Cory followed him into the yard, trying her best to keep up with his long strides in her high heels. The rain started then, drizzling lightly at first but rapidly developing into bigger droplets. She heard an alarm deactivated and just in the nick of time, they reached his vehicle, a sleek black four-door pickup. It reminded Cory very much of the owner, muscular and rugged.
“Nice ride,” she muttered under her breath as he opened the passenger door for her.
“Thanks.”
Okay, so the guy could hear very well apparently. Cory hiked up her skirt hem a few inches to get into the monstrosity. Adrian’s greedy eyes definitely took notice.
She sank into the plush richness of the luxurious crème-colored leather interior and buckled up. The interior gave off a heady masculine scent mixed in with the usual freshness of a new vehicle. This was a far cry from her car but she was nevertheless reminded of it.
Adrian turned on the AC and the radio. Soca music came blasting from the speakers. It was that time again on the island and one of Cory’s favorites. Immediately after the festive Christmas holidays came the electrifying Carnival season, of which this type of music was an integral part. Soca was the modern, faster-paced version of the Calypso musical art form that had started way back during the time of slavery. Cory easily imagined slaves singing the songs to ease their pains and frustrations as they toiled all day long in the sugar-cane fields. Maybe she should start singing Calypso, she thought.
A thick, white rain was pouring heavily now. Traffic was at a crawl, as she’d expected. When it rained, everyone drove slower just to be safe. Well, at least she had eye candy.
The temperature inside cooled down pretty quickly but why was she still feeling the heat? This stranger’s body next to hers was radiating such warmth. Or was it all in her vivid imagination?
Cory couldn’t help but suppress a smile when she noticed the strong intent plastered on Adrian’s face as he fought to keep his focus on driving through the heavy rain instead of on her bare flashing legs she deliberately left exposed. She had caught him outright staring and the poor guy was having such a hard time concentrating now. Jay would be so proud of her!
• • •
Adrian drove through the rain, he tried to concentrate on maneuvering his vehicle safely through the water-filled streets. He certainly couldn’t afford to be distracted. He certainly didn’t need an accident, either. What was he going to say? It was all her fault. Exposing her luscious legs like that for him to stare at. He didn’t mean to stare but all she had to do was pull the damn hem of her skirt down a little, instead of tempting him out of his damn mind. Adrian doubted this would do him any good, though. The damage was already done. He’d already seen them and they would forever be ingrained in his head. Just like all her other well-defined body parts.
But he was practically sweating in the AC. In fact, nothing would please him more than taming the flame of desire burning in him. Adrian mentally scolded himself for losing his concentration like that, especially when he was driving. But all his thoughts apparently became incoherent since butting in to protect this woman. It really wasn’t his fault. He was a mere hot-blooded male, after all … with needs. And which living man on this earth wouldn’t be enticed by this fiery, sun-kissed island goddess just a mere touch away from him?
Finally, breaking the uncomfortable silence growing between them, Adrian asked, “So do you really understand Spanish?”
“Yes. I’m bilingual.”
“Well, I think that’s truly amazing. Imagine, my father came from a Spanish heritage and I can’t even speak the language. And I never even thought for a second that I would’ve ended up in the motherland either.”
“You’ve been to Spain?”
“Yes.”
“How did you end up there?”
“A couple years back, when I was a Marine, I went on a maritime security operations tour to the Mediterranean and Persian Gulf.” He had spent seven months at sea on board a U.S. carrier during that particular deployment. Probably his best tour ever, making port visits and ensuring security cooperation in not only Spain but in Greece, Turkey, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates.
“Wait a minute, you were a U.S. Marine?” Cory asked, in a perplexed tone.
“Yep.”
“So aren’t you guys supposed to be natural-born killers?” she asked, a worried look now spreading on her face.
Adrian chuckled at her question. He didn’t see himself as one but decided to go along anyway. “Well, sort of. Depending how you look at it.” Marines had mastered amphibious warfare techniques, raid techniques, scouting, patrolling, weapons recognition, airborne, surface and sub-surface insertion and extraction techniques and free-fall parachuting. All were a part of their training to kill.
Instantly sensing her discomfort, Adrian tried reassuring her. “You can relax, Cory. The average person thinks the U.S. armed forces only fight wars in the Middle East. But we do undertake humanitarian and goodwill missions around the world. We don’t only repel enemy assault fire.” He flashed a smile.
“Oh, I know all what your job entails,” Cory retorted.
“You do?” Adrian shot her a surprised look.
“Let’s just say, I follow the wars from unbiased sources.”
“Ah, an informed civilian,” he couldn’t help but remark. “I’m impressed.”
“My job requires me to pay attention to international affairs,” she said. “Anything that could have an impact on the oil price. The worldwide economic downturn, natural disasters, strikes and industrial action, and the wars in the Middle East.”
Brains and beauty, Adrian thought.
“So did you serve in a war zone?” she asked.
“In Afghanistan,” Adrian answered. “Kabul.”
“And how was it over there?”
“Let’s just say, I’m extremely happy to be here,” Adrian laughed. He didn’t feel the need to bore her with the gory details.
“That bad, huh? I suppose you had your hands full repelling enemy fire,” she offered with slight disdain in her voice.
“Excuse me?” Adrian didn’t know how else to respond to that. “That’s what happens in a war.”
“I’m sure. And even civilian casualties?”
“Unfortunately, that happens, too,” Adrian answered slowly. “Sometimes.”
“Well, I think it’s terribly wrong when innocent bystanders are the ones who get killed.” She was getting angry.
“Look, Cory, I certainly didn’t make the rules of combat. There have been wars long before my time and there’ll be wars long after,” Adrian added in an even tone. “I’m sensing some animosity here. Do you have family serving or something?”
“Of course not!” Cory blurted out. “So why’re you here, then? Tired of shooting people?”
“Something like that,” Adrian answered grimly.
“So why did you leave your home?” Cory demanded.
“I didn’t leave my home,” Adrian shot back. “I am home.”
“Oh, really? Well, that American accent isn’t fooling anybody. You certainly don’t sound like us, by the way,” Cory huffed.
“Really?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Well, you can’t blame a guy for trying,” he laughed out loud then. Adrian saw a smile and Cory wore it beautifully on that gorgeous face of hers. “Actually, I was born here, Cory.”
Adrian was accustomed to this. Almost everywhere he went on the island people always asked him if he was an American citizen. The truth was, he was both. Although sharing a Trini-American heritage did have its many perks, for him, the best part about it, together with the shared citizenship was that he was able to serve both great countries. A fact he was proud of. Not too many people were afforded this rare privilege. He explained his story to Cory.
If his father hadn’t suffered such a tragic death, Adrian knew he would have grown up on the island. His life would have turned out quite differently all together. His father had been a major in the army when he was killed. Adrian was only nine, but that was a day he would never forget for as long as he lived. Adrian remembered hearing the blast from where he was playing in the yard. They had lived not too far from the army base, in St. James. He had no idea that it had something to do with his father until the soldiers came by to tell his mother the bad news.
It was a story he had heard numerous times as a child growing up. His father was waiting in a military jeep getting ready to come home when there was an explosion caused by a bush fire or something at the camp where he was based. Several other soldiers were also killed and many were injured as a result of the blast. Adrian remembered this clearly because his father had promised to take him and Anna for pizza that evening. But they never got any. Only their mother’s anguished screams filled them that evening.
His father’s death robbed him of barefoot childhood days, climbing mango trees with his cousins and racing bicycles down the potholed neighborhood streets. His mother couldn’t cope with his father’s death, so she took her two young children and fled to the comforts of her homeland in the U.S.
“So to be politically correct, I guess that makes you an African-American-Hispanic-Trinidadian, then,” Cory offered.
“Something like that,” Adrian grinned at her assessment.
“Interesting. So what brought you back, then?”
“I love the place. Trinidad’s pretty much like the Big Apple for me.” The land of his birth was equally as vibrant and diversely multicultural but still very much a tropical island paradise to him. “And I guess you could say I couldn’t resist the charms of the beautiful women here at the same time,” he added, looking Cory dead in her eyes.
His mother always insisted he got his incredible good looks and mannerisms from his father, from his light brown skin tone to his charm. It was this charm Adrian was trying his hardest to work now.
Seeing Cory blush profusely, Adrian figured it was actually working. “I just have to ask you this … why’d you buy that car, anyway?”
“Because it was at a really good price,” Cory answered quite frankly. “Not everyone can afford something like this,” she mumbled under her breath.
Ignoring her last comment, Adrian asked, “Didn’t you know that’s the number one car of choice for jackings here?”
“No, I didn’t know that,” Cory answered.
“Don’t you read the newspapers or listen to the news?”
“Local news? I don’t actually,” Cory indignantly shot back.
“Well, that figures,” Adrian muttered.
“So let me guess, this is a police statistic, right?”
“Yes. It is actually.”
“I guess you learn something new every day,” she said. “And by the way, just in case you’re wondering, I’m heading around the Savannah.”
“Oh, right. I forgot to ask you that.” It was just that he could have driven around the island and back once he had that amazing view of her luscious flesh. Not that he was complaining or anything. There was a perfect pair of smooth brown legs for his eyes to enjoy. The problem, however, was his eyes alone weren’t enjoying the view. Adrian was imagining what they would feel like against his touch or those well-defined legs wrapped around his waist right about now when his delicious thoughts were interrupted by Cory’s voice. She was telling him the name of the street she was dropping off at.
“So then may I presume from all your bitter sentiments about military men that it all stems from a bad relationship with one of them?” he asked.
“I didn’t have a bad relationship,” Cory said. “But I know way too many women who have. No offense but you guys aren’t exactly my type.”
Adrian was almost positive he knew her type. “And why is that?” He couldn’t wait to hear her answer to this one.
“Why is what?”
“Why do the women here think the worst of us?”
“Oh, that’s easy. First, let’s see,” Cory began counting on her fingers. “You all usually have the tendency to stray and cheat. You lie. You all tend to be abusive, too. That military uniform signifies that you’re all just dogs, plain and simple.”
Adrian knew all about the stigma associated with the military men on the island. They were usually regarded as womanizers. But this lady was extremely harsh in her assessment.
“Whoa, I’m just really sorry I asked you that question now.” Adrian laughed despite himself. “But I’m a soldier and I don’t think I’m abusive or a dog or anything like that.”
“Well, good for you.”
“As much as you dislike the military, you seem to dislike the police even more.” He thought about her doing battle with Officer Stewart.
“I have good reasons to,” Cory didn’t hesitate to respond.
“Like what?”
“Just trust me, I have a lot of reasons, okay.”
Adrian just left it at that. He realized Cory probably didn’t want to divulge those reasons to a perfect stranger, especially one who worked with them.
“They just don’t do their damn jobs,” Cory blurted after a while.
“C’mon, not all of them are like that,” Adrian said.
“That’s because they’re your friends,” Cory shot back at him.
“Not all of them are. Look, there’re some really hardworking and professional officers out there,” Adrian countered. “Stewart, unfortunately, isn’t one of them.”
“Yeah? Well name one who is!” Cory demanded.
There were several of them Adrian could have named. Those who executed their duties diligently and served their country with pride. A close friend of his, Sergeant Jones, who was stationed right where they were. Then there was his aunt, now an inspector. She was definitely a woman of steel.
There were also the officers he worked with in his unit. They were the best of the bunch definitely and he trusted them with his life. And that was one thing he was indeed grateful for, his own life. In this line of work, living to see another day had become Adrian’s personal mantra. One false move and it could be your last day on earth. It was a U.S. Marine’s rule to never leave a man behind. The same could be said for here. Watching out for each other’s back was an understood pact with everyone in his unit.
“All I’m saying is that you shouldn’t class all of us in the same light, especially when using someone like Stewart, of all people, as the measuring stick. Because that’s just plain stereotyping in my book,” Adrian ended quietly.
When Cory remained silent, Adrian figured she was trying her best to ignore him, so he continued. “You know, we could also do some stereotyping of our own, too.” She shot him a nasty look but still didn’t say anything so again he took the liberty to go on and prove his point. “For instance, from our observations we could say that women like you are pampered princesses spoiled rotten by your rich daddies and most likely use what the Almighty blessed you with to get whatever you want.”
“What?” Cory’s head snapped up. “Excuse me, but I work extremely hard for whatever I want … just so you know that. How dare you insinuate that I use my body to get my way? And what the hell do you know about my father, anyway? And for your information, Mr. Ex-Marine-Sir, I have a master’s degree so I certainly don’t need to use my body for anything other than pleasure, when I feel like it.”
And Adrian would certainly love to help her do just that. Now, preferably. “There’s no such thing as an ex-Marine. Once a Marine. Always a Marine,” was his response instead. Adrian couldn’t help it. He had to laugh at the incredulous look now plastered on Cory’s face. She, however, clearly wasn’t in a joking mood.
“You were pretty quick to take offense. Well, I’m truly sorry if I offended you, Cory, but I wasn’t really referring to you in particular, just so you understand that. Now you probably realize how military personnel feel. We’re not all the same.” After all, he was in the military and he wasn’t a player, neither was he an abuser. How could he ever be abusive to any woman when the only people in his life were women? “So I guess the lesson learned here is that we all shouldn’t be stereotyping one another.”
“Whatever!” Cory spat back at him. “You know what? I think you need to drop me off here, please.”
“But this isn’t the street you told me.”
“I know. I guess I changed my mind.”
“Look … it’s still raining,” Adrian pointed at the window with his free hand.
“That’s okay, it’s just a drizzle now. I’m sure I won’t melt. Right here is perfect.”
Adrian put on his indicator to pull to the left on the wet and slippery road and cautiously pulled over.
“Thank you,” Cory said. When the vehicle finally came to a stop, she practically ran out, ensuring she slammed the door good and hard in the process.
Adrian jumped when it slammed in his face. “What the hell … ” he murmured. She didn’t look like she had all that strength in her. He must have really pissed her off.
• • •
Cory was royally pissed off for the second time today. This was all she needed, another man trying to tell her what to do. She had a father, a younger brother, and a boss who apparently had a stick up his ass all going neck-to-neck already. She knew by the time she reached the office, she would be completely soaked. This didn’t faze her either, as mad as hell as she was.
Cory now had to walk an entire block to her office building. At this point, she didn’t really care. She was cold and hungry but mostly relieved Adrian didn’t get to see where she actually worked. Just in case he had any stalker-tendencies up his military repertoire.
Now would have certainly been a good time to have her car, she fumed. If only some officers would just do their damn jobs every once in a while. And how dare Adrian Mendez defend their inefficiencies? So typical these men in uniform, they always banded together.