"I'm not sure about that. Long distance running has never been my thing," I responded, trying to be honest about my shortcoming.

"Try to keep up with me. Running with a partner will sometimes surprise the hell out of you."

"Will do."

We stood at the line, waiting to be given the command to start.

"You will have twenty-eight minutes to complete your three mile run. One second beyond twenty-eight minutes and you fail. Pace yourselves so that you don't burn out too quickly. Go!" Cruz said, leaving his husky voice as the last thing on my mind as I took off with Dalton by my side.

We started at a medium pace, not too slow, but definitely not as fast as some of the others. Angelica was one of the first off the line, almost moving in a dead sprint as she started her run. That didn't appeal to me at all, knowing if I started that way, I would definitely burn-out by the second mile.

The sun was beginning to rise as we ran, sending scorching rays of heat down on us. My t-shirt and my shorts filled with sweat as I ran, trying desperately to focus on the course instead of the voice of sex coming from Cruz's mouth into my ears. Dalton spoke to me as we ran, but between the living inferno we were running in, and the voice that was assisting in the task of melting me, I could barely make out what he was saying.

We hit mile three, and my legs were beginning to turn into jello. My skin had turned a lobster's shade of red, the sweat acting as a second layer of skin, coating every inch of my body, sealing my t-shirt and my shorts to me while my lips began to chafe and burn. I was slowing down, and even though I knew we only had one mile to go, I was finding it difficult to keep up the pace that Dalton had set for us.

"Come on, Bennett," he said, through short, deep breaths. "You can do this. Let's go."

"Go ahead of me," I blew out through labored pants. I didn't want him getting a worse time because he was trying to keep me on pace with him.

"You sure?"

"Yeah. I'll be fine."

With that, Dalton picked up the pace, moving with the ease of a gazelle. He easily glided past other runners, almost as if he hadn't exerted a bit of energy already. I kept to my pace, figuring all I had to do was get to the finish line before twenty-eight minutes struck on the clock.

As I made the final turn, I saw Dalton at the line, calling my name, rooting me on. Angelica wasn't far behind him, staring at me as I inched closer and closer to the finish line.

"Come on, Bennett. You've got this," he called out, just as I passed the line.

"Twenty-six fifteen," Castillo called out. I had never been so thrilled. Usually my run time was inching closer to the cut-off mark. Running with Dalton had helped me, even if he finished minutes before I had.

I was panting, desperate for breath and water, when Dalton walked over to me, handing me a water bottle. I gulped it down, almost like it was the last drink I would ever take. He patted me on the back and then walked away. I was much too fatigued to look up and figure out where he was going, but just as I felt like I could breathe again, and the overwhelming need to hurl left my body, a deep, rumbling voice filled my ears.

"Stand up," he ordered. "You don't want to get cramps."

I looked up to find the hazel eyes of Cruz glowing at me, his face still held firmly tight.

"Good job out there today."

The breath I had worked so hard to catch had escaped me again with his presence and his words alone. I breathed deep and hard, trying desperately to get it back so I could say something in response to him.

He leaned in closer to me, damn near nibbling on my ear lobe as I felt the soft touch of his full, sensual lips graze my ear. My nipples worked themselves into two solid pebbles, sticking out against the sweat soaked t-shirt clinging to my chest.

"You're much too exhausted after this run. I might need to work you out!"

His words grew deeper and harsher with the end of his statement. The way he looked at me, and the inflection on the words, meant so much more than what they appeared to mean. My heart rate spiked again, and my breath caught just as I was fixing my lips to say something to him in response.

"Stay focused. Don't be the barracks whore either. You've got too much going for you."

That shocked me.

"What?" I questioned, completely caught off guard.

"Don't hang out in barracks rooms where you're the only female. That's how rumors get started."

I swallowed hard, not sure how he knew of my whereabouts, and a bit embarrassed by them at the same time.

"Good job out there today," he reiterated, this time a wicked gleam went off in his eyes. He used them to rake over my entire body. I wanted so badly to grab him and let him have his way with me, but reality quickly set in. He blinked, took a few steps away from me, then turned on his heel and walked away. His muscular back outlined by the tight confines of the t-shirt molded onto his body. His legs, toned and tanned, with a tattoo of a depraved looking Marine Corps bulldog, carried him away from me, making me wish he would turn around and take me off somewhere to cure the ache that his presence seemed to inflict on my body.

I took another long gulp of the water in my hands, trying to squelch the flames in my body that had nothing to do with the heat from the rising sun. When the world finally stopped spinning around me, I focused, only long enough to find Sgt. Castillo's gaze fixed on me, a deep scowl accompanying it. She didn't turn away when my eyes landed on hers, and neither did I. For what seemed like a long couple of minutes we stood, in the middle of a field, glaring at one another.

She walked over in my direction, her perfect posture and swift movements taking me by surprise.

"Good job out there today, Bennett," she said, a sly grin spreading across her petite face.

"Thank you, Sgt. Castillo," I replied, unsure of her motive. She looked me over, her eyes landing on my chest that was still standing erect thanks to my hardened nipples that were on display for everyone to see.

"I'm watching you. Just be aware of that," she quickly added, no hint of friendliness in her voice whatsoever. She turned and walked away, leaving me angry and confused. If what Angelica had said about her and Cruz were true, maybe she saw me as a threat.

I wasn't sure what she knew, or what she thought she knew, but she was beginning to make me very uncomfortable. 

Chapter 5

Alex


Sitting in my office, staring at my computer screen, it dawned on me that I was probably much too close for appropriate instructor/student contact, and I had to work even harder at staying away from Cassie Bennett in any capacity that could get me caught up. The only problem was, I liked the magnetic pull she had on me. Her scent seemed to linger in the air, reeling me in like a bee drawn to honey. I was beginning to think that there was no way I’d be able to function in my normal capacity, not with her figure popping up on my radar with every turn I took.

Watching her bend over out there, even if it was out of sheer exhaustion, put pictures in my mind that had me wanting to yank her somewhere and hide her away until I could fulfill every sordid fantasy I had about her.

Her PT gear, although unflattering and scruffy on most, still showcased the most ample set of tits I think I have ever had the pleasure of setting my sights on, and her ass-- oh her ass-- invited me over with each inch that she bent over. How I managed to keep my composure with her standing and bending, showing off and enticing, had me racking my own brain. I knew the kind of blunt asshole I could be, so I shocked myself by refraining. It just wasn't something that I would normally do.

Irritation settled within me the second I heard her yell out while up on that pull-up bar. Hearing her cry out like that put thoughts in my head, all of which started and ended with me and her, tangled up somewhere.

Me, driving in and out of her...her, yelling my name being the sound oozing from her lips...            Frustration of the highest caliber washed over me as I walked away from her, and I couldn't quite put my finger on what had me so riled up. Was it the fact that I wanted to take her and do all sorts of dirty shit to her, or was it that fuckin' Dalton kid? Just thinking about him set me off, so part of it must have been him. He reminded me so much of Riley and the way he’d irked me when I’d first met him. He was always around, always smiling, and always pissing me off. Dalton had the same affect, only my annoyance with him was that he was snaking his way into the girl that I wanted to get into, and there was no fucking way in hell I was about to let that happen.

The fact that I had found out that she was the only female in that barracks room put me in a bad place. I wanted to jump up from my meal and run over there, then pull her out and spank her ass for putting herself into that sort of situation. Young male Marines—especially overly testosterone, two second nutters—were not to be trusted when they found themselves in a situation like the one that Bennett put herself into. Her naive mind had me angry and excited at the same time. I'm sure she saw it as just another way to make friends in this shit hole town, while curing the ceaseless spouts of boredom that often times crept in. But for me, it was a punch in the gut, a kick to the chin, a stab in the heart.

My appetite was lost at the news of her being in that room without anyone there to properly defend her. I couldn't let Castillo know that it had damn near sucker punched me, but it had, and I wanted to tear out of there at the sound of it. Sure that Dalton kid was there, and I guess she looked at him like a friend, but honestly, something about that kid had me puzzled. I wasn't sure if I could trust him around her the way that she trusted herself around him.