Bad Conduct

by Ashley Ladd

  She wondered if she could enjoy sex as much with him if she couldn’t tangle herself in his long, silky hair or wind her fingers in it.

  Could she live with herself if she never found out? What would one more night cost her?

  Giving herself permission to feel sexy, she donned her femme fatale persona. She wound a sexy come-hither smile around her lips and slowly licked them. She jutted out her hip, breasts then crooked her finger at him. “Let’s go before I change my mind.”

  How she got home she wasn’t sure. She texted her friends to tell them she wouldn’t return that night then shut off her phone so they couldn’t bother her.

  Ty and Bianca’s clothes were off before they reached the bedroom. He scooped her into his arms and kicked the bedroom door wide.

  She nuzzled his neck and inhaled deeply of him, a mixture of sea salts and chocolate. He must’ve visited the beach, one of her favourite places to make out.

  The moon spilled through a crack in the curtain and moonbeams danced across the bed which was rumpled but sexy as hell. She started to wonder if he’d been sleeping in it alone but shoved away the thought. When he lowered her onto the mattress and his cock was full and heavy, her mouth watered and she held out her arms to him.

  With a wicked smile, he crawled on top of her and insinuated himself between her legs. He rubbed noses and gazed deeply into her eyes. Against her lips he murmured, “I’ll make you happy every day of your life that you forgave me.”

  She started at that but then clamped her lips. If she could be sure, she’d forgive him this second. But she was far from sure.

  Not wishing to spoil what could be their last night together, she plundered his lips and pulled him closer.

  God she needed that cock inside, buried deep and flying her to heaven.

  Buried deep inside. Oops!

  Scared she’d almost made the second biggest mistake of her life, she shoved him off. Struggling for air, she finally pushed out one word like a bullet, “Condom.”

  He grunted and scowled as he always did when she made him wear one. Tonight, it was more crucial than ever.

  She clamped her legs tightly until he rolled on the latex protection.

  “Better?”

  She nodded and rewarded him by spreading wide her legs and crooking her finger for him to join her. “Much.”

  As if he was about to burst, he drove immediately into her. With the frenzy of a wild man, he fucked her unmercifully.

  Her heart raced. Her pulse skipped. Their bodies were so wet and slick, they slid along each other with ease.

  She missed his long hair, how it tickled and caressed. She longed for his soft beard not the five o’clock stubble burning her face. It was as if she was cheating on him with another man. “If you stay in the service, you’ll never have your beautiful long hair again.”

  Ty froze. After several moments, he said, “I’m still me.”

  But had she ever truly known him? Did she now? Again, she kicked the voices out of her head, intent on getting into making love to a sexy man.

  Whore…

  Well, wasn’t she that if that’s all he was? Just a sexy man and not the man she loved with all her heart, the man she intended to marry.

  Her heart swelled. Her pussy quaked, and she met him thrust for thrust. The room spun until the ceiling disappeared, and she was sucked into a vortex as her heart was about to burst.

  She exploded into a rainbow of colours. This one time wasn’t enough. Ravenous, she yearned for more.

  * * * *

  Ty awakened to gunfire. A cold sweat enveloped him, and he grabbed for his weapon. Instead, his hands landed on a woman’s naked body.

  As his hand closed over a breast and the nipple became erect, his breathing slowed. Memory flooded back, and his heart stopped racing.

  He wasn’t in Iraq in the middle of a war zone. Enemy fire wasn’t trying to kill him. He was in bed with his beloved Bianca in the safe US, and they’d made love most of the night. His world hadn’t ended.

  Bianca’s sleep-filled voice mumbled as she pushed him away. “Get the door. Whomever they are, tell them to go away. I have to get ready for work.”

  He squinted at the neon clock by the bed. 7:30 a.m. It was late for her to be getting up but too damned early for visitors.

  The unwelcome visitor hammered on the door again and lay on the doorbell.

  Swearing under his breath, Ty hauled himself up and stepped into his pants. He rubbed his hand over his head. After a year in the military, he still missed his long hair, but at least he wasn’t missing Bianca.

  He peered through the peephole and spied two Army officers in full dress uniform. His heart skipped several beats, and he muttered under his breath, “What do they want?”

  He sucked in a deep breath, squared his shoulders and opened the door. “Can I help you?”

  The shorter of the two men, a major with greying hair at the temple and who reeked of cigarette smoke, looked him up and down. Finally, he asked, “Captain Tyler Gibson?”

  Ty gulped and nodded. “Yes, sir. I’m Captain Gibson.”

  “You are hereby under arrest for violating proper military conduct, for making publicly known your deviant sexual preferences.”

  Ty did a double take. He couldn’t breathe. He’d lived in fear of being found out but hadn’t really believed he would be. He’d been celibate in Iraq.

  A million thoughts raced through his head. Had the Office of Special Investigations intercepted his correspondence with Brendan? Had someone been following him? Had Brendan blabbed?

  A small, shaking hand clamped around his arm. Warm breath coasted along his back. Bianca’s voice tickled his ear, “What’s going on? Who are they?”

  “I’m being called in for a meeting, sweetheart. That’s all. Nothing to worry about.”

  She sidled closer, and her fingers bit harder into him. “What’s the regulation they’re quoting? They said you’re under arrest.”

  Damn!

  Indigestion burned in his chest, and his throat became raw. He sent pleading glances to the men not to say anything to hurt her.

  The taller, younger man who had a large gap between his front teeth, scowled. “It means he’s been accused of being openly gay which is prohibited in the Army.”

  Bianca stiffened. Her nails grazed Ty’s arm. Finally, she wrapped her arms around him as if she’d never let him go and laid her cheek on his chest. “Oh, I can assure you he’s not gay. He just spent the night with me,” she drawled huskily and winked.

  Ty prayed that would be enough to save him, but he didn’t hold out much hope. He closed his hand over hers, dragged it to his lips and nuzzled it. “You’d better get ready for work, babe. You don’t want to get in trouble.”

  She moved between him and the enemy and glared at them. “I’m not leaving you alone here with them.”

  “Did you not hear what we told you, Ma’am?”

  “And I told you he’s with me,” Bianca said. Her purr barely sheathed her claws. She felt tight, ready to pounce.

  Ty wasn’t sure if he was scared of what she’d do or happy that she wanted to do it. He stifled a sigh and tamped down the bile rising in his throat. He feathered a kiss across her brow. “It’s okay. I don’t have a choice. I have to go with them.”

  Her grip tightened, and she looked up pleadingly. “We’ll hire a good attorney. We’ll fight this.”

  God, he missed the civilian world right now, but not enough to wish it upon himself again like this. “I need to have military representation, but I love you for wanting to try, baby.”

  “Stand aside, Ma’am, or we’ll have to arrest you, too.”

  Bianca arched a brow. “Can you? I’m not military.”

  Worry made Ty pull her aside and whisper, “I love you more than ever for wanting to protect me, but this isn’t helping. I’ll call you as soon as I’m able. Promise.”

  Tears welled in her eyes, and she rapidly blinked. Instead of answering him directly, she turned t
o his accusers, “Can’t I accompany him? Can’t I at least know where you’re taking him?”

  “You can’t come, Ma’am. We’re taking him to the base.” To him they said, “Get dressed in your uniform if you have it here.”

  Ty nodded and turned to get it. He wondered if it would be the last time he wore it, in particular his captain’s bars.

  Chapter Four

  Bianca didn’t know what had overcome her when those military brutes tried to shanghai Ty.

  She was still raw as hell, but she didn’t want him to lose his career and be driven out in disgrace, either. Even if he had brought it upon himself…

  She pulled her thoughts up short. Whoa! That wasn’t fair. Ty might be bi or gay or green. What did that have to do with his job performance? Why should sexual orientation matter?

  Or was she scared her friends and family would find out? Their neighbours? Her co-workers?

  What if she could trust him enough to marry him, and they had kids? What would they think of a father who had been dishonourably discharged for being gay? Of her for marrying him? What if their friends found out? What then?

  Her head pounded and she hated her thoughts. They might have been able to hide their dirty little secrets before. Now, everyone would find out if he was dishonourably discharged.

  Would anyone hire him?

  Would it affect her employability?

  She hated herself for caring. God, was she so shallow?

  What really bugged her?

  She called in sick, pulled up her hair into a ponytail and threw on an old pair of jeans and T-shirt. She wasn’t convinced a civilian attorney couldn’t help until she’d visited several and got the same answer from all.

  Basically, Ty was screwed if the Army had real evidence.

  The only bright side was that he wouldn’t be sent back to hostile territory. And he could stay with her.

  This felt like hostile territory, however. And she wasn’t positive he would choose her over Brendan now that he didn’t need a cover.

  Ty hadn’t been gone a day, and she missed him like crazy. He consumed her thoughts. She smelled him on her sheets, in the room and on her flesh. She couldn’t concentrate on anything else, not even getting down one meal.

  As the sun set on an unproductive day and the stars came out to mock her, she shook her fist at the moon. “I’m not going to let this get me down.”

  But her heart ached, her throat burned, and her arms were as empty as her bed. Did she really want it to be empty?

  No! Ty belonged there, with or without his long hair and captain’s bars.

  How had the OSI found him out?

  * * * *

  “Twitter? What in the hell is it?” Ty rubbed his ears and stared at his accusers.

  The major rubbed his nose with the heel of his hand then leant forward on his elbows. “You were in Iraq not the next solar system.”

  Ty spread his hands wide, sighed, rose to his feet and prowled the room.

  The lieutenant cleared his throat, shifted in his chair and laced his fingers. “It’s sort of like blogging or email social network on the computer. Your, uh, friend’s been bragging about your affair on it.”

  Ty gulped, and his fingers itched to wrap themselves around Brendan’s throat. His blood boiled, and he strung together a long list of curses in his mind. Outwardly, he remained stoic and stared down the long-jawed man. “It’s a mistake. He couldn’t have meant me.”

  The major stomped over to the table, poked several keys on the laptop there then turned it around. A large photo of Ty and Brendan French-kissing filled the screen.

  Ty’s blood froze. He couldn’t breathe. What in the hell had Brendan done? Why?

  Was it foolishness?

  Revenge?

  Or was Brendan staking his claim?

  Ty wished Bianca had never brought Brendan home, that she’d never given him the man as his Christmas gift.

  “Do you still deny it? That’s you, isn’t it?”

  Ty’s nerves ricocheted, but he tried not to squirm. “I’d like to have legal representation before I say anything else.”

  The major frowned at his assistant and jerked his thumb at the door. “Get this sorry excuse for a soldier out of my sight.”

  “Yes, sir,” the lieutenant nodded.

  Sympathy flashed across the lieutenant’s eyes so quickly Ty wondered if he’d imagined it. Although he wasn’t anxious to be locked up in confinement away from Bianca, he couldn’t wait to get away from the major so he readily accompanied the lieutenant.

  It felt as if an eternity passed before his legal counsel arrived, even if it was only the next day. He’d been unable to sleep, and his muscles ached. His eyes burned, and his vision was blurry. He longed for a shower and shave.

  He paced the floor of the meeting room, sneaking glances at the pimply-faced boy who was supposed to represent him. He strangled a choice curse. This kid didn’t look old enough to have a bachelor’s degree much less a law degree.

  “Have you ever represented anyone before?” Ty bit his tongue to keep from being more derogatory. He needed this young man and prayed for a miracle.

  The youth rose and squared his shoulders. He shook Ty’s hand with a firm grip. “I’m Captain Connor. I’ve represented a few others. None, however, who were caught in the act on film. I need you to tell me everything, or I can’t help you.”

  His bones weary, his head feeling too heavy for his neck, Ty sank onto the chair across from Connor. “What exactly do they think they have on me?”

  Doom suffocated him, but just in case their information was limited to that one picture of a gay kiss and a blog post, he didn’t want to give them deadly ammunition. He liked the Army. He wanted to make it his career. The civilian world scared him more than a hostile Iraqi soldier with a machine gun, especially if he had to face it with a dishonourable discharge choking him.

  Connor opened a file and read for awhile before speaking. Without looking up he said, “It’s not good. There are several witnesses who’ve testified they’ve seen you openly participating in gay activities, who state you’ve had a long-term homosexual relationship with your boyfriend, Brendan. There are several pictures of the two of you conducting such activity. Do you wish to continue to deny it?”

  Ty’s shoulders sagged and he sighed. “No. But I’m bi-sexual, not homosexual. I’m engaged to marry Bianca Anton, and I broke things off with Brendan awhile ago. I had no plans to see Brendan or any other man again. Ever.”

  Connor shook his head. “That won’t matter to the Army. There’s a ban on homosexual activity by its members.”

  Fed up, feeling like a caged animal, Ty bit out, “It’s a load of bull to think sexual orientation determines how good a soldier is.”

  “You’ve broken the rules, and that’s not being a good soldier in their book,” Connor said.

  Anger rose in Ty’s chest, and he wanted to roar, to shout at the lousy rule makers. “So I’m screwed, right? Which means you can’t help me. Do I have any recourse? What are my options?”

  “My counsel is to accept a General Discharge without a fight. You can’t win with all the evidence against you.”

  Fight welled up in Ty. His fists clenched. His thighs corded. He bared his teeth. But then reality set in.

  Damn Brendan!

  Damn his own whoring cock!

  His temples ached, and he pressed his fingers to them. “Okay. They win. Let’s make this as painless and quick as possible.”

  Connor nodded, jotted a note in his file then snapped it shut. “That’s your best bet. The military won’t budge.”

  Ty wished he’d never heard of the fucking Army, that he’d never signed up. Why in the hell had he risked his life for the ungrateful military?

  Before he left he asked, “If I worked for anyone else, would sexuality matter?”

  Connor seemed to look inwardly. After a long pause he said, “You could fight most and probably win. Just not here. Not yet.”

  * *
* *

  Brendan kicked himself, but he blogged and Twittered about gay rights and the unfairness of what the military was doing to Ty. He was torqued that Ty had told several of their friends but hadn’t had the decency to tell him. Still, he was angrier about the situation and what the damned military was doing to the man he loved so he stood up for him. He rallied gay rights activists. They clogged Twitter’s network. They filled up the blogosphere. They appeared on the local news to protest.

  He was dying not being able to see Ty, and he was worried about him being locked up like a common criminal. The guilt was ripping him apart. He hadn’t meant for any of this to hurt the man he loved. He didn’t want to hurt Bianca, either.

  How Brendon ended up at Bianca’s place, he wasn’t sure, but his breath stuck in his throat, and his knuckles rapping on her door sounded like machine gun fire. When she answered with an accusing glare his heart sank to his knees.

  “You have a lot of nerve. What do you want?”

  He was very conscious of standing in the hallway and the neighbours’ cursory glances. “Can I come in?”

  She didn’t move except for her knuckles whitening around the doorframe. “I’d prefer it if you don’t.”

  The raw ache in her voice almost killed him, and he wished she’d never introduced him to Ty. When she moved to close the door, he stuck his foot in the way. But she had and they had to deal with the situation. “I’d prefer if I do.”

  He let himself in but stayed near the door. After deeply inhaling, he splayed his hands. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know the Army would read my blog. I didn’t think anybody did until the past few days. I was upset Ty chose you over me, and I vented.”

  She pushed her hair behind her ears and laughed ruefully. “Obviously, they read it. Nor am I so sure he picked me for the right reasons. Once this mess is over, he very well might choose you.”

  Hardly able to hold up his head, Brendan helped himself to the nearest chair. He studied his feet, his blurry reflection in his boots, and he scrunched his nose.