Page 116 of Mariposa
He nods.
“Marriage isn’t black and white, and sometimes it’s ugly. I didn’t want history to repeat itself. I wanted him to know that he had a father and was loved. I didn’t want my son to grow up in a broken home. To watch his mother struggle and be a parent on her own. My mother was lonely. She struggled so much, almost lost her sanity quite a few times because she had to raise all of us with little to no support.”
“But in the end, you got hurt and ended up alone.” I point out.
He keeps his blazing gaze straight ahead while the muscle in his jaw flexes.
“Something like that,” he replies absently. I trace the scar against his brow and smile.
“You’re not alone anymore,” I whisper faintly.
You have me.
“And marriage isn’t always ugly,” I murmur.
He quirks his dark, scarred brow at me. His dark lashes flutter slowly. I can’t handle it when he looks at me like this. It always sends me into his personal melted prisoner. And right now? I’m scooped into his arms, and my heart is beating so hard I hear the blood pulsing in my ears.
It isn’t the best time to indulge in our dark desires. The kind that feeds both of our souls. But every time we’re around each other, our reckless attraction always prevails.
He leans in, still soldiering on, as my breath catches in my throat. I latch on tighter, my fingers digging into his back tattoo underneath the army brown shirt. Even through the dizziness, the air around us buzzes so explosively I feel it in my bones. His lips ghost mine, until his beard grazes my cheek first. Closing my eyes, I prepare for his mouth to capture mine.
We don’t get to kiss.
A foreign shout blares in the distance, tearing us away from each other.
The enemy has caught up to finish or capture us.
“Let me walk,” I demand. Kade doesn’t hesitate; he drops me to my feet, causing me to lurch my entire weight on the other side of my working foot. I’m looking for Booker’s pistol when he bumps into me hard.
“Beast. I think we’re surrounded. How the fuck! Brother, I can’t die. I finally have a girl back home waiting for me. We can’t die,” Booker hisses.
Kade whirls us around hastily. His muscles tighten around my waist as we go rigid to do recon. When Booker spins towardus, he takes a bullet straight to the head. Blood and brains splatter across Kade and me.
No!
Not Booker!
Not Shane!
I reach out to catch him, but Booker’s lifeless body slips through my fingers and falls to the ground. Crimson continues to spill out of the massive hole in his head, but the enemy doesn’t stop. I do a quick glance as a sharp sting hits my eyes. I don’t get a chance to process it, but Kade confirms he’s dead by grabbing his body and dragging it to the nearest cover we have.
“He’s dead. Chaos is dead.” I shake my head vehemently. I flick my gaze to Kade, pushing my emotions back down. I will not fall apart. “Master Sergeant, what do you need?” My shaky voice pleads. Adrenaline spikes my blood, and my mind is full of determination.
I don’t break.
We’ve been trained to handle the worst scenarios.
We. Can’t. Break.
Kade yanks me back with the palm of his hand until my back collides with the rock.
“We survive.” He hands me Booker’s rifle. I take it just as Kade reloads. His eyes are empty and vast, but his movements are calculated and adrenaline-filled. He’s back in Operator Beast mode, and so am I. The fierce beast inside that Kade’s taught me to embrace—The Unbreakable Soldier.
An enemy dressed in all black attempts to tackle Kade from behind and aims his pistol at him simultaneously. Just as his fingers graze his back, I raise my rifle and put a bullet in his skull. He drops immediately. Kade pushes him off his boots, causing the threat to fall down the side of the cliff.
“Throw the smoke grenade! It’s the last fucking one. Use it now!” Kade growls. Booker’s blood is on our faces, but it gets washed away by the rain in seconds.
“Yes, Beast!”
