“Alright you,” Annia said, digging through her pack as I sat down on my cot. “Let’s get you all prettied up for your starring role tonight.”
“I can’t believe you packed makeup,” I groused as I watched her open a miniature makeup case and place it on her thigh.
“A lady has to be prepared for any situation,” Annia said primly, arching her eyebrows and pursing her lips. I snickered, then yelped as she reached out and pinched my cheek. “Now, now, young lady. A lady never snickers.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I batted her hand away from my cheek. “Just get on with it already. I seriously doubt Xiver expects me to be a lady.”
“Not in his bed, anyway,” Annia agreed as she kneeled in front of me. She dipped a tiny brush into an equally tiny circle of bronze eyeshadow and instructed me to close my eyes. “Xiver looks like the kind of guy who’d fuck a woman and then slap her if she complained that she didn’t get off.”
“I bet he hasn’t had the chance to do that in a long time,” I mused as Annia brushed powder over my lids. “With the way he was looking at me today, I’m half surprised he didn’t approach me himself.”
“All the more reason that this’ll work.”
Annia finished making me up, and I changed out of the long-sleeved shirt I was wearing into a tank top I’d packed for hotter weather. The cotton garment showed off my toned arms, and more importantly my cleavage. Annia inspected me for a moment with pursed lips, then reached out and tugged my neckline a little lower.
“Perfect. He won’t know what hit him.”
We waited until darkness had fully settled over the village before I quietly slipped from our cabin. Following Fenris’s directions, I headed for the cabin two rows behind us and one to the left. It had two stories, and I chewed my lip for a moment as I wondered which floor my target lived on. It would be easier if I could avoid his roommate.
I took a deep breath, then sauntered up to the door and knocked. A moment later, a tall, lanky soldier with dirty blond hair opened the door. His uniform discarded, he was dressed in a white t-shirt and underwear. Realization that I was a woman widened his eyes, and a blush sprouted from his hairline and spread all the way down to his collarbone before he shoved the door partially closed.
“C-can I help you, miss? I mean, recruit?” the soldier asked, his voice steadying now that he was partially shielded from sight. His pale blue eyes skittered over me, round as saucers. Judging by some of the looks we’d gotten, I was sure that if I hadn’t been a shifter, more than a few of these men would have tried to sneak into our beds in the middle of the night.
“Sure.” I leaned my shoulder against one of the rickety posts holding up the awning, careful not to put too much weight on the beam lest it collapse, and gave him my best coy smile. “I’m looking for Sergeant Xiver. Is he in?”
“Whatcha need him for?”
“I have a…message, that I need to deliver. Specifically for him.”
“I see.” The soldier looked disappointed. “Gimme a sec.” He closed the door in my face, and I heard him hollering for Xiver.
“What is it?” the pilot snapped from the upper floor, and I groaned a little. It was going to be harder to take him if he was on the upper floor, though not impossible.
“One of the women is here to see you.”
“Is that right?” The growl smoothly transitioned into an amused drawl, and I sucked my tongue between my teeth, annoyed. I could practically hear his ego swelling at the idea that he was the first man to be paid a visit by the new hussies in town. He was going to be in for an ugly surprise when he found out I wasn’t here to suck his cock, but meanwhile….
The door swung open and Xiver’s tall form filled the doorway. Unlike his roommate, he still had his uniform pants on, but he’d taken off the top and only a white cotton tank separated my gaze from his muscular torso. The patches of sweat on his tank top and the sheen on his tanned skin told me that he’d probably been doing push-ups or something – with the sun gone from the horizon, the temperature had cooled off considerably.
“What is it, woman?” He raked my form with his dark eyes. The glint in his pupils was identical to the one I’d seen in the cafeteria, and another small shiver worked its way down my spine. “Don’t you know it’s getting close to lights out?”
“Oh I know.” I gave him a slow smile as I drew my gaze down his own body. “It gets cold here at night, though, and I was looking around the mess hall today for someone who could help keep me warm.” I dropped my gaze meaningfully to his groin, then brought it back up to his face. “I was thinking maybe you were up to the job, but if not, I’ve got a few back-up options available.”
Xiver snorted. “Those limp dicks wouldn’t know what to do if you showed up on their doorstep.” Another cold shiver crawled down my spine as he clamped a large hand around my wrist. “Come in and let me show you what a real man can do.”
I let him pull me into the darkness of the cabin, prepared to follow him up the stairs, but as soon as he closed the door he pushed me up against the wall and crushed his body against mine. His chapped lips pressed roughly against my own, and I fought against the urge to gag as a combination of sour and smoky filled my senses.
A strangled noise in the background drew my attention to the fact that Xiver’s roommate was still here. I seized on the excuse as I flattened my palms against the pilot’s broad chest, pushing him away.