The Grunt
Page 13
“What’s up, First Sergeant?” he asked, looking at the company commander’s closed door. “Has the new guy arrived, yet?” The conversation lingered on informal but still could pass the grade.
“He’s in there,” First Sergeant said, sipping on his coffee. He never bothered to look up from his cell phone. Moving his thumb slowly, he chuckled and returned a text.
“Who is it?” Brett asked, trying to pull the man’s attention from his phone.
“David Lawless. Colonel Lawless’s clone. Looks just like him. Speaks just like him. Probably thinks just like him. But I think he’s going to be alright. He seems to know his shit. Might be a little moto at first though.” Moto was the grunts’ way of identifying people who were excessively motivated about their jobs, and it was no compliment.
“So, he’s not a boot?” Brett asked.
“Nope. Like I said, he knows his shit, Staff Sergeant.” First Sergeant turned his back to Brett and started to text his wife again. If he had not been preoccupied, he would have surely seen Brett go pale.
What kind of shit storm was he headed into now? He had managed to stay under the radar so far, but with another one of Courtney’s family members so close, he was bound to be found out sooner or later. Courtney had told him that she hadn’t told her father his last name or the unit that he belonged to, but the entire situation still made him uneasy. Plus, now that they were in a serious relationship, sleeping together every single night and living together in his house, when her family did find out, they would swear that was his primary intention anyway.
The company commander’s door swung open and Lawless stepped out with a clipboard in his hand and scowl on his face. “Morning, Staff Sergeant Black,” Lawless said, reading Brett’s name tape.
Brett turned towards him and sized him up. “Morning, sir.”
Captain Lawless walked up to him and did the same. He had read Black’s file. He was an impeccable Marine and up for promotion soon, if he played his cards right, considering he was already a Gunny-select. He was an excellent marksman, a great man in the field, a decorated OEF and OIF vet and seemed to be made of the right kind of stuff to lead his unit. Evidently, the Staff Sergeant had lost some Marines in his last tour but had managed to save several by calling in an airstrike during an ambush up in the hills of Afghanistan. He also had read that Black was one of the Marines who had recently lost his wife in that incredible plane crash and was taking care of a child by himself. He found that commendable.
“Muster for accountability at 5:45 before PT,” Lawless said to the First Sergeant as he looked down at his watch.
“Yes, sir,” First Sergeant said, finally putting away his cell. He stood up behind his desk, looked over at Brett and walked away. Like he said, the guy was moto.
***
After a long day at the base with the new company officer, Brett could barely make it to the truck. Throwing his gear in the back as the heat beat down on him, he jumped up in the truck, slammed the door and headed out. Removing his cover, he didn’t even have to look to know that he had that horrible tan around the rim again. Blasting the air, he turned on his radio, hit song 3 on his Kung-Foo Fighters CD and floored it out of Camp Lejeune.
Taking a detour to a local Jacksonville bar that he often frequented, he met Joe for a quick drink. It had been a while and when Joe saw him actually walk inside, he raised his beer and laughed.
“I didn’t think you would make it,” Joe said, passing him a beer.
“Hell, I didn’t think I was going to make it either,” Brett said, sitting down on the stool beside Joe. The chilled beer felt good against his skin, but he knew that it would feel even better going down his throat. He downed it quickly and ordered another.
“So Alpha Company got Baby Lawless, huh?” Joe said, turning back around to face the television playing the game in front of them. “Damn, I’m glad to be in Bravo Company now.”
“Baby Lawless?” Joe smirked. He had never heard the nickname but it fit. “This guy had us do a ten-mile run today and then hit the fire range. I thought we were going to be there all day. Then all of a sudden, he looks at his watch, wraps things up and bows out. Hopefully, he has a wife or a girlfriend or something that was as demanding as Amy. Because ugh…” He couldn’t even finish his sentence he was so tired.
“A get-your-ass-home type,” Joe said, shaking his head. “You could never get that lucky. So where in the hell have you been, man? The whole purpose of you getting some help at the house was so that you could actually spend some time outside of it.”
Brett took another sip of his beer and turned to Joe. Lowering his voice, he squinted his eyes. “How long have we been friends?”
Joe shrugged his shoulders. “Shit. Years.”
“So, I need you to keep something between us.”
“Name one person that I’ve ever shared anything with about you?”
“Not even Judy on this one,” Brett demanded.
Joe moved in, knowing whatever Brett was about to share would be juicy. “I’m listening. And I won’t tell Judy.” He wasn’t sure if that was a lie or not, yet. It would depend upon the secret.
Brett sighed. “I’m sleeping and living with Colonel Lawless’s daughter.”
“What happened to the nanny? The Redwood girl from the beach?”
“Redbrook,” Brett corrected. “They are one in the same.”
Joe took a minute to process what Brett had just told him and then ordered another drink as he laughed out loud. “You are severely fucked, my friend. Please tell me that this is just a fling, and no one is going to find out about it.”
“I know it’s only been a few weeks but…”
“Oh, hell no,” Joe said, shaking his head. “Not the L-Word.”
Brett nodded. “I love her.”
“Have you told her?”
“No,” Brett said quickly. “I don’t want to run her off.”
“Does her family know that a white, enlisted grunt is screwing the shit out of her?” If the woman in question had been anyone else, Joe might have laughed. Instead, he narrowed his gaze on his best friend. This was serious.
“No one knows,” Brett answered again.
“Can’t keep it a secret forever,” Joe warned. “Lejeune may be big, but it’s not that big.”
“I know.” Brett looked down at the bar. “I know.”
***
By the time that Brett got home, Courtney and Cameron were fully dressed and about to walk out of the door. As he came into the living room, she greeted him with a kiss on his full mouth that took a few minutes to finish, and then pulled away.
“We’re going to my parents’ house. And we’re running late, so we have to go. I fixed you dinner. It’s on the stove, and I left you a little honey-do list.”
Brett still had her by the waist. “Your honey-do list is never small.”
“Hmm,” she smiled. “Do you want to go with us?”
Brett let her go. “No. I don’t think that’s a good idea.” He looked down at his son, who was faithfully ear-hustling. “Go in the den for a minute,” he ordered Cameron as he bent and kissed the top of his head.
“Brett, we’re going to be late,” Courtney said, looking at her watch.
“This will only take a minute.” When Cameron was out of sight, he turned to Courtney. “David Lawless is my new commanding officer. I met him today.”
Courtney’s eyes widened. “Oh shit.” Sitting on the couch, she dropped her purse. “I am going to dinner tonight to see him.”
Brett sat beside her and rubbed her back. “Baby, this is where we have to begin to tread lightly.”
She looked over at him. “What does that mean? Are you ashamed of me?” Hurt laced her gentle voice.
“No,” Brett said with conviction. He took her hand. “Baby, I am not ashamed of you at all. If anything…” his voice trailed off. He didn’t really want to say what he was about to say either. Instead, he redirected. “I just need some time to ensure that thing
s don’t get too out of control at the base. You don’t know how grunts are. This is considered a major infraction. I mean,” he touched her face, “I have the Colonel’s most precious possession in my hands.” His voice was soothing.
Courtney couldn’t help but smile. “Brett, I have a confession to make. I was holding on to it, because I didn’t want to scare you. But now I know you’re wondering if all of this is worth it. So, I know I need to tell you.”
Brett knew that Courtney never rambled. He watched her carefully. As she curved her mouth to spill her confession, he put his index finger over her pouty lips. “I love you, too.”
There was a long silence filled with joy. Brett knew the moment he saw the teary mist in her eyes that she was pleased, and he had not made a mistake or moved too fast.
Leaning in, she kissed his lips again. Only this kiss did not speak to the time or the people waiting on her. This kiss spoke to the need he had met, the void he had filled. Melting into his muscular embrace, she felt him pull her into his lap and run a strong, sturdy hand down her neck to her breast. The beast in him was clawing to be unleashed.
“I love you, Brett Black,” she whispered in between the constant sucking of her lips.
Hearing the words for the first time made Brett breathe a little easier. Suddenly being found out by his superior officers and possibly killed on a dirt road somewhere in North Carolina wasn’t such a big deal.
Tangled in her kiss, he found his way up her dress and pulled at her underwear.
“Brett,” she said, feeling his lips trail down her neck. “I’m already late for dinner.” She swallowed hard as her mouth watered. She wanted him inside of her now. There was no denying that.
“Let them wait,” he said in a husky tone. He acted before she could change her mind.
Picking her up, he quickly whisked her up the staircase and into the bedroom. Kicking the door shut behind him, he threw her on the bed and pushed up her dress. His mouth watered. “Since I don’t get dinner with the rest of you, I think I’ll grab a bite to eat right now,” he said in a deep southern baritone.
“A good thing the kitchen’s open,” she said seductively as she raised her hips and pulled her panties down her stellar thighs. “Try not to make a mess of me,” she said, throwing her panties at him.
Quickly, he caught them in his hand. “No promises.”
Her hair had fallen out of its bun and fanned across the bed just the way that he liked.
She watched him peel out of his jeans and t-shirt to reveal his perfect body. His thick erection stood tall, throbbing and aching for release. Anxiously, he grabbed a condom and slipped it on then dove into bed on top of her. The hard column of his penis slid over her belly then down to her opening. Trailing a kiss over her lips, he looked into her eyes.
“Ten minutes,” she whispered in his ear.
“Fuck that. You’ll be done when I’m done with you,” he growled in her ear.
His words numbed her resolution. She moved his bulging head to her heated center and opened her legs wider. Pushing her belly against his, she parted her mouth for another kiss but when she looked up, he moved down between her legs.
Crying out, she clawed the sheets as she felt his tongue feather over her mound. A tingling sensation ripped through her senses and made her arch her back. He quickly pushed her back down with his palm and yanked her legs toward him.
***
The family was right in the middle of desert when Courtney came through the dining room entryway with Cameron holding her hand. The colonel and his son were the first ones to turn and look at her.
“I’m here,” she said with a bright, glowing smile.
“You’re late,” the colonel said, looking at his watch. He felt his wife look at him. He quickly changed his tune. “But at least you made it. Who is this with you?”
“This is Cameron,” Courtney said, setting down her bags and taking Cameron to the chair beside her mother. It was about the only place he’d be safe in this house.
“Hi, Grandma Lawless,” Cameron said happily.
Diane rubbed his rosy cheeks. “How are you, Cameron?”
“Fine,” he answered with a smile.
“It seems we are the only ones who don’t know the little fellow,” Colonel Lawless said as he wiped his mouth with a white linen napkin. He sat his large elbows on the table, ignoring Diane’s growing irritation with his table manners.
“He’s my employer’s son,” Courtney said, walking over to her brother. “Hey Davy,” she said, kissing his cheek.
“Hey, Sis,” David said, hugging her tight. “You look great.”
“She’s glowing,” the colonel said, noting his daughter sunnier than normal disposition. He immediately became suspicious.
Courtney ignored her father and took a seat beside her brother.
“Courtney has taken a job with a local, white enlisted man as his live-in nanny,” the colonel told his son with a raised brow.
“He’s not local. He’s from Texas originally,” Courtney corrected.
David looked over at Courtney. “Really, sis? A nanny?”
“It’s a good paying job. I’m finishing school because of it,” Courtney snapped back.
“Still, you’re a nanny,” David protested.
“Exactly,” the colonel chimed in, happy that his only ally in family matters was here to help argue his position.
Diane put down her fork. “Courtney, think nothing off it,” she said, waving off her husband and son’s remarks. “Your father was enlisted a long time ago. The Marine Corps paid for him to go to school. Then, he transferred over to being an officer right after his short stint in Nam. That is where he gets the title of being a mustang. Isn’t that right, dear?” she said, sipping her wine.
“I’m proud of how I came to be what I am,” the colonel said, feeling her powerful maternal energy from across the room.
Diane continued. “And David, you were accepted to Annapolis.”
“I was,” David said, turning to his mother. He knew that she was about to make some huge point that would cause both of them to eat their words. He mentally prepared himself to be torn a new asshole.
“So, you see, my sweet and ambitious little daughter, you are the only Lawless who has been forced to pay for your own education,” Diane finished as she stood up. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go and get desert. Courtney, will you help me?”
“Yes ma’am,” Courtney said, standing up from the table with a snicker. She left them alone to chew on that. It would serve them right if she read them both the riot act right before she told them what Brett had just done to her for an hour before she arrived. It would surely give her father a heart attack and her brother an aneurism.
The colonel watched Cameron eating his food and smiled. “Hey little man. Do you want to be a Marine when you grow up like your father?”
“Yes,” Cameron answered with a smile.
“That’s good. Hey, what’s your father’s last name? I might know him?” the colonel said with a deviant grin.
“His name is…daddy,” Cameron answered with a grin.
Courtney walked back into the room and snapped her fingers. “Cameron, come in here with me and Grandma Lawless,” she said, shaking her head at her father. “You two just won’t quit, will you? It’s ridiculous.”
“If it’s so ridiculous, then why won’t you tell us his name?” David asked, jokingly.
“Full name, rank and unit,” Colonel added with a grin.
“I’m not telling you anything,” Courtney said a little lighter-hearted when she saw them smile.
“I guess we’ll have to look for someone who looks like Cameron,” David said, under his breath.
“Don’t forget to take a picture of him with your phone then before you leave,” the colonel replied.
The colonel and David had to laugh. So did Courtney. If they were going to find Brett based on Cameron’s looks, then they were going on one hell of a witch hunt.
Chapter Ten
It felt great to be back on the beach again. Courtney grabbed her purple surf board and headed off into the choppy waves in her yellow swimming suit while Brett laid out the food on the blanket with Cameron. Soaking up the warm sun on her skin, she waved her hands in the greenish-blue water and pushed out away from the shore. Sound of peaceful bliss filled her mind, and she was no longer in school, in a relationship, a new mother or even a colonel’s daughter. She was just Courtney. This was the only place in the world that did that for her, freed her from everything. Thank God for the ocean.