Status Updates From Falling for Trouble (Hiding...

“Well, in my world, Sergeant, those cute accents usually mean you’re an ignorant gun-toting, peace-bashing cattle rancher. I go to the University of Texas. We try to look at solutions for world problems that don’t involve shooting other people.”

She huffed out a breath that clearly communicated she found me disgusting and went back to haranguing the guy behind her. I turned to face the truck, thinking I hadn’t felt that much animosity from a woman I hadn’t screwed in a long time. It was effing hot. Nothing like some serious hatred to spice up the sex.

“No problem, babe. Can I do something for you . . . or even to you, if you’d prefer?” She scowled more and her eyes narrowed. “My name’s Alexis, not ‘babe,’ and I really doubt there’s anything you could do that I’d be interested in,” she snapped.

TWO days later, the guilt about Natalya still gnawed at me, but I was a twenty-two year-old guy who thought about sex—a lot—and I couldn’t help wondering where I was going to get some action now that she’d kicked me to the curb. Afghanistan wasn’t exactly teeming with ready and able women, and I’d just blown one of the only decent options for a few dozen miles.

“It’s an arrangement. If you don’t want it anymore or if you think you can’t, then that’s cool. You know I’ll always help you out, but it’s only an arrangement.” I turned and looked at her, my face tight with the strain of the words I had to say. “We don’t have a future, Natalya. I’m not going to marry you and take you back to the States, so either sex is okay or it’s not. Your choice.”

“All right, man, I’ll see you two in a couple of hours,” I said as Corbin slowed the truck down at the turn-off to the house. “Saddle up, cowboy,” Benji answered before he cracked up, wiggling around on the bench seat, thrusting his hips back and forth like a creepy monkey.

I shook my head. “Dude, is there any slightly shady thing that someone in your family doesn’t have covered? You’ve got an uncle who runs pit bull training camps, a brother who owns a strip club, and a cousin who’s a bookie. Got any sisters who work at the Chicken Ranch in Vegas or anything?”

It was Thursday, and I was off duty, which meant my standing appointment with Natalya.

4.5