Текст книги "Fraternizing"

Автор книги: C. Brown

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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 dateswith 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.