"Home Suite Home"
LADY JAYE'S LOFT
"Peter called while you were in the shower," Lady Jaye informed Scarlett. "He wants you to meet him at his room at the Waldorf for a "private discussion" about the play." Lady Jaye handed her the message from their director and added in a sultry tone, "Oh, and dress sexy."
Scarlett scowled at her as she took the message. "Are you fucking kidding me? WHY would he think I would do that? I'm not sleeping with that sleez- ball! And what are you my pimp now? Telling me to dress sexy!"
"Hey, I'm just the messenger!" Lady Jaye laughed. "HE told you to dress sexy, not me."
"Well fuck him, I'm not going."
"You have to. He'll fire you," Lady Jaye warned her. "Look, go just to humor him then rebuff any advances that he makes."
"Sounds like playing with fire to me."
"Sure, if you don't know what you're doing. Look, he's just testing your boundaries. But if you don't play along and show up for him to test you, you'll piss him off and he'll blackball you."
"Do I really have to go?" Scarlett asked with dread.
"Yes you do. It's all a game to these big shots so play along for a minute then come home," Lady Jaye advised. "He's not going to hurt you. If it will make you feel better I'll come and rescue you if I don't hear from you in an hour."
"Make it a half hour," Scarlett bargained, "and I'll be damned if I'm dressing sexy for this bozo. He'll take casual and like it!"
*******************
WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL
Scarlett exited the elevator at the 27th floor to look for Peter's suite. This is so stupid, she thought to herself as she looked for Peter's suite number. And speaking of stupid, how STUPID does he think I am, she wondered angrily. Fucking civilians, they don't have a CLUE. Ha, I've dealt with worse predators in the military. I'll set this pervert straight and give him a lesson in manners that he'll never forget, she swore to herself as she approached the suite number she was dreadfully looking for. Her heart raced and her stomach sunk as she reluctantly knocked on the door. The door opened and Scarlett gasped in shock.
"I thought I told you to dress sexy."
"Duke!" Scarlett exclaimed as she threw her arms around him, overjoyed to see her great love in the flesh. Duke picked her up and they shared a long overdue passionate kiss. "You asshole, you set me up!" she playfully scolded him after their kiss. "And you weren't supposed to be here until next week!"
"Allie helped too. Admit it, we got you good," Duke said with a smirk. "And don't try to deny it. I looked through the peephole and the expression on your face was priceless," he added in laughter, "If looks could kill!"
"Yeah well payback's going to be a bitch, Hauser!" Scarlett amiably warned him.
"Later. But first things first," he said, showing her the service cart of chilled champagne and fresh strawberries.
"Oh Duke, you didn't!" Scarlett gasped in enchantment.
"You're right, I didn't. It was Allie's idea. Not bad, huh?" he said, popping the champagne cork and pouring their glasses.
"Not bad at all," said Scarlett with a delightful smile, taking her champagne flute. "I missed you, Duke."
"Yeah, I know - by THAT much," he mocked, holding his thumb and pointer finger two inches apart. Scarlett smacked his arm. He loved taunting her about the Skystriker incident.
"Stop that! I'm serious!" she laughed.
"So am I; why do you think I told you to dress sexy?"
"Come here you," said Scarlett as she tugged his shirt, pulling him into another kiss. Duke reciprocated by running his free hand through her thick red mane, then down her back and squeezing her bottom, pulling her hips closer to him. "I love you so much," she gasped as the ecstasy started shooting through her body like electricity. Her champagne flute, now tilted too far, spilled a little champagne on the floor.
"Oops, spilled some champagne," Duke whispered.
"Fuck the champagne. Fuck me NOW," she demanded under her breath as she pulled him into another deep kiss. Duke set their flutes down on the cart then whisked Scarlett to the bedroom.
"Baby, I love you so bad," he declared in the naughty tone that she loved as he pulled her on top of him on the bed.
"How bad?"
"You're about to find out, sweetheart."
*******************
Scarlett woke up in the middle of the night. Unable to fall back asleep, she was perfectly content to watch Duke sleep as she sorted out her thoughts. Duke's visit was exactly what she needed and not a moment too soon. Having to relive the trauma of the BET battle night after night for the play was taking its toll on her, emotionally and physically. Hopefully that loser Alexis would be back from rehab soon. Calling Duke after every show wasn't confirmation enough anymore. She had longed to see him, to feel his arms around her, to feel his breath on her skin, to make love to him. Funny how a split second changed the course of her career, if not her entire life. She thought often about that since the BET nightmares haunted her sleep. It was a small consolation that Flint and Snake Eyes took care of Serpentor while Duke was in his coma - unofficially. The press release would state that Serpentor was killed during the battle for the BET. What a big fat lie; all in the name of PR. But what could they say? That in a wrath of revenge two highly esteemed Joes attacked the enemy in his sleep? The secret execution of Serpentor is what brought about the downfall of Cobra. With Cobra Commander back at the helm and even more insane than ever, despite Dr. Mindbender's best attempts to reverse the damage the spores did to him, it didn't take long for Cobra's inefficiency to cause Destro and Baroness to make the calculated decision to turn traitor on him and his sinking organization.
Scarlett was eternally grateful to Flint and Snakes for what they did. Only she and Lady Jaye were privy to their secret mission, and of course Hawk who didn't give his blessing but looked the other way. Scarlett would inform Duke about it when he woke from his coma. Falcon had been excluded because of his tendency to fuck up, and there was no room for error. Scarlett would have joined in the secret mission but she couldn't tear herself away from Duke's side. She had already been denied time from him when he was first taken off site via chopper to the hospital. She pleaded with Hawk to let her get on the chopper to accompany Duke but he refused her request. In her agony he coldly reminded her that she was a soldier and duty first! The bastard! "Correction: I'm a PERSON and so is Duke who happens to be at Death's Door! My DUTY is by his side!" she had snapped at him in her fury. Threatening insubordination, Hawk forced her to continue fighting. She did, and she had fought many times before in the face of tragedy but it was different this time; she had hit her threshold and she was now numb from everything happening quicker than she could emotionally process. Of course it would catch up to her later: the bitter resentment. After happily giving so many years of her life to this high-risk cause only to be denied an ounce of compassion in her darkest hour. Where's the gratitude? She'd never forgive or forget. Fuck Hawk and military code. She could start a whole new career that didn't deny her having feelings and a life of her own. She didn't regret the choices that she had made in her life but now having been kicked in the teeth and faced with Duke's mortality as well as her own, this lifestyle quickly lost its allure. And just like that, with the downfall of Cobra and the Joe team disbanded, she would now see if she has what it takes to make it in the civilian world.
Duke stirred out of his sleep to find Scarlett awake next to him. She was looking in his direction but had a faraway look in her eyes. "What are you thinking about?" he asked her as he stroked her hair.
"How much I love you."
*******************
LADY JAYE'S LOFT
Scarlett and Duke came back to the loft the next day so Scarlett could change her clothes and join Lady Jaye and Flint for their night out all together.
"Oh would you look at this?" Scarlett taunted, pointing out Lady Jaye and Flint curled up on the couch, working on the Times crossword puzzle together.
"Well aren't you two precious!" Duke chimed in.
"You're not ready yet? I thought we were going to dinner then The Suite tonight," said Scarlett.
"What's The Suite?" Flint asked.
"Aquarius Suite. It's like a modern day Studio 54 without the open sex and drugs," said Lady Jaye, "open" being the operative word here.
"Oh, okay - so they play music. Wow," Flint mocked. Lady Jaye scowled at him for making fun of her favorite hangout.
"Just for that we're going to make you wait in the line," Lady Jaye teased him.
"We don't have to wait in line? Why not?" Flint asked.
"Please!" Lady Jaye said disdainfully, "The line is for the Bridge-&-Tunnel crowd."
"The WHAT?" asked Flint, now completely puzzled.
"Kids from the outer boroughs who don't have a prayer of actually getting in," Scarlett explained.
"Hello, do we KNOW you two?" Duke commented, somewhat disturbed by this conversation. Lady Jaye and Scarlett grinned sheepishly as they realized that maybe they were coming off a bit haughtily then got ready to go out.
*******************
AQUARIUS SUITE
The foursome enjoyed cocktails and reminisced about old Joe stories at their table when they noticed a couple of unpleasantly familiar faces in the club. "Well Allie it looks like your so-called "Hot Spot" is already going downhill," Flint commented cuttingly, pointing out Destro and Baroness across the room.
"She's looking right at us," said Lady Jaye. Scarlett turned to see the Baroness smirking at her. Scarlett responded by casually using her middle finger to scratch her cheek.
"Classy. Very high school by the way." Lady Jaye laughed at her.
"She started it." Scarlett shrugged. Lady Jaye then leaned into the table to speak as if she were about to spill a state secret.
"Well I heard that every co-op board on Fifth Avenue turned them down," Lady Jaye announced, "and I mean EVERY one! Probably the entire Upper East Side for that matter!"
"Hmph! Yeah, good luck with that; never mind a co-op, they better buy the whole fucking building!" Scarlett ridiculed.
"Is this what you two hens do all day?" Flint teased them then added, "Cackle cackle cackle!"
"How can they even show their faces in public?" Duke growled. "It's a fucking slap in the face after all the damage they've done! I ought to go over there and teach them a lesson in public loitering."
"Hon, you can't. They had a deal, remember?" Scarlett unenthusiastically reminded him. "Please don't make a scene. Allie and I would like to be welcome back here."
"Why? So these guys can try to fuck you?" Flint asked harshly, glaring at Lady Jaye then added, "They're certainly looking at you like they want to fuck you." Lady Jaye rolled her eyes.
"Yes Dash, you found me out. Shana and I come here to pick up hot young studs then break their hearts," Lady Jaye said breathlessly. Flint's face scrunched up at her poking him with the jealousy stick.
"Really? So exactly how many guys have you fucked since you've been in the city?" Flint half-joked with nastiness in his tone, trying hard to keep his cool. Lady Jaye stayed quiet as he looked at her. "Well?" he pressed.
"Shhh, I'm counting," she replied passively.
"Allie!" Flint was obviously not amused.
"What? A girl gets lonely in the city!" she explained. "You know what, I keep losing count. I better make out a list. You KNOW you're dying to know anyway!" she taunted as she wrote out her list on a cocktail napkin while Flint's face turned redder by the minute as she continued to scribble away. "Done! Whew finally!" she said as he snatched the list from her then proceeded to read it aloud.
"Ronald McDonald, Colonel Sanders, Elvis Presley - dammit Allie!" Flint growled as the other three howled in laughter. Flint pouted as he crumpled up the list and tossed it aside.
"Don't worry Flint!" Scarlett laughed, "Allie told me that Elvis was a dead lay!"
"Aw, are you jealous of The King, sweetie?" Lady Jaye consoled him. "Come on, lets go dance. The deejay should be playing my Al Green request soon."
"How do you know he's going to play it?" Flint asked skeptically, silently feeling like an ass.
"Because I wrote my request on a twenty dollar bill and I plan on getting my money's worth, now lets go," she explained as she pulled him out to the dance floor. Sure enough, the deejay started playing the sultry tune "I Can't Get Next To You" per Lady Jaye's request.
"Wanna bump and grind?" Scarlett asked Duke, raising her eyebrow as Lady Jaye's song request started playing.
"Do I ever - oh you mean DANCE."
"Ha-ha, you can do that later as well," said Scarlett as she led him to the dance floor. They danced seductively, maintaining full body contact.
"Hey, get a room!" Flint hollered at them in jest as he danced with Lady Jaye only a few feet away from them.
"Hey, get a life!" Duke returned the jest. Flint flipped him the bird. The song finished and they made their way back to their table. As they sat down Duke told Scarlett, "You know, in Flint's defense, these guys ARE leering at you like you're their next meal."
Scarlett took a beat. Where was this coming from? She wondered as she tried to read his unfamiliar expression. Was it - insecurity? She wasn't sure since she had never seen it before. "Does that bother you?" she finally responded, "Or are you surprised that other men actually find me desirable?"
"Of course not!" Duke replied defensively, "It's just disrespectful on their part, that's all." Suddenly it hit her - BAM! He wasn't in control of her environment anymore: no more threat of slapping extra guard duty shifts or KP for looking at her the wrong way; no more threat of making somebody's life a living hell for stepping on his toes; no more fear of disrespecting the big C.O. to keep the boys at bay. He wasn't dealing with military personnel under his command here; these were - civilians. Welcome to the Real World, Sergeant Hauser, where I'm not "off-limits" anymore, she thought in amusement to her new insight as she chuckled to herself.
"Yes it is, honey," she humored him. She decided to keep her insight to herself. She would enjoy these new rules; it was a refreshing change of pace for her. She just hoped that he could handle the adjustment. Time would tell.
"I'm going to go powder my nose," Scarlett excused herself. As she made her way to the restroom, she was about to push open the door when she suddenly found herself face-to-face with Baroness who was exiting the restroom. The infamous Baroness Anastasia DeCobray. Baroness looked at her knowingly and smugly while Scarlett gave her an icy stare. Baroness was first to break the cold silence.
"Well, I see you're moving up in the world," said Baroness cuttingly. "Now that you've traded in your combat boots for Blahniks perhaps next you'll upgrade your man as well?"
"In case you haven't heard, co-op boards don't let terrorists live in their buildings so I imagine your stay here will be brief," Scarlett sneered.
"EX-terrorist. And if I were you I'd lose the attitude, dearie. You may need me someday," Baroness coolly warned her.
"HA! I seriously doubt that," said Scarlett, brushing past her.
"You're more like me than you care to admit and that frightens you," Baroness called after her, then muttered, "Bitch."
*******************
LADY JAYE'S LOFT
"Peter called while you were in the shower," Lady Jaye informed Scarlett. "He wants you to meet him at his room at the Waldorf for a "private discussion" about the play." Lady Jaye handed her the message from their director and added in a sultry tone, "Oh, and dress sexy."
Scarlett scowled at her as she took the message. "Are you fucking kidding me? WHY would he think I would do that? I'm not sleeping with that sleez- ball! And what are you my pimp now? Telling me to dress sexy!"
"Hey, I'm just the messenger!" Lady Jaye laughed. "HE told you to dress sexy, not me."
"Well fuck him, I'm not going."
"You have to. He'll fire you," Lady Jaye warned her. "Look, go just to humor him then rebuff any advances that he makes."
"Sounds like playing with fire to me."
"Sure, if you don't know what you're doing. Look, he's just testing your boundaries. But if you don't play along and show up for him to test you, you'll piss him off and he'll blackball you."
"Do I really have to go?" Scarlett asked with dread.
"Yes you do. It's all a game to these big shots so play along for a minute then come home," Lady Jaye advised. "He's not going to hurt you. If it will make you feel better I'll come and rescue you if I don't hear from you in an hour."
"Make it a half hour," Scarlett bargained, "and I'll be damned if I'm dressing sexy for this bozo. He'll take casual and like it!"
*******************
WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL
Scarlett exited the elevator at the 27th floor to look for Peter's suite. This is so stupid, she thought to herself as she looked for Peter's suite number. And speaking of stupid, how STUPID does he think I am, she wondered angrily. Fucking civilians, they don't have a CLUE. Ha, I've dealt with worse predators in the military. I'll set this pervert straight and give him a lesson in manners that he'll never forget, she swore to herself as she approached the suite number she was dreadfully looking for. Her heart raced and her stomach sunk as she reluctantly knocked on the door. The door opened and Scarlett gasped in shock.
"I thought I told you to dress sexy."
"Duke!" Scarlett exclaimed as she threw her arms around him, overjoyed to see her great love in the flesh. Duke picked her up and they shared a long overdue passionate kiss. "You asshole, you set me up!" she playfully scolded him after their kiss. "And you weren't supposed to be here until next week!"
"Allie helped too. Admit it, we got you good," Duke said with a smirk. "And don't try to deny it. I looked through the peephole and the expression on your face was priceless," he added in laughter, "If looks could kill!"
"Yeah well payback's going to be a bitch, Hauser!" Scarlett amiably warned him.
"Later. But first things first," he said, showing her the service cart of chilled champagne and fresh strawberries.
"Oh Duke, you didn't!" Scarlett gasped in enchantment.
"You're right, I didn't. It was Allie's idea. Not bad, huh?" he said, popping the champagne cork and pouring their glasses.
"Not bad at all," said Scarlett with a delightful smile, taking her champagne flute. "I missed you, Duke."
"Yeah, I know - by THAT much," he mocked, holding his thumb and pointer finger two inches apart. Scarlett smacked his arm. He loved taunting her about the Skystriker incident.
"Stop that! I'm serious!" she laughed.
"So am I; why do you think I told you to dress sexy?"
"Come here you," said Scarlett as she tugged his shirt, pulling him into another kiss. Duke reciprocated by running his free hand through her thick red mane, then down her back and squeezing her bottom, pulling her hips closer to him. "I love you so much," she gasped as the ecstasy started shooting through her body like electricity. Her champagne flute, now tilted too far, spilled a little champagne on the floor.
"Oops, spilled some champagne," Duke whispered.
"Fuck the champagne. Fuck me NOW," she demanded under her breath as she pulled him into another deep kiss. Duke set their flutes down on the cart then whisked Scarlett to the bedroom.
"Baby, I love you so bad," he declared in the naughty tone that she loved as he pulled her on top of him on the bed.
"How bad?"
"You're about to find out, sweetheart."
*******************
Scarlett woke up in the middle of the night. Unable to fall back asleep, she was perfectly content to watch Duke sleep as she sorted out her thoughts. Duke's visit was exactly what she needed and not a moment too soon. Having to relive the trauma of the BET battle night after night for the play was taking its toll on her, emotionally and physically. Hopefully that loser Alexis would be back from rehab soon. Calling Duke after every show wasn't confirmation enough anymore. She had longed to see him, to feel his arms around her, to feel his breath on her skin, to make love to him. Funny how a split second changed the course of her career, if not her entire life. She thought often about that since the BET nightmares haunted her sleep. It was a small consolation that Flint and Snake Eyes took care of Serpentor while Duke was in his coma - unofficially. The press release would state that Serpentor was killed during the battle for the BET. What a big fat lie; all in the name of PR. But what could they say? That in a wrath of revenge two highly esteemed Joes attacked the enemy in his sleep? The secret execution of Serpentor is what brought about the downfall of Cobra. With Cobra Commander back at the helm and even more insane than ever, despite Dr. Mindbender's best attempts to reverse the damage the spores did to him, it didn't take long for Cobra's inefficiency to cause Destro and Baroness to make the calculated decision to turn traitor on him and his sinking organization.
Scarlett was eternally grateful to Flint and Snakes for what they did. Only she and Lady Jaye were privy to their secret mission, and of course Hawk who didn't give his blessing but looked the other way. Scarlett would inform Duke about it when he woke from his coma. Falcon had been excluded because of his tendency to fuck up, and there was no room for error. Scarlett would have joined in the secret mission but she couldn't tear herself away from Duke's side. She had already been denied time from him when he was first taken off site via chopper to the hospital. She pleaded with Hawk to let her get on the chopper to accompany Duke but he refused her request. In her agony he coldly reminded her that she was a soldier and duty first! The bastard! "Correction: I'm a PERSON and so is Duke who happens to be at Death's Door! My DUTY is by his side!" she had snapped at him in her fury. Threatening insubordination, Hawk forced her to continue fighting. She did, and she had fought many times before in the face of tragedy but it was different this time; she had hit her threshold and she was now numb from everything happening quicker than she could emotionally process. Of course it would catch up to her later: the bitter resentment. After happily giving so many years of her life to this high-risk cause only to be denied an ounce of compassion in her darkest hour. Where's the gratitude? She'd never forgive or forget. Fuck Hawk and military code. She could start a whole new career that didn't deny her having feelings and a life of her own. She didn't regret the choices that she had made in her life but now having been kicked in the teeth and faced with Duke's mortality as well as her own, this lifestyle quickly lost its allure. And just like that, with the downfall of Cobra and the Joe team disbanded, she would now see if she has what it takes to make it in the civilian world.
Duke stirred out of his sleep to find Scarlett awake next to him. She was looking in his direction but had a faraway look in her eyes. "What are you thinking about?" he asked her as he stroked her hair.
"How much I love you."
*******************
LADY JAYE'S LOFT
Scarlett and Duke came back to the loft the next day so Scarlett could change her clothes and join Lady Jaye and Flint for their night out all together.
"Oh would you look at this?" Scarlett taunted, pointing out Lady Jaye and Flint curled up on the couch, working on the Times crossword puzzle together.
"Well aren't you two precious!" Duke chimed in.
"You're not ready yet? I thought we were going to dinner then The Suite tonight," said Scarlett.
"What's The Suite?" Flint asked.
"Aquarius Suite. It's like a modern day Studio 54 without the open sex and drugs," said Lady Jaye, "open" being the operative word here.
"Oh, okay - so they play music. Wow," Flint mocked. Lady Jaye scowled at him for making fun of her favorite hangout.
"Just for that we're going to make you wait in the line," Lady Jaye teased him.
"We don't have to wait in line? Why not?" Flint asked.
"Please!" Lady Jaye said disdainfully, "The line is for the Bridge-&-Tunnel crowd."
"The WHAT?" asked Flint, now completely puzzled.
"Kids from the outer boroughs who don't have a prayer of actually getting in," Scarlett explained.
"Hello, do we KNOW you two?" Duke commented, somewhat disturbed by this conversation. Lady Jaye and Scarlett grinned sheepishly as they realized that maybe they were coming off a bit haughtily then got ready to go out.
*******************
AQUARIUS SUITE
The foursome enjoyed cocktails and reminisced about old Joe stories at their table when they noticed a couple of unpleasantly familiar faces in the club. "Well Allie it looks like your so-called "Hot Spot" is already going downhill," Flint commented cuttingly, pointing out Destro and Baroness across the room.
"She's looking right at us," said Lady Jaye. Scarlett turned to see the Baroness smirking at her. Scarlett responded by casually using her middle finger to scratch her cheek.
"Classy. Very high school by the way." Lady Jaye laughed at her.
"She started it." Scarlett shrugged. Lady Jaye then leaned into the table to speak as if she were about to spill a state secret.
"Well I heard that every co-op board on Fifth Avenue turned them down," Lady Jaye announced, "and I mean EVERY one! Probably the entire Upper East Side for that matter!"
"Hmph! Yeah, good luck with that; never mind a co-op, they better buy the whole fucking building!" Scarlett ridiculed.
"Is this what you two hens do all day?" Flint teased them then added, "Cackle cackle cackle!"
"How can they even show their faces in public?" Duke growled. "It's a fucking slap in the face after all the damage they've done! I ought to go over there and teach them a lesson in public loitering."
"Hon, you can't. They had a deal, remember?" Scarlett unenthusiastically reminded him. "Please don't make a scene. Allie and I would like to be welcome back here."
"Why? So these guys can try to fuck you?" Flint asked harshly, glaring at Lady Jaye then added, "They're certainly looking at you like they want to fuck you." Lady Jaye rolled her eyes.
"Yes Dash, you found me out. Shana and I come here to pick up hot young studs then break their hearts," Lady Jaye said breathlessly. Flint's face scrunched up at her poking him with the jealousy stick.
"Really? So exactly how many guys have you fucked since you've been in the city?" Flint half-joked with nastiness in his tone, trying hard to keep his cool. Lady Jaye stayed quiet as he looked at her. "Well?" he pressed.
"Shhh, I'm counting," she replied passively.
"Allie!" Flint was obviously not amused.
"What? A girl gets lonely in the city!" she explained. "You know what, I keep losing count. I better make out a list. You KNOW you're dying to know anyway!" she taunted as she wrote out her list on a cocktail napkin while Flint's face turned redder by the minute as she continued to scribble away. "Done! Whew finally!" she said as he snatched the list from her then proceeded to read it aloud.
"Ronald McDonald, Colonel Sanders, Elvis Presley - dammit Allie!" Flint growled as the other three howled in laughter. Flint pouted as he crumpled up the list and tossed it aside.
"Don't worry Flint!" Scarlett laughed, "Allie told me that Elvis was a dead lay!"
"Aw, are you jealous of The King, sweetie?" Lady Jaye consoled him. "Come on, lets go dance. The deejay should be playing my Al Green request soon."
"How do you know he's going to play it?" Flint asked skeptically, silently feeling like an ass.
"Because I wrote my request on a twenty dollar bill and I plan on getting my money's worth, now lets go," she explained as she pulled him out to the dance floor. Sure enough, the deejay started playing the sultry tune "I Can't Get Next To You" per Lady Jaye's request.
"Wanna bump and grind?" Scarlett asked Duke, raising her eyebrow as Lady Jaye's song request started playing.
"Do I ever - oh you mean DANCE."
"Ha-ha, you can do that later as well," said Scarlett as she led him to the dance floor. They danced seductively, maintaining full body contact.
"Hey, get a room!" Flint hollered at them in jest as he danced with Lady Jaye only a few feet away from them.
"Hey, get a life!" Duke returned the jest. Flint flipped him the bird. The song finished and they made their way back to their table. As they sat down Duke told Scarlett, "You know, in Flint's defense, these guys ARE leering at you like you're their next meal."
Scarlett took a beat. Where was this coming from? She wondered as she tried to read his unfamiliar expression. Was it - insecurity? She wasn't sure since she had never seen it before. "Does that bother you?" she finally responded, "Or are you surprised that other men actually find me desirable?"
"Of course not!" Duke replied defensively, "It's just disrespectful on their part, that's all." Suddenly it hit her - BAM! He wasn't in control of her environment anymore: no more threat of slapping extra guard duty shifts or KP for looking at her the wrong way; no more threat of making somebody's life a living hell for stepping on his toes; no more fear of disrespecting the big C.O. to keep the boys at bay. He wasn't dealing with military personnel under his command here; these were - civilians. Welcome to the Real World, Sergeant Hauser, where I'm not "off-limits" anymore, she thought in amusement to her new insight as she chuckled to herself.
"Yes it is, honey," she humored him. She decided to keep her insight to herself. She would enjoy these new rules; it was a refreshing change of pace for her. She just hoped that he could handle the adjustment. Time would tell.
"I'm going to go powder my nose," Scarlett excused herself. As she made her way to the restroom, she was about to push open the door when she suddenly found herself face-to-face with Baroness who was exiting the restroom. The infamous Baroness Anastasia DeCobray. Baroness looked at her knowingly and smugly while Scarlett gave her an icy stare. Baroness was first to break the cold silence.
"Well, I see you're moving up in the world," said Baroness cuttingly. "Now that you've traded in your combat boots for Blahniks perhaps next you'll upgrade your man as well?"
"In case you haven't heard, co-op boards don't let terrorists live in their buildings so I imagine your stay here will be brief," Scarlett sneered.
"EX-terrorist. And if I were you I'd lose the attitude, dearie. You may need me someday," Baroness coolly warned her.
"HA! I seriously doubt that," said Scarlett, brushing past her.
"You're more like me than you care to admit and that frightens you," Baroness called after her, then muttered, "Bitch."
*******************