Ice (Elite Forces #1)

by Hilary Storm

  "I'm retired. They brought me back for this mission. I agreed on a few conditions." Really? I wonder to myself. If he’s retired, then how old is he? My guess would be mid-thirties. I begin to have many questions rattling around in my head. I’m just not sure if I’m buying his answers or not. I could call bullshit on his ass any time, instead I bite my tongue. I’d love more than anything to dig deeper into this man and find out more about him. Why he is the way he is and why his answers to my questions are short and clipped.

  I’ll find a way on my own to discover everything there is to know about Commander Kaleb Maverick. After all, he seems to know everything about me, personal and professional. All's fair in love and war, as they say. Even though there isn’t a damn bit of love in what we have going on here. It’s fucking and war. Primal, damn good fucking and hopefully a perfectly completed mission instead of war.

  "You must be a badass motherfucker." His laughter fills the room. It's nice to see that side of him, even if only for a second. I’m not about to get my hopes up though, not when it comes to this man. He may think he holds all the power here and has all the control over me. No, I do believe my Commander has another mission besides the one he claims to be here for, and something tells me it has everything to do with me.

  I make good use of the ten minutes he gives me to finish cleaning myself up after he not so formally dismisses me. I decide to clean up better in my own tent before I go anywhere.

  Wincing from the scrapes across my back the minute I yank my t-shirt over my head, I try not to show any signs of weakness. It's something I do, never show emotions, even when I’m alone. I’ve suffered too much pain in my life, and it has no place out here.

  I don’t have time to inspect them though. I need to get back to our team, to train in these exercises he’s demanding us to do. I grab a clean t-shirt from the wooden crate I have them stacked on, and pull it over my head and through my arms while I walk to one of the care packages sent. I know I have a supply of unscented wipes. Like Kaleb said, sex out here could be smelled a mile away, especially out here where the only scent you get used to is the smell of sweat. The distinct aroma surrounds you out here in the sweltering sun. A freshly-fucked scent would sure the hell have the guys picking up on the shit I’ve been doing.

  “Captain. Let's move it.” Son of a bitch. The deep voice of my Commander outside my tent sends a shiver down my damn spine. I ignore him and the way my body wants to betray me once again just from the sound of his voice. Unzipping my pants, I clean myself up and discard the used wipes into my trash. I tuck my t-shirt into my fatigues, pull my hair back into a ponytail, and grab a hat before securing it on top of my head.

  “Ready, Sir.” I stand tall and eager to feel the burn of something other than the sexual exhaustion he causes. I fall in line next to him as we make our way to the team, catching up to two other members quickly.

  The sky is nearly dark by the time we approach our team all gathered around in a circle, listening to the second in command. He's an elderly gentleman with manners and respect, unlike the man standing next to me, whose eyes I can feel on me when we come to a stop.

  “I thought we were training, doing drills, Sir?” I ask while keeping my educated eyes ahead.

  “This isn’t basic training, Captain. Physical and strength training will be done on your time, if and when I decide to give you spare time.” He pauses, his voice low. I hear the sexual innuendo in his words. To say I’m not pissed off would be nothing short of a lie. My muscles ache to feel the burn from working out, this time not in the way he’s suggesting.

  “Captain, they're discussing Operation Mission Liberty and we will be doing drills. Night vision, military assault drills. Now get your sexy ass over there with your team.”

  “Fuck off,” I mutter loud enough for him to hear. I march forward silently and carefully, joining my team and attempting to shut down my raging anger at both myself and him. How am I in this position? I did this shit to myself. He knows better than to show any sign of our actions out here, and him making comments like he is will pull attention to us faster than anything.

  I listen and try to calm myself for the next hour as Major Roberts delivers our mission, knowing my defiant words pissed Maverick off, but he needs to understand that I'm not putting up with his condescending shit. I'm a highly trained soldier and deserve to be treated like one.

  The mission is simple. Just like we all assumed, we'll be going in with our specialized skills, highly trained schooling, and our ability to be the best in a raid to bring down a very important enemy leader.

  “The research has been done. The facts are laid before us. Azham-Amir-TajUdin is indeed hiding out in or around the small village of Tashraq, Afghanistan. We will capture him. We will defend our country, and we will all leave here in one piece. Report back here at 2100 hours and be prepared to spend all night doing these drills.” Both Commander Maverick and Major Roberts dismiss us for dinner chow. I turn to leave, not speaking a word to anyone. I know I should eat with my team and socialize, but I ignore Captain Harris as he calls my name to my retreating back. I follow the urge to confine myself to my tent and pay no attention to anyone until Harris and I have to report to the Commander’s office for whatever the hell he has planned for us. I will not let Kaleb Maverick ruin this for me by screwing with my head and leaving me vulnerable to the enemy or putting any of my fellow teammates in jeopardy. Fuck this.

  “Damn it, Jade, stop.” I spin around, ready to lash out at Harris when I jerk my head back. The look in his eyes startles me. He looks troubled. In all the time I’ve known him, he’s never looked at me this way. Not even the other night when we were caught. “What’s wrong? Did I miss something?” I place my hand on his arm.

  “No. But it’s obvious I sure the hell did.” He steps back out of my reach. Those troubled eyes turn serious as a damn heart attack.

  “What the hell are you talking about?” My mind is boggled, and I'm sure my face shares the same sentiment. If he could see it in the dark, he would know.

  “You have blood all over the back of your shirt. Did the Commander do something to you?” He sounds pissed.

  “Good god, no. Why would you even think something like that?” I retract my gunned-up response out of the blue. “I tripped over a bunch of ammunition and landed flat on my back.” Just like Harris, I’ve been trained to be able to stare anyone in the eye and lie. He studies me to the point of an analytical evaluation, but I give nothing away. “I’m not sure if I believe you or not, but for now I’ll take your word. If I find out you’re lying to me, Jade, Commander or not, I’ll end him.” Those are my friend's parting words. I stand there in the now black darkness, my feet unable to move and my body shaking. I’ve never let anyone control my mind or my body like this. What in the hell am I doing?

  What’s happening to you, Jade? the sweet part of my conscience asks.

  My entire military career has lead me to this point, where the rush and the feel of the blood pumping feverishly throughout my veins has my adrenaline hastily soaring. This is the second time I’ve let my Commander fuck me literally senseless. It’s time I put a damn stop to it or this mission will fail before it even begins.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  KALEB

  I pretend to listen to my team talk about the mission, while I sit here eating and watch her talk to that motherfucker Harris. He wants her, but little does he know he'll never touch her again, not the way he wants to anyway.

  The moment my buddy Pierce Davis requested to see me in his office at his USSOCOM, also known as The United States Special Operation Command, I knew he was calling in his mark for him saving my life ten years ago when we were in the middle of combat. It was during our second tour of the Iraqi war. Without hesitation, I accepted.

  Not only did Pierce and I serve for years together, he’s like a brother to me, along with Kase Flynn. While Pierce continued to serve our country, both Kase and I had enough after serving twelve years.

  We now
run a tight private military firm, which is contracted with the government. Pierce and Kase are the two I directly work with to lead our team through the missions. I’m still serving my country by training or guarding significant military personnel who may travel in or out of The United States. We get called on special dangerous missions, and this is no exception to that. It feeds my craving for living the life without all the fucking rules of being in the Army, and I fucking love every damn second of it.

  I know this country as if it were my own. It's one of the reasons I was selected to get this team in and out of there as quickly as possible. I know the process, the drills, and still have the desire to fucking blow the enemy apart until there’s nothing left of them but a pile of ashes. Yeah, I fucking know the routine and can’t wait to feel the rush again.

  Pierce and I spent hours, days even, going through files, searching for the perfect team. I thought I had them all, until I opened her file. The blonde with the most captivating eyes I have ever seen. I swear to Christ those eyes popped out of that file and bewitched my ass. I knew nothing about her but her name. For the first time since I’ve met my military brothers, I’m keeping something from them. They have no idea I have a woman on this team. And they definitely don’t know I can’t take my damn mind off of her.

  Captain Jade Elizabeth Elliott. Fucking beautiful. I scoured every bit of information I could find on her to the point of being her stalker. I’ll admit it. I’m drawn to her in a way I can't even comprehend to my own fucked-up mind. It's fate, or maybe destiny, fuck if I know. All I know is she has fascinated me from the moment I laid eyes on her.

  At first it was her outer beauty, then it became her drive, her determination to be one of the first women to enter and graduate special ops training. Then it became her agility. Her voice when I heard her speak in the many videos I watched her in. I’m obsessed, not to the point of placing her in danger, but to the point of making her mine.

  “I need to brief Captain Harris and Captain Elliott on a few things. See you all in a few hours.” I grab my tray, dump the scraps into the garbage, and walk past her tent. I pause when I step in front of it for a brief second. I can smell her. She’s addictive. I clench my hands into fists and plow forward to my office, where I kick a few boxes over. My frustration at my own actions deepens.

  There’s a knock on my door the minute I collapse into the chair behind my table.

  “It’s open.” I don't even bother to look up and see who it is. I know it’s the two of them here to work their punishment off. One I have no damn right to give either one of them after the shit I’ve done, but as the Commander of this unit, I have to. Both of them need to understand. Jade already does, or at least she fucking better. Harris on the other hand won’t get it through his head if I don’t lay down a few rules somehow.

  I would love to shove Harris’ head in the fucking sand and tell him to stay the hell away from her, that she will never be his because she’s mine; or at least she will be when I'm finished. But I won’t.

  I have nothing but respect for Captain Harris when it comes down to his intelligence, his ability to endanger his life like the rest of us, to kill a man who has done nothing but bring heartache and destruction to our men and women of the armed forces. The man can speak the native tongue of this country just as well as he can speak English. His ability to interpret is imperative to accomplish what we came here for, but after this is over, I hope I never see the man again.

  “Good evening, Sir.” Harris speaks. It’s then that I lift my head, clasp my fingers together under my chin, and zone in on the two of them. Neither one of them will look at me. They stand at attention. Oh, how I would love to see him sweat. I may be a heartless son of a bitch for doing this, but I need to make a goddamn point to both of them.

  “Captain Harris. The next time you need to get your dick wet, may I suggest you spit on the fucker and yank his goddamn chain. Fuck your hand. Fuck a damn hole in the wall. I don’t care what you fuck, but you will stay away from Captain Elliott. Do I make myself clear?” The power in my speech backs up every muscle in my body when I stand to face him. Eye to eye. Man to motherfucking man.

  “Yes, Sir,” he bellows out his answer with no hesitation at all. He may think he has me fooled, but he doesn’t. The man may keep his pin dick in his pants for the rest of this mission, but I know good and well he’s been secretly in love with her for a long time. I know everything about them all. I dismiss him with my eyes and move to the beautiful creature who has enthralled her very existence on both of the men standing in this room. The great thing about it is, she has no fucking clue what she does to us.

  “Captain Elliott.” Mother. Fuck. My resistance wavers all over the damn place, my insides twist, my cock twitches, and my mouth waters desperately to latch onto hers. She should not have this much fucking control over me.

  “Sir.” God. I’d give anything for her to look at me. She won’t though. She’ll see this through. She’s more than confirmed her loyalty by letting me have her. I want her loyalty to be to me and not to this man standing next to her.

  “Are your fingers broken?” I snap.

  “No, Sir,” she responds.

  “Good. Then the next time you feel the need to satisfy yourself, I suggest you use them.” How I would love to be able to say use them while I’m watching you, or take those delicate fingers of hers and wrap them around my cock and guide me into her sweet pussy. It pisses me the hell off that Harris is in here, making me strain against my fatigues. The minute they walk out the door, I’ll be doing the same exact thing I just told him to do. This is how much she drives me crazy.

  I need them out of here, so I dismiss them. Neither one says a word as to their punishment or lack thereof. “Mother. Fucker.” Sliding my ass back into my chair, I refuse to stroke my cock, not when I know what it feels like to be inside of her. The next time I stroke it, she'll be watching.

  For the next couple of hours, I beat myself up as I sit inside my makeshift office. I’ve failed miserably in my plan to seduce her and to let her know I’m not just after her for a quick fuck. I had plans. I had two missions to complete when I landed back in this desert, and I have messed up the one closest to my heart. The other one is a damn cake walk compared to her.

  One was to complete the mission that The United States granted me to lead; the other was to get the woman. I will complete the first mission, I have no doubt about that, but damn it, if I haven’t fucked up getting her.

  I knew the minute I saw her jump on Harris in her tent that I was going to fuck this up. I had to stop her, and the only way I knew how was to fuck her myself. Brilliant plan, Maverick. Fucking brilliant, at least my dick thinks so anyway.

  She makes it difficult to focus on any task. My mind is constantly remembering how she smells, how her soft, perfect skin is like none I've ever felt before, and that fucking attitude. It should piss me off, but fuck if it doesn't excite me knowing she's a challenge. The second she told me to 'Fuck off', I wanted to remind her who she’s talking to. My call name isn’t Fire for nothing. Out here, she will obey me.

  The kicker is, she isn’t someone who submits to others. She may take my orders out here, but I know damn well she won't take them back home. No way. She’s used to having control as much as I am.

  I’m not into the dom/sub relationship right down to the letter, but control may as well be my middle name. I’m always in control of everything I do. The best thing for me to do for the next few days until we sneak in and make our attack is to stay the hell away from Captain Elliott.

  The sound of someone entering pulls me from my thoughts. "Sir, your team is ready for tonight's training." I sit and think as Major Roberts enters my space, leaning up casually against the wall. I smile at the thought of how much torture I could put my team through during tonight's drills, but settle in knowing I can't possibly torture them any more than she will me as I fight to stay away from her.

  “And we just received word that our mission will be
tomorrow night. The specifics will come before nightfall.” That’s not much time. I wanted a few more days with the team before we throw ourselves into the mass insanity. I wanted a few more days with her to have the chance to show her I'm more than a fuck monster. Guess I’ll have to make do with the time I have, which means there’s no damn way that I’ll be able to keep my dick in my pants, knowing our time is limited.

  JADE

  We've been out here for hours, going over maps of the compound we'll be attacking. Training was a breeze. Hell, I could've led that training myself. It's what we know. It's what we do.

  “It’s imperative that we all know every single inch of the area before we’re dropped. We'll be going in late at night, surprising the motherfucker. The difficult task will be getting to TajUdin.” I listen intently. Not one ounce of me is worried or scared. I'm trained to kill. I place my scope on the target and kill without any hesitation. This time will be no different.

  “He’ll scatter like a fucking cockroach as soon as he hears us. We’ll have to flip the place upside down to find him. We’ll go in dark with night vision on so this will help. I’ve had heat sensors added to our masks, so we should be able to see anything that has a beating heart. I have the equipment here, and we’ll be adjusting everything tomorrow morning bright and early.” Adrenaline begins to flow through my body. I want this guy. I hope he runs out and I get the pleasure of placing the bullet between his eyes.

  “We take out everyone in the compound. No exceptions. So be prepared to kill on sight. He uses this compound as a hiding place, and we’ve been watching his actions for a few weeks.” I continue to listen as Kaleb is in his element. He’s passionate about this mission, and I can’t help but follow him as he describes every aspect in full detail. The rest of my team is extremely prepared for this. I have all the confidence in the world going into this with the group of men that was chosen to walk alongside me.