Alpha Squad: Boot Camp

Chapter Eleven

Chapter ElevenThat image.

No matter what Janine did or how much she tried to distract herself, that image of Eric post-shift was etched into her mind. What a sight he’d been. She'd sent him and his brother off to get changed, of course, as she waited for the rest of the team to land.

As it happened, she had done her best not to react openly; surely, the entire episode had been embarrassing enough as it was. Private Callahan had not been so subtle, though; as soon as the King brothers had made it to the ground and shifted back into their human form, her eyes had come close to popping out of her head.

They were beautiful men, so Janine could not blame her.

It had been a close call, though. Adam's jump had very nearly resulted in disaster.

When General Stone had ordered her to step up the training, she had never once considered that anything like this would happen. It occurred to her that there was a lot more to shifters that she didn't know anything about. She owed it to everyone on the team to find out.

Sadly, neither the military nor any other arm of the public sector had any guidance available on shifter behavior yet. Before they did anything else, she would have to devise some sort of training on these topics for Phase Three. Not just to educate herself and prevent any more accidents, but also to educate the human element of the team.

This was completely new to them all, but still she blamed herself for not realizing it sooner. As she'd watched the two men lose control in the air, one persistent thought had wormed its way into her mind and stuck there. What if I lose him?

Just thinking about the possibility hurt, like she would lose a part of herself in the process if anything happened to Eric. Not that that made any rational sense.

Then again, if anything happened to Eric's brother, or even anyone else on the team, she would never be able to forgive herself.

Perhaps in her feverish attempts to ignore Eric and maintain her professionalism, she had unfairly ignored the needs of the bear shifters. She had not allowed herself to be open to their concerns or understand the differences between them and the humans and endangered her recruits in the process.

No matter how confusing their exchange up on that hill during the survival training had been, she had to talk to him now. She had to involve the shifters more somehow, to prevent anything like this from happening again. Since Blackwood was too easygoing and Adam lacked relevant experience, Eric was the most logical choice to help her formulate a plan.

Could she trust him, though? She had felt him in her mind and gotten a feel for his intentions and his deepest desires. Her gut told her yes. Whether she could trust herself around him was a whole other matter, though.

Still, there had been no other incidents during their first jump, and even Adam and Eric had made it near enough the large X that she could tick this particular task off her training schedule. If anyone wanted a redo, that was up to them.

General Stone would not be pleased at these updates, but that was hardly her fault. Despite his best efforts, the team had made it through the most difficult parts of Phase Two and there was nothing he or anyone else could do about it.

Janine barely knew what to do with herself when Eric entered her office. She had asked Callahan to summon him, determined to get some kind of shifter awareness training underway, but now that he was actually here…

The tension, the buzz in the air that separated them, was too much to bear.

I almost lost you today, Janine thought.

Eric smiled subtly. Can't get rid of me that easily.

She sighed and shook her head. If someone had told her three weeks ago that she would meet a guy whom she could telepathically communicate with, she would have feared for their mental wellbeing. And yet here she was. And more to the point, here he was.

She had hoped to keep this discussion professional, but with him in her head, that was beyond hope. Although he'd always respected her rank when speaking out loud, this more intimate version of him was unapologetically informal. And it did not even occur to her to correct him on that. In fact, she kind of liked it.

"I called you in here because…" The longer she looked at him, the more she found herself lost for words.

Because?

Why is it easier speaking to you like this rather than out loud? Janine wondered.

Now, what had just been a little smile playing on his lips turned into a full-blown grin.

Because you can't fight it any longer.

Janine folded her arms. He was right. She no longer even wanted to fight her feelings. But it was all so weird, so new to her, and she was unsure how to handle the situation.

Why didn't you say something sooner? Janine demanded.

Eric took a step in her direction, causing her to tense up and hold her breath again.

Would you have believed me if I had?

No, perhaps not. Definitely not.

"So what do we do now?" Janine wondered aloud.

Eric walked up to her in long strides until he stood just beside her chair. As she looked up, she was inexplicably drawn toward him. Before she knew it, she was standing right in front of the broad man who towered over her. How tall he was. And how incredibly sexy.

You tell me, he growled.

Janine closed her eyes and tried to concentrate, even if his musky cologne threatened to overwhelm her senses. Business first. She could not allow herself to get sidetracked now.

"The parachute incident."

Images of the aftermath of the incident, which had resulted in the two men landing in a state of undress which left very little to the imagination, flooded her mind.

Oh, is that what we're calling it? Eric teased.

"You and your brother almost got hurt. I can't have stuff like that happening again," Janine said, opening her eyes again in an attempt to get rid of her visions of Eric's naked body.

Just like that night out in the wild, his eyes developed a warm but noticeable amber glow. Yet another weird shifter thing she knew nothing about. How much else was there to find out?

"If Alpha Squad is going to be of any use, we need to know more about each other."

I'm all for learning more about you. Eric's eyes grew even more intense. It started to look like they were catching fire.

"I mean us humans. We need to know more about shifters. And vice versa."

Eric pressed his lips together, forcing his expression back to neutral and nodded. "Agreed."

God, having his voice in her head as well as hearing it out loud now fanned her desires even further. Let's get this over with, she thought.

"I want you to put together a training program for the rest of us to follow. Covering special abilities, strengths, weaknesses, traditions, whatever you can think of. This will be incorporated into Phase Three of training."

Eric nodded solemnly.

Thankfully, that was done. Then, without warning or sense, she felt herself tiptoe to get closer to Eric. Precisely at that time, he started to lean down and reach out for her face.

She closed her eyes and surrendered. To him. To her own desires.

Their lips connected and time seemed to stand still. It was the most beautiful thing. The firm grasp of his hand around the back of her neck paired with the almost careful, gentle dance their tongues started to perform. With every second that passed like this, their movements grew more deliberate and feverish. It was like this was only the first stage on a journey of pleasure and there was no stopping things before they escalated.

How she wanted this man. How she wished he would just take her across her desk and make her his.

Janine pulled back and shook her head. This was so unlike her. Allowing herself to be this vulnerable with a guy whom she arguably hardly knew. She'd had casual flings before; the army life basically meant that mostly there was no opportunity for anything more, but she'd never given up this much of herself before. Then again, this did not feel casual.

"Stop," she whispered.

Eric opened his eyes and let his hand slide down her shoulder before coming to a stop just above her elbow.

I can't do this. Not now. Not while we're still in training.

She studied his face for any sign of disappointment or anger, but there was none. He seemed relaxed. Though they did not glow anymore, his eyes were warm as they gazed down into hers.

I understand. At least you realize the truth now. I'll be waiting for when you're ready.

"Tomorrow we do some target practice, then Phase Two will be over. Phase Three is all about strategy and procedures. And whatever you come up with. I would love an overview of the topics you intend to cover on my desk by tomorrow evening." Janine averted her gaze for fear of losing control again.

He let go of her, causing her arm to almost ache at the absence of his touch. Janine listened to the sound of him walking away toward the door, yet she did not call him back as much as she wanted to. Their kiss had taken the edge off.

See you soon, she thought just as the door clicked back into position, with him on the other side.

She needed to focus now and ensure that the rest of Alpha Squad's training passed without incident. So far, things had looked pretty good for the team. If they continued along this trajectory, nobody, not even the general, could declare the task force a failure.

Janine plopped down onto her chair and rested her head in her hands.

This was by far the craziest thing she'd ever done. Kissed a man at work. A recruit, even!

She should be ashamed of her lack of impulse control. She should…

But she wasn't. Although she could not let things continue just yet, their kiss had been the most glorious moment of her life so far.

Everything about it had felt right.

And for once, ever since coming to this base and starting this assignment, Janine did not feel alone anymore. They might not have discussed their relationship properly yet, but she knew it in her heart. He would be there for her, no matter what.

Funny, how after years of keeping a wall around her heart, it had taken a man from a whole other species to break through her defenses and show her hope. This assignment had been a struggle on so many levels; she had been asked to choose between the military and her conscience, her professional ethics and love. Finally, she could see that it was all completely worth it.