Alpha Gray by C.J. Primer

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Gray

On Monday morning, the recruits are bright eyed and bushy tailed, eager to resume their training. I cast my gaze downwards as they file onto the arena where Theo, Brock, Jax, and I are waiting. Reid had some pack business come up, so he’s back in Stillwater- his pack’s town- for the day.

I spent all day yesterday kicking myself for what I did at the bar on Saturday night. I should’ve just continued to steer clear of Fallon rather than allowing my beer buzz cloud to my judgment. But now that I’ve had a taste of what it’s like to touch her, I want more. I can’t get her out of my head. Those big blue eyes, those breathy little moans… it’s enough to drive any man crazy.

I swear my heart stops when I catch sight of her walking onto the field this morning, wearing my favorite pair of little workout shorts with her long tan legs on full display. Even in shorts and a t-shirt, she’s a fucking goddess. She catches me staring, though this time, she’s the first to look away.

It’s probably for the best.

The trainees circle around, and once they’re all gathered, I clear my throat to speak. “Good morning, recruits!” I begin.

They’re all looking past me curiously at the giant whiteboard on wheels that we’ve rolled out onto the field- but Theo, Jax, and Brock have positioned themselves in front of it so the recruits can’t yet read what we’ve written.

“Welcome to your second week of training,” I continue. “Last week was a chance to get your feet wet, but now, the real training starts.”

There are a few murmurs from the crowd, but everyone stands at attention. I turn back to the guys and they move away from the whiteboard. Theo steps forward and rubs his palms together eagerly.

“So as you can see, we’ve paired you up for training going forward,” Theo announces. “We’ve been watching you, assessing where you’re at and what you can improve on.”

I chuckle to myself as I watch the recruits craning their necks to see what’s written on the whiteboard behind Theo, eager to see who they’re matched up with.

“Get a good look, because these will be your partners for the week,” I add. I step forward beside Theo, folding my arms across my chest. “You need to impress us this week, because when it’s over, we’ll make our first round of cuts.”

I read the panic on most of the recruit’s faces, but don’t react. This part is always tough- sending home hopefuls that just aren’t cut out to run with the squad full time. They could always be called in as backup in the future if needed, but so far, we haven’t had to cross that bridge.

Jax moves beside the whiteboard, flipping it over. It turns on its hinges, revealing a numbered list on the other side.

“These are your current rankings,” Jax calls out, tossing his wavy blonde surfer hair as he gestures to the list. “If you’re near the top, you need to fight to stay there. If you’re at the bottom, you’d better work your ass off this week so you don’t get cut.”

I survey the crowd of recruits again. Some of them look pleased with themselves, others look disappointed. It sucks that we have to rank them like this, but it fosters competition. For some of them, this is the push they need to step it up.

“Alright,” I shout, clapping my hands together to get their attention again. “Let’s start with a few warm-up laps around the track, then pair off with your assigned partner and we’ll do some defensive exercises.”

The trainees start to disperse, jogging toward the track. As the crowd clears, I look up to see Fallon stomping across the field in my direction like a woman on a mission.

The other guys see her making a beeline toward me and casually group up and walk away, tossing me glances over their shoulders.

Fallon skids to a stop in front of me and she’s positively fuming, like she’s ready to take my head off. She throws her hands on her hips indignantly, staring at me through narrowed eyes.

“Olly? You paired me up with Olly?” There’s venom in her tone and I can see her wolf behind her eyes in swirls of silver.

I straighten, bristling as I stare back at her. “Yes. Is that a problem, recruit?”

“Yeah, it’s a fucking problem,” Fallon scoffs, stomping her foot. “Olly sucks, he’s ranked almost dead last! And I’m ranked thirty-six?!”

Her anger rolls off of her in waves as she speaks and I fight the urge to smile. It catches me a little off guard, because I typically wouldn’t tolerate this kind of disrespect, but… she’s cute when she’s all fired up.

I stiffen my jaw, showing no emotion in response to her outburst. “Guess you’ll have to work harder this week,” I reply simply.

Fallon grits her teeth and balls her fists, taking another step toward me. “Is this personal?” she demands. “Is this because you and I…”

“No!” I interject, cutting her off. I take a quick look around, but thankfully nobody’s close enough to overhear. I return my attention to Fallon, quieting my voice. “Listen, I’m not the only one in charge of rankings and match-ups. We all come together to decide.” I lift a hand to rub the back of my neck, then scrub it over my face.

“Look, we both know you’re good,” I grumble, leaning in. “But your attitude sucks. You have to show you can follow orders, work as part of a team.”

Fallon crosses her arms, cocking her hip and relaxing a little, though she’s still clearly pissed. She glances down at the ground, kicking the dirt. Again, it strikes me how fucking adorable she looks when she’s worked up, with her nose scrunched and her brow furrowed.

“What do you want, Fallon?” I ask, my voice a low rumble.

Fallon’s eyes shoot up to mine, wide and considering. It’s the same question I asked her the other night, and there’s this unspoken sense of connection that stretches between us.

“Do you want to make the squad?”

She frowns. “Yes, sir,” Fallon mumbles, looking down and kicking at the ground again.

“Good,” I say. I force back a smile at her use of the word ‘sir’. She’s stubborn as hell, but she’s coming around. “Then you’ve gotta earn it,” I add.

She looks back up at me, narrowing her eyes as if she’s trying to decipher some other meaning from my words.  I tick my head in the direction of the track where the other recruits are running by.

Fallon heaves a sigh, but she doesn’t respond with her typical sarcastic comment. Instead, she simply turns on a heel, jogging away towards the track.

Good girl.