn't have, but did it anyway. She was looking at me, not with the same desire that usually shone through her sex craving eyes, but with something more along the lines of emptiness. She didn’t look sad, but she wasn't as vibrant as she normally was.

Damn!

I fucking hated myself all over again. I did this. Not only was I hurting myself, but I was also hurting the only girl who had taken me, shook me, and claimed me. All because I was a selfish bastard.

After speaking to Jensen and Newsome, I walked out of the classroom. There was no way I was going to be able to stand in there one second longer without losing my shit. As I walked out, passing just a row over from where Cassie sat, I caught a whiff of that restraint breaking vanilla aroma, and it sent my mind into overdrive. I picked up the pace, plowing through the door and stomping down to my office before I turned around and really punished myself.

Unfortunately, later that night, I was stuck with inspecting the rooms on Cassie's floor. As soon as I found out the others had already divvied up their assignments, frustration tore through me like a jackknife. I was either the world's biggest asshole, and I deserved the torment that came with having to see her in every location possible, or my attempts at staying away from her were unrealistic and an utter waste of time. Either way, having to see her so close to me and not being able to touch her was unnecessary misery.

After inspecting the room directly next door to hers, I gathered myself before turning for her room. No way was I going to walk in there, unprepared and fail myself. I swallowed, took a couple of deep breaths, then confidently walked into her room, greeting her and Ruiz on the way in.

"Good evening, ladies."

"Good evening, Sergeant," they both responded, the sweetness of Cassie's voice nowhere to be found.

I averted her eyes on my way in. No way could I look into them and find anything other than happiness, joy, and want. Her indifference was a silent killer, even if she had no idea.

I did a quick sweep, definitely not as thorough as I would normally do. I just couldn’t stay in her room any longer. Thoughts of moonlight on her sun-kissed body, my lips on her, her lips on me-- all of it was much too vivid, and I couldn’t handle looking at it any longer.

"Good job, ladies," I mumbled as I walked out of the room, looking at Ruiz but deliberately avoiding Cassie.

Confusion filled Ruiz's face, but she calmly responded, "Thank you, Sergeant."

I walked out of the room, my bitch card hanging low before me, letting me know just how far I had fallen. All I could think about was going home and drowning in a twelve pack.

And as soon as field day was over, that was exactly what I did.

Waking up the next morning, I dressed in my Service Charlies with little enthusiasm for the day. Friday should have been a welcomed day. It brought the weekend and free time, but too much free time was too much time to think, and lately my thoughts were chipping away at my wall of restraint.

"You ready, man?" Jensen asked, standing in the kitchen, fully dressed after having woken up early and doing a rather intense workout session. I heard his ass in the garage and thought about joining him, but nixed that idea rather quickly. I didn't want conversation getting too deep with him.

I looked at him but didn’t respond.

Riley came strolling in, a Red Bull in his hands. I grabbed it from him, popped the top, and polished that bitch off in one long gulp.

"Fuck, dude. You look like you needed that, but asking would've been cool."

"Shut up, Riley," I muttered, moving about the kitchen and looking for the coffee pot.

I was not a coffee drinker, but when an entire night of restlessness took over, I needed something, anything to get me through the day. I stood in front of the sink, filling the pot, when I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the window. My eyes were damn near bloodshot, heavy bags sitting underneath, and a scowl looking like a permanent fixture. This was all courtesy of Cassie and the hold she had on me. Moving away from her was supposed to be the right thing to do, but every day that I stayed away, my body felt like the punishment was growing larger and larger.

By the time I got to the schoolhouse, I’d had two full mugs of coffee. That coupled with the Red Bull, and I finally felt like I was energized enough to make it through my day, but I knew that the looming crash was coming. No sleep and all caffeine didn’t look promising for me.

Before getting the day started, I darted off to the bathroom, throwing handfuls of water on my face, hoping that I looked somewhat presentable as I was scheduled to be in front of damn near the entire schoolhouse this morning. After looking myself over, I took the fuck it approach. So what if I looked like I had drank all night and gotten no sleep because that was, in fact, exactly what I had done. And if anyone had shit to say about it, then they were probably going to be on the receiving end of a very belligerent asshole.

Because that was exactly what I was feeling like.

As I walked out and stood before the throngs of Marines, from all different companies, I thought it would be best to fill my head with mindless chatter. It was all I could do to make time pass by as we stood, awaiting the Company Commander and the Commanding Officer. My eyes drifted in and out of the endless rows of Charlie clad bodies standing at attention, and all of their eyes focused on where I stood. I kept telling myself not to look for Cassie, but I did it anyway, picking her out almost immediately. As soon as our eyes locked, my throat began to close up from the sneer that she gave me. Voices echoed in my head, and I realized that the ceremony had begun.

"Good morning, Marines," Colonel Davis called out.

"Good morning, Sir," the crowd replied in perfect unison.

I watched Cassie. Her mouth moved so smoothly, and all I could imagine were my lips on hers, her lips on my cock, running them up and down in that soft and delicate fashion that only she knew how to do.

"This morning, we are here to recognize one of the finest Marines working for the battalion.  Not only has Sgt. Alejandro Cruz been selected for Staff Sergeant, but he has also been names NCO of the Quarter. We couldn’t have picked a more deserving individual."

He turned away from the crowd, now facing me.

"Sgt. Cruz, on behalf of the battalion, I want to thank you for your selfless service and dedication to training these young Marines to the best of your ability. You are a shining example of what a Marine Corps NCO should be, and we are thankful and grateful to have you."

"Oorah!" someone yelled from the crowd, the universal, motivational congratulatory call. A few more followed before Colonel Davis signaled Major Kinsley to step forth, silencing them all.

"I want every Marine, veteran and new, to take a look at this fine Sergeant standing before you. As Marines, we pride ourselves on integrity, great moral character, as well as performing the duties of our job. Sergeant Cruz, you have shown your high dedication to training our future Communications Marines while guiding them on the ins and out, rights and wrongs of the Marine Corps. Your impending promotion is highly deserving. Thank you for your service, and congratulations on all of your accomplishments."

The Major's and Colonel's words gutted me, leaving me hanging from a very sharp hook. How they could stand there and say the things they said without knowing the real and true me was devastating. Not only was I nothing like their perceptions, but I had willingly strayed and become anything but a model Marine, less known a fucking NCO of the Quarter. Bile rose in my throat, heat flashed through me, and my legs had begun to tingle. Passing out was surely coming, and mixed with the previous night's twelve pack, this morning's Red Bull, and the two mugs of coffee, I only hoped it would remove me from my misery.

What should have been a very momentous occasion had turned into a fucking nightmare. My conscience wasn't sitting well with the idea of all of these Marines looking at me as something that I was not. I couldn’t have fallen further from the tree, and the guilt accompanied with the words, the looks of admiration, and the pride from my higher ups were pushing me further and further towards the ledge.

Major Kinsley signaled for me to step over to where he and Colonel Davis stood. Colonel Davis handed me a plaque. The feel of it in my hands was like holding molten lava, scorching me, begging me to drop it where I stood. I had to pull my shit together and stand there, pretending to be proud of what everyone thought I was.

I stood between the two, smiling as the photographer from the base newspaper snapped our picture. I looked fucked up, and I felt much of the same. I didn’t deserve shit, but I couldn't tell them that. Not without openly tarnishing my reputation. Deep inside, the guilt was destroying me much more than anything they could ever do to me anyway.

After the ceremony, the Marines mingled with one another before heading into classrooms for the day. I caught sight of Cassie hanging out with Dalton and the two other kids from the bowling alley. She looked back at me from time to time, her eyes slicing through me, making me feel even less. As much as I wanted to be rid of her, I still wanted her, and it was that conflict of emotions that seemed to be eating me alive.

"…so you down tonight or what, NCO of the Quarter?" Jensen's voice brought me back.

I looked around the circle, my eyes landing on Riley who looked like his cat had just died. Jensen and Newsome stared at me questioningly but didn’t say anything.

"What’s that? I must have spaced out."

"The Tavern tonight. We're taking you out to celebrate."

"Oh. Naw, I'm good."

"Fuck that," Jensen said. "I don't know what the fucks going on with you, but you've been a fucking recluse all this week. It's time to get your ass out and about. And this is the perfect excuse to do it."

I shook my head, much too emotionally drained and physically exhausted to argue.

"Whatever, man." I rubbed my hand over my face, shutting my eyes, wishing all of this shit would just go away.

"Good. Tonight at seven. Everyone's going."

Before Jensen could say anything further I walked off, passing Cassie and her crew while my insides twisted, sending me into silent agony.

When I walked into the schoolhouse building, the front photo board already held my picture under the NCO of the Quarter slot, next to all of the unit higher ups. The guilt was thick, acting as the anchor that held me under water with no way of getting any air. I needed this day to end so I could get away and drink myself into a drunken stupor.

The rest of the day dragged, prolonging the torment within me. Even during test time, while the students were hard at work, my mind drifted to Cassie. The last test she'd scored well below expectation, and I couldn’t help but hope that she had regained her footing and done well on this one.

Guilt hit me from all angles—unrelenting and powerful, sucker punches to the gut, over and over again. I knew then that my relief would be found at the bottom of an empty tequila bottle, so as soon as the students were released for the day, I hurried my ass out of there, went home, and downed the last of my Cuervo before passing out.

When I woke up, Riley was standing over me, looking worried as all hell.

"Hey, man," he said, his voice low and timid.

I looked at him, trying hard to focus but failing miserably.

"We're about ready to go. I don’t know though, maybe you should stay home."

"No. I need to go. I’ll be ready in like ten."

He sighed. "Look. I know what this--"

"Riley, I'll be ready," I sternly countered. I didn’t need him filling me in on the obvious.

In ten minutes, just as I had said, I was ready and walking out the door. The little bit of sleep that I’d caught helped and all I could think about was getting the leftover thoughts of Cassie out of my head. For the first time since these plans had been made, I finally found some enjoyment in the night.

Riley drove all of us in my truck since it was biggest and comfortably sat all of us. He volunteered to be the DD, leaving me with no limitations on just how piss poor drunk I could get drowning out the residual thoughts of my very own kryptonite.

The Tavern was packed. Next to Coyotes, it was our second favorite hang-out spot. It was a little larger than Coyotes but was lacking the vibrant feel. It didn’t really matter to me because I planned to be carried out by the time we left. Eliminating Cassie from my thoughts was my goal, and if it took five drinks or fifteen, I was going to make that happen.

Smith ordered the first round, holding up his shot glass and belting out, "To Alex, NCO of the motherfucking quarter."

"Oorah," Jensen and Newsome hollered, before throwing back their shots and slamming the glasses down on the table.

I threw mine back and quickly called for another, throwing that back before Castillo and Collins walked up with two more.

"Well, hell. We're late to the party," Castillo said, grinning at me and handing over another.

"Well deserved, Alex," Collins said, smiling as well.

There wasn't enough alcohol in my system to take their compliments, so I took the other shot in Castillo's hands and downed that one too. Her hooded eyes bore into me, prompting Riley to tap me on the shoulder.

"Dude, I know what you're doing. Slow down."

"Fuck off, Riley," I growled, throwing his hand off of me. "I'm here to celebrate, right? This is how we do it."

He didn't look offended. Instead, apprehension filled his face. I didn’t care. Riley had no fucking clue what I was grappling with, and I wasn't about to fill him in on anything.

Another round came out, and this time Jensen lifted his glass while yelling out, "Every motherfucking Marine in here needs to come say hello and congratulate my friend, Alex. It's a pleasure serving next to you, brother. Probably one of the best fucking Marines I've ever met."

Loud "oorahs" filled the room, making me smile. The tequila was finally settling and doing exactly what I needed it to do. I threw the shot back, blowing out a deep breath after allowing it to ooze down my throat.

"You deserve some pussy, man. This one is perfect."

Some random brunette— leggy, and tan—stepped out from behind Jensen. She smiled, but it did nothing for me. I couldn’t find anything special about her. But then again, I just needed to forget about Cassie, so she would probably do the trick.

"I'm Taylen," she said, her eyes raking me over, begging to be fucked.

She sat down on my lap, a fruity drink in her hand as she leaned down and whispered in my ear, "You wanna fuck me, Alex?"

I stared back at her, trying to figure out if I wanted to or not. A part of me wanted to say "Hell yes," run her off somewhere, and bang Cassie out of my system. Another part of me knew I'd regret it, so I smiled and lifted my hand to play with her hair.

"I might, Taylen," I answered, not giving a definitive answer.

She laughed and put her drink to my mouth, pouring it down my throat. I licked my lips afterwards, taking in the residual fruity flavor, when Taylen leaned down and kissed the fuck out of me. For such a small girl, she had power behind her lips and tongue, and I liked it.

Or did I?

Whatever I was feeling, her tongue was winning out, and I forgot all about the conflicting thoughts swirling around in my head and just went with it. Shockingly, my cock didn’t jump, didn’t twitch… nothing. Her kiss did nothing to incite it, but I ignored that and dug my tongue deeper into her mouth.

"Come up for some fuckin' air, bro. And a drink," Newsome said, tapping me on the shoulder and handing over what smelled like a Captain and Coke.

"Thanks, man."

"I'm Taylen," she said, holding out her hand for Newsome. He took it, kissing the top of it before saying, "I kind of like this fucker, so let him breathe every now and then."

She laughed-- a laugh very similar to what had hooked me with Cassie.

"I need another drink, man."

It was almost as if he had read my mind before even delivering the first drink. Another Captain and Coke was placed in my hands. I drank that one just as quickly as the first, Taylen's hands all over my chest, snaking under my shirt, her tongue gliding over her teeth.

We sat for a while longer, Castillo's eyes catching mine from the opposite side of the bar every now and then. She was off talking to some guy, but paying little to no attention to anything he had to say. A few times I caught the pucker of her lips, like she wanted to yank Taylen off of me and take her place. I had no intention of going down that route.

"You ready to fuck me yet, Alex?" Taylen's voice was whiny, and with the excess amounts of alcohol in my system, it was grating my nerves.

"I'm always ready to fuck," I told her. "I'll fuck just about any girl in here tonight."

The gleam in her eyes quickly faded.

"I'm not just any girl."

"You are to me," I quickly countered.

She jumped off of my lap and slammed her hand down on the table.

"You're a fucking asshole. Fuck Marines."

"Naw. I'll pass," I told her, smiling as her face contorted through her anger.

I laughed, not giving a damn about her temper tantrum. She stormed off, finding her friends and pointing over to me before walking out of the bar.

I stood, wobbling for a second before finally catching my balance. I walked to the bathrooms, needing to piss and feeling like I could do it anywhere, but had enough common sense left in me to not do so.

When I walked out, Castillo was sitting at my table, involved in a heavy conversation with Collins. They quieted as I walked up. I took my seat and leaned in, hoping to engage them on whatever they were discussing.

"Ladies, what’s going on?"

"We should be asking you that," Castillo said, winking at me. "Where'd your little girl toy go?"

"Yeah. I thought you were well on your way to getting a piece of that groupie, Alex," Collins said, chuckling a little.

"Groupie?"

"Um, yeah. Didn't you see the tan line on her ring finger?" Castillo asked then took a sip of her drink.

I threw my head back, exhaling out the frustration of what I had almost done.

"I'll be right back." I stood and walked over to ask Newsome for a cigarette, even though I wasn't a smoker.

"You don't smoke, man."

Before he could say anything else, I glared harshly at him, looking like I could viciously attack at any second. He reached in his pocket and pulled out his pack of smokes, patting it in his hand.

I took it and the lighter that he was holding, then walked outside and lit it up. The feel of the burn as it hit my chest pained me, but I was wound so tightly I needed to finish it. I hoped that it would calm even the slightest part of me down.

About halfway through the cigarette, Castillo came walking outside, a cigarette in her hand.

"Mind my company?" she asked.

I shook my head, taking a long drag of the cigarette before blowing out a mouthful of smoke.

"Sorry to freak you out. I just know how much you hate groupies."

"Thanks."

We stood smoking in silence, the cars whizzing by on the pitch black Hwy 62 the only sound to be heard. When I finished, I felt sick. The mixture of too much alcohol and a cigarette had put me in a bad place. I felt like at any minute I could throw up, and if I didn’t get a quiet place to sit down, I was sure it would happen.

"I'm going back in to get the keys from Riley. I need to chill out for a minute."

"You don't need to go back in. I have my keys. You can chill out in my Jeep."

She pulled the keys out of her pocket, dangling them before me as she smiled wickedly at me.

The chance to lie down never sounded so good, so I followed her out to her Jeep and slowly sat down in the passenger seat before lying back and shutting my eyes. Castillo moved around to the driver's side, hopping in and letting the windows down.

I began to drift when her voice woke me.

"What's the deal, Alex?"

"What do you mean?" I asked, my eyes still closed as the warm desert night air hit me.

"You know what I mean. You and Bennett. Some people might be blind or oblivious, but I see it."

That woke me up. My eyes shot open, and panic flared in my chest, but I couldn’t let her see any of it. I kept my head turned away from her, not willing to let her read my expression.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Leti."

She laughed.

"Bullshit, Alex. I'm not fucking stupid." She paused, waiting for a response that I wouldn’t give.

She leaned over, her moist lips on the tip of my ear.

"I know there's something, but I also know I can do so much more." Her tongue reached out, lightly skimming me ear.

The move did something to me. What it was, I couldn’t place. I turned my head, lazily looking at her through beer-goggled eyes.

"Bennett seems like a nice girl. For someone else. You need these Latin hips and lips."

Cassie's face came thrashing back in my head. The pain it brought with it was worse than the headache that had somehow filtered in. The joy of looking at her was overshadowed by the sting of her beautiful eyes staring into me. I needed to get rid of her quickly.

Castillo turned in the seat and leaned toward me. She made quick work of my belt and pants, snaking her hands inside my boxer briefs. I inhaled, relishing the feel of a feminine hand on my dick. She stroked me, finally getting me hard and erect since her presence and touch alone wasn't enough to make it happen. If this was how I was going to get rid of Cassie, then so be it. Any chick would do the trick, and apparently I wasn't too picky about who it was.

She lay down, placing her mouth on my cock, her moist walls clamping down like a tight suction cup. My eyes shut as I bit down on my bottom lip. I placed my hands in her hair, grabbing hold of it while she started slow and meticulous sucks, moving her head up and down. I lifted my hips, hoping to get more of her around me, even if almost all of me was halfway down her throat.

She quickly switched to sloppy sucks, the sounds of her tongue lapping up my shaft barreling into my ears, annoying the fuck out of me.

"Suck," I commanded, needing her to take all of my frustrations away.

She obeyed, returning to the sucks that had left me speechless. I shoved my cock farther into her mouth, but the sound of her gag stopped me from going as far as I wanted to go. In that moment, Cassie came back to mind, and her impressive ability to deep throat without so much as the slightest gag.

My conscience finally whacked me upside the head. I realized that as much as I wanted to rid myself of Cassie, it wasn't going to happen tonight, and it damn sure wasn't going to happen like this.

I yanked on her hair, pulling her mouth off of me.

"What?" she asked breathlessly.

"I'm done."

"No, we aren't."

"Yes, I am," I growled, further pushing her head away.

I put my shit back into my pants, opened the door and stepped out. I looked back at her and mumbled, "I'm sorry. I can't do this."

She looked back at me, confusion and anger piercing through her eyes and filling her face.

As I was standing and zipping up my pants, I caught Riley in the distance looking out to me. I didn't say another word to Castillo as I walked away, back in the direction of the bar.

"What the fuck, man?" Riley asked. He looked like he was ready to beat my ass, and in my inebriated state, I was sure he could do it.

"Don’t fucking start with me, Riley."

He stepped in front of me and pushed me up against the wall. Anger hit me as I fought him off, but with my intoxication he was much too strong for me.

"You're a fucking idiot, Alex. You fucked Bennett and fell for her. Okay, big fucking deal. Yes, the rules of the Corps make it very costly, but it is what it is. You've been a fucking prick ever since finding out about NCO of the Quarter and now this-- Castillo."

I stood glaring at him while he spilled out everything for me in black and white.

"You can't run from your feelings for her, and fucking anything with a pussy isn't going to get her out of your system. Wake the fuck up, man. She's into you, and she’s feeling the effects of your fucking stupidity."

"You better shut your fucking mouth, Riley. You have no idea what you're talking about," I seethed. Pure malice was hidden under my words, but it was truly aimed at me. Riley was dead on, but I didn't want to admit it.

"Who are you kidding? Do you not remember that I was the one you originally confided in? Figure it out with her, Alex, but not like this. Not like this, brother."

I felt weak. I felt spent. I felt dirty and ashamed. Through fighting my allegiance to the Corps, my feelings for Cassie and my own guilt-ridden mind, I was spiraling out of control and hating every second of it.

Riley walked me out to my truck and helped me into the passenger seat.

"I'm letting the guys know you're sick, and I'm taking you home. I'll come back for them."

"Don’t say that shit. I'm not sick."

"Yes you are. Even if it's not physical."

He shut the door and took off into the darkness, headed back for the bar entrance. Turning my head to the side, I watched Castillo fix herself as she walked back towards the bar. The thought of her hands and mouth on my dick sickened me all over again. I couldn’t stand the thought of what I had done and how stupidly I had tried to erase Cassie from my mind. She was embedded in me, and for better or for worse, I wanted and needed her.

I thrust the door open, leaning my head out just in time as puke erupted from my mouth, crashing down on the gravel below. My body felt like it had been run over by a seven ton, and all of the aches and pains that accompanied it were well deserved. I couldn’t believe how senseless I had acted, and how low I had sunk. I didn't deserve Cassie, but I wanted her so badly.

Chapter 16

Cassie

Friday was a nightmare.

On the one hand, I was proud of Alex for his accomplishment, but also pissed at him for completely ignoring me. His words came creeping back into my head, how he had no intention of fucking and running. Well, the more I looked back at what had transpired between us, the more I believed that was precisely what he had done.

Alex was the model Marine, but he was also a shitty person, and sometimes the two went hand in hand. Thoughts of the things we had done, the loving and protective way that he'd come to my defense when confronted with potential issues...it hadn’t dawned on me that he was hiding his true self. Of course, I should have known better. I was now, that girl, and rather than cry about it, I wanted to kick my own ass for it.

Angelica stayed in the room all night, making everything completely awkward. I had no drive to get out of my bed after the school day, so I stayed tucked in, reading the study manual for the radio system that we would be tested on the following week. The challenge presented to us in class was music to my ears. A whole seventy-two, to myself? I couldn't think of anything better, and I was determined to win it.

Dalton came over but didn't stay long. He wanted to head out to the free concert put on by the Marine band at The General's Lawn, but amped up music and smiling faces just didn’t seem like the right place for me to be. I was also afraid that since it was a military event, I would run into Alex and feel the weight of a boulder on my chest again. I wasn't one to whine, but seeing him struck me with pain, and since I had to see him during the regular work/school day, I needed to avoid him anyway that I could.

Angelica's cell phone woke me early Saturday morning. I'd planned on sleeping in since sleep seemed to be the only time I got any peace, but she gave no courtesy to me sleeping in the bed right next to her. Instead, she answered, laughing and talking loudly while I tossed and turned, hoping she would get the hint. When she did finally leave, I had the hardest time going back to sleep, so I got up, threw on some workout clothes, and went out on the same run that Dalton and I had done before. If I was going to inflict pain on myself, I wanted it to be done by doing something good to my body, not sabotaging it.

The rising sun creeping over the mountains hit me and poured just a tiny bit of pick me up into my soul. It felt good, all eighty or so degrees of it. The morning air, warm and slightly humid, brought a refreshing aura with it. I definitely needed it. My week had been filled with doubts and lingering questions. There was also the fear that I could be reported and destroyed, and it all hung over me like a dangling noose. It was about time to rid myself of it. If Alex didn't want to continue on with me, then I damn sure wasn't about to be hung up and worried about him.

I ran all the way back to the barracks. If Alex had done anything good with me, the anger he fueled gave me the determination to push through one of my least favorite activities--running. I looked at my watch just as I approached the building, seeing that I had shaved a good two minutes from the last time I tried this route. Exhausted joy coursed through me. I finally felt as if I was getting back to being me.

When I made my way to the stairs, I peeked into the duty room and found Dalton standing there in workout clothes, speaking to the Corporal on duty. He turned his head and noticed me, hollering, "Hey, Bennett, wait up."

I stopped, waiting on the bottom step as he came waltzing out, his everlasting smile still plastered on his face.

"You were so out of it last night, I wasn't sure you'd be up and out before noon."

"Yeah, well, when Cruella Deville is your roommate, your sleep runs on her schedule."

He laughed, and I found the energy to do it too.

"I'm heading to the chow hall in about a half hour. You want to go with me? Make up for our breakfast that got cancelled?"

His smile grew larger, and I was weakened. Even if I’d wanted to turn him down, I couldn't do so.

"Meet me at my room in a half hour. And this time, avoid any instructors lurking around here."

"Alright. See ya in a bit."

Dalton went back into the duty room, and I jogged up the stairs. When I reached my room, I looked over the balcony and found Angelica off in the parking lot, talking and laughing with what looked like Castillo. Bile rose in my throat as I watched two people who loathed me, befriending one another. Their exchanges looked so natural. It shouldn't have shocked me since both of them seemed to come with about as much venom as a poisonous snake. The desert was a fitting environment for them, and it was only natural that they found one another.

I shook them off and walked into my room, hurrying to the bathroom and hopping into the shower before Angelica came back and tried to bulldoze her way in front of me. Since Alex confronted her, she hadn't had much to say, but her pettiness was growing and I really had no desire to deal with it.

I washed my hair, remembering the feel of Alex's hand running through it. Even though I knew I needed to forget about him, it was so hard to do. The slightest of things constantly reminded of him, pulling me back into that place that was full of anger, hurt, and bitterness. I hurried through my hair washing, scrubbed my body, then got out. The sooner I was occupied, the better.

"Good morning, Cassie," Angelica said with too much sweetness. Her eyes thinned into snake-like slits. I knew she was up to no good.

"Good morning, Angelica," I dryly replied. I found no reason to be fake and put on a show with her. I didn't like her, and she knew it.

"Are you done in the bathroom? I need to shower after that intense kickboxing session this morning."

She studied my face, almost as if she were looking for a response from me, but I kept my cool and didn’t give her one. If I had learned anything from my very short time in the Corps, it was how to grow a thick skin when it came to petty bitches.

I brushed past her, moving over to my side of the room without responding to her unwanted information. There wasn't anything that could come out of her mouth that I needed nor wanted to hear.

"You know Sgt. Castillo and Sgt. Cruz have something, right?" Her voice elevated the further into the bathroom she walked. The sound of her footsteps stopped, right along with my breath.

She poked her head out of the bathroom, prompting me to turn to my wall locker and gather the things out of it that I needed. She didn't deserve a reaction from me, and I had no reason to give her one.

"Go ahead and play high and mighty, Cassie, but your boy Cruz is a manipulator. I overheard her talking about it. They all went out to celebrate last night, and he fucked her in her Jeep." She paused, stepping further out and staring at me.

I could feel the intensity of her gaze, burning into me like solar flares. What the hell was she up to? There was nothing for me to be mad and upset about if two Marines found each other attractive and acted on it. Alex and I were not an item, and if he wanted to dig into the trash for his next fuck, then so be it.

Only, I couldn’t make myself believe that.

Of course, I had a reason to be upset. Couple or not, he was fucking wrong if this were true. But I had to consider the source. Ever since Alex went for me at Coyotes, Angelica had turned into a first class bitch, and seeing me suffer seemed to be all that she was after.

I laughed her off.

"Well, that's nice. I hope it was good." The words were like deep cuts, slicing their way through me. It hurt saying that shit, even if it was just a front.

"Okay, Cassie. We both know you and Cruz had something going on. The fact that he would fuck another chick in our immediate circle says a lot about him."

"You know, Angelica, you have too much time on your hands. You've been trying to stick it to me ever since that night at Coyotes. It was a dance, that's it. But, I can't help but wonder if all of this is just your childish way of screaming that you're pissed you didn't get picked."

Her eyes lost their gleam, instead rocketing daggers at me.

"I guess I should warn your new buddy, Castillo that she better watch out. You don’t play nice when you don't get what you want, and it's obvious that Sgt. Cruz is what you want."

Her mouth tightened as her chest heaved furiously. I had hit a nerve, but it was only fitting because she had hit one with me. I hated that she could get under my skin with something that shouldn't have mattered, and probably wasn't even true, but she had. And in order to make her back the hell up, I had to go for the jugular.

And it felt good.

She turned around and walked back into the bathroom, slamming the door with all her might. A small victory had been won, but I was sure that a larger battle was lurking ahead.

About fifteen minutes later, Dalton came knocking on my door. His blond hair neatly styled, while mine was thrown into a damp ponytail.

"You ready?" he cheerfully asked, stepping into the doorway and holding the door open for me.

"Hell yes. Get me out of here."

"What happened?"

"Do you even need to ask?"

I stepped out of the room and waited as he shut the door.

We walked to the chow hall with minimal conversation. Dalton would comment on the weather, the passing birds, or even the cars in the parking lot-- anything to keep from walking in utter silence. I answered, trying to be polite, but I couldn't carry on the conversation. I was boiling—angry at so many people and unable to figure any sort of way of dealing with it.

We walked in and grabbed our food, then sat down at the first available table. I played with my food while my mind darted back to Alex, Angelica, and Castillo.

"Earth to Cassie." He waved his hand in front of me, breaking me from my daydream.

"Cassie? You never call me that."

"Well, I had to get your attention somehow. And anyway, I like your first name better. What the heck is going on with you? And don't tell me nothing because I'm no idiot."

I exhaled a deep breath. I did not want to go into the ins and outs of everything that was irking me. I didn't want Dalton to know what I had been up to. I didn’t want him looking at me differently.

"I'm just sick of Angelica and her petty shit, that's all. I keep thinking about how much longer I have to live with her, and it's starting to really bother me."

"Well, you could always ask for a different room assignment."

"And cave to that bitch? I don't think so."

He smiled and lightly shook his head. My answer seemed to placate him, and that was all I really needed. I wasn't about to delve into my transgressions in a military chow hall where ears were as wide as the days were long.

I picked over my food, eating very little before I was ready to head back to my room and dig back into my study manual. Dalton put me on his back and ran us all the way back, finally giving me a reason to laugh. I hadn't joyously laughed in what felt like forever. Not since Alex had hastily checked out. When we got back to the room, Angelica was gone.

Thankfully.

Dalton followed me in, plopping down on my bed as I grabbed my manual and sat down next to him. His eyes bore into me, but I kept my head down, trying to ignore the fact that I knew so much more was coming.

"Cassie, talk to me."

I didn't look up from my manual. Instead, I turned the page and tried to focus even harder.

"I can only imagine you hate living with Angelica, but that's not the end of it. And I wasn't going to push you to talk in a crowded chow hall, but now it's us. Talk to me." His voice was a soft plea, and it cut down to my bones.

I felt awful for leaving him in the dark, especially since he had dug into his closet and shared deeply personal information. I’d never had a shoulder to lean on, a confidant, a real friend. I looked at him and found nothing but compassion in his eyes. The longer he looked at me, the weaker I became.

"You haven't been yourself all week. I've been worried, but I didn't want to push you."

"I've been fine. Have you seen me crying?"

"People don't have to cry to show their hurt, Cassie. What's going on with you?"

I stood. Walking to the bathroom, I internally debated telling him or not. Before I could come to a conclusion, he spoke again, this time jolting me back into reality.

"This has something to do with Sgt. Cruz, doesn't it?"

Prickles shot up all over my arms as the hair on the nape of my neck stood at attention. I didn’t want to turn around and face him, but standing there like a statue was just as incriminating, so I finally turned and looked into his eyes.

"What makes you say that?" I meekly asked, hoping to fend him off.

"Well, by your reaction, I would say I'm right. And anyway, we're friends. I've gotten to know you well since combat training, and I can read you. I'm pretty good at that, you know."

The smile he gave, and the sincerity in his eyes, cracked me. I couldn’t stand to lie to him any longer, or omit anything that I knew was already true.

"Yes. This has to do with Cruz," I finally said, feeling the weight of the world leave my shoulders with every word.

He patted my bed, scooting over and making room for me to sit down.

"What happened?"

I filled him in on everything. From the night we met at Coyotes, to the formation, clear up until Alex's sudden mood change. The information had been stored in me like a stuffed box, ready to burst. I never thought I’d be so relieved to tell someone about what was going on between me and my instructor, but I was, and Dalton was supportive. He pulled me into a hug, holding me close while he rested his chin on the top of my head.

"You poor thing. Why didn't you tell me? I can't even imagine having to walk around holding all of that in."

"I was scared. We can lose so much if this gets out."

"I know that, but seriously, you have to have an outlet."

I pulled away from him, wanting to look into the only friendly face in my life at the moment.

"So what happened with Angelica this morning? Because between making breakfast plans and meeting up, you were different, and not in a good way."

"I guess I'm not the hard ass I think I am, huh?"

"Nope."

I scooted back on my bed, crossing me legs Indian style while facing him.

"Well, Alex hasn't spoken to me in over a week. Okay, whatever. But I saw Angelica in the parking lot with Sgt. Castillo this morning, and when she came back up here she was telling me that all of the instructors went out last night to celebrate Alex's NCO of the Quarter award--"

He laughed.

"Can I just say it's super weird for me to hear him being referred to as Alex? That's all. Go on."

I smiled at him, realizing that it was probably a little weird since we typically went by rank and last name.

"Sorry. Anyway, she let me know that according to Sgt. Castillo, she and Sgt. Cruz," I emphasized his name, "fucked in her Jeep last night."

"What the hell? Do you believe her?"

"I don’t want to. Angelica and Castillo have nothing but hate for me. I wouldn't put it past them to come up with some shit to try and catch me...or break me."

"Hmmm. Well, I think you should just be forth coming and ask him."

"He won't respond to me. And I don’t really think I should. We aren’t together. We've never been a couple, so what's the point? If he wants to fuck everything walking, that's his right."

"But what about you? I know you're looking at it as just fucking, but from everything you've just told me, I think it’s a little more than that."

He had me.

He had me pegged, and I absolutely hated it.

"Look. I saw you happy, probably the happiest I have ever seen you while your little cat and mouse game was going on, but now you’re the lowest I've ever seen you. So, I think you owe it to yourself to at least try and find your footing where he's concerned."

"I'm not chasing anyone."

"No one said chase. But you should definitely ask. At least put the rumor to rest."

"I've tried contacting him. He won't respond. There's nothing else I can do."

"I bet if you were blunt with it, he'd respond."

His words blared out like a neon sign. Of course being direct would back him into a corner, and I’d seen Alex backed into a corner. He got aggressive. But if I was going to put my mind at ease, I had to do it.

"You're right. Hand me my phone please."

I took my phone from Dalton and typed out a text to Alex.

Chapter 17

Alex

Cassie: You ditched me and started something up with Castillo? Way to not fuck and run, Alex.

Her text woke me out of my drunken stupor. Last night had been an awful idea.

Fuck!

And now, somehow Cassie knew about, or at least she’d heard about what happened between me and Castillo. The only person who could have told her would have been Castillo herself, and it infuriated me. I didn't want her anywhere near Cassie, and I certainly didn't want her throwing that fucking mistake in her face.

I read the text message a few times, thinking about how their interaction must have gone, and grew more and more angry by the second. Of all the people to be completely and utterly stupid with, why the fuck did I have to do it with Castillo? Why did I have to be stupid in the first place?

My heart was racing with every thought. I knew I still wanted Cassie, but how could I have her and keep my standing in the Marine Corps? Even after she graduated, people would look at the situation funny, knowing I had met her through school. The way I would be perceived in the eyes of my brothers mattered to me; it mattered a hell of a lot. On the other hand, I couldn't remember ever feeling so strongly for someone. Cassie had a way with me. She got me to crawl down off my high horse, shed the rough exterior, and be normal.

I hadn't been normal since I'd raised my hand and swore to protect my country. My life had been run by rules, regulations, and consequences. I couldn't and didn’t care to see beyond them.

Until now.

Now, I wanted to question things, but I wasn't sure how, and faced with uncertainty, the best fall back were those rules and regulations that had never led me astray.

I glared at the text again, trying to make myself respond, but afraid of falling back under her sweet and enticing spell. Instead, I hit the call button for Castillo. She answered on the third ring.

"Hello," she said. The noise in the background indicated that she was driving.

"What the fuck did you say to Pfc. Bennett?"

"Wow, Alex. You make me look like a whore last night, and now you're calling me over your little play thing. You're amazing."

"Leti, I'm only going to ask you one more time what the fuck you said to her before I completely lose my shit on you."

She breathed hard, exhaling deeply into the phone.

"I haven't said shit to your little girlfriend. But thanks for letting me know I've been right all along."

"You fucking listen to me. You have nothing to fucking say to her. You don't even have a fucking reason to look at her. You work in admin, and unless she has a reason to see you, you stay the fuck away from her. You understand that?"

My breaths blew out of my nose like a raging bull. Then it dawned on me that I didn't counter her when she blurted out that Cassie was my girlfriend and that she'd been right about it. The thought temporarily seized me, making me think long and hard about the way my subconscious was responding where my controlled thoughts were thinking differently.

"Alex, how far you have fallen. A student?"

"You've been a manipulative bitch since the days of Evelyn. You go any further with this, and I'll have your ass taken down, Leti. I promise you that. Back. The. Fuck. Up."

I hung up the phone and threw it against the wall. Luckily, in my blind rage, the cover took the brunt of the impact, cracking and falling to the ground. Riley came rushing into my room.

"Get the fuck out, Riley."

"What happened?"

I turned and glowered at him. He didn’t relent, instead moving further into the room.

"You're fucking losing it, Alex. What is going on with you?"

"Where have you been this morning?" I asked, working furiously to catch my breath.

"What?"

"Where the fuck have you been?"

"I went on base to wash and detail my truck before the sun ruined that for me."

"So you were on base?" That revelation plastered suspicion all over me. In my furor, I couldn't see anything for what it was.

Had Riley spoken to Cassie and spilled the beans as a way to punish me? I couldn't be sure of anyone or anything anymore. The alcohol still coursing through my veins was contributing to my irrational thoughts, fueling the anger. I grabbed him by his shirt collar with both hands and lifted him, slamming him against the wall.

"Look shithead. I fucked up last night. I admit that. But you going to Cassie and telling her is going to get your ass beat."

He powered up and worked his way out of my grip.

"Get your shit together, Alex. I didn't go over to the barracks at all. I didn’t even see Cassie this morning."

I was breathing erratically, feeling the haze of my hangover looming over my head.

"Where the fuck is Jensen?"

I heard the door swing open a little wider, Jensen standing the frame.

"I'm right here. And what the hell does Bennett have to do with any of this?" Disapproval filled his face as he looked me over, his mouth forming into a tight scowl. "You went on and fucked her, didn’t you?”

“That’s none of your business, Jensen. Stay in your fucking place!” My teeth clenched as did my fists as I yelled out the last part, my frustrations seemingly taking over my body.

“No, you stay in your place, Alex. You went ahead and fucked a student. That’s abuse of power. You’ve sunk low, motherfucker. That NCO of the Quarter should be burned at your feet. You don’t represent shit that’s good for the Corps.”

I charged him.

He braced himself for the impact, and both of us went down, rolling over one another and swinging. Riley jumped in between us, taking a few punches to the face, before finally pulling me away.

"I don’t give a shit what you think of me, Jensen.”

He spit on my wood floor, disrespecting me and my place. If I wasn’t feeling the excess alcohol swirling around in my stomach while trying to catch my breath, I would have charged him again.

"I can’t believe you’ve pursued this. You used to be someone to look up to. I don’t even know you anymore."

I didn't care if I had just confirmed for him that I was or had been involved with her. Correcting the situation with Cassie was the only thing on my mind. Riley shook his head, realizing what I had just done. A piece of me wanted to take it back, but I was running on adrenaline, and whatever came out I'd just have to deal with.

"You're still seeing her? Still fucking her?"

I didn’t answer. I wiped at my lip, the metallic taste of blood on my tongue.

"Who the fuck have you become? NCO of the Quarter, Staff Sergeant select, brig time… none of that shit means anything to you, does it?"

I didn’t answer him. The truth was, it all meant the world to me, but Cassie meant even more.

"I'm not standing behind you with this shit, Alex. Fraternizing is a highly punishable offense. What's happened to you? Pussy is all the same, man. I lined one up for you last night. It's that easy, you know."

"Fuck you, Jensen. If you can't see beyond the rules manual, get the fuck out of my room."

"How did you flip over night? Is her pussy magical? Did she cast a spell on you with it?"

"We're not fucking robots, that's how," I growled, my voice low and gruff.

A hush fell over the room.

Riley shut his eyes. Jensen deepened his frown.

Freeing myself from the guilt of everything that had been going on with Cassie was surprisingly welcomed. As fearful as I had been about letting the cat out of the bag, especially to non-supportive fucks like Jensen, the release of it brought a sense of calm over me, washing me clean of my misdeed.

"The Alex Cruz I knew loved the Corps. Put the Corps first and everything else second. This new you is sickening, man."

"When you break out from behind the fucking mask, you'll finally see what I see, Jensen. Until then, you'll remain blind and continue to follow orders that look good on paper, but don't necessarily work out in real life."

"The Corps is real life, Alex. When we don't follow orders, people die. Good leaders know that!” he yelled, veins bulging from his neck as his face flushed red.

"And good leaders also know how to think for themselves. Now get the fuck out of my room,” I countered, equally passionate and angry.

He stood glaring between Riley and me.

"I can't believe I'm looking at both of you and don't even know who you are."

Then he turned and stomped out of the house. I heard the roar of his Mustang and the tires peel out of the driveway. I needed to respond to Cassie and do some damage control before I lost everything. I was willing to lose out on Jensen because he couldn't see me for who I was. I wasn't willing to lose out on her, and my morning breakdown proved to me that I wasn't strong enough to hold the Corps before her, and even more so, I didn’t want to.

Fighting against something that I deeply wanted, yet trying to make myself believe that I didn’t need it, had brought me to a level that made me hate myself. The only way to find me again was to find her, but I couldn't be sure that she would want anything to do with me. Not with me completely cutting her off and distancing myself from her, and now this newfound information concerning Castillo. I had to get back to her and straighten everything out-- if I hadn't lost her already.

"Riley, I need some privacy."

He handed me my phone, apparently having read my mind.

I took it from him, thankful and apologetic, but not saying a word. When he was out of the room, and the door closed, I skipped the text message and called her. I needed to get everything out with her.

Not surprisingly, she didn’t answer. I tried her number again and again, but it just rang and went to voicemail.

As badly as I wanted to speak to her, I needed to get my side out, so I settled on a text.

Me: I know you know all about Castillo. I can't apologize enough. It was a mistake, and I am feeling it. You were on my mind all night, so I tried to drown you out with alcohol and her. Fuck, Cassie. I'm fucking sorry. Call me.

I sat on my bed, waiting for my phone to buzz with a response, but I didn't get one. Karma hit me as I sat, my heart racing, my hands sweating, hoping I would get a reply from her. In all of my anxiety, it humbled me a bit, having to feel what she was probably feeling when I acted fucking stupid and ignored every text from her. As right as she was to shut me out, I didn’t want her to. I wanted her to open her arms and take me back in, allow me to explain and fix everything that I had caused, and prove to her that my fuck up was not who I was. I needed her to let me make things right.

Twenty minutes passed, and there was still no reply from her. Every muscle in my body grew tense, clenching and hardening, making me completely uncomfortable. I rushed off to the bathroom and started the shower, hoping the heat would help to sweat some more of the alcohol out of my system while also calming me down.

I stepped in, standing directly under the raging water. I closed my eyes and replayed everything that had happened and how I'd mismanaged every piece of it. If I had just told her about the award, and talked everything out with her, none of the rest of this shit would have ever happened. I had allowed the old, mechanical Alex to ruin shit for the real, live, emotion having Alex. I had just completely and utterly fucked up.

My dick grew hard and ached with the tension that had built up. I looked down, finding it standing erect and pulsing with pain. I took hold of it, gripping as tightly as I could and began to move my hand back and forth. The harder I stroked, the more intense the pain became. When I slowed, the pain turned into stabs, sending sharp aches all over my body. I couldn't stop. I had to stroke the frustration and anger out of me.

I started up the hard strokes again, finally feeling like I was bringing some relief to the surface. The need to come came quickly, but with stronger and more intensified movements, the backlog hit. I could feel my release but couldn't quite get to it. I balled my free hand up into a tight fist and banged on the shower walls, yelling out my irritation. I began to picture Cassie in the shower with me, the way she allowed her body to helplessly fall into mine, her sweet and sensual neck, her perky tits and intoxicating smile. All of it wrapped into one was picture perfect perfection, and I finally came, long and hard. My groans filled the shower, and the beats on the wall gave way for the powerful release I let out.

I leaned up against the wall, allowing the water to run over me while I caught my breath. Flashes of her smile continuously hit me, making me even more eager to finally fix everything I had done wrong where she was concerned. I jumped out of the shower, not even bothering to dry off, and grabbed my phone to find an awaiting text message.

Cassie: Well, I can give you one thing. At least you're honest. I wish you could have been more forthcoming with me, though. I would have appreciated the heads up on getting pushed away and then hearing about you fucking your colleague. The one who just so happens to hate my fucking guts. If you were trying to humiliate me, congratulations, Alex, you've done that just well. Let's do what we promised to do in the very beginning and act like we don't have any history. A few more weeks and I'll be long gone anyway.

A couple of things stood out in her message. The first thing that hit me was that she would be leaving in a few weeks. I hadn't even thought about that and it sent panic flaring up inside of me. I didn't want her to leave, but the fact that she would be was very real, and it gave me even more of a push to try and make things right.

The second thing was that she said I had fucked Castillo, which hadn't happened.

Me: I did not fuck Castillo. I never meant to humiliate you, and I am terribly sorry. I don't want you to go.

Cassie: It's all out, Alex. If you fucked her, you fucked her. Can't take it back now.

Me: I'm telling you, I did not fuck her last night. Who the fuck told you this?

My patience was growing paper thin. As badly as I had messed everything up, I didn’t need any extra help with further pissing off and keeping Cassie away from me.

Cassie: Does it matter?

Me: YES!

Cassie: Ruiz.

I could have broken everything around me at that moment. Instead, I pounded on my dresser, trying to figure out how I was going to destroy that bitch for sticking her nose where it didn't belong.

Me: It's a goddamn lie. I never fucked her, Cassie. I promise you.

Cassie: Even if you didn't, something happened and I don't really want to dig into it. I have tests to study for. Have a good day, Sgt. Cruz.

Her cold and distant response was what finally sent me over the edge. I had already warned Ruiz, but she hadn't seemed to learn her lesson. Rage erupted from me, sending my drawers from my dresser flying across the room and hitting the wall with a loud thud. I could have swallowed nails in my bout of wrath, chewing them up before doing so. If there was anything more I hated than a rat, it was a person who couldn't mind their own fucking business. Ruiz had been given the warning to back the fuck off or face whatever I had on her, and thanks to Riley, I had plenty. If she was ready to play hardball with me, I was ready to smash her ass.

Monday morning finally came. I'd spent all day Sunday gathering up everything Riley had found on Ruiz and double checking it all, making sure that everything was lined up perfectly for me to bust her ass and get rid of her once and for all.

I'd tried calling Cassie, but as expected, she didn't take any of my calls. I felt like she was long gone, but I wouldn't allow myself to give up, so I kept trying. Jensen never came home after our fight, which was fine by me, but I couldn’t be sure he hadn't gone to the higher-ups and run his fucking mouth.

I left before Riley, blazing the streets trying to get to base to take care of my growing list of problems. I parked my truck and ran to the barracks duty hut, speaking to the Pfc. on duty.

"I need you to get Pfc. Angelica Ruiz for me."

He sifted through the duty book and found her name, nodding as he stood and walked out of the building. The sergeant on duty with him looked at me questioningly, probably wondering why I was in such a hurry and why I had a bruise on my left cheek. Fucking Jensen.

"I need the secondary room," I told him.

He handed me the key to that room.

"And you didn't see me here," I roughly told him, frowning my face and peering into his eyes.

He looked like he understood, so I backed up, giving him space to get back to doing whatever it was that he was doing.

I walked to the secondary room, taking a seat in the chair at the table that sat facing the door. So many scenarios ran through my mind on what I would say to her when I got her into the room. I wanted to rip her a new asshole. I wanted to break her down. I wanted to fucking destroy her.

The Pfc. knocked on the door then opened it, standing there with Ruiz by his side.

"Come on in, Ruiz."

Her eyes shot open, and I could smell the fear radiating from her body. It was a welcomed sign to me. It gave me the green light to pounce.

When the door closed and we were left alone, I stood and swiftly made my way over to her, standing directly in front of her, and laying into her.

"I fucking warned you. I fucking did. You decided to interject yourself in matters that do not concern you."

She swallowed fast and furiously.

"Why the fuck did you think you could go around spreading lies, telling Pfc. Bennett shit that never happened? Did you think I would just let that shit slide?"

"I… I'm sorry." Her feeble voice was uncharacteristic for what I had grown to know of her.

"You're sorry?" Her apology further pissed me off. My knife hand came out—all fingers extended and joined with my thumb along the side—as I used my whole hand to point in her face.

“You have the fucking audacity to spread a fucking rumor about a NCO and think there will be no consequences. Then you stand here and give me this bullshit apology. Who told you I slept with Castillo?"

She stood stunned, not moving and not speaking. Her silence was grating my nerves. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the paper with the heading Humboldt County. I unfolded it and shoved it into her face, making her painfully aware that I knew all about her and the skeletons in her closet.

"You want to fuck with me, I'll fuck with you. How the fuck did you get into the Marine Corps with this assault on a peace officer with a deadly weapons charge?”

Her eyes bulged as she took in the evidence in my hand that could do her in.

“It means you fucking lied about it, and you had a shitty recruiter who didn't check thoroughly. Or maybe he did, and you both lied about it. Either way, this constitutes a fraudulent enlistment and could land you in the fucking brig right alongside me."

I pulled the paper from her face to see a tear falling from her eye.

"You tell me who the fuck told you about Friday, right now. I'm so far gone that if you ran and ratted on me, I wouldn't even give a fuck, but I'm bringing all of you down with me. You understand that?”

She swallowed hard again as another tear fell.

"Castillo," she whispered.

"What was that?"

"Castillo. I overheard her talking to Cpl. Collins."

"Castillo said I fucked her Friday night?"

"Yes."

I should have known. The way she tried to play things off on the phone Saturday morning was too easy going.

"How did this come about?"

"I was in the gym kickboxing. She was working out with Cpl. Collins and they were talking kind of loud. I heard everything she said.”

"And you ran back and told Bennett?"

She nodded her head.

I couldn't have been more thrilled that Ruiz was singing like a canary. To know that Leti had probably orchestrated all of this was fucking infuriating, but didn't come as a shock. She was conniving when she wanted to be. I was only now realizing it.

"Your assault charge stays between me and you as long as you keep your fucking mouth shut, you understand that?"

She nodded her head furiously.

I walked over to the door and pulled it open, motioning for her to step outside. When she did, I quickly shut the door and pulled out my phone.

Me: I need to see you. This shit is getting cleared up today.

To my surprise Cassie responding immediately.

Cassie: There is nothing to clear up, Alex. You've made your bed, now sleep in it.

Me: I'll make you see me if I have to. But I'd much rather you do it on your own accord.

A few minutes passed before my phone buzzed again.

Cassie: Where are you?

Me: Secondary room. Go the back way.

I took a long, soothing, sigh of relief that I was finally getting to see her again. I was fully prepared that she was probably going to come in hostile, but that didn't matter to me. I just wanted to see her, to smell her, to touch her.

A couple of minutes later, she was pushing the door open and sneaking in. Her cammie pants and her green t-shirt clung tightly to her body, accentuating what I had fallen for and, unfortunately, had been missing.

"Sit down," I softly ordered.

She looked reluctant to do so, but finally moved over to the table and pulled out the other chair, taking a seat while glaring at me. The whiff of her vanilla smell tickled my nose, causing me to inhale deeply. I had missed it, and I could have sat enthralled in the light, sweetness of it for hours.

"I know what's going on. Castillo spilled everything to Collins, Ruiz heard it all and came to you, rubbing it in your face."

"So you fucked her. Who cares how I found out? You did it."

"I didn't fucking sleep with her." My voice was growing low and harsh, not what I wanted when speaking to her. I quickly caught myself. "I did not sleep with her. I made a huge mistake, but I didn't fuck her. I'm being completely honest with you."

"Okay. So since we’re on honesty, and you say you didn't fuck her, what happened?"

I looked into her cold, lifeless eyes. I owed her everything she wanted and more. Taking a long hard swallow, I finally blurted out, "She sucked my dick. But I stopped her after a couple of minutes. I couldn't go through with it."

A hammer went straight to my stomach with the admission of what I had stupidly allowed to happen outside of The Tavern. Her eyes closed tightly, and she exhaled. I wanted her to say something, anything. Even if she was going to tell me how fucking filthy and disgusting I was, I needed to hear it come from her.

But she didn't say anything.

"I never meant for it to happen. I was stupid. I was told by Major Kinsley that I was getting NCO of the Quarter and everything I had done with you came flooding back in, contradicting everything that I had stood for. I handled it in the worst way possible, and I'm so fucking sorry."

She sat staring at me for a minute longer before responding.

"Anything or anyone else? You've already dug the knife in, go ahead and twist it."

Her words were punishment enough, and if I wanted any shot at getting her back to my side, I had to be completely honest.

"There was some random at the bar that night that kissed me. But that was it."

She nodded her head.

"I'm laying everything out, Cassie. I fucked up royally, and I'm trying to fix it. Please let me fix it."

She stared at me with what looked like disgust on her face.

"This weekend is a long weekend, it's Labor Day. Come with me and let me make all of this bullshit up to you."

"I’m not going anywhere with you."

That wasn't what I wanted to hear, so I stood and briskly walked around the desk and took her hand, pulling her up to me. I wrapped my arm around her waist and held her face in my free hand. The feel of her body in my arms once again sent pleasurable jolts through my body, even if she wasn't feeling the same way.

"You're. Coming. With. Me,” I muttered, using slow, deliberate words.

The look in her eyes finally shifted to what I needed to see—intense arousal.

“I fucked up—badly, but I'm owning it. You’re mad, and you have every right to be. I can accept that, but I can't accept that you’re shutting me out. I won’t accept that. And yes, it's hypocritical, but I'm selfish. I need to be with you, Cassie Bennett. I need you to let me back in."

Her eyes were lightly shut, her body loosening in my arms. I let out a deep breath and pulled her closer, placing my lips on her soft and delicate earlobe, before whispering, "I don't deserve you, Blondie. I already know that. But just because I don’t deserve something doesn’t mean I don’t want it. And when I want something, I don’t stop until I get it.”

She pulled away from me, stepping back and gently narrowing her eyes.

“You don’t get to do that, Alex. What happens if I had been the one to suck someone else’s dick? How would you react to that?”

The question stung and sent my thoughts into a rage.

“You don’t even want to know my answer to that,” I answered, my voice frosty with a touch of bitterness.

“See? So how can you expect me to just forget that you put yours in her mouth? It just doesn’t work like that.”

She had me stumped, and I could give that to her. But while she was absolutely right, I couldn’t accept it. I wouldn’t accept it.

“We need to get away. We’re both too wound up and need to release our frustrations while you let me fix my mistake.”

"I don't know, Alex. We're so far up shit creek right now--"

"Exactly! So what else do we have to lose?" I watched as she went into deep thought, contemplating what I knew she already wanted, but was too stubborn to relent on. "You don't have to answer me right now. But think about it. I want you with me. I've pretty much signed my brig time with people finding out about us, and I'm willing to serve it. But I'm not willing to let you walk. If I have to be punished for being with you, then I at least want to have you… every last sweet tasting inch of you."

She still didn't say anything, but her expression softened, making me suck in my bottom lip. That look, the innocence shown with it, always weakened me.

"Just think about it."

She nodded her head and then turned for the door, twisting the knob then walking out of the room. I wasn't sure what was running through her mind, but I knew what was running through mine. I was ready to throw away six years of strict, dedicated service, and the thought of it didn't even scare me. It actually made me smile.

Chapter 18

Cassie

As infuriating as Alex could be, I had to admit his words pulled me.

Did I have a right to be angry with him?

Absolutely.

Did he deserve to have me fall into his arms and forget about his selfish, erratic behavior?

Absolutely not.

Did I want to?

I was conflicted.

On one hand, I knew just how much his rejection hurt. It was a flash to my past and how I’d failed at protecting myself where my feelings were concerned. After Colton, I promised that I would never again place myself in a position to be walked over like a dirty doormat again. My fragile nerves couldn’t handle it, and it was time to put me first. Sadly, I’d allowed myself to get right back to that place.

How I’d fallen for Alex so quickly was a mystery even to me. Maybe it was his brash nature, the pit bull exterior with the teddy bear inside? Even as I sat there, completely agitated with him, his presence, the touch of his warm, smoldering body, his decadent smell and those strong, adept hands, I couldn’t help but break down a little on the inside. The man did things to me that I should have lambasted myself for. How I was hurt, angry, annoyed, and aroused was truly beyond me.

Now he wanted me to go away with him for the long weekend? The words pouring out of his mouth, rolling off of his dexterous tongue, sent shivers over my body. Running off with him for the weekend seemed like the perfect way to finally get some alone time together without the constant threat of someone finding us.

But his confessions...

Castillo, of all people, was like a knife in my back. Finding out that she touched him, in his most sacred spot, twisted the blade as it plunged even deeper. She had gotten a piece of him, and it made my heart lurch, causing a thrash of pain to spill over my chest. I didn’t want to believe that Angelica was right, and even though she was only partially correct, Castillo formulating into the equation in any way possible was enough to make my insides turn on me. The random kiss from the stranger could be overlooked, but Castillo was like a hard slap to the face, a hit on my pride, and a tear in my ego.

How could I look past it? I knew I wanted to. I just didn’t know how. Seeing her in the schoolhouse walkway this morning sent prickles down my arms. I saw red with her smirk, but oddly, she didn’t say anything to me. My cold good morning greeting and her grin and nod was all of the interaction shared between us, and even though no further drama ensued, I was a bit taken aback by it.

Angelica had grown even more reclusive. Tearing herself away whenever she got the chance, never saying much to me. I’d asked her what Sgt. Cruz had wanted, but the panic in her eyes, the heaviness of her breathing with my words, told me that whatever it was, it was in her best interest to keep her mouth shut.

It was times like those that I wanted to look past Alex’s stupidity and love all over him. Because when he wanted to be, he could be very protective and endearing—two things I didn’t have much of in my life.

It was late afternoon when our tests from Friday were passed back. A ninety-seven percent was placed on my desk, along with a sweet, yet seductive grin from Alex. I smiled back, feeling the joy of finally performing the way that I knew I was capable of. Angelica received her test, a ninety percent, but she refused to look at Alex. I could see the restraint, and my interest was piqued. I needed to know what had happened between those two, and why the sight of him all of a sudden struck deep fear in her.

Alex had a small shiner on his face. I wondered if something had happened at the bar, or if that was a mark from Castillo because her anger at being turned away had spurred her to violence. The thought alone made my blood boil. My inner bitch was ready to pounce on her if she had dared to put her hands on him, and with that thought, came more confusion.

Why did I care?

“This week’s test is covering signal jamming as well as information from the two previous tests. This one will be much more in depth, so you’ll want to make sure that you study everything you have received thus far. Work in groups if you have to. A seventy-two depends on it.”

Jensen’s voice came blaring into my ears like a megaphone. And as I sat focusing on him, I noticed that he, too, had a shiner on his face. I was beginning to put two and two together. This was not Castillo’s doing. Jensen had found out about us, and it appeared to have not gone over too well. Their house was divided. Riley on Alex’s side, Jensen against.

My stomach knotted. The guys all seemed so close. And for me to come in and destroy that dynamic, made me feel like the Yoko Ono to their brotherhood. I had no desire to rip friendships apart. But for some reason, the idea that Alex had gone to bat for me was exciting. My mind was grappling with his stupidity at that bat and his defense of me. I wanted to let go of my hurt, but then I didn’t.

“See you all in the morning. Class dismissed.”

I stood, my eyes lingering on Alex just a tad bit too long. Newsome walked over and caught me staring, his eyebrows scrunching as he followed my line of sight. I quickly gathered my things and walked out of the room, still feeling the heat of Alex’s eyes boring into me.

“So how did you do?” Dalton asked just as I stepped out of the building. He caught me off guard, making me jump and hold my hand to my chest.

“Give me a little space next time, will ya?”

“I’m sorry. Just anxious to see how you did.” He smiled that charismatic smile, a sparkle going off in his eyes.

“Ninety-seven percent. I guess my break from Alex really did the trick.”

We both laughed, but I felt the truth in those words. Since I had turned my focus away from him, I was doing better, yet I found myself slowly being lured back in. The magnetism he possessed washed away the hurt, even if it was being done with slow, deliberate measure.

“So hey, I have to run something by you because I need your advice.”

“I’m all ears.”

“Not here. It’s Alex related,” I whispered, not wanting to bring any undue attention to us.

The doors shot open and out walked the three instructors, looking like a well put together and very cohesive unit. If there was friction between the crew, no traces of it could be found by the naked eye.

Alex shifted his eyes to me as they walked by and lowered them while slightly sucking on his bottom lip. A slight throb could be felt between my legs. The looks he gave me only made me want him even more. My immunity to him was being weakened, and he knew it.

“Let’s find somewhere to talk because if you two continue to eye fuck one another, I’m going to need to get off.”

My eyes swerved to Dalton who had lust written all over his face. I laughed at him as I hit his shoulder. We walked through the students and made our way to the path that led back to our barracks rooms. We chatted and made small talk until we reached the barracks building.

“Want to come to my room? Angelica might be in yours, and she’s an angry one right now.”

I laughed. “Yeah, that works. What about Pete?”

“He’s at the gym. He says he needs some muscle.”

We both erupted with laughter. Pete was small and nerdy looking. Poor guy.

“I’ll see you in a few.”

I jogged up the stairs and quickly made my way to my room, unlocking the door and falling down on my bed. As I sat up and unlaced my boots, my phone buzzed. I looked down to find a message from Alex.

Alex: 97%. Not bad. I think this weekend should be your reward for performing so well. And you always PERFORM well.

He was back to his old tricks. Using innuendo to get me to pay attention to him. It wasn’t fair. I was so powerless to it, and he knew it.

Me: Thank you! *rolls eyes*

I had to try and remain composed. He didn’t need to know that his charm, his sex appeal, and his words has such salacious effects on me and my body. As far as he knew, I was still pissed and wanted to avoid him. That was half true, but he didn’t need to know it.

Angelica walked through the door, threw her things down on her bed and briskly walked past me to the bathroom. She stood in front of the mirror, her face mired with emptiness, and undid her bun, brushing away at her ultra-long locks. I walked over to the area and stood in the frame, looking at her and wondering what to say.

“What the fuck do you want, Cassie?”

Her aggressiveness put me on defense.

“I’m just coming to see what’s got you so down. Don’t jump down my fucking throat.”

She turned and glared at me. Her mouth shrinking with the tight scowl she rigidly held.

“I wouldn’t go anywhere near your Cruz-cum filled throat,” she hissed.

I was taken aback. I knew she could get down and dirty, but this was shocking, even for her.

“What the fuck is your problem?”

“Really? You want to know what my problem is? My problem is you… and your fucking NCO of the Quarter boyfriend. Because he can’t keep his dick out of you, my life is being turned upside down.”

“First of all, you don’t know shit—“

She cut me off.

“Oh cut that bullshit. He pulled me in this morning and all but admitted to you two having something, so the charade is over.”

She sat her brush back down on the counter and turned around to face me, her arms folded over her chest and a sinister grin spreading across her lips. If her words hadn’t already backed me into a corner, it would have put me on high alert.

“You two are so dumb. You’re fucking… for what? These few weeks. Then what? You get orders somewhere, and he finds the next student to prey on? Damn, Cassie, wake up. You’re falling for his game, and yes, he is a fucking player.”

“You don’t know half of what you think you know, so I suggest you do what you were told and shut your fucking trap before I let him know that you’ve had more to say. Somehow, I think your career is important to you.”

“Whatever. The sooner I’m away from you the better. I thought for sure after you found out who he was, you’d use some common sense and stay away from him. But I see common sense isn’t so common, and desperate bitches will do whatever they can to get ahead.”

“Fuck you!” I growled, my heart thumping like it was about to break free from my chest. She had struck a chord, and there was no way I was about to let her get away with it.

“No, fuck you, Cassie. Now get the hell out of my way.”

She pushed me as she walked by, and on instinct I lunged for her, grabbed her hair in my hand and yanked her back to me. She turned around and punched me in the chin, a swift upper cut that knocked my teeth together. I let loose, my hands balled up into tightly wad fists, and started punching her anywhere I could. She countered, punching me until we both fell to the floor, rolling over one another while screaming obscenities.

My rage escalated, not only because she had said some awful things to me but because she had been nothing but bitchy to me since our very first night out and everything that had built up was now ready to explode. In my wild arm swings, while she sat on top of me, I swiped at her face, connecting and leaving three long lines on the side of her cheek. She stopped and held her face, her eyes bulging as she took heavy, anger filled breaths. The pause was just enough for me to buck her off of me, knocking her to the floor and going after her again.

“You’re a fucking bitch!” I yelled, my fists landing on her breasts… her arms… her face.

She held her arms up, trying desperately to shield herself from my blows. She brought her knee up, sending her bone into my ass and knocking me over.

“I can’t stand bitches like you!” she yelled out.

Her hand grabbed onto my hair, tugging fiercely as she pulled hair from my still well put together bun. It hurt like hell coming from the tight confines of my ponytail holder, and as she was yanking my head down, I grabbed her hair once again, jerking and tugging just as hard as she had done to mine, if not harder.

Just as I was tightening my grip on her, a strong set of hands wrapped around my midsection, pulling me off of her. She still had my hair in her hands, and the ache from the pull made me cry out in pain.

“Fuuucccckkkk!”

She finally let go.

“What the hell is going on in here?” Dalton’s familiar voice mixed with heavy breathing finally brought me back.

I stood glaring at Angelica, hard breaths shooting from my nose as my chest heaved in a laborious manner. She was breathing equally hard, throwing her hand into her hair and thrusting it back and out of her face.

“Ask your dick-whipped friend over there,” she said, running her tongue over her lip that now had blood coming out of it.

“You want another busted lip? Keep running your mouth.”

Dalton stepped in between us, looking like he had no clue what he would do should we decide to charge one another again. The thought crossed my mind. I had been wanting to let loose on her ever since the initial PFT when she tried to screw me. Everything from there had only escalated, and I was done sitting by, taking her shit as she gave it.

“You two had better knock this off before the duty comes up here. You’ll be in trouble for sure.”

“Trouble seems to follow this girl,” she said. “And his last name is Cruz.”

“Angelica, that’s enough,” Dalton scolded.

Her eyes fixed him, lowering into a wickedly low stare, hooded by her dark eyelashes. “Oh, you already knew? I should have known.”

“You say one more thing and he won’t be able to hold me off,” I warned. She had me so full of rage, I could take her on another round.

“Bring it bitch.”

“No one else is throwing another punch, pulling anymore hair, or bitch slapping anyone.” Dalton took a firm stand, asserting himself between both of us.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ve left my mark. Her fucking boyfriend is going to wonder how she got that fucking scratch on her forehead. I’m sure I’ll be done then. And so will the two of you.”

She grabbed some clothes and stormed out of the room. I was still breathing hard, adrenaline gripping me as Dalton pulled me closer to him, taking my chin in his hand and lifting my face to meet his gaze.

“What the hell got into you two?” he asked, worry laced throughout his words.

I shook my head and stepped away from him, walking to the bathroom to run some water over my face. I took notice of the scratch on my forehead. I’d been in a couple of fights in my life, but I was never the aggressor, and I usually never retaliated the way I had done just now. I wasn’t sure where that overly aggressive me came from, but I liked her.

I only wished that she had been around a few years prior.

Looking into the mirror, Dalton caught my eye. He leaned on the frame as he looked me over, probably wondering where this rabid beast had come from since he had never seen even a glimpse of me in this state.

“I told you I was sick of her. Today was just the final straw.”

“You can’t go around getting into fights. You’ll get kicked out of school. What the hell, Cassie?”

“I don’t need your fucking lectures right now, Dalton. You have no idea what she said to me. And anyway, it was self-defense. She made first contact, and I finished her ass off.”

I walked past him, throwing myself down on my bed. He followed behind, lifting my legs and sitting down, placing them back down on his lap.

“And anyway,” I continued, “what are you doing here?”

“You didn’t answer my text. Pete has a few people in the room. Guess his gym plans got cancelled.”

He studied me for a bit before muttering, “So I guess she knows about you and Cruz?”

“She’s known. Or at least knew something was up.”

“So what happened today?”

“This morning some Pfc. on duty came up here and told her to go and see Sgt. Cruz in the secondary room. She went and came back a living mess. I can only imagine what he must have said to her. Then, when she got back in here this afternoon, she was full of all kinds of venom. She said some horrible shit that I was going to let slide until she pushed me. I had to attack.”

Dalton laughed, shutting his eyes and throwing his head back. Laughter in this situation seemed completely out of place.

“What’s so funny?” I asked.

He paused for a second, wiping his eyes.

“Um, you. And what I saw when I walked in here. That was seriously one of the best catfights I have ever seen, and in my circle, I’ve seen quite a few.”

“I don’t even know what to say to that,” I joked.

“It was hot. If you two would have lost the shirts, it would have been even hotter. Even for me.”

I playfully kicked him. He knew how to bring me out of my funk and lighten the mood whenever I got down.

“So anyway, enough about that crazy ass chick. You need to tell me about this info that’s burning holes into my thought process. What’s going on with Sgt. Cruz?”

I swallowed and sat up in the bed.

“Hold on one second,” Dalton said, retrieving my hairbrush and handing it to me. “I can’t look at you like this any longer. I can’t take you seriously.”

I had forgotten that my hair must have been a serious mess after Angelica ripped it from my bun. I quickly took it down, using the brush to smooth it out while also massaging my scalp.

“Well, I can only assume, based on her outburst in here, that he said some shit to her. When he called me down this morning, he apologized for cutting me off and ignoring me, and also for fucking up on Friday.”

“Fucking up?”

“Yep! He fucked up. I guess he was trying to drown me out. His NCO of the Quarter award made him think twice about what he was doing so he went out, got shitfaced, kissed some random chick, then let Castillo blow him.”

“What the fuck?”

“Yes, precisely.”

“And he told you all of this?”

“Angelica initially told me about Castillo, and I questioned him. He was honest about it and told me about the random too.”

Dalton rubbed his hands over his face, then blew out a deep breath.

“So now what?”

“Now, he wants me to go off with him for the weekend.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah. He says he was wrong, he admits that. He wants me to leave with him this weekend and make things right.”

“Are you gonna go?”

“I don’t know. I was so pissed off at him. I don’t know if I want to just take off with him.”

“Can I throw my two cents in?”

“Don’t you always?” I replied, grinning at him.

“True. But anyway, I think you should go. He fucked up, but the fact that he admitted to it, even the shit you didn’t know about, says something. I don’t know him well, but I see what kind of hold he has on you, and apparently you have the same hold on him.”

I laughed a bit. He was on to something.

“You two crazy asses stand to lose so much if this gets out, and yet you can’t stay away from each other. I think you already know what your answer is to his request, but you want to play tough ass. I say suck it up and go. If he’s to burn for you, with everything he has on the line, are you willing to do it too?”

“I get what you’re saying, but the Castillo thing—“

“It sucks. And you probably need to scrub his dick before you get anywhere near it, but people make mistakes, and thankfully he didn’t fuck her. So you have to ask yourself if you want to overlook it or not. It’s simple. Yes, or no.”

“I really hate you sometimes.”

“I know. But what would do without me?”

I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

“Get dressed. Let’s go get something to eat, Rocky Balboa.”

I laughed at my new nickname and felt a sense of pride with it as well. Even if Angelica and I were even in our bout, she knew now that she was only going to go so far with me, and would probably try and keep her distance from now on.

When I was finally dressed, we walked down the stairs and past a group of guys, Allen being one of them. He looked at both of us and sneered, getting an eye full of malice in return from me.

I could hear his caveman like laugh as we walked by. “Bennett, I’m still here when you’re ready for a real man!”

“Just keep walking,” Dalton whispered. I did because I just couldn’t deal with anymore bullshit in one day.

Unfortunately, Allen kept running his mouth. I was already highly pissed and fed up with the constant annoyances, so I turned around when he said, “Yeah, she’s in my class. If she knew what was good for her, she’d climb on my dick where she belongs.”

That was enough. I wasn’t going to take anymore derogatory comments from him, thus allowing him to grow even bolder with the next one. I marched back over to where he stood. The adrenaline from earlier came crashing back, making me feel like I could go toe to toe with him as well.

“Do you ever think about the shit you say before it comes spilling out of your mouth?”

“Nope,” he quickly responded, looking down on me.

“Well you better shut your mouth before I shut it for you. We don’t have anything to say to each other. Let’s keep it that way.”

“For such a small girl, you have a big fucking mouth. You need to know your place. My dick is readily available to plug it up.”

My head exploded, and I lunged for him, but before I could hit him the way I really wanted to, Dalton grabbed and pulled me away.

“Yeah, take her ass before I do it.”

“You’re a piece of shit, Allen. A giant piece of shit!” I yelled back.

“I’ll fix you, Bennett,” he called through laughter with the abundance of idiots standing next to him.

“You need to chill the hell out,” Dalton said.

“Shut up, Dalton. You heard the shit he said to me.”

“Yes, and they are just words. Don’t give them power.”

I looked at him, amazed that he was able to say that. Words meant plenty to me, and they did have power, the power to drag me through the trenches and fill me with utter rage.

“That’s easy to say.”

“And easy to follow, too. Do you think I haven’t been on the receiving end of some nasty things being said to me? Allen himself has said some horrible things to me, but you know what, he’s an idiot, a Neanderthal. I don’t pay him much mind, and you really shouldn’t either.”

I didn’t say another word. I just marched into the chow hall, angry and starving, feeling like I could eat everything in sight to fuel me for whoever was ready to come at me next.

Chapter 19

Alex

Castillo was nowhere to be found, which was probably in her best interest since I was sure she’d gotten word that I was on the hunt for her. Ruiz had squealed, and while I couldn’t be certain that Castillo didn’t speak loud enough for others to overhear, the fact that she had flat out lied about what happened that night was enough to drench me in rage.

Of course, Ruiz’s assault charge burning in my hands coaxed the information out of her, but nonetheless, she gave up just what I needed. Now, I had to make Castillo accountable.

Speaking of Ruiz, the assault charge absolutely worried me. It had worried me when Riley first discovered it, but now that she was actively engaging Cassie, it was fucking terrifying me. The girl was a ticking time bomb, a violent machine ready for war, and the two of them in the same room together played tricks on my mind, disturbing me with every thought.

Cassie still hadn’t answered me on my plans for the weekend. As much as I was trying to give her some space and time, I was growing impatient, and about ready to go and demand it from her. Thinking about her cutting me off, even though it was precisely what I had done to her, fucking stung. I was an asshole, but she wasn’t. And even though there were no excuses, the fact of the matter was that I didn’t want her treating me the way I had stupidly treated her. She was better than me, in more ways than one.

I sat on the couch in only a pair of PT shorts with a beer in my hand. Riley was gone for the night, having dinner with some chick he’d met at the bar. He’d tried hard to convince me before he left that she wasn’t a groupie, even though he’d met her the same night I fell under Cassie’s spell, but as much as I wanted to give a fuck, I just couldn’t. My mind was elsewhere, and it wasn’t on whatever chick Riley found attractive for the time being.

I kept checking my phone, hoping for something from Cassie, but there was nothing there. My nerves were fried. She was playing hard, and I had to admit, she was winning because the harder she got, the more I wanted her. I felt like I could say fuck it to everything standing in my way and take her ass the way she needed to be taken. I knew I could get her body, that was obvious from the talk I’d had with her earlier in the morning, but I was after so much more. I needed her heart and her mind. I needed her to trust me, to know that I would never do anything to intentionally hurt her, and I knew that would take more than my cock pleasing her.

I was starting to get drunk off of beer and that was unheard of. Beer never got me drunk, but looking into the fridge, I had already downed six and was going back for my seventh. The buzz was soothing, but didn’t relieve the ache I felt where Cassie was concerned. The loneliness of the house wasn’t helping matters either. As much as Riley could grate my nerves, he had been my right hand through all of this, and Jensen hadn’t been around since the fight the day before. The silence was killer, giving me too much time to think, and none of it good. I needed a reprieve, and I needed it fast.

I lay down on the couch with a beer in hand, flipping through mindless TV that did nothing but stare back at me. I couldn’t find anything engaging, anything sidetracking… anything at all. I stood, and headed out to the backyard to sit out on the patio and watch the moths and mosquitoes buzz by.

The front door closed, and I was jolted out of my fog, lost in painstaking thoughts and an overabundance of beer. When I looked back in through the slider glass door, Jensen was walking into the kitchen. He tossed his keys down on the counter, turned for the fridge and grabbed a beer for himself. I thought about going inside, but there really was no point. We weren’t seeing eye to eye, and I didn’t feel like kicking his ass again if he said the wrong thing to me. I was drunk, pissed, and looking for a fight. For once in all of this turmoil, I finally made a smart decision and stayed outside, allowing the still sweltering desert air to hit my face, sticking the thin layer of sweat to me.

With my head thrown back over the chair back and up against the wall of the house, I listened as the slider opened. I opened my eyes and Jenson’s hardened gaze hit me, thrusting red flags in front of me and putting my senses on high alert. I stared back coldly, silently giving him the opportunity to provoke me and send my drunken ass barreling into him. I was ready to shut his mouth once and for all.

He walked out a little further, before calmly saying, “Hey, I’m just letting you know that I’ll be gone for a while. I’m gonna be staying with some friends in town.”

I didn’t say anything, just sat back and exhaled the thick, painful breath holed up inside of me. As stupid as Jensen was acting, he was my brother. He’d been with me since day one of my Comm School instructing, and even though I thought he was acting like a little bitch about all of this, it hurt to see him turning away from me. To see him distancing himself where I was concerned. Words jumbled around inside my head, but I couldn’t think clearly enough to string a coherent sentence together.

He took a seat in the chair directly next to me and popped the top of his beer, taking one long gulp before smashing the can in his hand. I looked over to him, and noticed the shiner that I’d left on his face. I smiled a bit. He looked at me with his eyebrows scrunched.

“What’s up?”

“Nothing.”

We sat there, looking out into the yard at the small birds lining the wall, chirping and singing, directly contrasting with the dark mood that lay thick between us. I had a feeling that Jensen looked at me with utter disgust now and if I actually gave a fuck, I would probably be looking at myself the same way. Honest to God, if someone else had landed themselves in my predicament, I probably would have been the Jensen in the situation. Prior to meeting Cassie, I couldn’t fathom doing anything that was in direct violation of any Corps rules and regulations. The shame was much more than any punishment, and my loyalty to the Corps meant more to me than breathing. Things were always black and white, but with Cassie jumping into my world, I was now living in a very hazy shade of grey. Things that were so matter of fact before were no longer that way. Jensen couldn’t—didn’t want to see that. I couldn’t make him see it, and if it meant ripping our brotherhood apart, that was a choice I was just going to have to make.

He sat back, then exhaled loudly. We sat in an uncomfortable silence for what felt like forever. The birds came and went, and the sun set even lower as the orange and purple mixture stretched across a darkening sky. I’d finally had enough, so I stood and took a few steps toward the slider glass door when he finally spoke, stopping me in my tracks.

“Why, man?”

“Why, what?”

“Why her? Why now? I’m just trying to wrap my head around all of this.”

I walked back over to where he sat, anger starting to boil deep within me.

“There is no answer. Only a feeling and I can’t deny what I feel for her.”

“Dude, you can fuck anything with two legs that opens up to a pussy. I don’t get why her.”

He still didn’t get it. In his eyes, Cassie was just another piece of ass, and that should have been very easy to move away from. He was so stuck in his box that he couldn’t see that maybe, just maybe, there was more to her than what he saw, or wanted to see.

“I don’t particularly like having to explain myself, but I’m going to go ahead and set the fucking record straight,” I grumbled. “I get that you still see life through the Corps. Fine, good for you. But, I’m lucky enough to have found someone who has helped me see life for what it is, and it’s not behind a fucking manual of rules that fail to address real life situations. I’m sorry that I fucking let my emotions come and play, and I’m sorry that you can’t understand that. But I will not apologize for falling for Bennett, and I will not allow you to make me feel fucking guilty about it.”

“You’re wallowing in your own guilt, Alex.”

“Why are you holding out? Why not just run to First Sergeant and end all of this for me?”

“Because that’s not who I am. What’s done in the dark will come to light. I’m not running to tell anyone anything. But if questions get asked, I won’t lie and compromise myself.”

“What a moral guy you are. Must make you feel so fucking good about yourself.”

He shifted his eyes up to me. The cold icy stare looked like a stranger had taken hold of him. He wasn’t the same guy I had come to know and love.

“I don’t understand. Because for everything that you say about her, you do something to totally contradict it.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“For starters, you willingly accept an award that makes you look like a hypocrite. And I thought your own self-worth was worth more than anything to you.” He stood, standing directly in front of me. “And Castillo. For all the fucking love in the world that you claim to have for Bennett, fucking Castillo is an awesome way of showing it.”

“Who told you that I fucked Castillo?” The gloves were off now. I wasn’t about to have my name trashed over some shit I hadn’t done. If people wanted to judge me based off of my actions, then so be it. But to judge me on some shit I hadn’t done was grounds for some motherfucking noses to be broken.

“Don’t act like you didn’t. I wouldn’t even give a fuck if you did, except that you claim to be so into Bennett. I can’t understand how, for the life of me, you could lead on another female. And Leti is my friend. I’ll be damned if I watch you walk all over a friend of mine, seeing as how you already have once, and especially not with someone who you shouldn’t be touching with a ten foot pole.”

Bile rose in my throat. I was so incensed, and I knew that if I didn’t mentally talk myself down, Jensen would be on the receiving end of my fist and I just wasn’t sure if I had the energy to go another round with him. I slowly creeped over to him, standing so close that all breathing room had damn near been eliminated.

“I thought you were fucking smarter than that, but I see you’re about as dumb as the fucking rocks lining this yard. You want to hate me? Hate me. But do it with a sense of dignity. I did not sleep with Leti on Friday, and you fucking know it. You roll around in the mud, you’re going to get dirty.”

I stepped back and watched him. He didn’t flinch.

“As much as you hate what I have become, I hate what you are… what I was.” I turned and took a few steps towards the door before yelling out, “And hurry up and get your shit. You aren’t the fucking person I thought you were.”

I walked into the house and didn’t say another word to him. If he hated me, I was slowly learning to hate him right back. All of his self-righteous indignation was no more than a bucket of shit, pissed on twice as far as I was concerned. Did he have a point? Not in my mind. As long as I performed my job with no undue bias, there wasn’t shit he could say to me. My personal life was my personal life, and regardless of what the rules of the Corps said, I had reached the point of no return. Even with Cassie being mad, angry, disappointed, or whatever the fuck she was with me, I was determined to move forward.

And moving forward meant getting her back.

Early the next morning, I took a long run through Twentynine, letting Newsome and Jensen lead the students on their PT run. I needed as much distance from Jensen as humanly possible, and since we taught a class together, I had to steal away all I could get.

When I did make it to base, I was on a rampage, scouring the schoolhouse and looking for Castillo everywhere that I thought she would be.

No luck.

One of the females in admin said she had taken leave and wouldn’t be back until after the holiday.

Dammit!

I walked into the classroom. Newsome already had the class going for the day. Jensen was in the back, sifting through paperwork and never once making eye contact with me. If I hadn’t had the conversation I’d had with him the night before, it would have bothered me. But today—today, he was just another co-worker of mine, and interaction was unnecessary.

What did bother me was when I finally got a glimpse of Cassie and saw scratches on her forehead. What the fuck had happened to her? My fists subconsciously clenched into tight wads as I sat there, looking at the markings of what looked like a rabid animal. My heart lurched at the realization that something physical had happened, and I hadn’t been around to protect her. Sure, she was a Marine and was more than capable of defending herself, but that shit didn’t matter to me. Marine or not, and it was my job to make sure she was secure no matter what the circumstances.

I sat festering in my own self-anguish. Ungodly thoughts stabbed my brain as I thought about her altercation and how I was going to handle it once I had found out the story. I was sick to my stomach with queasiness, and even angrier with the fact that I wasn’t around for her and that she hadn’t even contacted me to let me know about it.

Had I lost her?

Had my own self-pity made me lose out on the one thing worth fighting for? I wouldn’t allow myself to believe that. I was just going to have to work that much harder to get her back even if I had to lose every so-called friend that I had.

I was going to get her back.

Newsome dismissed the class for lunch, and I promptly stood, making a hasty exit out the back door. I caught sight of Cassie, her emerald green eyes locking with mine. The emptiness that lay in them before was gone; her gleam was back. I walked right over to her, not caring about all of the eyes and ears that were probably trained on us, and quietly said, “I need you, in my office, now!”

Before she could say another word, I walked away, down the corridor, and into my office, where I took a seat and waited. A few minutes passed, and there was still no sign of her. She hadn’t texted to let me know that she wouldn’t be coming, and I was starting to get pissed by it all. Another five minutes passed and still nothing, so I stood and yanked on the door, prepared to go and find her if I had to.

Just as I swung the door open, there she stood, looking just as fucking beautiful and delicious as the first time I had seen her. No anger or bitterness could be found in her face. I couldn’t stand there staring at her. I had to get her inside, get her speaking again, hear her angelic voice tickle my eardrums.

I gently grabbed her hand and pulled her into my office, shutting the door behind her. The scratches on her forehead, while nothing too serious, sucker punched me and snatched the air away from me, leaving me grasping for it. My hand immediately floated up to them, and my fingers traced them as I grew more and more pissed by the second. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve any bullshit that I had inadvertently brought her way.

“I’m fine,” she finally said, her soft and delicate hand wrapping around my wrist, pulling my hand away. She smiled, easing me down from the anger filled ledge that I was standing on. “They’re just a couple of scratches, that’s all. No biggie.”

“Who did this to you?” My voice came out a menacing growl, definitely not intended.

“It doesn’t matter,” she replied, moving around me and taking a seat at my desk. I turned and watched her, my heart beating like it was on a sugar high. I couldn’t take her reply for an answer. I needed to know whose head I needed to rip off and stomp down.

“It matters to me. I don’t like seeing you hurt, Blondie. It’s killing me to see this on you.”

She lightly smiled. “I have been hurt far worse than this, Alex. I’ll survive.”

There it was.

A dagger for my heart.

Piercing stabs hit me with her dig at what I had done to her. It was well deserved, but even with that admission, it didn’t take any of the sting out of her words.

“I’ll take that. But I can’t take this. Someone deliberately went after you, and I’d lay my life on the line before I allowed that shit to happen again.”

“It won’t happen again,” she said, casually dismissing it. “Anyway, why was it so important for you to see me?”

Her casual response to whatever had happened had me a bit worried, but she wasn’t interested in divulging any information, so I bit my tongue—for once in my life—and went on with why I really wanted to see her.

“I haven’t heard from you since I asked you to go away with me. I’m growing impatient. I need you with me. Especially after seeing… this.” I pointed to her scratches again which she dismissively shook off.

“I don’t know, Alex. Your words and your actions are two different things. I let myself get caught up in you once, and you fucked me over. I’m not ready to go for seconds.”

She wasn’t holding back. The thick whip her tongue lashed at me made me feel like the piece of shit that I knew I had turned into with my one night of drunken stupidity. There wasn’t a damn thing in the world that I wouldn’t do to take that night back.

“You don’t owe me a goddamned thing, Blondie, but I’m asking you to take another chance on me. Remember what I was capable of doing to you within a few seconds of our eyes locking, our bodies touching, our hearts melding. I’d light my fucking face on fire if it meant I could take back all the bullshit, but I can’t. I just need you to take a leap, to see that I’ll catch you. I won’t let you fall.”

Her eyes squinted as she cocked her head. The wheels were turning; I could hear the pins moving with every turn. Before she had a chance to counter me, I placed my arm around her waist and pulled her into me. She let out a quick breath, my knee jerk reaction taking her by surprise. I sprinkled light kisses on her lips, her cheeks, and her neck. There wasn’t a place on her body where I didn’t feel like my lips belonged.

“You do shit to me that no woman has ever been able to do. And I won’t stop fighting to find my place back into your heart because that’s where I belong.”

She softly exhaled before gently whispering, “You never left my heart, Alex. I’m just not sure you deserve all of it anymore.”

I ran my lips up the side of her dainty neck, back over her jaw, up to her ear, over her heated cheeks...she was feeling every ounce of heat that I felt. Our chemistry could not be denied, but I needed her to let go of her inhibitions. I needed her to see that I was a dumb ass who made a hasty, irrational decision that was haunting me. I needed her to see that she was the one who could save me from my idiocy and ultimately save me from myself. I just needed her.

As I softly ran the tip of my tongue over her impeccably soft lips, I used my free hand to undo her belt, freeing her cammies from the stranglehold the belt had on them. I deftly worked the buttons undone with one hand, then pulled away and looked into her eyes. They were burning with passion, and apprehension at the sight of me reclaiming what was mine and doing it in such a daring manner.

“What are you—“

“Shhhh. Don’t question it.”

I swiftly picked her up and placed her down on my desk as I worked her pants and panties down her legs. Her scent had my libido on overdrive. I wanted to dive into her like a vicious predator finally getting a meal, but there was more to getting her back than just hasty fucking. I wanted her to see my sensual, caring side. I wanted her to see me.

She lay on the desk, looking aroused and nervous all at once. I stood over her, standing in between her legs and smiling down on her. “Don’t be nervous,” I softly whispered, peeling her inhibiting clothing down even further. I thought about the door and that it was still unlocked, but I was too caught up in the moment to care.

“You’re the only body these lips are touching,” I whispered as I lowered myself to eye level with her insanely beautiful pussy. I took my lips to her legs, dotting light kisses along the interior of her thigh. The sweetness exuded from her, tickling my nostrils, making me want to dive right in, but I told myself to be patient. This was all about her right now, and I wasn’t going to ruin the feeling for her.

I placed one hand at her entrance, finding her clit and rubbing until moans came from her deliciously, fuckable mouth. My heart raced with every sound, sending the signal to my cock that she did indeed want me, but right now was not the time for her to have me. I continued working her clit as my lips slowly but surely made their way to her entrance, stopping just outside, before looking up to her and asking, “am I allowed in?”

Her eyes were tightly shut, her teeth holding down her bottom lip as she whimpered and nodded her head. I didn’t give her another second to possibly change her mind before dipping my tongue inside, once again feeling the smooth warmth of her luxurious core.

My tongue drove deeper as my fingers continued to rub her clit. She was beginning to buck on the desk, her moans growing louder and more forceful. I quickly removed my fingers from her clit and grabbed her t-shirt, forcing it up to her mouth. “Bite on that,” I mumbled into her. She took it, her moans now muffled sounds that still turned me on. I used my tongue to swirl around inside of her, lapping her up, trying to take every ounce of the intoxicating juices that were building up and beginning to flow out of her.

“I’m coming,” she moaned, a highly erotic whimper accompanying it. Her hands moved to my head, trying to push me away, but I held strong, ready to take her orgasm on head first. “Ahhhh… ahhhh… I’m coming, Alex.”

“Come baby. Come for me.”

And almost on command, she came, hard and hot. Her deliciously sweet release coating my mouth like a glazed donut. Her body went limp as her chest moved up and down. I slowly made my way up, licking the release of her from my mouth, before pulling her up and kissing her. She took me, my head in her hands as our tongues gently overlapped one another. We pulled away, her eyes glossed as she looked at me with lustful admiration.

“So will you come with me this weekend?”

She stood from the desk and attempted to pull her pants up, but I beat her to it, squatting down and taking hold of them as I placed my nose in between her legs. She tapped my head, signaling for me to dress her.

“I don’t know yet. It’s risky.”

“Everything is risky. Me talking to you is risky. Me smiling at you is risky. Me tongue fucking you is risky.” I pulled her panties and pants up, then stood nose to nose with her. “I’m telling you now. You. Are. Worth. The. Risk. You understand that?”

A spark went off in her eyes. It was like she finally realized that even though I could be insanely stupid at times, she meant everything to me.

She tucked her t-shirt back into her pants, the bottom hem wet and wrinkled from acting as a gag for her loud moans and outbursts. She fastened her belt and smoothed down her hair. “I’ll let you know.”

“Don’t make me wait. I’ll come get you, and you know it.”

She smiled, then kissed my cheek and opened the door, looking out before stepping outside and walking away. Her taste lingered on my lips. Getting my fill of her was better than any meal that I could have eaten. She was the best thing to ever touch my tongue.

I straightened my uniform then stepped out of the office. The lunch hour was coming to an end, and the students were beginning to file back into the schoolhouse courtyard. Cassie had found Dalton and those other two students she seemed to hang out with. I walked by, and eye fucked her, knowing that the others were probably curious, but I didn’t care. When it came to Cassie, I already knew the consequences could be severe, but the possibilities were also endless. The risk with her would always be worth the reward.

A sense of accomplishment washed over me as I walked into the schoolhouse building. All of that joy was carried away when I passed by Ruiz who blatantly tried to avoid my gaze. I didn’t care that she wanted to avoid looking at me. Hell, I didn’t want to look at her either. But something stood out when I looked at her. There were scratches along her cheek. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what had happened. She was the culprit who had marked Cassie.

Newsome came marching out of the building, and I took it as my opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

“Hey, Pfc. Ruiz. Are you okay?”

Her guilt riddled eyes cautiously coasted over to me, apprehensively landing on a wrathful stare. She knew exactly what I knew, and her expression told on her long before she ever opened her mouth. Newsome now stood next to me, looking like the concerned instructor that I couldn’t be.

“I’m okay, Sergeant.” Her cheeks flushed a bright shade of red.

“What’s going on?” Newsome asked, trying to gauge the situation.

“Our student has some scratches on her face, so I was just making sure she was alright.”

Newsome’s eyes swung from me to Ruiz. Her breathing began to pick up as I smirked at her, but I could tell she was working diligently, trying to keep it under control.

“I took a sparring class at the gym. Got a little rough, that’s all.” Her eyes told a different story as she fixated on Newsome, wholly avoiding me altogether.

Newsome nodded his head, then continued on his way. I stood there a moment longer, wanting to see her sweat. She was a feisty little bitch, I would give her that. But where Cassie was concerned, none of it was going to be tolerated.

“You’re walking on thin ice, Ruiz. Don’t make me help you fall,” I gruffly whispered into her ear. Not only did I now confirm what I had known all along, but I’d hopefully, for the last time, put this girl on notice. She looked away, averting the intense heat from my searing gaze. I turned, looking back to find Cassie laughing with her friends, and Ruiz looking like she was about to vomit. Flashes of what may have happened between the two them hit me again, bringing a double dose of wrath with it. I was infuriated by what I’d discovered, and I could have chewed through concrete with that bit of news.

Chapter 20

Cassie

Class had a very strange vibe to it after the lunch hour. Alex, with his brazen acts of sexual goodness, had all but convinced me that I needed to take him up on his offer and run off with him for the weekend. His very capable tongue proved once again that I had a weakness for all things physical when it came to him. But when we came back into the classroom, the looks he gave off were nothing but menacing, even in my direction. Something had happened between his meal and class, and it worried me, leaving me anxious to find out.

Dalton waited for me outside in the courtyard as the day came to a close. Alex was inside, speaking to a few more instructors, so he wasn’t easily accessible for me to pull away and figure out what had crawled up his ass. Angelica rushed by us, not stopping to say a word. Caring about her mood swings was the last thing on my mind. She had become a bothersome fly to me, and I couldn’t wait for the next time that I’d get a chance to swat her.

We began our trek to the barracks, Dalton going on and on about Data and all of the wonderful things the he was learning. Unfortunately, my mind was occupied with thoughts of Alex. I had become a horrible friend to Dalton, always thinking or speaking of Alex, but I couldn’t help it. The man had embedded himself inside of me, and was making it damn near impossible to get rid of him.

“So, you gonna go with Cruz this weekend?” Dalton asked, abruptly switching topics, fully aware that this would finally make me pay attention.

“I don’t know. What are you doing? I don’t want to just leave you here.”

“Don’t worry about me. This guy from back home, Ben, is flying out to see me, so it’s you I’m worried about.”

I ribbed him a bit. “Ohhh, a boyfriend, huh?” Do tell.”

Dalton laughed, the kind of laugh that soothed the soul. “He isn’t my boyfriend. Although, I’d like him to be. We’ll see. We had just started to get know one another when I left for bootcamp. We’ve been keeping in touch.”

“That’s sweet. I hope you have fun.”

“Me too, but I’m worried about you. I won’t be here, and I don’t want you staying behind with Ruiz and Allen for a long weekend. I can only imagine how nerve wracking that will be. Please go with Cruz. For me?”

He batted his long lashes, his face softening and his eyes exuding puppy dog innocence. I laughed at him, but the reality of spending the weekend with Ruiz and quite possibly running into Allen did set my radar off, knowing that some fireworks would surely explode if that were to happen. As much as I wanted to go with Alex, I didn’t want him to think that with one lick of his tongue he had me. But the alternative was much more cringe-worthy than stroking Alex’s ego.

“You’re right. I’ll go with him.”

“Thank you. Good times for the both of us.”

My phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out, seeing Alex’s name light up on the screen. It was odd that he called instead of texted.

“Hello…”

“Ditch Dalton and go somewhere where you can be alone,” he said. His voice had irritation swirling through it, making me anxious.

I looked around and found him sitting inside his truck with the phone up to his ear. Dalton looked at me wide eyed and full of curiosity.

“I’ll catch you later,” I said, tapping his arm and walking off in the opposite direction. When I found myself away from any other living soul, I brought the phone back up to my ear. “What’s gotten into you?”

“You’re coming with me this weekend. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.”

“Whoa. Slow down.”

“No. You listen to me. Your fucking roommate is a psychotic bitch, and I know she put the scratches on your forehead. Why the fuck didn’t you tell me?”

“Because I’m a big girl and I handled it, okay?”

“No, it’s not okay. She is a different kind of crazy. She’s got a record, and I don’t want you staying anywhere near her while I’m away. I don’t give a shit if you don’t want to spend the weekend with me. You’re at least going to let me get you away from her.”

“That’s what crawled up your ass this afternoon?”

“Don’t get condescending, Blondie.”

“I was going to tell you that I would go away with you, but you are making me want to change my mind.”

“Then it’s settled. Be ready to go Friday afternoon. And trust me, I knew you were coming with me all along.” I could hear his smile through the phone. He was a cocky son of a bitch and didn’t make any qualms about it. “Lay low, please. I don’t need any more blemishes on your beautiful face.”

He hung up.

I was a bit peeved by his assertions. He had just demanded that, one way or another, I leave with him for the weekend. Of course, he was coming from a good place, but still. I didn’t want to be ordered around—not unless it was work related or in the bedroom. Then thoughts of Alex and me, alone for a whole weekend, his commands on every sexual position his kinky mind could think of, came fluttering in. I quickly lost the up-in-arms demeanor and plastered a giddy grin on my face at all of the wondrous thoughts of a naked Alex floating around in my head.

Friday morning came without any more occurrences. Angelica had distanced herself from me, which was a welcomed move, and Allen didn’t say anything else. Surprisingly, Castillo hadn’t been lurking around either. The week finished on a definite upswing.

We were released at noon, hoards of overly excited students crashing out of the room with probably nowhere to go. The mere fact that they could get away from school and instructors was probably more than enough of a reason to celebrate. Dalton and I played it off as if we were heading off somewhere together. Angelica didn’t ask any questions, but when she was around, I knew the wheels were turning in her head.

Alex had told me to just take a taxi over to his place whenever I was ready. He’d slipped some cash into my hand the night before during Field Day inspections, even though I was more than capable of paying for a paltry cab ride myself, but my argument fell on deaf ears. He wanted to hear none of it. Instead, he griped about how my pretty little mouth was always running, and how he couldn’t wait to shut it for me. I hated the way his words transformed me from a boisterous adult to an obedient child waiting to be spanked. And for as much as I hated it, I loved it.

“You ready to go?” Dalton asked, helping me gather my bags. I had no clue where Alex was taking me because he wouldn’t give anything away. I was only told to pack light and bring a sweater. Nothing more, nothing less.

“I believe so.” I looked around the room, finding nothing left out of place. I double checked my wall locker, made sure my bed was made, and took a picture of it all just in case Angelica decided to be a little bitch while I was away and pull something. Seemed very childish, but I wasn’t willing to put anything past her.

I sent a quick text to Alex, letting him know that I was on my way before lugging my bags down the stairs to the awaiting cab. Lane and Hutchins said goodbye as we drove off. I felt kind of bad leaving them behind, but they said they would occupy each other for the weekend, making me feel a little better. I gave the cabbie the address to Alex’s house and sat in silence as we drove off the base and into the vast stretch of desert.

“You nervous?” Dalton asked, breaking the silence and placing his hand on top of mine.

“A little bit.”

“Good!” He wiped his brow, even though near arctic air was blasting through the cab as we blazed down the sun scorched road.

“Why are you nervous? You already know Ben.”

He blew a small breath. “I know. It’s just that everything was done in secret at home. We never spent as much time together as we will this weekend. I think this will really cement things. See what we really want out of each other.”

His words could have come out of my own mouth. I had yet to look at it that way, but his anxiety slowly creeped into my own body. Alex and I had been interacting under a cloak of secrecy, stealing away bits and pieces of time here and there. This weekend was a chance for us to truly get to know one another and be a real couple out in the real world. The idea frightened me more than I wanted it to. I grew silent once again, the thoughts clouding my head with the fear that things would not go well.

“Hey. You are going to have a kick ass time. Stop thinking so much.” He rubbed the top of my hand, easing some of the tension that had embedded itself within me.

“I guess I should be telling you the same thing.”

A few turns later and we were pulling onto Alex’s street. I looked out the window as we pulled up, Alex’s truck sitting in the driveway with him leaning up against it. His muscles rippled from his cut off shirt, his shorts hanging low while a pair of black sandals outfitted his feet. He was so casual, yet so delectable.

I paid the driver then hopped out, Dalton exited as well and helped me grab my bags from the trunk. Alex’s face was fixed in a stern mask, greeting Dalton with pure formality.

“Hello, Pfc. Dalton.”

“Hello, Sgt.” Dalton tried to smile, looking very nervous as he handed my bags over to Alex.

The thick, heated air was beginning to choke me. I didn’t like the way this was playing out, and I didn’t want it to fester.

“I hope you have a great time this weekend, Dalton. Remember, just enjoy it.” I hugged him tight and saw him off. Dalton got back into the car, and I watched it drive off before turning around to Alex. He stood to the side, holding my bags in his hands.

“So you told Dalton?” he asked, glaring at me.

“Yeah. You told Riley. I needed someone to lean on, too. And besides, he’s known for a bit. Like you say, he’s in my corner.”

He blew out a long breath, then walked past me, up the driveway. I quickly followed behind.

“He’s not going to say anything.” I tried reassuring him, seeing that the sight of Dalton had rubbed him wrong.

“I just don’t want too many people knowing. Speculating is one thing, but knowing is another.”

I stopped him, then kissed his lips, biting on the bottom a couple of times and licking the marks. “Simmer down. We are fine.”

He smiled and continued the walk, leading me into the house. When I walked in, the aroma of freshly baked pizza hit me, sending my stomach gurgling with the need to be fed. I had been so anxious about getting out and getting my weekend started that I had forgotten to eat. Alex walked in behind me, stopping to kiss my cheek.

“Make yourself at home. Pizza should be about ready. I’m going to put your bags in our room.”

“Our room?” I asked, looking over at him.

“Yes. Our room.”

I walked further into the house, hearing voices and a female giggle. My stomach churned, and not with hunger. When I stepped into the kitchen and looked over at the living room, Riley was sitting on the couch with a very petite blonde sitting on his lap. He was whispering things into her ear and had his hand down her shirt. I didn’t want to interrupt whatever they had going on. He looked up and saw me walking away.

“Hey, Bennett.”

I turned around, hoping to hide the embarrassment flooding my face.

“Hi, Riley,” I replied, awkwardly smiling at him and his female companion. She swatted his hand away and stood, briskly walking over to where I was standing.

“I’m Natasha, Nat for short.”

Her bubbly personality put me at ease. I had to remember that I wasn’t the student screwing my instructor this weekend. I reached out my hand and shook hers. She was short, maybe five feet tall, with large, ample breasts that clung to her V-neck tank top, and a pair of shorts that barely covered her ass. Her arms were elegantly decorated in quarter length sleeves of elaborate flowers and butterflies, with pink and orange shading. The nose ring topped off her ensemble, probably making her the prettiest girl I had ever seen.

“It’s nice to meet you, Natasha. I’m Cassie.”

“Are you a Marine?” she asked, her eyes taking in the length of me.

“Yes.”

“Oh, wow. That’s bad ass. You’re probably the hottest fucking female Marine I’ve ever seen. And I see quite a few where I work.”

“Where do you work?” I asked, wanting to know more about this girl that had me so intrigued.

“Custom Ink, just outside the back gate.”

Just then Alex walked into the room, coming up from behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist, nuzzling his nose into my neck.

“Can I fuck you right now?” he asked, sending chills down my spine and blood to my clit.

“Don’t be rude, Alex. You can fuck her all night. I want to get to know her,” Natasha interrupted before I even had a chance to tell him no. I liked her; she had a lot of spunk.

“Riley, come get your cock blocking fucking chick,” Alex said, turning for the kitchen and grabbing two oven mitts to pull the pizza from the oven. He turned back around and smiled at Natasha. “You know I love ya, Nat.”

“Yeah, yeah! Hurry up and feed me, you asshole,” she replied. The banter between them calmed me. It seemed that they were quite comfortable with one another and that things would not turn awkward.

We ate pizza and had a few beers. Riley explained how he and Natasha had met when he went in for a tattoo, and she had been the only one with an open hour time slot. He said he’d been leery because he’d never had a chick do it before, but the second she stuck out her tits, lowered her eyes, shook his hand and sucked his fingers on release, he’d been a goner. The story couldn’t have been less romantic if they tried, but I found myself laughing and liking both of them even more.

“Let’s play Phase Ten,” Natasha called out, running into the hallway closet and coming back with a deck of cards, ones I had never seen before. “Chris, grab the Jose and four shot glasses.” Her mention of his first name caught me off guard. She wasn’t a Marine, so it was normal that she would refer to him that way, but the use of it seemed weird and a little out of place.

“What is this game?” I asked, once again showing that I knew nothing about anything that most people liked and participated in.

“It’s Phase Ten. It’s a frustratingly, fabulous game. Here is your phase card,” she said, tossing a card at me that held ten different phases. I looked it over, none of it meaning a damn thing to me. “You’ll get dealt a hand, and then with that hand you have to try and make each phase. One at a time. You lay a card or pick up from the deck, and then discard. The person with no cards left wins the hand. But I play with a twist. If you don’t get your phase, not only do you have to repeat it, but you also have to take a shot.”

“So anyone can get their phase?” I asked, still slightly confused.

“Yes. We could all get our phase, and then we move on to the next one.”

I sort of got it. Alex sat back in his chair, eyes glued on me, lowly hooded by his dark lashes, with a deep smirk on his face. He knew how out of my element all of this was for me and was probably hoping I would lose. I was hoping for beginners luck.

The first few hands were easy. I caught on rather quickly, easily getting my phases and avoiding the dreaded Jose. After a few more hands and a few too many stuck on phase four, I was three shots in and slowly feeling the buzz from the alcohol. Natasha was leading everyone, moving all the way up to phase seven. Alex and Riley were both right behind her on phase six. The room was beginning to get hot, leaving my skin damp, even with the air blowing from the vents and the ceiling fan circling overhead. The guys kept passing glances at one another, small covert eye twitches letting me know that something was up. Every skip card that they got was given to me, putting me further behind, leaving me with a multitude of cards and unable to complete my phase. I probably took three more shots before my body felt like it was overheating and I removed my tank top, without even thinking.

“What the hell are you doing?” Alex asked, his voice a deep growl while picking up my top and sweeping over to me. I looked at Riley who had a goofy grin on his face, and Natasha who just looked aroused.

“It’s hot in here.”

“You’re drunk. Enough cards for the night.”

“I’m good. I want to keep going.”

Riley filled his glass with tequila and took the shot for good measure. He and Alex had only taken three, Natasha had only taken two. Alex picked me up from the chair and held me in his arms, bidding the two of them goodnight. He burst through the door, his big, strapping body holding me close as he walked me into the room and gently lay me down on the bed. The fan was turning at full speed, sending much needed air in my direction. Music played from his phone, the smooth rock music infiltrating my ears and rocking me to a melodious sleep. I awoke a few minutes later, or so it seemed, to Alex standing over by his dresser with nothing but beads of water coating his light caramel skin.

“You want to take a shower?” he asked, turning around and giving me an eyeful of his thick and wondrous cock. I shook my head no, using my index finger to signal him over to me. He sat down on the bed, running his hands through my sweat dampened hair that now left slight tendrils sticking to parts of my face. “What’s running through your mind?”

I peered up into his golden hued eyes, the gleam inside making me want to jump him at that very second. I was much too drunk to make such sudden movements, so I grabbed his head, pulled him down to me, and licked him up. I licked his lips, his nose, his cheeks, then gently kissed each spot, urging him on and spurring a quick and bulging erection from him. He wrapped one arm around my waist, the other going to my hair, and began kissing me with tenacious want. His tongue, velvety soft with just hint of tequila, took my mouth and claimed me as his hand grabbed hold of my ass and squeezed hard, making me moan with pleasurable pain.

Alex slowly pulled away, removing the rest of my clothes and nuzzling down in between my legs when suddenly, stupidity hit me.

Now would be the best time to get some things off my chest.

I grabbed his head and pushed him away. His frustrated, panting body sat up, his eyes glaring down on me with aroused irritation.

“What?” he asked, trying to hide the annoyance laced inside.

“I just want to know. Why? Why Castillo?”

He shut his eyes and blew out a breath. “You aren’t really asking me that right now, are you?”

“Yes, I am. I need to know.”

He shook his head and sat up on the bed, looking down on me.

“I was fucking stupid, and she was readily available. I told you, I thought I could fuck you out of my system, but I realized then that I couldn’t even take another chick’s mouth on me. I’m sorry. I don’t know how else to make you believe that.”

I watched him silently go through all sorts of emotions. This probably wasn’t the best time to be asking about all of this, but I had liquid courage and a plethora of questions that needed to be asked.

“So you went out that night looking to fuck someone?”

He shut his eyes again. I could tell the inquisition was growing too strong for him.

“Yes. I did.”

I lay quiet, unsure how I felt about his answer.

“But I’ll tell you this, even though there was no exclusivity between us, it felt wrong. I hated it, and I put a stop to it. You’re in me. I need you, Blondie, and I’m going to do everything to make you realize that.”

The rest of the questions I had in mind dissipated into tiny particles with his words, filling my head with insignificant specs of nothing. His words flowed out with deep sincerity, and the look in eyes shifted to adoration as he spoke about me.

I sat up, the alcohol rushing to my head and leaving me in a slight daze. My hand caressed Alex’s strong bicep, the feel of his body making me want him me even more.

“I need you to—“

“Shut up and fuck me, Alex.”

He pounced, pushing me back down on the bed and hovering over me. I stared up at him, my drunken haze seemingly gone as he smiled down on me, shaking his head.

“This is the only time I will take a command from you. You understand that, Pfc. Bennett?”

“I know you don’t take orders from Pfcs, so I’ll gladly take the punishment. Be rough, I think I deserve it.”

Before long a condom wrapper was in his mouth. He tugged on it and ripped it open. He grabbed the condom from inside and rolled it onto his largely stiff cock.

“You don’t even realize what you just asked for,” he whispered, bringing his chest down to meld with mine. I started to respond before I was calling out his name as he rammed his way inside of me, completely catching me off guard and shooting sparks off inside my body. He stilled inside, looking down at me while removing the hair from my face. My eyes were tightly shut as my top teeth held onto my lower lip.

“I’m about to own you, Blondie. And when I’m done, the only words you’ll know are shit, fuck, and Alex.”

He set to work, roughly rocking to and fro inside of me while licking, biting, and sucking on my neck.

“Shit! Fuck! Fuck me, Alex!”

I couldn’t hold back. He was pummeling my insides, ripping away at an imaginary barrier that seemed to be hindering him from reaching some imaginary objective. The louder I cried out, the harder he worked, grunting and holding tighter to my hair.

“I have to get deeper. I need to embed myself in you like you’ve done to me.”

He let go of my hair and sat up, easing his way out of me before standing on the floor at the side of the bed. He pulled me to the edge and wasted no time turning my body, grabbing onto my thighs and ramming his way back inside.

I cried out as pleasurable bolts of lightning ripped through my core, hitting every wall surface with the deeper intrusion of his bulging, aggressive cock. I grabbed the blankets, fisting them tightly as he continued ramming his way to the depths of me.

“Ahhh, you’re so fucking smooth, I’m never coming out of here,” Alex groaned with a guttural sound. He let go of one of my thighs, using his now free hand to smack my ass, giving just enough sting and bite to make me cry out his name.

“Louder,” he growled, his voice growing deeper as he beat harder into me. He smacked my ass again, double time, one smack right after the other.

“Alex! Alex!” I screamed, having no other words come to mind. He knew me better than I knew myself. He left me ragged and almost speechless.

“You like that?” he asked, now taking my hair into his hands and tugging roughly. I didn’t answer; I was too worn out to muster up the energy. His movements stopped, and he leaned down to softly nibble on my neck.

“I asked you a question. When I ask a question, you answer. You understand that?” The grip on my hair grew tighter, but the ache of my almost there release consumed me, needing him to finish me off. “Do you like that?”

“Yes… yes…I love it.” My desperate voice came barreling out, shocking me.

He laughed, low and seductive, then quickly picked up the pace, one hand still holding rigidly to my hair while the other reached down and firmly pushed the tip of his thumb into my ass. The pain of the entrance surprised me, but pleasure masked it, making my growing climax that much more intense. I bit the blankets as he forced my head down, beating away at my pussy with so much force that I thought he would rip me in two.

“Ahhhh… fuck… I’m coming!” I said, my words muffled by the bed spread.

“I’m coming too, Blondie. Come with me.” His voice was deep and coarse. He beat into me a few more times, removing his thumb from my ass and letting go of my hair before grabbing onto my waist and pounding. My entire body went numb as Alex ravaged me, finishing me off as he groaned. I fell to the bed, Alex falling on top of me, our bodies breathing in succession, neither of us able to speak.

After a few minutes, Alex rolled off of me, and I was finally able to turn over. We were both drained, completely sated, and over the bullshit. The angry, menacing fuck absolutely needed to happen.

When my thoughts finally slowed, and I could think clearly, the music played into my ears putting a smile on my face. I reached over and turned it up. Alex scrunched his eyebrows at me.

“This song is so fitting, don’t you think?”

The chorus to Fall for You by Secondhand Serenade belted from the speakers, making me sing along as I lay my head down on Alex’s chest, feeling even closer to him through our intense fucking and now the melodic rhythm of his heartbeat.

“I’m never going to do anything to make you change your mind ever again,” he responded, pulling me closer and nuzzling his nose in my hair.

I reached over for his phone that was plugged into the speakers, and hit repeat. The song played over and over again as we lay intertwined with one another, my leg draped over his like a satiny sheet, and his hand, on my ass, rubbing and squeezing until we both fell asleep.

Chapter 21

Alex

I could have stared at her all night long. So many times I wanted to wake her, to go round after round with her, but I didn’t because the peaceful and serene look on her face as she slept put a smile on my face and a lock on my cock.  This was the first time I had woken up to her in my arms. It felt surreal.

If someone had told me that, at this point in my life, I’d be waking up to a female in my bed, I would have laughed in their face. After Evelyn, I didn’t exactly turn into the romantic type. Screwing a random girl here and there was my forte, and it worked for me. No attachments, no feelings. Just fucking and ducking. Exactly what I had no intention of doing with Cassie.

The morning sunlight kissed her skin, her naked body still in my arms. Running my fingers over her taut middle, the hardness of her rock solid abs electrified my core. Her pretty little lips smacked a couple of times as she squirmed under my touch. The innocence surrounding her made me smile, made me thankful that she was so forgiving.

Unable to refrain any longer, I kissed her, soft and slow a few times, stirring her and interrupting her sleep. Her eyes squinted with the glow of the morning light, finally focusing on me as she slightly turned her head.

“Morning,” I lightly said, smiling at her, then leaning to kiss her perfectly pout lips again.

A hint of a smile spread across her lips as she gently exhaled.

“I’m a little sore.” Her feeble morning voice slipped out as she shifted her legs in the bed.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “You told me to fuck you, then you told me to punish you. I did exactly what I was told--”

“And then some,” she finished.

“Let me check. I need to make sure you’re okay for what I have planned for the rest of the weekend.”

I slipped under the sheets, worming my way down her body, splattering kisses with each inch. Once I reached her hips, I moved in between her legs, kissing my way over to her middle, readying my tongue to soothe her ache. I could smell myself on her, a welcomed scent, showing off that I had been there, and it was precisely where I belonged. I scooted down, placing my face directly at her core. I snuck a peek, seeing her usually pinkish flesh a slight shade darker, the lips to her beautiful pussy a tad bit puffy.

“You’re a bit swollen,” I murmured, smiling under the sheets.

She tried to close her legs, but I quickly stopped her.

“Get from down there.”

“Why?”

“Because that’s embarrassing.”

“I’ve seen, tasted, and explored every inch of this delectable body. There is nothing left to be embarrassed about.”

I extended my tongue, licking her thick lips with slow, deliberate movements. She was definitely swollen, and if she did ache, I wanted to be the one to take it away. She began to moan, her hands reaching down and holding on to my head. I licked her lips, up and down, slightly sucking just for the fuck of it. She brought her legs up, moving her body further away from me, to which I briskly moved with her, now thrusting my tongue inside. She moaned even louder, hitting my head and squirming.

“That’s not what you’re supposed to be doing,” she whined.

I continued tasting her, ignoring her whines and moans as I dove further and further, filling her with me, savoring every piece of her. Her hips bucked and she tugged on my ears, gripping tighter with each swirl. I could tell she was close, so I didn’t let up. I intensified my licks, strengthening my sucks while finding her clit and circling away. Her moans turned into harrowing screams, my name filling the room. I kept at it, relentless sucks as she emptied herself, painting my face with her deliciously sweet cum.

I was in heaven. I never wanted to leave.

When her release was finally done, I lay down at her middle, mesmerized by the fact that she was mine. All mine.

I couldn’t contain the smile creeping across my face as I finally emerged from the sheets. She put that happiness into me. She also brought it out of me. I licked my lips, slurping up the excess around my mouth. She scrunched her nose, a tiny laugh leaving her body.

“What’s so funny?” I asked, lying back down next to her.

“You are. You’re gross.”

“You think you’re gross?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“I’m enjoying you. So if that’s gross, you’re calling yourself gross. And I have to argue. You’re delicious. So fucking delicious that I could eat you all day long.”

I kissed her, smashing my mouth down to hers so that she had no choice but to get a good taste of herself, before rolling out of the bed and walking into the bathroom.

“We need to get up and get going. I have a ton of shit I want to do with you today, and none of it involves any traces of this fucking desert.”

“Where are we going?”

“Don’t ask questions. I’ve got this. Now come and shower with me.”

She rolled her eyes then got out of bed, slowly walking into the bathroom and stopping in front of the mirror.

“Look at my hair. Yeah, a shower is very necessary.”

I stood behind her, wrapping my arms around her middle, placing my chin down on her shoulder.

“Then fuck the shower. Sex hair is perfect. Between that soreness and your hair, I’d say I’m definitely leaving my mark.”

She smacked my head then moved into the shower. I quickly followed behind her.

After showering, we dressed and walked out to the kitchen. I walked behind her, watching the movement of her ass cheeks in her tight fitting maxi dress, or whatever she had called it. Her hair was thrown up into a damp, messy bun on the top of her head. The look displayed her neck, a beautiful, luscious part of her body. I sucked in my bottom lip, feeling my cock jump the longer I stared at her.

Riley and Natasha were already in the kitchen with bacon, eggs, and coffee sitting in front of them as Riley read the Marine Corps Times.

“Good morning, guys,” Cassie called out, sitting down at the island.

“Well, damn. I’m surprised she’s alive, Alex. Sounded like you were murdering her last night.” Natasha’s eyes swept over to me, then to Cassie, winking.

Cassie flushed red, putting her head down just as a coy smile took over her face.

“There’s more food over there, man. Made some extra bacon and eggs.”

“I’m good,” I said, pouring two mugs of coffee. “I had plenty to eat this morning already.”

Cassie’s eyes damn near fell out of her head. Natasha laughed, and Riley joined her. I made a quick plate and placed it in front of her, her light blush now completely red.

“I was so ready to knock on your door and ask to be invited in. Chris was drunk and passed out on me.”

“Sorry, we’re selfish assholes. We don’t share,” I responded, taking a seat.

We made small talk, Cassie trying hard to squeeze any bit of information out of Riley and Natasha to find out what I had planned for her. Riley knew, but he was my brother and wouldn’t be giving away any secrets. Natasha didn’t know, and I was glad because her lips were loose. If she’d been privy to anything, she would have spilled it.

After a second cup of coffee, feeling like it was necessary after our intensely physical night, I stood, taking the dishes and cleaning them off before placing them into the dishwasher.

“Alright. We better get going. We’ve got a bit of a drive ahead of us.”

“Yeah, we do too. Better get going,” Riley countered, cleaning up after him and Natasha.

I ran into the room and grabbed Cassie’s bags, then took them outside and placed them in the back seat of my truck. She was saying goodbye to Natasha when I walked back to the front door. I said my goodbyes, giving Riley the guy hug and whispering, “Wrap it up,” before pulling away.

He laughed, clapping my back. “Good luck.”

I smiled, then took Cassie by the hand and led her out to my Ram. I opened her door, allowing her to climb in before I shut it and ran around to the other side. I jumped in, placing my hand on her thigh. “You ready to go?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she answered, her bright beautiful smile showing off her pearly white teeth.

I started up the truck, the low, thunderous roar of the engine growling to life. She took my phone and plugged it into the auxiliary, rummaging through my music collection and stopping on Radio/Video by System of a Down.

She rolled her window down and shook her head along to the beat, singing at the top of her lungs as we sped down the lonesome, barren highway that would take us away from secrecy and into open happiness.

The music continued to play as we traveled along, Cassie’s face full of excitement as we finally left the desert and entered more scenic parts of the highway. From what I’d learned about her in the truck, she had never left Arizona until bootcamp. That was a bit of a shock to me. She was a rock music lover, belting out hits from Metallica, Alice in Chains, and even going back, taking it old school with Poison. Her voice, while soft and soothing, didn’t match the rough and raspy tone of the singers, but her infectious performances had me singing and head banging right along with her. About halfway into the drive she grew tired, making me promise to wake her as soon as we reached our destination. I agreed, but truthfully, I would have done it anyway because I was also overly anxious about introducing her to something new.

I woke Cassie, gently shaking her leg as we pulled up to a stoplight with a rock walled waterfall to the right that read, Welcome to Huntington Beach.  She woke, instantly pulling out her cell phone and snapping a few pictures.

“We’re at a beach?” she asked. The shock that spread across her face was almost sad.

“We are at a beach. My favorite beach as a matter of fact,” I answered, turning into the parking lot and stopping to pay the attendant before finding a space. “I knew this would be different for you, and after our talk on the way down here, I figured you’d enjoy it. So we’re here, at a California beach.”

She was so giddy with excitement that she opened her door and jumped out, snapping more pictures of any and everything. I got out and walked around to her side, picking her up and cradling her in my arms as I walked her to the sand.

“You ready for a dip?”

“No,” she replied, looking down at her clothes. “You should have told me we were coming to a beach. I would have brought a swim suit.”

“Wait here,” I said, kissing her nose before turning and jogging back to the truck. I let down the tailgate and pulled out a duffle bag that held clothes she wasn’t even aware I had. I rummaged through them and pulled out a pair of board shorts and a hot pink two piece for her. Running it back over to her, I found her sitting in the sand, her toes curling while she allowed it to run through her fingers.

“Here you go,” I said, handing her the swimsuit.

Shock crossed her face. “Where did you get this?”

“Natasha helped me out. Go change. I want to get you in the water.”

She took the suit and ran off to the restrooms. I didn’t really give a shit, so I stripped out of my shorts and into my board shorts behind a pillar that held a shade area. When she walked out, my jaw went slack, dropping to the floor as I drank her in. Her perfectly proportioned, toned and tanned body looked radiant in the swimsuit; more than I could have imagined. I knew that I’d be the envy of all the guys at this beach, and it made me happy. Seeing Cassie that way, sexy without even trying, made me realize just how lucky I truly was.

We walked over to a rental hut and grabbed two boogie boards before heading down to the water. The whole way down, I walked with my hand glued to her ass. The bottoms were stringy and Brazilian cut, showing off her beautiful ass cheeks. I knew other pricks were looking at her as we walked by, but keeping my hand plastered there gave more than enough warning without me even having to say a word.

“Okay. You have to show me to how to do this. I don’t have a clue.”

I took her hand and strapped the wrist cuff around her wrist before doing my own.

“You’ll want to go out in the water and wade around… wait for a wave. When you see the wave forming, lay on your board and paddle, then just let the wave take you in.”

Fear shone on her face as she watched a massive wave come through and completely thrash some guy. “He took it wrong. You’ll be okay. I promise.”

I ran out into the water first, diving in when it felt deep enough, then swimming out even further to catch the wave at its inception. She stood on the shore, watching me as I went through all of the steps I had just given her and caught the perfect wave, riding it all the way back in.

“You ready to try?” I asked, anxious to have her in with me.

“Go one more time. Let me get some guts by watching you.”

I shook my head and laughed, then turned and swam back out into the ocean. I went even further this time, hoping to catch an even bigger wave. As I lay on my board, I looked back at the shore, noticing two guys come and stand directly next to Cassie. They were much too close for my liking, so I caught the next wave, even though it wasn’t much, and swam the rest of the way in. I got up and stalked over to where they were standing, my dismay entrenched in my face.

“Hey, Alex. This is Todd and Jeff. They were asking me if I boarded and if I wanted lessons.”

I firmly shook their hands, my intimidating expression never changing. “We won’t be needing your assistance, gentlemen. But have a nice day.”

They walked away, looking back at me as I burned my eyes into their backs. My hand had possessively latched onto Cassie’s ass without me even noticing. I didn’t care. It made them get the fucking clue and leave.

“Time to get you in the water. I think the sharks in there are less predatory than these assholes on the shore,” I said, turning and staring into her eyes. The sunlight was hitting her, putting an extra gleam into them.

“Huh? “ She looked confused. “I’m not so sure I’m ready,” she said, a bit hesitant to walk down with me. I gave her a reassuring look and gently tugged on her hand, finally getting her to move her feet and make her way down into the water with me.

“Holy shit, it’s cold.”

“You’ll get used to it. Come on.”

She finally obliged and allowed me to take her farther out into the water. The first wave that came crashed down on her, making her tumble under the water. She came up, her eyes wide as she gasped for air. After a few seconds she smiled, placating my erratically beating heart. The next few waves she waited too long and missed, but on her next try, she caught it perfectly, coasting all the way back onto the shore. We spent the next couple of hours boarding and swimming.

My stomach was beginning to grumble, so I led her out and back up the sand.

“Wait here. I’m going to get our dinner.”

I kissed her then ran off, leaving her sitting there looking dumbfounded. The sun was beginning to set, and the people were filing out, leaving us in our own little secluded spot. I pulled out a sea bag and lugged it back to where Cassie sat, pulling out a towel to wrap her up in before tackling anything else.

There was a hole dug in the sand from what looked to be a previous bonfire, so I chucked some wood from my bag into it, lighting it on fire and waiting for the flames to grow before pulling the hotdogs out and sticking them on skewers.

“Gourmet meal right here,” I said, placing my dog into the fire, burning it and forming a crispy, black layer on the outside. “It doesn’t get any better than this.”

“It beats chow hall food,” she said, doing almost the same, but pulling hers out a bit sooner. She ate away, asking for a second and burning it before devouring it. Her hearty appetite impressed me. For such a small girl, she could definitely throw down some food.

“So is this your first time at a beach?”

“Yep. First time at a beach. First time eating food on a stick. Well, besides a corndog. I never camped or anything like that.”

Low laughter rolled out of me as I fixed another hot dog. “Is that why you joined the Corps? You wanted to get out and see the world?”

She stiffened a bit, and I could tell that I had hit a sore subject. Whatever her reasons were for joining, they didn’t come easy, and the last thing I wanted to do was sour the trip by making her uncomfortable.

“You don’t have to answer that.”

“No, it’s okay. But may I have something to drink first?”

I reached into one of the iced bags and pulled out a bottle of water, handing it to her. She unscrewed the top and took a few long sips.

“I joined the Corps for a couple of reasons. First, I needed to get away from my mother. And two, I wanted to see if I had what it took to be one of the best. I wanted to supremely challenge myself.”

I dropped my skewer and moved over to where she sat, sitting down next to her and pulling her close to me.

“What happened with your mother?”

She blew out a loud breath. “What hasn’t happened with my mother? Let’s see… my mom was once a nurse and got injured at work lifting a patient, so she had to have back surgery. She had the surgery, and for months I had to take care of her while my dad was out on the road making a living for us.”

“What did your dad do?” I asked, wanting to know everything about her.

“My dad was a truck driver, so he was gone quite a bit. Anyway, my mom was on all sorts of pills and got addicted to them. She’d be screaming and ravaging the house for anything she could find. Her pill popping turned into alcohol abuse, and my dad tried hard to get her to go to rehab, but she refused, instead cursing and threatening him every which way, including physically attacking him. He went on a trip one day and never came back. I’ve resented him ever since for not taking me with him.”

I pulled her even closer. Her story hit me, leaving me distraught and helpless for her. “So did things ever get any better?”

“A bit. She laid off the alcohol for a while, but the pill popping didn’t stop. I never got to have the fun that normal kids had like movies sleepovers. I had to parent my intoxicated mom, and there was no way in hell I was going to have anyone over to my house, so I just kept to myself, hoping no one would ever pry and make me spill my deep, dark secret.”

I kissed her head a few times, hoping to reassure her that she was safe with me, in loving, affectionate arms.

“So how did the Corps factor into all of this?”

She tensed again, slowly exhaling a deep breath before turning her head and looking directly into my eyes.

“You won’t think of me any differently, will you?”

“No. Tell me.”

She blew out another breath before speaking again. “Well, I earned a full academic scholarship to BYU. It was like a dream come true. My way of moving on to bigger and better things, while also getting the hell away from my mom. Unfortunately, things don’t always go as planned.”

She looked up at me again, worry staining her face. I kissed her forehead, prompting her to continue.

“The last six months of high school, I had this boyfriend, Colton. I was a virgin, he was my very first boyfriend, and I thought I was totally in love. He told me every smooth thing under the sun, promising me forever while pushing me to further cement our love by sleeping with him. I didn’t give in at first, but after a few times I finally did, thinking it was going to be like unicorns floating on big puffy white clouds. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Colton did what he had to do to make himself feel good, not caring about me. When it was over, I was hurt...so ashamed and feeling like a piece of trash. He promised that it was just because it was my first time, so I continued on in hopes that it would get better. It never did.”

I played with her hair as she continued speaking, fury festering inside of me at this dickwad who I didn’t even know, who shouldn’t have even mattered. He sounded like a weasel, and a slick one at that. The fire burned brighter as the sun set, and the winds picked up, making me wrap my arms around her even tighter.

“So in my last few months of high school, I started to feel very sluggish and had a hard time getting to school in the morning. That wasn’t like me, so one of the only two friends I had, Jenny, tells me to take a pregnancy test. I thought the idea was absurd, so I brushed it off, but after a few more days of the same thing, I finally did it. It came back positive, and I could have died. I saw was my life evaporating before my eyes. My mom was so high on pills that I would go home and cry in my room for hours. I’d cry at school in the bathroom. I just didn’t know what I would do.”

“What did you do?”

“I finally told my mom and shit hit the fan. In the midst of her screaming came pushing, then punching. She told me that she’d have me at the clinic first thing the next morning to take care of my problem.”

I heard sniffles as she gently wiped away a couple of tears.

“I told her there was no way that I was doing that. That I would just have to find a way to make it work. That turned into an all-out assault. I showed up to school the next day with a swollen, busted lip and a few bruises, but the beatings continued. Whenever she got pissed at whatever it was that pissed her off, it triggered her anger, sending her fists and defamatory words flying my way. She didn’t even show up to my graduation. She refused because she said it meant nothing since I wouldn’t be doing shit with myself afterwards.”

Her voice was broken by the end. How anyone could treat another living soul, especially their own flesh and blood, the way her mom had treated her was unreal to me. I had always heard about shitty parents, but never with anyone that I personally knew.

“What the fuck did that mean? You had a fucking scholarship lined up.”

“You aren’t familiar with BYU are you?”

I shook my head. College wasn’t a high priority for me when I was growing up.

“Well, BYU is a highly religious school, and there are rules prohibiting pre-marital sex. You could be kicked out of school for it. So, showing up pregnant wouldn’t have been a good idea.”

I nodded my head. That was news to me.

“So what happened with Colton?” I asked, feeling like I could rip his balls off and shove them down his throat if I ever got the chance to meet him.

“I was probably three months along, getting closer to graduation when I told him. He was surprised and looked sick, but said he loved me and would be there for me and our baby. I was excited since I had been having such a rough go around with my mom. But the closer we inched towards graduation, the more distant he became until he just stopped talking to me altogether. His mom told me that she would file a restraining order if I didn’t stop harassing him. I was shattered. He had been promising me so much, and to turn his back on me like that really broke me. It tore me apart.”

I couldn’t take anymore. I stood up, needing to walk as the blood felt like it had stopped circulating through my body, leaving me completely uncomfortable. I placed my hands on the sides of my face, rubbing as I tried to allow of this to sink in.

“Where the fuck is this guy now?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. He took a basketball scholarship to some school in Florida, and I haven’t heard anything about him since.”

“And the baby?”

Her head lowered as she began to speak. “After graduation, my mom told me I had to get a job and pay my way, so I did. I got a job at a fast food restaurant, working full time so that I could save enough money to get an apartment and take care of my baby. Well, at six months, I was at work and I slipped in the back room, falling hard. I thought I was okay and went back to work, but the cramping grew more and more intense and I knew something was wrong. I went to the bathroom, hoping that a quick splash of cold water on my face would help me, but then I saw blood, and I knew everything was not okay.”

Those earlier sniffles were turning to sobs, and I rushed back over to her, pulling her up to her feet and into my arms. Her head was buried into my shoulder, my hands running over the back of her head as she worked hard to speak again. She was finally able to compose herself and started speaking.

“When I got to the hospital, the doctors told me that I’d lost the baby. My mom was thrilled, breaking my heart even more. I continued to work, but it never seemed like I was getting ahead. Her pill popping continued, her alcohol use picked back up, and whenever she would get into her world, she’d start harping on how I was such a burden, and if I hadn’t been such a little whore, I could have been at BYU learning something. I couldn’t take it anymore. After a few more fights where I finally fought back, I decided it was time to join the military and get the hell out.”

A smile finally touched my lips. “So you decided to become a Devil Dog?”

“I did,” she said. Her eyes were a glossy shade of green now, thanks to her tears. “I joined the Corps, much to my mom’s dislike. She said I wasn’t strong enough for it and that I wouldn’t make it past bootcamp. When I did, she said I wouldn’t make it in the Marines because I was weak and didn’t have what it takes. Every day her words haunt and push me to be better and do something for myself.”

I gently moved the loose strands of hair from her face. “I’m glad you did. Even if us being together is grounds for all sorts of horrible shit.”

“I know. I think about that all the time, but I don’t want to be away from you.”

“And you won’t be, not as long as I have any say in the matter.”

Disbelief flittered through her eyes, seizing my breath. I knew she had every right to be apprehensive, but not with me. I wanted her—no, needed her—to see that I wasn’t like the rest of the pricks who had done her wrong.

“Hey, I am not fucking Colton, or your shitty ass mom. I’m Alex, the guy putting everything on the line in hopes that you will give yourself to me. I will never treat you the way those assholes have treated you. You understand that?”

She nodded her head, shyly looking into my eyes.

I tilted her chin up, placing a soft kiss on her lips. “I’d rather strap a suicide vest to my body and let you hit the trigger before I ever do what those two selfish assholes have done to you.”

I kissed her again, this time hard and passionate, hoping she could feel what I was trying to tell her. Both of my hands held tightly to her face, encasing her beautiful features as I allowed my mouth to pour out my deep seated feelings for her. She held firmly to my ass, squeezing tightly as the kiss intensified. When we finally pulled apart, both of us were breathing hard and staring at one another.

“You mean the fucking world to me. You better know that.”

“I do.” She finally smiled, still holding on to my ass.

Chapter 22

Cassie

Pouring my heart out to Alex, on the beach, next to a brimming fire, was definitely not what I had in mind for my getaway trip. Some of the things I’d just shared with him were things that my own friends didn’t know. The fact that they came pouring out of my mouth like water somewhat frightened me. I had reached a very critical point in my budding relationship with him, one that I swore I wouldn’t get to so easily again, and the fact that it happened at warp speed shell shocked me. But it also laid some of my demons to rest. Holding that info inside for so long had done some things to me; had hardened me even when I came across as easy going and upbeat. Alex had just wriggled it out of me without much effort, and it showed me that what we had truly was worth working for.

After he kissed me a few more times, telling me everything would be okay and that I was safe with him, he pulled graham crackers, chocolate and marshmallows out of his bag. I was interested in seeing what else he had stuffed into that bag, but he wouldn’t show me, telling me that I would find out in due time.

I sat on his lap, a couple of marshmallows on the skewer over the fire. Alex had the crackers and chocolate waiting for me, and after burning them just right, he took them and completed the s’more. The gooey goodness was a scrumptious treat after such a traumatic and emotionally honest session. My past was nothing to be proud of, but Alex made me feel like it didn’t matter. Like I was walking on clouds and that none of it had ever happened.

I finished my s’more, then twisted around to trace Alex’s lips with some of the residual chocolate left on my fingers. He tried to lick it off before I could, our tongues bumping into the other as we fought over the sweet treat. He fingered my hips, lingering on my tattoo.

“What’s the significance of this?”

I stopped his fingers, holding them in place before removing his hand and straddling him, peering into those warm, golden eyes.

“I got this tattoo of a very pretty butterfly I saw flying one day. It was at a park—one of the rare days that I was ever taken to play. My mom’s boyfriend—one of the many who used and abused her over the years—took me to play one day. At the time, I thought he was the greatest guy ever because he was doing something that no one else seemed to do with me. I watched that butterfly all day.  The freedom it possessed to fly anywhere it wanted to, whenever it wanted to. It was like a faraway dream for me, and one that I couldn’t see myself ever getting the chance to follow. But when I enlisted in the Corps, I went and got that tattoo. It’s a constant reminder that I’m free and that I’m chasing my own dreams.”

He gazed into my eyes, his lip curving just a bit. “That’s fucking beautiful.”

“You know so much about me, and I know nothing about you. Tell me all about Alex.”

“What do you want to know? I joined the Corps at eighteen, and according to the Marine Corps, I’m now in a morally corrupt relationship with one of my students.”

I hit his chest. “You know what I mean. Your family, your background. I want to know.”

“Okay,” he said, rubbing his chest where I had hit him. “I honestly shouldn’t be in the Corps. I should be locked up somewhere because, as a kid, that’s exactly where I was headed.”

He shifted me on his lap, making us both more comfortable as he geared up to tell his story. “I’m the oldest of two. My dad has been locked up since forever, and it left my mom and my grandma to raise us. I was a shitty kid with too many anger issues, and I fought—a lot. I’d fight kids just for looking at me wrong. I got suspended from school quite a few times, and then my luck caught up with me.”

Something dark went off in his eyes as he swallowed hard, gearing up for what I thought was sure to be heavy. “Some fucking guy who my sister, Adriana, was dating put his hands on her. When she told me, I promised to just teach him a lesson. So I met him at a park, ready to kick his ass. Only, once I started hitting him, I couldn’t stop. He fell to the ground, and I just kept kicking and kicking until he was throwing up blood. His left eye was swollen shut, and he was grasping for air.

“The cops pulled up shortly after, arresting me while the ambulance took him away. I later found out that he was okay, just a couple of broken ribs, a broken nose, and a shut eye, but the judge didn’t go easy on me. I was put in juvenile detention for sixty days and ordered to complete one hundred and fifty hours of community service along with anger management therapy.”

He stopped and closed his eyes, gripping tighter around my waist.

“The sheriff that took me in for community service also kind of served as a mentor, and told me that I needed to straighten my shit out and get my life in order before I became an adult and ended up in prison. He talked to me about the Marine Corps, said he’d served eight years before getting out and thought the discipline and structure would be good for me. I looked up to him, so I let him take me to see a recruiter and the rest is history.”

A couple of tears fell from my eyes. I knew that the Corps was stitched into the fabric that was Alex. But how it came to be was surprising, and even a bit scary.

“Do you regret what you did to that guy?”

“I don’t regret defending my sister, but I do regret letting it go that far. I lost my mind. I couldn’t even see straight.”

“And what about your mom? Your grandma?”

“They were heartbroken, but while my mom was fighting to get me out of juvie and on house arrest, my grandma was telling her to leave me in there. She said I needed to truly learn my lesson or I’d end up like my dad. She couldn’t have been more right.”

“I see now why your loyalty and love for the Corps is so deep—so strong. It saved you.”

“It did.”

I stroked his arm for a minute, silently signaling to him that while his past was a bit devastating, I was still there with him.

“So what’s the deal with Evelyn? I know you didn’t think I forgot about that.”

“Of course not. You females never forget about juicy gossip,” he joked, moving a few strands of hair behind my ear. “Evelyn and I met when I was stationed on the east coast. She was a nice girl, and after running into her a few times, we finally decided to go on a date. Things were going well, but then I was sent back to the west coast and we had to make a choice. She decided to move with me, and after a while here, we decided to get married. She was the doting wife, taking care of home, dinners made, laundry cleaned. She was everything I thought a wife was supposed to be, but I later found out that while I was off in Iraq on my third combat deployment, she had been sleeping with another Marine, spending my money to build a new life with this dude, then had the nerve to accuse me of cheating on her.”

“We were about three weeks from coming home and out on our last mission.  I was sidetracked and depressed...so much so that when the ambush hit us, I couldn’t even think straight. By the time I was able to fire my weapon, three of my brothers had already been killed. Another three died in the ensuing firefight.”

He leaned back and pointed to his memorial tattoo. “These are the six that we lost that day.”

“I hope you don’t feel responsible for that,” I said softly, unsure of his lingering feelings on the situation.

“At first I did. But after getting home, therapy, and divorcing Evelyn, I was finally able to reconcile myself with what had happened.” He blew out a deep breath, then rubbed the back of his head. “So this is where Castillo comes in.”

He paused, trying to gauge me, but I gave nothing away. I wanted to hear this part.

“In the midst of my divorce, Evelyn kept trying to get me to work things out with her. I didn’t want to, but I did want to hurt her. I knew Leti had a thing for me, so I started sleeping with her because I knew she would run her mouth and it would get back to Evelyn. Leti got attached, but I hadn’t gotten attached at all. It was just fucking to me. My divorce finalized, Leti and I stopped fucking, stopped talking, and I felt like my life kind of went back to normal. After about three months of pretending the other didn’t exist, she said she missed my friendship and wanted it back. I didn’t see the harm in it, so we went back to being friends. Until you…”

“Until me?”

“Yes. She’s jealous. She’s pissed. So she’s trying to sabotage us.”

I grabbed his face and cradled it in both hands. “I’m not going anywhere. You understand that?”

“You using my saying on me?”

“Yes, I am.”

He moved me from his lap. “Close your eyes for a sec.”

I did as told. A minute later he was sitting next to me whispering, “Open your eyes.”

When I opened them, I caught sight of a small black box in his hands. The flicker of the fire illuminating it and showcasing the velvety exterior. My mind wandered and then went blank. Surely it was much too soon for this?

“It’s not what you think it is,” he said, grinning at me. “It’s too soon for that, but I think this is just as good.”

He’d read my mind.

He opened the box and pulled out a sparkling pair of silver dog tags. My hand went to my chest as a tear rolled down my cheek. For a Marine, and especially Alex, this was significant. Dog tags meant something, and the fact that he was passing his over to me solidified our standing as a couple.

“I can’t take these—“

“Yes you can,” he interrupted. “My regular pair are tied to my boot strings. These are my first pair. I want them around your neck. Over your heart.”

He slid the chain over my head and down my neck, allowing the tags to rest just past my heart. I was overwhelmed.

“When I planned this getaway, I planned every fucking trick in the book to get you to see that I wasn’t the big asshole I showed myself to be—that I really wanted you and that I was just a dumbass who couldn’t think straight. Then last night that song came on and just put everything into perspective.”

“Fall For You?”

“Yes.” He reached behind him and pulled out an acoustic guitar. “I learned a thing or two in juvie. Music kind of helped me focus.”

The next thing I knew, Alex was strumming a very sweet sounding rendition of Fall for You by Secondhand Serenade while I hummed along. His eyes lowered, but sparks could be felt from miles away. Each chord poured on a new level of adoration, putting me in a place that I never thought I would experience again. In that moment, our getaway felt so much like that butterfly that I had branded on my body. We were caged down in Twentynine, hiding and pretending, lying and dodging. Here, we could be us, and without the pressures of the Corps. Free to fly and be who we were.

He finished the song, and I gave him a small round of applause. His lowered eyes turned sinister. He dropped the guitar and crawled over to me. I felt like an animal waiting to be captured. The end result was sure to be promising.

“Tengo que estar dentro de ti, mi pequena y linda mariposa.”

I giggled as he hovered over me, his eyes burning brighter than the fire raging not too far away from us.

“What does that mean?”

“It means I need to be inside of you, my pretty little butterfly.”

His hushed words and lustful gaze did me in. I grabbed hold of his head and pulled him down with me as I lowered myself onto the sand. His sexy use of Spanish had my libido overflowing.

I couldn’t wait to grant his request.

Chapter 23

Alex

Her tongue took over where mine usually did all of the work. Those soft, petite hands that normally stroked my head were noticeably absent. Replacing them were strong, commanding hands, holding me down to her while her lips and tongue owned me. The leftover chocolate flavor in her mouth plucked my senses, finally making me overrule her, using my own tongue to claim my rightful place as aggressor.

One of my hands reluctantly left her ass and snaked its way up her back, her warm, silk-like skin weakening my resolve. I tugged on the strings and untied her top as she arched her back, my mouth now working its way across her sultry jawline and down her neck.

My lips kissed their way down her neck, over her collarbone, and down to her chest, where my teeth took hold of her bikini top and tugged until her beautiful tits were displayed, primed and ready for me.

I pulled back from her, staring down and whispering. “How the fuck did I get so lucky?”

She didn’t answer. Her eyes just rolled back in her head as she lifted her hips, inviting me into her. I sat back on my knees and reached into the bag, pulling out a condom before untying my board shorts and pulling them down. My dick was throbbing, aching to get inside of its sanctuary. She had no idea the effects that her body had on me, calming shot nerves while pleasuring me in ways that I didn’t even know were possible.

I worked my way out of my board shorts, not wanting to deal with any sort of restrictions.

I grabbed her hips, gently sliding her down to me, and skimmed the very top of her bikini bottoms, finally hooking my fingers just inside of the hem and pulling down. Elation hit me as I stared down at her beautiful pussy. I grabbed a towel and placed it underneath her, not wanting too much sand to get into crevices that would make her even the slightest bit uncomfortable. I wanted this night to be filled with nothing but absolute pleasure.

I sat between her legs, peering into her beautiful jade hued eyes. “I’m not fucking you tonight. Tonight, I take my time. Tonight I get to know you.”

I licked my fingers, sinking one, then two inside her, gently stroking her insides. She moaned, a sound that sent tingles down my back and a shock to my cock. She was so wet, so ready, so wanting. I continued to finger fuck her, then worked my way over her body, reaching down to position my solid erection right at her entrance.

She smiled as her arms wrapped around my neck, then opened her legs a little wider as I slowly sank my waiting cock into her. The slow entrance allowed me to feel her deliciously sweet pussy as her walls clamped down, holding on for dear life. A guttural sound escaped me, truly relishing the feel of her for the first time.

“You’re so fucking tight. It’s like the first time all over again.”

I set to work using slow, rhythmic movements, not wanting her pussy to lose the grip it had on me, making me lose the mesmerizing feeling that was rocketing through my body. Cassie had always been beautiful to me, that was a given, but the tale of her past, coupled with the strength to persevere, sent that beauty to whole new heights. Fucking her just didn’t feel right at the moment. I needed to engulf myself in her. I needed to become one with her.

“You’re like a fucking drug that I can’t get enough of,” I whispered in her ear, still rocking in and out of her as tiny moans and whimpers left her beautiful mouth. “I’m on a high when I’m inside of you that I don’t want to come down from.”

She turned her head slightly, kissing my clenched jawline. The luxurious feel of her pussy had me spoiled—spoiled rotten. I could have laid in there forever with no intention of ever coming out.

“Just a little harder, please,” she moaned. Her wish was my command. I upped the intensity just a bit, still wanting to enjoy the full effect of her sweet spot.

I began nibbling on her ear, lightly tracing the edge with the tip of my tongue. Her hands left my neck and moved to my back, and her nails, although short, dug in as her legs wrapped tightly just below my ass. She lifted her hips to meet my thrusts, our bodies feeling like one as we moved in a synchronized manner. She was beginning to tear away at my soul, making me feel as if I was losing myself inside of her. Low grunts billowed out of me as the feelings became so intense that my legs started to tingle. Her grip on my back grew tighter with each passing second.

“I want on top of you,” she softly whispered.

I rolled us over as I took the bottom and she assumed control from the top. Dusts of sand fell from her body, landing on me as she positioned herself just right. I looked up at her, the fire burning directly behind her and illuminating her frame like the angel that she was to me. She began rolling her hips while thrusting her hands up into her hair and pulling out her ponytail, allowing her long, damp and now wavy hair to drape her shoulders. I reached up with one hand and grabbed one of her tits, my other hand reaching behind and squeezing her ass cheek. My hips continued to move with hers, the building orgasm sure to be explosive and dominating as she continued to pleasure me.

Both of her hands were in her hair, holding on tightly at the root as her eyes closed and she bit down on her bottom lip. I moved both of my hands to her hips, guiding her movements as my release was threatening to come undone.

I’m close, baby,” I breathed, still reveling in the feel of her rocking to and fro on top of me.

“Wait for me,” she moaned, her hands dropping from her head and onto my chest.

“Of course. Ladies first.”

She perched her hands on each pectoral, rolling her hips so that her pussy skimmed my cock, taunting me to lose myself before I absolutely wanted to. I held tight to her hips, moving her pleasing body up and down as I plowed deep into her. Her moans ceased to exist, screams filling the open space.

“Ahhhh…. Ahhhhh…. Omigod, Alex. I’m coming. I’m fucking coming.”

“Come, baby,” I rasped, feeling my release coming right along with hers.

A few more thrusts matching the roll of her hips and we came, loud, hard, and hot, the crash of the waves not far from us exaggerating the powerful and explosive release that we both shared. She fell on top of me, her hair shielding our faces as she breathed hard into my ear. My hands now rested on her ass.

“I just made love to someone for the first time in my life,” I told her, moving her hair so that I could get a good look at her after she’d just changed me for the better.

“What?” Shock swept through her face as she sat up and straddled me with my cock still inside of her.

“You just made a real man out of me. I’ve never done that before.”

An apprehensive grin stretched across her mouth. I could tell she was both elated and confused.

“You’ve done something to me, Blondie. Something foreign and weird, but oh so good.”

“Come here.” She motioned with her finger, and I worked hard to sit up with her still on top of me. My abs flexed hard, bulging abs protruding from my midsection as I was finally able to sit up, using her waist as a stronghold. She kissed me—not hard, not soft, but just right. I worked my fingers through her hair, removing it from her face as she pulled away and looked into my eyes.                   “You don’t even realize how much that means to me.”

I drew her in closer, the side of my face resting up against her chest, holding my dog tags to her heart. I breathed to the drum of her heartbeats, basking in the warmth of the burning fire under the cover of darkness with nothing but tiny specs of light from the millions of brightly lit stars.

It was absolutely true. Even as a married man, I couldn’t recall ever having made love to Evelyn. Our connection just hadn’t reached that deep, and now here I was, ready to turn over the moon for the girl sitting on my lap, occupying my heart. The combination of all of the stars in the sky plus the burning fire directly behind me was no match for the depth and intensity of the love that I had inside of me. Cassie, my little butterfly, had no idea that by setting herself free, she had also done the same for me.

Chapter 24

Cassie

Saturday night was life changing.

So much had been shared. From our pasts, to our bodies, and most meaningful, our hearts and minds. Alex and I had reached a level that I never thought imaginable. He was an amazing fuck, but an even better lover. He took me on a voyage of personal and sexual discovery, with his heart used as the anchor. He opened himself up and laid it all out, and even though neither of us wanted to say it, I felt the love engulfing us like the flames used to light up our night. Alex Cruz transformed me, in more ways than one.

We drove to our hotel shortly after our life altering love making session, going at one another one more time before finally crashing out of sheer exhaustion.

Sunday was non-stop, starting with breakfast in bed, moving on to a sailing trip, and then back to our hotel where Alex had a chef come in and prepare our meal on our outdoor balcony. He strummed a few more songs for me on his guitar before we filled ourselves with one another again and finally went to bed. I took plenty of pictures with my cell phone of the two of us and our many excursions. I needed something as a constant reminder of the open joy that we were actually allowed to have.

I woke up Monday with a pinch of sadness, knowing that our wondrous escape from our dreaded reality was coming to a close. We’d have to head back to base today, leaving behind the beauty of an unrestricted relationship free of bitchy roommates, suffocating rules, and nail biting secrecy. The weekend flew by so quickly, and everything had whizzed by so fast, that I couldn’t completely wrap my mind around it all. The rough and tough bulldog that I saw on a daily basis in cammies, with a permanent scowl attached to his face, was gone. Alex had packed him away and brought out a sweeter, softer guy that I had to get to know all over again. And even though I was in lust with the bulldog, I fell in love with the other one.

We finished breakfast and checked out. Alex walked me out to the truck with his hand glued to my ass, not a care in the world that people were looking at us as we walked by. He opened my door and kissed me before I climbed in, then tipped the valet and went around to his side and took his seat.

He looked over to me before starting up the truck, my dismay at our weekend coming to a close darkening my face.

“What’s the matter?” he asked, rubbing the top of my hand.

I tried to smile, but the sadness of what we were heading back to filled me, making it hard to hide. “I just hate that we have to go back. I wish we could live like this weekend. I hate hiding.”

He sighed. “I feel the same way, but it’s only a couple more weeks.”

Another bout of sadness hit me.

“Yeah. And then at the end of that, I’ll probably be leaving.”

He sat quiet for a minute before raising my hand to his mouth and gently kissing it.

“I’m not thinking about that right now, and neither are you. You understand that?”

I nodded my head. I wish I could have been honest about my answer, but the fact of the matter was that I was thinking about it, and the thought terrified me.

We pulled off, my head resting against the headrest while I gazed out the window, staring at the waves crashing against the shore. It amazed me how unsure I had been about us going into this trip, but left feeling like I couldn’t live without him. Silence filled the truck. I just wasn’t quite sure what to say since my mind was filled with everything Twentynine, and none of it was good. A burning question did finally come to mind, and since nothing else was being said, I decided to go ahead and ask it.

“Where was Jensen the other night?”

“Wherever he needed to be,” he answered in a very monotone voice, tension showing in his forehead. He glanced at me straight faced, then back to the road. “He moved out, and I think we’re all better for it.”

“You two had a fight?”

“We haven’t been seeing eye to eye. It’s for the best.”

My heart constricted. Alex was so close to all of his buddies, and the fact that things had gotten so bad between them that Jensen had to move out tore away at me like crows on a carcass.

“I’m so sorry, Alex.”

He looked over, the scowl now back. “Do not apologize for his shit. If he couldn’t handle us, then that’s his fucking problem. I’m not going to own his reaction.”

“I know, but—“

“There is no but. Either he’s on our side, or he isn’t. I’ve gone too long without being completely happy, and I’m done with that shit. Dropping the dead weight on the way does nothing but make things easier for me.”

I had no words. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. As much as I wanted to jump for joy, scream from the rooftops, and bask in the glow of our happiness, the black cloud of being a ‘home wrecker hovered over me, raining on my parade.

After only twenty minutes or so of driving, Alex took the Bristol exit, surprising me.

“Do we need gas?” I asked, unsure of where we were headed. He hadn’t mentioned anymore stops for the day.

“Nope. I have one place I want to take you before we head back to hell.”

“What is it?”

“Sit back and relax. You’ll see when we get there.”

He took a few turns, passing shopping centers and a sign that read: Welcome to Santa Ana before making a left that took us into a residential neighborhood. We passed an abundance of older, single family homes, and Alex pulled up to a nice white one, trimmed in navy blue with two large, navy blue doors. There were cars for as far as the eye could see. My stomach rose to my throat as the realization of where we were hit me.

“Are we at your family home?”

He smiled at me, unbuckling his seat belt before leaning over and unbuckling mine.

“Yes we are.”

I could have fainted. I didn’t think we were ready for this. Everything I had heard from him about his family detailed the immense love and appreciation he had for his mom, sister, and grandmother. If he was going to bring a girl home to meet them, I thought for sure the L word would have been used and cemented before treading such dangerous waters. Tiny beads of sweat instantly coated my hands as my stomach began to twist.

“I’m sharing my life with you. This is a big part of it.”

He hopped out of the truck and came around to my side, opening the door and taking my hand to help me out.

“Don’t be nervous. They’re going to love you.”

He kissed me hard then took me by the hand, shutting the door behind me, and leading us up the paved walkway to the front door. Alex guided me through the house without even knocking. It probably wouldn’t have mattered anyway, since music was blaring from the backyard and no living soul could be found inside of the house. As we walked through, moving at a brisk pace, I took notice of the homey feel, the family pictures on the wall of a young Alex clear up to adulthood. He looked like he was always an intense guy, and for a second I smiled, catching a glimpse of the little boy that had turned into this remarkable man.

I held tight to his hand as we reached the back door. Seeing the multitude of people sitting, drinking, and partying in the yard made me a bit squeamish. He stopped just before opening the door and looked at me. “You ready?”

“Not really,” I stammered out, feeling my legs tingle and grow weak. He gently kissed my forehead, then held tighter to my hand as he turned the knob and stepped out onto the patio. The earth stopped moving as all eyes swung to the door, landing on Alex and me. The blaring music was the only reminder that a party was going on because by the reaction that our presence elicited, you would have thought the royal couple had just stepped in.

A beautiful, youthful looking woman was the first to step forward. Her caramel complexion, long, luscious, dark brown hair, big brown eyes, and figure to die for had me in awe. She looked like Alex, so I knew she was either his mom or his sister. And the fact that I couldn’t immediately tell made me smile just a bit.

“It’s so good to see you, mijo,” the woman said, wrapping her arms around him in a warm embrace. He let go of my hand, hugging her back and picking her up off the ground. When he placed her back down, she reached up, framing his face in her hands and smiled. “I haven’t seen this handsome face in forever.”

“I know. I’m sorry, Mama.” An accent that I had yet to hear was coming through loud and clear.

“I’m so glad you came. But you didn’t tell me you’d have a guest with you.” Her big, coffee brown eyes swung over to me, appraising me while her mouth curved into a warm smile.

“I know. But I’m so glad that you two get to meet. Mama, this is Cassie Bennett, my girlfriend.”

I reached out my hand for hers, which she completely bypassed and pulled me in for a hug instead. I was caught off guard, a bit taken aback, not expecting such a warm welcoming.

“It’s nice to meet you, Cassie. I’m Imelda, Alejandro’s mom.”

It was so nice to put a face to the name. After everything Alex had told me about him and his childhood, I wasn’t expecting his mother to be such a radiant looking woman. His story was enough to give me grey hairs.

“It’s very nice to meet you as well, Mrs. Cruz.”

“Imelda is fine,” she said, stepping back, a look of pride plastered to her face. “Stay right there. I’m going to get Adriana.”

She took off in a flash. I looked to Alex who had pulled me close, kissing my forehead.

“You tried to give me a heart attack,” I mumbled.

“What do you mean?” he asked, feigning innocence. He knew exactly what I was talking about.

“Bringing me to meet your family. This is something you want to prepare for.”

“Hey,” he said, turning serious, “they see how much you mean to me. They have no choice but to love you.”

Before I could go back at him, Imelda came back with Adriana, a petite young girl, about my age, a shade lighter than Alex with hazel colored eyes, and long, light brown hair. She had a nose ring, a tongue ring, and a few tattoos covering her upper arms. She looked a lot like Alex as well, only less refined. She had a bubbly personality, grinning from ear to ear as she made her way over to us.

“Cassie, this is my daughter, Adriana, Alejandro’s younger sister.”

I once again reached my hand out for hers, which she too bypassed, engulfing me in a fervent hug.

“Alex hasn’t brought a girl home in so long. I didn’t think he was even interested anymore,” she joked, laughing as she pulled away.

“It’s really nice to meet you, Adriana.”

“So how did you and Alex meet?”

I froze for a second, ill prepared to answer that question. Luckily, Alex answered, simultaneously wrapping his arm around my waist.

“We met in Twentynine. Cassie is a Marine.”

“Oh shit, really? No offense, but you don’t look like a Marine. You’re really pretty.”

I laughed. Between her comment and Natasha’s a few nights before, I wasn’t sure what the standard for a female Marine was supposed to be.

“Well, thank you—I think. But there are actually lots of beautiful females in uniform.”

“I just haven’t seen any, that’s all,” she said, brushing it off. “Anyway, I’ll let Alex take you around because curious eyes are on you two. Everyone wants to know who Alex’s mystery girl is.” She leaned closer to Alex and muttered, “You better get her to Grandma before she chops your balls off.”

Alex grinned, but the comment made me nervous. His grandmother sounded like a hard-nosed, no nonsense woman, and the warm and fuzzy reception I’d gotten from Imelda and Adriana just didn’t seem likely.

“I have to take you to meet Guadalupe, the glue that holds this family together, my grandmother.” He started to walk, but I stood still for a second longer, my eyes begging him to prepare me. “What’s the matter?”

“Alex, your grandmother. She doesn’t sound like your mom and sister.”

“She’s a tough old lady, but loving. You’ll see. No formal handshakes, just hug her.”

I swallowed as he began walking. We passed tons of people, all of them greeting us with friendly hellos for Alex and assessing looks for me.

The garage was unattached, sitting directly behind the house. Passing through the throngs of people hanging out on the patio, I took in the unfamiliar surroundings. There were people young and old, eating, drinking, dancing, and laughing. The plot of grass just to the right of the patio was filled with children, laughing and playing. I was completely out of my element, but excited at the thought that Alex wanted to share this part of his life with me.

When we reached the garage area, Alex let go of my hand and made a beeline for an older woman sitting on a sofa, engaged in conversation with another elderly woman.

“Hola, abuelita!” he said, stretching his arms wide for her.

She looked up from her conversation, mouth agape, looking like she hadn’t seen Alex in years. A smile stretched across her face as she stood, then wrapped her arms around his middle, clutching him tight. “Alejandro, donde has estado?”

“I’ve been busy with work,” he replied, shocking me that he chose to say it in English.

She pinched his cheeks, pointing and wagging her index finger at him while saying something in a chastising manner that came out much too quickly for me to make out.

He took her hand and walked her over to where I stood. Here it was, the meeting that had me turned inside out, upside down, ready to pass out.

“Abuelita, I’d like you to meet my girlfriend, Cassie.”

I did exactly what Alex said and forgot about the handshake, instead grabbing her and pulling her in for a hug. Sadly, the gesture wasn’t reciprocated. She kept her arms down as I held on tight, making me feel supremely stupid. I finally pulled back, looking into Alex’s startled eyes, feeling completely embarrassed.

“It’s nice to meet you,” I said, unsure of how I should address her. The stale air swirling around us made me wish for an escape route, but there was none. She stood measuring me for a few seconds, filling me with apprehension.

“Hello,” she coldly replied.

She turned to Alex and asked, “quien es esa huera?”

“Abuelita, she’s my girlfriend. Her name is Cassie, and she’s a great girl.”

I smiled awkwardly because I had no clue what the hell to say or do in front of her. Disapproval was all over her face, and she made no qualms about trying to hide it. After rubbing Alex’s cheek, a loving look finally emanated from her, and she turned back to me.

“Nice to meet you.”

She turned and walked back into the garage, sitting back down and going back to her earlier conversation.

“She hates me,” I said, finally feeling like I could breathe again.

Alex pulled me close, nuzzling his mouth to my neck. “No, she doesn’t. She’s just old school and suspect about anyone we bring home. Ask Adriana. She hated her boyfriend, Hector.”

“Yeah well she sure knew how to make me feel her suspicions.”

Alex brought his finger up to my lips, halting whatever was due to come out of my mouth next. “We’re not focusing on my grandma right now. I want you here, and that is all that matters.”

Without another word spoken, he took my hand and led me through the abundance of people, introducing me to everyone—I was sure I wouldn’t remember any of the names. Thankfully, the rest of the introductions were warm and welcoming, the polar opposite of meeting Grandma. I met his favorite aunt and uncle, Tia Maria and Tio Joe. They were the only other people whose names I remembered besides his mom, grandma, and sister.

The aroma of the homemade food had my stomach yearning for it. There were pans of carne asada, chicken, bowls of rice, beans, and what looked like freshly made tortillas. My stomach did cartwheels, taking in the scrumptious aroma of it all--food that I loved, but hadn’t had in what felt like forever.

“Dig in,” he said, handing me a plate.

If I had taken him literally, I would have shamed myself and taken large amounts of everything that was available to me. Instead, I kept it modest, only taking a couple of tortillas and making two carne asada tacos, filled with plenty of cilantro and pico de gallo. Alex finished off my plate, placing spoonful’s of rice and beans onto it before squeezing lime juice onto my tacos.

“You have to eat the rice and beans. They’re my mom’s, made from scratch with plenty of love.”

I laughed. “Yes, sir.”

We took a seat at one of the tables next to a couple of guys who looked to be about Alex’s age. One of them was in a wheelchair. Alex jumped up and grabbed us a couple of beers, returning with two cans of Tecate. He popped my top and slid the can over to me, finally taking his seat and digging into his food.

“Hey, sorry. This fool is rude as fuck. I’m Danny, Alex’s cousin.”

I hurried and swallowed the food in my mouth before reaching out my hand and shaking his.

“Sorry, I’m Cassie.”

“Nice to meet you, Cassie.” He positioned his wheelchair at the table and began talking to Alex. “So we don’t see you for who knows how long, and you show up with a fucking beautiful girl on your arm? Fuck you, Alex.”

Alex laughed, swallowing his food before turning and hugging Danny.

“Sorry, man. I get so caught up with work.”

“Is she work related?” Danny asked, nodding his head in my direction.

“I guess you could say that.”

Danny turned to me, his eyes bugging out of his head.

“Fuck, I should have become a fucking soldier if it meant I could pull chicks like this one.”

“Marine, asshole,” Alex corrected, chuckling at his cousin. He looked across the table at me, honey eyes beaming with pride. “Sorry, Danny has no fucking filter, but he’s harmless.”

“Yeah, I don’t bite,” Danny said, winking at me. He was friendly. I liked him. “How long have you been a Marine?”

“Not long. Only a few months.”

“You like that shit?”

I laughed. “Yeah, I do.”

Danny nodded his head appreciatively. “Much respect to you two. That’s some crazy shit you guys do.”

“Thank you.”

A second later, Adriana was behind me tapping my shoulder, asking me to help her with dessert. Alex looked at me, nodding his head almost as if he was granting me permission.

“Don’t try to steal her, Adriana. I want her back.”

“Oh shut up, Alex. I’ll bring her back in one piece.”

She whisked me off into the house, beelining for the kitchen. A pan of cupcakes sat on the counter, waiting to be frosted. She reached into the cabinet, pulling out the frosting.

“So how long have you and Alex been together?” she asked, not wasting any time. She handed me a butter knife, silently asking me to help.

“Not very long. A few weeks at most.”

“Really?” she asked. The surprise in her voice and on her face made me cautious on what to say next.

“Yeah.”

She stopped frosting and looked at me. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to freak you out. It’s just that Alex hasn’t been serious about anyone since his ex-wife. And even with her, he didn’t look the way he looks with you.”

Now she had me intrigued. “Really?” I asked, hoping she would delve a little further.

“Yes, really. Alex is very closed off. I mean, he loves his family, but his personal life is his personal life. We usually don’t know much about it. He hasn’t brought another girl over here since his ex, and that was like over a year ago.”

“I didn’t know that.”

“Yeah. So the fact that he brought you with all of the family here, it means a lot.”

“Yeah, I was a bit shocked when we showed up here. Everyone’s been very nice, although I’m sure your grandma doesn’t like me too much.”

Adriana laughed, throwing her head back and holding her butter knife.

“She doesn’t know you to like you or not. My grandma is old and protective. She’s weary of newcomers until she gets to know them. Once she gets to know you, you’ll be just another member of the family.”

“I hope so.”

“Oh you will, don’t worry. And the fact that Alex has you here with the family means he plans to have you around for a while.”

The door opened and the cutest little guy strolled in, looking like a mini Alex wearing black shorts, a muscle t-shirt, and a pair of Chucks.

“Mama, I want cake.”

“Abel, go back outside. I’m getting it ready for you.”

The little guy looked to me with furrowed brows. He had no clue who I was, and it showed on his little face. He walked back outside, then Adriana stopped frosting and turned to me.

“I don’t know how much Alex has told you, but he’s like the golden boy of the family.”

“Really? He didn’t tell me that.”

“Yeah. Our dad isn’t around. He hasn’t been around for the greater part of both of our lives. Alex was a shithead as a kid, always fighting, always in trouble. When he got into big trouble, and then finally made the decision to join the Marines, everyone was excited because it meant he would get away from it all. And it’s a good thing he did because he used to run with my ex-boyfriend, Hector. He’s Abel’s father. They also ran with our cousin Danny and few other knuckleheads.”

“He told me he got into a bit of trouble. Is Hector the serious trouble he got into? If you don’t mind me asking?”

“I don’t mind. And no, Hector is not the asshole that Alex beat the shit out of. I met Hector after, but he’s locked up. Another freakin’ winner.”

“What happened to Danny?”

“Danny was shot in the back. He and Hector ran with some gang members, and some shit went down and Danny got shot. He’ll be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.”

“Wow.”

“That’s why Alex is looked up to so much in this family. With all of the negative going on, Alex made a choice and it bettered his life. My grandma used to say he was going to die young because of all of the trouble he used to find himself into. So when he joined the Marines and transformed himself, she couldn’t believe it. They try to get him to talk to the younger cousins, showing them that they can do better as well. I made him Abel’s godfather. His dad is locked up, so he needs good, steady role models in his life. Alex isn’t here on an everyday basis, but he calls often, and on holidays and birthdays he makes sure to come and see him.”

A pang of guilt hit me. His family had him placed on a pedestal, and what we were currently engaged in could tarnish the image that they had of him. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want the guilt to come spilling out of me.

“Anyway. That’s why I said Alex must really see a future with you to bring you here. If he hasn’t told you that he loves you, it’s coming because this family is tight, and he doesn’t just bring anyone in.”

I stayed silent, smiling at her before going back to work on the cupcakes. I had already ruined a friendship, I certainly did not want to be the cause of a rift with him and his family.

“Heavy shit, I know. I’m sorry, but I had to let you know.” She turned away from the cupcakes and moved over to the fridge. “My very own flan. You’ll have to try some.”

“Can’t wait,” I responded, thankful that the conversation had shifted.

“Grab those cupcakes, please. They’re for the kids.”

I grabbed them from the counter, then followed her out the door. The kids came running up to me, reaching up and taking one. Adriana took the flan to the garage and began slicing it before bringing a plate out for me and Alex. I took a seat next to him, digging into the moist and delicious dessert. Alex noticed my demeanor.

“You alright?”

“Yeah,” I replied, nodding my head, trying to persuade him.

Adriana took a seat across from us and started up small talk, telling us all about Abel and all of the new things that he was saying and doing. Danny came back over, throwing in hilarious one liners and bringing laughter to the table. It was a welcomed distraction. My thoughts were running away with me, and this was not the time nor the place for that.

Just as I was getting comfortable, a song came on, jolting damn near everyone out of their seats.

“Get your ass up, Alex,” Adriana called out, running around the table. She tugged on him and he stood, pulling me up with him. The patio was full of dancers, everyone singing along and dancing to the fast paced beat.

“What is this song?” I asked, having to yell into his ear.

“It’s called Suavemente. It’s a very sexy song.” He turned that lust filled gaze on me, heating up my core.

I watched the women around me moving their hips in a way that I didn’t know how. Alex placed his hand on my hips, trying to guide me before Adriana pulled me away and showed me the steps. As I practiced, Imelda swooped in, dancing with her son.

“Watch my mom. She’s really good.”

I watched her, in utter amazement at how well she moved. No amount of training would get me to that point. She reached out her hand for me, pulling me closer as she tried to guide me on how to do the dance. I slowly began to pick it up, not feeling so awkward since everyone was deeply engaged in the song and was paying little to no attention to me. Adriana and Imelda danced together, looking like a reflection of one another.

Alex’s grandma danced over to us, using facial expressions to ask to cut in. I graciously obliged. They danced for a minute or so before she kissed his cheek and walked away. My heart swelled at the sight. She was still cold and distant towards me, but that didn’t matter. The love she possessed for Alex excited me. It also scared the living shit out of me.

We stayed for another half hour before Alex began his goodbyes. We had a long trek back to Twentynine and sadly, we’d have to cut out earlier than he may have wanted to. He went around the yard, saying goodbye and hugging everyone. His grandma made her way over to where I stood, using a semi friendly voice to say goodbye. The interaction was brief, but it was much better than the initial meeting, so I took what I could get. Imelda and Adriana followed us out, Abel in his grandmother’s arms.

“Safe drive back, guys. And don’t be a stranger, Cassie,” Imelda said, leaning over and kissing my cheek.

“I’ll try not to be,” I replied.

“Yeah, Alex, you better not keep her locked up in that shitty ass desert. Bring her down more often.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” he replied, taking his sister in his arms and squeezing her tight. He took Abel from his mom and kissed his cheek. “See you later, little man.”

“Bye, Nino,” he replied. He waved to me.

Imelda took Alex in her arms, squeezing tight and not wanting to let go. I thought I saw a tear fall from her eyes. “I’m so glad to see you happy. Don’t be a stranger.”

“I won’t, Mama. I love you.” He kissed her cheek then pulled away, handing Abel back to her.

I waved at everyone as Alex opened my door, and I climbed into the truck. He went around to his side and hopped in, starting up the loud roar of the engine and pulling off. We sat quiet until we reached the freeway entrance and Alex finally broke our silence.

“So, you were thrust into the lion’s den. How was it?”

“I had a good time,” I replied, inching a smile across my face.

“You sure? You don’t look like you did.”

“I’m fine. I had a great time. Your family is great.”

He still didn’t look convinced. “I’m not dumb or blind, Cassie. What happened? Why are you so quiet?”

I sighed. He wasn’t going to let up on this. “It’s just something running through my mind. Something Adriana told me.”

“What did she tell you?” he asked, his voice low and gruff.

“Nothing bad, but it got to me thinking.” I looked over at him to find his stoic face, awaiting the rest of whatever I was about to tell him. “She was just telling me how much you mean to your family. How much everyone looks up to you. I don’t want to be the reason your family looks at you differently.”

“Listen to me. I’m a grown fucking man. I make my own decisions, and I live with the rewards or the consequences. If my family were to change how they view me that would fall on me and them, not you. You understand that?”

I nodded my head. He seemed to be growing more agitated by the second.

“I made the choice to start sleeping with one of my students. I didn’t know I’d fall in love with her, but I have, and right or wrong, I’m glad it happened, and I wouldn’t change it for anything. So whatever happens, happens. If they want to be ashamed or disappointed in me, fine. If they want to continue idolizing me, fine. The fact of the matter is that you are what fucking matters to me. How you see me matters, and your approval is all I’m looking for.”

My heart swelled as butterflies flew widely inside of me. Alex had just admitted to loving me, something I had no idea was coming.

“Alex, you just said you love me.”

“I did. And I mean it.” He placed his hand on my thigh. “You have no fucking clue what you’ve done to me, Blondie. I’m ready to be publicly shamed if it means I get to have you with me. I’ll walk through fucking fire if I have to.”

I unbuckled my seat belt and scooted over to the middle seat, directly next to him. I placed my head down on his shoulder and took his hand, kissing the top of it repeatedly.

“I love you too, Alex.”

The music collection on his phone was playing through the speakers again, and as luck would have it, Shameless by Garth Brooks played on the radio.

“You listen to country?” I asked, lifting my head, a little surprised by it.

“A little bit, as long as it’s not about losing my dog or my truck,” he responded, before singing along to the song.

I laughed at the stereotype, then rested my head on his shoulder again, singing along with him as he barreled down the freeway, taking us back to our other, less enjoyable world.

Chapter 25

Alex

Tuesday morning came much too quickly.

My lonely bed had me craving the warmth of Cassie’s body snuggled next to mine. I fucking hated putting her into that taxi last night, sending her back to her own personal hell. Thankfully, she had Dalton in her corner, and I was slowly but surely seeing him for the loyal friend that she needed. My guard was always up though. You just never could be completely sure of everyone’s sincerity.

Ruiz was another story. I couldn’t stand the thought of her alone with Cassie. Just thinking about it was like being punched repeatedly in the face. It was painful, and the more I thought about it, the more defensive I became. The thought to have one of them removed came to mind, but like the fight with Allen and his roommate a few weeks prior, things like that got investigated and sifted through with a fine tooth comb. Surely something would come up that would spill everything, so it was best to just leave things as they were and hope for the best.

Riley was already up and in the kitchen when I walked out. He stood leaning against the island with a mug of coffee in his hand, reading the newspaper again. He looked up when he saw me.

“So, how was it?”

I nodded my head, still feeling a bit empty at the fact that I was sucked in and standing firm in my reality once again. Not having her near me was brutal, and the day before when she was dreading the return, and I was trying to make light of it, it didn’t dawn on me that it would gut me this way.

“I’ll see you later, man. I have to get shit set up and ready for class today,” I said, not bothering to grab anything before I walked out the door.

Pulling into the parking lot, I spotted Castillo getting out of her Jeep. The sight of her disgusted me. I’d let shit get much too far, and as far as I was concerned, I needed my mind bleached and scrubbed to remove the guilt-ridden memory of it all. I parked and rushed over to her before she could get inside and around people.

“Hey, Alex. Long time no see. How was your weekend?” She was acting so casual, like the desperate lie she’d told had never come out of her mouth.

I stepped closer, glowering at her. “My weekend was just fine. How was yours? And was that amazing fuck we had before the weekend everything you imagined?”

Her eyes shot open; no amount of words could have expressed the shock permeating her face.

“I didn’t—“

“Save the bullshit, Leti. I let you put that filthy fucking mouth of yours on my dick, and I regret the hell out of it. I should have never fallen for your shit, and I want to kick my own ass for letting it happen.”

My look grew more sinister as my body temperature rose and my jaw clenched. “Let me make myself ab-so-fucking-lute-ly clear. Every time I’ve been with you has been a colossal mistake. I’ll be the first to admit that some people need to learn the hard way, and I’m one of those people. But I’ll be damned if I let you tell blatant lies about me and get away with it.”

I leaned closer, our faces nearly touching one another. “Take this as your one and only fucking warning. I’ll keep my dick out of your mouth, and you keep my name out of it as well. You understand me?”

Before she could fix her mouth to answer, I turned and marched away. Pleasurable memories of the beach came back, pissing me off even further now that I was stuck in this hellhole of a desert with Cassie so close, yet so far away.

I had spent the early part of the morning inputting test scores from the last test taken before I took off for the long weekend. Cassie was the top scorer again, a ninety-eight percent this time, putting her in the lead for the challenge. I had to figure out a way to get some time off if she were to win. I needed to spend another free flowing weekend with her, away from the constant bullshit that this place was stuffed with.

Jensen led the students in. The pull between Cassie and me was strong. So strong that when I looked up from my work, my eyes immediately landed on hers, and her eyes were glued to mine. A slight twitch of my lips curved into a smile, but I quickly turned away, not needing to give Jensen any ammunition. We were work associates, and that was as far as it needed to go.

“I am passing back your tests that you took before the long weekend. Your score is on top, and the rankings are listed on the back wall. Once we get started for the day, you’ll have a chance to see where you stand. Remember, a seventy-two is riding on this.”

I passed back the papers, Ruiz never once looking me in the face as I strolled over to her and dropped off her paper. I guess she was finally taking me seriously. When I got around to Cassie, I dropped her paper off, standing over her for a minute while images of the beach, the dog tags, the fire—all of it—came rushing through my head. These next few weeks would be the hardest ones yet—even harder than the first few that had me teetering like a fucking seesaw. Now that things had been laid out and cemented, I wanted her every second of the day, and restraining was proving much more difficult than I wanted it to be.

“Yeah. That’s right!” Allen shouted as I laid his ninety-six down on his desk. He was pounding his chest, the whole caveman like persona grating my fucking nerves. Jensen walked through and high-fived him, further annoying me. What he liked so much about Allen I just couldn’t understand. He was much too loud, and much too obnoxious, for my taste.

“Alright, today you’ll be pairing up to work on a mock radio system. I don’t care who you work with, just find a partner and wait for directions. Go!”

The room became a chatter box with students moving here and there, trying to figure out who they would be working with. Ruiz, thankfully, didn’t approach Cassie. I wouldn’t have allowed that shit if she had tried. My number one goal right now was keeping her safe, and I was going to do it any capacity.

“Hey, Bennett, I’ll be your partner,” Allen said, stomping over to where she stood with a pompous grin on his face. But when I turned and watched her face, dread completely took over, letting me know that this wasn’t a friendly gesture.

I stepped in his way, intercepting him and turning him around to a pair that I was about to break up.

“Pfc. Taylor, you’re now working with Private Allen. Pfc. Jones, you’re now working with Pfc. Bennett.”

When I looked back to Cassie, relief shrouded her face. I knew then that I would need to straighten some things out. Allen was an overbearing little shit, but her look didn’t convey that. There was something more, and I was determined to figure it out.

The next couple of hours were devoted to various tasks on the radio systems: trouble shooting, jamming, and programming. The room grew quiet as concentration filled the space. They had no idea, but they would be graded on how well they performed each task since each one had been covered in class over the last few weeks. Newsome, Jensen, and I floated around the room with clipboards, verbally asking questions while also watching the students fix numerous problems. I made sure not to be the one to test Cassie. I knew Jensen’s watchful eyes were on me, no matter where I stood, so I let Newsome be the one to do it, but I was never too far away.

A few of the students stood after their testing, walking over to the standings listing. Ruiz skimmed the list, finding herself in third place. She was smart and picked up on the material rather easily, so I knew if she just kept her fucking nose where it belonged, she’d make a fine Marine. If not, well, I had no problems destroying all of that for her. I went to the far corner of the room where I questioned a pair on their troubleshooting when I heard Allen cry out, “Second place? How am I in second place?”

Jensen walked over to him, placing his hand on Allen’s shoulder. “We still have more tests, devil dog. You’ll get there.”

I was puzzled by the whole thing. Was it because Cassie was sitting in the top spot and he wanted to see anyone other than her win this thing? I remembered that Allen acted like a fucking barbarian at the initial PFT, and it was Jensen who congratulated him on his shit. Maybe his like of Allen had nothing to do with Cassie? I was too wound up, and nothing fit quite right for me. Paranoia in the form of protection was beginning to set it, and it was already frying my fucking nerves.

By the time the lunch hour rolled around, I was starving, and not for food. I needed to know what the deal was between Allen and Jensen. I needed to know if Jensen was trying to be a little bitch and keep Cassie from being the top earner. And I most certainly needed to know what the fuck had Cassie so startled when it came to Allen. The look on her face when he came near her was emblazoned on my brain.

I texted Riley, knowing he would do anything I needed him to do.

Me: Hey, man. Take Jensen out to lunch. I need to be alone with Cassie.

His researching skills were needed once again. If he could get Jensen alone and shoot the shit with him, all under the guise of just catching up, he would be doing me a world of good.

Riley: Man, I’m all for supporting, but seriously? At the schoolhouse? I’ve gotta draw the line.

Me: I’m not fucking her. I need to get some info.

I looked up, scanning the room to make sure that eyes weren’t fixated on me.

Me: Find out why Jensen likes Pvt. Allen so much.

Riley: You’ve got it. And, Alex… don’t fuck her here, man. J

I grinned at the text because I just couldn’t promise that. I shot Cassie a quick text, telling her to leave herself available for me for lunch. The sexual innuendo in that statement had her trying to hide a grin that was threatening to erupt into a full blown smile. I liked seeing the effect my words had on her mind and body.

Once everyone filed out, Jensen left the room without speaking more than a few words, telling Newsome where he’d be. I stepped out the back door and peeked around the wall, seeing her ditch her crew and scamper over to where I was. When I got her inside, I couldn’t help myself; I pinned her up against the wall, kissing her hard before she playfully pushed me away.

“Well good to see you, too.”

“Fuck the greetings. Do you even know what having you in this room does to me?”

“I think I’m beginning to figure it out.”

“Just now beginning? What the fuck is that? You should already know.”

She kissed me again, her soft, moist lips placating me for the moment.

“So I need to know something,” I told her, taking her hand and leading her over to the front desk. Her eyes shifted down to it as she softly smiled.

“Not in the classroom, too.”

I looked down at it, remembering the delicious lunch I’d gotten out of her on the desk in my office.

“I’m starting to realize that you as my meals is turning out to be pretty damn healthy for me. But, no. Not in the classroom—not yet anyway.”

She hit my arm and I caught her hand, taking a seat on the desk and pulling her in between my legs.

“On a serious note,” I said, my voice turning harder, “I need to know what’s going on with Private Allen and you.”

Her look of shock and disgust caught me off guard.

“Are you asking me if we have something going on?” The acid in her tone was noticeably apparent.

“Not so much. Calm the fuck down. I just noticed the look on your face when he offered to be your partner, and I wanted to know where it came from.”

“Allen is just an idiot. I don’t want to have anything to do with him if I can avoid it.”

She started to pull away, but I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her closer. “There’s more to it, Blondie. I know it. I’m going to do some digging on this shit, believe that.”

“Alex, why can’t just take my word at face value? He’s a dumbass, and I just choose to avoid him.”

“Because the look on your face was more than just disgust with a dumbass. I’m not fucking stupid, Cassie. The kid rubs me wrong, and that look tells me that my feelings about him are absolutely right. So if you won’t be honest with me, I’ll find out on my own.”

“I am being honest,” she quickly retorted.

“You’re omitting, and that is not being completely honest.”

The more I looked at her, the more I wanted to know exactly what was going on here. I didn’t like it. I didn’t like tension in her body where this guy was concerned, and I damn sure didn’t like that I couldn’t get a straight answer out of her.

“Why are you withholding?” I asked, eyes narrowing, voice growing more husk.

She swallowed. “I’m not. I just know you get all crazy over the smallest little things. I don’t want any issues, Alex.”

“Issues? You don’t think you have a fucking issue already on your hands? I don’t even know what it is, but it’s written all over you.”

She rolled her eyes and looked away.

“I’m telling you right now. I’m going to find out what this is because I don’t like the feeling I get when he’s around. He’s a loose fucking cannon, and I don’t get why you’re protecting him.”

We stared at one another for a minute when Cassie finally broke the silence.

“I need to get some chow. I’m starving.”

I didn’t want to let her go. I could tell she was upset, but sadly, I didn’t care. Her evasiveness where this Allen guy was concerned was ammunition for me to find out exactly what was going on there, and deep inside I knew none of it was good. I reluctantly stood and walked her to the back door.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I reached in and grabbed it, seeing a text message from Smith light up on the screen.

Smith: Sgt. Major. Thomas wants to see you.

“Fuck!” I called out. She stood staring at me, wanting to know what had come through.

“What happened?”

“I have to go and see Sgt. Major. Thomas.”

Her breath caught. “Do you think—“

“No. She’s not calling me in for this.” I kissed her. “And… I will be digging around, and I don’t give a shit if you warn Dalton either. I’m going to find out what the hell is going on. I’ve already told you, I don’t play fair. I’ll get my information one way or another.”

I pushed open the door and let her out before throwing on my cover and straightening myself up. I cracked my knuckles as I walked toward Sgt. Major’s office, the tension building up in me like cement blocks on a wall. Cassie was hiding something, and what it was I couldn’t quite put my finger on, but I was more determined than ever to find out.

Chapter 26

Cassie

We were so close to the end of school that I didn’t want Alex going ape shit and everything that we had to come unraveling. Allen had been a sore subject for me since the very beginning, but I felt like I could hold my own when it came to him. Now my nerves were on edge. Alex wanted to know what was going on, and the Sgt. Major was calling him in. There could have been a whole host of reasons that she wanted to see him, but when you have a guilty conscience it automatically jumps to the negative, and that is exactly where I was wallowing.

I walked across the street to the mini mart, grabbing a bag of chips and a Gatorade since there wasn’t going to be enough time to walk all the way to the chow hall, eat, and get back. I sat under the tiny bit of shade created from one of the pillars as I lost myself in thought. Alex, for as much as he saw Allen as a loose cannon, was just as much a loose cannon, if not more. I had to find Dalton and talk to him because I knew he would be the first person that Alex would interrogate. I didn’t want to be babied. I could handle Allen on my own. Even if I had to keep going at him here and there, he knew he would have a fight with me, and usually didn’t cross that line.

I took out my phone and texted Dalton. The last thing I wanted was for him to be caught off guard by Alex.

Dalton: Need to see you ASAP. I’m in the courtyard.

I waited for a few minutes but didn’t get a reply. Instead, I heard footsteps. Dalton came running, and the sight of him, red faced and breathing hard, had me laughing a bit.

“What’s so funny?” he asked, trying to catch his breath.

“You. You look like you came to put out a fire.”

“Well, when you put ASAP, I didn’t know what the hell was going on. Anyway, what’s up?”

I scooted over and tapped the seat, inviting him to sit down. “Alright. Alex knows something is up with Allen. We were working on radio systems in class today and had to do it in pairs. Allen called me out and offered to be my partner and I froze, totally disgusted. Well, Alex saw that and went haywire. He asked me what was going between us and I wouldn’t tell him.”

“Why? The guy is a douche. Maybe letting Alex kick his ass is what he needs.”

“Dalton, wake up. If Alex goes after him, which he will if he finds out some of the shit he’s said to me, everything will be blown, so you have to keep quiet. He already said he was coming to you, so please, do your best to not say anything. I know you think I’m crazy, but it’s for the best.”

“I do think you’re crazy, and I would love to see Allen get his ass kicked, but I get it. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

“Thank you,” I said, finally able to smile. “Anyway, how was your weekend with Ben?”

A dreamy look spread across his face. Whatever happened, it must have gone well.

“It was awesome. We went to Palm Springs and stayed in a resort hotel. Played some golf, ate at amazing restaurants, did some shopping and had amazing sex. He said he’ll be back out for graduation in a couple of weeks.”

“That’s awesome. So are you a couple or what’s the deal?”

“I don’t know about that part. I mean, he’s super sweet and all, but I still don’t even know where I’ll be stationed, and long distance relationships rarely work out.”

“Well, I wouldn’t automatically rule it out. It sounds like he really likes you. What does he do?”

“He’s a paralegal.”

“Good job. I’m just glad you had a good weekend. You were so worried about it.”

“I know. Anyway, what about you. How was your weekend?”

“Oh, it was amazing. Alex took me to Huntington Beach. I’d never been to a beach before. He taught me how to boogie board, then we had a bonfire, cooked out, made s’mores, made love—“

“Whoa. Made love? Do tell.”

I laughed. It did sound a little strange for me, too. “Yes. We learned a whole lot about one another that night, and rough sex just didn’t feel appropriate. It warranted so much more.”

“Wow!”

“I know. Kind of shocked me too. So anyway, the next day, he took me sailing, and then-“

“And then?”

“And then, he shocked the hell out of me by taking me to meet his family.”

“What the fuck? Seriously?”

“Yes.”

“That’s huge. How did that go?”

“Well, I was nervous as hell, but it went well. His mom and sister are awesome, but his grandma, hmmmm, not so much.”

“Yikes. Did she say anything rude to you?”

“No, but she said it about me. She asked him, ‘who’s the white girl?’” I raised the pitch of my voice, mimicking the sounds of hers.

Dalton laughed, prompting me to finally laugh about it.

“Sounds like Grandma is old school.”

“Oh, she is. His sister told me that. It was a good visit. He has more people in his family than I’ve known in my entire life.”

“Glad you had a good time. So, are you two a couple?” he asked, slightly turning his head and scrunching his eyebrows.

I blew out a deep breath. “Yeah, I guess you can say that. And we’ll just have to make this long distance thing that you say never works, work.”

He laughed again.

Busy chatter filled the hallways as everyone began filing into the courtyard. Lunch had flown by, and now all I had to do was keep Dalton inaccessible for Alex.

Later that evening, after a quick study session, Dalton and I went to the gym to do some light cardio. Alex texted and let me know that Sgt. Major Thomas just wanted him to sign some paperwork and possibly send him away for some radio seminar for a few days. I was able to relax once I found out why she was calling for him, but anxiety still sat inside of me as I realized now he was free to interrogate whomever he wanted about Allen. I had hoped that he would just let it be, but of course as soon as he told me, I’m letting that go like I’m letting you go. Get over it, I knew he was hell bent on finding out and destroying him. If I could keep him out of the specifics of what Allen had actually said to me that might placate him just a bit, and not turn him into a maniacal body crusher. Hearing his story over the weekend of what he did to the guy that hit his sister let me know that where the women he loved were concerned, he had no limits, no boundaries.

The next couple of days were filled with Alex’s inquisition. He was relentless, pulling students aside to try and find some dirt, but luckily no one besides Dalton really had anything, and he did much better at keeping quiet than I gave him credit for. Alex had asked him about everything and Dalton, being the smart friend that he was, simply told him that Allen was a loud mouth and because I ran mine too, Allen and I had gotten into a couple of arguments. When Alex pressed him further, he said he didn’t know anything else. Alex went even further, even underhandedly threatening Dalton, but my dear friend still gave nothing up. I could have kissed him when I found out. I thought for sure the rough exterior of Alex when he was pissed and on a mission would have broken Dalton, but it didn’t. He held his ground, even though he said he thought Alex was ready to snap his neck if he didn’t give him what he wanted. I could only laugh at that and thank him profusely. Dealing with Alex was definitely no easy task, but he did it, even if he didn’t agree with my reasoning.

Friday, Alex texted me and told me to be ready for a taxi at the Subway again around eighteen hundred because he wanted to spend time with me. He had been given temporary orders to travel to a joint forces base in Florida, so he’d be gone for the weekend, sitting in on a presentation for a new radio system that would be coming in. I hated the thought of it. He would be leaving first thing in the morning and wouldn’t be back until Tuesday.  Even though it was only a few days, every day that we had together was precious because there was a good chance that at the end of this course, we’d be split up, living on opposite coasts with different time zones and different training and deployment schedules. That thought sickened me even more, so I let it go and focused on enjoying my night with him.

I let Dalton know where I’d be, and he decided to go to Subway and have dinner with me, then take the taxi out in town and do a little shopping so that it didn’t look suspicious that I was leaving all by myself. He was always thinking where my mind was lacking. When I got to Alex’s house, Dalton told me to text him and let him know when I needed him to come back and get me. I hugged him and thanked him for everything, especially for incurring the wrath of Alex and still standing by me. He brushed it off and kissed my forehead as I got out and walked up the driveway.

Alex opened the door wearing nothing but a pair of PT shorts. My eyes immediately darted to his chest. His body was pure perfection, and at times I couldn’t believe that I had open ended access to it. He pulled me in, kissing me hard before whispering, “You’re wearing too much clothing.” He picked me up and threw me over his shoulder, carrying me away to the living room where Natasha was straddling Riley on the couch. She looked up and smiled while trying to pull her shirt down.

“Hey, Cassie. Nice to see you again.”

“Hi,” I said, trying to free myself from Alex’s hold. I reached down and pinched his ass--even though I didn’t get much since it was hard like a plate of steel--and he finally let me go. “What are you two up to tonight?”

“I’m hoping Chris can make me scream all night long like Alex did to you the other night. We can have a contest.”

Alex laughed. “No one can do the shit I do, so you’ve already lost. And anyway, we aren’t staying. I’m leaving for the weekend, and I need my girl all to myself.”

“Well, sounds like you’re getting fucked somewhere else. Enjoy it, Cassie.”

I laughed. Natasha was a blunt chick who made no qualms about anything she had to say.

“Have a good night you two,” Riley called out. “I’ll finally get to use that island the way it’s intended to be used.”

I wanted to throw up in my mouth. Riley and Natasha naked, on top of the kitchen island? The thought made me never want to eat food up there again. Alex didn’t say anything: instead, he took my hand and walked us back to his room. He quickly removed his PT shorts, then put on a pair of jeans, foregoing the boxers or any sort of underwear. A slight grin crossed my lips as I thought about how easy he was making it on himself to get to me.

We left the house, not saying goodbye to Riley or Natasha since they were back in his bedroom, moans crashing through the walls as the headboard knocked loudly. I hoped that they would stay back there and leave the kitchen a clean place to eat, but Natasha seemed like a wild child.

Alex helped me into the truck, then went around to his side and hopped in. We backed out of the driveway and headed into the darkness with nothing but the moonlight and the twinkling stars casting light on the blackened streets. I sat in the middle, my head resting on Alex’s shoulder as he stroked my leg.

“Where are we going? No more surprise family visits.”

He looked over to me and smiled, the golden tint of his eyes gleaming.

“You mean you don’t want to meet my second cousins?”

“Not funny.”

He laughed again. “I don’t have any family out here. I just want you all to myself before I have to go days without looking at you.”

“What about curfew? If the fire watch checks and I’m not there, I’ll be reported to the duty.”

“You think I haven’t thought about all of that. Don’t worry about it. I took care of it.”

“What did you do?”

“I took care of it. That’s all that matters.”

He turned onto a road that led through the middle of Yucca Valley, leading us into even more desolate grounds. After driving another fifteen minutes, Alex pulled off the road and around the back of three oversized boulders that were decorated in painted love notes and graffiti. The sound of the crickets chirping was the only noise that could be heard, and the darkness of the night covered us in ultimate privacy, away from any potential passing cars.

“We’re here,” Alex said, turning off the ignition and turning up the radio. I looked into his eyes, passion and heat burning from them. “I’ve thought about bringing you here ever since I met you.”

“Oh really?”

“Yes.” He leaned over and kissed me. “Come on, I have something to show you.”

I followed him out of the truck, walking to the bed where he let down the tailgate and took my hand, helping me into the back. There were a couple of sleeping bags, pillows, and a bag of food.

“What the hell, Alex? Are we sleeping out here?”

“I wish, but I have to be at the airport at five in the morning, so I plan on getting as much time out here with you as possible.”

He hopped in and rolled out the sleeping bags, placing the pillows at the head of the bed. I sat listening to the music blaring through the truck speakers, feeling the urge to dance when Gorilla by Bruno Mars started playing. The sensual beat of the song started up, and I stood, leaving my hand on his head as I pushed him down. His eyes darkened behind the shield of his lowering eyelids while a coy smile stretched across his mouth. I slowly swiveled my hips, thrusting my pelvis at him. He reached out for me, but I swatted his hands away, laughing at his obvious torture.

“Take em’ off,” he huskily whispered. I looked down between his legs and noticed the bulging and excited cock lying beneath his jeans. It only made me want to take him further.

Slowly gliding my shorts down my legs, I stared into his eyes: low, hooded, and burning with need. Once my shorts were down to my ankles, I stepped out of one side, then kicked the other up and onto him. They landed on his head, hanging off of one side.

Standing before him in nothing but a skimpy pair of panties, I moved closer and placed my foot up and on his shoulder. I rolled my hips in front of him, holding his head in place as he pushed his face into my pussy. His hands were on me, and I swatted them away, then quickly swung my leg over his head, and turned on my heel, bending over to touch the lining of the truck bed. Alex playfully slapped my ass a couple of times, just hard enough to make it sting.

“You’re fucking killing me, Blondie,” he whispered, blowing out a deep breath. I could tell he was completely riled up, and my lips formed into a playful smile that he couldn’t see. “I’m fucking hungry. It’s my turn.”

The soft and gentle Alex was gone. He held firm to my panties then yanked them down. He quickly turned me around and ran his finger over my slit, then licked that same finger and did it again.

Those deliciously sinister eyes looked up to me, and a devious smile caressed his lips. He leaned over to his bag and took out a basket of strawberries, a can of whipped cream, and a bottle of chocolate.

“I thought we’d have some strawberry shortcake under the stars tonight.”

“You have no cake.”

“You’re the cake.”

My heart sped up. The prospect sounded so decadent, even if I wasn’t the one eating.

“My turn to tease you,” he warned.

I was already hot and wet, and his choice of words only ignited more of a fire inside of me.

I stood as he moved to his knees, kissing the inside of my thighs while working his fingers over my hips, and down my inner thigh. He eased a couple of fingers into me, temporarily taking my breath away. The slow, tortuous pace he used had me swirling my hips, trying to take more of him than he was giving me. Just as I was beginning to feel his fingers working me into a frenzy, he gently slipped them out, moving to the bag.

“I’m ready to eat,” he said, grinning as he poured chocolate over a strawberry.

He took the whipped cream can and shook it a couple of times, then sprayed the slick whiteness between my legs, making me shiver from the cool feel of it. He took the strawberry and ran it along my slit, scooping up some of the whipped cream. Bringing the berry to his lips, he took a large bite, letting the juices run down his mouth. He did this a few more times until the strawberry was gone and there was nothing but whipped cream left to eat away.

“Come here,” he rasped, pulling me close by my bare ass.

“I need a good cleaning,” I whispered.

“I know. I’m here to do just that.”

Before another word was spoken, Alex’s tongue was on me, slowly taking in the residual cream. He occasionally took small sucks, clinging to my lips, while making me weak in the knees. I frantically ran my hands over the top of his head, unable to keep them still as it felt like he sucked the life out of me. One of his hands left my ass, the other moved under my shirt, unhooking my bra, then moving to the front and squeezing my breast. His tongue was relentless, diving into me and licking with tenacious fervor. My moans turned to high pitched shrieks, which Alex loved since they wouldn’t be heard by anyone for miles.

He licked faster and sucked harder, moaning how delicious I tasted and how lucky he was to be the man with his mouth on me. My body was tingling from the waist down. I knew my release was close.

“I’m coming, Alex!”

He pulled away, looking up as he pulled a condom on out of his pocket and ripped it open, then pulled his jeans down and slid it on.

“You’re coming with me deep inside of you. Move forward.” There was an exorbitant amount of need in his voice; the lust, the love, all of it had me like putty in his hands.

I moved forward as he stood and moved behind me. I noticed a sticker on his back window that I’d never paid attention to before. It was white with a ram in the middle. If you can’t dodge it, ram it! It was so fitting for Alex; he had that mindset in everything he did, and right now, I was about to be on the receiving end of it.

He took my hands and placed them on the roof of the truck.

“Don’t move those hands or I’ll figure out some way to punish your ass.”

The delicious threat had me contemplating making him act on it, but I obliged, sitting my hands on the top of the truck while he held on to my breasts and worked his way into me. The thickness of his cock and the tightness of my core worked against one another, making me wince and gasp as he dug further and further.

“Being inside of you is such a delicious treat. I don’t think I can ever get enough.”

He went harder, beating into me with enough power and passion to plow me over. Luckily, he was still holding me, but the sensation was much too strong, and I couldn’t take it anymore. I reached back for him, wrapping my arm around his neck and pulling him into me.

He stalled, and a deep, dark laugh left him as I pulled him close. “You always have to learn the hard way, don’t you?”

I didn’t know what he meant by that, and I didn’t care. The feeling was much too intense to focus on anything else at the moment. As one hand still lay on the top of the truck, Alex removed my other from his neck and placed it back where he had it. He stepped back, pulling me with him as he kept himself inside.

“Someday, you’ll learn,” he said, pushing my back down as he held firmly to my hips.

He wasn’t moving. We were just there, in the back of the truck, me bent over, him standing while inside of me. Then he pulled out. I was confused. I tried to look back, but he caught my head and turned it back around. The suspense of it all had me on edge, and I was still very close to coming, needing to release before I felt like I would explode. Just as my breathing picked up to a frantic need, Alex’s hand came down, heavy and hard on my ass, making me jump and yelp.

“You can try and scream all you want, Blondie, but I’m about to fuck you hard, and I’ll more than likely take your breath away.”

He smacked my ass again before thrusting himself back into me and going to work. He kept true to his promise, pounding away as he held onto my hair in a tightly fisted grip. Broken cries came out as I felt Alex reaching a level that stunned my mind, making me briefly open my eyes and come face to face with the ram it sticker. It was almost as if it was meant exclusively for us.

His hand that sat on my hip coursed down in between my legs, his fingers rubbing and tickling my clit. A few seconds of that and I lost it. I finally screamed out his name, coming loud and violently as my body shook from the force of the release.

I was spent.

Done.

Finished.

Only Alex wasn’t, and he continued tearing into my limp body. He finally pulled me upright, moving back to the head of the truck bed and placing my hands back on roof. He grunted a few times before he stilled, one of his hands on my hip, the other holding firm to my chest, just below my neck. His release was long and just as violent, shaking the bed of truck as he groaned obscenities into the warm, nighttime air. Bruno Mars screamed out our climaxes, yelling about hard fucking and such, making me love the song that much more.

We slumped down together, one big, languid mess on the sleeping bags, breathing heavily as feeling finally made its way back into my lower half.

“Well, if this Marine Corps thing doesn’t work out, I know you’ve got other talents and can work elsewhere.”

I hit him, pretending to be offended.

“I’d make a hell of a lot more money, that’s for sure.”

He took my face in his hand, turning me so that his warm, golden eyes met with my green.

“No other motherfucker is ever going to see this prize package the way I do. I’d beat their fucking eyes out.”

For a second, I thought he was serious, but he finally allowed a trace of playfulness to seep into him, making me smile.

“I’m going to miss the fuck out of you,” he said, moving into a more romantic zone.

“Me too. Hurry up and get back so I can have you again.”

“That’s my plan.” He used his teeth and skimmed my bottom lip, then kissed me hard. “You need to lay low while I’m gone.”

“Why? I thought I’d occupy your bed for the weekend. Hang with Riley and Natasha.” The look he gave me didn’t seem like he picked up on my little joke.

“Not fucking funny, Cassie.”

“It was a joke.”

“Keep it that way. I wish I could pack your ass up and take you with me, but since I can’t, you need to lay low and avoid confrontation. Your little friend, Dalton, he’s a loyal one. Either that or well coached because he wouldn’t give up shit. And I threatened to make his last few weeks here an absolute fucking nightmare.”

“There’s nothing to tell, Alex.”

“Right. I know you and Allen have had words, I just don’t know what was said. It’s all good. I’m still digging.”

I sighed. It didn’t seem like he was going to give up on this.

He took his fingers and ran it over my lips and down my chest, stopping in between my breasts.

“Where are the dog tags?”

“Locked up in my wall locker. I didn’t want anyone to see me with them.”

He nodded his head. We lay silent for a few minutes, cuddled up against one another, staring at the stars twinkling millions of miles away.

“Shouldn’t we be getting our orders soon? What happens if we get separated?” I asked, breaking the silence.

“We’ll figure it out and make it work.”

“Is it really that easy?”

“Yes. I haven’t worked this hard to get you just to let you go a few weeks later. It’s not ideal, but if we have to, I’ll fly out wherever you are once a month, and we’ll take turns on holidays. But stop worrying about it. I don’t even want to think about shit like that right now.”

The heaviness of the reality that the Marine Corps could tear us apart in another way weighed down on me, making me feel completely powerless. All of this time we had been worried about our relationship being found out and the Corps destroying it, when the real threat staring us in the face was the likelihood of me being sent away and the distance making our relationship nearly impossible.

I tried to take his approach and mindset, but the more I thought about it, the more the sadness of it all began to fill me. I tried hard to push it out of my mind for the duration of our night. Alex would be leaving for the next few days, and I wanted to enjoy the little bit of time I had left with him before he had to do so.

Chapter 27

Alex

Stepping onto the plane first thing in the morning, after only two hours or so of sleep, had me craving the headrest. But I wouldn’t have traded my night for anything.

Cassie meant too much to me, and I knew these next few days would fucking drag without her. I made her picture my screensaver on my phone, her beautiful fucking face, those pouty lips, and emerald green eyes looking seductively into my camera. No one out in Florida would know who she was, so I could have her there, look at it, and not have to hide it in case anyone took a peek.

On the other hand, my mind wouldn’t rest with this bad feeling I had about Allen. No one was really telling me much, but I did find out that she’d had an argument or something with him. I wasn’t fucking stupid. There was more to it than that. The way she froze in the classroom when he approached had me smelling blood. I was ready to attack. The kid rubbed me wrong, and her demeanor solidified things for me. I couldn’t wait to get him out and on his way, and hopefully that wouldn’t include sending him wherever Cassie would be headed.

When I touched down in Florida, there was a young Lance Corporal waiting there for me. He looked a hell of a lot like Dalton, and as soon as I saw him, Cassie came popping back into my head.

“Welcome to Florida, Sergeant.”

“Thank you.”

“Do you have any bags we need to get?”

“No. I have my bags with me.”

“Alright. Well, I have the car parked over here.”

“Good to go.”

I placed my bags into the back of the small SUV he was driving. Once I was seated in the car, I pulled out my phone and texted Cassie.

Me: Made it. Still hungry… It’ll be days before I am properly fed again.

Cassie: Glad you made it safely. You are insatiable. Enjoy Florida.

Me: You aren’t here. But I’ll try.

When we reached the base, I was led to my barracks room for the next few days. It had been such a long time since I had lived in the barracks, and the cold cement brick walls, painted over with gaudy white paint, made me remember exactly why I was so thankful to have my own house, even in a shithole town like Twentynine. I finished unloading all of my things when my phone started ringing. I answered it without looking at the screen.

“Hello,” I answered, fully expecting to hear Cassie’s sweet voice on the other end. Instead, I got fucking Riley.

“Hey, man. Just wanted to see if you’d made it. How’s Florida treating you?”

I sighed. “I’m here, in a shitty ass barracks room. It’s humid as fuck. I’ll take that blazing desert heat any day over this.”

“Sounds about right. Well enjoy it. It’s always nice to get away for a change.”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

There was a knock on the door.

“Hey, man. Someone’s at the door, I gotta go.”

I hung up the phone then swung the door open. A tall guy stood before me, dressed in khaki shorts, a polo shirt, and sandals.

“Sergeant Cruz, I’m Staff Sergeant Bilkens. I’m here to show you around the base.”

“Nice to meet you, Staff Sergeant. Let me grab my sunglasses, and I’ll be right out.”

The sun was just as deadly here as it was back home. Coupled with humidity, it was downright miserable. He took me around the base on a golf cart, pointing out the various buildings, the meeting room where the presentation would be held, the chow hall and other recreational areas. He said he and a few other guys would be heading to the driving range in a few, and asked if I wanted to come along. I wasn’t much of a golfer, in fact, I was downright terrible at it, but I went anyway, needing to stay busy and be social.

When we got to the range, I met two Navy guys, Petty Officer Mike Douglas, and Petty Officer Aaron Miles. Miles was married, but said his weekends were his and his alone. He reminded me a hell of a lot like myself before I’d met Cassie. I had his mentality, but now that she was solidly planted in my life, I couldn’t imagine wanting to be away from her.

Douglas was as single as they came, and said he liked it that way. He said he was making a career out of the Navy and wouldn’t marry while he was still active duty. Too much cheating and whatnot when deployment comes around had him afraid of settling down. His words struck true because that was exactly what I had gone through with Evelyn. After her, I couldn’t imagine being exclusive with anyone again, then that blonde hair, flowing down that sexy ass back of Cassie’s came into view and my world changed. I was happy about it.

“So Cruz, there’s this club we’re hitting up tonight. You coming?”

It was kind of weird that Miles was the one asking.

“Yeah, sure. What time?”

“Probably about nine. We’ll swing by and get ya.”

“Sounds good.”

Bilkens took me back to my room where I crashed down on the bed and took out my phone, finding a missed call from Cassie. I immediately called her back.

“Hey,” she answered, her voice soft and soothing.

“Hey. What are you up to?”

“Just hanging with Dalton. I’ve got nothing else to do.”

“Good. Stay away from everyone else.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Cassie—“

“I know. I know. Anyway, what are you doing?”

“Nothing. I just got back from the driving range with some of the guys here. It’s humid as hell. Makes me miss the desert.”

She laughed, the sound like music to my ears.

“You only miss the desert. Nothing else? You’re a tough one, Cruz.”

“We both know I miss a hell of a lot more than just that piece of shit desert. But if I get into that, my balls will be fucking purple by the time I get back to you.”

She laughed again, seemingly enjoying my torment.

“Alright. Well, you enjoy your humidity. It’s hot here as well, so we’re off to the pool.”

“The pool? “

“Yes, that big rectangular thing filled with water.”

“I know what it is. Tell Dalton to keep his fucking hands to himself and his eyes in his goddamned head.”

She laughed again, but I didn’t find the humor in it.

“I don’t really think that’ll be an issue.”

“I’m not kidding, Cassie.”

“Enjoy the rest of your day. I’ll talk to you later.”

She hung up, and I slowly began to hate this fucking temporary assignment. Dalton or not, I hated the thought of her prancing around in a tiny bikini, and me not there to keep the vultures away. I turned on the fan and laid down, falling asleep full of tension and irritation.

Standing outside of Shake, the nightclub these guys chose to go to, I felt a little better after my phone call with Cassie earlier in the day. The nightlife here was to be envied. The small bars in Twentynine were in no way comparable to this place. The line wrapped around the building to get in. Sharply dressed guys, and scantily clad women, a booming sound system--there was nothing better. I scanned the crowd, seeing that we’d be in line probably half of the night before we actually got to go inside. Much to my surprise, Miles walked right up to the bouncer at the door and handed him some money. They shook hands, and we were waved in.

“How the fuck did you make that happen?” I asked, curious to know why more people didn’t do it.

“That’s Big Pete. I’ve been coming here for a while, so as long as I hand over cash, he lets me in without having to wait in these shitty ass line. And this place always has that line.”

I nodded my head, following the guys in. A tall, very thin, Latin girl, dressed in a mini skirt and bikini top greeted us, holding a serving tray. She was hot—that couldn’t be denied—but the second she started talking, with her helium filled fucking voice, I about shut down.

“What’s up, boys? I’m Jossie, any particular seating you looking for?”

The dark walls with neon signs plastered to them were filled with people. Some holding drinks in their hands and chatting, others making out, some even looking like they were two steps away from fucking. This wasn’t a classy establishment, but it was popular, and I was beginning to see why. Anything went here.

“We’ll take the usual, Jossie,” Miles answered, winking at her. I had no idea what the usual was, but Jossie smiled and turned, all of us following right behind her. When we finally stopped, we were in an enclosed area, cut off by a wine colored, velvet curtain.

“Four beers, please,” Belkins said. “Whatever is on tap. I’m paying tonight.”

He reminded me a lot of Jensen, only he wasn’t as uptight.

“So, Cruz. What is it that you do?”

“I’m a radio communications instructor at the Comm School in Twentynine Palms.”

“I went through Comm School at that place. It’s a piece of shit. Florida is so much better. I hope to never see the place again.”

I laughed. “Yeah, it’s no fucking oasis like the signs say, but it’s home. And it isn’t so damn humid. This humidity out here can kiss my ass.”

“I’m a Florida boy,” Douglas threw in. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

The waitress came back out, bringing four pitchers of beer with her. My eyebrows scrunched. I thought when Belkins ordered four beers, he meant four mugs.

“Thanks,” he said, stuffing money into the waistband of her tiny miniskirt. “Drink up, man. Plenty more where that came from.”

Free beer would never be passed up by me—ever. Before long, I was sucking down the last of it just as Jossie was bringing out four more pitchers.

“Are pitchers the norm here? I thought she’d be bringing out mugs.”

“I slipped her a little something extra,” Belkins said, smiling.

These guys were definitely a little wilder than my crew back home. We sat around talking, Belkins stuffing large amounts of money in the form of tips into Jossie’s pants. The dreaded beer buzz was starting to hit me as I went to work on my third pitcher.

“I’ve never tested this theory. I wonder if I can get an extra beer if I tip more back home?”

“Don’t let this asshole fool you. Jossie is his girlfriend!” Douglas yelled out over the music, ribbing Belkins.

“So we were going to get in here tonight regardless?”

“No,” Miles answered. “Big Pete wants to be paid.”

“Gotcha.”

“Hey, Jossie’s friends are coming in to chill until she gets off,” Belkins said, nodding his head in the direction of the entrance to the VIP area.

Three tall, thin, Latinas strutted over to our table, wearing tight fitting dresses that left very little to the imagination and high heels that screamed, fuck me. Their thick, long, flowing hair draped their shoulders, hitting just right against the light caramel color of their skin.

“Who’s the new guy?” one of the girls asked as they stopped just in front of us.

“This is Sergeant. Alex Cruz. He’s in town for work.”

“Another military guy. Love it,” the girl said, puckering her lips and smiling. She threw out her hand, introducing herself. “It’s nice to meet you, Sergeant. Alex. I’m Jazlene.”

I took her hand and shook it, not trying to be rude. The other two girls immediately took to Douglas and Miles. I watched them for a bit, noticing that Miles was very comfortable with this girl who didn’t appear to be his wife. They all stood, making their way out to the dance floor where they easily mixed in with the crowd, groping and kissing much like I had done with Cassie the first time I ever saw her. Jossie dropped off more pitchers of beer, stopping to chat with Jazlene for a bit. I drank it, trying to hide my loneliness with drunkenness. Belkins followed Jossie off somewhere, leaving me alone with Jazlene.

She moved to the chair directly beside me, her much too short dress riding up even further. I continued drinking, bobbing my head to the beat of Promiscuous Girl—how fucking fitting.

“So how long are you in town for, Alex?”

“Until Tuesday. I’m here for a work seminar.”

“Ugh. That’s no fun.” Her eyes lowered as she sat her hand on my thigh. “I can show you a good time while you’re here.” Her hand slowly moved upwards. I looked down at my thigh, then back into her eyes; hunger and lust riddled in them. She bit her wine colored lips, silently begging me to take her off somewhere and fuck her senseless.

“I need to go to the bathroom,” I said, removing her hand as I sat my pitcher down on the table. I got up and let the room stop spinning, then walked off in the direction of the bathroom. I wasn’t sure what I was thinking coming out to this club, but I quickly realized that this was not the scene I wanted to be in, especially not with Cassie clear across the country. I tossed some water on my face, feeling the heat begin to creep into my body with the settling of the overabundance of beer. I walked out, pushing my way through people as the club seemed to be filling up even more. When I reached the table, Jazlene was still sitting there, looking bored. Her eyes landed on me, instantly igniting the lust that filled them just before I stepped away.

“You want to get out of here? My apartment would be so much more fun than this place.” The smile she gave was just as intoxicating as the beer I’d been drinking all night, but I wasn’t interested.

“I’ll pass,” I said, standing up and walking out to Douglas. He was the only one of the three that I could find.

“Hey, man. I’m gonna go.”

“Everything alright?”

“Yeah. I just want to get back and sleep. Long day.”

“Alright. You need a ride?”

“Naw. Stay and enjoy yourself. I’ll get a taxi.”

He nodded his head, and I turned and walked out. I took a taxi back to the base, dragging myself to my room and crashing on the bed. I had every intention of calling Cassie, but the exhaustion from the day and the alcohol flowing through my veins inhibited that, leaving me passed out, still fully clothed.

When I awoke the next morning, I had a headache from hell and a missed call from Cassie. I called her back, trying hard to lie still so as not to make my pounding head worse.

“Hello,” she said. Her voice was enough to take a slice of the ache away.

“Hey, good morning,” I said slowly with a hefty dose of grog.

“Morning? It’s almost noon. I was wondering what was going on with you. When did you get in?”

“Um….” I looked at the clock sitting on the nightstand. “I got back kind of early. I left the club.”

“Then why the hell are you so tired?”

“I drank way too much, and I didn’t get any sleep the night before.”

She went silent. I could hear her breathing, but no words came out of her mouth.

“You there?”

“Yeah, I’m here,” she said, the anger in her voice easily distinguishable.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Did those guys have any females around?”

I wasn’t going to lie to her. “Yeah. And that was when I checked out.” She went silent again. “Cassie, there were girls there, one hit on me, and I left. Honest to God. I made that fucking mistake once. I’m not making it again.”

“Alright. Anyway, what are you doing today?”

“Sleeping. I have a fucking hangover and all I want to do is sleep. What about you?”

“Dalton is taking me back to the pool. It’s like one-ten here.”

“Did you give him my message?”

“No. Completely unnecessary.”

“It’s necessary. But, I’ll check it out when I get back.”

“Have a good day of sleep. Talk to you later.”

“Bye.”

As soon as I hung up with her, I lolled to the bathroom, then climbed back into bed and went back to sleep. I didn’t want to eat, see daylight, or anything else. I just wanted to sleep, in a shroud of darkness, thinking about nothing, since thinking hurt too much. Never again would I drink beer the way I did the night before. It wasn’t meant to be consumed like that—not for me anyway. I slept until ten that night, when I woke up and finally left the room to grab something to eat. The sticky, night air, fireflies flying all around me, mosquitos looming with them, had me hurrying to get back to my room. Florida was definitely not for me, and I was on serious countdown mode to get my ass back on a plane that would take me back to the dry heat of the Mojave Desert.

Monday morning, I woke feeling so much better. I dressed in my uniform and left for the meeting room, where I was handed a binder as I walked in, taking my seat at my assigned spot next to Belkins.

“Hey, man. What happened to you Saturday? You okay?”

“Yeah. I was just too wasted. And that chick was up to no good. I have a fucking girlfriend back home.”

“Ahhhh. Gotcha. We thought something was wrong with you.”

I shook my head, turning in my seat as two middle aged men walked in, beginning the presentation on a new aircraft based radio system for joint services. The presentation was informative, teaching a few things that aren’t normally covered in regular Comm School, but I couldn’t get too in depth with it. My mind was elsewhere. I never thought that I would long for Twentynine so badly, but I was. That shithole with all of its sand, bushes, blazing heat, had one thing that sunny Florida and all of its pristine beaches just didn’t have.

Cassie.

When the class was over, Belkins turned to me as I was gathering all of my brochures and binder materials, reaching out his hand for a shake.

“I hope if you come back to Florida, you look me up.”

“Oh, for sure. Thanks for showing me a good time.”

I said my goodbyes to Miles and Douglas, then headed back to my room to pack up. I had an early flight in the morning, and I couldn’t wait to get on that plane and get my ass back to California.

Halfway through packing, I picked up the phone and called Cassie, needing to hear her voice.

“Hey you,” she answered, the tone of her voice sweet and excited, making me long for her even more.

“I’m all done here. I’ll be on a plane early in the morning. Coming back for you.”

“Can’t wait to have you come,” she said with emphasis on the ‘come’ part.

I laughed, feeling like I could go to town on her and never stop. This three day separation was killing me, but thankfully, it was just about over.

“I have a long flight and a layover in Phoenix. It’ll probably be kind of late by the time I land.”

“No worries. Just get your ass back here to me. And bring that delicious cock with you. I think I’m hungry now.”

“Fuck, Cassie. You can’t say shit like that to me while I’m on a different coast and can’t do anything about it.”

“Well, hurry up and come home.”

“I’m working on it. Let me go to sleep so I can wake up and be on a plane because as early as I have to be up, I won’t remember much of my morning.”

She laughed again.

“Alright. Have a good night. See you soon, Sergeant.”

“Bye.”

I hung up the phone and quickly packed away the rest of my stuff before jumping in the shower. The stickiness in the air and the fact that I wanted to cut out the morning routine had me hurrying to get myself to bed. I would be back in Twentynine by tomorrow evening, and I had never been so thrilled. I couldn’t believe my heart was stuck in that fucking place, but it was. It was firmly planted, and needed to get back as soon as possible.

Chapter 28

Cassie

Alex’s TAD trip seemed to drag.

It felt as if he was gone forever, but when I woke up this morning and met Dalton down at the chow hall, he reminded me that Alex would be back by this evening. Those words were like music to my ears. I didn’t think a few days apart would be that hard, but it turned out to be more difficult than I had anticipated. Thankfully, Dalton was around because I avoided Angelica like the plague.

I walked into the classroom, excited and ready for the day. Although this course was coming to an end--and that alone brought astronomical amounts of sadness-- I knew Alex would be coming back, so I pushed that little cloud of misery out of mind and focused on his arrival.

We filed into the room, Jensen standing before the class with a roster in his hands.

“Alright. It looks like Headquarters Marine Corps has finally assigned you to your first duty stations. Remember that preference sheet you filled out at the beginning of this course? Disregard that because some of you will be happy with whatever they gave you, and some of you will not.”

My breathing picked up as he began reading off names with unit and location. I had been dreading this day for a while. Alex had told me not to worry about it, and I’d tried not to give it any further thought, but the reality of it all still followed me. And now, here it was.

“Private Allen, Eighth Radio Battalion, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.”

Allen’s face soured. He obviously wasn’t too happy with his duty assignment.

“Private, Bane, Eighth Radio Battalion, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.”

“Private First Class, Banuelos, Eighth Radio Battalion, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.”

“Private First Class, Bennett.” He called my name, and I froze; my throat went dry and my hands began to sweat. I didn’t want to hear my assignment, but I was too anxious to tune him out. Time seemed to stand still as I stood there, looking ahead but unable to truly take anything in. My heart beat with ferocious vigor, awaiting the news that would either make me a happy girl or rip me to shreds.

“Eighth Radio Battalion, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.”

My breath stopped, and my blood ran cold. I wanted to erase what had just happened and make something else come out of Jensen’s mouth. Did he really just say that I would be sent to the other side of the country, away from Alex, to go and work in a unit with none other than the idiot known as Allen? I tuned out the rest of what he said, for fear that I would burst into tears if I listened to anymore. I mentally chided myself, making me focus on the here and now and figure out a way to make things work with Alex. If I was this upset about leaving, I could only imagine what the news would be like for him. I didn’t even want to think about it. It hurt all over again to think about what it would do to him.

When I finally tuned back in to the classroom, Jensen was already at R.

“Private First Class, Ruiz, MWSS-374, Twentynine Palms, California.”

Envy shot through me as Angelica received word that she would be staying put in Twentynine, the place that I couldn’t wait to get away from when I‘d first arrived. The place that had stolen my heart. The place that held Alex.

“Eighth Comm has quite a few people leaving, so that’s why so many of you got assigned there. Go out to your new units and kick ass. You are well trained, and you should serve your units well,” Jensen said, shutting the binder that held that goddamned roster. “We still have some things to cover for your final exam that will be coming up soon. You all graduate next week, so we have to make sure you pass the big test before shipping you off to some unit where you’ll be expected to perform.”

I sat in my seat, pissed that I was so entrenched in Twentynine, but would be uprooted soon, and there was nothing I could do about it. Newsome took over where Jensen left off, taking us clear back to chapter one and outlining exactly what it was that we would be expected to know for the final. I couldn’t concentrate, instead focusing on how Alex would react to the news when he finally got wind of it. The thought hurt, like a piercing stab with sharp knife, twisting and turning until it could go no further. I tried hard to block it out, but everything led back to it, and I was beginning to feel sick.

After a while of note taking, which I did very little of, Newsome released us for lunch. I was never so thankful to get out of the suffocation of the classroom and outside, even if it was above one hundred degrees and no breeze. The room and the confines of the four walls seemed as if they were closing in on me.

Like they were crumbling, leaving me standing in the middle of the debris.

Like they were killing me.

My heart ached in the worst way, and as anger and sadness began to pile up, so did the anxiety of having to share this news with Alex.

Dalton walked over to where I stood, his usually infectious smile plastered to his face. “Guess where I’m off to?” When I didn’t say anything he blurted out, “Third Light Armored Reconnaissance. I’m staying right here in Twentynine and going to Third L.A.R. I’m so fucking excited about that. What did you get?”

I looked Dalton in the eye, the misery shining through me erasing his smile.

“Uh oh. This isn’t good.”

“I’m going to Eighth Comm.”

“Noooo….”

The hairs on the back of my neck began to stick up as I felt a presence near me that was wholly unwanted. Allen was passing by with the idiots that made up his crew. Not only was I pissed that I was being ripped away from Alex, but I’d have to go and join a unit with a guy that I didn’t think belonged in this century, let alone in a purely technological unit.

“Dalton, did you just say you got Third L.A.R?” Allen asked, his face pinched and angry.

“Yeah,” Dalton answered back, giving him a dirty look.

“This is fucking unbelievable. Your weak ass gets Third L.A.R., a fucking combat unit, and I get to run off to some pussy ass unit like Eighth Comm with a bunch of bitches.”

I wanted to let it go, but I couldn’t. I was already in a rotten mood, and he was spoiling what little positive I could possibly salvage from this day.

“I guess you just aren’t cut out for infantry, Allen,” I said, turning to find his red face filled with throbbing blood vessels that looked as if they would pop at any second.

He moved closer to me. “Maybe going off to North Carolina will be good for you. No instructors around. Just fleet Marines, not giving a fuck about bitches and their issues. Maybe then I can teach you how to stay in a bitches’ place. On your fucking knees with my dick shoved down your throat so you can’t run your fucking mouth anymore.”

I was about to say something to him when Newsome’s voice came bellowing through the corridor. He stridently walked over to where we were, his face stiff, eyes low, yelling, “Private Allen, Private First Class Bennett, over here! Now!”

I turned and walked his way, meeting him halfway. I swallowed hard, afraid of whatever was to come. This day was horrible, and it seemed to be getting worse and worse.

“What the fuck was that bullshit I just heard?”

Allen stood quiet, staring Newsome in the face like he was ready for battle. He looked like he had lost it, much more so than any other time I had seen him go crazy.

“Don’t look at me like you’re fuckin’ crazy, Allen. Answer my fuckin’ question.”

“You heard whatever you heard, Sergeant,” he lowly grumbled, not talking his eyes away from Newsome’s. The look was scaring me.

“Devil Dog, you’ve lost your motherfuckin’ mind. I know female Marines in Eighth Comm that will fuckin’ destroy you. That shit you just said is grounds for sexual harassment, and I won’t fuckin’ tolerate it. Especially not from one of my students. Go stand-by in Gunny Chavez’s office right the fuck now. He’ll decide if this shit goes up to First Sergeant.” Newsome’s face was nearly touching Allen’s—deep red, and full of rage. His finger looked as if it would poke Allen’s eyeball out, and to say that I would be glad to see it happen would have been an understatement.

Allen didn’t say a word. He glared at Newsome for a minute longer. Newsome wasn’t moving...wasn’t blinking...

“Jump if you feel froggy, Marine,” Newsome growled.

For a second, I wasn’t sure if he was even breathing. As angry and volatile as Allen came across, Newsome looked ready to kill him should he make one wrong move. I glanced around and found most of the students’ eyes trained on us, taking in the tense, albeit entertaining scene. Allen finally tore away from the stare down and turned away, walking down the hall that would take him to the upper administrative offices. I had never seen that side of him and it worried me, but Newsome wasn’t afraid. I was sure if Allen went completely stupid, he’d be thinking twice after Newsome was finished with him.

“Bennett, stand-by. You will be called in for your statement about this.”

I nodded, not knowing exactly what to say. He turned and followed the same path that Allen took, finally bringing air back to my lungs, and blood back to my veins. The whole thing happened so fast, and now a shit storm was brewing, leaving me feeling light headed.

“Whoa! That was some serious shit. You okay?” Dalton asked, coming up behind me.

“Not really,” I said, choking back a sob. When my clear thinking mind finally came back to me, fear set in as I realized that it was certainly going to get back to Alex.

“Hey, he’s gone. He’s probably going to get a serious punishment, and then maybe you won’t have to PCS with him.”

“I know. I don’t care about that though.”

“Ohhhh. You’re thinking about Alex.”

I nodded my head, wiping away the loose tear that had managed to escape.

“He’s going to find out about it. You might as well be the one to tell him. Call him.”

“I won’t reach him. He’s a on a plane, on his way back here.”

“So leave him a voicemail and he will hear it when he gets off. You need to be the one to tell him, Cassie.”

“He’s a loose cannon, Dalton. If I tell him that, he won’t even think. He’ll just react and come straight up here. Jeopardizing everything.”

“Cassie, I listened to you when you said not to tell him what had been going on with you and Allen. Now, this—this will surely get to him, and he’s going to be even more pissed. I think it’s better if you tell him. Just leave him a voicemail and discuss it with him once he’s off the plane.”

Dalton was right. I needed to call and let Alex know what was going on, but inside, I didn’t want to. I knew how angry he would be, and I didn’t want to deal with that. I wanted everything to go back to before Allen ever opened his mouth in that courtyard. I wanted to take it all back and re-do it, leaving Allen out of the equation as Dalton went on with his excitement about his new unit and I wallowed in self-pity for mine. All of that seemed so much more enjoyable than what we were faced with now, and the thought of calling Alex and telling him what had taken place, in front of numerous students, made me sick with worry.

“I can’t do that right now, I—“

“Cassie, stop,” he said, raising his voice and drawing attention to us. He grabbed my arm and pulled me away from all of the prying eyes fixed on us. “You need to seriously shut up and listen to me. You do not want Alex to hear this shit from anyone but you. Look at everyone out here. This is going to be the talk of school for days to come. Don’t let Alex hear about it through the fucking grapevine, Cassie. What’s wrong with you?”

I stared at him, completely understanding what he was saying, and agreeing with it, but unable to bring myself to actually do it. The one thing Alex had told me before he left was to stay away from everyone else stay out of trouble. I was in the middle of a big heaping mess of it.

“Call him, Cassie. Go over there by that bush, and call him.”

As much as I wanted to slap Dalton in that moment and tell him to fuck off, I didn’t. Rationality hit me and made me realize that he was absolutely right in everything he was saying and that delaying the inevitable would only make things worse. I stepped away from him, over to the bush like he said, and dialed Alex’s number--knowing he wouldn’t answer-- and readying myself for the voicemail that was sure to set him off.

Chapter 29

Alex

Touching down at Palm Springs International Airport put a smile full of anticipation on my face. I never thought I’d be so fucking happy to look out the window and see the sparse, brown desert laid out before me, but I was. I was excited to be back, and sitting in my seat waiting for everyone to gather their shit and get off the plane was starting to piss me off. The drive back to Twentynine would be another hour or so, but the sooner I was back in my truck and on the road, the better.

I hauled ass out of the terminal, and thankfully, since I carried on my bag, I made my way out to my truck and hopped in, finally powering on my phone. Numerous missed calls, texts, and voicemail notifications buzzed as it finally came back to life. The two newest voicemails were coming from Cassie and Newsome. Whatever Newsome wanted could wait. I plugged the phone into the auxiliary and tapped Cassie’s message, driving off in the direction that would take me back to her.

When her message started, the tone in her voice and the thick lump in her throat I could hear her trying to speaking around froze me.

“Hey, Alex… I um—um, I really need to tell you about something that happened here today—um, it’s pretty serious.”

Every word that came out of her mouth struck fear into me. I wasn’t sure what had happened, and with a million mangled thoughts jumping around in my head, I couldn’t get a clear enough mind to even remotely try and pinpoint one thing over the other. I tried calling her back, but her phone went straight to voicemail. I called again and again, frantically trying to reach her. I finally remembered that Newsome had left me a message, so I tapped on his, hoping it had something to do with Cassie so I could put my ill feelings away.

“Hey. Man. Just letting you know that you’ll have to go in and see First Sergeant O’Hara first thing tomorrow morning. Had to report a sexual harassment incident between Private Allen and Pfc. Bennett—“

As soon as the names were spoken, I stopped listening and floored the gas pedal, weaving in and out of the traffic on the ten freeway. I knew there was something more with that fucking Allen kid than she had led on. Rage, worry, and sickness swirled around in the pit of my stomach, threatening to come exploding out, all over my truck. I forcefully pressed down on the window button, desperately needing fresh air to keep my disgust locked down.

I grabbed the phone and called Cassie again, but again, it went straight to voicemail. This time I left a message.

“What the fuck happened? I told you to fucking lay low. And why didn’t I know more about Allen? Don’t say shit to anyone. I’m coming to get you.”

I hung up and immediately dialed Newsome. He picked up on the second ring.

“Hey, man. Welcome back. How was the flight?”

“It was fine. What the fuck happened?” I was breathing hard and speaking so fast that I forgot to think, and thinking would have reminded me that Newsome was unaware of me and Cassie. I didn’t want to give myself away to anyone else. I took a deep breath, then spoke more rationally. “I mean, what’s going on? Was anyone hurt?”

“No. But I did hear what was said, and I acted on that shit. Allen even tried to stand up to me. I’m telling you, I was about ready to be pulled as an instructor because if that motherfucker had made one wrong move, I was about to deck his ass.”

“Why does First Sergeant want to see me?” My guilt was beginning to seep through my words again.

“I took it to Chief Instructor Gunny Chavez, who thought it warranted taking it to First Sergeant. He just said that as lead instructor for the class, he’d need to see you, to fill you in on what happened, and to brief you on what to do from here on out.”

I breathed a heavy sigh of relief, wiping away the newly formed sweat that coated my brow.

“Alright, man. Good to go.”

“Yep.”

I hung up. My heart was racing as I pressed down on the accelerator, propelling my truck through the mountain pass that would take me into the upper desert that led to the base. I tried calling Cassie again but couldn’t get a signal, making me drive even faster as the road twisted and turned all the way up to the top. When I finally reached the apex of the mountain, I called her again, this time finally getting her.

“Hey!”

“What the hell happened?”

She breathed hard, not answering my question.

“Cassie, what the fuck happened? And why didn’t you tell me about Allen when I asked?” My voice was a low, menacing grumble, scraping the bottom of the barrel on its way out.

“I—I didn’t think it was worth telling you. You’d just lose your shit.”

“You’re goddamned right I’d lose my shit!” I yelled, unable to contain the anger any longer. “That fucking idiot is missing a screw or two, Cassie. Now something happens with that dickhead, and I’m not there to take care of it. Newsome had to handle it, and since he knows nothing about us, he handled it according to protocol which involves higher ups.” I balled my fist and sent it slamming down onto the steering wheel. “FUCK! I hate being out of control, and you took it away from me.”

She sat silent on the phone, her soft breaths my only indication that she was still there.

“Did they pull you in for a statement?” I asked, trying to remove the anger and frustration and from my voice.

“Yes—“

“Who did you speak to? What did you tell them?” I interrupted, feeling more and more powerless with every answer she gave. I looked down at my speedometer, realizing I was nearing ninety miles per hour, and couldn’t give a fuck about slowing down.

“Newsome took it to Gunny Chavez who took it to First Sergeant O’Hara. He just asked me what happened, and I told him.”

“What did happen?”

“We got our orders read to us—“

“Wait, your orders were read? No one fucking told me the orders were ready.”

“Yes. We got them.”

A new level of irritation was setting in. I had no idea the orders were ready. Now I felt blindsided.

“Where are you going?”

“Eighth Comm.”

“In fucking North Carolina?”

“Yes.”

“This is bullshit!”

“Alex, that’s not the worst of it.”

Her words chilled my spine. Whatever was coming next was definitely something that I didn’t need to hear.

“Allen got sent there, too. That’s how all of this shit got started.”

My throat caught fire. It hurt to open my mouth. I couldn’t speak. My mind raged with thoughts of her having to PCS with this jackass, after everything that she had been through with him.

“Alex… Alex…”

“Yeah, I’m here,” I said, finally able to speak after a few deep sighs. ”I need to know exactly what that fucker said to you. Every spec of it.”

“He was pissed about his assignment, so when Dalton told me out in the courtyard that he had gotten Third L.A.R., Allen overheard it and flipped out.”

“What the fuck did he say, Cassie?”

“I don’t remember it word for word.”

“Try!”

She paused for a second before speaking. “He said something about being pissed that Dalton got a combat unit and he was being sent to Eighth Comm with a bunch of bitches.”

“Then what happened?”

“Then I told him he wasn’t good enough for infantry.”

“Why the fuck would you say something to him?”

“I couldn’t hold it in, Alex. He was inadvertently speaking to me when he said it, and after everything else—“

“You tell me right fucking now everything this dick has ever said to you. Since you were trying to protect his ass before.”

“I wasn’t protecting—“

“Yes, you were. I want to know right now what he’s been saying to you. And don’t gloss over and sugar coat shit. I. Need. To. Know. You understand that?”

She blew out a deep breath.

“When I first met him, he told me to blow him if he beat me in a video game. Then he told me I need to know my fucking place and that females didn’t belong in the Corps. It’s always something sexist and misogynistic. Today he told me he would stick his dick down my throat to shut my mouth, or something like that. That’s when Newsome stopped him.”

My heart sank. The shit he had been saying to her was more than sexual harassment, it was a fucking death wish. My frustration only grew as I listened to it because had I known that this shit was going on from the very beginning, I would have put a stop to it then. Instead, his attacks seemed to have only escalated, and now it was out of my fucking hands. I wanted to puke at the image of this asshole trying to do anything to her. I’d put that motherfucker six feet under before I ever let that happen.

“I’m gonna fucking kill him.”

“No, you aren’t. It’s not that serious. They’re just words.”

“That’s fucking easy for you to say, Cassie. I’m trying to erase visual images of that motherfucker trying to ram his dick down your throat, and it’s ripping me apart. I’m telling you, once I get that asshole alone, I’m going to make sure he can’t open his mouth to say another motherfucking word.”

“Alex—“

“And you. You need to listen to me. You don’t talk about it, with anyone—not even fucking Dalton. You understand that?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“No, Cassie. You don’t talk about it. I don’t want anyone overhearing anything you say and blowing it up any bigger than what it already is. I’m going to handle this shit and move it along as quickly and quietly as possible. Act like it never happened, you understand me?”

“Yes. Geez, I understand you.”

“I’ll be home in about ten minutes. Then I’m sending for you.”

“Do you think—“

“Be ready. Talk to you soon. Bye”

I hung up, my fists feeling like weights had been placed inside of them. I knew the second I got the chance, Allen was going to be a dead man.

I couldn’t wait to get face to face with him, and make that fantasy a reality.

Storming through the front door, I stomped into the house, back to my bedroom and threw my bags down on the floor, then promptly shut the door and walked back to the front. Riley was up and off the couch, looking curiously at me.

“Welcome home, man. What’s got you in such a huff?”

“You don’t fucking know?”

He walked closer. “No. What happened?”

“Fucking Newsome filed a sexual harassment claim against Allen today because of some shit he said to Cassie.”

“Oh, fuck.”

“Yeah, my thoughts exactly. I’m going to fucking smash that motherfucker’s throat in. He won’t be able to say anymore shit like that to her.”

“Like what? What did he say?”

I stood, eyes closed, fists tightly clenched, trying to contain my brewing anger.

I opened my eyes and unclenched my fists. “I can’t even say it all, man, but he threatened to shove his dick down her throat. I’ll cut that shit off before I let him do anything to her.”

Riley walked over to me and patted my shoulder, leaving his hand resting there and trying to calm me down, but it really wasn’t working. He was only adding to my growing frustration because the longer he held me up, the longer it was taking me to get to Allen and beat him until he was unrecognizable.

“You’re not leaving the house right now, Alex.”

I shoved his hand off of me, stepping away before I took out my aggression on him.

“Fuck off, Riley.”

“No. You need to calm the fuck down. I’m sure they’ve got his ass on some sort of watched restriction right now. You go up there, and you’ll blow the whole fucking lid off of you and Cassie. No one knows right now, but you go defending her honor, and the whole goddamned schoolhouse is going to know about it. Think, man.”

He poked me forcefully in the head, pissing me off, but his words were much too rational and made me stop and think for second. He was right. If I went storming up there, way after the fact, it would definitely rouse suspicion. I hated how right he was. That alone made me want to punch him.

I turned and walked into the kitchen, grabbing a water and drinking it down in one long gulp before throwing the bottle at the wall, watching it fall to the ground.

“I’m only looking out for you and Cassie, man.”

“There won’t be a me and Cassie, dude. She got orders to fucking Lejeune. As of next week, she’ll be on a fucking plane to the east coast, and I’ll be stuck here, wallowing in this cesspool.”

He walked into the kitchen, disbelief spread across his face.

“What the fuck are you saying? You’ve gone through all of this—the hiding, the lying, the secrets—to just throw it all away because she got orders to another base? What is wrong with you?”

“Don’t fucking start—“

“No. You need to listen. You’ve changed for this girl.” He walked closer to me, stopping just in front of me. “You fucking love her, and I’ll be damned if I stand by and watch you let her walk away because you aren’t going to be near each other. Wake the fuck up,” he said, poking me in the chest.

“Back the fuck up, Riley.”

“Punch me, Alex. Do whatever you have to do to get the stupidity out of your fucking system. But walking away from Cassie, that’s not happening. You’ve sucked me into this, and I’m not putting my fucking career on the line to watch you throw it all away.”

I wanted to give him what he wanted. I wanted to punch him, but I wanted to punch myself even more. I didn’t know what to think, and everything that I did think was wrong. I knew there was no way that I wanted to not have Cassie in my life, but thoughts of her being on the opposite end of the country made me sick with worry. I’d already fucked up on her, and even though it was an admitted mistake, I couldn’t shake the idea that the distance would taint her mind and leave her with no choice but to want to end things with me. I turned away from him and grabbed a shot glass from the cupboard and the bottle of Jack.

“Grab me one, too,” Riley said, stepping over to me.

I grabbed a second glass and let him open the whiskey, pour the glasses full, then hand me my glass. I threw it back and slammed the glass down on the counter, wincing at the sting as it traveled down my throat.

“You need another?” Riley asked, holding the bottle up. “I’ll drink all night with you if this is what you need to bring some sanity back to your mind.”

“I’m good, man,” I lowly answered, now feeling like my head was swirling from the sudden heat filling my body, along with the stress and anxiety of everything that I had been told today. “I need to call Cassie and let her know to just chill for the night.”

I turned and walked out of the kitchen, shutting my door behind me once I got into my room. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do to beat the shit out of Allen and be able to keep her here with me. I was losing control. This situation came to mind before, and we’d even discussed it, but the reality of her being sent off hurt much more than the prospect of it. I wasn’t sure how I would come to grips with the impending separation.

I called her, needing to hear her voice one more time before I forced myself to sleep.

“Hey,” she said, sounding very sweet, exactly what I needed at the moment.

“Hey. I needed to hear your voice, and I’m sorry for going crazy on you earlier.”

“Don’t worry about it. I figured you were just upset.”

“Yeah, but I should have channeled that shit. Anyway, Riley talked some sense into me. I’m not going up there. In fact, we both need to lay low for a bit and let all of this blow over.”

“I agree.”

“I’ll be up there early to see First Sergeant O’Hara. If they haven’t already removed him from the class, I’m going to have it done.”

“Alex, don’t make it any bigger than what it needs to be. We have a few more instructional days and then we graduate. I’m good.”

“Well, somebody is getting their orders changed. If they don’t get rid of his sorry ass, I’m not letting you PCS with him.”

“Well, we’ll see what happens. I’m honestly over it. I just want to move on.”

“I’ll let you know what happens. How is your crazy ass roommate? You’ve got me all sorts of worried about you.”

“She’s fine. We avoid each other, and it works.”

“Good. Well, I’ll let you get some sleep. I need some before I show up ready to break somebody in half tomorrow.”

She laughed. Finally. Her laugh was a remedy for all sorts of ailments, and right now, I needed a hefty dose of it.

“Good night.”

“Good night.”

I hung up the phone and lay there, staring at the ceiling and wondering how I would keep myself under control when I finally did get the chance to look Allen in the eye. Sleep didn’t come easily, so I took a long shower, jacking off to release the rest of the stress that was still piled up inside of me, then finally laid down—ass naked, on top of the bedspread and under a ferociously spinning ceiling fan. I needed any and everything to cool me down.

First thing in the morning, before the stars had even hidden themselves away, I got up and went for a long run, hoping the still looming tension from the night before would dissipate before heading in to work. After four miles, it was still there, still loading me down. I jogged back home and immediately showered, trying to think of pleasant thoughts where Cassie was concerned, to keep the tension from growing. I hummed Fall For You while I washed myself off, remembering the beautiful smile on her face as I strummed the guitar on the beach, and she lowly hummed along. Those were the moments I want to think about, not this bullshit festering between her and Allen.

I knocked on Riley’s door, calling out, “See ya later, man,” before walking for the front door. He came darting out of his room, wearing just his boxers. “I don’t need to see your shit first thing in the morning, Riley. I have enough traumatizing shit going on in my head right now.”

“Fuck off,” he joked, the goofy, awkward Riley back. “I just wanted to make sure you remembered what I said last night.”

“I remember, man. I’m going in to see First Sergeant O’Hara.”

“Alright. Don’t do anything stupid, Alex.”

I flipped him off and turned for the door, leaving with his words replaying over and over in my head.

Standing in front of First Sergeant’s door, I contemplated the different ways that I wanted to approach this issue. I couldn’t give anything away that this was a personal matter for me, but I also didn’t want this shit swept under the rug. I needed to make sure that Allen got what he deserved, and at this point in time, it would be better coming from the higher ups than it would be coming from me. I knocked on the door, turning the knob and removing my cover before stepping in after hearing O’Hara tell me to come in.

“Good morning, First Sergeant.”

He stood and walked over to shake my hand. “Morning, Sergeant, Cruz. Sorry to have to bring you in so early to deal with this shit. Students, you just never what you’re going to get.” He laughed, and I tried hard to join him, but I couldn’t force more than a tight chuckle out.

“Anyway, Sgt. Newsome came and reported an incident of sexual harassment between two of your students. And I know you were TAD during all of this, but as the lead instructor, I need to get your input.”

I nodded my head, well aware of what had happened, and wanting to hurry up and get to what we were going to do about Allen.

“Private Allen and Private First Class Bennett were apparently given orders to the same duty station. He expressed his dismay about it, to which she countered, and that’s when the inappropriate sexual comment took place. Now, I asked Newsome for his records, his PFT scores, his test scores, and I see a fine young Marine who lost his mind for half a second. When I spoke to him, he was remorseful and apologized profusely. I saw no reason to end this young man’s budding career because he spoke before he thought.”

“First Sergeant—“

“So, Sgt. Cruz, as their instructor, I have to ask, have you seen anything in class that you believe I need to know about before sitting down with Sgt. Major Thomas.”

“Actually, First Sergeant, Private Allen was involved in a physical altercation in the barracks one night, and I saw something very recently.”

“Yes. That incident. What else have you seen?”

His lackadaisical response to the altercation had my blood boiling.

“I had the students pair up to work on radio systems, and Private Allen called for Pfc. Bennett to be his partner. The look she gave was—“ I stopped and ran my hand over my face. “It was more than not wanting to work with him. It almost looked like fear.”

“Did you ask her about it?”

“I did. She was a bit hesitant to tell me what was going on. She just said it was an argument they’d had, but I couldn’t get any more out of her.”

He sat back in his seat, his arms folded across his chest as he exhaled harshly from his nose.

“Listen to me, Cruz. The Marine Corps is knee deep in sexual harassment training, and we have a goddamned zero tolerance policy. I won’t have this shit going on in my company. I am going to scrape the bottom on this swamp and find out exactly what the hell is going on here. So for today, Private Allen remains in your class. You are to keep him and Pfc. Bennett apart. Do you understand that?”

“Yes, First Sergeant.”

“Good to go.”

I turned for the door, affixing my cover to my head before striding out of his office, down the hall, and around the corner to mine. When I got inside, I quickly took out my phone and texted Cassie, forewarning her that she would more than likely be called in to speak again.

Me: Just a quick FYI, First Sergeant O’Hara will probably be calling you in again. Tell him exactly what you told me and nothing more.

Me: Oh, and good morning, Blondie.

I didn’t get a reply right away. I sat my phone down on the desk and placed my head in my hands, wishing that none of this shit had happened and that it would hopefully blow over quickly. The door squealed. I looked up, and my eyes met with Jensen’s—cold and empty. He walked further in, sitting down at his desk and not bothering to say a word to me. The longer I allowed the silence to fester, the more agitated I grew, so I finally stood, walking over to where he sat and said what was on my mind.

“I need to know why you like Allen so much.”

He looked up at me. “Why don’t you like him? He’s just like you and me, Alex. He’s young and motivated. He wants to do well, and he loves the Corps. That was us when we were in his shoes.”

“I was never like Allen,” I snarled, taking offense to the comparison.

“Sure you were. You just can’t see it now because you have your dick stuck up inside of his competition.”

He was taunting me, and if everything that had happened recently wasn’t stirring such a shit storm, I probably would have decked him.

“I just know you better not be trying any underhanded shit where Pfc. Bennett is concerned. You don’t like what I’m doing, that’s your fucking problem. But she is off limits.”

“I wouldn’t stoop that low, Alex. I’m not you.” He grabbed something from his desk drawer then stood and stalked over to the door, turning around to look at me with his hand on the door knob. “Be honest with yourself. If you weren’t fucking Allen’s target, none of this would be that big of a deal.”

“Fuck you,” I growled, feeling self-control slowly slip away from me. My phone buzzed on the desk, and I reached over to retrieve it.

“Your girl?” he asked, smirking as stood there staring at me. “You go ahead and take care of that while I get shit ready for our students who need their instructors to prepare them for their final exams.”

He turned and walked out of the office, leaving me there to fester in my own shit. A tiny part of me felt like he was right; that at some point, I probably was Allen. I was young and motivated, only I hadn’t preyed on females the way he did.

Or had I?

Was my way the same thing, just done in a different manner? I hated my guilty conscience because it made me re-evaluate myself. It made me look in the mirror and stare at my glaring flaws. It made me see how far I had strayed.

I stared down at the text from Cassie, finally allowing a smile to creep across my face.

Cassie: I’m ready. And good morning to you too, Sgt.

I put my phone away, hoping that what Cassie would have to tell First Sergeant would remove our Allen problem once and for all. Like him or not, the fact of the matter was that he was threatening and harassing Cassie, and whether Jensen liked it or not, I would break his fucking fingers one at a time to make sure she was protected.

I sat and thought, long and hard, about everything—Allen, Cassie, Ruiz, Castillo, Jensen, Riley. Good and bad was coming from all directions, intertwining all of us in one big, mangled mess. Friendships had grown while others had been severed. My heart grew and my mindset flipped. Through it all, I couldn’t find the desire to regret any of it. It all made me think, but not enough to feel remorseful.

Cassie Bennett had come into my life for a reason. And Camp Lejeune or not, I wasn’t about to let her go so easily.

Chapter 30

Cassie

I went to class just like any other day.

Shock hit me as I stood in formation and saw Allen standing there. Were they not going to do anything about him? I’d been warned when I mentioned joining the Marine Corps that it was a boys club. If Allen got away with what he’d said to me, then I knew it to be true.

We walked into the classroom. Alex looking stellar and enticing as he always did. Jensen and Newsome updated us on our standings for the challenge, and to my surprise, the partner radio systems activity was factored in to our scores. I was still sitting in first place, but Allen had made up ground, and was trailing behind in a close second. I noticed the instructors making a concerted effort to keep us as far away from one another as possible. Even though I didn’t sit near him, they moved him even farther away, making sure that it would take an effort on our parts to get to each other, and even then, Alex would not allow that to happen.

I spent lunch with Dalton, Lane, and Hutchins. Both of them had received orders to Camp Pendleton, just different units. They were excited since they were now an unofficial couple. It was nice to see them so happy.

After lunch, Newsome escorted me down to First Sergeant O’Hara’s office. My stomach knotted up, even though I was well aware that I was in the right and had nothing to hide. Well, as far as the Allen situation was concerned. In other areas in my life I had plenty to hide, and it was always on the forefront of my mind.

Newsome walked with me, making awkward small talk, but really not having much to say. Just as we approached First Sergeant’s door, he turned to me and said, “You just need to tell him exactly what’s been going on. Don’t hide anything if you want your problem fixed. You understand that?”

“Yes, Sergeant,” I replied, feeling the weight of his words. I had more problems than he knew about, and even though he wasn’t referring to my other problem, my guilty conscience was playing tricks on me.

He knocked on the door, listened for the okay from First Sergeant O’Hara, then opened the door and led me in. I removed my cover from my head and nervously held it in my hands, feeling overly intimidated by the bull of a man that was First Sergeant O’Hara.

“Private First Class Bennett is here, First Sergeant.”

“Thank you, Sergeant Newsome. That’ll be all.”

Newsome nodded his head and walked out, leaving the door partially open. First Sergeant O’Hara signaled for me to take a seat.

“How are you this afternoon, Pfc. Bennett?”

“I’m doing well, First Sergeant.”

He sat up in his chair, his stocky frame filling the seat. His dark, beady eyes stared down on me as his face went tight. My stomach clenched, twisting and aching the longer I sat in his presence.

“I spoke to your lead instructor, Sergeant Cruz, and he seems to think there is more to the sexual harassment claims that transpired yesterday. You do understand that the Marine Corps is pushing hard to eradicate sexual harassment from our ranks, and while we cannot scrape it all away, we are taking claims very seriously, and will handle such occurrences with an iron fist.”

He sat up in his seat even more, those dark eyes growing more and more threatening by the second. His arms rested on the desk, his hands intertwined with one another as he stared into my soul.

“We also take false accusations very seriously. I will not destroy a career without due diligence. So what I am about to ask you, you need to think long and hard about your answers. Do you understand me?” His voice was low and gruff, almost accusing.

“Yes, First Sergeant,” I said, putting on a show of confidence so as not to allow him the pleasure of knowing that his intimidating techniques were working on me. I had nothing to lie about, but he made it seem as if he could will a lie out of me.

“Alright then. How did you first come in contact with Private Allen?”

I cleared my throat, readying myself to dig through the filth that he had been shoveling my way from the very beginning.

“It turns out he is in my class, but I learned who he was after our first day of class. Another Pfc. in the barracks had some people over for a video game match and pizza, and I met Private Allen there.”

“Was it a friendly meeting?”

“No. He had apparently been drinking, and he was intoxicated. I went against him in Mortal Kombat, and he wagered me. He said if he won, I could blow him, and if I won, I could still blow him.”

His eyebrows shot up.

“And then what happened?”

“I told him I wasn’t interested. I went on to play him, and I beat him. He became irate, yelling obscenities until some of the guys had to restrain him.”

“Who are the names of these guys? I will need to speak to them.”

I gave him the names of Dalton, Pete, and a few others who were there that night. They would definitely be able to verify my story and hopefully get Allen away from me for good.

“Anymore instances that you can think of?”

“Yes. He’s told me that I must be a lesbian if I didn’t want him. He’s told me I needed to be taught how to be a lady, and that he’d put me in my place. Then recently, he told me he’d shove his--“ I stopped, feeling embarrassed to say the word in front of First Sergeant O’Hara. He nodded, signaling that he understood. “His private down my throat to shut my mouth.”

He face softened a bit, and his eyes briefly closed as he scratched the back of his neck and sat back in his seat. I watched him take a pen and notepad from his desk and start writing down names of people I had given him. He seemed to believe me, which made me feel so much better than when I had first stepped into his office.

“Are there any more people I should be speaking to?” he asked, his head still down, writing.

“Yes, a few of his friends that are always around when he says these things.”

“I’ll need their names as well.”

I gave him the names of a couple of guys who I knew ran in Allen’s circle. I couldn’t remember them all, but the ones I did give him, I was sure they would talk. They didn’t seem loyal. Just seemed like a couple of followers who found humor in the antics of a supreme asshole. When First Sergeant O’Hara was finished writing, he placed his pen down on his notepad and looked up to me.

“We will be digging further into these claims. In the meantime, you are to have no contact, whatsoever, with Private Allen. Do you understand me?”

“Yes, First Sergeant.”

“Good to go.”

He stood, and I followed. I walked to the door, blowing out a heavy and deep breath that had filled me the entire time I sat in the chair. My conscience felt lighter, knowing that I was finally able to get all of my irritation for Allen out in the open. I went walking down the hallway when my phone buzzed. I pulled it out to find a text from Alex.

Alex: How did it go? Damn this, I hate being away from you. I want to see you.

Me: It went okay. I want to see you, too. But we do need to lay low. They are digging through everything.

Alex: I want to dig through something… My tongue is more than willing.

Me: Perv. I will call you later.

It was hard being so close to Alex, but unable to be with him, especially after everything that we had been through together. I felt like time was slipping away from us. In a very short amount of time, I’d be packed, orders in hand, and on an airplane, taking me three thousand miles away from him.

It was gut wrenching to even think about it.

My heart felt like it shattered into a million pieces every time I thought about being without him. And although the prospect had been discussed, it didn’t take the sting out of it. Even if I had been given orders to Camp Pendleton, weekend trips would have erased the distance that separated us. But with me being on the opposite coast, I’d have to settle for once a month flights, and pray that time would even allow for that to happen.

I went to bed that night with it on my mind, and even when I talked to Alex later that evening, sitting on the cement barricade framing the parking lot, it didn’t make things any easier. Alex, for as strong as he was trying to be, was anything but. It was bothering him just as much as it was bothering me. We’d had—or at least I’d had—no intention of ever falling this far when I took the bait and jumped in head first for him. I thought this was hot, casual sex at its finest. I’d never thought that we’d get to where we stood, and be faced with such a depressing situation. The more we talked about it, the more I wished time would just stand still, and I could stay in this hot, barren, good for nothing desert. It didn’t have much going for it, but it had Alex, and that was enough for me.

When I woke up the next morning, I found a text from Alex stating that the investigation into Allen was moving along quickly. First Sergeant O’Hara decided to give Allen an NJP—non-judicial punishment—and was pushing for an expedited administrative discharge. I couldn’t recall ever experiencing such early morning jubilation that didn’t involve Alex and his body mingling with mine.  The news was quick and unexpected. My initial reaction to First Sergeant O’Hara was that he wasn’t taking any of this too seriously, but to get confirmation that it was handled swiftly and forcefully made me happy.

I walked down to the schoolhouse with Dalton, gleefully explaining to him what went down and that Allen would no longer be a threat to me. He commented, letting me know that First Sergeant grilled him, wanting to know everything, and was trying to see if any of the encounters were made up on my behalf.

Newsome, Alex, and Jensen stood before us in the classroom, going through their spiel about how proud of us they were, and how we’d make fine fleet Marines once we made it to our destinations. Alex gave subliminal messages, saying he’d miss seeing some of us around the schoolhouse, but that he knew our new units were gaining great, new additions. His words tugged at my heart at another reminder that we would be split apart. A part of me wanted to cry because the thought and the reality of it was just too much. Another part of me wanted to see as it yet another challenge in my life that I would have to work extra hard to overcome.

No matter which way it was sliced, the fact that I would be in North Carolina by this time next week was a hard pill to swallow, and I didn’t want to spend another second thinking about it.

Newsome took over the speech, standing with a clipboard in his hands.

“So without further ado, the winner of the seventy-two challenge—and it came down to the wire—is Pfc. Bennett.”

The class broke out in applause, with even a few “oorahs” thrown in for good measure. I nervously smiled, looking around the room. Even Angelica was clapping for me. When my eyes landed on Alex’s, salacious smirks were thrown back at me, making me blush and sweat under the intensity of his stare. I found myself tingling in between my legs because I knew the hidden message in his golden flecked eyes. If I didn’t turn away from it, I would need to make a swift exit for the nearest restroom.

“Pfc. Bennett, enjoy having Monday off,” Newsome said, nodding his head and then giving the floor to Alex.

“Your last order of business before you graduate is to pass the final exam. Today, we will cover the last bit of material, and then you will work in study groups, quizzing one another on everything you can think of. If you fail it, you will be recycled. You will have to take the course again, and you’ll be stuck here in Twentynine. For those of you leaving, I’m not so sure if you want to do that.”

His eyes landed on me as he spoke, making my insides swirl. I was on a double edged sword. Staying in Twentynine, while it would mean not being separated from Alex, would be detrimental for my career. I had to remember that, above all else, my career needed to come first.

The morning was filled with instruction, then splitting up into our study teams of four. It seemed that since I had been announced as the winner, everyone wanted to work with me. To my shock, Angelica even came my way, but I bypassed her. There was no way I was about to work with her when she had done nothing but try and make my life a living nightmare since we’d arrived here.

By the time lunch rolled around, I was absolutely starving. I walked out into the courtyard to meet up with Dalton, Lane, and Hutchins, when I got a buzz on my phone.

Alex: Jensen is out with Gunny Chavez for the lunch hour and the rest of the guys left too. Come to my office NOW. I need to EAT!

I knew exactly what that meant. And the heat of my body and the flush of my skin told Dalton exactly what it was as well.

“I have to go and take care of something, guys. I’ll see you all later.”

Dalton smiled and patted my shoulder.

“Enjoy!” he said, smirking at me and making me blush with embarrassment. He knew exactly where I was headed, and even though he’d known about Alex and me for quite some time, I still couldn’t erase the guilt behind it. I smiled anyway, then turned in the opposite direction and walked off before Lane or Hutchins could pick up on anything.

I looked around before knocking on Alex’s office door, then turned the knob and found him sitting at his desk, waiting for me. He stood and walked over, closing and locking the door behind him. When he turned around, he didn’t even say anything. Instead, he took my face in his hands and planted the deepest, most passion-filled kiss on my lips. I allowed him in, and he took advantage, dominating me with his powerful, and commanding tongue. I wrapped my arms around his neck, slightly tilting my head to the side as I attempted to gain some ground on him. He was hungry, indeed, but it wasn’t food he was after—it was me.

We pulled away, breathing hard and lusting after one another. He wiped his lips and pulled me over to his desk. I sat in between his legs, facing him as those sensual golden eyes flared out at me, drawing me even further into him.

“I’m so pissed you’re leaving me,” he said in a low whisper, my heart ached at the longing look encasing his face.

I didn’t want to go, but we both knew that this would be a very real possibility.

“I know. I wish I were staying here. They could have given Angelica my orders and given me hers.”

“Just our fucking luck, right?”

I nodded my head then focused on the black box that he pulled out of his pocket. My eyes narrowed as I pondered exactly what he had in there, and what he was planning to do with it.

“Our beach trip was so fucking eye opening for me. I knew that there was so much about you that I loved, but hearing about what brought you here—what brought you to me—I knew I needed to do something to always have a piece of me with you.”

“You already did that, Alex. I have your dog tags. They mean more to me than anything else in the world.”

“Well this can be a close second. Because I saw it and instantly thought of you.”

He opened the box and a silver necklace lay inside with a small, sparkling butterfly dangling from the end. No amount of willpower could stop the tears that immediately coated my eyes and fell down my cheeks. The butterfly was my symbol, my way of expressing freedom, and here was Alex, recognizing it in the most meaningful way.

He turned me around and placed it around my neck, clasping the ends in the back, then running his hand over my shoulder and down my chest, stopping on the butterfly. He moved closer, his lips on my neck as his other hand held firmly to my waist.

“I’m going to miss the hell out of you. But like the butterfly, you are free to go wherever you choose, so make sure you make your way back to me, or I’ll have to play catcher and go after you.”

I giggled. Tears fell down my face in slow trickles. I needed to look at him, to see the face of the one person who had made me feel whole again. I turned around and watched sadness float through his eyes. I kissed him long and hard, pressing him down on the desk and climbing on top of him. It was hard, and it kind of hurt—I knew that from experience—but it was all we had and I wasn’t about to waste a second not enjoying him.

“I want you, Alex. All of you.”

“You’ve got me, Blondie.”

“Then take me. Take me right now. I don’t want to lose another second with you.”

A spark went off in his eyes and he sat up, removing my blouse, my t-shirt underneath, then my bra. He nuzzled his face in my breasts as I held on to the back of his head. I could feel his erection, jabbing through his pants, longing to be set free, to snake its way into me and leave me breathless.

“I want you.”

I leaned back and unbuttoned his blouse, helping him out of it, then pulled his t-shirt over his head. His hardened and sculpted chest sat before me, and my hands glided down to it, stopping on his pectorals and squeezing as he unfastened my belt and unbuttoned my pants. An ache settled between my legs, desperately longing for his attention in just the right spot. My hands slid down to his pants, where I did the same to him as I leaned in and kissed him passionately. Every ounce of our touch hit me, like a powerful wave crashing on the shore. My heart ached with the thought of having to leave him, and I wanted—no, needed—all of him that I could get.

He stood us up, holding me by my ass as he turned us around and now lay me down on the desk. He pushed his pants and boxers down, his large, thick, cock standing at attention as he gently pulled my pants and panties down, smiling at the sight.

“I’ll say it again. I don’t know how I got so fucking lucky.”

“Ditto,” I replied, then motioned with my index finger for him to come down to me.

He hovered above me, his erection sitting at my entrance, deepening the ache that lay beating away at me.

“I don’t have a condom with me.”

I swallowed as I shut my eyes, the pain from his absence beginning to own me.

“I don’t care. I need you—now!”

He lightly closed his eyes and sunk into me, blowing out a long, deep breath as he did so.

“You’re even more fucking amazing with nothing on.”

He began to move, slow, in and out movements as my walls clung tightly to his cock. The absence of the condom intensified the sensual feel of him, sending me into a euphoric state of bliss. It didn’t matter that we were fucking on a desk, hidden behind a locked door, shrouded in secrecy. To me, it was perfect. It was everything I had ever wanted—me, Alex, no inhibitions, and our true souls locking on to one another and holding on for dear life.

He continued at the slow, leisurely pace, one of his arms wrapped around my neck as his other steadied on my backside. I wanted so badly to look up into his eyes. The feel of him was overpowering me, shutting my eyes against my will, and sending me to a faraway land—a place where we were free to have one another in the open, any and everywhere that we saw fit.

“As deep into you as I am right now, it will never be enough for me,” he whispered as he began to circulate his hips.

The touch of his skin on mine, warm and damp, drew me in even further. I latched on to him, my hands holding on to his back like my life depended on it as he slightly picked up the pace, alternating between the circular, and in and out movements. He was hitting my spot, causing small whimpers to come pouring out of me. He moved harder and harder, turning my whimpers into moans that were no longer for our ears only. He removed his arm from around my neck, placing his hand over my mouth and whispering, “Bite down if you have to.”

I did because the more he moved in and out of me, the stronger the sensations grew, ricocheting off my walls, leaving me in a daze. Alex tried hard to stifle his grunts, but was failing to do so. I took one of my hands and placed it over his mouth, only he didn’t bite down, he kissed and sucked it as he continued his onslaught.

“I want you to come,” he mumbled, my hand still over his lips.

I nodded, even though my bite had strengthened on the side of his index finger. He pounded into me, breaking me down further and further until I could no longer feel my legs and I came, the orgasm ripping through me like claws on a sheet. Alex came at that very moment, still inside of me and releasing, the spurts of him, intermingling with me, solidifying that what we had was something real, and the emotional toll of it sent tears careening down my cheeks.

Alex sat up, looking down on me, wiping away my tears.

“I love you, Cassie Bennett,” he said, his voice low and soft. “I’m pretty sure I loved you even before I truly realized it.”

I sniffled and closed my eyes, trying to keep anymore tears from spilling out.

“I love you, too, Alex Cruz. And I knew it the moment I realized it.”

He leaned down and kissed me again, soft and sensual, making me feel like we had finally solidified our status and become one.

A knock rattled the door, startling us where we lay. My eyes shot open as fear coursed through me that we’d be caught, right here in the office, with our pants down. Another knock hit the door, then a voice came barreling through the wall.

“It’s me, man. Riley. Open up.”

My heart settled a bit, knowing it was someone who wasn’t going to send everything crashing down. Alex pulled his pants up, then hurried to the door, opening it slightly.

“Hey, hurry up and get out of there. Everyone is on their way back.”

“Why didn’t you call or text me, man?”

“I did. You didn’t answer.”

Alex stood still, then nodded his head and shut the door. I stood, snapping on my bra, then throwing my t-shirt on over my head. I tried smoothing down my loose hairs that had made their way out of my bun, but Alex walked over to me and took my hands, slowing me down.

“Stop rushing. We’ve got time.”

“I just don’t want to be found out like this.”

He smiled at me, seemingly enjoying my frantic state. He dropped down and took my panties in his hands, pulling them back up and tapping my ass just as he finished. He went back down and pulled up my pants, buttoning and fastening my belt for me. When he finished, he stood in front of me, his eyes resting on the butterfly hanging from my neck.

“It’s almost as beautiful as you are,” he said, taking it in his hands and kissing me, before tugging on the neckline of my t-shirt and dropping it inside. I placed my hand over it and smiled, then kissed him again, before turning and walking to the door.

“I love you,” I whispered over my shoulder, before slightly opening the door, looking around and then slipping out.

Before I could take three good steps, I heard a voice call out, “Pfc. Bennett.” My heart skipped a beat as I flushed red, lost control of my breathing, and slowly turned around, coming face to face with First Sergeant O’Hara. He briskly walked in my direction, his eyes curiously studying me, then glancing at the door that I was only a few steps away from.

“Good afternoon, First Sergeant,” I greeted him, hoping that my wild expression wouldn’t tip him off to anything. He continued to stare at me strangely, his eyes narrowing as he looked me over.

“Did you need something with one of the instructors?”

“Um—“ I swallowed, trying to quickly formulate a lie. I was never any good at thinking on my toes. “I needed to see Sergeant Jensen, but I see no one is in right now.”

“Hmmmm,” he moaned, his eyes never leaving mine. I was afraid to look away for fear that it would be a definite giveaway that something was up and that he would sniff around long enough to actually find it. “Well, I’d suggest you wait to speak to him until you get back into class. This could easily be misconstrued. And after everything you’ve already been through, we wouldn’t that, now would we?”

I swallowed again, my chest heaving as I stood there, swallowed up in all of my guilt, hoping and praying that First Sergeant couldn’t hear the erratic, bone breaking, beats of my heart. The longer he stood glaring at me, those dark, beady eyes penetrating my soul, the more I felt like this was it; all of the walls would come crashing down on top of me, leaving me begging for mercy as the truth came spilling out.

“Go on and enjoy some chow, Pfc. Bennett. Whatever this is, it can wait.” He eyed me suspiciously.

“Yes, First Sergeant,” I weakly answered, cracking my knuckles at my sides before turning and walking away as fast as my boot clad feet would carry me. I wanted to turn around, but I knew better. There was no doubt in my mind that First Sergeant O’Hara was watching me and that turning around would only solidify his suspicions. I walked on down the corridor and turned the corner. I threw my hands behind my head and took long, deep breaths, desperately needing fresh air to once again cycle through my pain ridden and suffocating lungs.

Thursday night field day went without a glitch. It was the last one we’d be subjected to here at the schoolhouse, and Alex didn’t stop by my room, making me wonder where he had gone. The next morning in class, he was quiet…cold… distant. I didn’t know what was bothering him. The day before had been so beautiful, so meaningful, and I wondered if it was all too much for him. If he was having a hard time dealing with the reality of what we were faced with.

He had been in the office when I had my run in with First Sergeant O’Hara, so I thought maybe that was too close for comfort and he needed to put distance between us. Whatever it was, it sent sadness and pain piercing through me, leaving me wondering what would actually become of us. I tried to forget about it as I took my final exam, well aware that passing this had to be my one and only concern at the moment.

The day ended with only a few empty glances here and there. When I looked deep enough, I could see sadness behind the dark cloud surrounding his eyes—that very sadness filling me. I didn’t want to leave on this note. I wanted to leave with us excited for the prospect that lay before us, but the longer I thought about it, the more I realized that it would probably not happen that way. I wanted to rewind, take things back to the very beginning and start all over. I wanted more time. I wanted anything I could get to bring me and Alex back together. More than anything, I wanted the love that we’d expressed to one another to trump everything.

And right now, I wasn’t so sure that it could.

Later that evening, I sat with Dalton in the barracks courtyard, quietly festering in my own self-pity as he went on and on about the excitement of his new unit. He stopped talking when he noticed that I wasn’t contributing to the conversation.

“Hey. What’s got you so down? Things are looking up for you. Allen is out of your hair, we’re graduating, and you’ve got the love of your life. Why are you so down?”

I smiled weakly. “I wish it were that simple. But Alex and I are in a complicated state right now. He’s been so distant since yesterday. It hurts.”

He pulled me in for a hug, wrapping his arm around my shoulder.

“I’m sure he’s hurting, too. He probably just doesn’t know how to handle it.”

“I don’t either. But I’m not backing away from him like he’s doing to me.”

“Don’t be so hard on him. He seems like a hard ass, and I think these feelings are new for him, so he doesn’t really know how to deal with them.”

“I guess,” I said, shrugging my shoulders.

“Hey, let’s go to the gym and play some basketball—get your mind off things for a bit.”

I contemplated saying no, but Dalton stood and grabbed my hand, yanking me up with him.

“Go get your shoes on and meet me in five minutes.”

I nodded, then took off for my room, looking into the duty room on my way by and finding Riley sitting inside. I stopped, backtracked, then knocked on the door.

“Pfc. Bennett,” he formally said, looking up from his Hot Rods magazine.

“Hi, Sergeant Riley.” No one was in the room with him, but I looked around anyway, before moving farther inside and asking my question. “Um—is Alex okay? He’s been a little off today.”

He sat his magazine down and straightened up in his chair.

“Alex is fine,” he replied. “He just needs a minute to adjust to everything. He’s hurting a little, that’s all.”

My heart fluttered at the confirmation. He wasn’t distancing himself from me for the sake of distancing himself. I smiled and thanked him, then headed up the stairs to put on my sneakers and play some ball with Dalton.

We played over an hour of basketball, one on one, then two on two with a couple of other students. I was decent at basketball, but Dalton was exceptional. I wondered why he hadn’t pursued it further since he obviously had talent, but he said it was just a hobby for him and nothing he wanted to devote his life to. I envied him because if I’d been blessed with that talent, I would have used it to my advantage.

The walk home was slow and quiet. The desert air was still warm, but the few gusts of wind here and there were welcomed, cooling down my sweat covered body from the hot and humid gym. When we reached the barracks, I looked inside the duty room again, seeing Riley sitting inside with his A-duty—a young, but built Private. He gave me a slight wave, putting a smile on my face. I loved how loyal he was to Alex, and in turn, how accepting he was of me.

“Hey, maybe tomorrow we can go swim or something,” Dalton said, holding on to my shoulder.

“Yeah, I’ll text you in the morning.”

I gave him a hug, then turned and jogged up the stairs. The music coming from inside my room was loud and thunderous, assaulting my ears the closer that I got. Angelica was in there, and it would be an almighty fight to try and get her to show a little consideration and turn it down now that I was home. I just figured I’d shower, then head off to grab a bite to eat and hopefully stay away from her until it was time for quiet hours.

I fiddled with my keys, my sweaty hands slipping as I tried to get a solid grip. When I finally did, I placed the key inside the hole, turned the knob and pushed the door open. Just my luck, Angelica was in the shower already, so I’d have to wait until she was done. I exhaled a breath of frustration and started to walk inside when a large, thick hand flew around my mouth, the accompanying body equally large and pressing hard up against me, sending me crashing down to the floor. I tried to scream, but it was in vain. My sounds were completely muffled by the hand covering my mouth.

Fear shot through every inch of me as the bulky physique pressed me down into the hard floor, pinning my arms underneath me. My wrists were firmly pressed onto the cold, tile floor, and the bone crushing weight of my assailant sent my bones fracturing, causing pain to ripple up and down my arms. The butterfly charm on the end of my necklace jabbed into me, sending sharp pains through my chest as I was reminded that Alex was nowhere around to protect me. My mind flittered to him, thinking about where he was and how he would react to what was happening to me at this very moment.

The big hand grabbed the back of my neck, bringing me back to my horrendously, painful present. It gripped and tore away at the necklace, then squeezed and pinched until throbbing pain shot up to my head and down my spine like a razor scraping away at my bones. I lay on the ground, kicking and trying to scream, growing physically exhausted by the second as a stiff erection poked into the back of me. He shifted, and I took my opportunity to try biting again, this time able to get a grip on his finger.

“Fuck!” he yelled out, briefly letting go.

I tried to move away, but my exhaustion didn’t allow for sudden movements and he caught on to me, one hand pulling me back by my hair and the other once again over my mouth. My head ached with fierce agony as he gripped my hair so tight that I thought I could feel the hair follicles pulling out of my scalp. A sudden and intense burn hit my head, sending tears streaking down my face. He pressed my face down onto the hard floor, and my nose smashed against it, making it difficult to breathe.

I began to choke, muffled coughs leaving my body as the hand grabbed tightly onto my shorts, trying desperately to pull them down. I squeezed my cheeks tightly together, trying to keep my shorts up since there was no doubt in my mind what was coming next. If I could fight him off, and get some help, I could save myself the humiliation of being penetrated in the most violent and invasive of ways.

He moved up my body a tad bit more, resting that big, hard erection just below my ass. I continued squeezing, prompting him to squeeze my neck, putting added and agonizing pressure on my pressure points, causing me to flit in and out of consciousness.  My couple of seconds of weakness gave my attacker just the right amount of time he needed. He moved one leg in between mine, now prying my legs open. He forcefully took hold of my shorts, the seam rubbing so harshly up against my waist that the friction of the material violently rubbed up against my skin, sending an incinerating burn wrapping around my hips, scalding and tormenting me with every tug he made. He laughed, a deep, haunting laugh as he tugged and yanked furiously, tearing the waistband of my shorts, and yanking them down and over my ass.

The warm air from just outside the door caressed my skin, now exposed as he jabbed his fingers under my thong and easily tore through it, leaving me ripe and bare for him. Tears pricked my eyes, and I found the strength to scream out, making a bit more of a sound, but still stifled by the hand holding firmly over me.

“You’ve fucking ruined everything for me, you bitch. I told you I’d make you pay,” the voice hissed.

My eyes shot open as I realized it was Allen. I began kicking with all of my might, hoping and praying that I would land even one and get him to loosen his grip on me. It was of no use. He was much too large, much too strong. I lay underneath him, uncovered from the waist down, crying as he held tightly to my mouth. I tried biting at him again, but I couldn’t get a grip.

He lowered his shorts and slid his erection along the crack of my ass, whispering, “Consider this my fucking parting gift.” I tried turning my head, hoping that I would get him to somewhat loosen up on my mouth, but he only grew more agitated, slamming my head down onto the floor below. I was met with a shattering thud as my head hit the tile, full force, with obscene amounts of hatred behind it. My flailing ceased as I lost the ability to think straight. My body was hurting, burning, and exhausted. I couldn’t think of anything else to do.

I tried closing my legs again, but his large frame lay there, making it physically impossible for me to do so. He took his free hand that wasn’t constricting my air flow, and skimmed my waist, running his fingers down my ass cheek then stopping at my entrance, rubbing the lips of my core. I didn’t want this to happen. I didn’t want him invading the most intimate part of my body and turning it into something horrid and dirty. I tried again and again to bite his hand, but he moved it just a step ahead of me every time, leaving me no angle to latch on to his flesh. He rammed two large and heavy fingers into me, sending a pulsing pain filtering through my core. I screamed, gathering every ounce of energy left in me and went for broke. The roar of Angelica’s music made my screams fall on deaf ears as nothing and no one could hear me over the loud, throbbing bass exiting the speakers.

Allen was intent on hurting me, and I was desperate, desperate to keep him from escalating and going to the next level. He would take my soul if he accomplished that feat.

My body went numb as I came to grips with the reality that Allen would get his revenge on me, and there was nothing that I could do about it.

Chapter 31

Alex

Friday night with no one home was boring the piss out of me.

Riley was stuck on duty and Cassie...well, after everything we’d been through, I just needed a minute to sort through my own convoluted head. I didn’t want to be without her, but being with her was killing me just as badly because it was like a tease, knowing that within a few days she’d be gone. I knew that not spending time with her was stupid as fuck, but I couldn’t shake the hurt.

I also couldn’t face it.

I’d promised Riley that I would bring him some food and a few other things to help him get through the night. After I sorted through my bullshit, I showered, then headed back to base, stopping at the mini mart and grabbing him some Red Bull, snacks, magazines, and a couple of sub sandwiches. He probably wouldn’t eat half of this shit, but it would be good to have some choices. Twenty-four hour duties got long and tedious, especially in the wee hours of the night.

When I pulled up to the barracks, I could hear the bass of music coming from one of the rooms. Fucking Riley. Why he was allowing that shit I had no clue, but it was his duty night, so if he wanted it, then I guess the students could have it. When I walked into the duty room, he was sitting there, magazine in hand, fully engulfed in whatever he was reading. I sat the bag down on his desk, sliding it in front of him to catch his attention.

“Hey, man. Fuck, I didn’t even know you were here,” he said, partially startled.

I laughed at him, finally getting a glimpse at his Hot Rods magazine.

“Yeah. You’re in such a fucking trance with that magazine that you can’t even hear the club happening upstairs.”

“Oh, I heard that shit. I just sent my firewatch up there to tell whoever that is to turn it down.”

“Yeah, I was thinking you were being all extra lenient and shit.” He gave me a questioning glance which I laughed at even more. “Anyway, here is enough shit to get you through the night. There’s enough Red Bull to replace the blood in your veins, some snacks, more magazines that you obviously don’t need, and a couple of sandwiches. Enjoy!”

He rummaged through the bag and smiled as he pulled out a Red Bull. He popped open the top, taking a long swig.

“Thanks for this. I hate fucking duty.”

“You and me both, brother.”

Riley started going on and on about needing a break as soon as this class graduated, wanting to take a boating trip to Laughlin, when the frantic voice of the firewatch came blasting through the radio. We were deep in conversation when it started, and Riley picked up the radio, shushing me, holding it up to his ear.

“Sergeant Riley, female being assaulted on third deck, female being assaulted on third deck.”

I was out the door before anything else could be said. I didn’t know for sure if it was Cassie--I wasn’t sure if she was even home, but I knew that she lived on the third deck and I wasn’t about to take any chances. I ran fast, heart pumping furiously, blood moving through my body like a streak of lightening. My gut was telling me that this wasn’t good, but I kept moving as fast as my feet would take me, hoping that I was wrong. The more steps I took, the more steps seemed to magically appear, making it seem as if I would never reach the top.

As I reached second deck, a sickening feeling began to weigh me down as I could hear where the music was coming from. It was coming from the direction of Cassie’s room, and I just continued to pray that it was not her actual room where the assault was taking place. Sweat began to dampen my face as I breathed hard, still propelling myself up the stairs, trying as best I could to get there and hopefully put my mind at ease.

When I reached third deck, I turned the corner and my heart sank as I saw the door to Cassie’s room was left open. The music was definitely coming from there, so I hurried along, praying for the best but expecting the worst. I looked inside and found the firewatch in a scuffle on the ground with a half nude Private Allen. His shorts were pulled down, displaying his hard dick, puzzling the fuck out of me.

Then it hit me.

My heart shattered and crumbled into a million fucking pieces.

I took one look to the right and found Cassie-- huddled up with a towel clad, dripping wet, Ruiz--red faced, her hair an absolute mess, and naked, from the waist down. I lunged for the guys, pulling the firewatch off of Allen and pummeling him in the face and anywhere on the body that I could connect. He was kicking, while shielding his body, but I had lost my mind. It was like an out of body experience as I fell to the ground, repeatedly punching him in the face, connecting several times, square with his nose, feeling the crack of the bridge up against the throbbing pain of the bones in my hand. Rage and adrenaline fueled me as I continued pounding his face in.

I wasn’t exactly sure what had gone down between him and Cassie, but none of the details fucking mattered. She was half naked and crying, and he was getting his ass beat by the firewatch. Nothing else fucking mattered.

I realized that I was situated in a good enough spot to knee him in his fucking dick, so I did, repeating the move over and over as he howled in pain, sounding like a dying dog that needed to be put out of its misery. He scrunched up, yelling out as tears ran down his now blood soaked face. Seeing red sent me to another level, and I just knew that even with what I had already done to him, it still wasn’t enough.

I grabbed his t-shirt, pulling him up to my face as his face contorted with all sorts of pain and yelled, “You thought you’d get away with this shit, you fuckin’ bitch! Fight a real man, asshole! Get up and fucking fight!”

His eyes swirled around in his head and I thrust him back down, then got to my feet and began kicking him relentlessly in the sides and on his back as he twisted and turned from the bashing of my sneakers meeting his body with manic force. My foot came down in forceful stomps, further knocking his head onto the floor. My heart rate sped as my breathing spiked. There wasn’t enough pain in the world that I could inflict to get even with him for whatever he had done to Cassie.

I stood, breathing hard and ready to go another round on him when Riley came up behind me, grabbing me around my middle and pulling me away. I wasn’t ready to let Allen go just yet, but Riley held on tight, backing me away from him.

“Get the fuck off of me, Riley! Fuck you!” I tried pulling my way out of his grip, but he held on tight.

“Alex, calm the fuck down. You’ve done enough.”

I turned and looked at him, then looked down at my aching, bloody hands as my chest violently heaved up and down. I spit on Allen, feeling unsatisfied that the motherfucker was still breathing.

“He’s done. You’re going to fucking kill him. Get over there and take care of your girl. We’ve got this.”

In that moment, it dawned on me that Cassie was still in the room, huddled up in the corner, looking completely dismantled and crying her fucking eyes out. My right mind came back to me, and I turned around and watched her sad, defeated, eyes meet with mine. My heart broke all over again.

I should have been there for her. I should have been with her, and none of this shit would have ever happened. Nothing else mattered anymore, so I rushed over to her, dropping to the ground and taking her in my arms. She lazily dropped her head to my shoulder and began to sob as I held her, holding the back of her head and running my hand down it, trying my best to console her.

“Shhh… I’m here, babe. Everything is going to be okay.”

She didn’t let up. Her sobs only grew heavier and deeper, her tears soaking my shirt. I placed my arm around her waist, my hand resting on her ass as I tried to shield her body away from the onlookers in the room. When I looked up, the firewatch was watching me quizzically, but I didn’t care. My care for anything except for Cassie was long fucking gone by this point.

“Get me a towel or something for her,” I lowly told Ruiz, who swiftly got up from her position. She brought me a towel that I placed around Cassie, then positioned her in my lap and gently swept her hair away from her face, placing soft, consoling kisses on her cheek.

“Uh… Sergeant Cruz, I had the A-duty call for the MPs. They’ll be here any minute.”

I didn’t even look at the firewatch as he spoke, just simply nodded my head and continued to console Cassie, whispering how much I loved her in her ear.

“Hey, man. You want me to stay? The MPs just got here,” Riley asked, looking concerned and worried.

“Do whatever, man. I don’t fucking care.”

Four MPs and two EMTs ran up to the room, stopping in the doorway where Allen lay, painfully breathing in his own blood. They surveyed the scene, mentally putting the picture together before asking any questions. One of them pulled Riley aside and asked him a few questions as I continued holding Cassie. She had finally stopped sobbing, but was moaning from the aches and pains that asshat had ravished on her body.

“What did he do to you, Cassie? Please tell me. Please.”

She stilled, growing silent as I waited, hoping she would tell me exactly what had happened to her. She never said anything, just clung tighter to me as the tears began to fall once again. With every tear a piece of me died, fearing the worst and knowing that there was absolutely nothing that I could do to erase it, or to take her pain away.

“Um, Sergeant Cruz, I’m Sergeant Nicks. The EMTs here would like to take a look at Pfc. Bennett.”

“She isn’t dressed,” I grumbled, not wanting to let her go.

“I—I know that, Sergeant, but they’ll need to check her out.”

Riley walked over and placed his hand on my shoulder, looking sympathetic.

“Man, just let them do what they’ve got to do. They’ll take care of her.”

I stared into his eyes for a few seconds longer, seeing the sincerity pouring through them, but still not wanting to let her go. I finally looked back down to Cassie, who I knew needed medical attention, then I turned to Ruiz.

“Get me some goddamned clothes for her. Get me something.”

She quickly moved to Cassie’s drawers, pulling out a pair of panties and some mesh shorts. I took them from her, picking Cassie up and moving her over to her bed before dressing her. A big bruise was beginning to take shape on the side of her face, her nose was bleeding, and she had marks on the sides of her neck. Tears stung my eyes as I looked down on her, feeling helpless and drained. She held up her wrists, mouthing, “It hurts,” as I wiped a tear away from my face and then hers, taking her back in my arms.

Two more EMTs came into the room and loaded Allen up, wheeling him out of the room. I turned to Ruiz and told her to get dressed since there would surely be more people coming to investigate what had happened in this room. She nodded her head, and for the first time since I had met the girl, I saw decency in her eyes. She looked sad, scared, and concerned.

She looked human.

The EMTs came for Cassie. Riley walked behind them to try and get me to let her leave with them, but I didn’t want to let her go. I was too afraid that she would break, or I would break, or one of us would break if we were pulled apart. This traumatic fate had sealed us. She was my lifeline--the air to my fucking lungs, the blood to my fucking heart. I knew that there was nothing else in the world more important than her.

“Hey, Alex, they need to take her, man,” Riley cautiously stated, once again putting his hand on my shoulder. I didn’t budge, I felt like any second that she wasn’t in my arms was a second too long. “Alex—“

“I fucking know, Riley. Fuck!” I yelled. My frustration was mounting as a few large teardrops rolled down my face. I finally let her go and the EMTs carefully loaded Cassie up on the stretcher as she winced from the pain of merely touching her body. I sat on the bed looking as they held her in place, not strapping her too tightly for fear of hurting her even further. I sat with my hand over my mouth as a few more tears trickled down, the saltiness mixing with blood as it fell onto my hand.

Once they were done loading Cassie up, they began to push her out of the room, prompting me to follow. Sergeant Nicks stood, standing before me and saying, “If you don’t mind, Sergeant Cruz, we’d like for you to stay behind so we can get a statement.”

I looked at him through the gloss of my eyes and then over to Cassie.

“Get my statement at the fucking hospital,” I answered back, not even bothering to look at him as I followed Cassie out of the room. Riley walked out behind me, throwing his arm around my shoulder as I tried hard to hold back more fucking tears. It hurt too much to see her in this state, and to know who the culprit was—and what that animal was capable of doing to her—flooded me with an inane amount of visuals that did nothing but make me sicker with each step I took. When we made it to the bottom, I saw Allen’s dick in my head again and I fucking lost it, violently throwing up as I prayed to anyone who would listen to please not have allowed that sick, demented bastard to put his shit inside of her. My head was spinning as I grew weaker with the thought, making me dizzy and unable to swallow.

“You okay, Alex?” Riley asked, steadying me on his arm. “I’m not letting you drive like this.”

“Fuck off, dude. I’m going to the hospital.”

“You’re not driving yourself. Here, Private Jacobs is my A-duty, he can take you in my truck.”

Riley tossed the keys to Jacobs, who looked stunned but quickly walked out to the parking lot, not saying anything to anyone. I looked around at the mass amounts of spectators who had formed around the area, my eyes landing on Dalton who looked about as sick as I was, and had been crying as much as I had, if not more. Our eyes met and he nodded, letting me know that he was right there with me. Ruiz was there as well, the same broken look I had seen in the room was still filling her face.

I waited for the EMTs to load her up in the back of the ambulance before Riley pushed me off in the direction of his truck. Once I was there, I hopped in and Jacobs took off for the base hospital, gunning it to get me there without a lag in time between our arrival and hers. I jumped out as he came to a stop, still feeling my stomach churning from my earlier thoughts, but finding enough resolve to brush past the people moseying along near the entrance. I rushed to the front desk, sweating and breathing hard, nearly scaring the nurse who stood there to help me.

“I’m here for Pfc. Cassie Bennett,” I breathed, nervously running my blood riddled hands over the back of my neck.

She stared at me for a second before typing something into the computer, then warily looked back up to me, politely saying, “She’s just being brought in. It’ll be a while.” She typed something else into the computer and then looked back at me and asked, “Are you family?”

The question froze me. I wasn’t Cassie’s family. I wasn’t anything to her. As far as everyone knew, I was just an instructor and she was just a student.

“No. I’m not.” I answered, hoping she would look beyond it and allow me to see her.

“Well I’m sorry—“ she stopped and I slid my ID card to her before continuing, “Sergeant Cruz. You’ll need to take a seat in the waiting area and we’ll let you know when the doctor has examined her, and if she can have visitors.”

I slowly turned away from the counter, feeling bogged down with overly sensitized emotions. I was certain that she was scared, hurting--emotionally and physically--and right now, all I wanted was to see her…to hold her…to console her… to just let her know that I was here and she was safe. That wasn’t going to happen, so I sat down in the first open seat I found, blowing out a heavily lodged breath, then dropping my face in my hands as I choked back a new set of tears that were threatening to spill. My phone buzzed, pulling me out of my overwhelming sadness and giving me something else to focus on.

Riley: Hey! First Sergeant O’Hara was up here. He’s speaking to EVERYONE about what happened. He’ll be at the hospital either tonight or some time tomorrow.

Me: Good shit. Did you speak to him?

Riley: Yeah! I told him exactly what happened. Nothing more, nothing less.

Me: Thanks, man. I appreciate it.

Riley: I’ll see you first thing in the morning. Go home, try and get some rest.

Me: I’m not fucking leaving. I’ll sleep in this goddamned waiting room if I have to.

Riley: Well in that case, I’ll be at the hospital as soon as I’m off duty. I’ll bring you some clothes and shit.

Me: Thanks!

Riley: No problem, brother!

I laid my head back on the seat, the pain from my hand beginning to take hold as my head filled with a throbbing ache. I didn’t care. I closed my eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.

When I woke up, the nurse from earlier was standing over me, calling my name while holding an icepack to my hand. The cold compress up against my warm and sensitized skin intensified the sting that came with the touch. I tried to focus as she asked me to please follow her, standing and stretching as the pain from my hand was now filling my body. She led me into a treatment room and asked me to sit on the examination table.

“What am I in here for?” I asked, wondering how I had somehow become the patient.

“Your hand is swollen and it needs to be looked at.”

She took her blood pressure cuff and wrapped it around my arm, then placed a thermometer in my mouth, and watched the time.

“You’re all good,” she said, unstrapping the cuff and taking the thermometer out of my mouth. “The doctor will be in to see you shortly.”

I stopped her, gently grabbing her arm as she turned to walk out of the room. She looked back to me, her eyes wide, almost sympathetic.

“Please just let me know how Pfc. Bennett is doing. I just need to see her. I need to know she’s okay.”

Her look softened. She pressed her lips together, contemplating if she should talk or not. Her compassionate side won out as she blew out a breath and began talking.

“She is going to be okay. She was battered pretty badly, but her scans showed no internal damage. She has a slight concussion, a bruised nose and cheek bone, and sprained wrists. She was lucky. It could have been much worse.”

I closed my eyes as I listened to the nurse read me what felt like a fucking laundry list of things wrong with Cassie. But after thinking about how much worse things could have been, I finally settled down, knowing that she was hurt, but that she was going to be alright.

“Can I please see her? I’m not family, but I need to see her. I’m begging you.”

She thought about it for a minute. “Let the doctor examine you, and get your x-rays because you’re going to need them. Then I’ll take you to see her.”

A smile touched my lips. I finally had a reason to feel some sort of happiness.

The doctor came in, an older gentleman with a head full of grey hair. He took one look at my hands and immediately said I had broken a knuckle, but that he wanted x-rays to confirm and pinpoint it. I didn’t argue, just followed everything they wanted to do so that I could get back to see Cassie. I wouldn’t rest until I could drink in her beautiful face.

The x-rays came back and confirmed the doctor’s suspicions. They wrapped my hand in a splint, sternly instructing me not to use it so that it would heal with time. I nodded, wanting to hurry out of there and get in the room to see Cassie. When the doctor gave me the all clear, the nurse escorted me down to her room. I looked into the door window, finding her asleep.

“Try not to wake her. She’s been through a lot,” the nurse said, finally curving her lips into something that resembled a smile.

I nodded, then pushed open the door and softly strode in, taking a seat in the chair next to her bedside. I stared at her, seeing the wrap around her tiny wrists, the bandages on her face, the IV needle in her arm. All of it stunned me. I had never seen anything short of a beautifully, robust woman whenever I looked at her. She was still all of that, only broken. I held her hand in mine, resting back in the chair and watching her breathe peacefully as she slept. There was nothing better than this at the moment.

She stirred, her eyes blinking furiously as they tried to adjust to the light. I sat up, eager to talk to her…to hear her voice…to apologize to her.

“Hey, Blondie,” I lightly greeted, smiling as she tried to focus on me. Even with her marks, she was still the most beautiful girl that I had ever fucking laid eyes on.

She smiled, then swallowed, the painful wince as she did so surprising me.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’ve been better,” she answered, finally curving her lips into a smile.

There was a pink bucket full of ice water so I filled a cup with water and helped her drink from it. She took small sips, easing it down her throat. I couldn’t help but smile at her as I realized that I was so close to losing her, losing the one thing that mattered most to me. I took her hand again, bringing it to my lips, and kissing the top ever so gently.

“I can’t even begin to apologize enough to you, Blondie. I can’t seem to stop fucking up.”

Her eyebrows scrunched. “What do you mean?”

“I was wallowing in my own selfish bullshit, and that’s why you were left alone. I should have sucked it up. I should have had you with me, and that fucking—“ my anger was beginning to flair again, “—that fucking animal would have never gotten to you.” I could feel my body temperature rising, but I tried hard to control it, not wanting to upset her.

“Shhhh…” she said, closing her eyes then reopening them. “I don’t want you blaming yourself for this. Allen is responsible for his own actions.”

“I know, but...fuck! If I’d had you with me—“

She stopped me again.

“Alex, there is no point in that. Allen did what he did, and none of us could have predicted it.”

She wasn’t going to let my guilt swallow me, and the sweet, yet exhausted look plastered on her face made me realize even more why I had fallen in love with her in the first place.

“Do you even realize what he did to you?”

She blew out a breath and closed her eyes. The thought was probably painful for her, but I had to know. It was killing me inside to know if she was fully aware of what that fucking rabid dog had done to her.

“Yes. I’m hurting all over. I’m well aware.”

She adjusted again in the bed, this time shifting her legs with great care. The move brought back the image of Allen, half naked on the ground—his shit hanging out as Cassie sat scrunched on the floor, half naked as well. Sharp knifes jabbed at my mind as I tried hard to erase the painful and traumatizing image from my head, but I couldn’t.

And the more I saw it, the more enraged I became.

“I need you to tell me something, Cassie.” I swallowed hard as I internally debated whether I truly wanted to know the answer to my question. The deep need to know won out, giving me the courage to continue on. “I need to know what the fuck Allen did to you down there because if that motherfucker stuck his filthy fucking dick inside of you I’m going to finish him off, and I won’t have any remorse for it.”

I sat dying a slow death as I awaited her answer, the slow swallows she took acting like nails in my fucking coffin. I was prepared to hear it, but I wasn’t exactly sure what my reaction would be when I did, and that was what scared me most.

“He didn’t stick his cock into me.”

I exhaled loudly, throwing my head back in the chair. Relief had never felt so good.

“But, he was going to, and I was terrified that he was about to, when whoever that guy was came in and pulled him off of me.” She was starting to cry again which was the last thing I wanted. I scooted the chair closer to her, taking her hand to my lips, then resting it up against my cheek. “He fucking rammed his fingers inside of me. It hurt so badly, Alex. It hurt.”

Her fucking tears were streaming down her face, like water from a faucet. My stomach twisted again as she recalled what had happened, and I all of a sudden felt vomit-inducing sick again. I wanted to beat Riley’s ass for pulling me away from him because this recent news gutted me, ripped me from the core and poked holes through my psyche, making rational thought unrecognizable. She couldn’t stop crying, and I couldn’t find the right thing to do to make her feel any better. I felt helpless, powerless, and defeated. Her tears were there because I wasn’t around to protect her.

No ifs, ands, or buts about it.

I climbed into the bed, wrapping my arm around her while gently massaging her head. She rested her head on my shoulder, allowing her tears to flow, then gradually subside as I hummed our song, Fall For You, over and over again until she fell back asleep.

Chapter 32

Cassie

Sunlight beamed into the room early the next morning, waking me from what felt like a lifetime worth of sleep. I remembered falling asleep in Alex’s arms, but when I woke up he was gone, and I was more than a little sad about it. I looked around, realizing that I was still in the hospital. The night before felt like a horrendous dream, but moving around in the bed, my sore body, and my aching bones, reminded me that it was real.

It was so real.

Flashes of the night, Allen attacking me, the firewatch throwing himself into the mix, Alex coming in and damn near killing Allen...all of it replayed in my mind, making me wince. I wanted to forget about it, but I couldn’t. It was embedded in my head, now and forever a part of me.

The aftermath of it all...Alex holding me, the exit from the hospital...all of that came back as well. My breath caught as I realized that Alex had acted like a protective boyfriend and not like the concerned instructor that he should have. I lay stoic in the bed, thinking about what would become of that if anything at all.

“Good morning, Pfc. Bennett,” my nurse said, cheerfully strolling into the room with a cup in her hands. “Here are you meds. Have you had a chance to order breakfast?”

I took the meds and swallowed them down.

“No, I haven’t. I just woke up.”

“No problem. Here is your breakfast menu. Go ahead and call in whatever you want.”

She began changing out machines all around me, then took my vitals before jotting everything down on the chart.

“Um—there was a guy here with me last night. Do you know where he went?”

She smirked at me, moving her eyebrows up and down.

“That handsome specimen that was here with you this morning? He stepped out with another guy, but said he’d be back.”

I nodded my head, relieved that nothing horrible had happened and that he was okay.

“Go ahead and order your breakfast. I’ll be back periodically to check on you.”

The room was quiet. Much too quiet for comfort, so I leaned over and pressed the button to raise the back of the bed up, putting me in an upright position to call in my food order and turn on the TV. Leaning over to grab the phone, my head throbbed with intense pain as I grew dizzy. I sat back, hoping the feeling would subside, when a knock sounded on the door, and the nurse walked in.

“You have good looking men all over the place.” She winked and led Dalton in.

I smiled, so glad to see him as he strolled in, looking fresh and rejuvenated in the early mornings like he always did.

“Well, if you wanted people to come wait on you hand and foot, you could have chosen a less dramatic way of doing it,” he joked, placing a vase of flowers down near me, then leaning over to hug me, kissing the top of my head.

“Yeah, I like getting destroyed by the living Hulk. It was an amazing experience.”

His smiled faded as he looked at me. I could tell sadness and regret were running through him. I had seen the same look the night before flash through Alex’s eyes. “I’m fine though. What’s going on?”

“Not much. I just had to see you. I felt so bad when I found out. I should have walked you to your room.”

“Stop. You sound like Alex. Neither of you could have known.”

He sat quiet for a minute, looking around the room.

“He was pretty broken when they were taking you out. I didn’t recognize him.”

I quickly remembered seeing Alex cry the night before. It didn’t strike me as weird because I was in such an emotional state that his tears seemed appropriate to me. The complexity of the situation that he must have found himself in had to have been difficult for him. He chose to be Alex and not Sergeant Cruz.

He had made that choice for me.

“Anyway, what did the doctors say? Will you be able to participate in graduation?”

“Yeah. I will probably be out of here by Monday. They said I got a slight concussion, so they just want to make sure everything is okay before releasing me.”

“So what exactly happened? If you don’t me asking.”

I wasn’t sure if I minded or not. The idea of rehashing the most traumatic thing that had ever happened to me didn’t make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. In fact, it felt like tiny pieces of me were shriveling up and dying, but I went ahead and told Dalton anyway. His face went from calm and complacent, to horrified, then disgust. The story was heinous, raw, and emotional.

“Did he—“

“No,” I affirmatively cut him off. “The firewatch got there just in time.”

He breathed a sigh of relief.

“I’m so sorry, Cassie. I really should have been there. None of this would have happened to you.”

“I said the same thing,” Alex said, walking in with bags of what smelled like breakfast in his hands. He was freshly showered, wearing shorts, a black Marine Corps t-shirt, and sandals. His hand was bandaged, which I didn’t remember seeing before. But overall, he was the same, delectable and delicious Alex. “I felt the same way, Dalton. And now, we work on healing her. That’s all we can do.”

Dalton looked almost stunned to see Alex in a military environment, yet so casual. He scooted his chair, making room for Alex to sit down. He took out a couple of bowls of oatmeal, scrambled eggs, and bacon. I was starving. I couldn’t recall eating the night before. Alex offered Dalton some, but he declined. We ate and made small talk, trying to avoid speaking anymore about the massive elephant in the room. After a while, the conversation shifted to Third L.A.R. and how exciting that would be for Dalton. He went on and on about what he was expecting, and what he was looking forward to. The reality of my North Carolina orders pinged in my head, bringing a melancholy sadness over me. Alex noticed my silence and took my hand, kissing the top while sympathy poured from his golden irises.

There was a knock on the door again, the nurse strolling in once again.

“More handsome men here to see you. Your life is amazing.”

I looked behind her and watched as Riley walked in, flowers in his hand as well.

“How you feeling, tiger?”

He was so casual, so welcoming, so loving. I hadn’t spent a great deal of time with him, but he was so much more than just an instructor. He felt like a friend.

“I’ve been better, but I’m okay,” I answered, trying my best not to sound down. If people were here to see me, I wanted them to see me being strong and vigilant, not as the broken and battered victim that sat before them.

“Well, that’s good to hear because there’s someone here to see you. And I wanted you to be okay before I just marched someone else in here.”

Riley turned for the door and opened it, leading the way for Angelica, who walked in, looking nervous.

“She was down in the lobby, so I brought her up here.”

Alex sat back in his seat, carefully watching her with low, hooded eyes as she walked in and placed a small bouquet of flowers on the swivel table next to me.

“I hope it’s okay that I came by. I wanted to see how you were doing.”

“It’s fine.” She looked as if there was so much more that she wanted to say. I squeezed Alex’s hand and quietly asked, “Will you give us some privacy?”

He looked at me, making sure that I was okay with this, then leaned over and softly kissed my lips, erasing any doubt that there was much more to us, and cementing it for everyone in the room. He gathered up Dalton and Riley, and the three of them walked out of the room.

Angelica wearily moved closer into the room, sitting down in a chair and smiling awkwardly at me.

“Thanks for coming to see me.” I had to break the awkward silence filling the air.

“I—I just felt awful after what happened last night. We haven’t seen eye to eye all of this time, and I’ll be honest, it was because I was a little jealous of you.” My eyes widened as she confirmed what I had been feeling all along. “I don’t like being second best—in anything. I was a bitch to you, and I was wrong. When I saw what went on last night, it put everything in perspective for me.”

I was a bit surprised but overall happy to see her sitting there. She’d walked out of the shower, dressed in nothing but a towel, and had hit Allen a few times, trying to get him off of me when the firewatch came in and finally removed him.

“I don’t even know what to say,” I replied, uncertain how to respond to her confession.

“You don’t have to say anything. I just wanted to apologize. When I walked out and saw what was happening to you, I didn’t think of anything else except getting him off of you.” She stopped and looked into my eyes. “I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy, Cassie.”

“I appreciate it, Angelica.”

“And then, I saw Sergeant Cruz go crazy on him, then scoop you up and nurture you. It was so beautiful. He didn’t give a shit that he was laying it all out on the line.” She stopped again, taking my hand and smiling. “I knew you two were an item, but I couldn’t exactly prove it. It’s out for the world now. But you know what? I saw the love he has for you. It’s amazing.”

I blushed and felt a little squirrelly inside. It was out in the open, and surprisingly, I felt so much better about it.

“I’m not going to stay forever. I just wanted you to know that I’m sorry for everything.” She let go of my hand and stood. “You take care. And good luck to you and Alex. First Sergeant O’Hara questioned me for a while last night.”

I swallowed the hard, suffocating lump in my throat. First Sergeant O’Hara was going to be digging, and as much as I was relieved to no longer be living in the shadows, I wasn’t sure how I would react to the imminent fallout. I put on a happy face anyway, not wanting to give away my apprehension.

“Thank you for coming by, Angelica. It means a lot.”

“You’re welcome. Enjoy North Carolina.”

She turned and walked out the door, leaving me in a mess of emotions. I didn’t want to give North Carolina a second thought. I was just so glad to have escaped Allen— and have Alex out in the open— that my orders were more like an afterthought. I wasn’t ready to face that heinous reality. I felt like Alex and I had just made a great stride, and now my departure would be taking it all away.

She walked out without a second look back. I knew we were probably never going to be friends, and that was fine by me, but the fact that she came by meant something, so I took it for what it was worth.

Alex walked back in the room, but Dalton and Riley nowhere to be found. His walk was smooth…sexy…confident, but his face showed nothing but worry.

“What did she want?” he gruffly asked.

“Surprisingly, she wanted to apologize.” His eyebrows shot up, but he didn’t say anything. “She says First Sergeant O’Hara questioned her for a while last night. I’m wondering what all she told him.”

“I don’t give a fuck what she told him. I don’t care if she told him she found us fucking on your floor. I just don’t care anymore.”

“But there’s so much—“

“It doesn’t fucking matter, Cassie. I’m done hiding. If the Marine Corps wants to punish me for not being a fucking robot, then punish away. I love you, and I’m done hiding it.”

I reached for him, bringing him close to me so I could plant a kiss on his beautiful, yet oh so foul mouth. I kissed him, trying to go hard, but he wouldn’t let me. “Don’t rile me up because I can’t fuck you right now, and teasing me would just be cruel.”

I sucked my bottom lip and smiled as he pulled away. The words coming from that mouth, filthy or not, always did have a way of making me tingle.

“By the time you can, I’ll be on the opposite end of the country.”

“We’re not even thinking about that right now. We’re nursing you back to health. No more talk about orders.”

There was a knock on the door, and Riley came walking in.

“Hey. Just wanted to let you know that Dalton is in with First Sergeant O’Hara—again. He had him last night, and he has him now. He wasn’t around when all of this Allen mess started was he?”

I sat up in the bed, seeing the urgency on Riley’s face. Alex didn’t seem to care, but the reality of it all was making my stomach turn, and I couldn’t be as calm.

“No. We split off after the gym. He went to his room, and I went to mine.”

“Okay. Just wondering.”

“Riley. If First Sergeant uncovers anything, then we’ll deal with it,” Alex chimed in, standing and patting him on the shoulder. “I’m no longer concerned with what may be. It is what it is.”

Riley seemed to accept what Alex was saying and dropped it. They both sat down in the chairs, chattering about who knows what as I dug into my breakfast that was now lukewarm at best. It didn’t matter. I was hungry. After eating as much as I could, I laid back and fell asleep, feeling the medicine finally take hold.

When I woke, Alex was asleep in two chairs next to me, and Riley was gone. I looked at the clock on the wall, finding that it was well after noon. I leaned over and drank more water. It was freshly filled and had a nice, cool, feel going down my sandpaper throat. Soon I was out of water, and my throat didn’t feel better. I pressed the button for the nurse and asked for more when she poked her head in.

A couple of minutes later, there was a knock on the door, but instead of the nurse walking in, there stood First Sergeant O’Hara, dressed in uniform and looking like the bulldog that he was.

“How are you feeling, Pfc. Bennett?” he asked, his voice stiff and dry. His eyes surveyed the room, stopped on Alex, then swung back over to me.

“I’m doing okay,” I answered after clearing my throat.

Alex stirred, then woke and sat up in his seat, looking at First Sergeant with nothing in his eyes. They looked at one another, causing the room to collapse around me. It was so uncomfortable, yet neither wanted to relent.

“I wanted to come by and get your official statement on what happened last night with Private Allen. I spoke to the nursing staff and delayed my arrival for today in hopes that you could get a little more rest,” he said, after turning away from Alex.

I nodded my head, staring him dead in the face.

“Sergeant, I’d like to speak to her alone.”

I looked over to Alex, feeling the need to keep him nearby since my nerves were fraying by the second. He nodded his head then stood, giving me a covert smile as he made his way out of the room. I had never felt so vulnerable.

First Sergeant O’Hara watched Alex leave the room, then turned to me. I told him everything from the beginning—how Allen had blindsided me, to the attack, to Angelica, and then to the firewatch.

“And how did Sergeant Cruz factor into this?” he asked. His beady eyes looked suspicious.

“All I remember is hearing the firewatch, and him pulling Allen off of me. Then after their fight, Sergeant Cruz coming in.”

He was dutifully note taking, looking up every so often to gauge my expressions, which only made me melt more. His eyes were like an incinerator to my soul, and I was slowly being burned with every passing second.

“Alright. Because this is an on-going investigation, with the potential for brig time, we will be canceling your orders. You will be staying in Twentynine, where a new set of orders will be issued to you.”

For the first time since he had come and sucked the life out of the room, I had a reason to smile, only I couldn’t because that would have been inappropriate in his presence.

“Okay, First Sergeant,” I managed to croak out, still under the intense heat from his stark gaze.

His eyes closed in on me, locking me down like I was about to be viciously devoured. It made me slink down in the bed a bit, afraid of what was coming next. “I told you sexual harassment was a big deal with the Corps, and its turning into quite the shit storm. I have been digging through everything with Private Allen, and I have come across some very eye opening information involving you and another Marine.” My throat suddenly closed, and it became hard to breathe, like my lungs had been doused in gasoline and lit on fire. “So, I am only going to ask you once—is there anything you would like to tell me, right now before I dig a little deeper? I don’t plan on taking this shit lightly.”

His lifeless eyes continued to rip through me, sending my guilt to the surface. It almost made me come out and remove the weight of it all from my shoulders. A second thought quickly came to mind, and I shoved it back down with the bile that was slowly rising as I almost released it all, surely destroying Alex and me for good.

I managed to keep my mouth shut, simply shaking my head and trying hard to look back into those menacing eyes, hoping to pacify him even for just a short while.

“Alright then. I will continue to dig through this cesspool. But if I find more shit, and I fully expect to, hell is going to be paid. You understand that?”

My lip began to quiver, and I made a conscious effort to stop it, not wanting to show any signs of guilt or weakness.

He turned and walked out of the room. I could hear him speak to Alex, grumbling, “I’ll need to see you in my office in ten minutes, Sergeant.”

“Roger that, First Sergeant,” Alex replied, then strolled back into the room.

First Sergeant O’Hara stalked away from the room, hitting the ground hard as he set off on his mission to destroy everything that we had tried to conceal. My stomach hurt more than any other part of my body. I felt as if I were trapped inside of an ever expanding balloon that was nearing its bursting point. The walls were closing in, and I felt it deep down in my gut—we were so close to being busted.

The nurse walked back into the room. There was no doubt in my mind that she had deliberately stayed away until First Sergeant left. She sat the water down, looking curiously at me. I thanked her and turned to Alex, hoping to get a sense of what he was feeling at the moment.

He wasn’t feeling anything. He was just as nonchalant as he was before First Sergeant had arrived. I wanted to understand it, but I couldn’t. The thought of whatever was about to go down in that office terrified me, and I wanted him to be even a tad bit concerned.

“Hey, why do you look like your cat just died? You get to stay in Twentynine, did you hear that?”

My frustration couldn’t be contained any longer. I didn’t understand him. I was losing my shit on the inside, and he was calm as could be.

“Alex. You are about to face the man that could very well destroy us—destroy you.”

He moved swiftly over to me, staring those engulfing honey colored eyes at me.

“First Sergeant O’Hara is a man of great integrity, so he’ll do whatever it is he has to do. If that means he destroys me, then he destroys me, but he will never destroy us. Ever! You understand that?”

His vigor and the passion burning through his eyes calmed me, making me realize that his concern was not in what could happen to him, but what could happen to us. I reached up and wrapped my arms around his neck as he leaned down. Tears trickled down my face as I watched this man, who was so dedicated to the Corps, cast it aside because of his blinding love for me. It was overwhelming, and at the moment, too much to take.

“You better get over there and see what he wants.”

He pulled back, wiping my tears away. He kissed me, then turned and walked out of the room, leaving me in a conflicted and convoluted mess. I was thrilled that Alex was devoted to me and willing to put everything on the line, but I was also depressed that having everything with me meant having so little with the Corps. I lay back in my bed and turned on the TV to try and drown out the damaging thoughts. There was no way that Alex would escape this meeting unscathed, and I only hoped that our love was enough to overcome the outcome of it all.

Chapter 33

Alex

The drive over to First Sergeant’s office was short and quick. I didn’t give myself much time to think about whatever it was that he was going to say. When I got out of my truck, I was ambushed by one troubling thought that hadn’t factored into my thought process since all of this had unraveled—Cassie. I knew that the gauntlet would be brought down on me, but I didn’t know how far they would push it with her, and the only sickness I could feel since all of this started was where she would be when all of the dust settled.

I walked up to his office, confidently striding through the corridors, almost eager to know what he wanted to do about all of this. There was no way I’d be coming away unmarked, and I was ready for it, but I was also ready to lessen the blow for the girl that meant more than anything to me. I knocked on the door, then turned the knob and walked in, coming face to face with a steely eyed, First Sergeant O’Hara.

“Come on in, Sergeant Cruz,” he greeted, his voice low and clipped.

I walked in, standing at attention as he stood and walked around his desk, standing in front of me.

“At ease, Sergeant. Take a seat.”

I sat down in the chair situated directly in front of his desk. He took his seat, pulling out a notepad and skimming over some notes before looking up to me. The ice from his cold, hard stare began circling the room, knocking my hardened demeanor and concerted effort to remain unfazed by all of this off of the high horse I had placed them on.

“I’m very sorry to have this happen within your class. Private Allen is currently in the hospital, on twenty-four hour watch, and as soon as he is better and discharged, he will be transferred to the brig awaiting court martial and subsequent discharge. You have my word on that.”

“Thank you, First Sergeant.”

“As for Pfc. Bennett, her orders have already been cancelled, and she will be reassigned here. We will need her for the investigation into the sexual harassment as well as the assault.”

His eyes lowered as the walls came closing in, encasing us in the small bubble that held trapped, stale air. He was calculating whatever he wanted to say next, and my breathing picked up, anxiously awaiting the venom that was sure to come spewing from his mouth.

“As far as the investigation into the circumstances of last night, some new revelations have come to light, and I am here to put you on fucking notice.” His mouth curled, almost like a disgusted sneer. “I knew there was something up when I saw Pfc. Bennett by your office door a couple of days ago, but I didn’t follow through. Shame on me.”

His jaw hitched, clenching his teeth his teeth in the process. “So I am going to ask you one fucking time, and one fucking time only. Is there anything you want to go ahead and tell me before I blow this shit out of the water?”

I sat stoic, trying to remain calm and level headed. There was no way I wanted to sit here and admit to First Sergeant that I had committed the ultimate sin as an instructor, but the longer he stared at me…into me… into my soul, I felt compelled to give him what he wanted.

A flash of clarity swept through me, putting Cassie back in the forefront and remembering that unleashing all of my indiscretions would put her on the chopping block, and her well-being meant more to me than my own. So rather than allow him to force a confession out of me, I stuck to my original game plan, even though he was making me sweat with whatever it was he already knew.

He stared at me, his face growing more rigid by the second and fixing into a tight scowl. He finally made a move, wiping his mouth before speaking again.

“You want to play hard ass, Cruz? Go right ahead, but after digging, and speaking to those around you both, your fucking secret is out in the open, and I am going to drag your ass down as far as I can take you.”

His voice went lower, mixed with a deadly concoction of disgust and malice. “You’re a motherfucking predator, using your position of authority to prey on students. I’m going to make a fucking example out of you, and when I’m done you’ll wish you had exercised a little more restraint with your extra-curricular activities.”

He sat red-faced, glaring at me.

My heart was beating so fast I thought it might explode. As badly as I wanted to play it off, I knew what the aftermath would be, and as much as I had prepared myself for it, I hadn’t prepared myself enough. Sweat began coating my brow, my hands, my entire body.  My breathing labored, crushing my chest as I tried to hold it in. He was looking for a moment of weakness and, even though it was oozing through me, I wasn’t about to give it to him.

My ego had taken a beaten while my nerves were being severed by the sharp tongue lashing insults at me. A predator I was not, but how was I going to plead my case with him? I wasn’t sure exactly what he had on me, but from where I was standing, he had enough. Now, I just had to keep calm and make him do the excess legwork to actually prove all of it.

I prayed he wouldn’t be able to do it.

I hadn’t heard him say anything about punishing Cassie, so I sat still, giving nothing away in expression, further pissing him off.

“You’ve got nothing to fucking say for yourself, Devil Dog?”

My silence had sent him tumbling over the edge. He was shouting, and the veins bulging out of his neck looked like they would burst and spew anger all over me. He slammed both of his hands down on the desk, leaning over and bringing his face inches from mine.

“You were our goddamned NCO of the Quarter, our most highly respected instructor, and a leader for your peers. You’ve turned into nothing more than another fucking idiot who can’t keep his fucking dick in his pants. I’m going to take this shit as far as I can take it, hopefully setting up your court martial right alongside Allen’s. You’re two peas in the same motherfucking pod.”

That comment hit at my psyche, causing my anger to flare up.

“With all due respect, First Sergeant, I am nothing like Allen. I don’t prey on those weaker than me.” If I had lost my right mind, I would have gone off on his ass for the comparison, but he was still my superior and I was still expected to show him respect.

So I showed it, in the least amount possible.

My response must have set him off because he took his big, burly hands and grabbed me by the collar of my t-shirt, pulling my face up to his where our noses were touching. The hot, foul breath intruding my senses made me want to pull away, but I couldn’t. He had me strong and tight, strengthening his grip as he began to speak.

“You listen to me, and you god damn listen well. We are not here to fuck our students, we are here to teach them. What happened to your integrity as a Marine? What happened to your belief in the eagle, globe, and anchor? You set the precedent as lead instructor, and the rest of them are watching you, thinking they can get away with shit like you have.”

Spit was flying from his mouth, hitting my face like a rain shower. I tried hard to hold strong… to not blink… to not give any piece of satisfaction.

“It’s too bad Pfc. Bennett was attacked because you almost got away with this shit. You hide in the shadows, pretending to be something you are not. Well let me tell you something, Sergeant. You won’t be hearing that title before your name when I get through with you. You won’t be seeing that promotion you’re in line for either. You are a disgrace to me, this unit, and the rest of the fucking Marine Corps. You’re as sloppy as a fucking civilian, and in my eyes, beneath one. Now get the fuck out of my office before I go ape shit on your ass and become unprofessional.”

He let me go, forcefully pushing me away as he did so. He was fire breathing mad, an anger that I had never seen on his face before. My insides were a blended mess. He had me, almost, if not completely. His job was to find concrete evidence to make his claims stick, and I sat there, giving nothing away even though the overwhelming desire to want to spew it all over his desk, like vomit from deep down inside of me was banging on the door—begging to be let out.

While, on the outside, I was calm and collected, my insides were on full panic mode. My throat felt like a spike strip had been yanked up and down, drawing blood and leaving me with the inability to swallow, even though saliva was beginning to build up like a flood.

“I am glad to still find honesty and integrity amongst those around you—that you haven’t tainted them with your affair.” He took a long, deep breath, rubbing his hand down his face. His eyes went into that dark, sinister form that I was becoming well acquainted with before speaking again.

“This shit makes me look bad, and when I look bad, I’m going to make you look worse, you understand that?”

“Yes, First Sergeant,” I replied, looking straight ahead, not giving him any sort of satisfaction.

He studied me for a minute, then looked back down to his notepad.

“Get the fuck out of my office, Marine,” he growled, sitting back down in his chair.

“Yes, First Sergeant,” I replied, showing no signs of weakness where he was concerned. I still hadn’t heard anything about Cassie, so as far as I was concerned, I was leaving pretty much the same way that I went in, only I needed to gather myself and put my insides back together. He had fucking fried them, and now he had me worried about who in our circles went further than necessary and spilled everything. No longer was I worried—I was angry.

Completely fucking angry.

I walked out of his office, sweating a bit but thankful that I was waiting on news that would destroy Cassie, but never came. I rushed off to my truck, headed back to the base hospital, ready to spend the remaining days with Cassie until the hammer would come down hard and heavy over my head. It would be a miracle if he didn’t come after me with a rope to string me from a fucking tree by my balls.

One thing in particular stood out from First Sergeant’s ass chewing, and that was the fact the he mentioned a couple of times that the people closest to us were willing to talk. It had put me on high alert. Not because I was afraid of whatever they had to say—it seemed Cassie and I were out in the open—but because I had to question their loyalty. And loyalty meant too fucking much to me to let this shit slip through the cracks.

I walked up to Cassie’s room, finding Dalton sitting in the chair next to her bed, looking through a magazine with her. They both looked up and met my glaring eyes. Had this motherfucker run his mouth a bit too much? Was he really the loyal friend that she had entrusted him to be? I couldn’t be sure.

They both looked at me, eyes wide open, faces full of worry.

“Are you okay?” Cassie asked, closing the magazine and setting it down on her lap. “How did it go?”

“I’d prefer to speak to you in private,” I lowly muttered, putting a heightened level of bitterness in my words to let Dalton know that he wasn’t welcomed.

He stood, kissing the top of Cassie’s head, then left the room, trying to avoid me altogether. We watched him leave the room, then she turned to me, those sparkling green eyes full of worry, maybe even confusion.

“What happened?”

“Everything that I thought would happen. I’m a fucking predator, and I need to be taken down.” Tears sprang to life in her eyes and rolled down her face. “There is nothing to worry about, Cassie. I sealed my fate from the day I pursued you, so this is no fucking shock for me.”

She sniffled a couple of times, trying to blink away newly formed tears.

“What is a fucking shock to me is that someone, or a few someone’s around us, opened their fucking mouths and gave away quite a bit.”

“You think it was Dalton?”

“I don’t know who the fuck it was. It could have been him—“

“Or it could have been Castillo or Jensen,” she quickly threw in, trying to take the heat off of her friend. I wasn’t convinced. I wasn’t sure of anyone and their motives anymore.

“Look, we don’t know anything, Alex. I highly doubt Dalton would have given more away.”

I rubbed my hands over my head, feeling the growing frustration beginning to overcome me, and I was not about to lose my shit in this hospital room where she was supposed to be resting.

I took her hand in mine, hoping the warmth of her skin would make me remember that, right now she was my only focus.

“And hey, at least I don’t have to go to North Carolina,” she said, smiling her bright and vibrant smile.

“I know. I’m fucking over the moon about that. I guess something good came out of all of this bullshit.”

“Yeah, something.”

“I know something else that would be even better.”

“What’s that,” she asked, looking absolutely confused.

“If you’d marry me.”

Her mouth dropped and her breath hitched. I smiled at her, feeling like I had just hit the lottery. There was no reason to be separated. She was who I wanted, what I needed, and quickly into our relationship or not, I wanted her.

“Yesterday did a few things to me. It showed me that I could have lost you, and since I didn’t, I don’t want to go another day without having you as mine in every way that I can imagine.”

“But Alex, we’ve only been together a short time.” She stopped, running her hand over her face and sighing loudly. “We’ll just be another military couple, getting married on a whim—“

“We will never be just another fucking military couple. You mean more to me than any woman that I have ever been with. You’ve opened my eyes and brought the human side back into my robotic soul. You’ve showed me what it’s like to love and love with all you’ve got, and I know, for a short time or a lifetime, that you are exactly who I want carrying around my last name.”

Another tear dropped from her eye as her lips formed into a coy smile.

“You need to know that through this entire ordeal I tried to fight you off, but I couldn’t do it. And if it were just about the fucking, I would have let you go a long time ago. I couldn’t get you out of my system, no matter how extreme I tried to go. You’re everything I have ever wanted, Cassie Bennett, my Blondie, mi mariposa. The road is going to be rough from here on out, but I want you riding the bumps with me.”

Her hand went to her chest as she let the tears fall. I leaned in and kissed them away, hoping she would grant me permission to make her utterly and completely mine.

“I love you so much, Alex. I just—“

“You don’t have to answer me right now. I just want you thinking about it.”

A knock came on the door and the nurse walked in, carrying a tray full of meds.

“Here you go, Pfc. Bennett. There is a sleeping pill in here, so you will be out in no time.”

Cassie took the pills and washed them down with water. I turned and smiled at the nurse, urging her back out of the room. She got the clue, hurrying back out to her station. When she was out, I turned back to Cassie, trying to figure out what was running through her mind.

“What about the investigation?” she asked. I could tell she was stuffed with worry, and I was too, but I wasn’t about to let it kill this moment for us.

“Fuck that investigation. They can rip everything away from me, take me clear down to Private, and it wouldn’t mean shit to me as long as I’ve got you by my side.”

“This is exactly what I didn’t want. I didn’t want you having to choose between everything you’ve worked so hard for and me. I didn’t want to be the one to ruin everything for you.”

Listening to her blame herself was beginning to claw away at me. Her words were eagle-like talons ripping into my flesh, slowing pulling my skin down, exposing the inside and dousing it with acid. Nothing that had happened between us was any of her fault, and I was not about to let her take responsibility for any of it.

“Let me remind you that I am the superior in this situation and that I pursued you. Nowhere in this equation do I see you ruining anything for me. I made a conscious choice, and I don’t fucking regret it, but it’ll break me in half if I can’t have you—all of you.”

Just as she was about to speak, the door swung open, no courtesy knock whatsoever, and a woman walked in. She looked tired and rundown, and her foul aroma of cigarette smoke nearly knocked me off of my feet. She didn’t look too old, but her face was filled with wrinkles, and the long, scraggly blonde hair covering her head didn’t help her look. Her eyes struck Cassie, pinning her full of mockery and repulsion. My guard dog senses came alive, wanting this woman to leave because her presence had obviously disturbed Cassie. She moved further into the room, smiling a wicked smile that sent chills down my back.

“Well, well, well. Look at this here. I knew you’d find some fucking way to get yourself in some sort of trouble.”

I didn’t like her look, and now I wasn’t too keen on her tone.

“Who the fuck are you?” I asked, highly annoyed by the less than gracious entrance she made into the room.

“Who are you?” she asked, turning to me with contempt in her eyes.

Cassie rolled her eyes, then sighed.

“Alex, this is my mom, Emmalyn Bennett. Mom, this is my boyfriend, Alex.”

Confirmation that this was her mom soured my mood, making me want to grab Cassie and take her away from there.

“Hmmm. Was he the one that did this to you? You never did have any sort of fucking judgment.”

“You watch your mouth when you speak to her. I don’t know why you’re here, but if it’s only to cause problems, then it’s best you leave before I lose my fucking temper.” My clenched jaw made it easy for her to read that I wasn’t messing around.

Cassie sat in bed, mortified and not knowing what to say or do. I didn’t know her mom, but from everything I had heard, and from what I had just seen, I didn’t want her around.

And I was more than willing to be the one to remove her ass.

“What are you doing here?” Cassie finally asked. I didn’t care what her reasons were. I just wanted to see her turn and leave the same way that she came in.

“You got your ass beat so badly that you were in and out of consciousness. The hospital staff called me since I’m your next of kin.”

Hearing her say that was like a sledgehammer to the gut. Seeing this woman, Cassie’s decision maker in the event of anything ever going wrong, solidified my belief that her marrying me was for the best. I needed to rid this trash out of her life. I needed to make sure that her past didn’t come soiling our future.

We stood in a silent stalemate for a few minutes, my heart pounding, the sound beating against my eardrums. The horrendous information I had learned about Cassie’s mom wasn’t doing the real life image justice. This woman was repugnant in its truest form. She made my skin crawl, and her demeanor ignited an adverse reaction that I wasn’t even going to waste time trying to hide. This bitch was mean, cruel, and nasty. Her time tormenting Cassie was over. I stood and walked over in her direction when there was another knock on the door. Our chief instructor, Gunnery Sergeant Chavez, and the Company Gunny, Gunnery Sergeant Bokowski, marched in, looking stern faced and on a mission. Their attire alone told me they were there on official business.

“Sergeant Cruz?” they asked, looking in my direction.

“Yes. What is this about?”

They stood, surveying the room before finally focusing their attention back to me.

“Sergeant Cruz you are suspected of fraternization. By order of First Sergeant O’Hara, we are to escort you to his office where you will receive official charges.”

A piece of me wanted to shout how much of a pussy First Sergeant O’Hara was for sending his henchmen here to do his dirty work instead of detaining me on his own. He’d had me, and he’d had every opportunity to take me in. Instead, he chose to have my Chief Instructor and Company Gunny do it for him. The thought of his utter cowardice sent anger flaring through my nostrils as I stood, feeling like I could break through walls at the moment. The two Gunnery Sergeants stood, waiting for me to make my way over to them, but I didn’t.

I had known this day would come, but I had no idea how it would play out, and this was the last way I could have imagined—Cassie lying in a hospital bed, her piece of shit mom in the room with her, and me being escorted out. It was a bad dream come to life. The walls had finally come crashing down.

Gunny Bokowski grew tired of waiting. “Right fucking now, Cruz!”

I looked back to Cassie who had tears falling from her eyes. I hated seeing her cry, and in the past day I had seen more tears fall from those gorgeous eyes than I had cared to see in all of my lifetime. Her hurt brought me hurt, and I hated it.

My eyes swung over to the living cancer stick, sitting there, satisfaction written all over her face. I could tell that the fact that I was being led out made her happy. It was heartbreaking for her daughter, and she seemed to thrive on that shit. I took a couple of slow and methodical steps over to where Chavez and Bokowski were standing, then looked back at Cassie, sadness written all over her face. I didn’t say a word as I allowed them to reign me in, but Cassie stopped crying long enough to yell out, “Yes, Alex. It’s a yes.”

Standing enclosed between the two men, I had never felt so free. To hear those words come out of Cassie’s mouth was the key to freedom. I was floating on cloud fucking nine, and nothing else factored into my moment of happiness as I stood to lose so much, but gained so much more in return.

I mouthed I love you as I was led out of the room, feeling queasy that her mom was still there with her, but also fulfilled that I had gotten her. Cassie was all I had ever wanted from the very beginning, and if it meant losing everything to gain her, it was the sacrifice that I was willing to make.

I walked out of the hospital, looking like a criminal as curious eyes glued onto me as I stood encased between two stern faced, uniformed gunnies. But the accusations, the punishments—none of it was enough to take away what I had just won. Cassie Bennett was the ultimate prize, and the love she gave me was worth more than anything else. My temporary punishment was no match for my lifelong gain.

As I was led into the back of the duty car, a satisfied grin creeped across my face.

Like Cassie’s butterfly, in every way that mattered, I was finally free.

Glossary

A-duty: assistant to the Duty NCO

Barracks Whore: female who sleeps around with males in the barracks

Blouse: long sleeve top to the cammies, covering the green t-shirt

Boot Bands: elastic bands used to keep the pant legs tight around the boot.

Bootcamp: training to transform civilians into Marines. Performed at Parris Island, South Carolina and San Diego.

Boot Marines: military slang term for a new Marine

Brig: military prison

Buddy Program: going through entry level training with a friend/buddy

Cammies: camouflage utility uniform

Chevrons: symbols of enlisted ranks above private

Chief Instructor: head instructor in charge of all instructors, insuring proper training to students.

Chow: food

Commanding Officer (CO): in charge of the entire unit

Company Gunny: Gunnery Sergeant in charge of everyday operations for the unit.

Company Honorman: top graduate out of bootcamp

Court Martial: a judicial proceeding

Cover: headgear

Devil Dog: nickname for a Marine

Dog Tags: the informal name for the identification tags worn by military members.

Duty NCO- Non Commissioned Officer responsible for patrol and security of a specified area (Corporal or Sergeant)

Field Day: detailed and thorough cleaning of an area

Firewatch: acting as a patrolling security guard

Groupie: usually a female who actively seeks out military members

Gunny: nickname for Gunnery Sergeant

Headgear: hats, helmets, caps, etc…

Knife hand: fingers extended and joined with the thumb along the side of the hand. Used to point at someone or something.

MCT: Marine Combat Training (skills training for non-infantry Marines)

MOS: Military Occupational Specialty (job classification)

NJP: Non-Judicial Punishment

Oorah: spirited cry used to respond to a verbal greeting or show great enthusiasm.

PCS: Permanent Change of Station (transfer to another base)

PFT: Physical Fitness Test (semi-annual test measuring strength, agility, and endurance.)

PT gear: Physical Training gear (green workout clothing)

Seabag: duffel bag used to carry one’s personal belongings

Service Charlies: consists of green trousers and short sleeved, khaki shirt

Seven Ton: a large military truck

TAD: Temporary Assigned Duty (temporarily detached from home unit for a short amount of time)

Tag Chasers: see groupie

UA- Unexcused Absence

Walking Mattress: derogatory term used to describe females who sleep around

Wall Locker: closet style storage area

Stay Tuned for….

Compromising

The exciting conclusion to Alex and Cassie’s story!

Acknowledgements

As always, I have a whole host of people to thank.

I want to thank my wonderfully, supportive husband, who provided his expertise on the Marine Corps to help make this book possible. Thank you for your service, for your support, and for your love. I found my “ALEX” when I married you, babe!

I want to thank Leeann, for your undying love and support of my work, and everything you have done to help get my name out there. You rock. Someday I’ll be in GA so we can meet. J

Steph, Michlene, and KaTonya…what the hell would I do without you girls? You were all excellent beta readers and I appreciated every tweak you had me make. Even when I got crazy and neurotic, you stood there, tapping those fingers, waiting for me to calm the hell down. Thanks for the lifelong friendship as well as your love and time.

To Jen, my super awesome editor who always makes my crap look and sound amazing, you have no idea how much I adore you. Thanks for loving my work, pushing me, and working your ass off to make it the best product that it could possibly be. I’m forever grateful.

To the bloggers, those who I have worked with before and those who decided to take a chance on my book, THANK YOU! You are an author’s lifeline and I am so grateful for you. Ena Burnette, you are an amazing woman. You’ve gone above and beyond for me, and I couldn’t be more thankful.

To my writing girls, Karina, Claribel, Gail, Syreeta, Emmy, Trevlyn, and Madeline. I’m not really sure if I would have much sanity if it weren’t for you girls. And Madeline, you know I owe you more than I could ever pay. You’ve done things for me that were above and beyond friendship. I’m eternally grateful.

Shanora, you’re my right hand in all of this. Your kind words, your advice, your shoulder to cry on and your ears to listen have given me such strength along this journey. Thank you so much.

To Najla and Jen, the cover and the aesthetic appeal do not go unnoticed. Your ladies have a gift. Thank you so much for making my book so beautiful.

To my friends and family. You know me better than most. I know that I’m crazy and when I get an idea, it consumes me and I run with it. You all have listened to me talk, scream, cry, and vent about these characters and this book, and you are still there, rooting me on. Unconditional love is what I call it, and I am grateful for it.

And last, but certainly not least, to the readers. Where the hell would I be without you? For those who have loved my previous work, to those taking a chance on me for the very first time, I can’t say it enough how incredibly lucky I am to have you. I could write a million books, but if you didn’t read and recommend them to others, they wouldn’t reach very many people. You mean the world to me. THANK YOU!

The Author

I am a proud Marine Corps wife, married to my very own “Alex,” with two kids, living in the beautiful state of Hawaii.

My lifelong love of books made me pursue a career in education where I was quite content until I had to move again for my husband’s career. I decided to follow my dreams of writing a book. Now, here I am.

I look forward to hearing from you…

https://www.facebook.com/pages/CC-Brown/

https://twitter.com/CCBrownAuthor

Content

Fraternizing
CC Brown

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Glossary

Acknowledgements

The Author