Chapter Seven
Kali
I didn't know what to think of the connection I'd felt with Thomas. When he'd laid there sleeping next to me, it had taken all of my strength not to bite the bond site and make him mine forever.
The next morning wasn't any easier. I'd woken up before the sun and stayed next to Thomas for an hour just watching him breathe. For a few brief, delicious moments, I contemplated staying long enough to wake up next to him. The desire to see him wake up and smile was strong. It was so strong that I had to run away.
Intense fear gripped my insides when I pictured us together cuddling in the new morning light. That wasn't something that you did with one-night stands. I'd already stayed longer than I'd ever stayed with an Omega I'd just fucked. Feeling Thomas's warm body next to me beneath the sheets was intoxicating and terrifying at the same time.
In the end, I'd slipped out of bed as quietly as I could so as not to disturb his sleep. I couldn't just leave him that way, though. If nothing else, he'd been something truly special. So, I kissed him on the forehead tenderly before I walked out his door.
That was something I'd never done before.
I couldn't go back to my quarters. I was too wired. My room would just make me feel boxed in, so instead I walked around the base. I would definitely need to sleep on the flight to Egypt because I could not let my squad down because I had a sex hangover.
It always amazed me how quiet the base was right before dawn. There was hardly anyone up and around besides me and a few MPs. The only way to know that dawn was on its way was when the birds began to sing. That always happened right before the first hints of sunshine crested the horizon.
Despite my resolve not to think about Thomas, it was better to leave a one-night stand in the past even if the sex was mind-blowing, I found myself wondering if he liked to watch the sun come up. My mind drifted to whether he took cream and sugar in his coffee. I wished I'd stayed and brought him a cup. After the pleasure he'd given me the night before, it was the least I could do.
Perhaps at some point in the future, I'd see him around base and asked him for coffee. It was a slim chance given how big the place was and how many soldiers lived and worked there, but it was a chance nonetheless. It was too bad his room wasn't closer to mine.
Wait...
What? I really needed to get my shit together. It had to be some sort of pre-mission jitters. Either way, the sun had begun to peek out from below the horizon, and I needed to shower and get the smell of sex off of me before I got on the plane. Mayfield and Aden probably wouldn't say anything, but Rory would roast me all the way to the desert if I came reeking of Omega slick.
Unlike Thomas's room, I had my own private bathroom and shower. He would have to share with two or three other soldiers, until he'd been here long enough to get a room with a private bathroom and kitchenette. My quarters were basically a small apartment called a suite by the housing administration. They were handed out based on rank and base seniority.
Rory and I had each been assigned one as soon as the new barracks were built. I felt a little guilty accepting considering how much time I spent in the field. But hey, the conditions I had to endure on missions erased most of that guilt.
My private bath was far from luxurious, but it did provide me a small oasis from military life. I loved my job, but sometimes being in the Army felt like living under a microscope. You basically belonged to the government, so there was no privacy unless Uncle Sam handed it to you. Of course, if I got myself demoted like Aden had, I'd have lost my cherry little apartment.
I turned the shower knob almost all the way over to the hot side. The water would have been lukewarm at best unless I maxed it out, and I liked my showers hot. Water hot enough to leave your skin red and raw made me feel alive. I enjoyed the sting when you opened the shower door and the cool air of the room stung your flushed skin.
After getting dressed, I locked my room and headed out to the airfield to meet Delta Squad. The thought of going by Thomas's apartment to say good bye crossed my mind, but that was ridiculous.
As it turned out, I wasn't going to have to say goodbye to Thomas at all. I swear that my jaw almost dropped to the floor when I saw Captain Mayfield making his way to the airplane with none other than Thomas in tow. The only explanation was that Thomas must have been the tech specialist for the mission.
The soldier that missed the meeting the day before because the commercial flight that the Army booked him on was delayed. I would have known who he was if I'd asked him anything about himself instead of just trying to get into his pants.
Before I could figure out what to do, Aden and Rory flanked me. "You look like shit," Rory said with a laugh. "You must not have gotten laid last night. What'd you do? Get your ass handed to you in a bar fight?"
"Are you coming down with something, Kali?" Aden asked in a far more understanding tone.
"I'm fine," I said to Aden with a half-smile. "I just didn't sleep well." I turned to Rory. "Shut up, asshole," I said and punched him playfully in the arm. I hoped that if I acted at least semi-normal, they'd let it go.
But, what was I going to do when I got on the airplane with Thomas?