As their laughter died down, Mark turned to Jason with a thoughtful look on his face. He pursed his lips, but remained silent. Jason, feeling his commander's stare, twisted to the side and quirked an eyebrow. "What, Mark? I know that look. Just spit out whatever it is that's on your mind."
Mark took a deep breath then shook his head. "Jase?" he started hesitantly.
"Mark, just say whatever it is before your head explodes," Jason snickered.
"Well, I just have to ask. What would you have done if… well," Mark stopped and gulped audibly then turned away from Jason. "What would you have done if I had thought you were offering and I wanted to take you up on it?"
"Well, for one thing, I would have made it perfectly clear to you that you were mistaken about the offer. And I do mean PERFECTLY CLEAR." Jason stated matter-of-factly. "Why are you even asking about this?"
Mark shrugged. "No real reason, just curious is all."
"Mark, are you trying to tell me something?" Jason asked quietly.
"Huh? Oh, no, nothing like that." Mark shook his head slowly. "That was just idle curiosity."
"Alright then, what's really on your mind?"
"What makes you think there is still something on my mind?"
"Because if someone had given me that," Jason pointed to the cooler, "and told me to go use it with a girl I wanted to be with, I wouldn't be sitting on the beach talking to you."
Mark sat quietly for a few minutes just staring out at the glistening surface of the water. "Well, that's just it. What if she doesn't feel the same way? She did say that you were her prime suspect for one of these stunts, not me. What if she wants that from you?"
Jason sighed deeply. "Trust me, it's you she wants."
"Are you sure? What makes you think so?"
Jason chewed his bottom lip for a moment as he came to a decision. "Because she told me. Do you really think that everything that's happened today has been coincidence? This whole thing has been her idea."
Mark's eyes grew wide as he listened to Jason. "But, your bracelet was in the women's locker room."
"Mark, do you really think that if I snuck into the women's shower room, I would have just left things for you instead of finding a way to 'entertain' myself?" Jason smirked.
"But why your bracelet? Why the women's locker room?" Mark's brow furrowed in confusion.
"Would you have gone in after her bracelet in the women's showers? Or would you have been the one to find it in the men's locker?" Jason asked. "She wanted to be sure you'd go looking for it and find it. Now, the real question is what are you going to do about it? Are you going to give the girl what she wants?"