Escalation by C.B. Stone

Author:C.B. Stone
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: dystopian fiction
Publisher: InkedPlot Media
Published: 2015-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

IX

I find Connor at the Pen, changing out of his Shepherd uniform. When I walk into the locker room, he has his back to me and his shirt off, and I stop, my mouth going dry as I gape.

I must have made a noise, because he spins around, his expression fierce, immediately on the defense. When he sees me, his stance relaxes, while if anything, I tense up even more. Crikey. If I thought the back of him was something to behold, it's nothing like the front of him.

A flush creeps up along my neck, warming my cheeks, and I cover them with my hands, trying to cool them. When I do, my gaze locks with Connor's, and something in my expression must have given away the direction of my thoughts, because his own eyes darken as he looks at me. His muscles flex as he reaches for his shirt, and casually shrugs it on, pulling it down to cover his chest and belly as I watch, yet never taking his eyes from mine.

It isn't until I see his lips quirk, and a flicker of amusement in his eyes that I come back to reality. With a gasp, I spin on my heel and face the door I'd just entered through. Disconcerted, mortified, I stammer, "Ummm... I'll... I'll just wait for you at your desk."

I slam through the door, back the way I'd come, and rush through the room to his desk. Dropping into the chair, I lean back and drag a deep breath into my lungs, trying to calm my racing heart and cool the flush I know is making my face beet red. Connor thankfully doesn't emerge for several more minutes, giving me time to calm myself and pretend like nothing absolutely weird and embarrassing just happened.

Even after calming myself down, I still can't entirely eradicate the restlessness inside me that walking in on him invoked, or erase the mental image of him without his shirt. I chew on the ends of my hair and frown. Cut it out, Reagan. You don't have time for this. Whatever 'this' is.

I shift in the chair, trying to get comfortable. Though I'm more collected now, the longer he takes to come out, the more my hard won calm starts to disintegrate.

Finally, he enters the room, whistling under his breath. He gives me an easy smile, and I force a smile back.

Keeping my voice as casual as I can, greet him. "Hey. Sorry, I didn't mean to barge in on you. It's just that Laney and I came up with an idea on getting the coordinates and stuff, and I wanted to run it by you."

Connor collapses in the chair across from me, and nods. "No problem. I was just getting cleaned up before dinner. So what's your plan?"

Thankful he appears to be willing to ignore our little moment in the locker room, I launch into an explanation of what Laney and I came up with. At the end of my spiel, Connor has a thoughtful expression on his face, his hands steepled together.

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