“You have no idea who or what I am, little girl,” Bryce said.
“Timeout.” Jake refilled her glass. “We’re supposed to be having a good time. Fight Club is tomorrow night.” He turned to Candy. “There’s a good chance we won’t be using you. Nothing personal. We’re trying to stay off the radar.”
“It’s cool.” Candy looked at Bryce. Who looked like he was about to explode. Time for her to get back to her friends. She stood and raised her glass in a mock toast. “Thanks for the drink. I’ll leave you gentleman to your evening.”
With a grace that would have shocked anyone that knew her, Candy walked away from what could have been her biggest mistake. Her life had never been perfect or easy, and like everyone else, she’d made her share of mistakes. Even so, if life had a reset button that could only be used once, she would use it to erase her kiss with Bryce..
She skirted around couples and dodged drunks. And if anyone asked her to describe the cowboy she bumped into, they’d be out of luck. Unfortunately, her mind was filled with a certain gray-eyed captain. That kiss was one for the record books, to be filed away for use far in the future.
Maybe it was a good thing Bryce turned out to be a giant tool. It was a reminder of her purpose, to kick ass and take names as one of the newest Night Stalkers. By the time she reached her friends at the bar, Captain Asshole and his dangerous lips were a distant memory.
“So, what did I miss?” Candy slid onto her stool and grinned at her friends’ befuddled looks. She raised a palm to each of them. “Stop. Before you start your interrogation, nothing happened. He wanted me to meet the rest of the team.”
“Bullshit,” Dara coughed into her hand.
“Trust me, that man wanted something, and it sure as hell wasn’t an introduction.” Frieda tried unsuccessfully to hide her grin behind her mug.
“For what it’s worth, you need to get over your aversion to dating your peers. I get not wanting to shit where you eat. I sure as hell don’t either.” Dara squeezed Candy’s hand. “But if you’re discreet or become a giant ho bag, no one is going to judge you.”
“Are you done with the I-am-woman-hear-me-roar speech? I want to get to the good part.” Frieda shimmied on her stool, grinning like a lunatic. “Don’t ask how, but we have a free beach house at Bay St. Louis beach for the weekend. You in?”
“Do you even have to ask?” Something that didn’t include the Army sounded right up her alley. “When do we leave?”
“Excuse me, ladies.” Bryce grinned at Dara and Frieda. “Murphy, something came up. We need you this weekend.”
Chapter 5
Nothing filled Candy’s life with fire quite like reaching between her legs and grabbing the cyclic stick. Holding the helicopter steady with her right hand, she keyed the headset mike with the left. “Okay, boys, make sure you’re strapped in tight. I don’t want you breaking a nail.” She glanced at her copilot—none other than Captain Asshole himself.
Renault gave her a thumbs-up. “The kids are tucked in.”
She wasn’t sure what kind of magic Renault worked to get himself the left seat, but he handled the MH-6, also known as the Little Bird, with a deft hand. Mister Special Forces may have been a badass everywhere else, but the air was her playground. Behind the controls, she’d never been uncertain, scared, or unsure.
She looked at the instrument panel, flipped a switch, then cranked up the music. Cold War Kids pumped through her headset, shutting out the world and narrowing her focus to the instrument panel and the landscape. Most of the other pilots liked the big boys—Chinooks and Black Hawks. They were okay, but for her, it was like comparing a Porsche to an Escalade. For her, deft and small beat out brawn.
“Yeah, baby.” She eased the stick forward, allowing her to follow the contours of the lush low-lying hills. The lack of a love life wasn’t the only reason they called her Ice Chip. Once she zipped her flight suit, she had the cold focus of an assassin.
After she increased her altitude and leveled out, she keyed the private channel to her copilot. “Glad to see your kept your lunch down.”
“Takes more than that to make me sick.”
She glanced at Bryce. Big mistake. Every time she thought she knew who and what he was, Renault switched it up. The morning briefing was interesting. A cool, clean-shaven professional reported for duty, and she treated him as such.
“You want to take over the stick?” She enjoyed this civility. It made missing the beach less of a hardship.
“I’m good. I’ll take it on the way home.” He watched her, as if seeing her for the first time.
“Roger that.” She gave him a small smile.
The next few minutes were filled with tower communications and preparations for landing.
Bryce made the landing warning, and she focused on the landing zone. With one hundred feet to the LZ, she hovered for a few seconds, then sat her bird down with barely a bump.
Any landing she and her cargo walked away from was good, but that had to be in her top five. Methodically, she shut the rotors and engine down, and she and Captain Renault completed the checklist. After unsnapping her seatbelt, she shifted in the cramped seat to check on the six men unstrapping and hopping out of the side doors.
“Another fan-fucking-tastic day at the office.” She performed her ritual of kissing two fingers then touching them to the instrument panel.
“Murphy.” Bryce unplugged his headset and bundled the cord.
“What’s up, Captain?” She shifted in the tiny seat, wondering for the thousandth time how men Bryce’s size dealt with the cramped space.
“Call me Renault. After work, I’d prefer Bryce.”
“Yes, sir.” She opened her door, slid out, and looked over to find him staring. “Was there something else?” She barely bit off his rank, but if he chose to make an effort, she could do no less.
“Nice job.”
“Thank you.” She laughed, and his always serious face relaxed, reminding her why she tried to climb him like a maypole. “That’s the most fun I’ve had in a while.”
“I can’t say the same.” He unhooked his harness and slid his long legs out of the other door.
Okay… No way was she unpacking that comment. Instead, she pulled her cover out of her side pocket and put it on, and looked around the small reserve base near the Tennessee/ North Carolina border.
“You remind me of a feral cat,” he said before closing the door and giving it a pat.
“I’ll accept that as a compliment. Little kitties can be just as dangerous as the big dogs.”
Chapter 6
“No way in hell would I go to the field as short as you guys are.”
Bryce shrugged at Captain Myers, the National Guard liaison. “You know how it is, having our last little bit of fun on Uncle Sam’s dime.” He looked over to find Murphy laughing with Jake and the others.
“Whatever you say.” Myers crossed his arms and chuckled. “I spent my last days of active duty chasing women, not adventure.” He followed Bryce’s gaze. “Well damn… The way she fills out her flight suit, she’d be more than welcome to accompany me and my team to a secluded spot in the wilderness.”
“I guess.” The scent of Myers’ twisted lust made Bryce stare at the man he’d thought was a straight-up guy. “The only thing I give a shit about is that she’s a damned good pilot.”
“Right… Like you didn’t notice.” Murphy chose that moment to turn her back to Bryce, and Myers made a grunt of appreciation. “Once you guys are done with her, I might see if she can come here for a little TDY.”
“Later.” If Bryce stood next to this shit-stain one more second, he’d kill the bastard. “Thanks for the assist.” He walked away, not wanting to tarnish the professional relationship between their commands. But doing so left a bad taste in his mouth. The farther he moved away from Myers, the more disgusted Bryce grew—with himself.
He stopped, turned around and jogged back to Myers. “FYI, I ever hear you touched Murphy or any othe
r woman without her consent, I’ll bury you.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“Ab-so-fucking-lutely.” Bryce jogged across the parking lot, needing to put space between him and Myers.
“Murphy, you’re with me.” Bryce paused ten feet away. With his nerves already on edge, the last thing he needed was to learn she’d focused her attention elsewhere.
“She and I have some logistics—” Jake started.
“Later, Lieutenant.” Bryce had to dig deep to keep from baring his teeth.
Despite wanting to maim Myers during their chat, Bryce hadn’t failed to notice the play of light on Murphy’s subtle lip gloss, or the flash of dimple as she laughed with Jake. Watching those two made Bryce uncomfortable.
Yeah, he was jealous.
“It’s cool.” Murphy nudged Jake’s arm. “We can work the rest out later.” She looked at Bryce, and the warmth she shared with Jake and the guys was replaced by cool professionalism.
Bryce tossed Murphy a set of keys. “The pickup, and I’m keeping the left seat.”
“Aye, aye, Captain.”
Jake watched Murphy hop into the passenger side of the truck with the gear, and slammed the door. Then he turned to Bryce and asked, “What the hell?”
“You didn’t come home last night.” There, he said it. Bryce could also admit it ate at him that Murphy spent an entire day with a man capable of charming the scales off a snake. Why the hell wouldn’t she want Jake?
He was everything Bryce would never be.
“So you’re my keeper now?” Jake hooked a thumb in his pocket. “You’re about to piss me off. If you have something to say...”
“Stay away from Murphy.”
“What, are you…jealous?” Jake laughed. It wasn’t a little chuckle but a you’ve-lost-your-mind guffaw. When his laughter finally faded, he exhaled. “If she were even slightly interested, I’d go there, and I’d satisfy her like no man ever had.”
If Jake continued imagining Bryce’s mate naked, friend or not, he’d have to plant his fist in the asshole’s face.
“But I’d walk the fuck away, when we were done, and she’d be none the wiser about what I really am. If you can’t do that, then you’re the one who should stay away from her.”
“For you?” For the second time in less than ten minutes, Bryce felt feral.
“No, you still don’t get it, do you?” Jake backed away slowly, his face somber. “The only man she sees is you. If you care about her as much as I suspect, then you need to stop this dangerous game for her sake.”
He didn’t argue, or stop Jake from leaving. How could he, when everything the younger man said was true?
Murphy belonged in his bed, and maybe even his life. But his world held no place for a human woman. Life was difficult for an alpha’s mate. Without the ability to defend herself…that would be cruel, selfish, and most likely deadly.
The last few days had made him realize how easily he could fall in love with the woman fate chose for his mate. Not only did he need to claim her body, but he wanted it all. Life with her would be filled with adventure, laugher, fighting, and plenty of hot makeup sex.
And now, they’d have none of that, because he had to ensure she walked away hating him, because for the first time in his life, he was too weak to say no.
Chapter 7
“Lieutenant Murphy, is there a problem?” Renault spun around, walking as gracefully backward as he did forward, and not one drop of sweat glistened on his brow.
“No, sir.” She didn’t bother smiling, that would have taken too much energy. “It’s only ten miles, no problem.” And it wouldn’t have been had it not been mostly uphill. Instead of focusing on her burning thighs, she stared at the shadows the leaves painted on the dirt trail.
Wherever they were making camp had better be worth it.
Somewhere between landing and the short drive, Captain Renault—who from this day forward would be called Lucifer—decided why drive when they could hump ten miles? Buttwipe.
Well, at least she wasn’t alone in her surprise or annoyance. Like seriously, who does that? Since she wasn’t a complete moron, she would have packed differently had she known a hump was in her future.
“Give me the radio.” Shane, who’d been bringing up the rear, walked up beside her and tugged on the strap of her pack.
“No, I’m good.” Never had she been under the impression that life was fair, but really? Why was she the only one sweating?
“Bullshit.” He shortened his strides and shook his head. “At least let me take some of the ammo off your hands.”
“I can’t let him win.” Shane really was a handsome man, with streaks of pale blond in his newly trimmed beard. Why couldn’t she have been attracted to him? He was sane—and nice. “But I do appreciate it.”
“No problem. We only have another couple of miles to go.” He laughed at her horrified expression.
“Do you think I’d spend much time in the brig for hitting him in the back of the head with one of these ammo belts?” She stepped over a log, and looked up to find not just Shane but also Jake grinning. “Oops, did I use my outside voice?”
“Yeah,” Bryce yelled over his shoulder, “you did.” He glared first at Shane, then her.
Crap.
She scrunched her face and sighed. There was no winning with that man, and she had no idea what she’d done to push him over the edge. Although Renault hadn’t said it, she had a feeling this little hike was to prove a point. When she peeked back up at Shane, he gave her a conspiratorial wink.
“You got this.” Shane nodded and pumped his massive fists.
“Obviously this is too easy for you ladies. Why don’t we pick up the pace?” Bryce jogged off, never looking back.
And she would know, because she watched his back until he disappeared into the trees. If she wasn’t struggling under the sixty pounds of gear on her back, and the twenty of ammo, she’d be good. Oh, she had no illusions that she could outrun and outfight these guys, but she’d be able to hold her own.
“What crawled up his ass?” Jake stopped walking and sat on a tree stump to wait for Candy and Shane. “Murphy, what the hell happened in that truck? He’s lost his damned mind.”
If misery loved company, then hers was dancing a jig. “Absolutely nothing. Can’t blame this one on me.” She eyed the stump longingly, but knew if she sat down, moving wouldn’t happen for a couple of hours. “Maybe he’s going through male menopause or something.”
The three of them laughed. Her gear may not be lighter, but at least her psyche improved.
“Give me one of those ammo belts.” Before she could argue, he peered up the trail and back at her. “Look, there’s no shame in accepting help.”
“It means a lot, but…” Both Jake and Shane had no idea how much she wanted to take them up on their offer, to be soft for just one moment, but she couldn’t. That was one luxury she hadn’t been afforded in years. Trying to live up the label of strong black woman was exhausting.
“I get it.” He looked over at Shane. “Man, can you give us a minute?” Once Shane left, Jake stepped closer and lowered his voice. “If anyone out here understands where you’re coming from, it’s me.”
“Then you know it’s better if I tough it out. I can handle it.” What she couldn’t handle was the sympathy in his and Shane’s eyes. In a perverted way, she preferred Renault’s disdain.
“You know what? I believe you. I know you had to be better than everyone to get into Night Stalker training.” He paused, slapped his hands on his thighs and stood. “You’re tough, I respect that.”
“Thank you.” That pity she thought she saw in his slightly up-tilted eyes was gone, and her throat felt thick. He was a good guy. The two of them spent yesterday working out logistics, and staging their gear and trucks at the National Guard base. They laughed and joked, and not once did she get the vibe that he was hitting on her. Quite the contrary, she watched him walk off into the sunset with a cute little brunette.
“That means a lot coming from you.”
“Until you slit Captain Asshole’s throat in his sleep, you’re part of our team. The first rule about being on a team—”
“Is you don’t talk about the team?” she interrupted.
“No, smartass.” He nudged her shoulder with his. “You accept help when it’s offered.” He raised a finger. “We don’t have time for this shit right now. We’re getting behind. I have no idea what the hell you were thinking wearing new boots, and I’m not going to ask.” He removed both ammo straps, placing one on himself, and holding the other out to Shane. “Suck it up, buttercup. Survive to fight another day.”
“You guys are the best.” Saying too much would be awkward and tear inducing. Not a good look for her.
“You’re not so bad yourself.” Shane batted his eyes, slung the belt across his body, and took off running.
“Ready?” Jake asked with a nod.
She reached out and grabbed his hand. “Thank you.”
“I told you yesterday, the Army is privileged to have you, and so are we.” He squeezed her hand.
It would have been nice to have a big brother. If she could create a couple, she imagined they’d be a lot like Jake and Shane. Standing there, truly seeing Jake, she realized that his attractiveness had nothing to do with his face. He was kind, funny, and—
“This is the Army, not the dating game.”
She turned to see Renault standing in the trees, staring down at their hands. She stepped back, annoyed that he’d made a simple gesture of affection seem like she’d been ready to give Jake a blowjob.
Instead of being angry at Renault, she should thank him. Any tender feelings or latent romantic notions were dead.
She pulled her big girl panties on, turned to Jake and grinned. “Okay, Song, let’s do this.” She jogged past Renault, pretending he didn’t exist. Which had become her truth traveling these last torturous miles. Even if she ran until her feet were stumps, she’d never give him the satisfaction of quitting.
Shifter's Choice Page 3