“Don’t flatter yourself,” he said through gritted teeth. “It could have been any woman, and I would have had that reaction. You,” he looked her up and down, “are not that special.”
She sucked in a shaky breath. It shouldn’t have hurt. It really shouldn’t have, and yet it did. Her stomach turned, and tears burned her eyes.
Without a word, she turned her back to him and slipped her panties and shorts on under the towel. She pulled her tank over and wrapped her towel around her bra.
“Kate,” Titus said when she turned around. She saw the regret written on his face, but it was too late. His words rattled around in her head. “I’m…”
“Goodnight, Titus,” she said firmly.
Trying not to make any noise, she let the tears roll down her face and drip onto her towel.
Titus scrubbed a hand over his face. The salt from her tears hung in the air and ate at him. He hadn’t intended to be so harsh, but he didn’t have a response to her calling him out. No one called him out, even if he had it coming.
He sighed and watched her walk away. She was in pain, and it was all his fault. There was nothing he could do about it though. What she wanted wasn’t something he could give. Not beyond satisfying their base desires, and although he was all for that, it didn’t seem right to expect that from her.
Titus groaned when he moved. His swollen dick throbbed. Not caring who saw, he quickly pulled off his clothes and jumped in the icy water.
He sighed and relaxed as the cold eased the ache he was experiencing. What would she say if she knew he had to take a swim after dealing with her?
Titus snorted. She’s use it against him, especially after the crap he had just pulled. What had he been thinking? There was no reason to suspect her of anything at all. There was nothing for her to gain and everything for her to lose given that her only real friend, Erica, was now about to give birth to a hybrid’s children.
He rubbed a watery hand across his face. Try as he might, he knew there was only one real reason he followed her. He had to know if she was meeting someone.
It ate at him, the thought that she might meet someone. In the months since her arrival, she hadn’t shown the slightest interest in any of the men other than the idea of teasing them. At first he wondered if the idea of being with a hybrid bothered her, but she didn’t seem to have any real issues with his men. In fact, much to his annoyance, she didn’t have much issue talking with just about any of the men.
What bothered him more was that they seemed to have no issues talking to her. It was obvious she was a Vestal, but none of the men seemed to have quite the reaction he did. Titus was starting to wonder if there was something wrong with his senses. Maybe her Vestal pheromones just called to him more. The whole Bona Dea mating program with the Horatius Group had been under firm wraps, but the geneticist Dr. Fisher had theorized such a possibility.
Titus pulled himself out of the water and sat at the edge, staring up at the stars. Luckily, he had been able to calm himself. He glanced over to the direction of her cabin. All the lights were out, but he could still smell her faintly in the air.
Things couldn’t go on like this. Something had to be done. Titus turned to look back at the moon. Why did the woman have to make things so complicated?
* * *
Kate sat in her room, watching the forest outside her room. The pain from earlier had faded into a dull ache. She sat on the bed, thinking.
There weren’t a lot of options for her. She could leave and get a new job, but that would mean leaving behind Erica. Kate wasn’t so naive to think they would be able to see much of each other if she was outside the walls. Besides, she liked living where she was. It was the first time in, well ever, that she had felt like she belonged, and she’d be damned if she’d let Titus run her off.
She watched his dark shape emerge from the edge of the woods. Despite her best efforts, something ached deep inside at the sight of him. He turned his head her way, and she wondered if he could see her in the window. His eyes flashed in the light, and he quickly turned back toward his cabin.
Kate watched as he climbed the stairs and went inside.
She wondered what he did all those nights he spent alone. Even his men seemed to give him ample room. The only one she ever saw stop by was Sol, and that was only when he wasn’t busy with Erica.
Maybe Titus didn’t know how to handle her because he didn’t know how to handle anyone outside a military context. They kept a tight lid on how they had grown up in the Horatius Group facility, but Erica had once shared that they were split into their specialties.
As the leader, he must have been on his own quite a bit and only brought into the group when he was needed to give orders.
She shivered at the sad realization of his life. Kate had always considered herself a lone wolf, but he was the epitome.
A yawn escaped her, and she settled into the bed. The sadness from earlier drifted away as she closed her eyes.
Chapter Four
She was late. They had been waiting for almost fifteen minutes, and she wasn’t answering her phone.
Titus picked up the phone one last time. The longer it rang, the more irritated he became. It didn’t help that she had been avoiding him since Friday. Once or twice he had seen her on her deck over the weekend, but when he had come to sit outside, she had scrambled to get back inside.
It was pissing him off. He had been a dick, but how was he supposed to apologize if she never gave him the chance?
Titus slammed the phone down. Major Carter and Sol turned from the recording they were viewing.
“Maybe she took an early lunch,” Carter said.
Titus snapped his laptop closed and went to the door. “I’ll be back.”
He breezed past a dazed Jenna and stormed down the hall. Maybe putting her as far away from him as possible wasn’t such great idea, but if he had to sit in his office being tortured by her scent, it was likely he would do something they would both regret.
Titus turned the corner and nodded to a few men who were working on their latest project, housing. As staff in the complex continued to increase, so did the demand for housing.
He stopped outside her door and listened. She hummed to herself, and this only succeeded in annoying him more. He threw open the door.
“Want to tell me why you aren’t answering her phone?” he bellowed.
She looked up to him, clearly startled by his entrance.
“What?” she said and slipped off the yellow headphones.
He watched as she looked at her cell.
“Oh shit.” She jumped up and gathered a few files. “I was working on the press release notes for Friday.”
She closed her computer and stood to face him.
“Why didn’t you answer you phone?” he asked sternly.
She blushed and nodded to the headphones. “Had to improvise. They work great, but I can’t hear much with them.”
He glanced at the yellow headphones on the desk.
“Are those my construction headphones?” He stared at them, confused.
Kate nodded and pushed past him into the hall.
“In case you hadn’t noticed, or didn’t read my email,” she mumbled the last part, “there’s construction going on around here. Not to mention the constant target practice.”
He followed behind her as she continued to talk.
“I know none of you seem to get this, but I didn’t grow up with this,” she said. “Not to mention that it’s not easy making a call when I’m having to shout over that noise. It’s like being in a war zone, and that’s the last sort of impression I want to create.”
Titus felt a pang of guilt at his easy rejection of her needs. She was right. He had grown up with this sort of noise, and it had never bothered him. He sighed. Maybe her wishes weren’t so over the top. All she really wanted was a quiet place to do work.
“Have you had the chance to think about ways to improve our standing in the community?” he asked, trying
to keep things light.
Titus watched as she chewed her lip with worry. He quickly shifted his eyes to hers and tried to ignore anything her mouth might be doing.
“You aren’t going to like it,” she said flatly to him.
He frowned. “I’m not?”
She shook her head. “It’s a great idea, but none of you are going to like it.” She smiled. “Except for Apollo. He’ll be fine with it.”
His frown grew as she talked about Apollo. He wondered when had they gotten to know one another.
They stopped outside the door. He placed a hand on the handle and turned to her.
“If I’m not going to like it, why are you even offering it as an option?” He stared at her.
Her big blue eyes held his own. “Because it’s brilliant, and sometimes we do things we don’t want to for the greater good.”
She pushed past him, and he wondered if she was talking about him or herself.
“Sorry for the delay,” she said, smiling at Sol and the major.
Kate knew she had a tough sell ahead of her, and even if she somehow convinced the two of them, Titus wasn’t likely to go for it at all.
They sat down in chairs around the small table in Titus’s office. All three sat staring expectantly at her. Despite the great pep-talk she’d given herself, she couldn’t bring herself to look at him for more than a few seconds.
“So let’s start with the easy stuff.” She smiled. “Major, I’ve heard rumors that some of your men are having a hard time fitting in with the hybrids.”
The major sputtered at her bluntness. She had debated how best to say it and decided that if they couldn’t handle the truth, then they were in the wrong line of work.
“I wouldn’t really say that,” Major Carter said and looked between the two men.
“I would, and so would they,” she said simply. “But they aren’t the only ones.” She turned to Sol. “Many of your men are nervous around the military men.”
She saw Titus twitch out of the corner of her eye and knew it had bothered him she didn’t address him.
“They lived with only each other for so long it’s hard for them to trust others,” Sol said.
She shook her head. “Well that’s not going to cut it. This is never going to be a fully integrated facility without full cooperation among the men.” She glanced between them. “All the men.”
“And just how do you propose we go about this?” Titus said. She turned to him. He stared at her in challenge. She wasn’t about to back down now.
“I’ve been talking with Hannah,” she said and looked to the other men. “I think we should have an old-school field day showcasing the skills of the men. Maybe if they all see what everyone is bringing to the table, it will create opportunities to connect.”
She waited as they thought on it.
“I like it,” Titus said. Her head spun to look at him.
Titus raised a brow at her. She knew he was just trying to throw her off, but it wasn’t going to work.
“It could work,” Sol said after a few long moments.
Carter nodded. “One thing all these men have in common is that they all like to show off. This could really be just the trick.”
“Good.” She beamed. “I’ll talk with Hannah to get things set up.”
“And what’s the bad news then?” Titus stared at her, his gaze fixed so hard on her that she could feel it even when she wasn’t looking at him.
Kate took a deep breath and looked between the men.
“Calendars,” she said.
Her eye caught Titus as he sat back in relief.
“That sounds fine to me,” he said.
She bit her lip a little. “A sexy calendar.”
The room fell silent for a moment.
“Sexy?” Titus said quietly.
“Look,” she said, turning to him, “I know it seems crazy, but this will be popular.”
Sol and Titus looked skeptically at one another.
Kate popped up out of her seat and went out the door to where Jenna sat at her desk.
“Hey, Jenna,” Kate said. “Let me ask you something. Would you buy a calendar with a bunch of men half-naked?”
Jenna grinned at her. “Depends on the men.”
Kate grinned back. “Let’s say they were in the military.”
“Yes,” Jenna said without hesitation. Kate nodded.
“Thanks,” she said and went back into the office.
Titus sat deep in thought. She knew he had heard. The possibilities were really endless with this.
“Won’t the public be angry if they are making money off of this?” Carter asked. She smiled. They were headed to where she wanted them.
“That’s the thing. The hybrids would make a calendar with your special forces, and the proceeds would go to wounded vets. All those woman could get the calendar they want with none of the guilt.”
“What about the men?” Titus asked.
“Men aren’t likely to buy; however, there will be a certain amount of credibility lent by posing with Carter’s men.” She leaned forward on the table, not bothering to sit. “What do you think?”
Titus leaned back and sighed. “As much as I hate to admit it, it’s a good idea.”
“What?” Sol looked down at him. “Some of the men aren’t going to like this.”
Titus shrugged. “So they don’t have to participate. It’s a good idea though and right now, we need something. Every day more gather at the gate.”
Kate looked nervously at the gate through the window. When she looked away, she found Titus looking at her.
“Will it really help?” he asked softly.
“I believe so,” she said. “Woman help shape society. Convince enough women that you are just men, all the rest will be forgotten.”
“But we’re not just men,” he said, his eyes flashing yellow as he spoke.
“No,” she said slowly. “You aren’t, but in the ways that it would matter to them, you are.”
His forehead wrinkled in confusion.
“All women just want the same things from their men. Doesn’t matter what they do otherwise.”
“What’s that?” His voice came out thick and a little rough. She felt her nipples tighten in response.
“To feel safe in their arms, to be wanted, and to be loved,” she said just barely a whisper.
Her eyes held his, and she felt her heart kick up in her chest.
Sol cleared his throat, and the spell was broken. She stepped back from the table and looked to the ground. If she looked at him again, she wasn’t certain what she would do.
“Set it up,” Titus said. She glanced up. “No one has to participate, but those that do need to email Kate,” he said to Sol and Carter.
She smiled at them all. “I’ll get everything set up and let you know the dates for both the photos and the field day.”
Titus nodded. “I think that’s all for today. Keep me posted on the dates.”
Kate nodded back and turned to leave. There were so many things to do, but first things first, she had to see Hannah.
Titus watched as she rushed out of the office and sighed. When she had talked about the calendar, he was tempted to bend her over the desk and show Kate just what he needed from her.
“Is it always that intense between you two?” the major asked.
“No.”
“Yes,” Sol answered.
Titus glared at him until he raised his hands in surrender.
“Have you thought more about my offer?” the major asked, cutting off their banter.
“I have,” he said and scrubbed a hand over his face. “There’s a lot of resentment from my men toward yours. It’s hard not to feel like we’re being watched when we are.”
Carter nodded. “I understand,” he said. “It’s the only way the government would allow for this.”
“I realize this,” Titus answered. “I think this field day will do a lot to improve that. Let’s revisit the idea for contra
cting out our skills at a later date.”
Carter nodded. “Sounds good to me.” He looked between Sol and Titus. “I just want you both to know, it might feel like we’re breathing down your neck, but from my perspective, it’s an honor being able to work with you both.”
Titus clapped him on the back. “Same here.”
* * *
“Let me get this straight,” Hannah said, staring at Kate in disbelief. “You want me to plan a field day event for everyone here, and then take photos of a bunch of men half-naked?”
Kate grinned. “That’s about it.”
Hannah sat at her desk in the back room of the rec center. Stacked catalogue piles littered the room.
“It’s been years since I took photos,” she said.
Kate shrugged. “I’m sure it will come back to you.”
Hannah’s eyes widened. “There’s so much to do!”
She jumped out of her chair and whipped around the small space.
“When are we looking at doing this?” Hannah said from behind a stack of magazines.
“Hearing is this week,” Kate said. “I was thinking the end of next.”
Hannah came to a sudden stop. “Next weekend?”
She stared at Kate for a moment.
“Can you do it?” Kate asked, uncertainty filled the air.
Hannah scrunched her face in thought and then nodded.
“Yes,” she said. “But it’s going to be close.”
“You just let me know what I need to do,” she said. “I’m off to find out how much it will cost to print calendars.”
“I can’t believe they agreed,” Hannah shouted after her.
Kate laughed and shook her head. “Me either,” she said.
Chapter Five
Kate sat quietly outside the hearing room. She had expected to be allowed in the room with everyone but was told it was a closed hearing. Since she hadn’t been involved in the incident in question, she wasn’t needed.
Titus: Luna Lodge #2 Page 3