We pulled up and exited the car. I stood straight up, adjusting my cover on my head before walking side by side with Mitchell. Every step I took inched me closer to the office of the man who would take every opportunity to berate me verbally again, and with the lack of respect that I was harboring for him, I had to convince myself that composure and respect—even if I didn’t feel like O’Hara deserved any of it—were in my best interest.

“Here we are, Sergeant Cruz. For what it’s worth, I hope you come out okay. I know the rules, but they don’t always apply to real life situations.”

He knocked on the door then stepped back. I was stunned that he’d given his personal thoughts, and even more so that he seemed to be leaning towards my side of things. It didn’t matter one way or the other, but to know that there weren’t a bunch of Jensens walking around put me a little more at ease.

“Come in,” O’Hara bellowed.

Mitchell pushed the door open, then motioned for me to walk in. “I have Sergeant Cruz, First Sergeant.”

“Thank you, Staff Sergeant Mitchell. You’re excused.”

Mitchell nodded his head then stepped out, leaving me alone with the man whose face had my blood boiling.

“You can go ahead and take a seat, Cruz. This won’t take too long.”

I stared at him for a second, convincing myself that as much as I wanted to be an asshole and disobey his order, I couldn’t do it. I was still a Marine, and like it or not, he warranted respect.

“As you know, your crime of fraternization carries hefty consequences, and I plan to deliver them swiftly. Sergeant Major Thomas spoke with Colonel Davis, and with my recommendation they have decided that you will not be promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeant. Your actions do not embody the characteristics needed to succeed as a Staff NCO in the Marine Corps. You lack judgment, morals, ethics, and downright common fucking decency. You have shamed me, and made a mockery of this schoolhouse, and your promotion has already been revoked. If I get my way, I’ll bust your ass all the way down to Private before kicking you out through a dishonorable discharge.”

I looked at him, nostrils flaring, but still unable to say anything for fear that whatever came out of my mouth would be the wrong thing.

“I am taking this shit to court-martial. You are being charged not only with fraternization, but also with assault.”

My eyes bulged. I couldn’t believe what he was saying and how low he was going to try and prove a point. “Assault, First Sergeant? If I may ask, assault on who?”

“On Private Allen. From everything I have heard, your attack was unwarranted. The firewatch was already engaged in a struggle with him, and you or Sergeant Riley could have easily restrained him, but you took it a step further, and now the guy is lying in a hospital bed struggling to heal.”

“With all due respect, First Sergeant, he had attacked a female. He was very close to raping her—”

“And you saw fit to protect that female in an unacceptable way.” He walked over and stopped directly in front of me. “If you weren’t fucking her, I highly doubt you would have reacted that way.”

The snarl of his words put me on attack mode. The pent-up aggression was ready to be released, and I was finding it hard to continue holding it in. “Are you married, First Sergeant?” I asked, seemingly baffling him.

His eyebrows scrunched tightly as he studied me. “That’s none of your fucking business, Cruz.”

“Well, First Sergeant, I’m asking because Cassie is my fiancé now. I didn’t fuck some random student for shits and giggles. I fell in love with her, and nothing you can do to me is going to hurt me because Allen did all the hurt that could be done and I still have her.” I looked down at his hand that clearly showed the sign that he was, in fact, married. “So as a married man, you know that you’d do anything to protect the woman you love.”

He swallowed hard, and I could tell I had gotten to him. He moved even closer to me, his face embedded with a deep scowl.

“You’ve lost your fucking mind. You better remember who you are speaking to, Cruz. This shit isn’t about me.”

“I’m speaking on my behalf, First Sergeant.”

“You don’t have a goddamned thing to say!” he yelled. “You’ve tricked some stupid Pfc. into marrying you, for what? BAH? Extra money? What?”

“Because I fucking love her, that’s why!” My words came out passion-filled and strong. I was no longer going to allow him to tear down what Cassie and I had. If he didn’t like it, too bad, but having him stand before me and try to minimize what she had done for me wasn’t going to fucking fly any longer. “These rules are put in place for a reason, and I know that, but I can’t help that I fell in love with her, and I’ll be damned if a rule gets in the way of that.”

The room grew silent as only our breaths filled the space. He was staring with anger in those beady eyes, and I was reciprocating it. I was done pretending that anything he could do to me was going to send me begging for mercy. There wasn’t shit he could do to me that would break what Cassie and I had, and it was time he knew it.

“I have an impeccable service record, and if this is my only blemish, then I guess my record is still damn near perfect. With all due respect, First Sergeant O’Hara, Cassie Bennett and I broke the rules. It wasn’t intentional, but it was meant to happen and I don’t regret it. So go ahead and do whatever you have to do to me to make me your example, but I’m telling you right now, I love her, and I won’t apologize for it.”

His eyes widened ever so slightly as if I had thawed the iciness inside of him. He cleared his throat, then stepped back. “Staff Sergeant Mitchell!”

The door opened, and Mitchell came walking in. “Yes, First Sergeant.”

“I need you in here.” He stepped over to his desk, then pulled out a couple of papers. “Sergeant Cruz, you are being charged with fraternization and assault. You have the right to remain silent. Any statement you make may be used as evidence against you in a trial by court-martial. You have the right to consult with legal counsel. This legal counsel may be a civilian lawyer retained by you at your own expense, a military lawyer appointed to act as your counsel without cost to you, or both. Do you understand these charges and your rights?”

“Yes, First Sergeant.” The low rumble of my voice shook my core. Anger brewed with every passing second.

“Here is your formal charge sheet, laying out the charges against you and stating that you have been informed and that you understand. I’ll need you to sign here.” He laid the paper down on the desk and sat his name engraved pen down next to it.

A firestorm grew inside of me. I knew what I was getting myself into when I embarked on my pursuit of Cassie, but now that shit was hitting the fan, and O’Hara—a man who I’d previously held so much respect for—had turned into such a supreme jackass. I signed the document, then angrily dropped the pen, and stepped back.

“You will be held on barracks restriction pending court-martial where you will be watched over and escorted by a Staff NCO at all times. I can’t trust the NCOs because it seems you have their blind allegiance to you. Do you see what you have done to my company?”

I didn’t respond. There was nothing else for me to say.

“You will report to Gunny Chavez once you are done with legal. You will no longer be used in an instructor billet, and you are to stay away from Pfc. Bennett. Do you understand that?”

I nodded my head, leaving out the courtesy of a verbal answer.

“Now get the fuck out of my office. Staff Sergeant Mitchell will escort you to legal where your counsel will instruct you on what is next for you.”

He turned and walked back to his desk, plopping down in the chair and picking up the phone. I turned and walked out, with Mitchell by my side. He looked me over, his eyebrows furrowed and his mouth pulled into a tight line, no doubt wondering how I was able to remain so calm after the ass chewing that I had just received, but I walked to the car and waited for him to get in and take me over to base legal. O’Hara, whether he’d wanted to admit to it or not, knew he couldn’t intimidate me. I could tell that I had him rattled with my admission about Cassie, and to see the shock spread across his face put a level of satisfaction inside of me that had me feeling triumphant.

A quick drive across the base and we were in front of the base legal office. Mitchell got out of the car with me and walked me into the office, almost like a child being dropped off at school. This part of my punishment was beginning to piss me off.

“Staff Sergeant Mitchell, I’m not going anywhere. You don’t need to walk me everywhere I have to go.”

“I know, Sergeant, but I’m under orders.”

“Orders,” I grumbled, then removed my cover and walked into the building. The office was quiet; only a few Marines and their wives were inside awaiting the processing of their Power of Attorney papers. A red-headed Lance Corporal stood at the front desk, signing everyone in as they entered the building. I signed in then took a seat, looking around at everyone and picturing me and Cassie in here one day for the same thing.

“Sergeant Cruz,” the Lance Corporal called out, waking me from my thoughts.

“Right here.”

Mitchell stayed put in his seat, thankfully. I was beginning to worry that the guy would follow me to take a piss.

“I’m Lance Corporal Nelson. I just need you to fill out these forms, and then Captain Hedlund will be out shortly to take you.”

She slid a clipboard in front of me. I signed the forms then slid it back to her, and without saying another word, she took the forms and walked to the back offices. If I could get out of here and into a work environment, that would be the best thing for me. I didn’t want to go over every detail of my charges. I just wanted my mind occupied to keep it from wandering back to Cassie and settling on the worst.