Page 98 of Down and Dirty

Zach sat behind the wheel, unmoving, trying to fathom what had just happened. His heart felt funny, sort of achy. There was a buzzing in his head. He wanted desperately to call her back and ask what she’d really meant, because what he was thinking was impossible.

One thing he did know. There was no way that little sexercise in the back parking lot was Britta taking notes to com-pare him with other guys. Nope. Britta had been telling him in her own way that she cared about him.

He had a lightbulb moment then, the kind that makes a guy wonder how he could be so dense.

As he drove home to pick up his gear and make last-minute arrangements, he was alternately smiling and frowning about this particular epiphany. And it wasn’t related to Britta turning the tables on him sex-wise, or not entirely.

I’m falling in love.

No, no, no! I can’t be falling in love. Falling in love is a bad thing. Bad time. Bad in every respect. Bad, bad, bad!

Like love waits for the right time. Like love is bad.

I. Am. Not. In. Love.

But what if… what if, for the first time in my friggin’ — literally friggin’ — life, I’m falling in love?

It’s just lust, and some mind-blowing sex. That’s all.

Ha, ha, ha!

MEMO

From: Captain Lenore Feldman

To: Commander Ian MacLean

Subject: WEALS

Fraternization between Navy SEALs and WEALS is to be discouraged.

Commander Ian MacLean glanced at the memo in his hand and passed it to Floyd, whose face immediately turned red.

“This is just great! Now they expect me to be the sex police.” He glared at Floyd, who didn’t have the sense to keep his skivvies under lock and key. Too bad the Navy didn’t make chastity belts… for its men.

“It’s not really fraternization. It’s just that I’ve known Britta for a while, and I feel responsible for her. Like a brother… or something.”

“That doesn’t even pass the giggle test, boy.”

“Yeah, it was pretty lame.”

“What next?” He threw his arms out in disgust.

He found out the next day, just before the team went boots up, when he got another blasted note from his female ombudsman.

MEMO

From: Captain Lenore Feldman

To: Commander Ian MacLean

Subject: WEALS

Sexual encounters between SEALs and WEALS in the parking lot of the Wet and Wild are expressly forbidden.

“WHAT?” His outraged exclamation could be heard down the corridors of the command center.

Luckily, a certain SEAL was out on assignment and was not expected back for several days. Otherwise, a certain SEAL might be minus a certain body part.