“We’re…not.”
“Ah.” She snipped some more greens. “Thinking about it though, aren’t you?”
Why lie? “Maybe.”
“I’m going to give you the best bit of advice I was given. Nobody says you have to like them. No one’s telling you to marry them. But life is short, getting shorter by the day. If you’re single and lonely, why not play around, at least? Why choose to be lonely?”
“Is that what you’re doing? Playing around?”
Annie smiled. “At first it was more ragey sex between me and Roscoe. But I fell in love with both of them. But who’s to say you have to even do that? They’re big boys. I’ve watched them watching you. I think they’re hot for you. Hey, if not them, why not another pair? There are four other available pairs of guys in this unit. And Sin’s single, but I think he’s got his hands full working right now.”
When Kyong mentally ran through the other guys in her mind, she once again realized the only real attraction she felt for any of the guys was for Kilo and Foxtrot.
“I mean,” Annie said, “if you don’t want to casually fool around with anyone, no problems there, either. But if you do, Clara’s got five-years in her medical kit if you need one, just in case.”
Kyong was still deep in thought. “That’s not a problem,” she said. “Mine’s less than a year old.” She’d made sure to renew it when she had her last medical, even though at that point it was still a couple of months away from being due. Not that she was having any sex at the time, but she knew it’d be her damn dumb luck if she hadn’t renewed it, she’d probably stumble across a guy.
In this case, guys.
“Well, the guys on the team are all clean, if that’s a concern,” Annie said with a shrug. “No one’s going to judge you if you monkey around a little with them.” She grinned.
Kyong groaned. “That’s a horrible joke.”
“Oh, just one of many, believe me. You’re sick of the monkey jokes now? You just wait.”
“That’s if I’m around to hear them.”
“Why? I thought you were staying on with us?”
“Well, for now, sure. What happens later?”
“Guess that’s for you to decide.”
“That’s for the military to decide. They still own me for about two more years.”
“Hypothetically and hopefully speaking, the unit’s been around for four years. They’re all coming due for re-up, but I know these monkeys. They won’t just say, ‘Hey, sorry, time’s up, buh-bye,’ and walk off the job. They’ll stick with it ’til they’re done. Then I wouldn’t be surprised if they all leave and go do their own thing after that.”
“That what you’re going to do with Roscoe and Niner?”
“I hope so,” Annie said. “You have no idea how badly I hope that. That we all make it through to the other side of this to go find a little hideaway somewhere and enjoy life. I don’t want to believe this is humanity’s last gasp and it’s a case of the last one out turns off the lights. I want to believe those eggheads will fix this mess, especially now with that woman captured. I want to believe we’re all going to be able to have reunions and celebrations and look back on this period of time in a ‘Hey, wasn’t that some crazy shit?’ kind of way.”
Annie shook her head sadly. “Too many good people have died for me to think we won’t get through this. That they won’t fix this mess, that we won’t kick Silo’s ass, and that we won’t all get our happy-ever-afters. I’m a realist, but if I don’t make the active choice to pick hope in this case, I might as well deep throat my nine and pull the trigger. And if you knew me better, to hear me say that? That I’m actively choosing hope over realistic odds? Then you would understand how desperately I’m clinging to it.”
Kyong remained on the roof even after Annie finished her picking and left her alone once more.
Annie’s words had given her plenty of food for thought.
Kyong headed down for evening chow a while later. She felt her face heat when her gaze immediately homed in on Kilo and Foxtrot as she walked into the dining area. Both of them had immediately focused on her, too, as if watching for her.
Waiting for her.
Forcing herself not to engage right then, she slid past some of the others standing and talking in the main room and went to grab a plateful of spaghetti from the large pots on the stove, as well as a serving of fresh salad and a glass of water.
Am I really contemplating this?
She thought about it as she found herself a quiet corner in an empty office on the first floor. She sat on the floor, in a corner, and ate. She didn’t want to sit there in the dining room, not knowing what to say to Kilo and Foxtrot, and have her face glowing hot, like a silent beacon for everyone to see.
It was safe to say no men had ever had the effect on her that Kilo and Foxtrot had. Either together, or singly.
But the echoes of the tower controller at El Segundo screaming in her ear, the three empty seats in her cockpit, the three sets of gear still stowed in the Panda—all of that hammered home the truth of Annie’s words.
Life. Is. Short.
When she thought about her lonely bedroll, sharing a room with Canuck, when she could be wedged soundly between two sexy hunks of male meat…
It wasn’t much of a choice to make, all things considered.
It pretty much makes the decision for me.
When she finished eating, she felt a little disappointed that she didn’t find the two men in the main dining area with the others. She took her mess kit into the kitchen, washed everything, and left it with the other clean dishes to air dry.
On the heels of her disappointment, she chastised herself.
Stupid. You want to talk to them and then you go hide in an office. Don’t expect them to chase you.
She’d seen all the triads interacting in some way. Some more than others, but what they all seemed to share was a happy glow, an inner light. You could tell they were in love with each other.
I’m not even sure I’m capable of love like that.
She hadn’t felt it yet.
Instead of going to her own room, she forced herself to go up to theirs, where she knocked.
After no response, she knocked again and called out. “Kilo? Foxtrot?”
Nothing.
Ak came up behind her on her way to one of the bathrooms. “If you’re looking for Kilo and Foxtrot, Tango and Omega grabbed them for a supply run right after dinner.”
“Oh. Okay, thanks.”
Another missed opportunity.
She headed for her room, mentally kicking herself in the ass the whole way.
Maybe this is why I deserve to be alone.
Chapter Nineteen
Kilo still hadn’t spoken more than a dozen words to Foxtrot since that little stunt his partner pulled with Kyong. Every time Foxtrot tried to talk to him, he pulled rank and ordered him to shut up, or walked away.
He didn’t want to discuss it. He still felt too angry.
That she’d seen them at chow that night and had opted to go off by herself instead of sitting in one of the vacant chairs across the table from them was proof of how she felt.
He knew eventually he’d get over it. But now he felt a keen sympathy for Niner over having Roscoe for a partner. How Niner hadn’t murdered his partner in his sleep over the past several years was a miracle in and of itself.
Then again, now they had Annie.
He wondered who’d finally end up with Kyong, if anyone. His money was on Victor and Uni. Victor was a pilot, so they already had a lot in common. Add in how much time they were spending together training, it wasn’t a hard call to make. If not him, then maybe Zed and Uncle, for similar reasons. She was getting to know Zed in training, building a rapport with him. It’d be a natural next step, right?
Then again, maybe she’d surprise them with a left-field choice, like Juju and Delta. Maybe even Papa and Alpha, although their CO and second were, admittedly, more focused on the mission than on
romance.
Or, maybe that would be exactly why she got together with them, avoiding an emotional entanglement that—
“Hey, you listening?” Tango asked from the front seat.
“Sorry, what?” Kilo sat up. He’d been staring out the truck’s window while Omega drove.
“Where the fark is your head tonight, Kilo?” Tango asked.
“Sorry.” He tossed a glare at Foxtrot, who sat in the other seat but with his gaze fixed firmly forward.
He even looked a little…smug.
I want to wipe that smirk off his face.
Maybe this was Foxtrot’s revenge for him suggesting Florida to Papa.
No, he wouldn’t go that far…would he?
Deliberately sabotage any attempts they might have for a little slice of heaven of their own just because he was pissed off about their geographical destination?
“Never mind,” Tango said. “Foxtrot, you stay with the truck. I need to know whoever’s behind the wheel won’t be daydreaming while we’re inside the warehouse.”
“Roger roger,” Foxtrot chirruped.
Technically, Tango couldn’t order him to do anything. They were basically the same rank, except that Omega outranked them both. And Tango had been put in charge of the excursion because of his medical knowledge. He knew the equipment they needed. Omega’s procurement skills would also likely come into play.
If worse came to worse, they could shoot their way out of there.
They arrived at a run-down warehouse in the industrial district just a couple of blocks from the water. Depending on which sign on the building you wanted to believe, it’d either been a paint supply business, a screw and nail wholesaler, a cardboard box and shipping container retailer, or a fish market.
Kilo thought he’d eat out-of-date MREs before he ate fish that came from a building looking that decrepit.
Foxtrot swapped places with Omega when the other man got out of the truck.
“Keep it running,” Omega said. “We might come out hot and heavy.”
“Roger roger,” Foxtrot said, still looking all too smug.
Kilo wanted to punch him.
He followed Tango and Omega into the warehouse, where a nervous young guy who looked to be barely out of his teens met them in the office area.
Kilo noticed how the guy’s head quickly swiveled side-to-side nonstop, like a radar dish on crack.
It immediately put him on guard and forced any thoughts about wanting to murder Foxtrot in his sleep out of his mind.
Omega, playing the role of gang badass, shook hands with the kid. “You got what we discussed?”
“You got cash?”
“Show me yours first.”
“Don’t want to waste time. I could get in trouble for this.”
“Then I suggest we do it quickly.”
He led them back into the warehouse area. Palettes of a crazy mix of merchandise were scattered haphazardly all over, everything from clothing, to bath and beauty supplies like bar soap and shampoo, to nonperishable foods, to several stacks of new mattresses wrapped in plastic. One such palette contained medical supply equipment, including several monitors, IV pumps, and various scopes and ultrasound machines.
“What do you need?” the kid asked. The shrink-wrap had already been sliced open and the contents moved around, apparently to make it easier to sort through.
Tango stepped forward and indicated what they needed while Kilo slowly turned, watching not just their six, but the entire interior of the warehouse.
“What’re you doing with all this other stuff?” Omega asked.
“I don’t know. We just receive it here. It’s all getting shipped to Brewster. Truck comes once a week to pick up whatever’s here and takes it, as much as they can. He just showed up this morning. I don’t ask questions, I just open the doors when I’m told to.”
After Tango finished selecting what they needed, Omega negotiated a cash price and peeled bills off a roll from his pocket, handing them to the kid. “How you going to explain this?”
The kid pocketed the money. “I’m not. Gonna wrap it back up and say that’s the way it looked when it got here. They ain’t questioned me yet. That’s why I want you guys out of here.”
Omega turned to Kilo. “Get our ride, have him pull around the back.”
He ran to do it, not with any feeling like they were going to be ambushed, but definitely wanting out of there as soon as possible. He jumped into the back after giving Foxtrot the instructions and they were backing up to a small door embedded in the wall next to the large, roll-up doors when Tango emerged with the first armful of equipment. Ten minutes later, they were all back in the truck and speeding away from the warehouse.
Tango watched in the passenger mirror. “Don’t see any tails.”
Omega glanced in the rearview mirror. “Neither do I, but we’re still taking the long way home.”
Two hours later, after circling around back roads and neighborhoods, they eventually returned to the safe house from the north a little after 22:00 hours.
Doc met them down in the garage. “Great. This is exactly what we needed. Good job.”
“Need help bringing it up?” Kilo asked, wanting any delay he could grab before having to bunk with Foxtrot.
“Yeah,” Doc said, “but just leave it in the hallway outside the lab door. We’ll take it from there.”
“She going to make it?” Kilo asked.
“I don’t know. Without this, I’d say no. But now maybe we have a fighting chance. Q and Sin are focusing on protein tests to figure out which strain of Kite she’s got, which antibodies she’s built up to it, and if there’s a commonality with the other strains. They might be able to backtrack to the antibodies from there.”
“So there’s hope?”
Doc shrugged. “There’s always hope, as long as we don’t give up on it.”
After they finished unloading the truck, Foxtrot disappeared, leaving Kilo alone in their room.
Well, that is what I wanted, isn’t it?
Doc’s words wouldn’t quit ringing in his ears.
Hope.
He stripped down to his shorts and turned out the lights before lying down on his bedroll.
Hope.
Maybe if he approached Kyong, maybe he could talk to her. Maybe if she hated Foxtrot she’d still go for him.
Then again, they were a team. It wouldn’t work with just one of them. He’d end up feeling guilty about the louse being left out, or the louse would feel resentful, or both.
He pretended to be asleep when Foxtrot returned a little later. He still felt too angry at Foxtrot, too resentful.
And he knew he had to get over that before all else, for the sake of the mission.
* * * *
In the middle of the night, Kyong gave up trying to sleep. She knew she couldn’t go wake up Kilo and Foxtrot. That would be wrong.
I could go slip, naked, into their room…
Then again, that might get her shot. They were trained fighters. If they weren’t expecting her…
Yeah, nothing would spoil the mood faster than entry and exit wounds.
Shower it was.
She grabbed her stuff and headed that way, then almost ran face-first into a bare-chested Foxtrot as he opened the bathroom door.
Staring up into his brown eyes, she found herself speechless.
“I…” She swallowed, hard, and decided to quit being a chicken.
Shoving him back into the bathroom, she shut and locked the door behind her, dropped her shower kit, and threw herself at him. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she kissed him, furiously, hoping he wouldn’t push her away.
He didn’t. He grabbed her ass, turning and lifting her to sit her on the counter while pulling her legs around him. Then he took control of the kiss, one fist in her hair, the other around her waist. He slowed it down, deepened it, his tongue slowly caressing her lips, in the driver’s seat.
Between her legs she felt his cock thicken and ha
rden in his shorts and her clit ached in response, a homing beacon.
There! Right there! Torpedo ahead! Target acquired!
He lifted his mouth from hers and stared down into her eyes. “We’re a package deal, baby. You think you can handle two of us?”
“I’d like to find out,” she breathlessly replied.
He looked down at her T-shirt, then let go of her long enough to pull it up and off her, tossing it and her bra to the floor. When he bent down and sucked her left nipple into his mouth, she thought she’d scream from the pleasure.
Then he did it again, to her right one, and she thought the friction of her shorts and panties against her clit might make her come right there.
He straightened and smiled down at her, wordlessly reaching for the front of her shorts. He unfastened them and helped her work them and her panties off her hips and down her thighs, her pushing up on the counter so he could slide them down.
Onto the floor they went.
He locked gazes with her, kneeling in front of her and pushing her thighs apart. She grabbed his head as he leaned in and swiped his tongue up her clit, drawing a long, low hiss of pleasure from her.
Then, he stood up and pecked her on the lips. “Don’t move.”
She nearly fell off the counter. “What?”
His smile disappeared and he gently pushed her back, so she was leaning against the wall. He grabbed her ankles and put her feet up on the counter, spreading her thighs wide apart. Then he put her hands on the edge of the counter, fingers wrapped around it.
“Do. Not. Move,” he whispered, nipping her lower lip. “If you want to have the best fuck of your life, for the rest of your life, you’d better be exactly in this position when I return.”
He stepped away, heading for the door. The outline of his hardened cock was clearly visible against his shorts, and boy, howdy, was he hung.
Gulp.
“What if someone comes in?” she squeaked.
He smiled as he opened the door. “There’s another shower. Tell them this one’s occupied. Wouldn’t be the first time someone’s walked in on someone about to get it on.”