“However.” Yang drew the word out and a small spark of hope kindled within him. “Dependable pilots are apparently difficult to find, and the number of people on board this ship I actually trust are even harder to find. Plus, with this war at a tipping point, it would be insane to waste a pilot of your skills on the ground. Therefore, the decision has been made that you will retain your position on the squadron, but you’ll be starting at the bottom again with the new recruits who graduate this current class. That being said, I can’t have you and Mia flying together. I’m sorry, I know it’s unfair, but Mia won’t be continuing with the program. It’s the price to be paid. We need you on the squadron more than we need a green pilot.”
The news probably wasn’t that surprising when he thought about it. And it didn’t hit all that hard, considering Mia had already told him she didn’t want to be a fighter pilot. What did leave him cold was the idea of Mia being the one who ended up on the ground.
“Sir, I understand all of your reasons for not having the two of us in the FP squadron together. And while I know you’ve probably already made a decision in terms of where Mia will be going, I’m asking you to do me a favor and keep her on board the Knox, get her a position with the deck maintenance crew or in aeronautical engineering. You know what she’s capable of, what she did for us. We wouldn’t have uncovered Lawler without her. If you can’t afford to waste my skills, then you definitely can’t afford to waste hers. I know it’s asking a lot, since we both know you don’t owe me a damn thing.”
Despite the fact he’d been determined not to beg for his own fate, apparently Mia’s outcome was a totally different matter. He’d lay open a vein if it meant keeping her safe, keeping her on board the Knox, and maybe making some kind of future with her.
Yang stepped forward and clasped him on his good shoulder for a long moment.
“That’s not entirely true, Alpha. You’ve worked your ass off since the first day you stepped foot on the deck of the Valiant Knox, going above and beyond to protect both the people on board and the pilots you flew with. I’m not making any promises because my influence isn’t what it used to be, but I’ll see what I can do to keep her on board. “
He reached up and gripped Yang’s forearm, finding it a little hard to breathe through the emotion surging through him. “Thank you, sir.”
Yang nodded and stepped back from the gurney. “Now get that rest Ace ordered. I need you in fighting form and back on deck ASAP.”
As Yang stepped toward the curtain where Bren still stood waiting and silent throughout the conversation, the last conversation he’d had with his CO surfaced in his mind about the lieutenant coming to review Yang’s command. Is that what the commander had meant when he said he didn’t have as much influence these days?
“Sir, what about your situation?”
His question brought Yang up short, and the commander glanced back over his shoulder.
“I called in just about every damn marker anyone in the upper echelons of the UEF owed me and managed to get a stay of execution, that’s all.” Yang sent him a short, grim smile. “They’re reviewing the decision to review my command. If that’s not the best example of the UEF’s bureaucratic BS, I don’t know what is.”
“What does it mean in the long run?”
“It means I’m on the clock and time is running out. Eventually the review will go ahead. The revelation that we’ve got traitors in our ranks has rattled some cages, and the sentiment is that the Knox may no longer be a secure asset.”
“And just what do the men upstairs think the answer to that might be?” Even as he asked the question, he got the cold sense that he already knew the answer.
“Best-case scenario, I’m removed from command and the new CO they bring in strips down and restructures the entire crew. Worst case scenario, they pull the Knox out for redeployment in a noncombative system.”
“Either way, we’re screwed.” He swore under his breath. Didn’t seem like much point in worrying about where he or Mia would end up once this review went ahead because in the end, the UEF brass were going to mess with the entire ship. Frustration blustered through him as if he were standing in the hot slipstream of a jet.
“They can’t do that. We’ve been holding this line for years. We’ve lost good men and sweated blood for the cause. If they do this, all they’ll achieve is giving the CSS one more advantage, because whoever they bring in won’t know the fight the way we do—”
“You don’t need to tell me any of that, Leigh. I’m living it every second,” Yang replied quietly.
His aggravation was doused by his chagrin at forgetting, even for a second, that Yang had recently been a CSS POW.
“My apologies, sir.”
Yang held up a hand. “You’re not the one in the wrong, here, but that’s not something I can say outside this room without shoving myself off the crumbling precipice I’m standing on. We’ve got time, Alpha, and I intend to use the full capabilities of this ship and its crew to put a serious dent in the CSS efforts and prove we’re not compromised.”
“Then I’m with you, sir, one hundred percent.” He lifted his arm and gave a crisp salute, despite the aching pull in his shoulder where the gel was healing his flesh.
Yang returned the salute. “Now get some rest, Alpha, and I’ll see what I can do for Wolfe.”
As Yang walked around the curtain, he caught his XO’s gaze. No, not his XO anymore, his CO. Damn, that was going to take some getting used to. Bren took a couple of steps closer to his bed.
“Congratulations, by the way.” He sent Bren a smug grin. “How’s being the CAFF working out for you so far?”
“After losing four recruits on a training flight and then engaging the CSS in a heavy-atmo fight so you could rescue your girlfriend? Just peachy.”
“Don’t let all that power go to your head.” His grin widened as he repeated the words Bren had often spoken to him.
But apparently the new CAFF didn’t see the funny side of it. “Screw you, Alpha. I never wanted this, and you knew it. You could have handed the pins on to Seb.”
“You outrank Seb. And you really want a cowboy like that running the squadron?” He affected an exaggerated shudder. “We’d be reduced to playing beer pong to work out the shift schedule and he’d have us flying missions with no other objective besides poking the hornet’s nest.”
She dropped her gaze with a short sigh. “Yeah, you’re probably right, but I still can’t get my head around it. What if—”
“Theresa Brenner, you will be fine.” He reached over and wrapped a hand around her forearm, giving an encouraging squeeze. “In fact, you’ll do better than fine. You’ll be legendary and I’ll be in the background supporting every step you take.”
“Thanks, but call me Theresa again and I’ll give you a black eye.” She covered his hand with hers for a moment, then moved away. “I better get back. Someone’s got to oversee the last few days of the training program.”
She sent him an unimpressed look to let him know what she thought of yet another of his responsibilities falling to her, then saluted him and left the triage cubicle.
Leigh sank back against the pillows and glanced down at his shoulder, covered in the blue-tinted gel, containing nano tech that healed flesh and left hardly a scar. The wound wasn’t very deep, so the job would be done in maybe half an hour, and then he could see about getting out of here to find Mia so they could go back to his apartment and rest.
Three hours later, Leigh headed up to the dorms, well aware of the looks he was getting as he headed toward Mia’s room. After everything that had happened, he could honestly say he didn’t give a damn about what anyone else thought of him or his relationship with her. It wasn’t anyone’s business how much he loved her. The only thing that mattered was that they’d found each other and both survived Lawler’s and Steve’s betrayals.
He’d barely laid knuckles on the door when the hatchway opened, revealing Kayla. She grinned when she saw him and stepped ba
ck, hastily saluting as he passed.
Mia had been sitting on a nearby bed with Nicka, cards littered across the blankets. Both girls stood as he approached, but before Mia could go saluting him as well, he grabbed her up against him.
“Mind if we go somewhere to talk?”
“There’s still two days of FP training left. Is that a good idea?” Color bloomed on her cheeks, since she and the other two girls could probably guess he didn’t exactly have conversation on his mind—not one featuring many words anyway.
Except he wasn’t going to hide the way he felt about her any longer. He’d done enough of that in recent weeks. Plus, ever since she’d left his triage cubical on med level a few hours ago, an agitated desperation to see her again had been steadily building, as though he needed to make sure once and for all that she was really okay.
“It’s a very good idea.” Yeah, that definitely came out sounding like it had a whole other meaning behind it. He couldn’t help grinning as Kayla and Nicka giggled to themselves. “I’ll explain everything if you come with me.”
“Go on, Mia,” Kayla urged. “All you’ve been doing since you came back here is mope and talk about how worried you were about your man. I don’t know about Nicka, but I’m sick of hearing about it.”
Mia sent her friend an unimpressed look as the two girls laughed again.
“Fine.” She sighed, sounding put out by his request. “But if this gets either of us in trouble, I’m blaming you.”
He leaned in, catching her smart mouth for a quick kiss. “We already established last week that you can blame me for whatever you like.”
He tugged her hand, leading her out of the room as she waved to her friends. Out in the corridor, he tucked her into his side, hoping she wouldn’t be too upset by the stares or whispers going on around them. But if she noticed, she didn’t react as they got on to the transit and he took them down to his apartment.
Once they stepped through the door, Mia seemed to relax, and he hadn’t realized until then how tense she’d actually been. He hated that their relationship was being scrutinized and would probably be the most popular gossip on the ship for a while, but eventually people would get used to seeing them together and the scandal would disappear. He didn’t know what kind of posting Mia would end up with, but he trusted that Yang would do everything in his power to make sure things worked out for them.
“So this is your place, huh?” She actually sounded a little nervous as she stepped away from him, gaze trailing over the photos, medals, and other personal items he had on display.
“Would you like a tour?” He walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and then leaning down to nuzzle her neck. “This is the main room, where you’ll find the usual couch, armchair, and media-screen. Over there is the kitchen. Down the hall to the left is the bathroom and storage. But most importantly—”
He shuffled her into a walk, running his hands over her hips, up her ribs to her breasts as they reached the doorway. She moaned, sinking into him, her ass pressing against his rapidly hardening erection.
“This is the bedroom.” He kissed his way up her neck, and she tilted her head back, giving him easier access to her mouth. He caught her lips in a brief, heady kiss, then pulled away slightly. “You better remember where that is.”
“Maybe you should show me why it’s so important to remember.” An impertinent grin kicked up her lips as she turned in his arms, her fingers going to the fasteners on his shirt.
He bent in and hooked an arm under her legs, then picked her up and carried her over to the bed. But instead of laying her down, he set her on her feet and then took a step back to shrug out of his shirt. His boots and pants came off next, with her watching every move he made, a fascinated gleam in her eyes that made him want to groan.
He sat down on the edge of the bed, setting a hand on each hip to bring her closer. She threaded her fingers through his hair as he started on her shirt, taking his time and enjoying every new sight revealed to him.
Once she was naked, he pulled her on top of him, but she’d hardly settled in his hold before he flipped them, putting her beneath him where he’d dreamed of having her.
For a long second, she stared up at him, her gaze showing him everything she felt in that moment, and it was more than any woman had ever given him. He didn’t know what he’d done to deserve her, but he was going to spend every day being thankful for it.
He leaned down, covering her mouth with his, plunging them into a kiss that flirted with desperation and lured him toward abandoning all sanity. He wanted to get lost in the rapture, and now there wasn’t anything standing between them or holding him back.
One of his hands skimmed down, over her hip, along her thigh to wrap around the back of her knee. He hooked her leg around his waist, tilting her hips up as he pushed forward, her breath catching as he joined them together in a single stroke.
Her hands tightened on him, bringing him in closer as she kissed him more deeply, feeding the frenzied momentum building within him. He soaked in every second of sensation and reveled in the relief of being with her under no pretenses or secrets. More profound than the passion building within him was the emotion that accompanied it. No one had ever made him feel like this before, and as a sense of empowerment filled him, he wanted to get on his knees and succumb to whatever she desired.
She broke the kiss, but her teeth lightly scraped his jaw, sending a hotter surge of ecstasy though him. She kissed her way over to his ear, her fingers tugging his hair with a gentle pressure.
“I love you.” Her words weren’t much more than a breath, but it was the most powerful thing he’d ever heard, taking the last of his restraint and fracturing it into a million pieces he’d never get back.
He pulled her tighter against him, burying his face in her sweet-scented hair as he groaned at the liquid fire of pure euphoria burning through his veins, scorching outward and upward until he was nothing but heated sensation and incandescent emotion.
Mia sighed against his shoulder as he relaxed against her, his limbs becoming heavy even though his heart was still racing. Maybe he was going sappy since he was getting toward midlife-crisis age, but that had been the single most profound moment of his life.
“I love you, too,” he murmured against her neck, and he sensed, more than he saw, her smiling.
“Good. Then you won’t mind if I sleep here for a few hours before I head back to the dorms where everyone stares at me like I’m that girl who slept with the CAFF to get herself through FP training.”
He leaned back, her words effectively killing the buzz he’d been enjoying. “Don’t worry about what anyone else thinks, even if they’re moronic enough to say it to either of our faces. I love you. You’re my everything now, which is why you’re not going back to the dorms. You’re staying here.”
Her brow creased with a concerned expression. “Is that allowed?”
“Its fine, Mia. So quit stressing over it. Close your eyes and get some sleep so you can get through the last two days of the program.”
He pressed a kiss into her forehead, before pushing up and going to sit on the edge of the bed to retrieve his clothes.
“Wait, where are you going?”
He yanked up his pants and then leaned over to kiss her one more time, while pulling the blanket up to cover her. “I’ve got a few things to take care of. I’ll be back in a little while.”
She nodded, yawning as she rolled over and settled under the covers, looking too perfect all curled up in his bed. He shook his head at himself and stooped down to collect his shirt before he could start getting any ideas about joining her.
He needed to go check in with Seb. He hadn’t found the chance to really talk to the guy since the truth had come out about Lawler. Plus, he needed to write a report for Bren and Yang about what had gone down with Steve while the details were still fresh in his mind. He might not be the CAFF anymore, but he still had duties to attend.
Epilogue
&
nbsp; “You risked yourself to save him?”
Mia glanced up from the ebook she’d been reading as Leigh dropped his datapad on the cushions next to her.
After he’d left his apartment the evening before, she’d had a nap and then helped herself to his shower. She’d even decided that she might as well help herself to his clean clothes before she’d gone into the kitchen and fixed herself a snack. She was hungry, but besides the fact that she didn’t want to face the crowded messdeck and the probable stares aimed her way, she was loath to leave the comfy confines of Leigh’s apartment. Especially since he’d said he’d be back soon. But soon had turned out to be midnight, and by then she’d returned to his bed and had fallen into a light doze. She’d only been half awake when he’d climbed in with her, and she’d let him make love to her in a relaxed, sleepy way that still had her tingling at the memory of it.
When she’d woken up in the morning, he’d already left to report for duty, while she’d hurried back up to the dorms to get changed for the day’s session. Lieutenant Brenner had taken the entire day’s classes, and though people were talking about Leigh and her, they shut up real quick whenever she got too close. Eventually, she’d forced Kayla and Nicka to tell her that the rumors claimed Leigh had been demoted from the CAFF because of her. It was exactly what she’d been afraid of, and guilt had eaten away at her all day. She’d tried to cheer herself up with the reminder that it could have been worse, he could have been sent to the ground. But that hadn’t really helped.
After class, she’d made her escape and retreated back to his apartment, the only place she could think to wait for him, since she had no idea what he’d been doing all day or what his new posting might entail. Seeing him walk through the door a few moments ago had sent a definite sense of relief washing through her.
Damage Control (Valiant Knox) Page 31