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“Genius?” I answered. It was clear who Whiplash was pinning all the blame on for her loss, but she was going to have to turn my way to find the culprit of this operation. Stealth was my particular brand of play, not Solo’s.
“It was rather genius,” Solo said. “Bet you thought I’d come in hard and fast, huh?”
Whiplash arched an eyebrow. We reached the door, I pulled it open for the two of them, and Solo leaned in and said in a low tone, “I keep that kind of activity for my man now. Don’t be jealous.”
When he started to chuckle, I groaned, and Whiplash rolled her eyes. But as she shoved past him, I caught her snort of laughter.
I said under my breath, “You’re ridiculous, you know that, right?”
“Maybe, but am I wrong?” Solo said.
My eyes fell to Solo’s lips as he licked them, and all I could think about was him coming in me, fast and hard—right now.
“Mhmm, that’s what I thought.”
“Lieutenants Hughes and Morgan, nice of you to join us,” Commander Levy interrupted. We made our way toward the rest of our class at the front of the enormous room facing the wall of windows that overlooked the airfield.
Solo took his seat next to Whiplash and Houdini. I moved in beside him and looked around at our fellow trainees. It was hard to believe that this was the last time we’d all be sitting here, but that was the reality. Our twelve weeks at Mesamir were up. All the hops, briefs, and tests were complete, and this was the moment we were finally going to find out who had come out on top.
Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Commander Heinz. Her dress uniform was immaculate as always as she surveyed our class with cool, assessing eyes. I knew that this final decision—whichever way it went—had been discussed at length between the two commanding officers now looking over the class.
“Well, then, now that you’re all here, we can begin,” Commander Levy said, beginning to pace the front of the room. “First off, I’d like to personally congratulate each and every one of you for completing the Elite program. There have been many in the past who have not made it as far. So the first thing you should all do is give yourself a pat on the back for making it through the entire course.”
Solo snorted. “If I pat your back, will you pat mine?” he asked me.
It was nearly impossible not to give in to his charm, but somehow I managed. “Later.”
Solo waggled his eyebrows, then we both turned back to Levy.
“We’ve had many highs and lows during this year’s course, one which almost cost us a trainee’s life.”
Levy looked my way, Solo reached for my hand, and I wrapped my fingers around his, the reminder of that moment a difficult one.
“Lieutenant Hughes’s rigorous training and quick thinking not only helped save him that day, but also helped him walk away from one of the worst air disasters I have seen here at Mesamir. Your ability to perform under such strenuous and life-threatening circumstances proved that not only do you deserve to be here at the Elite, training with the best, but you also deserved the spot you held at that time, at the top of the class.”
The room fell silent as Levy looked over the rest of the trainees.
“But that was eight weeks ago, and a lot has happened between then and now. Hops have been won, and some have been lost. Commander Heinz and I have spent the last two weeks going over not only your performance scores from when you're in the air, but also your test results from here in class, and while all of you are at the top of your field for a reason, three of you stood out.”
Oh shit. Shit. This was it. This was the moment we’d all been waiting for. My heart threatened to beat clear out of my chest. Solo’s fingers nearly strangled mine, and I knew he was thinking the same exact thing.
I closed my eyes and counted back from ten, and at five, Levy said, “Could Lieutenants Morgan, Castenada, and Hughes please join me at the front?”
Solo, Whiplash, and myself looked at one another as if to check we’d each heard him say the right thing, and then Whiplash jumped to her feet and climbed over Houdini to head up to the front.
Solo found his feet next. He looked down at me, and his smirk was the same one I’d seen that first night in the bar. It was full of arrogance, confidence, and a superiority that made my blood hum. As I got to my feet, I knew I’d found my equal in every single way.
As we headed to the front, we passed by Gucci, who congratulated Solo, and when all three of us stood side by side at attention, Levy looked down the lineup and gave a tight nod.
