Silent Ranks

by USMC Best Friend

  “That’s my Brothers name”

  “Oh” he was speechless “I just…”

  “Doug I’m going on that break” I moved past Ryne and walked out and across the boardwalk and leant on the wall.

  “Okay I’m going to say it” I looked over my shoulder Ryne was standing there

  “Go back to your Party because right now I’m not doing to good” I looked back at the beach

  “I’m sorry I was just being a smart mouth”

  “Yeah… I noticed” he sat on the wall and leant back and looked at me.

  “That phone call last night”

  “What about it?”

  “Was that your brother because I heard you say Ryder?”

  “What do you do?” I narrowed my eyes at him “You some sort of spy listening in?”

  “No… I’m a Navy Seal” I started to laugh

  “I’m sorry but even that bunch of girls wouldn’t take you they have some standard”

  “Like you” he folded his arms over his chest.

  “Yes like me”

  “So you’re not impressed with the Navy seal line”

  “Hell no a bunch of over inflated ego’s with guns and knives… meet a few didn’t like any” I tapped my finger on my chin “Hmmm so I was wrong you’d fit in perfectly with them” I started to walk back across the boardwalk.

  “So you’re a Marine girl then?” he was behind me his hand closing over mine on the door handle to the pool hall.

  “You can see my back” I refused to face him he was getting under my skin right now and rubbing me the wrong way totally.

  ‘Yes I can see it” his warm fingers drew tiny circles on my tattoo

  “So I think its self explanatory”

  “I saw the tank you wore yesterday about Red Friday” I groaned and pulled my hand from under his and turned to look at him. “So who’s deployed?”

  “Right now My Dad my Uncle My Brother and my cousin”

  “I’m sorry”

  ‘It’s life for a Marines Kids… Now I have to get back to working your party” he dropped his hand from the door and let me pull it open and walk inside as Ana walked out.

  “You still driving that poor girl insane?” she smiled

  “I think I pushed it too far” he leant on the wall and looked at her. I said something about her brother”

  “Oh you jerk he’s on his way home injured” Ryne stood back up “he got shot apparently on patrol”

  ‘Damn” He swallowed hard and looked into the pool hall where I was clearing tables and talking to people in there. “You could have told me”

  “Oh really well if you tried talking to her like she’s human and not some hot piece of ass to chase”

  “She is a hot piece of ass with some fierce loyalty to the Corps” he sighed “I’m going to have to try to pull out al the stops”

  ‘Oh please tell me you didn’t use the Navy seal line” Ana groaned

  “What it gets girls every time?” he laughed ‘Well most girls?” he looked back at me and rubbed his hand over his jaw.

  Chapter 30

  I'm done

  I was laughing and talking with a few of the guys in there as Ryne walked back in with Ana.

  “Go apologize to her?’ Ana pushed him in the back

  “Jeez you’re worse than Mom” he pulled a face

  “I know. Now move while I go and talk to that hot guy you went to school with” she grinned. Pushing him again in my direction.

  “Aly” Ryne blocked my way as I took empty bottles and glasses back to the bar. “I’m sorry okay I didn’t know about your brother and that sucks”

  “Yeah it does” I ground my teeth.

  “I understand”

  “You understand what how to be a real douche and a creep” I walked round him and put the tray on the bar.

  “Okay that’s it outside now let’s get this all out” He grabbed my arm without hurting it and towed me to the door.

  “Hey” Brit called after us

  “Ryne” Ana yelled over the music to her brother. Ryne closed the door behind us I was on the edge of boiling over right now.

  “You need to loosen your ass up and recognize when a guy likes you” he turned me to face him “I do what I do and say what I say as a way to break the ice but you… damn you’re colder than ice… I like you get used to it” I grabbed him the same way Mom had grabbed Justin in the barn I felt the breath catch in his throat.

  “Like me you don’t know me and if you’d dealt with the shit I’ve dealt with in the past few weeks then you’ wouldn’t be to open to guys hitting on you” I snapped he struggled against my grip “I don’t have patience for anymore” Ryne put his hand on my wrist and pressed on the pressure point on the inside of my wrist making me let go he moved quickly pulling my arm round behind my back and pushed me against the wall like I was being arrested his leg in between mine so I was trapped.

  “And I said sorry I’m not some crazy stalker. I do like you and Damn where the hell did you learn to choke hold?” He was pushed against me

  ‘My Dad taught me and if you ever see a little red dot on you watch out I’m a snipers girl” I struggled against him. He wasn’t hurting me but I was still pissed he’d got out of my hold.

  “Okay if I Let you go do you promise not to try to kill me” he breathed in my ear

  “I can’t promise” Ryne chuckled and he let go of me and stepped back I turned round

  “I didn’t know that you were some guys girl… I’m sorry… and I really am sorry about what happened to your brother I do understand” he held up his hands.

  “I’m no guys girl” I paced back and forth trying to calm down and not drop him like a stone. “and how would you know how I feel?”

  “Okay you just said you were a snipers girl” he shrugged

  “I am” I pulled the side of my shorts down and showed him the ‘U.S.M.C. Sniper’s girl’ tattoo “But I’m not dating one My Dad and my Brother are both Snipers”

  “Oh… so no guy”

  “Look I think we need to go back to your party I’m getting paid to work not stand out here with you” I walked to the door I could see Ana and Britt in conversation.

  “I’m paying you if you think about it” Ryne chuckled “Come on throw a guy a bone Aly”

  “I’m standing here dressed like a damn pirate while I’m worrying about my Brother in a hospital bed and the other men I love sleeping in Kevlar… forgive me if I don’t feel much like throwing you anything other than in to the ocean” I yanked open the door to the pool hall and walked in. Brit opened her mouth I just held up a finger and shook my head. Ryne walked in.

  “Okay I told you to apologize to her not start fighting with her” Ana swatted him

  “She tried to choke me” He protested.

  “No if she wanted to do it properly you’d have passed out” Brit poked him in the shoulder.

  “You have to help me apologize to her properly” he looked at Brit

  “Why?”

  “Because I love her spirit… yes I know it sounds lame and I know she doesn’t have a boyfriend” he pulled Brit aside “Help me get her wall down”

  “I don’t know” brit shook her head “Aly is one of the most important people in my life and I’m not going to let anyone in that is going to hurt her”

  “Ryne has a mouth” Ana butted in “but he’d not hurt anyone”

  “Come on what does she like… Roses… Lillies…”

  ‘Diamonds” Brit laughed ‘No seriously she just wants to make sure her family is okay and she wants someone that can handle her”

  “I’m trained to handle dangerous things” He smiled

  “Okay what the hell do you do and if you tell me you’re a cowboy I’m going to scream”

  “Okay firstly are there really cowboys?” he pulled a face

  “Oh yeah half of her Family are Texan with a ranch only she was there before and sort of had an incident with a cowboy a few weeks ago”


  “An incident?” Ana shook her head

  “Yeah… Aly sort of…” she stopped.

  “Aly sort of what?” Ryne pushed

  “I had to deal with something I shouldn’t have” they all looked round. “Brit you’d better go back to your apartment tonight”

  “Al…”

  “No… you don’t know when to shut up do you Brit” I looked at Ryne “Sorry but this pirate is leaving work or no work I’m done”

  Chapter 31

  Can't stay mad

  I walked into the house and threw my keys on the table I walked up to my room and changed into a pair of shorts and one of Ryder’s PT Shirts and walked back down to the kitchen and reached for the coffee pot and filled it. My phone was ringing in my bag. I walked over to it and pulled it out/

  Me * what?

  Brit * you have to be kidding me why the hell did you storm off like some spoiled kid

  Me * you were telling Ryne about what happened in Texas and that’s out of line Brittany

  Brit * I was trying to explain why you’re such a bitch right now that’s all… he’s a good guy

  Me * and how do you know… hell I thought Justin was a good guy and look how that ended

  Brit * okay I’m outside the house open the damn door and let me in we’re going to talk about this

  Me * like hell and how did you get to the base

  Brit * open the god damn door or I’m calling your Mom and Grandma

  I groaned and slammed the phone closed and walked over to the door and opened it

  “Thank you. I’ll get changed” she walked by me and up to my room I sighed and leant on the door frame

  “I pushed her into talking don’t be to mad with her” I jumped at the sound of Ryne’s voice

  “She got you to bring you here?” I was amazed

  “No I offered” He leant against the wall. “Look forget everything that’s happened with us” he held up his hands

  “I’m trying” I groaned

  “Meet me tomorrow at the beach”

  “No”

  “Oh come on I’m smiling and trying to flash my dimples at you” he tipped his head to the side “I’ll teach you to surf”

  “You surf” I shook my head

  “Yes” he nodded “I can see you’re will weakening and if you don’t have an amazing time I’ll leave you alone for good no bugging you”

  “You’re a persistent son of a bitch” I sighed I was exhausted and I still had to put Brit in her place.

  “I can camp on the doorstep”

  “and I can call the M.P.’s if you hadn’t noticed you’re on a Naval base”

  “I had noticed” he laughed “10am the surf beach 10 miles north of here”

  “I said no” I called after him as he walked toward a brand new F250 that was parked at the bottom of the drive.

  “10am” he laughed climbing into the truck and pulling away I muttered a few choice words under my breath and slammed the front door.

  “You should go and surf” Brit giggled

  “Really you should learn a thing about family loyalty”

  “Don’t you question my loyalty” she scoffed walking into the kitchen and pouring two coffee’s “You have a really cute guy that’s doing everything he can to get your attention he’s not a cowboy and I don’t’ think he could spell your name right at a push” she smiled “Come n it’s like riding a horse if you fall off you getback on right”

  “Yes” I sighed wrapping my hands round the coffee cup.

  “right dating guys is the same thing only the horse is more intelligent than most guys… and better hung and…”

  “OMG did you really say that” I laughed I couldn’t stay mad with brit too much had happened in our lives for us to stay mad with each other

  “Mind you Marek should walk with a limp the way he’s….”

  “Okay enough stop or my ears will bleed” I shouted at her “Ever thought maybe I should take the summer and just have fun… I mean I had way too much drama with Justin and now with Ryder coming home injured… I still don’t know what’s best”

  ‘Ever thought of a Seal?” she sat on the counter top and looked at me

  “Sorry you’re the weird one in the family wildlife just doesn’t’ do it for me” I smiled sitting atr the kitchen table.

  “Idiot” she grumbled

  “He tell you he was a seal?” she shook her head

  “I heard him tell you that”

  “And you believe him?”

  “I don’t know come on where are we right now?”

  “My mom’s kitchen”

  “No dumbass where are we”

  “On base” I shrugged

  “Yeah and we have seals based here as well as hot Marines and those Sailor type guys”

  ‘So you think he’s a navy Seal”

  I’t possible”

  Have you ever seen him on base?”

  “No but there is 40,000 people oin here we could have missed him” she pointed out

  “Like I said to him Navy seals are all guns, knivesand talk and the last one I met I didn’t like the arrogance and look at me” I got up and put my empty cup in the sink “And there dress uniform isn’t up to the dress blue standard” I giggled

  “Okay you have a point there” she nodded “So are you going to go meet him”

  ‘Probably not” I walked to the stairs “You can use Ryder’s room” I yawned “Night Brit” I walked into my room and climbed into bed and pulled the blanket over me and settled down to sleep. Yeah easier said than done.

  Chapter 32

  Yes or no

  I got out of bed at the crack of dawn and walked down to make coffee. I’d spent most of the night tossing and turning, one minute I was adamant I wasn’t going to go met Ryne and the next I was thinking what the hell I could go, I had my own truck so if he really pissed me off then I could leave without a problem and I could probably run him over as that beach was firm enough that we parked our trucks on it normally. I picked up my phone and turned it over and over in my hand while the war in my head raged one. The sound of ti ringing made me jump

  Me * hello

  Dad * hey baby girl

  Me * hi dad

  Dad * okay you sound tired

  Me * didn’t sleep to well I got into a toe to toe with a guy last night

  Dad * a guy

  Me * yeah no big deal I put a choke hold on him he was pissing me off that much

  Dad * that’s my girl… so you heard anything else from your brother?

  Me * no I’m waiting to hear if Mom knows more he said he was thinking it’d be about 3 days and a 3 month recovery

  Dad * I wish I could get home to see him and you

  Me * I’ll send pictures and you know Ryder he’ll use it as a way to pick up girls”

  Dad * yeah I have to give him that

  Me * don’t encourage him have you seen him with anyone that wasn’t something he couldn’t bring home to Mom.

  Dad * you have a point… so what are you and Brit going to get up to today?

  Me * I don’t know it was a long night last night and shes crashed out in Ryder’s room maybe the beach I don’t have to work till Tuesday because I worked last night as well as Friday

  Dad * I miss you guys

  Me * miss you to Dad

  Dad * look I’m sorry it’s a short call but I have to go now baby to call your Mom as well

  Me * I understand… I love you Dad

  Dad * Love you too honey

  Me * stay safe Marine

  Dad * yes Ma’am

  The phone disconnected. I put my head on the table and took a few deep breaths.

  I left a note on the kitchen table for a still sleeping Brit and grabbed my beach bag and headed for the surf beach still wrestling with the whole should I shouldn’t I thing. I pulled onto the beach a few cars and trucks were already there including the same truck that Ryne had gotten into last night. I got out and walked round to the front a
nd climbed on the bumper and sat on the hood and watched as the waves crashed and crested with guys waging all out war with them. I hugged my knees to my chest till my phone rang.

  Me * hello

  Ryder * hey sis

  Me * how you doing?

  Ryder * better than the doc expected and I’m due out on a med flight this afternoon I should be home and in the base hospital in the next 48 hours

  Me * good

  Ryder * so I have to ask why the damn costume