Chapter Seventeen: Rumors and Reality Don't Mix

"Natalie? Wake up, Coop. We should get going."

"Will, what do I always tell you about waking me up?" I asked sleepily, my voice muffled from lying on my stomach.

"That you're going to hurt me one of these days?"

"Exactly," I answered. "So what could possibly possess you to do such a thing?"

"We kind of need to get to the hotel."

I sighed, knowing he was right. My eyes finally opened and I glanced up, rolling onto my side. "Will?"

"That's me," he said. He stood there looking down at me, wearing only his boxers and a goofy grin. Even in the moonlight, his athletic and muscular frame was a sight to behold.

"How long were we out?" I asked, sitting up.

He shrugged. "I dunno. I woke up by chance a few minutes ago, and realized we should probably head back before someone sees us here."

"Good idea."

We dressed mostly in silence, wrapped up the blanket, and started back the way we'd come from. It was still dark out, and the late night warmth had now given way to cool early morning. A fog rolled lazily through the tops of the trees, and there was dew on the grass under our boots.

"This is sort of creepy, don't you think?" I asked Willis, taking in the eerie landscape.

"Are you kidding? Remember, Natalie, I've seen you with a gun. That's far more frightening than any foggy forest."

I smiled in the dark and gave him a playful shove. "You're such an asshole."

"A fact that didn't seem to bother you earlier," Willis replied, grinning. He came to a halt and kissed me. "You were incredible, by the way."

"Right back atcha, Mister," I said with a smirk.

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We got to the Galaxy Stars hotel an hour and a half later, as it was closer than the restaurant where we'd begun our night hike. Once there, we hardly even noticed the immaculate white and gray sheets, covered by a soft red comforter. Barely pausing to remove even our boots, we both fell asleep before our heads hit the oversized white pillows.

I knew I was in deep trouble the next day (or, rather, much later in the same day) when I awoke to the sound of my datapad ringing. When I looked at the time, I saw that I was frightfully late for work.

"Lieutenant Cooper here," I answered, preparing for the worst.

"Cooper? This is Lieutenant Graham. I want you to know that I covered for you, and managed to convince Kingston that you needed the day off to recuperate from your sore rib wound. You know, all that intense training we've been doing the past week…"

"Y-yes, of course," I said, playing along. "How, um, did you know he was here, Graham?"

"You know how fast scuttlebutt travels, Cooper. Your aide noticed a particular change in your demeanor, a 'bounce' in your step, and so dutifully reported it to my aide, who told Smythe's aid…"

"I see." Now that Smythe knew Willis was here, he was sure to come up with a sneaky way to ruin things for me. "Well, geez, Graham, thanks. I'll owe you one, I guess."

"No problem, kid. Enjoy your day, because tomorrow isn't going to be any different from the usual. Graham out."

"Who was that?" Willis mumbled, apparently now awake.

"Another lieutenant in my platoon," I said, turning to face him. "She's saving my ass."

"I told you it's good to have friends in high places. What time is it?"

"Two forty. In the afternoon. Can't say we didn't get much sleep."

"So…" Willis began, propping himself up on an elbow. With our faces just inches apart, he grinned at me.

"So what?" I asked, grinning back.

"I was wondering---" he said, sliding his hand to the small of my back and pulling me closer.

"Uh-huh?"

"---if maybe---" he continued, starting to kiss me.

"What?"

"---we had some extra time---"

"For?"

"---for...an encore...of last night," Willis said between kisses. He started laughing, and I couldn't help but join in.

"You are seriously lacking in the art of subtlety, Will."

"All part of my charm. So should I take that as a yes?"

I flashed a mischievous smile at him, and let my actions answer for me.

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Eventually, we finally got around to actually leaving the hotel room. We both showered and dressed, and Willis shaved as I did my hair and make-up. Finally, we were ready to go into the city in search of food.

"I know a good place that's not far from here," Willis said as we walked hand-in-hand along the downtown area. Now that we were wearing civilian clothing, restrictions on public displays of affection weren't a problem.

"How do you know Cote D'Azur so well?" I asked him.

"I do my homework?"

I gave him a look. "Try again."

"I visited recently as part of the prototype testing program I was in on Rondurass," he finally answered.

"That makes about as much sense as what you said before, honey."

"I'll explain after we eat. Although I'm warning you now, I can't talk about everything."

"Fair enough."

Just before we went into the diner Willis had mentioned, he stopped to give me a passionate kiss.

"I love you," he said.

I smiled and kissed him back. "I love you, too."

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"All right, I'm ready to hear about Rondurass," I said when we'd finished eating. The plates were gone from the table, and the tab was paid.

"Well, I told you before: there's not a whole lot I can say," Willis began, leaning back in his seat. "We've flown a few covert missions here and there, but we really haven't seen that much action the past several months. We mostly test out these new prototypes."

"What kind of covert missions are you guys doing?"

"I'm sorry, Coop. I'm not allowed to tell you that."

"I kind of figured. Anything you can tell me about those new birds you're flying?"

"They're supposed to be released within the year for use in the UNSC Marine Corps and the ODST outfit. For now, we're testing the ones that are going to hit the market first."

"That sounds interesting," I said. "Have you performed any of your covert ops with the new planes?"

Willis thought for a moment, probably deciding what he could and couldn't say. "Some."

"I bet you guys tested these newbies a lot with sims before flying them, huh?"

"Honestly? Not a whole lot."

I thought for a moment, confused by his answer. "Seems what you're telling me is that you fly ships to see that they don't malfunction."

"Yes."

"So if they do have a fatal flaw, you won't know until it's too late."

Willis seemed amused. "I'm a good pilot, Cooper."

"No, you're a great pilot. But we both know that wings don't matter if the bird can't fly."

"Natalie, these ships are safe. They're going to be distributed within the year, like I said, to the majority of the military."

I nodded slowly and sighed. "I'm just worried about you."

He smiled. "Don't. Soon everyone will be flying these, you'll see. What my squadron and I are doing is really just making triple-checks."

I looked my husband in the eyes, letting him know I wasn't convinced. "Please, Will. Be careful."

"Always am," Willis replied with a wink. He reached across the table and drank from the glass of water there. "Ok, your turn. I did my speech about Rondurass, and now I get to hear about Heath."

"Yeah, Cooper. Why don't you tell Hubby what really happened on Heath?" a voice said from behind us.

"Smythe," I growled.

"Who?" Willis asked.

"The third and last lieutenant in my company. And a really big pain in the ass," I managed to say before Smythe came to our table.

"So how are things going, Cooper?" Lieutenant Smythe asked, grinning evilly.

"Great. Until you showed up," I replied bitterly.

"How're those sore ribs?"

"Oh, you know. Still sore."

"Yeah, but I bet that's not from the battle." Smythe let out a spine-tingling laugh.

"Who are you?" Willis interjected.

"Of course. I apologize for not introducing myself. I'm Lieutenant Jon Smythe, and I run third platoon in Bravo Company. And you are…?"

"Lieutenant William Hawk," Willis answered.

"May I call you Billy?"

"Willis is fine," my husband answered, slightly annoyed. He hated the name Billy, or even Bill. Only his parents ever called him William, and only a select few could call him Will. To everyone else, he was just plain Willis.

"'Course, Billy. So would you like to know the real story behind the Heath campaign? Something that perhaps Lieutenant Cooper here is reluctant to divulge?"

"Actually, I just wanted to hear what---"

"Well, I was there, I could tell you." Smythe leaned on our table and lowered his voice. "It was hot there in the desert, real hot. But you know the Corps. Nothing's hotter than rumors. And there was a good one going around that seems to have had a strong possibility of being true."

"Is this something about the war?" Willis asked.

"Smythe, can't you leave? Just this once?" I said. But my words fell on deaf ears.

"See that man sitting there on the counter, flyboy? Checkin' out his datapad and drinking a mug of joe? That's Lieutenant Cooper's platoon medic."

Oh, God, I think I know where this is going, I thought suddenly.

"So?" Willis said.

"So? People say that wife of yours spent a large amount of time in the medical tent---"

"Smythe, you little piece of---"

"---and he's a medic. He's allowed to do all that touchy-feely stuff without raising any questions. And when we boarded our ship to come to Sigma Octanus---"

"Smythe!"

"---she was seen with him several times in the mess, in the medical bay, and even in her own quarters…"

"That's a fucking lie!" I shouted, standing up.

"Is it, Cooper? He showed up at your door one day when you weren't even completely dressed. I saw it with my own eyes."

"I was missing my boots, you son of a---"

"What's going on here?" Petty Officer Michael Reynolds asked. He'd walked up from the counter when he'd heard Smythe and I arguing.

Lieutenant Smythe ignored Reynolds, and instead looked Willis in the eyes. "I'll let you deal with him," Smythe said, and walked away.

Was I the only one who caught that smug smile on his face?

"El-Tee? What's going on?" Reynolds glanced at Willis. "Is he bothering you?"

"No, he's---"

Willis suddenly stood up and got in Petty Officer Reynold's face. "Who the fuck are you, and what are you doing hanging near my wife all the time?"

"Huh?" Reynolds asked, clearly perplexed.

"Answer me," Willis said through gritted teeth.

"Will, you don't need to---"

"I have no idea what you're---" Reynolds began, but stopped when Willis grabbed his shirt collar. "Hey, man---!"

"Bullshit. I want to know. Now."

"That's it," I said, sick of the amount of testosterone in the room. "Will, please let him go."

He looked at me like I was nuts. "Let him go?"

"That's what I said."

Willis stared first at me, then at Reynolds. And he immediately reached the wrong conclusion.

"Oh…" Willis said, releasing his grip on the petty officer's shirt.

"Will, come on, I told you Smythe's just a pain in the---"

"No, I get it now." Willis started walking away, saying, "I really do…"

Petty Officer Reynolds glanced at me, and I let out a frustrated sigh.

"Oh, crap…" I muttered, then called after Willis.

Once outside, I called out to him again. "Will, would you please wait for me!"

Finally he turned around. "I get it now, Coop. I totally get it."

"Get what?" I asked when I'd caught up to him.

"Why you're so reluctant to talk about Heath." Willis looked away for a moment and swallowed hard. "Is that why you won't tell me anything? Did something happen between you and that medic?"

"You're joking, right?" I questioned, in utter disbelief.

He swallowed again. "Natalie, look, if this…if we're not working out, just tell me."

"I can't believe you'd buy that---"

"I need to know!"

I smiled sadly and shook my head, then turned back to Willis. He wasn't the type to get angry, but he sure played the part well when he did.

"You really want to know what happened on Heath, Will?" I asked him.

"Yes," Willis answered, his voice tight from controlling his anger.

"Ok, here's a list of events for you. I spent five months in a smoldering forest and watched my platoon, my company and my fellow Marines get killed. I was this close to joining them. It's a freaking miracle I'm alive, not paralyzed, and that medical technology is so advanced. Otherwise by now, I'd have severe burns covering me head to toe and I'd look like a piece of fried meat. Then, I was sent to a desert where I saw more of my buddies die. And Smythe's little 'sore ribs' joke?" I pointed to my side, where the wound had been. "That's where I had a piece of shrapnel go into my bone. The reason why I was in the medical tent so often? Bingo."

Willis stood there, dumbfounded. It was ok if he was speechless, however, because I had plenty of words for him.

"I lost my aide there, too, Will. He was eighteen years old, this kid, sweet as can be, and had his whole planet blown to smithereens. He bled to death right in front of me, and I still haven't gotten over it. So there's your damn Heath story, now leave me the fuck alone."

And with that, I stalked off.