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"Jesus Christ..." Tom takes a step back, his charming smile nowhere in sight. He looks like he's stumbled into no-man's-land without his weapon.
"Tom—" Caroline starts, but I cut her off.
"Let me handle this," I say, feeling suddenly exposed and raw. This isn't how it was supposed to go.
"Handle this?" he repeats, shaking his head like he's trying to rattle the image from his brain. "How the hell are you going to handle this, Frank?"
My mind races, but I've got nothing.
Fuuuuck.
CHAPTER
EIGHT
Caroline
The worn-out soles of my combat boots scuff against the cold concrete floor with every frantic pace I take. My barracks room, usually a place of solace, feels like a damn cage right now. Frank's image—his rough hands, his intense stare—keeps flashing in my mind, but it's fading, getting blurry around the edges, like a photograph left too long in the sun.
I bite down on my lower lip so hard I can taste the tang of blood. The silence that hangs thick in the air is suffocating, choking me with doubts. Was I just a quick fuck to him? A way to blow off steam? No, that can't be. Not with the way he looked at me, the way he touched me—like I was something precious.
But then why the hell hasn't he texted or called?
I catch a glimpse of myself in the small mirror hanging on the wall. There's a wildness in my blue eyes, a fear that I don't recognize. It's not like me to unravel like this. I'm Caroline fucking Caldwell—I face challenges head-on, not pace around like a nervous wreck.
I force a slow breath out as I try to regain some semblance of control. I have to believe there's a reason for all this silence. There has to be.
Frank
"Tom, we need to talk." The urgency in my voice doesn't quite mask the undercurrent of fear gnawing at my insides. I find him outside, leaning against the barracks, that same charming smile plastered on his face, but it's all business between us now.
Tom just looks at me with a wary frown.
"I know you've got a duty to report what you saw, but I need to protect her."
"Frank, you know how this works. Fraternization?—"
"Fuck that," I interrupt, the desperation clear in my voice. "There's got to be a way to keep her out of this. She's got her whole career ahead of her."
He sighs, running a hand through his dark hair. "What do you propose?"
"Take me down if you have to, but leave her out of it. I'll take full responsibility. We’ll say I coerced her or whatever bullshit line will stick," I offer, ready to lay everything on the line for Caroline.
"Damn, Sergeant Donovan, playing the knight in shining armor?" Tom shakes his head, clearly surprised by my offer. "You realize this could end your career?"
"Doesn't matter," I say firmly. "She matters. And if saving her means burning my own bridge, then I’ll light the fucking match, Tom."
"Alright," he says after a moment that feels like an eternity, his eyes locking onto mine. "You gonna tell the Colonel or you want me to do it?"
"I’ll do it," I reply, feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders, but also an odd sense of relief. For Caroline, it's worth it.
She’s worth it.
I burst through the door to Colonel Edwards' office, the click of my boots against the linoleum floor echoing like gunshots. My heart's hammering in my chest, a wild drumbeat that syncs with the adrenaline coursing through my veins. There’s no turning back now, and honestly, I don't give a damn.
"Colonel Edwards, sir," I start off, voice strong despite the turmoil twisting my guts into knots.
The Colonel looks up from his paperwork, his steely gaze locking onto mine. The room feels colder than a witch's tit as the other soldiers straighten up, sensing the tension in the air.
