Brothers in Arms (4 page)

“It’s fine. I was just hoping for a chance to serve in your platoon, sir.”

Jonah allowed himself a small smile. At least Yarwood was bold enough to interact with him, instead of sitting silently in awe. “If we take some serious casualties and they rotate in replacements, there might be a shifting of manpower to balance out the teams.”

“I’d welcome an opportunity, if any future special mission you’re assigned allows you to select team members from outside of Second Platoon,” Yarwood said with a casualness that could only be feigned.

He was about to scoff at the kid’s obvious belief in the exaggerated legends of his combat exploits, when he was suddenly reminded of his other duties as a platoon Gunnery Sergeant. Kellan’s voice echoed in Jonah’s memory with advice on developing young Marines, providing guidance and training, as well as command and leadership.

“Jonah
,
”
Kellan had said,
“you have to lead by example. Share that wealth of knowledge and experience with younger Marines.
You can’t just yell at your men when they do something wrong; you have to explain how to do it right.”

Jonah was filled with gentle warmth as his memory latched on to an image of Kellan Reynolds and wouldn’t let it go. His mind filled with Kellan’s open face, expression full of pleasure and enthusiasm.

Jonah took a deep breath to steady himself and then answered Yarwood. “I appreciate your willingness and enthusiasm, Private,” Jonah said, reassembling his freshly cleaned M4. “I’ll keep you in mind if I’m ever given access to teams outside of Second Platoon.”

“Thank you, sir.” Yarwood flushed.

Jonah gathered up his cleaning gear and headed out-of-doors. Safety wasn’t optimal, he knew. The room had just become too close and stuffy. He needed to be able to breathe, and he couldn’t inside with the press of bodies and memories.

He’d just gotten his sidearm disassembled for cleaning when Grizzly stepped out of the house and lit a cigarette.

“Not disturbing you, am I, Gunnery Sergeant?” he asked, blowing smoke into the darkness.

“No, sir,” Jonah replied, deciding it was best to keep the truth to himself.

“Thank you for your vigilance and your cooperation today. I know you don’t like being in the dark about a mission. For what it’s worth, I advocated reading you into my mission parameters, but I was vetoed at the highest level.”

“I appreciate that, sir,” Jonah replied, suspecting an attempt to blow smoke up his ass.

“Scuttlebutt says you might make First Sergeant when this tour is over. You’ll deploy next time with your very own company commander to train up right.”

“Have to survive this tour first,” Jonah replied.

Grizzly fell silent as he smoked his cigarette. Jonah thought the conversation was over, but Grizzly spoke again. “Have you observed or encountered anything unusual in your recent contacts with insurgents or suspects?”

“I can’t say that has been the case,” Jonah answered.

“Are the IEDs any more numerous? Do they seem more powerful or accurate? Any rise in weapons caches containing M16s or M4s?”

The specificity of the question made Jonah look up from the weapon he was cleaning. “I would have noted any shift in pattern you describe,” Jonah said. “I have not.”

“Take it very seriously if you do, Sergeant,” Grizzly warned. “Don’t make any assumptions about coincidence or anomaly.”

“Will do, sir.” Curiosity thrummed through Jonah.

Grizzly tossed his cigarette butt out into the darkness, gave Jonah a nod, and then disappeared back into the house.

Alone in the dark again, Jonah’s thoughts drifted back to Kellan. Jonah had known, almost as soon as they’d set foot back in Camp Pendleton after their first tour in Iraq, Kellan wasn’t going to re-up, despite his promotion to captain. Jonah had suspected when he’d received the invitation for beer at Kellan’s, he was going to be given the news personally.

They sat on stools, facing each other, at the center island in Kellan’s kitchen. Jonah knew Kellan’s roommate was still deployed in Afghanistan, so there would be no interruptions. That thought made his heart beat just a little faster. Jonah cautioned himself that his feelings could very well be one-sided. Kellan had given no indication he was aware of any chemistry between them.

“Top already knows this,” Kellan said, telling Jonah he’d already confided in his first sergeant, “but I wanted you to hear it straight from me. I’m on terminal desk duty. I didn’t re-up, so I’m out in sixty days.”

Jonah peeled the label off his beer bottle. “I can’t say I’m surprised,” he confessed. “I had a feeling.” Jonah wasn’t surprised, but he realized how disappointed he was.

“I’ll leave it to you to spread the word among the men, but as a lot of you are getting out or just leaving Recon, it probably won’t matter much.” Kellan’s eyes never left Jonah’s face as he spoke.

“Good officers are a rarity in the Corps, sir,” Jonah replied. “You know that firsthand. You’ll be missed.” That last statement was a more personal admission. He wondered if Kellan realized it.

“I appreciate that,” Kellan said, and Jonah would swear he blushed slightly. Running a hand over his dark blond hair that would look burnished with red in bright sunlight, Kellan changed the subject. “I heard you got yourself approved for a special assignment, Gunnery Sergeant.” Kellan’s green eyes held a hint of pride, and his broad smile made something in Jonah’s chest tighten.

“Yep, I get to go put Third Recon through special training, make them
real
Recon Marines,” Jonah said with a smile, again looking forward to the posting. “Two years in Okinawa. I’m so happy it’s not a desert.”

“I bet you are,” Kellan said with a laugh. Jonah watched him take a swig of beer, unable to look away from his throat as he swallowed. He had to stop himself from swallowing in response to the sight.

“What are your plans after your Honorable Discharge?” Jonah asked, taking a drink of his own beer, his mouth suddenly dry. He was aware of an undercurrent in the room. He just wasn’t sure if Kellan felt it too.

“I’m not sure yet,” Kellan confessed, his expression growing serious. “I’m thinking I might go back to school. Get a job. I don’t know what the hell I want to do.”

“You’ll figure it out,” Jonah said with conviction.

Silence fell around them, and it felt electrically charged. Jonah waited for Kellan to look away, but he didn’t. This was so dangerous. Now he was ready to swear this tug and pull, this tension he’d felt since he’d met Kellan was mutual, but he couldn’t be sure. Chain of command and DADT had meant there was no chance of exploring any possibility, but now? Jonah was afraid to even wonder if that was the real reason Kellan had invited him here.

Kellan took a deep breath. “I’m no longer your platoon commander, and the Corps can’t do shit to me,” he said, staring hard into Jonah’s eyes. “The only thing I have to lose is your respect.”

Jonah stopped breathing. He suddenly had every answer he’d been looking for. “Can’t think of anything you could do to make that happen.” In case this was going where he hoped it was, he set down his beer. He watched Kellan do the same.

He was never sure which one of them moved first. Jonah only knew he finally—finally—got to kiss Kellan.

Jonah ran his hands over Kellan’s hair. It was growing longer since his discharge was imminent but not quite long enough for Jonah to get his fingers through, so he settled for cradling Kellan’s skull. He pressed past Kellan’s lips, licked deep into his mouth, and tasted him for the first time. The kiss was everything Jonah had expected, hot and sweet, flavored with beer and something that reminded him of Kellan’s unique scent. Jonah’s head spun.

He felt Kellan’s hands on his back. One smoothed upward to cling to the back of his neck; the other drifted downward to grasp his ass. Jonah was tugged tight against Kellan’s body. He could feel Kellan’s cock pressed against his thigh and growing harder. He pushed forward into the hardness, grinding himself against Kellan’s solid body.

He growled in frustration when Kellan broke the kiss, pulling back slightly to whisper against Jonah’s lips, “I didn’t ask and I’m not going to tell. Ever.”

Jonah nodded his understanding. Despite Don’t-Ask-Don’t-Tell, they served and they served with pride. He’d been here a few times before but always with other enlisted men, never with an officer. Still, he’d trusted Kellan with his life during combat; he knew he could trust him with this.

He brought his mouth back to Kellan’s and pushed deep. Jonah was already in love with the way Kellan kissed: open, aggressive, and not stingy with his tongue.

Kellan made an impatient sound into Jonah’s mouth. Reluctantly, he let him go again.

“My bedroom’s down the hall,” he whispered. “I’ve got supplies.”

Apprehension slithered its way into Jonah’s gut. He had no idea what Kellan wanted or expected. He realized he had no choice but to step off the cliff. “Supplies for me to fuck you?”

“Oh, yeah,” Kellan replied with a wicked chuckle. Jonah’s relief was intense, and it cleared the way for a fresh rush of lust.

Kellan grabbed Jonah by the belt buckle and led him down a short hallway to a spartan bedroom. A part of Jonah realized Kellan had probably always considered his stay in California temporary, transitional, or even transitory. He pushed those thoughts away. He had Kellan right here, for now.

Jonah tugged Kellan’s T-shirt up his chest and over his head. Kellan reached for Jonah’s shirt, but it grew tangled when Jonah wouldn’t lift his arms. He couldn’t bring himself to stop running his palms over the warm skin of Kellan’s chest, the firm muscles of his naked back.

“Off,” Kellan said impatiently into Jonah’s mouth.

Jonah finally capitulated, lifting his arms so Kellan could remove his T-shirt and toss it aside negligently. As soon as his own chest and belly met with the warm skin of Kellan’s, he wondered why he’d resisted stripping for even a moment.

With a firm shove to Kellan’s chest, Jonah sent him pitching back onto the bed. Before Kellan could recover, Jonah knelt between his open knees and reached for his belt. He was going to fuck Kellan, but first he was going to suck his cock and get him all revved up. Then he was going to lick him so he relaxed and opened right up.

Kellan eagerly lifted his hips so Jonah could slide his jeans over them. Jonah paused to admire Kellan’s firm chest and his defined abs before he finally looked down at his prize. Kellan’s cock was already hard, dark and dusky in color. Jonah’s jaw ached with his desire to wrap his mouth around it. His own cock pressed painfully against the fly of his jeans at the thought.

“This isn’t how I pictured it,” Kellan said with a breathless laugh.

Jonah glanced up and saw Kellan flush darker, as if his own words embarrassed him. “What did you picture?” Jonah asked, swiping his tongue along one of Kellan’s firm, pink nipples and receiving a gasp as his reward.

“I always pictured getting on my knees in front of you,” Kellan said, voice pitched low and rough.

Jonah felt Kellan’s hand on the back of his head, pressing him closer as he shifted and grazed his teeth over the other nipple. “Been thinking about that for a while?” he asked, kissing his way down Kellan’s belly and feeling the muscles clench beneath his tongue. Jonah tried to ignore the fact Kellan’s answer mattered.

“When we were introduced, I thought I’d been kicked in the gut, I wanted you so bad.”

Jonah had had no idea. His ego was pretty fucking ecstatic at the news. They’d talk about all this later, but right now he was going to suck Kellan’s dick. “Later,” he promised, lowering his head. “I’ll let you get on your knees for me later.” Jonah was looking forward to it.

Kellan bit back a strangled cry when Jonah slid his lips over the head of his cock. He sucked hard and swirled his tongue around it before pushing his mouth farther down the shaft. Kellan’s hand on his head became more insistent. Jonah looked up through his lashes to try to gauge Kellan’s reaction. He saw Kellan biting down on his lips and heard him breathing heavily through his nose.

Jonah pulled off quickly. “None of that,” he said firmly. “I want to hear you.”

Kellan’s eyes opened wide in surprise. Suddenly, he smiled derisively. “I’m used to someone always being in the other room.”

“Screw ’em if they were,” Jonah said and lowered his head again. He wet his lips and pooled his spit. He pressed his mouth down the length of Kellan’s cock.

“Oh fuck,” Kellan groaned.

Jonah smiled around the width of the cock in his mouth. He dragged the flat of his tongue along the fat vein on the underside as he pulled back with a hard suck. He swirled a pool of hot spit over the head and flicked his tongue into the slit.

Kellan’s groan was loud and debauched, emanating from deep in his throat. Jonah gripped Kellan’s hips and held them firmly; he was not going to have his rhythm fucked with, even if it was in mindless enthusiasm. He wrapped his lips around his teeth and pushed his mouth down the length of Kellan’s shaft.

He tasted just like Jonah had known he would: warm and musky. The skin of Kellan’s cock was velvety and felt like it was wrapped around a core of steel. The precome flowing freely from the tip was thick and sweet. Jonah released Kellan’s hips and pressed a single forearm across his pelvis to continue holding him in place. He wrapped his free hand around the base of Kellan’s cock and worked it in tandem with his mouth.

“Jesus, fuck,” Kellan groaned, voice rough. “Why did I wait so long to make a move?”

Jonah laughed around Kellan’s erection, those words echoing his own thoughts.

Kellan hissed in reaction. “You got no room to laugh. Didn’t exactly jump me.”

Jonah pulled off, rose up and buried his face in the crook of Kellan’s neck. “If I’d hit on my platoon commander and he wasn’t interested?” He wondered if Kellan realized his question meant he’d actually considered doing that.

Kellan gripped Jonah’s shoulders almost painfully. “Good point.”

“Just have to make it worth the wait,” Jonah said, newly determined to live up to his own words. Still on his knees in front of Kellan, he leaned down and quickly removed Kellan’s shoes. Next, Jonah tugged off his own jeans and tossed all the clothing aside.