Page 29 of Mariposa
I want to tell him about my dad, sister, and grandmother, but I’m giving him way too much. Opening up can be a good yet vulnerable thing because there are two types of people. People who actually want to help, or people who want to use it against you. I don’t know Kade very well, but if he’s the monster everyone says he is, everything about tonight could have me kissing my career as a special forces soldier goodbye.
I can’t look at him anymore, so I focus on the ground as the wind blows through my long hair. The pause between us is only seconds, which feels like minutes.
I messed up.
What was I thinking?
He breaks the silence, and I’m ready to face the consequences.
“I can do all of those things. I can get you kicked out,or…” He steps closer to me, and his enormous combat boots come into view. He tilts my chin with his finger, forcing me to meet his softened gaze. A spark of lightning hits my chest at the origin of his touch.
The stars twinkle in the black sky behind him, and I swallow as my vision blurs. Why does he make falling apart easy? Why do I seek his approval like my next breath?
“I can walk you to your barracks and make sure you get to your bed safely, and Ineverwant to see you up here onmyrooftop again. Do you understand me?” His voice deepens as his eyes darken.
I’ll take that one.
13
VIOLET
SEVEN DAYS UNTIL GRADUATION
Take My Breath Away by Berlin
Master Sergeant is dangerous. Our proximity is lethal, and he is more of a threat than I thought. Being around him is suffocating. I’m scared to move, talk, and breathe because of how it makes me feel.
He walked me to my barracks in silence. As soon as I got inside and my door closed, he was gone. I expected him to go back on his word and have me thrown out, but he granted me mercy. Something he’s not known for.
But maybe he doesn’t hate me as badly as I think he does. He could have had me thrown out of the course. Yet here I am, just days before I wear the green beret. He didn’t ask about Adam or any more questions about my personal life, which I appreciated.
The relationship with Adam is blurred, but I can’t ignore the fact that his father is the hot instructor, a famous operator, and every female soldier who walks by him does a double-take…like right now.
A group of female soldiers keeps circling him, hoping he’ll acknowledge their presence.
He doesn’t.
I’m in the corner of the gym, sitting on a bench press, drinking water after finishing five reps of fifty. All the instructors are on the other side of the gym doing deadlifts, pull-ups, and spotting each other. Sergeant Booker is telling jokes, and Slater chuckles at each one, doubling over until his face reddens. Yet Kade never laughs…not even a smirk. He’s so focused on working out that it’s like he isn’t here anymore. He’s good at blocking out the world.
He wears a black hat with the United States flag patch front and center, and the ends of his hair curl around his ears. Bright white ceiling lights shine against the perspiration that glistens on his tan skin. The snakes on his arm are captivating—no—distracting. The muscle T-shirt shows off his back tattoos and the front of his chest—guns with skulls.
Every time his triceps flex, my breathing turns shallow. He watches himself in the floor-to-ceiling mirrors, perfecting his posture. The veins in his neck and forearms bulge, and his upper lip rises, flashing his sharp canines. He’s deadlifting an incredible amount of weight, and the way his ass…
No.
My eyes search for anything to distract me from the stirring of my core. Swallowing my water hard, I stand and go to the next workout machine—one with a view that doesn’t reach O’Connell’s.
It’s another weekend with our phones, the one before graduation. I have to survive seven more days, and I’ll be the first female in my family to join special operations.
My phone rings from an unknown number.
Weird. I answer anyway, swiping right.
I hold the phone to my ear. “Hello?”
“Violet!”
My heart drops, and a flutter of grief mixed with anger hits me. I scoff as I remember our last interaction at the airport.
