“I see that you’re very formal in the mornings, Sergeant Bailey.”
“What can I do for you, sergeant?”
“I’ve come to ask you the same question. I saw you moving things around and thought I would come to offer my help.”
Eva put her hand on her hip and cocked her head. “Right. Because I’m just a weak woman who needs your help with heavy lifting.”
His smile disappeared instantly, and his face fell. “No, actually, that wasn’t it at all.”
“Well, thank you, but no thanks, sergeant. I can manage.”
“Are you setting up today’s boot camp?”
“That’s right.”
“Well, in that case, I insist on helping. It’s for my squad too.”
Eva frowned. She didn’t want to tell him that part of the reason she was out here setting up so early was so that she could build in an advantage for her squad. It was usual for the new recruits to go head-to-head, and of course word would get back to the senior officers about which squad was the best. Ithadto be hers.
“You can check the obstacle course,” she said. “I gave it a once-over, but it could use a closer inspection.”
“I’ll do it. But first, can I help with whatever you’re doing?”
“No, thank you.”
“You wouldn’t be trying to prevent me from seeing something that would help me prepare my squad, now would you, Sergeant Bailey? Maybe so that your squad has the advantage?”
“I’ll thank you not to disrespect me, sergeant.” Eva’s voice was icy, even though that was exactly what she’d been aiming for.
Billings held up his hands. “I apologize. I shouldn’t have thought it, never mind said it.”
“Apology accepted. Now go and inspect the obstacle course.”
Eva kept her eye on him as he carried out the inspection, wanting to be sure that he wasn’t covertly watching what she was doing. But he was focused on the task at hand, carrying out a thorough inspection of all of the equipment. As she watched him, she found herself wondering how he could look so completely delicious this early in the morning. She knew she had dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep, and he looked like the perfect physical specimen of manhood.
“Everything’s in good shape,” he said, striding back to where Eva stood.
“Good.”
“Breakfast?”
The last thing Eva wanted to do was go and have breakfast with Pete Billings, but she couldn’t come up with an excuse fast enough. And then it came to her. “You go ahead. I’m going to run the course first to check that everything’s working as it should be.”
He gave her an appraising look. “Great idea. I’ll join you. That way, we can triple-check it.Andwe can see who finishes first.”
“Is everything a competition with you, Sergeant Billings?”
“Is that fear I see in your eyes, Sergeant Bailey? Surely not, given that you’ve no doubt run this course before, giving you a distinct edge.”
“When I beat you, it won’t be because I’ve run the course before.”
“Let’s see,” Billings said, his eyes twinkling with the challenge she’d set out for him.
When Eva strode into the dining hall, she carried herself as she imagined the great Roman emperors did during their victory parades. Billings, on the other hand, carried himself with the air of a man being paraded through the streets of Rome like a spoil of war. Or so she liked to think.
“Would you like to make the announcement, or should I?” she asked, enjoying digging in the metaphorical boot.
“Oh, you go ahead. I wouldn’t want you to miss this opportunity to publicly shame me. Just maybe, when you do, tell them you beat me by one-hundredth of a second.”
