Chapter 99

Lee shook his head. “No, sir. No.”

With a slight nod, Thomas acquiesced. “Then twelve.” When Lee still hesitated, Thomas nodded again. “Sometime today, Lieutenant.”

“Fuck,” Lee muttered under his breath.

“Your own fault,” Brenna whispered back.

Thomas leaned forward, one hand cupped around his ear. “What was that?”

With a sigh, Lee muttered, “Nothing. Sir.”

“Then get running.”

As Lee began to jog, he wished he could somehow make a better first impression. But he couldn’t, and Thomas has had it in for him ever since.

* * * *

A few days after the latest incident in the rec room, Lee catches up with Brenna on the mess deck. She sits by herself, picking at a salad while reading on her tablet. Lee drops his lunch tray onto the table in front of hers, then hooks his long legs around the attached stool before sliding onto the seat. Without looking up from her tablet, Brenna says, “Whatever you want from me, the answer is no.”

Lee tries to look surprised and hurt at the same time, and fails miserably. “Can’t a guy have lunch with a friend without having an ulterior motive?”

“A guy can, sure,” Brenna admits. “But I know you. And the answer is still no.”

“You haven’t even heard me out yet.”

Now she glances at him, a knowing smirk on her face. “Hm-mmm. No ulterior motive, my ass.”

“Look,” Lee reasons, “all I want is a do-over. You and me in the cage like before, but this time without any interruption. Unless you’re scared I really willwin in a fair fight.”

Brenna scoffs. “Yeah, like you were playing fair when I snapped to attention.”

“I was already winning,” Lee hedged, but to be honest, they’d been dead even with one round each. Still, if Thomas hadn’t interrupted…

“Bullshit.” Brenna stabs a forkful of lettuce and shoves the whole thing in her mouth. Around the food, she mumbles, “I beat you fair and square.”

“You did not.” Lee can’t believe they’re arguing over this. Hewas the one who’d been winning, at least until Thomas came along. But arguing about it won’t get them anywhere. “Whatever. Let’s just do it again, please? The last one didn’t really count anyway—”

She gives him a wide-eyed, innocent look he wants to punch off her face. “Why? Because you lost?”

“I did not—” Lee takes a deep breath, reining in his emotions. She’d love to see him lose it, throw a childish fit or, worse, beg. It’s just a stupid game, a voice inside him whispers, but he doesn’t want to listen. His Ownedrecord was undefeated until she took advantage of him while he was down…literally.

So he forces a smile that feels pasted on his face and tries to sound nonchalant, as if it isn’t all thatbig a deal she doesn’t want a rematch. “Come on, one more time. What do you say?”

Turning off her tablet, Brenna rolls her eyes. “I say no.” When he opens his mouth to protest, she points her fork at him. “One, because I’d just beat you again—”

“You would not,” Lee snaps.

Brenna ignores him. “And two, because Thomas has banned all video games in the rec room after your little stunt.”

“Stunt?” This time Lee’s wounded surprise is real. “I didn’t hear him come in.”

“I tried to tell you,” Brenna counters. “You were too busy trying to win.”

“Another minute or two and I would’ve.”

“Yeah, well.” Brenna turns back to her tablet. “Thanks to you, none of us can play anything now. At least nothing multiplayer. He’s blocked the game server on all public terminals, and threatened a global ban if he finds anyone trying to access it on their own devices. I don’t know about you, but I sure don’t want to get caught just to prove to you I’d still win.”

“Stop sayingthat,” Lee growls.

Ignoring him, Brenna adds, “Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe you likeit when Thomas busts your balls, but personally, I’d rather not do a hundred push-ups or two miles around the track, thank you very much.”

Lee slouches back. “I don’t know why he hates me so damn much. All because of one stupid little whistle. He isn’t even really all that hot. He acts like I’m the worst officer ever, and I don’t cut up any more than anyone else does, you know?”

Brenna gives him a sardonic look that asks, Oh really?Aloud, she says, “Yeah. poor you. Never doing anything wrong and still getting knocked down for it.”

“I didn’t say that,” Lee protests. “But he’s had it in for me since day one, and you know it. I can’t do anything right.”

With arched brows, Brenna says, “Your words, not mine.”

“He hates me,” Lee says. “End of story. So are we going to fight again or not?”

“Not.” Brenna shakes her head in disbelief. “I won, end of story. If you want to log into the game server and get in trouble, go ahead, but leave me out of it.”

“Chicken.” Lee knows she’s right—he shouldn’t tempt fate, Thomas doesn’t like him as it is—but part of him chafes at being told what to do. Newsflash: then the military isn’t for you.