"Ninety?" I shrieked, pissed off at her.

"Yeah, some of those didn't count. You lifted your butt off the ground."

"Bullshit. I did every single one of them perfectly, and you know it."

She pouted her plump lips. "Maybe you thought you did them perfectly, but Sgt. Cruz wasn't far behind, so I don’t know if you thought him seeing your ass would help, but for this, they don't count."

I wanted to slap the smirk off of her face, but that wouldn't help matters.

"You're a fucking bitch," I blew out, trying to keep my voice down.

I got up and walked away, feeling like I would let out every ounce of wrath that had suddenly piled up inside of me if I didn't get some space between us. She knew exactly what she was doing. If she was pissed about Sgt. Cruz, Sgt. Jensen, or the fact that I had performed better than her on the bar, she was being petty, and it was beginning to wear thin on me. Unfortunately, before I could figure out how to handle her, I had to get my mind right because we were heading over to the water station to hydrate and stretch before making our way to the three mile run course.

"You ready to give me a run for my money?" Dalton asked as we snapped our reflective belts around our waists. Part of the run course ran alongside the road, and base orders stated that we must wear reflectives anytime we ran before or after daylight as a safety precaution.

"I'm not sure about that. Long distance running has never been my thing," I responded, trying to be honest about my shortcoming.

"Try to keep up with me. Running with a partner will sometimes surprise the hell out of you."

"Will do."

We stood at the line, waiting to be given the command to start.

"You will have twenty-eight minutes to complete your three mile run. One second beyond twenty-eight minutes and you fail. Pace yourselves so that you don't burn out too quickly. Go!" Cruz said, leaving his husky voice as the last thing on my mind as I took off with Dalton by my side.

We started at a medium pace, not too slow, but definitely not as fast as some of the others. Angelica was one of the first off the line, almost moving in a dead sprint as she started her run. That didn't appeal to me at all, knowing if I started that way, I would definitely burn-out by the second mile.

The sun was beginning to rise as we ran, sending scorching rays of heat down on us. My t-shirt and my shorts filled with sweat as I ran, trying desperately to focus on the course instead of the voice of sex coming from Cruz's mouth into my ears. Dalton spoke to me as we ran, but between the living inferno we were running in, and the voice that was assisting in the task of melting me, I could barely make out what he was saying.

We hit mile three, and my legs were beginning to turn into jello. My skin had turned a lobster's shade of red, the sweat acting as a second layer of skin, coating every inch of my body, sealing my t-shirt and my shorts to me while my lips began to chafe and burn. I was slowing down, and even though I knew we only had one mile to go, I was finding it difficult to keep up the pace that Dalton had set for us.

"Come on, Bennett," he said, through short, deep breaths. "You can do this. Let's go."

"Go ahead of me," I blew out through labored pants. I didn't want him getting a worse time because he was trying to keep me on pace with him.

"You sure?"

"Yeah. I'll be fine."

With that, Dalton picked up the pace, moving with the ease of a gazelle. He easily glided past other runners, almost as if he hadn't exerted a bit of energy already. I kept to my pace, figuring all I had to do was get to the finish line before twenty-eight minutes struck on the clock.

As I made the final turn, I saw Dalton at the line, calling my name, rooting me on. Angelica wasn't far behind him, staring at me as I inched closer and closer to the finish line.

"Come on, Bennett. You've got this," he called out, just as I passed the line.

"Twenty-six fifteen," Castillo called out. I had never been so thrilled. Usually my run time was inching closer to the cut-off mark. Running with Dalton had helped me, even if he finished minutes before I had.

I was panting, desperate for breath and water, when Dalton walked over to me, handing me a water bottle. I gulped it down, almost like it was the last drink I would ever take. He patted me on the back and then walked away. I was much too fatigued to look up and figure out where he was going, but just as I felt like I could breathe again, and the overwhelming need to hurl left my body, a deep, rumbling voice filled my ears.

"Stand up," he ordered. "You don't want to get cramps."

I looked up to find the hazel eyes of Cruz glowing at me, his face still held firmly tight.

"Good job out there today."

The breath I had worked so hard to catch had escaped me again with his presence and his words alone. I breathed deep and hard, trying desperately to get it back so I could say something in response to him.

He leaned in closer to me, damn near nibbling on my ear lobe as I felt the soft touch of his full, sensual lips graze my ear. My nipples worked themselves into two solid pebbles, sticking out against the sweat soaked t-shirt clinging to my chest.

"You're much too exhausted after this run. I might need to work you out!"

His words grew deeper and harsher with the end of his statement. The way he looked at me, and the inflection on the words, meant so much more than what they appeared to mean. My heart rate spiked again, and my breath caught just as I was fixing my lips to say something to him in response.

"Stay focused. Don't be the barracks whore either. You've got too much going for you."

That shocked me.

"What?" I questioned, completely caught off guard.

"Don't hang out in barracks rooms where you're the only female. That's how rumors get started."

I swallowed hard, not sure how he knew of my whereabouts, and a bit embarrassed by them at the same time.

"Good job out there today," he reiterated, this time a wicked gleam went off in his eyes. He used them to rake over my entire body. I wanted so badly to grab him and let him have his way with me, but reality quickly set in. He blinked, took a few steps away from me, then turned on his heel and walked away. His muscular back outlined by the tight confines of the t-shirt molded onto his body. His legs, toned and tanned, with a tattoo of a depraved looking Marine Corps bulldog, carried him away from me, making me wish he would turn around and take me off somewhere to cure the ache that his presence seemed to inflict on my body.

I took another long gulp of the water in my hands, trying to squelch the flames in my body that had nothing to do with the heat from the rising sun. When the world finally stopped spinning around me, I focused, only long enough to find Sgt. Castillo's gaze fixed on me, a deep scowl accompanying it. She didn't turn away when my eyes landed on hers, and neither did I. For what seemed like a long couple of minutes we stood, in the middle of a field, glaring at one another.

She walked over in my direction, her perfect posture and swift movements taking me by surprise.

"Good job out there today, Bennett," she said, a sly grin spreading across her petite face.

"Thank you, Sgt. Castillo," I replied, unsure of her motive. She looked me over, her eyes landing on my chest that was still standing erect thanks to my hardened nipples that were on display for everyone to see.

"I'm watching you. Just be aware of that," she quickly added, no hint of friendliness in her voice whatsoever. She turned and walked away, leaving me angry and confused. If what Angelica had said about her and Cruz were true, maybe she saw me as a threat.