I'm back! My head is so full of Disney and princesses and fast pass times. Thank you to everyone to wished me a good trip! We had a blast :)
Thank you to everyone who's just started following the story, or who's been following it this whole time. I hope you are all still enjoying it. I went back and re-read through it and I found that I liked it. Have you ever written something and gone back to read it and nearly died of second hand embarrassment from it? Luckily, I did not find that with my own story so that's a bonus.
As always, I appreciate everyone who's reviewed or commented. I still don't have any particular celebrities in mind for any of the main characters in any of the stories. Helpful, right? So you can totally imagine whoever you'd like in their places :)
Oh and yes, Landon is a douche lol.
Enjoy!
"You need to aim a little more to the left."
I help the girl move her arm and I can almost feel the nerves running through her. She's from Abnegation and I can tell that it's a struggle for her to put herself first. I've watched her eyes flit around the room, desperate to make sure everyone else is doing alright when the poor thing is struggling herself to punch properly.
"Your other left." I try to gently push her arm in the correct direction and she nods earnestly. She smiles at me, slightly nervous and slightly hopeful before she resumes her attempts at punching. I step back and continue to walk down the row of initiates. The group of boys that are the largest of the bunch have set up next to each other, each one trying to one up the others. Down the middle and towards the end are several smaller groups of girls and boys mixed together, all working away to mimic what they've been shown.
For the most part, the class is doing well. They are all very eager to learn, and unlike Four's previous class, there is an easiness about them. Maybe it's the mixture of guys and girls, but there seems to be a bit more balance within this group.
Of course they've paired themselves off into small groups. The strongest boys seem to gravitate towards each other, but the girls seem to stick with who they know from their prior faction. I find I have little patience for the bitchy cackles from the Candor initiates, more specifically the three girls who seem to think they've already passed the training. I'm sure they won't be so cocky once they see their upcoming scores. Nothing will knock them down a peg or two like discovering they're amongst the lowest in the class.
None of them really know just how detailed they are scored.
While Eric's scoring had been up to his own discretion, Four's class uses a very strict point system. One point for accurately performing an action, half a point for a mostly correct attempt or an honest attempt, and zero point for failure or lack of trying. They must reach a certain number of points to pass each exercise, and they must pass a certain number of exercises to even be considered for the next phase. Then they are ranked, off of a combination of their points and their general aptitude. Each of the three phases is broken down with strict goals. It sort of makes my head spin, but I figure I will just take detailed notes and make Eric help me work on the rankings.
I walk behind the group and watch carefully, marking them off as they finish up before lunch. They have about five minutes left and most are still working hard to make sure their form is correct. Four had informed them not to waste a single second of the training.
"The faster you pick up on everything, the better off you'll be." He had told them.
Four tried his best to come off intimidating and for the most part he succeeded. He was great at delivering the speeches they needed to hear and he walked through the class with his head held high and his eyes trained on the class. Though they didn't know it, he was more relaxed now that he wasn't pitted against Eric. This training was his own and he only had to make his own class succeed.
I watch him help a tall girl, her arm swinging wildly, almost knocking him in the face. He looks slightly startled, and takes a step back before she can swing again. I try not to laugh as I pause behind the group of Candor girls and pretend I'm focusing on the boys next to them.
Out of the corner of my eye I can see them standing there, rolling their eyes every time Four walks by.
"He looks like an angsty little boy." One of them, the blondest of all, snipes as he walks away. He doesn't hear her, or maybe he's just ignoring her because he knows she won't last, but the irritation starts to work its way through my veins.
"Are you girls done with your practice?" I ask them, keeping my voice sweet. For a second they share a look of guilt, but they shake it off quickly.
"We've finished." Their ring leader snaps and I simply nod and turn to the boy I've been watching. Their attitude is surprising to me, considering it's been mere days since they left everything they've ever known behind and come to a place where they might not even last.
"Keep your elbow up. You have good form, just make sure to keep it." I adjust the boy the tiniest bit, more so that I can take a step closer to the girls. They pay no attention to me though. They've picked a new target and he's walking through the door as they speak.
"Well damn, who's that? Why isn't he our trainer?" The blondest one's high pitched voice makes my inner ear hurt.
I don't even need to turn around to know Eric has arrived.
I take a step back from the boy and nod at him. "Great job." I turn to glance at the girls, but their eyes are glued in the opposite direction.
Eric strides across the room easily; his spine is pulled straight, his shoulders are back, and his lips form an ever amused smirk. I know what these girls see; because it's the same thing anyone sees when they first lay eyes on Eric.
He's tall and handsome, strong features and an even stronger attitude to match. I can just imagine the way their eyes skate over his exposed arms; his fitted clothes do little to hide how muscular he is. One of them lets out a sort of nervous giggle, her nerves becoming more exposed as he gets closer towards this side of the room. Eric's eyes narrow at the girls' hopeful expressions before they flick to mine. He must be able to read my annoyance at them, because his lips curl into a sneer. He somehow still manages to look handsome.
He ignores them, lazily walking behind a few of the other initiates, carefully studying their movements. He doesn't offer any criticism, positive or negative, but I know he's mentally taking notes. He then saunters past Four and they nod at each other somewhat civilly.
His eyes fix on mine again and he raises an eyebrow as he makes his way past the giggling idiots. I watch as their faces fall when he overlooks them completely. He stops close to me and his eyes fall on the boy in front of me. For a moment I feel for the poor soul; he's been put on the spot with my attention, and now he's got Eric focusing on him.
"Hi Eric." I tell him, taking a step closer. My arm brushes his and despite the fact that I'm married to him, the action feels slightly forbidden. I don't know how many of these initiates know exactly who Eric is, or the details of our relationship, but I get the feeling it's not very many.
"Hi Everly." He grins widely as he watches the boy punch a few more times. He says nothing as the boy continues on and he finally turns to the group of girls who are staring at him. I watch them open their eyes the tiniest bit wider, and one even has the nerve to bat her eyelashes at him while jutting out her hip.
I try not to snort.
Eric keeps his smile on his face and he zeros in on them, more specifically, the lack of training they are doing.
"Are you done?" His voice echoes through the training room, low and rich. The leader of the pack grins back, taking a step closer to him.
"We finished already. We've been waiting for someone to come watch us." She throws a look at me, one that dares me to call her out in front of her new boyfriend. I smile back sweetly and I give her ten more seconds before she realizes her mistake.
"Since you're so far ahead of the class, why don't you demonstrate what you've learned today?" Eric clasps his hands behind his back, and his voice has dropped to something that sounds acidic. Blondie falters for a second before she regains her composure. She wasn't expecting him to be interested in her training.
"Sure." She tells him and her voice sounds anything but. She turns around, awkwardly assuming the stance they've been trained to stand in, and she moves to punch at the bag. Because she's spent more time making critiquing everyone in the room and less time practicing, her punch is off. Her posture is sloppy and her elbow falls at an odd angle while her body pitches forward. She stumbles for a second before she tries to catch her balance like some sort of baby deer who's just learned to walk.
"Well that was rather unimpressive." Eric snarls.
I can see the panic flood through her minions next to her. They each take a step back, as if they could hide from Eric. But though the training room is spacious, there's nowhere for them to go. Everyone in the class has stopped, their eyes now fixed on them.
"Are you two leaving? I believe you said you were waiting for someone to watch you. Well I'm watching." He tells them, and a chill runs up my spine. He sounds vicious, almost as though he enjoys being nasty. I can tell they are suddenly unsure of themselves.
They shake their heads and swallow nervously. "You want us to punch the bags?" One manages to ask him. She's less blonde than her friends, but hardly any nicer.
I can just picture the unamused look that must be crossing Eric's face. "No, I thought you could just tell me about them."
The boy in front of me lets out a bark of laughter, and I quickly turn to him and elbow him out of the way. He's doing well, and I don't want him to draw attention to himself. The girls shoot us a dirty look, and it might just be their undoing.
Eric takes a step towards them.
"Tell me something, initiates. Do you remember the speech Four gave you when you first came here?"
They stare at him blankly before one of them nods.
"I'm going to suggest you focus on that. You chose to come to Dauntless and now we get to choose if you stay. And if you think you'll make it here with anything less than what we consider perfection, you're wrong. You'll be factionless before you know it." He snaps at them, and his words are heavy in the air.
"If we don't pass the training we're factionless?" One of them asks, her voice rising up. "When did that become a rule?"
"It's been a rule for a while now." Eric tells her.
She bites at her lip, her whole face scrunching up. "Somebody should have told us."
"Why?" Eric snarls at her. "Would you have chosen differently? Out of fear? Because if that's the case you might as well get out now. Because if you're really one of us, it won't matter that you might fail."
The leader of their group looks miserable now; her jaw is slack and her eyes flit to me nervously. I can only look at her with mock sympathy. She averts her gaze quickly, realizing she's just made an idiot out of herself, and focuses back on Eric.
Eric smirks in their general direction, and I can tell this is hardly the attention they were hoping to get from him. He turns to the one who had been glaring at me and points his finger at her.
"You better watch yourselves. We train soldiers here, not rebels. Now get out. We're done for the morning."
I can tell he's scared the entire class, because they are very very quiet as they file out for lunch.
Eric finds me in the mess hall, his face stretched into a wide shit eating grin.
He's watching the class nervously find seats as they scuttle by him, and I can tell it will be a quiet afternoon. I make my way towards Eric, surprised to find Four heading in the same direction. He stops for a second; he's pulled aside by a girl from Abnegation who looks terrified to even talk to him. I watch her tilt her head at up him, her long blonde hair falling from its ponytail and making her look much younger than eighteen.
Eric's arm slides around my waist and he gracelessly yanks me with him back. I find myself being pulled out through the mess hall doors and before I can ask him where we are going, his mouth is against mine.
I will never quite get used to the feeling of kissing Eric. His lips are warm and rough, and he walks me back a step until I bump into the smoothest section of the wall.
"I forgot how much I like the way you look in your training clothes." His voice is low, spoken only so I can hear him. I feel like my cheeks flush at his words, and it only increases as his large hands slide under the fabric of my tank top. "It's really good to see you like this again."
I laugh against him, mostly because his mouth is on my neck, hitting a spot that tickles. He pushes me further into the wall, his mouth continuing its exploration.
"Eric, I'm going to miss lunch." I protest, but it's a feeble excuse. He knows full well I would stay here all day with him. I feel his teeth close around my skin, his body flush against mine, his large frame completely over shadowing me. He then moves back to my lips, his nose brushing past mine until I can feel his eyelashes against my skin.
"Fine." He answers, his face suddenly sulky. He kisses me once more, rougher and impatiently demanding, before he breaks apart from me slightly. He looks down at me, his grey eyes warm and he swallows before he kisses my cheek in an abnormally soft way.
"I'll miss you." Eric smirks the words, and then he's gone, his great form retreating towards the elevators before I can answer.
My cheek burns through the rest of my lunch, and I swear I feel like I've developed a terrible crush, except it's on my own husband.
The girl from Abnegation's name is Stella, and after lunch she has a complete and utter meltdown.
I watch as she crumples, her whole body seeming to collapse upon itself, as soon as she sees she's expected to fight against her friends. I kneel down besides her, smoothing her damp sticky hair out of her eyes and I try to soften the blow that this is what's expected. She's chosen the faction that fights for the city, and she won't last long if she can't make it through one practice fight.
"They said we have to fight each other. I can't punch Vincent. He's been my friend since I was four." Her eyes are watery, and she stares up at me pleadingly. "I don't want to fight him. I just can't do it!"
"Think of it this way, you have to learn to defend yourself. This is just the first step. It's not just about beating up your opponent." I wipe her cheeks off and she still looks crushed. For a moment I contemplate asking Four if it's an absolutely possibility that she will eventually wind up fighting her friend. I glance over at him to find that he's watching us curiously. I motion for him to come over, and he nods, looking stern.
Well, he tries to look stern.
I can see he's worried about the girl. It's etched in his features, especially around his eyes. He stops besides us and crouches down low enough that we can talk without being over heard.
"Keep going. Fifteen more minutes until we run." He calls out to the rest of the class before turning his attention to us. He looks at Stella and then me. "You need to go to the infirmary?" He's asking Stella but he's still looking at me. I shake my head and smile at Stella.
"She just needs a minute. I thought maybe you could walk her to the drinking fountain? Give her a breather."
Four looks at me suspiciously, but he reaches his hand out and Stella stares up at him. She takes it gratefully, letting him help her up and they stand, staring at each other for a long moment. I can't help but feel slightly awkward as neither of them move, so I'm glad when one of the boys gets whacked in the back of the head with the rebound of the punching bag.
"Carson! Pay attention!" I yell out. I head over to make sure he doesn't have a concussion, and I throw Four and Stella one final look. He's walking with her, close enough that their shoulders nearly touch, their hands occasionally brushing against each other.
Arlene is behind schedule.
The infirmary is rather busy, bustling with initiates who just haven't quite gotten the hang of things. There are a few from Lauren's class who have managed to bloody themselves already, and a couple from my own class who passed out early this morning after our first run.
Arlene waves me over into a small room and eyes me carefully.
"How are you holding up?" She's staring at me critically and I can tell she means since my father's passing. Her concern is welcome, sort of.
"I'm doing well, Arlene. Promise." I watch as she wipes my arm off with an alcohol soaked pad, and she makes her way over the tray on the counter. She picks up one of the needles with a blue label on it and frowns.
"Hold on a second. You're due for one more." She purses her lips and steps out for a second. I sigh, enjoying the silence. The afternoon had flown by and this was my last stop before I was to head home.
Arlene reappears with three shots in her hand; all of them have a similar label on them. She lines them up on a tray; the first two are blue and the final one is green.
"Sorry about that. It's been pure chaos in here today. It seems like once the training classes start it's nothing but a constant stream of people." She announces, snapping on a pair of gloves. She administers the first one quickly, and I hardly feel the needle slide into my arm. She sets it down beside the other two, and moves to pick up the second syringe.
"Arlene! Code Six! We got a broken leg and a fractured rib! Someone from Lauren's class fell down the stairs." The words ring out loud and clear, and Arlene hesitates for a second.
"Take them to bed three." She yells back. She sets the syringe down and takes her gloves off. "I'm going to fetch one of the nurses. They'll finish you up. We'll catch up in a few days." She tells me. She shoves her glasses up nose and she's out the door before I can response.
A few minutes later the nurse appears. He's tall and tan, his hair perfectly combed to the side.
"I'm Kyle. I'm gonna finish up for Arlene." He walks over, and flips through the chart quickly. "Nice to meet you Mrs…." He hesitates for a second before he looks over at me, his stare curious. "Coulter."
"Nice to meet you, too." I tell him. He picks up the second blue needle and injects it easily, watching me closely.
"I'd heard Eric was married. I didn't know it was true." He says breezily. He picks up the final shot, but before he can administer it, Arlene peeks her head back in the room.
"Kyle, I need your help for a second. It'll be quick. I need you to help set this leg." She's out the door before he can protest and he obediently follows after her without saying anything.
I lean back against the wall and close my eyes. I'm not really thrilled about all the shots. Growing up in Amity had meant we followed a more holistic approach to health and wellness. And while wasn't always the greatest idea, these vaccines typically make me feel like garbage for a few hours after.
I idly wonder what Eric's doing, and if he's home yet. I want nothing more than to eat dinner and crawl into bed with him. Tomorrow is a relatively easy day, and both classes are scheduled to spend the morning sparring. I really hope it goes well. While some of the initiates have a basic concept of fighting, most of them don't. Four will demonstrate a few of the moves their expected to know and I'll score them individually.
I open my eyes when the door open, surprised to see Molly there.
"Hi Everly. I'm gonna finish up here. It's chaos out there and Arlene doesn't want you stuck around here forever." She makes her way towards me, a smile on her face.
"Sure." I tell her, ready to leave.
She wipes my arm off again, and I swear she's done before I even have time to register her reaching for the syringe. She sets it down on the tray and frowns for a second before she puts a band aid over my arm.
"Everything ok?" I ask her. I slide off the table, shrugging Eric's hoodie back on.
"Yeah, oh yeah fine." She tells me, finally smiling. She makes a few checks on my chart, and then she ushers me out the door before I can look back.
The infirmary is busier than ever and I'm glad to be leaving.
My phone won't stop dinging.
I glare at it from my spot on the bed. Eric is busy taking a shower, and I have no idea how to turn the thing off. I sigh, grabbing it from the night stand and try to click on the icons in hopes of turning it off. Instead it simply beeps louder, and I groan in frustration. I'd felt the effects of the vaccine about an hour after I got home. Luckily for me, dinner was waiting and Eric was more than happy to head to bed.
I click on everything I can think of- email, messages, settings, and even the clock icon. After effectively setting the date to sometime next week, Eric appears from the bathroom, shirtless and rubbing his hair with a towel.
"Did you check your e-mails?" He asks, grabbing a comb from the dresser. I watch as he methodically combs his hair back, smoothing everything wavy into submission. He then undoes the towel off his waist and steps into his boxers.
"I don't know. The thing keeps beeping." I glare at it again, wondering who on Earth so desperately needs my attention. The dinging is only making my head hurt worse.
Eric sits on the bed next to me, taking the phone from me. He stares at it for a moment, frowning.
"Why does your phone say it's next Thursday?" He looks at me, his face now slightly amused. "You have a voicemail. That's why it keeps beeping."
I shrug at him and roll my eyes. "Who knows." He clicks a few buttons before the message begins to play. It's from Four, and he's asked me if I would mind pairing up the initiates for their matches. Eric sneers and deletes the message.
"Is Four too busy with his new girlfriend to do his own job?"
I shake my head and frown.
I know he's talking about Four and Stella, and I suddenly regret mentioning them. I struggle with the urge to remind Eric that it's alright for others to be happy. I know he and Four don't get along, but I found the interaction between Four and Stella to be sort of sweet. Besides, Four simply walked her to get a drink. I didn't see anything remotely scandalous about that.
"Don't be mean to them." I tell him, yanking the phone back from him. "She's just a little nervous about the fighting."
Eric stares at me, his grey eyes suddenly icy. "She better get over it fast if she wants to stay."
I ignore him. Eric will never like anyone whom he thinks is weak, and I can tell he's not very impressed by Stella so far. And he wasn't even in the room when she had her meltdown. I lean into him, scooting closer until my back is mostly against his chest. "I think she will." I tap aimlessly at the phone until Eric sighs beside me.
"How do I take a picture?" I ask him.
"Click on the bottom left icon." He answers. I can feel one of his hands make its way into my hair. His nails scrape against my scalp for a moment, the sensation all too pleasant. Much sooner than I'd like, his hands slide down the ends, and he twirls a piece of my hair almost absentmindedly. "Do you want me to help you match them up?"
I turn to smile at him, nodding my head. "Yes, please."
Eric smirks and I lean into him, holding the phone up. A mirror image of us appears on the screen; myself leaning into Eric, his expression pleased and smug. He almost grins and his eyes have a hint of amused exasperation to them.
"You gonna show this picture to all your friends?" He drawls, his voice low in my ear.
I giggle as I snap the photo, and Eric's bare chest winds up taking up most of the frame.
"Stop, you made me mess up. And no, just Four. You missed that part of the message where he asked for me to bring him a photo tomorrow. In case it doesn't work out between him and Stella." I inform him. I shove into him, and he laughs. I snap another picture, and this time, the photo captures Eric's face in a rare, wide smile.
The large boys name is Colton, and it comes as little surprise to me when he nearly beats the living daylights out of his opponent.
"This is just practice." Four reminds him, his voice firm. "We just need to see where your skills are at."
Colton's opponent groans from the mat, lifting his head in agony. "I think you broke my face." He moans.
Four and I exchange a look. "Someone help Michael get up. Colton come over here." I tell him. He ambles over to me, looking proud of himself.
The class has done really well this morning. Eric had helped me pair them up easily; he'd observed enough from his walk through the training room, and he'd been spot on with each pairing. He'd mercifully paired up Stella with a girl named Kelly who seemed confused how she'd even wound up in Dauntless. I hadn't questioned him on it; had I asked him, he'd simply say something about their skill levels being on par and that he certainly wasn't doing her any favors.
I liked to think he was.
Colton comes to a halt in front of me, looming large and intimidating. I stare at him for a second, trying to imagine what I would do if I was fighting him. He's large and muscular, but everyone has a weakness. The smug grin on his face makes me think I'd probably kick him in the balls to start.
"Yes?" He asks, his voice dripping with arrogance. It's a funny thing that some of them seem to adapt so easily. Colton seems to think he's got this in the bag.
"Did you listen to the instructions this morning?" I ask him. He blinks at me for a moment before he nods. "This is a practice match. You'll have your chance to really fight in a few days." I tell him. He looks at me, his stare now bordering on boredom.
"I thought you wanted to see what I can do." He has the audacity to wink at me, and his words are flippant in tone. "Besides, this is too easy. I already know how to fight."
I ignore his wink and try very hard not to lose my cool. "Who taught you how to fight?" I ask him.
He grins, pleased at my interest. "I've been fighting for years. I've been waiting to choose Dauntless since I could walk." He stares at me, his brown eyes looking down at me. "I'd like to fight you."
For a moment my heart stops, not out of fear. I've fought Eric enough times to know that I could take Colton down. But it stops at the look on Four's face. He's been listening to the exchange with his head cocked to the side, one eye on the class. I watch his lips part to say something as his expression changes to panic.
I smile up at Colton. "I'm sure you would. But that's not what we're working on right now." I keep my voice cheerful, letting him know I'm not afraid of him. There's something off about him and this whole conversation, but I need to corral his focus back to the class. "I'd like to suggest you head back and listen to what Four's asked you to do. You're being scored on this, you know." I tell him.
Colton looks unimpressed at my words.
"Four is well aware of how I fight." He tells him, his voice low and threatening. "In fact, I've learned most of my fighting from him."
I resist the unconscious urge to take a step back. This boy is far too young for Four to have trained him in the past, even if they had been some the same faction. Four must catch the look on my face because he takes one step off the mat.
"Everly." He calls out but I can't respond. Colton takes a step in front of me until I'm hidden behind him.
"Where's Eric?" He asks, his eyes dark. "I hear you and him have a very close relationship."
I ignore him and I take a step closer until I can glare at him. "You're out of line, initiate." I snap. "Get back to your class and start paying attention to what you're told to do."
Colton's expression changes to something of complacence and he takes a step back. "Yes, ma'm." He answers, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
I don't feel any satisfaction when walks back towards the class, instead I mostly feel a sense of dread run through my veins. Four throws me a concerned look, and I brush it off. I'll find him later and ask him about Colton's words.
When the class finishes for the day, they all look sweaty and worn out.
Stella managed to stay on her feet for most of the fight, and I watch her glance hopefully at Four before she makes her way out of the training room. He doesn't catch her glance though. He's making his way towards me, papers in hand.
"Everly, do you want to go over these tonight?" I know what's in his hands. It's the notes from today, written in his barely legible handwriting. I nod at him, reaching for the papers. When he's close enough I grab his arm instead.
"Are you and Colton from the same faction? He said he knew you." I tell him. Four looks confused and he shakes his head.
"I've never seen him before." He answers me, and his eyes look anywhere but mine.
I don't believe him, but I don't ask him anything else.
Eric looks irritated when I tell him about Colton.
"What did he say to you?" His voice has taken on this low, dangerous tone that I've heard him use right before he snaps. "That he wanted to fight you?" He's sitting across from me at our dinner table, and his jaw looks tense enough to lock in place. "Was he appropriately disciplined?"
I shake my head, taking a bite of spaghetti. I try to avoid my eyes from him, knowing that his stare is more intense than normal. Truth be told I don't know if he should have been disciplined. He'd been mouthy but that was it. He hadn't outright threatened me, and he'd listened when I'd sent him back to the class. Maybe I should have asked Four.
"Everly." He snaps my name until I look back up at him. "I asked you a question."
I can tell something is bothering him, more than just Colton. His shoulders are tensed up high and his neck looks stiffer than ever. I don't really want to answer him. It seems like it will only made him angrier, and I really want to just curl up against him and close my eyes. The whole ordeal has left me feeling shitty, like maybe I should have done more with Colton.
So I don't answer him. I simply stare back at him, and my expression must rather downcast because his eyes soften.
"I just want to make sure he knows his place." Eric holds my stare, now frowning. "I don't want him to think he would ever have a chance at hurting you."
I swallow and stare at the noodles on my plate. I don't want Eric to think I can't handle the class, and I can't help but feel like Colton might be more than I can handle. When I don't look up, I hear him push his chair back and stand. Eric comes around the table, and he pulls at my hands until I look up at him.
"He knows. Don't worry." I tell him. He pulls me up easily, until I'm facing him. Eric's hands slide around my back, pulling me close to him until I'm against his chest.
"I don't want anyone to hurt you. Ever. You know that." Eric's words are quiet, and if I wasn't listening hard I might not hear them at all. "I don't have any doubts about you training them. I just want you to be careful. You're not exactly intimidating looking." I nod against his chest, relief blooming throughout me. Somehow Eric thinking I don't know what I'm doing is worse than had Colton actually tried to do anything.
"Thank you." I whisper and he lets me go all too soon.
Eric stares down at me, his face serious and tight. "I'll do a little research on him. I'll figure out what his deal is. I can have Jason look into it tomorrow." Eric pushes my hair off my face and his eyes land on mine. I smile up at him, feeling slightly better now.
"Can he do that?" I ask. My arms are still around his waist and I hold on tightly.
Eric nods. "If I tell him to."
He pauses for a second as though he's lost in his own thoughts, then he bends down to kiss me until I forget all about Colton.
A week later I wish I'd disciplined Colton. Or had Eric storm down and beat the shit out of him.
I lag behind the class, counting them as they walk along on their way to lunch. Colton trails behind me, having been the last one off the mat. He's starting to grate on my nerves. His mouthy outbursts have only increased, and he seems determined to let everyone know that he finds this training pointless.
We walk down the hallway towards the mess hall and he makes sure he knocks into me, causing me to trip for a brief second. He grabs my arms with force, and bends down, hissing in my ear.
"I heard you're married to Eric. Which is absolutely perfect. It means he'll follow after you."
I don't have a chance to respond in any way. He clamps one hand over my mouth, and shoves me into the wall, until my head smacks into it with a loud thud.