FALLON
My legs are shaky as I climb into my bunk that night. After Gray’s punishment run, Theo put us through circuit training and Brock had us alternating planks and squats until some of the trainees actually collapsed. I’ve been training for years, but I now realize that nothing could have adequately prepared me for the squad’s summer training camp. And this was only day one.
When they finally released us for the day, I caught a quick shower and went to the dining hall to grab a bite. Thank God for Davis and Boyd, because I guess none of the other recruits are speaking to me. The 20-lap punishment has made me enemy number one.
I spotted Brooke across the dining hall, sitting with a group of people who I can only assume are the IT team. She looked like she was settling in comfortably, so I just tossed her a wave and didn’t interrupt. I’m still kicking myself over the ruckus I caused earlier, and she’s the only one I want to talk to right now. Being across the room from her felt like I was miles away.
The dorms are set up like an orphanage; just a huge room with rows of bunk beds. I took a top bunk, above Davis. Boyd’s on the top bunk across from me, and it’s a comfort to be flanked by my two friends. They’re like a protective shield; even though everybody here seems to hate me, they’ll have to get through them to mess with me.
I pull the sheets and scratchy blanket up to my chest, sighing as I stare at the ceiling. It’s dark, but as a shifter, I’ve got great night vision. My muscles are screaming and I’m completely exhausted, but I can’t stop my mind from racing.
Beside me, I hear Boyd climb into his bunk. “You just had to pull a Fallon today, huh?” he whispers.
Though I know he’s teasing, his words sting a little bit. I’ve already beat myself up enough over this. I don’t want to cry, so I work up a snarky response instead.
“I just couldn’t help myself,” I breathe, snickering a little. “I’ve always hated rules.”
I roll my body in Boyd’s direction, blinking to see his face in the dark. He’s already turned toward me, propped up on an elbow with his head resting on his hand.
“I hate to break it to you, but I’m pretty sure that’s what this summer’s all about,” he smirks.
I breathe out a sigh. “Let’s just hope me and my bad attitude can survive.”
Boyd chuckles, and I prop myself up on an elbow to mirror his position.
“Seriously, Boyd, what am I gonna do?” I whisper. “That guy hates me.”
He shakes his head. “Ah, don’t worry about it. It was only the first day. He’ll forget. Besides, nobody could hate you, Fallon.” Boyd stares at me, a little too longingly.
Is he flirting? My ‘yuck’ meter starts going off.
“Maybe.” I roll back over, staring at the ceiling again. “Thanks for being such a good friend.”
Boyd doesn’t respond, and I know he’s probably a little sore from being knocked back into the friend zone.
I stare at the ceiling for a long time, replaying the day’s events in my head over and over again. I go from being regretful, to sad, to mad.
Gray’s an asshole. How can someone so hot be such a dick? It’s probably because he knows he’s hot. I know I should just swallow my pride and fall in line, but something inside of me wants to fight his authority. Maybe it’s because we’re from different packs. He may be an alpha, but he’s not my alpha.
GRAY“Pair off!” I call out, and the trainees on the field start scrambling. It’s another early morning of training, and I’m eager to see what these recruits can do. “Spread out. We’re going to do a little bit of sparring today.”The trainees follow my command, breaking off into groups of two and distancing themselves from one another. Theo steps up on my right side.“Let’s see what you’ve got!” he says, clapping his hands together. The recruits just stand there for a minute, looking around at one another. Theo claps his hands again. “One of you attack while the other defends. Hand to hand combat, let’s go!”Without wasting another moment, the pairs begin to circle one another. I start walking through to observe, careful to avoid any stray kicks or flailing limbs as the trainees spar. Some of them are better than expected- they take down their opponent quickly. Others look like they barely have a clue how to fight.&n
FALLONGray’s a prick. I knew this summer was going to be tough, but I thought that the training would be the grueling part, not dealing with the asshole alpha running the place. He proved today that he definitely has it out for me. If I was smart, I would try to behave, get in his good graces. But I’ve never claimed that I’m smart.At the end of our training today, we were directed to a posting of a schedule for patrols. They’re throwing us right in; we’ve been assigned to rotations for night patrols of the six-pack’s borders. Patrols are run in pairs, so they’ve assigned pairs of recruits to each pair of squad members running the patrols each night. I’ve been paired up with a trainee named Vienna, and we get to shadow Brock and Casey. Our first patrol is tonight.After I rush through dinner, I grab a quick shower, change, and head down to the field to meet my group for patrol. It’s dusk, and the training arena has taken on an eerie glow in the fading
GRAYBrock’s walking into the barracks as I’m walking out, and I almost run right into him.“How was patrol?” I ask as I dodge out of his way.Brock runs a hand through his long wavy hair, leaning against the doorframe. “Quiet. Nothing out of the ordinary.”I nod. He looks whooped- and I’m reminded how glad I am that I don’t have to run night patrols often. I only jump in when the threat levels are high, because my wolf gets all worked up in response and won’t let me sleep anyways.“How’d the recruits do?”Brock smirks, like he knows why I asked the question. Sure, I knew Fallon was assigned to patrol with him, but that’s not why I’m asking. I mean, not the only reason. I have to keep tabs on all of the trainees.“They were fine.” Brock’s always short and to the point.I nod again, then clap him on the shoulder and head out through the doors to the arena. I don’t want t
FALLONI waited until everyone else went to lunch before I snuck away to take a shower. I just wanted a little bit of alone time.No dice. As soon as I open the door to the locker room, I see him. That fucking prick, Gray, standing beside the bench in a towel and looking like a sex god. Seeing him shirtless for the first time, he doesn’t look how I expected. He looks better.Small beads of water still cling to the broad muscles of his chest and his six-pack abs. The towel hanging from his waist dips down below his Adonis belt, the v-shape beckoning. Shit, is my mouth hanging open? I snap it closed, then take a step into the locker room, the door swinging closed behind me.I’m hoping that Gray didn’t catch my appreciative reaction to seeing his body, but a little smirk crosses his lips that tells me otherwise. I’m immediately irritated that I’ve just unintentionally inflated his ego further.“Well, well,”
GRAYI have to stay away from her. Fallon is a distraction, and I can’t afford any distractions right now. Not when we know the shadow pack is on the move. The next day, Brock and Jax are back in the mix so I decide to sit out one-on-ones and observe. It sucks. I’ve got a lot of pent-up frustration that I need to get out, but I don’t want to wind up in a one-on-one with Fallon. I’ve got to actively avoid her. I somehow manage to do it for the next few days, working off my energy by shifting and running in the evenings after I take care of my pack business.Theo has picked up on the fact that I’m acting a little strange lately. I tell him it’s nothing, but he knows I’m lying.“At least come have a beer with us,” Theo urges. He’s standing in the doorway of my room in the squad barracks, leaning against the doorframe.It’s the end of the week, and both the squad and the recruits have Sunday’s off from training. A lot of
FALLON“I can’t believe they’re actually giving us a day off!” Vienna squeals, rifling through the little closet at the end of her bunk. “How about this one?” she asks, pulling out a skimpy red dress on a hanger and holding it up in front of her.I nod my head in approval. “Definitely that one.”Vienna grins from ear to ear, trotting by me to head into the locker room to change.When we heard that we’d have the day off tomorrow, all of the recruits were ecstatic. We’ve been training hard all week, so we’ve definitely earned a reprieve. Vienna invited Boyd, Davis, and I to come out with her and her friend Hannah. Apparently Hannah is from Goldenleaf, the town near the squad complex, and said that the squad usually goes out to a bar there on Saturday nights to let loose.I guess good news travels fast, because Brooke showed up in the recruit’s barracks soon after, asking if I was going out. I’m so excited t
GRAYI agreed to come for one beer, and somehow that turned into five. Or was it six? I’ve got a nice little buzz, so I’m not sure on the count. I don’t know why I ever agree to coming out for one when I know it’ll lead to staying out all night, but I’m relaxed for the first time all week. I guess Theo knew I needed this.I’m heading out of the bathroom when I see her walking toward me, looking like a goddamn smokeshow. Fallon. She’s all dressed up in a little skin-tight skirt and tank top, and seeing her like this makes my blood rush right to my dick.She’s looking down, so she doesn’t even see me stop and stick my arm out, pressing my palm to the wall to block her path. I know I said I’d avoid her, but I’m a little buzzed and she looks so damn good, I can’t help myself. She looks up at the last minute, surprise playing on her face as she skids to a stop right before clotheslining herself on my outstretched arm.I l
FALLONHe’s here. I swear I could feel it before I even saw him- the little hairs on the back of my neck stood up and my wolf started pacing. But right after we locked eyes, he turned his back to me. Avoiding me again. Maybe my initial assessment was spot-on, he’s just a jerk with a big ego. Maybe his little display of dominance in the shower was just his way of showing me that he could have me if he wanted me. Maybe this is just his newest form of torture, and he’s getting some sort of sick pleasure from driving me crazy.I down the rest of my drink.Brooke appears, back from the bathroom, and she grabs my arm, tugging me away from our friends. She’s digging her fingers into my arm as she pulls me, and I jerk my arm back.“What the hell?” I demand, scowling and rubbing the offended skin with my other hand.Brooke leans in close to whisper. “What’s going on with you and the alpha?” she hisses.