Enjoying the Chase (4 page)

“Do you have a shot?” I called to Russell.

“No, I
’
ve got nothing. Kurt
’
s
in the way.”

I pressed the button on my comms unit,
calling through to the two other snipers that were three floors down from us.
“Steve, Cody, you have a shot?” I asked hopefully. I had a shot, but didn
’
t want to take it; it was straight through the
guy
’
s forehead and we should try
and go for a body shot if possible. It was better to wound than to kill.

“No nothing,” they both replied.
Fuck
it!
“You have anything?” Steve asked.

I
swallowed.
“I
have a kill shot.”

Come on, Kurt, step to the right a
little. Just move your body. You know we
’
re watching. Move your fucking body out of the way!
Kurt was still trying to calm the guy down, but he was just looking
more and more stressed with each passing second.

“Let
’
s just go in together. Give me the gun, and it
’
ll be easier for you,” Kurt
coaxed
.

“I can
’
t go inside again, I can
’
t,” the guy cried, as he raised the gun again.

I saw the indecision on his face fade as he
made up his mind to shoot. His face hardened, and his jaw tightened. Without
hesitation, I pulled the trigger on my assault rifle. The shot smashed the
window in the building opposite me, shattering glass everywhere. The glass hit
the floor a second before the guy
’
s
dead body did.

Kurt spun on his heel, looking in our
direction gratefully. His face was pale as he ran a hand through his hair. I
gritted my teeth as anger built inside me. He was always doing things like
this. I
’
d killed more people
because of his stupidity than needed to be dead, and I hated it. I hated to
know that I was the one to end someone
’
s life.
It
played on my mind after – not
that anyone knew that, of course, I didn
’
t talk to anyone about my feelings because it was just my job. I was
damn good at it too; I was the best long-range shooter, which was why I was
chosen to lead and make the decisions. I knew I had done the right thing in
shooting, but deep down I knew that if Kurt hadn
’
t moved in early then the rest of the team would have been there to
back him up. That guy might not have died today.

“Nice shot,” Russell congratulated
me
, slapping my shoulder as I packed up my gun once we
’
d been given the all clear from the ground
team.

“
Thanks.
” I nodded trying not to show any emotions. I needed a drink. I needed
to fuck someone senseless and get wasted so that I could stop thinking about
the way the guy
’
s body fell limply
to the floor.

Slinging my gun bag over my shoulder, I
headed downstairs slowly, knowing I was going to be int
erviewed over
what had happened. There was always an investigation when a kill was involved.
Kurt was standing off to one side, smoking and laughing with one of
the other team members as if nothing had happened.
It may have been
bravado on his part, but
I saw red. I dropped my bag and
grabbed the front of his tactical vest, shoving him roughly against the side of
the car that he was standing next to.

“Fucking dickhead! Why can
’
t you just do as you
’
re damn well ordered for once in your life?” I
snapped,
as he gripped my wrists and tried to push me off.

“It all worked out in the end, so what
’
s your problem?” he asked breathlessly.

“You
’
re my problem! You
’
re
always pulling shit like this. You need to grow the fuck up, or you
’
re going to get yourself killed,” I spat, my
face inches from his. All I could think about was ramming my fist down his
throat and pulling his heart out.

He smiled
weakly
. “
I won
’
t get myself killed,
Nate, you
’
re too good at your
job.”

I pulled back and shoved him away from me,
watching as he stumbled and fell onto his butt on the sidewalk.

“Maybe next time I won
’
t have the shot and you
’
ll take one through the forehead just like he did,” I retorted,
turning and picking up my gun bag. I forced myself to walk away from him before
I did something stupid. 

The rest of the day passed slowly, I had to
fill in a ton of forms and reports stating that I had no other choice but to
take the kill shot. Russell and Kurt were interviewed too. Finally, after about
two hours of talking, I was dismissed and allowed to go home early while they
combined their evidence and then made their decision. I knew I wouldn
’
t be in trouble for it
; this
was just a formality; a tedious, annoying formality, which,
unfortunately, was part of my job all too often.

It was only lunchtime so I decided to go
and have a couple of hours sleep so that I could go out tonight and get wasted.
I really needed something to take my mind off work, but I didn
’
t have the energy right now for anything physical.
Picking up a girl for random stranger sex was usually my first defence when
these feelings started seeping in, but even that didn
’
t appeal to me at the moment. Instead, I went home alone and slumped
into my bed without bothering to take off my uniform.

It was at times like this that I wished I
had a girl of my own. A girl to ask me what was wrong and let me offload my
feelings on to. A girl to hold me, so I could think about anything other than
the way the target
’
s eyes went
vacant just before he fell to the floor. A girl to just want to be with me for
me
,
instead of the way I looked or because I wore a uniform.

My half-asleep mind wandered to Rosie. I
closed my eyes against the afternoon light and imagined how nice it would feel
if she were lying next to me, with her arms wrapped around me, whispering that
it was alright that I felt guilty inside and
telling me
that I
’
d done the right thing. A
small amount of the anger and guilt dispersed within me, and I fell asleep with
a small smile on my face.

Chapter Four

The week passed quickly. Kurt was
placed on office duties for two weeks as punishment for his little stunt that
he pulled, so that made me feel slightly better. There wasn’t really much they
could do about him though; apparently, a warning had been put on his file this
time and next time he messed up he’d be transferred to a team that was not as
field based as us. Personally, I was now willing him to screw up again just so
he’d be out of my hair.

Today was Saturday, Seth
’
s birthday, so we were all heading out to
celebrate. I was actually looking forward to it because I
’
d been working hard all week, so this was going to be the first
chance I
’
d had to let off some
steam. And Ashton was coming out, much to my surprise. He
’
d initially cancelled after Cameron was born, but later called back
to say that Anna was making him go and had made secret arrangements for another
guard to come and take over her guard duty for the night. He didn
’
t sound best pleased about it.

As I stood outside their apartment,
watching as Ashton kissed Anna goodbye and whispered words that made her smile,
I cleared my throat loudly. “Can you at least wait for a time when I
’
m not here? You know seeing that kind of thing
makes me sick.” I coughed dramatically, pretending to gag. I needed a drink,
not to stand here watching them behave like lovesick puppies.

Anna laughed and pushed Ashton away from
her. “Don
’
t make him sick on the
carpet,” she joked.

I nodded in agreement and folded my arms
across my chest. “Ashton, get your shit together, your woman wants the
apartment to herself for the night, and we
’
re wasting valuable drinking time,”
I
suggested.

He groaned, looking from me to Bradley, the
secret service guard that had been sourced in tonight to look after Anna and
Cameron in his absence. “
I don’
t
actually want to go,” he muttered.

Anna sighed and gave him the puppy dog face;
right then and there I knew he was done
for. I
’
d never seen her not get
her own way, he was putty in her hands, and they both knew it. She stepped
closer to him and gripped the front of his shirt, playing with the neck of it
teasingly with her finger.

“Just go out with your boys. Cam and me
will be fine, and you need to have some fun. You
’
re too tense, Ashton.” She turned to me and smiled. “Make sure he has
a nice time tonight, okay?”

“I
’
m gonna get him trashed,” I confirmed, ignoring Ashton’s protests.

 
Anna
point
ed
at the open front door. “You two boys get the hell out and don
’
t come back until you
’
re good and drunk.”

It took another couple of minutes for
Ashton to finally leave her and his newborn son in the capable hands of the
other guard. As I watched him talking sternly to Bradley about what to do if
there was an emergency, I silently wondered if I would ever get to the point
where I was
so
concerned about someone else
’
s safety that I would put their happiness
above my own. I actually didn
’
t
hold out much hope for it
;
after all, there couldn
’
t be two girls that were as incredible as Anna
in the world. My mind flitted to Rosie again – it had been doing that a lot
recently and it was driving me crazy. Tonight though, I vowed only to think of
two things: alcohol and sex. I refused to let Rosie and her beautiful smile
invade my dreams tonight again while I slept alone.

By the time we arrived at the bar, Seth was
already drunk. He was leaning on the bar heavily, doing shots with our other
two close friends Wayne and Ryan. As we approached the bar, I put in an order
for eight shots of tequila, watching as Ashton frowned and groaned. “Anna told
me I had to get you drunk tonight so she could take advantage of you.”
I laughed.

He shrugged. “She
’
d do that anyway whether I
’
m drunk or not.”

“Yeah, but she said if I get you
really
wasted that she
’
d take advantage
of me too, so I
’
m gonna get you so
drunk that I have to carry you home and then I
’
m gonna have me some fun with your wife.” I smiled teasingly making
him laugh. He knew I was joking, the idea of Anna being with anyone but him was
the most ridiculous thing I
’
d ever
heard. When the drinks were made I passed one to the other four guys, pushing
two towards Ashton and keeping two for myself.

 “We need to catch up,” I explained
to
his horrified face. “On three.”

After we’d had a few drinks, we were all
standing around talking and laughing. I felt a little tipsy, but not drunk yet.
When a group of girls breezed past us, Ashton reached out, grabbing one of
their hands, pulling her to a stop.

The girl turned quickly. “Hey!” she cried
angrily, tugging her hand out of his grip. My breath caught in my throat at the
sight of her. It was her; the girl I
’
d been thinking about for the last five days; the only girl that had
ever turned me down flat. Her face softened immediately as she looked up at my
best friend.

“Oh, Ashton! Sorry, I didn
’
t realise it was you.” She stepped forward,
hugging him affectionately.

“Hey, Rosie, what are you doing here? I
thought you were going for dinner tonight with your sister.” He looked over her
shoulder and smiled at the other girls that were with her.

“Yeah, we went for dinner, but then they
wanted to come dancing.”

Her eyes flicked to me for a second but
held no recognition whatsoever. I recoiled. She didn
’
t even recognise me? I must have made even less of an impression
than I thought!

“So where
’
s DJ tonight?” Ashton asked.

Rosie’s eyes
softened at the mention of his
name. My interest was instantly piqued. Was DJ the guy she was seeing that she
was in love with?

“He
’
s still in Barstow. He
’
ll
be coming here on Tuesday once I
’
ve
got everything sorted.” She smiled happily.

As she spoke, my eyes roamed over her. She
looked incredible tonight. When I
’
d
seen her at the hospital, I thought she looked beautiful in a pair of jeans and
sneakers
;
now though, she was dressed to kill. The
little black skirt that she wore came to mid-thigh and made her legs look
perfectly lickable. Her dark blue top that hung off the shoulders, was fairly
loose but still hinted at what was underneath. Her hair was down tonight and
was in loose waves down her back. Every single inch of her was making my mouth
water, and I was racking my brains thinking of the best line I could think of
to use on her. I had another shot tonight to make her forget her man, and I was
certainly
set on
taking it.

“How
’
s the new place? Anna said you were settling in okay
,
”
Ashton queried
.

She
’
s moved already? Hmm, that
’
s news to me! Wonder why Anna and Ashton haven
’
t told me that little titbit of information.

“It
’
s okay, it
’
s weird
being here, but I
’
m looking
forward to starting work on Monday,” Rosie replied. One of her friends touched
her arm and I heard her say something about wanting to dance. Her friend
glanced at Ashton shyly; her eyes drifted down his body with an appreciative
bite of her lip – but, as usual, he was completely oblivious to the attention.
Since he
’
d gotten with Anna, it
was almost as if he didn
’
t even
see other girls anymore.

“I guess I
’
ll see you tomorrow then. You
’
re still coming over for dinner?
” Ashton asked
curiously.

She
’
s going to their place for dinner tomorrow? Well this just gets
better and better, maybe I
’
ll
invite myself over too… 

“Definitely” she answered, leaning in and
hugging him again. “See you then.”

As she turned to walk off Ashton called her
name, making her stop for a second time. “If you get in any
trouble
tonight and need any help then I
’
ll be here for a little while. When I go, you
can still come to my friends, okay?” he said sternly.

Rosie
’
s eyes darted to me again, and I had time to smile this time before
she looked away. “I have a feeling your friends
are
the trouble I
’
d need help with.” She winked at him and
walked off through the crowd.

I stared after her in shock. I must have
seriously lost my mojo – or was it just her? A quick experiment would tell. I
turned to the nearest girl and smiled seductively. “Hi, I
’
m Mr Right. I heard you were looking for me,” I stated confidently.
She giggled and blushed, nudging her friend. My whole body relaxed at her
reaction. Clearly it was just Rosie that had no interest in me. Again, I
wondered if the beautiful little brunette was a lesbian.

The girl I had used the pick-up line on was
talking to me, but I wasn
’
t
interested in her. I was too busy looking through the crowd, watching Rosie
shake her little ass on the dance floor.
I stared after her in shock,
then with more than a hint of lust as she started to dance.
I groaned
and turned back to Ashton, ignoring the girl who was trying to get my
attention.

“What
’
s the deal with her? She
’
s not interested in me at all!” I
complained
.

He laughed and gripped my shoulder,
squeezing gently. “She
’
s not your
type, Nate. Let it go.” He pushed me towards the bar again, shaking his head.  

“Why not? Come on she
’
s a girl, she
’
s my
type,” I countered, crossing my arms over my chest. The girl was seriously
denting my ego.

“
Nate, Rosie is Anna
’
s best friend and she
’
s an incredible person. She doesn
’
t deserve you dicking her around and using her. Let it go,” he
replied.

I sighed and frowned. I could understand
him not wanting me to hurt Anna
’
s
friend, of course, but it was freaking annoying being told I wasn
’
t allowed to pursue her.

I desperately wanted to sleep with her. In
a way, I
needed
to. There
was an awful nagging sensation in the back of my head that told me that she
would be playing on my mind
for a long time if didn’t
.
I didn
’
t want to be imagining what
it would be like to run my tongue down her body, I wanted to do it – maybe then
I
’
d realise that it wasn
’
t as good as I thought it would be. I only
wanted her because she didn
’
t want
me, at least, I
hoped
that was the reason I wanted her. It scared me a
little just how much I longed for her. I was a player, my instincts were
telling me to grab the nearest girl and take her out the back for some fun… but
my eyes wouldn
’
t stop looking
through the crowd for Rosie.

I forced my eyes away and looked at Ashton.
“So you
’
re saying I can
’
t go over there and dance with her?”

“That
’
s what I
’
m saying. Go
find some other girl and leave Anna
’
s friend alone.”

Cock blocked, damn.
I nodded reluctantly.

Drinking games started not long after
Ashton forbade me from hitting on Anna
’
s friend. All the time we were standing there, I tried desperately
not to look at her, but I couldn
’
t
keep my eyes in check. Every few minutes I
’
d glance over, watching her dance or laugh with her friends. I
decided that she looked adorable when she laughed. Her nose crinkled and her
eyes shone.