She slept until dinner, feeling a little bit better when she awoke. At least until she tried to get out of bed. Lady Jaye rarely felt this done in from a workout, but she knew that a run with full gear followed by several repetitions of the obstacle course and two combat training matches could do that to anyone. She moaned and tried to walk without limping to the mess hall.
Everyone raised their heads and watched her when she walked in. Jeez, has anyone not heard the rumors? She wondered. She ignored her teammates' stares and filled her tray with food. She turned and scanned the room. Flint wasn't there, but Beach Head was. The drill sergeant was eating with his head barely above his plate; it was obvious he was trying not to look at anyone else in the room. So he's even more embarrassed than I am, she mused. A wicked grin spread across her face as she moved toward his table. She might pay for it tomorrow, but it was too good an opportunity to miss.
She sat down right next to Beach Head, and it took him a moment to wonder why the room had gone silent. Finally he looked up and noticed her sitting there. He ducked his head back down immediately and tried to ignore her. Unfortunately he couldn't ignore Shipweck's stage whisper from the next table. "Aw, ain't they cute?"
A few snickers followed this remark from various seats in the room. Lady Jaye swore she saw Beach Head's face turn red. She grinned and leaned closer. "It's your fault, you know," she whispered. "Learn the meaning of the word 'innuendo' and avoid it at all costs."
His head shot up, and he nearly shouted, "You were the one who told Ace that we're lovers!" Realizing what he just said, Beach Head looked around wildly and yelled, "But we're not! I didn't mean—that is—" His voice was drowned out by the hoots and laughter of their teammates. He stood, leaving his tray on the table, and screamed, "The next person who makes one comment about me and Jaye is going to be in for it!" He shook his fist for emphasis, and Shipwreck nearly rolled out of his chair, gasping for breath. Beach Head stormed from the room, ignoring the many comments made as he passed the other tables.
Lady Jaye simply sat quietly and ate her meal. That was way too easy, she thought . I should tell Duke that Beach Head needs to sit through hours of cover ops training so that he learns how to keep his mouth shut, or at least to say what he means.
She looked up at Cover Girl and Scarlett as the women joined her at the table. "Okay, we were totally kidding before… I guess we thought it would never happen. But, you know, it's okay, I mean, everyone has their own, um, preferences. We're uh, really happy for you," Cover Girl began.
"Yeah, so how long has this been going on?" Scarlett asked. "Give us all the smelly—I mean, juicy details."
Lady Jaye rolled her eyes. "There are no details. Beach Head and I are not an item," she replied.
"Uh-huh. That's not what it looked like in the mud pit today." Scarlett lifted her eyebrows. "In fact, it looked like you were standing there in each other's arms, and if he wasn't wearing that stupid mask, I would have said he was about to kiss you."
"Would you believe I had just collapsed from fatigue after Beach spent an hour pummeling me?" Lady Jaye asked her.
"Oh, so that's what they call it nowadays," Cover Girl laughed.
Lady Jaye punched her on the shoulder. "Seriously. I'm black and blue. Want to see the bruises?"
Scarlett held up her hands. "No, thanks. Come on, Jaye—the man smelled your hair this morning."
She simply shook her head. "You're both wrong. Beach Head has it in for me, and I mean in a bad way."
"Yeah, he's got it bad," Cover Girl quipped. "I thought we were your best friends. Come on, what's he like? Is he a good kisser at least?"
"I wouldn't know," Lady Jaye said forcefully. "I have never kissed him. Really. There's nothing going on." Her plan was definitely backfiring.
"Okay. Well, when you decide to tell us about it, you know where to find us," Scarlett told her. The two women stood and walked off, but were quickly replaced by Ace, Shipwreck, and Alpine.
"Man, Jaye, I thought you were kidding," Ace said. "What the Hell do you see in that guy?"
Lady Jaye took a deep breath. "For the last time, there is absolutely nothing going on between me and Beach Head. Of everyone on base, he would be the penultimate man I would sleep with."
"Wow, she really likes him," Shipwreck said.
"That means second to last, moron," she replied.
"Oh, really. The last being…?"
"You."
"Oh, she wounds me!" Shipwreck clutched his heart. "Well," he said with a wink, "If he ever dumps you, you know where to find me!"
Completely oblivious, Shipwreck stood, turned to the next table, and declared, "She says Beach is the ultimate in bed! Can you believe it? Never thought he had it in him!"
Lady Jaye banged her head repeatedly on the table in time to the applause of the others.
Alpine clapped her on the shoulder and said, "Each to her own. Don't let us keep you from the mud pit." He rose and went back to his table.
Only Ace remained quiet. He looked at her for a minute and said, "This is a cover up, isn't it? I just don't understand why you'd rather have everyone think you're sleeping with Beach Head instead of Flint…"
"I'm not sleeping with Beach Head!" she growled.
Ace grinned. "Gotcha. So you are sleeping with Flint."
She opened and closed her mouth a few times. "I never said that, either."
He laughed. "No, you never did." He shrugged. "Didn't deny it, though."
She rested her chin in her hands and sighed. "Don't say anything, okay? I've got enough to deal with right now." She gestured at the others.
His mouth dropped open. "You ARE? Aw, man. I was just fishing the other morning." He narrowed his eyes at her. "Unless that's a ruse, too. Damn. Now I don't know what to believe."
She just smiled mysteriously and took the last few bites of her dinner.
Ace shook his head and rejoined his teammates at the other table. This is getting ridiculous, she thought. I can't believe they'd think we would—she couldn't finish the thought.
She managed to catch up with Flint in his room a short while later, and she recounted her day, knowing that he was likely to hear about it sooner or later. He found the situation pretty funny, at least after she took some time convincing him she wasn't interested in anyone else.
"Sorry I didn't wait for you on the shower," she finished. "I had to scrape the mud off with a towel first so that I wouldn't plug the drain."
She was in his lap on his couch, and at this statement, he leaned in to kiss her neck. "I would have liked to help…"
She laughed. "You were in a meeting. I doubt Duke would have appreciated me interrupting to ask if you could come take a shower with me."
"It wasn't a very important meeting," he replied with a shrug. "Besides, it's unfair that your other boyfriend gets to see you all covered in mud and I don't."
She smacked him on the chest. "Well, we could still hit the hot tub," she suggested.
He grinned in reply and helped her to her feet. He watched in amusement as she winced at every movement. "Do you need me to carry you?"
She looked up with a wry grin. "If this keeps up, I'm going to need a wheelchair."
Lady Jaye hobbled back to her room, leaving Flint to change into his bathing suit while she did the same. She looked down at the bruises now exposed by her suit and sighed. Oh, well. She wasn't entering a beauty contest. She checked the clock on the way out—still a couple of hours before she was supposed to meet Snake Eyes. She hoped that the hot water would at least ease her muscles enough to let her work out with him at least a little while. It's not like she would be feeling any better in the nights to come the way things were shaping up; she might as well get used to it.
She walked through the pool room and toward the separate sauna and hot tub area. It was a popular spot on base, of course, and was usually occupied by at least a couple of people in the evenings. It was also gossip central, as the Joes returning from missions often relaxed there, catching up on recent events.
Shipwreck's voice could be heard coming from the open doorway, filling in some recent returnee on the new romantic development on base. When she heard the resultant laughter, she had to groan. Clutch was back. If anyone could make the situation more uncomfortable, he could.
He started the moment she walked in. Clutch looked her over, noting the various black and blue patches of skin. "Always figured you'd like it rough," he laughed. Flint was seated across from Cutch, and looked like he wanted to kick the man. Lady Jaye slid in the water to sit next to Flint, sighing in pleasure at the temperature.
She smiled sweetly at Clutch. "As usual, Shipwreck has his head up his ass. It's not surprising that yours is joining him there."
He hardly missed a beat. "Speaking of which, does Beachie like to give it to you up the—urk!" He stopped when he felt Lady Jaye's foot threateningly placed between his legs.
"What was that?" She asked.
"Uh, I was wondering if your boyfriend likes to give, ah, back massages?" He replied with a nervous grin.
Lady Jaye removed her foot. "Well, no, but that sounds like a good suggestion." Normally she wouldn't resort to brute force, but her brain was too tired to think of any cutting remarks.
"Speaking of your boyfriend, though," Flint said, "I wonder what you see in him." He gave her a lopsided grin.
She smiled back and said, "Well...He is extraordinarily handsome. He's smart, too. And he has a pretty good sense of humor, to boot."
Shipwreck's mouth fell open. "Beach Head? Smart and funny?"
"I'm not talking about Beach Head," Lady Jaye told him.
He just waved off her comment. "Yeah, whatever." He nudged Clutch. "Can you imagine the kids? Do you think they'd wear little balaclavas?"
Lady Jaye felt Flint's hand grasp hers under the concealing foam. She gave him a squeeze and leaned back in the tub, trying to ignore the chatter around her. She jumped when Flint's hand brushed against her leg. She left her eyes closed and concentrated on the feel of the jets on her back and the warmth seeping into her skin.
Shipwreck and Clutch finally gave up grilling her when she refused to answer any other questions, and they left after a few minutes. Flint sidled closer to her as soon as they walked out the door and pulled her in for a quick kiss. She sighed against him, letting herself relax in his embrace. Later she'd have to meet Snake Eyes for what was sure to be a torturous round of practice, but for now she could forget everything else.