by Amelia Jade
Carla rolled her eyes, groaning out loud. Although Jody might be her best friend in the entire world, she had a fixation with a certain part of the male anatomy to the point that everyone who roomed with her was constantly asking to be transferred. Carla had only been able to put up with it because she was able to leave and go work on her suit when Jody had needed time to herself, something she was always happy to do.
Carla: Listen, you hussy, just because I’m here doesn’t mean I’m spending every night like you do! One of us has to have morals and things. Yes, he’s scorching hot and ultra-easy on the eyes. We agree there. But that’s not a good enough reason for me to want to sleep with him. I sort of HAVE to want to do that, too.
Jody: Don’t you dare tell me you haven’t thought about sleeping with him, even once. You aren’t that much of a prude.
Carla: I never said that! Of course it’s crossed my mind. I see him in tight shirts, or even no shirts occasionally, and yeah, I have an imagination. I’m not dead and dry over here, God. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to!
Jody: Get on that, girl. Literally. I’m not talking commitment. Just bounce up and down for a bit.
She tossed her phone across the bed. Jody was obviously in one of her moods, and thoughts of Thorne must be getting her going. Arguing with her would be useless right now.
Carla felt a twinge of jealousy that her friend was thinking of Thorne like that, and threw her head back into the pillows with a groan. It was little things like that, that made her hesitate to just jump into bed with him for fun and games! Because what if she were wrong, what if it weren’t noncommittal?
Why did life and relationships have to be so confusing? Carla slapped the sheets with a fist, angry at her brain. It was just supposed to be a joke! When she kissed him, it was just supposed to be a kiss. Neither of those had worked out as originally planned, which meant sleeping with him definitely wouldn’t work out as planned.
Hell, why was she even thinking of sleeping with him in the first place?
He’s hot, treats you nicely, is rich, and you feel an attraction toward him.
Fuck.
The smell of something delicious came wafting into the room.
Carla: He’s cooking dinner now. He made breakfast yesterday and dinner.
Jody: HE CAN COOK? WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!
Carla: Seriously though. Jody, I just want to be back with the unit. I miss my suit. I miss you and the squad. I can’t let you stand in the way of what’s coming while I sit around sipping mimosas and having copious amounts of sex!
Jody: I’m not even going to begin to break down how many different ways that message is incorrect, because we don’t have time. So I want you to sit back, and think over this next question very carefully.
She frowned. Getting a serious response from Jody was practically unheard of, and to get it so instantly and without protest had her uneasy. What did Jody see that she didn’t? Her friend wasn’t exactly known for being the best at understanding social situations.
Jody: If you weren’t in the military, would you be treating this situation the same, or different? Think carefully before you reply.
Her automatic reply, the one that her fingers were already typing out, was “No.” But her friend’s order to think it over carefully had her pause before hitting the send button.
Could she honestly say that she would have taken a different path with Thorne if she hadn’t been in the military?
Carla: How am I supposed to answer that? I never would have met him, or been forced into living with him if I weren’t.
Jody: Pretend that you met him on the streets or something. He’s trying to flirt with you, take you on cute dates to the park and what not.
She’d messaged Jody about that right after it happened, coming back and feeling guilty. Although there hadn’t been a response, she’d known it would come up eventually.
Jody: So tell me, would you be so adamant about not being interested? Would you be one of those people that turns down a great opportunity “because work is too busy right now”?
There was a pause, but then her phone buzzed again.
Jody: Don’t be one of those people on the house-hunting shows that complains about stairs in a house because they have a young kid and can’t accept that their kids will be able to navigate stairs in a year or three. Think ahead, Carla. Think about all that too. We’re not just talking here and now.
She just stared at the phone. Who was this person?
The intensity of her friend’s reply had her thinking hard. Jody was never like this. She was always a live-in-the-moment, no-strings-no-regrets type of girl.
Carla: Hi Jess, how are you?
There was a long pause before a reply came, confirming that she’d been correct in her guess that Jody was not the one behind the messages any longer. Jess Burrows was in one of the other squads, and was good friends with both her and Jody. She was much more down-to-earth, and able to see the bigger picture.
Jody-Jess: Hey, C. Miss you! But I’m serious. Think about this before you act.
The smell from outside the room was growing stronger, and she knew that it wouldn’t be long before she all but had to go outside and see what he was cooking.
Carla: I’m still not saying I’m going to sleep with him.
Jody-Jess: Nobody is saying that. Okay, Jody is. Seriously though, C, think ahead. Don’t plan for the here and now. We’re not going anywhere. A few more weeks isn’t going to make a difference on our end.
Carla: We’ll see. He’s cooking food, and it smells wonderful. I’m ditching you two losers to go see what it is.
Her phone didn’t buzz again until she was almost out of the room.
Jody: Fuck yeah, girl! Get that dick! OWW OWWWW.
Well, it was good to know Jody had gotten her phone back at least.
Carla smiled at the message and tossed it on the bed, leaving the phone and her excuses in the bedroom.
Tonight she was just going to let herself live. The Steel Scythes had passed the inspection none the worse for wear, and despite the slightly disturbing fact that it left her feeling somewhat unneeded, she wasn’t going to let it affect her. Jody and Jess were right about one thing.
The invasion wasn’t coming tomorrow or in the next week. She could afford to take advantage of this opportunity and see just what supposedly being the mate to a dragon was all about. Then she could go back to reality after that. After all, if they couldn’t stop the Outsiders, it could be the last time she ever got to experience something like this. Shouldn’t she just go for it and take advantage of what life had handed her?
“What are you making that smells so delicious?”
Thorne stopped what he was doing and looked back in her direction, obviously surprised at both her presence and light tone. “Umm, it’s supposed to be a chicken casserole.”
Carla came to a stop, leaning on one of the support pillars as she watched him move about the kitchen. “Wow. You’re trying really hard to win me over, aren’t you?”
Thorne smiled, and she felt herself warming to the idea of being nice to him and considering things in a different light. One where maybe she even admitted to herself that she enjoyed spending time with him.
“That, and I’m still trying to make up for getting you out here,” he said. “If I’d remained sober, I could have seen things differently, and we’d both still be at the base and I’d be embarrassing you in front of your unit with bold gestures of romance.”
Carla nodded slowly. “I’m not sure that would go over so well when it came to convincing me to give you a chance.”
He grinned. “I can be very persuasive.”
“I’ve noticed,” she admitted, lending a smile to take any edge from the words. “But I have some good news for you.”
“Good news is always appreciated. It generally means I didn’t screw up.” Thorne bunched up his features. “Again.”
She laughed. “This actually gets you off the hook. Sort of. But my
unit passed, even though I wasn’t there!”
“Hey that’s great!” he exclaimed, rushing over to her and wrapping her up in a hug. “I’m so glad to hear that. I know you were really worried about it.”
Carla looked down at him. “Yeah same here. But, um, Thorne?”
“Yes?”
“You can put me down now.”
Suddenly realizing he was holding her in the air, so that her chest was nearly in his face, Thorne quickly set her down and backed away, his eyes darting left and right in discomfort. “Sorry. I, uh, just got kind of excited.”
She smiled and patted him on one seam-busting bicep as she swept past into the kitchen. “It’s okay. I’d rather that than grumpy Thorne. He’s no fun.”
“Grumpy Thorne? This coming from the one who’s been hiding in her room?”
Irrational anger jumped through her, and she almost lashed out at him for the comment, coming to a halt before the stove. Almost. The unfortunate part about it, as she came to realize after taking a second to compose her reply, was that he was right. She’d been hiding in her room all day. Avoiding him. After their walk in the park, and then his bad news about Colonel Mara still not letting her leave, she’d been feeling guilty and upset at not getting her way.
Eventually she made herself turn and face him. “Sorry about that,” she said, forcing herself to say the words and work toward a new, fresh start.
Amazingly it felt good to apologize, to own up to her actions. So good that for a brief second she almost entertained the idea of doing the same to Colonel Mara. That idea died real quick though, and she pushed it away as being unreasonable after so long. No, she’d committed to this course of action, and at this point was determined to ride it out until the end.
“Now that we’ve established I’ve been a bitch, are you planning on sharing this?”
Thorne nodded. “Of course.”
“Sweet. Time to taste-test this puppy.” She grabbed a fork and scooped up some bits of chicken and cheese and general deliciousness.
It smelled amazing and she bit down on it after blowing it cool, closing her eyes to savor the taste.
“BLECK!” she gasped, bending over the sink as she spat it back out. Hurriedly turning the tap on, she shoveled scoop after scoop of fresh water into her mouth.
“What? Is it not good?”
Carla splashed her half-eaten mouthful down the sink and then stood up, keeping her mouth closed. “It’s…ummm, delicious?” she squeaked, trying to keep a straight face, not wanting to hurt his feelings.
“Where did I go wrong?”
“The salt,” she gasped, turning around and thrusting her mouth right under the tap. “Blgh vs-ahlt.”
“It’s too salty?”
“Just a bit,” she said, her mouth clear of water this time, the saltiness finally starting to go away. “How much did you put in?”
“Whatever the recipe called for,” he said, eyebrows pushed together, lips in a straight line as he looked at his phone. “Yeah, there. Two cups of salt and pepper blend.” He pointed the phone at her.
Carla, unable to believe what she was hearing, grabbed the phone and looked at it. “Oh, no. Thorne, no. That’s two cups of RICE. It’s just bad formatting on the phone. The website isn’t made for mobile devices obviously. It should just be a little bit.”
Looking crestfallen, he tossed the phone onto the counter as she handed it back. “I hate technology,” he pronounced, leaning against the light gray granite countertop.
Unable to prevent herself from smiling, she walked up to him. Her fingers found his hands and pried them out from his sides, uncrossing his arms as well. The massive limbs moved reluctantly, but her light touch was all she ever needed. He didn’t resist her. First she put one, then the other hand on the counter behind him, until it looked like he was resting on them.
“Almost there,” she said, speaking quietly as she worked. Next her hands grabbed his face, tilting it upward so that he wasn’t pouting at the floor.
“What are you doing?” he asked as her fingertips brushed his cheeks, pushing them up against their will.
“Getting rid of Grumpy Thorne, and returning Happy Thorne, or if that fails, Indifferent Thorne.”
She smiled as she said it, and Thorne’s face lit up, likely against his will, but it didn’t matter.
“This isn’t fair. You know I can’t resist you,” he said…carefully not being grumpy about it.
“I know.” She winked. “So you looked up a recipe and tried to make it for me?”
Caught by the sudden change of topic, Thorne could only nod.
“That’s pretty romantic,” she murmured, still standing right in front of him, her hands now at her sides, though only inches separated them.
“You got me.” He frowned, but quickly banished the expression when she lifted her eyebrows questioningly. “Though I think it backfired just a bit, since I made it inedible.”
“The effort and thought is what counts,” she said. “Besides, I now get to introduce you to this incredible delectable called ‘Chinese Take-Out.’ Trust me, you’re going to love it.”
“What?” He glared at her angrily. “I don’t eat people, Carla. Ever. That’s rude.”
“Oh my Goddd,” she howled, leaning forward into him, shaking with laughter.
“I screwed up again, didn’t I?” he muttered, his arms coming up to naturally hold her as she howled.
“NO! No, not at all,” she cried, tears streaming down her face while he stared at her blankly. “Just…a misinterpretation. Oh wow. That was great. Thank you,” she said, fingers splayed wide across his stomach as she pushed off, standing up.
The tingle she got from feeling his individual stomach muscles raced down her hands and up her arms, momentarily distracting her as she rubbed the tips together, trying to savor the memory of how it felt for as long as she could.
“This is Chinese food, Thorne. Although not actually. It’s like, locally-created Chinese food. Anyway, whatever, the origins don’t matter. It’s good, and cheap, and you get a ton of it. You’re going to thank me later.”
“We’ll see,” he grumbled, still embarrassed over his obvious mistake.
Carla patted him on the arm, letting her palm stay there for longer than would normally be appropriate, just feeling the solid muscle. “Yeah, I suppose we will, won’t we?”
Jody was right about one thing. He is hot.
Chapter Eleven
Thorne
“That was delicious,” he sighed, pushing his foam container away and leaning back. “You win this round.”
“Oh, I didn’t realize we were keeping score.”
“We are. You’re down about five so far,” he teased.
Carla mock-glared at him, her eyebrows coming down until they nearly covered her eyes. “Is that so? Well, just a forewarning, but I’m ultra-competitive. You’re going down, bud.”
He laughed easily. “I doubt it. Though I must admit, if all your ideas are as good as this one, well…you might make it close.”
“Ha!” she exclaimed. “We’ll see. Chinese food is okay with you then?”
“Yes. Very.”
“Good. It was a staple growing up,” she said, her eyes looking away, at something only she could see. “My mom wasn’t around much. No father to speak of, besides a man or two who would stay over for several months before disappearing forever. I later learned my mom was a psycho and those men actually escaped, but that’s a different story. Anyway, she never had food, or if she did, it wasn’t any good. So I had to fend for myself. I learned at an early age that you could get a lot of Chinese food for cheap. I got real good at stealing money and then surviving off of leftovers for days on end.”
She smiled. “Boy was basic training an eye-opener. I think I was the most malnourished person there. The first few weeks…well, let’s just say my body had a lot of adjusting to do to normal food.”
Thorne did his best not to make a declaration that she would never go unfed or
improperly fed again, but it was tough. He wanted nothing more than to give his mate everything, to sit her down at the table and feed her with meal after meal, keeping her permanently satisfied. No one should have to grow up that way, and his mate deserved better than everyone else in his eyes.
“It seems you’ve adapted well to a new life,” he remarked, resting one foot on his knee.
Carla leaned into the corner of the couch next to him. “Yes,” she said softly. “I suppose I have.”
“I understand now why they’re so important to you. I’m sorry to have dragged you away from them. I would have made less of a deal of it if you’d told me before.”
She looked thoughtful. “I’m glad you understand my drive a bit better now. But Thorne, I don’t talk about my family much. It’s a painful memory, one that I’m perfectly glad to have left behind me now. It takes time to trust someone enough to talk about it.”
The revelation that she trusted him now rocked his mind. He carefully kept his body still, not wanting to even risk moving the wrong way, in case it broke the spell being cast over them now. He could feel it coming. That moment. The one that could change the entire course of their relationship.
Or break it.
He needed to be careful and not proceed with too heavy a hand. Carla was clearly used to depending on herself, and he would need to respect that. She wasn’t ready to depend on him, not yet. But in time, she might come to believe him when he said he would be there for her. Always.
“Thank you for sharing with me,” he said softly, reaching out to gently squeeze her thigh in reassurance.
Thorne would never have thought of Carla as soft or delicate, but the way her hand laid itself upon his argued otherwise. Her palms were rough from working with her suit, and he’d seen more than one pale white scar marking her body, but just then she was as delicate as a flower.
With aching slowness, his chest thundering from the hammer blows of his heart, he turned his hand over until they were palm to palm. Memories of their walk through the park came tumbling back, like the water through the artificial rivers, bouncing and splashing through his brain. It was like spreading his wings for the first time and taking to the sky, an experience he would never forget. Ever.