Redemption (Bennett Sisters Book 5) (6 page)

Brody chuckled to himself. “Nice.”

Lydia
crossed her arms. Rick’s words pulled her attention back from Brody, and she placed her focus on the general. Rick was right. Brody wasn’t a threat, only a man that needed to get a grip on his hormones. The general obviously trusted the man with training her, so maybe she should too. Rick’s words after their kiss resonated in her mind.
Lydia
nodded toward Brody. “Save your compliments, hot shot. I don’t plan on being around long enough to be a conquest.”

The brunette woman sitting next to Rick she’d yet to be introduced to lifted a hand and covered her mouth, coughing around the sip of coffee she’d just taken that threatened to spew out of her mouth. Brody’s twin, Ridge, chuckled and nudged Brody with his elbow. “Brother, it seems she’s got your number.”

Brody’s eyes darkened in response.
Lydia
’s cheeks reddened even more. She’d been presumptuous, although it seemed as though her suspicions had been correct. Even if her comment was appropriate, she shouldn’t have verbalized it. Not at their first meeting. “I apologize; I was out of line.”

The general cleared his throat. “Yes, well, you’ve met Marlaina.” The blonde’s hazel gaze was unreadable. The general now gestured to his right toward the brunette who had scowled at her and Rick when they’d first entered the conference room. “And this is Jaime Bloom.”

The general sat back down. “Everyone’s already met Briggs.” The general gestured in her direction. “This is Ms. Lydia Stevens and FBI Agent Rick Thompson. They are our guests and will be treated accordingly.” The general gave her a conspiratorial wink before he turned his gaze on Brody. “Do I make myself clear?”

Brody grinned. “Oh yes, sir. I’ll make sure she feels right at home.”

Ridge elbowed his twin harder in the arm, eliciting a wince from Brody. “Grow up already.”

Brody dropped the grin from his face and cut his gaze back to the general. “Yes, sir.”

The general nodded. “Good. Since you and
Lydia
share the same special skill of telekinesis, you’ll be training her starting first thing in the morning.” The general looked around the table. “Talk of her abilities does not leave this room, and I expect daily updates on her progress.”

“Jaime, you’re in charge of combat training. Show her how to protect herself if she’s ever in a situation where she can’t use her gift.”

Jaime nodded.

The general motioned toward the blonde. “Marlaina, I want you to teach her how to block her thoughts and mental attacks.”

Lydia
was rendered speechless that the possibility even existed. If she could learn to control herself and not hurt anyone along with keeping herself safe, if these soldiers could actually help her, if it was at all possible, she’d be in a much better place mentally and physically.
Lydia
sat up straighter in her chair and finally found her voice. “Great, when do we start?”

The general leaned forward. “Don’t be too excited,
Lydia
. I want to make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into. Your days are going to be mentally and physically exhausting. You’ll be begging for a day off before your two weeks are up. They won’t go easy on you. You just have to trust and remember that we’re doing all of this to help you.” He pushed from the table and rose to his regal height. “Since you’re so eager,
Lydia
. Your first taste of training starts now. Brody, you’re up.”

They all stood, and Brody rounded the table. “With pleasure, general. Right this way.”

Rick took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Are you sure about this?”

His gentle touch was reassuring because a flicker of apprehension had crossed through her body. It was her decision, and he wasn’t trying to talk her into it. She could do this, she needed to do this, and she would conquer this so she could go back home. The fear knotted inside of her was pushed to the recess of her mind. “There’s no time like the present. Besides, the quicker I get the hang of this, the faster you’ll be rid of me.”

Lydia
left Rick standing there and followed Brody out of the conference room. She hadn’t meant to be so cold toward Rick, but she didn’t see any other option. He wasn’t in this for the long haul, no matter how he made her feel. He deserved better than what she could give him. Her life had been on a downhill slide for so long, and now the threats against her were bigger. She wasn’t going to drag him into her world. A world he was just cutting his teeth into. A place he didn’t belong.

Lydia
followed behind Brody toward her destiny. Her nerves tingled with the excitement of the unknown and hope that the general could deliver on his promises. Brody pressed his palm
o
nto the box beside the door. The lock clicked open, and he pushed the door wide.
Lydia
stepped over the threshold and glanced around the room. The floors were covered with thick blue mats. Even the walls were heavily padded. The room was empty aside from a door on the right-hand side, a few pieces of workout equipment up against the wall, and a few places one could sit to rest. It wasn’t state-of-the-art, but she guessed it would serve their purpose.

The alarm on the door behind her beeped again, alerting
Lydia
that someone else would bear witness to her first attempt at controlling her skills. Marlaina’s ponytail swayed behind her as she carried a pile of folded clothes in her hands. She smiled at Brody as she walked up and handed him the clothes. Her voice vibrated with confidence. “I thought she could use these.”

Marlaina gave Brody a seductive smile and bat of her eyelashes as she touched his arm with her free hand. Marlaina turned toward her. “You can’t practice in those jeans. You’re going to need something easier to move around in.”

Marlaina’s flirting was blatant and obvious. The blonde must think that
Lydia
was interested in more than the training Brody was going to give her, which was the furthest thing on her mind. Marlaina was marking her territory. The blonde had been nice to
Lydia
in the conference room and was trying to make sure she was comfortable. A ploy maybe, but an extended hand of friendship? Doubtful.
Lydia
didn’t trust anyone besides Rick and Briggs to see to her best interests. Nonetheless,
Lydia
couldn’t fault Marlaina for the move.
Lydia
walked over to Brody and took the clothes out of his hands then turned to Marlaina and placed her palm on the petite blonde’s arm. “Thanks.”
Lydia
winked at the blond. “I understand completely.”

Marlaina’s eyes lit up, and a smile graced her ruby-painted lips. “Great.” She pointed toward the closed door. “You can change in there, and if you need anything else while you’re here, just let me know.”

Lydia
nodded and walked into the bathroom, leaning back against the closed bathroom door
she
clenched her eyes shut. These people were different from her and yet so familiar. She’d never been a boyfriend-stealing friend. Hell, she’d tried hard enough to keep everyone away after her best friend died. There was no amount of time that could erase the pain from not being able to save him.
Lydia
pushed off the doorframe with renewed determination. She needed to get the hell out of here and couldn’t do it until she knew what the hell she was doing.

She heard Brody and Marlaina talking in the other room while she changed but couldn’t make out their conversation.
Lydia
had no plans of finding a boyfriend while she was here. A relationship with any guy at the compound was out of the question, no matter how sexy several of them were. The thought of a one-night stand with Rick popped into her mind, making her second guess her decision.

Lydia
changed into the black tank top and camos that Marlaina had brought her. The pants were a bit loose on her, but the belt help
ed
to hold up the unfamiliar clothes. The tank top was snug and squished her breasts, making them appear bigger than she knew them to be. The top made her uncomfortable, but she’d work through her insecurities, just like she worked through everything else. She was here to train, after all, not to make a fashion statement. She really needed to make a point to get to town for some new clothes of her own, some that fit her.

Lydia
pushed the door open, stepped out into the room, and glanced around looking for Marlaina to thank her again for the clothes, but she was nowhere to be found. Brody stood in the middle of the room. His stare ran down the length of her body and back up. He cleared his throat. “She left
Red
. Are you ready to get started?”

Lydia
swallowed around the lump in her throat and nodded

They spent the early morning well into the afternoon practicing on moving some of the smaller objects in the room. She hadn’t had control of any of the
smaller
objects, what made him think she could control a wooden stool
was beyond her. When the stool hit him in the head it
served him right
. He had it coming. Brody
walked over to the bench and patted the seat next to him. “I think we’re going about this all wrong.”

Lydia
sat down on the bench but not where he’d suggested. She kept plenty of space between them. “I’ve seen the video of you tossing those men around like they were paper. I know what you’re capable of. We just need to figure out how to tap into it. Why don’t you tell me about some of your experiences and maybe we can figure this out.”

Lydia
hadn’t ever opened up to anyone but her family about her gift. She’d learned the hard way that talking about it was never a good option.

“Why don’t you start with those men in the alley? What were you thinking?” 

Lydia
glanced down at the floor and started twisting her fingers together. What had she been thinking when she tossed those men like dolls? “I guess I was angry about what they were doing to that military guy. It was two against one, and they had weapons. So if I had to label it, I guess I was pissed.”

Brody scooted closer and patted her leg. “Tell me more.”

Lydia
scooted farther away, making Brody’s hand drop. The energy in the air picked up, but if Brody noticed, he didn’t say a word. 

“Just like yesterday with the doctor and when you blew the identification module?”

Lydia
clenched her fingers tighter. “I guess you could say that.”

Brody leaned over and patted her leg once more before he stood. “Okay, we just need to figure out how to make you mad and how you can tap into that anger to let it work for you.” Brody walked back into the middle of the room, and
Lydia
followed
behind
. He took a step closer to her and cupped her cheek. “What makes you mad,
Lydia
?”

Lydia
glanced down at the floor. She knew the answer to his question. “When someone hurts the people I care about.”

Brody put his finger below her chin and lifted her gaze to meet his. His aqua blue gaze held hers. “What about this?”

The next few things happened in mere seconds.
Lydia
heard the click on the door at the same moment that Brody pressed his lips to hers and pulled her close. Kissing him was nothing like kissing Rick. No, this man just took what he wanted, and she’d be damned if she was just going to let him. She pushed against his chest, and he loosened his hold. Brody went flying through the air away  and bounced off the padded walls onto his butt.

The jerk laughed.

Lydia
turned to leave and stopped. Her heart fell into her stomach. Rick had not only witnessed her lose control but stood motionless in the doorway with his mouth hanging open. “The general said your time was up.”

Rick spied Brody on the floor, shook his head, and pulled the phone from his clip with a look of disgust on his face. He left without a word. 

Just great.
Lydia
couldn’t believe her luck. Rick had walked in on Brody’s kiss. A kiss that
Lydia
hadn’t instigated or invited. If the man hadn’t been on his ass, she would have put
him
there. Brody jumped to his feet and advanced on her. He took her hand in his and squeezed. “Just what I thought.”

Lydia
ripped her hand out of his clutches. “Don’t touch me.”

Brody put his hands up in the air, palms out. “I’m sorry,
Lydia
. I don’t normally force myself onto anyone. It was a test.”

Lydia
placed her fist on her hips. “A test to see how much of an asshole you could be?”
Lydia
pointed to the door. “What if that had been Marlaina? Would that have wiped that smug smile off your face?”

Brody chuckled and walked across the room toward the bench. He picked up his towel, wiping the sweat from his face. “I did it to make you mad and get you fired up. Now that we verified your gift is tied to your emotions, we can use that to make you stronger.”