His phone dinged again. Looking at the time on his alarm clock, he tried to reason who would text him this late. It was after ten.
Carl: I found Jess’ alert roster. U want UR girls digits?
There was no fucking way Conrad was going to pass this opportunity up.
Conrad: Fuck ya! Send it!!
Carl: FYI, U didnt get from me!
Conrad: No shit
When the number came through on his phone. Conrad sent a message of thanks, then added Addie’s contact into his phone. Hell yeah. Now, he could go to sleep. Tossing his phone on the night table, Conrad pulled the black sheet and comforter over him and rolled over and let sleep take him into dreams of Addie Marshall.
Chapter Six
Addie woke up the next morning sore as all get out. She had stayed up past midnight packing up her apartment. She was going to tackle the kitchen tonight after work. She’d talked to her mom and dad about her new apartment as she packed. They had certainly approved that she was moving to a more mainstream place and not the old rundown apartment complex she was in now. Right before she got off the phone with her mom though, her dad had popped on real quick to say that he’d hired one of those companies that would move you as long as you packed everything up. That took care of that problem!
Walking under the hot spray of the shower, Addie thought about everything that she still had left to pack and was secretly happy that it was Friday. She’d get take-out on the way home and continue packing until most of it was done. For now though, she had to make it through the day. Her appointments were pretty steady during the afternoon, but her morning was open solid. After soaping up and getting her hair washed, she rinsed quickly and jumped out of the shower, toweling dry as she went.
Mentally prepping her closet packing that was going to be easy. She pulled out a pair of black skinny pants and a white button down and her red suede pumps. Perfect, she thought. She got dressed and made her way to the bathroom where she flipped her head upside down and only partially dried it, or her hair looked like a total frizz bomb. Sliding some mousse into her hair, she threw on some light makeup and headed back into her bedroom.
Sweet Jesus, she thought as she looked at her analogue clock on the bedside table. She had time to stop at Starbucks and get a huge coffee and a danish. Grabbing her phone, she made her way toward the front door picking up her purse along the way.
As her computer booted up, Talia stuck her head around the corner of Addie’s cubicle.
“Hey boss lady.” Talia said with a smile.
“Don’t go there Tal.” Addie warned smiling. “I’m just a ‘lead’ in the whole scheme of things.” Addie made the air quotes. “But the pay raise is wicked.”
“I’ll bet.” Talia looked down the hall into Claymore’s office. “So, Claymore mine is in a meeting.” She rested up against the wall of Addie’s cubicle now. “Is it true he’s moving up or what?”
“Nope.” Jessica’s bubbly response came from behind Talia, startling her and Addie.
“Girl, how many times do I have to tell you not to scare a woman?” Talia brought her arm around Jessica, bringing her closer. “Now tell us what you know.” She smiled conspiratorially.
“His last eval was complete shit.” Jessica whispered. “Apparently Mr. Monroe wasn’t happy with a few customer comment cards about his attitude. That and remember when Helen took the day off when her husband came home injured from Afghanistan? Apparently she had scheduled training that Claymore said she couldn’t miss? He wrote her up for it and her husband went ballistic and called the head cheese Mr. Glenview.”
“Holy shit.” Addie whispered. “I didn’t know he wrote her up.”
“What a dick.” Talia added.
“There’s also a rumor going around that Claymore’s wife is having an affair with some E-6.” Jessica whispered even more quiet. “He’s been staying at the hotel on post using the Veteran rate.”
“No!” Both Addie and Talia exclaimed at once.
“Ladies…would you mind telling me why there is no one up front?”
Claymore.
And thankfully he was standing in the doorway to the cubicle farm, several feet away.
“We were just congratulating Addie on her promotion.” Jessica said all bubbly again. “Taking Addie to Lunch next week.” And then she practically flounced away.
“You need help moving tomorrow?” Talia asked as Claymore walked by giving her a stern look that said ‘she needed to get back to her desk.’
“Nah. Dad hired one of those you-pack-it-we-haul-it companies.” Addie leaned over in her chair to make sure that Claymore had went into his office. “When I went upstairs yesterday to sign my paperwork from Mr. Monroe…he told Claymore to make sure that I had access to everything.”
Talia’s eyebrows went up and she pursed her lips. “Maybe he’s on his way out.” She whispered. “I better get to my jail cell before I’m on my way out.” She laughed and went back to her cubicle.
Spending the rest of her morning looking at different decorating ideas for her new apartment, she was caught by surprise when she heard his voice again.
“I don’t think Uncle Sam would approve of you getting paid to surf the internet on a government computer Miss Marshall.” Conrad smiled brightly, not waiting for an invitation, he came into her cubicle and took a seat in the chair by her desk.
“Well I don’t think Uncle Sam would approve of you coming in here wasting my time while you are supposed to be…hell, I don’t know…teaching soldiers the art of war or something.” Addie minimized the screen on her computer and sat back with her arms across her chest.
“Is it not your job to service the soldiers that come in here Miss Marshall?” Conrad grinned.
Addie had to think for a moment. He was baiting her.
“So it would seem that you think I am here to indulge in your every whim.” There, that should work.
“And Uncle Sam is paying you to do it.” He shook his head. “What are you doing for lunch?”
“I was going to get a fat, greasy burger with fries and mayonnaise.” She looked at the time on her computer. “And I only have twenty five more minutes to wait.”
“Oh good. I love a greasy hamburger. Although, I’ll forego the mayonnaise.” He leaned back into the chair and propped his right ankle on his left knee. “We can wait together.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Addie put her hands up. “You can’t wait here.”
“Why not.”
“Well….first of all, I’m supposed to be working. Not socializing.”
“You were just looking at Kirkland’s website.” Conrad shrugged. “That isn’t working.”
“But…uh…” Addie couldn’t think of a good rebuttal, so she sat up straighter in her chair and scooted closer to her desk and brought up the Kirkland’s website screen and browsed the site.
The two of them were quiet. Addie looking at the computer. Conrad looking at Addie. This went on for about ten minutes until Claymore opened his door and announced that everyone would leave twenty minutes early for lunch. Then he went back inside his office and closed the door.
Addie didn’t move. But Conrad did. He stood up, reached over for her ID card and pulled it out of the slot, effectively locking her computer, then looked at her picture on it and slid it in his ACU pants pocket.
“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth sugar.” He grinned wickedly. “I get twenty extra minutes with me. I know just the greasy burger joint to go to.”
“Oh no you don’t.” Addie shook her head. “I don’t want to have to run into another of your big blonde, big boobed friends.”
“Well, they don’t eat shit like that, so you don’t have to worry.” Conrad supplied for her.
“So what does that say about me?” She put her hands on her hips and gave him an indignant look.
Conrad stepped closer to her so that he was mere inches away, then he leaned down in her face.
“It means Miss Marshall, that you have a healthy ap
petite and nothing more. Besides, I like a woman with a healthy appetite. Don’t read into it.”
He continued to stare at her, even when she couldn’t come up with a smart answer.
“Fine.” Addie whispered. “I’m hungry. Can you not stare at me please.” It came out as a statement rather than a question.
“Why? Do I make you nervous?”
Addie just squinted her eyes at him in annoyance. “No.”
“Fine.” He whispered back. “Why are we whispering anyway?”
“Ugh.” Addie threw her hands up and turned to get her purse and phone and led Conrad out of the building.
She stopped when she got to the parking lot, not knowing where he was parked. So, Conrad had put his hand gently on her lower back and led her toward his truck. Once again, he let her go and hit the key fob and got in on his side, then reached over and hit the latch for her door and pushed it open with a smile on his face. Addie decided that one of these days she wasn’t going to get in and walk to her car. But until then, it was the kind of thing that they did.
Conrad had asked Addie where this greasy burger joint was, so she’d told him, He knew the place and was impressed that she’d heard about it. He went there every once in a while with a few of his friends after softball. It was a great place to sit and have a burger and get some great home brew while they talked about the game and watched one of the many TVs that always had a sport on. Pulling into the parking lot, he noticed that it was busy, but if she wanted a burger, he’d make sure she got one.
“So, what kind of burger do you like?” Conrad asked looking down at the menu after they’d been seated and ordered unsweet tea.
“I’m simple. Meat, cheese, lettuce and mayo.” She answered. “Oh and those french fried onion thingys.”
“Thingys?” Conrad laughed, looking over his menu at Addie. “You mean fried onion straws?”
“Exactly.” Addie smiled.
“Hey Sergeant Renner.”
You have got to be fucking kidding…A Susan Townes look alike. In uniform no less. Her blonde hair pulled back in a perfect bun, not a hair out of place. Big boobs that strained the zipper of her uniform. And that wasn’t the only part of her uniform that was straining.
Conrad looked at Addie for a moment, then up to the young blonde. “Hey Lisa.”
“So, I heard that you are going to scene with Susan this Saturday.” Lisa, had a soft southern lilt to her, unlike Susan, who had a natural southern accent.
“I was yes.” Was all he’d said.
“Want to make it a double header?” She threw her hip out and palmed it with her left hand, which was, by the way, perfectly manicured.
Addie was sick to her stomach. She was actually excited to hear that none of his…conquests…came here, only to be faced by one. Boldly ignoring the fact that she was sitting there. Seriously, were all of these subs like this? Or just the ones that were after Conrad?
Pissed off to no end now, Addie cleared her throat getting Conrad and Lisa’s attention.
“Oh. I’m sorry.” Lisa put her hand up to her chest now, “I didn’t even see you there.”
“Yeah, right.” She pursed her lips in annoyance. “Do you have his number…Sergeant Conley?” Addie asked looking at Lisa’s rank and name tape.
Lisa brightened into a big grin. “Why yes. Yes I do.”
“Good.” Addie smiled. “Then you can call him and discuss whatever it is you want from him. Right now, we’re having lunch. And you are interrupting.”
Keeping the smile on her face, she just looked at Lisa until the girl’s mouth fell open and pointed to her while she looked at Conrad as if he would just let Addie talk to her that way. Conrad, feeling rather amused, just shrugged, trying not to laugh.
“Lunch.” Was all he’d said.
“Did you have something else to say to me?” Addie asked sweetly.
Lisa huffed and walked up to Conrad and grabbed his face with both hands and laid a kiss on his lips. Addie couldn’t see if he was kissing her back or not because she was sitting across from him. But it didn’t last more than about a half a minute. Then Lisa smirked at Addie and rubbed Conrad’s bottom lip to swipe away the gloss and walked away to join a few other female soldiers at another table. Conrad sat there with a big shit eating grin on his face.
“Excuse me.” She said and got up. When Conrad went to ask her a question, she just raised a hand at him to stop.
“I just need a moment.” She said and made her way to the ladies room.
Walking up to the sink, she saw through the mirror that Lisa had walked in behind her. Great. Just what she fucking needed. One of Conrad’s little groupies to hound her. Let the shenanigans begin.
“You’re Addie, right?” Lisa started, as she made her way next to her at the sinks.
Addie just stared at Lisa through the mirror until she was standing next to her. Pulling a few paper towels from the dispenser, she dried her hands and really looked at the girl that came to hound her. Lisa was pretty. Blonde hair, gorgeous, big, light blue eyes, and a figure to die for. So what the fuck did Conrad want with her?
“Let me guess.” Addie begin, as she crossed her arms over her chest. “You came to warn me off Conrad, is that right?” The other girl said nothing. “So, let me just inform you, like I informed the other blonde bimbo that we aren’t together. We are just friends having lunch.”
“Bimbo?” Lisa laughed. “Honey, let me just tell you something right now okay?” She lifted a finger and waived it around at Addie. “Nobody goes after my Dom without me getting all up in her face.”
“Well, let me be more direct. Get your fucking finger out of my face, before I shove it up your ass. I’m not in your scene, I don’t want to be in your scene. Okay? We are having lunch. A lunch that he picked me up for. I didn’t ask him. Okay.” Addie secured the strap to her purse on her shoulder a little more.
“Well then it won’t bother you that I was with him last night at the Messo.” Lisa said haughtily.
Addie walked to the bathroom door and turned around smiling. “I…don’t give a flying fuck.” Smiling, she walked out.
Well, that was certainly un-nerving. Not the way she’d envisioned her lunch hour going. Looking around, Addie saw a few guys that worked with her father in a nearby booth and decided that she couldn’t stomach any more of this bullshit.
First Lieutenant James was a good guy and had flirted shamelessly with Addie on several occasions when she’d gone to see her dad or when there was a function they both attended. He’d said that if she needed anything, to let him know, he felt that he owed her father a debt that he could never repay because of the tutelage and friendship Sergeant Major Marshall extended him. She hatched a plan and was ready to execute. She’d piss Conrad off, but at this point, having his subbie groupies come after her in the ladies bathroom, she didn’t give a shit.
“Hey Addie. What’s up darlin?” Tony’s Texan drawl was usually really sexy. But she wasn’t feeling it right now.
“Tony, could you do me a favor and take me back to work. I’m not feeling really well.”
“You okay honey?” He asked, nodding over to Conrad’s with his chin. “Isn’t he going to mind?”
“Um. No. He’s waiting for a few friends.” She didn’t look back at Conrad. She was just hoping that Tony would help her before Conrad turned around and saw her walk out with him. “I didn’t want to inconvenience him. I don’t want to inconvenience you either….but…”
“That’s okay darlin. Come on.” He had an inkling of what was going on. He’d seen the blonde girl approach the table and then go into the ladies room after Addie. She was watching them from her table now. He got up from the table, shook hands with a few of his friends, slid his beret on and took her hand and walked out the door to his car.
Chapter Seven
“Well, well, well.” Lisa stood by the table again.
Conrad looked up a little annoyed that she was trying to take advantage again.
“W
hat do you want Lisa?” Conrad asked a bit annoyed now. He set down his menu.
“Oh nothing. Just thought I’d come and keep you company since your lunch date decided to ditch you. Where did you find her anyway? Ew.” She slid into Addie’s seat and looked down, turning the pages of the menu.
“She went to the latrine.”
“No she didn’t.”
She looked out the window hoping that she gave Addie time to get in the car with that Lieutenant that she’d approached. Thinking that this was her opportunity, Lisa, had walked over and slid into the seat across from him hoping to get more face time. No one could pin Conrad Renner down. And from talking to Susan, this Addie person, was the same girl that she’d described to her. The same one that Conrad was out to lunch with before. Why was she getting so much face time?
“What do you mean?” Conrad asked, confused.
Lisa just pointed out into the parking lot as she gave Conrad a mock frown, sticking out her bottom lip.
Conrad stood up and saw Addie get into a black Audi sports car with a lieutenant closing the door behind her. Then he went to his side and slid in. Conrad couldn’t move. The tint was dark so he couldn’t make out Addie’s face through the windshield, but he, he was pissed. What the fuck happened? Then he looked down at Lisa.
“What did you say to her to make her leave?” He growled as he leaned across the table getting into her face.
“I didn’t say anything. I went to my table after I left here.” She looked down at the table. “I saw her get up and go to his table. She said that she didn’t want to have lunch with you because you only wanted her to be you’re submissive. That you’d dismiss her if she couldn’t handle your regular subs coming to just say hello.”
“What the fuck.” He was good and pissed now.
The waitress took that moment to come over and ask if he was ready to order. He looked at Lisa, then and the waitress, straightened up, pulled out his wallet, slipped her a ten dollar bill and walked out to his truck.
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