“Okay, Davis, but you better not go back on this.”
I crossed my finger over my heart. “Stick a needle in my eye.”
“God, that’s gross.” She closed her eyes and let the shower pelt her face.
I laughed. Yeah, it was. “Whoever came up with the saying, anyway?”
Smitty shrugged. “Better than hope to die.”
“Yeah, it is.”
Smitty turned to me and smiled, frost on her lips and eyes like jagged glass. Shivers wiggled down my spine. I stepped back, needing space, air to breathe. I’d never in my life seen such hostility. Not even from an enemy, especially from a friend. Cold, calculating hate. I blinked and her expression changed. There one second—in a nano-second, gone. Smitty’s face warmed, but I’d already seen it.
“Come on, Davis. They’re going to complain to the first sergeant if we tie up these showers again.” She laughed. “I can only imagine what they’re saying about us.”
I nodded, washing up as fast as I could. A cold lump sat in the back of my throat. For the first time in five years, I didn’t trust Smitt. Something felt wrong. If I broke my promise, would she rat me out? No. What I’d seen seemed darker, and it scared the shit out of me. For a second, I swore I stared into the eyes of a killer.
***
Another full day in the classroom. I didn’t see Nolan once to thank him for the clever entertainment he’d provided for the unit at physical training that morning, nor did I see him late in the evening. He remained elusive as a shadow at high noon.
Perhaps he’d changed his mind about us and decided I wasn’t worth it. Perhaps I’d been used. The longer he remained out of sight, the more I wondered if he had.
The next morning, a different instructor ran formation. Nolan wasn’t anywhere to be seen. I kept my mouth shut, knowing I’d draw unwanted attention to myself if I asked. Inside, I went through a barrage of feelings. Anger, regret, anger, sadness, anger, rage…. Yeah, by the end of PT, I’d gone from confused to downright pissed and running on a full dose of a Hell-hath-no-fury adrenaline rush.
Then I crashed. Come chow, I had all the energy of Raggedy Ann. I stared at the scrambled eggs and soggy toast, and it took all my will not to get sick. My guts had twisted into knots, and the more I thought about Nolan, the sicker I felt. Had he told the others about what we’d done? Shared the details? All of them?
I’d been a fool. I should have listened to Smitty.
The day continued on, only getting worse, and by final formation, Nolan had morphed into a monster. I wanted to scream at him, call him every nasty name in the book. I should have known better. I did know better. Every look anyone gave me fell suspect. What were they thinking? Did they know? Once dismissed, I ran from formation for the safety of my room.
As I hit the top of the stairs and came around the corner, I screeched to a stop, leaving skid marks across the hall. My heart thumped in my throat.
Leaning against the wall, next to my door—Nolan. He’d already changed into jeans and a T-shirt. I glanced down to his hand where he held a single rose. He lifted it. I shook my head and backed up, turning to run. I took the stairs, two steps at a time, bolting from the building, across the lot and toward…. What did I run from? I slept in the room, not him. He was the one who should leave.
I started back to the barracks and up the stairs. The rose lay on the floor in front of my door, Nolan had gone.
I picked it up, made my way outside, and walked around the building in the dark, searching the shadows. Again, he couldn’t be found. Did he think I’d accept this lame apology for making a fool of me at PT? I didn’t want it, didn’t need it.
“Bastard.” I tossed the rose onto the lawn and had turned to go into the building when I heard a scream, a loud thump, and the sound of a vehicle speeding away. I scanned the area from where the disturbance came and saw what appeared to be a body on the blacktop two barracks over.
I ran for the street, and the closer I drew, the more horrified I became. As the person lying on the road came into focus, I realized I knew the victim. Smitty. She lay completely still, her leg bent toward her head, at about mid-thigh, and blood wept from contusions on her arms and head.
“Oh god.” I rushed to her side. “Smitt.”
She didn’t respond. I pressed my head against her chest. She had a heartbeat, and her lungs drew air. I almost sighed in relief then realized it meant nothing. “Smitt. You okay? Smitt, wake up.” A groan.
“Help,” I screamed. “Somebody.” The CQ came out of the building housing the arms room and rushed to my side. “Stay here. I’ll call for an ambulance.”
Within minutes, flashing red lights and a wailing alarm approached.
Smitty opened her eyes and stared into my face. “Davis,” she whispered.
“Yeah, I’m here, Smitt. You’re going to be okay.”
“Did I stop it?”
“Stop what?”
“The tank that hit me.”
“You’re not funny.”
“Tell me something I don’t know.” She drew in a staggered breath. “Sucks to be you. You’ve got a twenty-six-mile road march tomorrow.”
I shook my head. I could tell she used the jokes to get her mind off the break. The fracture had to hurt. “Hang on. They’re right here.” I watched the ambulance pull up and the medics jump out.
Smitty nodded.
“We’ll take it from here.” The medics motioned for me to get back. An MP walked up, camera in hand.
“Did you see what happened?”
“No.” I’d only heard it. I pointed at the pavement. “I did notice there are no skid marks. Whoever they are, they didn’t hit the brakes. Drunk, maybe? The street lights keep it pretty bright here. It would have been hard to miss her crossing the street.”
“You talk like you’ve done this before.”
“I’m an MP, or I used to be. I’ve seen my share of accidents.”
“Then you know I’m going to need you to hang around and give me a written statement. Did the victim see anything?”
“I’m not sure. She didn’t say.” I eyed Smitty. She hadn’t lost consciousness again, a good sign.
One of the medics walked up to us. “She didn’t get a description of the vehicle or plate number. Just said she heard an engine rev, and the next thing she knew, she flew through the air and hit the pavement hard enough she blacked out. She’s lucky to be alive.”
“Is she going to be okay?” I asked.
“Unfortunately, unless you’re family, I can’t release any information. You can call the hospital in Watertown later and see if they’ll give you any information, but it’s doubtful.”
I nodded. I knew the policy and procedure. She’d seemed coherent when I’d spoken with her. Chances were good she’d be okay. Well, if I excluded her mangled leg. I’d ask the CQ later to see if they heard anything. Sometimes, you just needed to know the right person. Charge of quarters would get the accident report and status of the injured soldier. If I could be persuasive enough, I might be able to get information.
Where the hell had Nolan gone, and when I needed a strong shoulder? I didn’t know him well, but he was the only person other than Smitty I did on this post.
Chapter Seven
When I got to my room, Nolan leaned against the door again. He watched as I approached, a frown on his face. I unlocked my door and stepped inside. He followed without being asked and locked the door behind him.
“When they said a female trainee had been hit, I thought it might have been you. I damn near had to beat the information out of the CQ.” He studied me for a second, his eyes searching. “You okay?”
I shook my head and let loose the tears I’d held. I didn’t want to put on a brave face anymore. I wanted to cry, and I wanted to be held when I did. Nolan opened his arms, and I ran to them, needing to feel wrapped in the safety they provided.
He stroked my hair. “Cry, pretty girl. I’ve got you, and nobody’s going to know.”
So I did. Giant, racking
sobs. Nolan scooped me off my feet and set me on my bed. He untied my boots and dropped them to the floor. He went for my bloody uniform next, peeling my pants off my hips and unbuttoning the ACU top, before tossing it to the side. He smoothed the hair on my forehead and then stood. Nolan riffled though my open wall locker.
“What are you doing?”
“Getting you some clean clothes.” He pulled out a T-shirt and a pair of shorts, setting them on the end of the bunk before he turned to leave. “I didn’t think you wanted to sleep in a bloody uniform. I’ll put it in the wash as I leave.”
“Please.” I grasped his hand, pulling him back to the bed. “I can’t be alone right now.” I blinked the tears out of my eyes. I had to appear a red-eyed, runny-nosed mess, but if Nolan noticed, he didn’t show it. The way he looked at me, I could have been the most beautiful woman in the world.
“You’ve had a rough night. You need to rest.”
I studied him for a minute, not letting go of his hand. “I want to get my mind off the accident, and it’s impossible lying here.”
Nolan handed me my clothing. “I have an idea. Get dressed. We’re going to sneak you off post.”
“I’m not supposed to leave….”
“I know shock when I see it. I’ve been in enough combat. Sometimes, you have to work through it, and you said it yourself, you don’t want to be alone, so we’ll work through this together.” He held the garments up.
I eyed them for a second then took them, quickly changing. Once I’d tied my sneakers, he took my hand and pulled me to my feet. “They have The Rocky Horror Picture Show in town. Have you ever been?”
“No.”
“It’s utterly asinine, but you can throw things at the actors when certain things are mentioned. They give you props before you go in. What do you say? Should we sneak out?”
“You’re free to roam. I’m not.”
“Yes. I won’t tell anyone. Besides, we can stop by the hospital and check on your friend. The commander and first sergeant should have gone home by the time the show is over. They won’t hang out there all night.” He grinned. “There’s a method to my madness.”
“I could get kicked out of the program if anyone finds out.”
“Nobody will know. I’m a sniper. If there’s anything I’m good at, it’s subterfuge.”
“Anyone tell you you’re a bad influence?”
Nolan grinned. His spooky eyes glittered. “All the time.” He pulled me into his arms and lowered his mouth to mine.
The slow kiss stopped the world around me, holding me forever in the moment. The taste of him, the beat of his heart, all sank into my soul, stirring feelings I’d sworn I’d never set free. I didn’t have time for love. It conflicted with my dreams. I pulled back, trying to remember why I was here, what I wanted. None of it involved a bad boy with spooky eyes.
Even as I told myself I could stop, I knew I couldn’t. In the few weeks I’d known him, he’d become a craving I couldn’t satisfy.
“Come on. My Jeep’s parked out back, off the fire escape, and the CQ is at the mess hall, grabbing chow.”
“How many times have you snuck females out of the barracks?”
Nolan shot me a quick smile.
“You’ve done this a time or two.”
“Or two.”
I shook my head and cracked my room door, poking my head out. “All clear, like you said.”
“I always get my recon right.”
“I have to ask. How’d you get into sniper school? I mean you have to have a squeaky clean record, with no history of disciplinary action.”
“That’s easy,” he said. “I don’t have a record because I’ve never been caught doing anything I shouldn’t be. Uncle Sam taught me well. Concealment, camouflage, stalking, observation, it’s been drilled into me for years. You do it every day, all the time, it becomes second nature. It will for you, too.”
“Stalking?”
He smiled again and held my hand, pulling me down the hall. We rushed down the stairs and jumped into our escape vehicle. The tires spun in the dirt lot, kicking up rocks and a cloud of dust. When the Jeep finally caught pavement, we shot down the street.
The office sat on my right. Even though I hadn’t done anything criminal, and Nolan had said the CQ had gone to eat chow, I slid down in the seat until I dropped below window level. To be seen sneaking out would get me kicked out of the program. To be seen with the instructor, could get us both kicked out.
I doubted anyone would, though. The first sergeant and commander had gone to the hospital. The CQ wasn’t around, and anyone with any common sense had already gone to bed to get rest for the big road march in the morning.
And I headed for Rocky Horror with six foot three inches of mouth-watering trouble. Like I said, anyone with common sense.
***
As we stood in line, Nolan pulled me into his arms and tucked a strand of hair behind one of my ears. He stared down into my eyes. “Feeling a little better?”
I shrugged. Smitty had survived, but I didn’t know how badly she’d been injured. Would she be out of the program, discharged for medical reasons? She was my only friend in a barracks full of testosterone-jacked chest thumpers. I didn’t want to lose her.
The line moved, and Nolan broke the embrace. He slid a twenty to the woman at the window and retrieved two tickets. We stepped through the door, and an employee gave us a shopping bag packed full of goodies provided for our interactive entertainment.
Nolan picked a spot in the second row of an almost empty theater. As the lights dimmed, we both slid down in our seats. Nolan turned to me and grinned. He handed me a piece of cold toast. Let the games begin.
***
Halfway through the show, a palm went to my bare thigh, and, before I knew it, it had slid up the naked flesh and into the gap between my shorts and leg. I gasped and turned to Nolan.
“They can’t see. The lights are in their faces.”
It didn’t stop me from squirming in my seat. What of the people in the back? What if the lights came on? Not the place for hanky-panky. He slipped inside my panties and worked toward my clit.
My breath hissed between my teeth, and I closed my eyes as he penetrated me. I dug my nails into the armrests. I’d no intention of stopping him. Adrenaline raced through my bloodstream, and a ball of heat rolled through me. I loved the danger. I loved his touch, and, after the night I’d had, I wanted a reckless release.
“You like that?”
“God, yes,” I growled between clenched teeth. He slid two fingers inside me and stroked in and out, fucking me in the theater full of patrons.
My father would have a seizure if I got caught. Hell, he’d have a seizure if he knew. I didn’t care. At the moment, all I could think about was the building tension in the pit of my belly, winding tighter and tighter, taking me closer to what I needed.
The actors on the stage began to sing. Nolan fucked me faster. The orgasm hit so hard I bit my lip to keep from crying out. My pussy squeezed his digits, throbbing around them. My panties were wet, my knees shook, and I desperately needed to get out of the theater and fuck his brains out.
His pulled free. “Let’s go.”
I adjusted my shorts and found myself being pulled out of my seat and toward the exit before I could even say, okay.
Nolan looked both ways and tugged me around a corner to an area posted as “off limits.”
“Oh, no,” I said, staring up the forbidden staircase. A back road would do just fine. This came with too much risk. “Private, keep out.” I pointed at the sign.
“Yeah.” He ducked under velvet-covered ropes and pulled me along with him. “So there shouldn’t be any interruptions. I need you now.” He tugged me up the stairs and brought me around a corner. He clamped onto a knob attached to a door clearly posted no trespassing.
“Uh….”
“Shhhhh, pretty girl.” He turned the knob and winked at me.
“We can’t go in….”
&nbs
p; He pushed the door open. Nolan grinned and yanked me into an empty projection room.
“What if someone comes up here?” I took a step back and looked around.
“They won’t.” His eyes sparkled. “The show has another half hour before intermission.” Nolan stepped toward me and eyed me like a light snack. “Come here.” He snagged my wrist, spun me around, and pushed my back against a brick wall. He was all over me, under my top, inside my bra. His knee went between my thighs and spread my legs apart. He kissed me with a hunger so voracious I could barely catch my breath, let alone object to the secluded, but nowhere near safe, room.
My shorts were shoved off my hips and dropped to the floor. My panties followed. Two seconds later, he tore a condom packet open with his teeth, rolled it down his cock, and lifted me from my feet, wrapping my legs around him.
I couldn’t think. I tipped my head back, and Nolan devoured my neck and slid his cock inside me.
“This is insane,” I gasped.
He didn’t say anything but pulled back and thrust again. I dug my nails into his shoulders as he began to pump in and out, stroking so deep the world around me spun. In the background, I could hear laughter and singing. As the show went on, I rode out a storm. Powerful muscles flexed under my palms. Stroking. Touching. Rubbing. Every nerve in my body ignited.
My entire body clenched, and I came, screaming. The music in the background drowned me out, but I didn’t care. I wanted to scream. I’d never been able to do it before, and it intensified the orgasm.
“Yes. Let go.” He rode me harder and faster.
Another cry bubbled up from my throat as my orgasm peaked. Nolan didn’t slow. The tension wound tighter and tighter until I didn’t think I could take anymore.
“Nolan.” I came again even though the first orgasm hadn’t ended, and it became one nonstop, pulse-pounding trip, merging into one wave of pleasure, sweeping me away from reality and into oblivion.
Nolan thrust one more time and pinned me to the wall. His cocked throbbed inside me as he climaxed. It went on for a minute, pulsing with each beat of his heart. Once it stopped, he relaxed and kissed my neck. “I don’t think I can get enough of you.”
The Omega Team: One Shot (Kindle Worlds Novella) Page 6