KILTED DESIRE - Sands of Betrayal

by A. B. McKINLEY

  Her time thinking and relaxing was interrupted by the sound of an explosion. She jumped up and ran out of her room to see if Scott had heard it.

  “Scott, did you hear that?” she asked, trying to stay calm as she knocked on the bathroom door.

  “Hang on, I’ll be reet oot.”

  A few seconds later, the door opened and he appeared wearing only a towel wrapped around his midsection. Water was still dripping down his chest, flowing over his stomach, and eventually disappearing beneath the towel.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “An explosion! I think it was close this time,” her voice trembled.

  “I did nae hear anything, but I’ll have a look oot the window. Go tae yer room fer now and get under yer bed just in case.”

  She moved quickly and crawled under the bed. Scott grabbed the binoculars and looked out the window; he did not think it was anything. If it was close enough to cause them any concern, he would have felt and heard it. He saw smoke rising in the distance, on the other side of the river, maybe two or three miles away. There did not seem to be anything happening now or any imminent trouble, so he headed towards her room. He knocked on the door and opened it slightly.

  “There’s nae anything tae worry aboot, looks like it was a minor blast a few miles away and on the other side of the river. Yer can come oot now.”

  She crawled out from underneath the bed, looking a little embarrassed.

  “It’s fine. Yer did the reet thing by telling me and hiding under yer bed. There’s nae need fer us tae take any chances.”

  “Okay, thanks.” She stared at his chest. Wearing only a towel his torso glistened, still moist from the shower. She smiled. He made her feel safe. She knew, about Katie, but seeing him standing here with his upper body exposed made her forget about the explosion and she was having thoughts about him that she shouldn’t be having. For the last few days, she was thinking differently about him. She liked the idea of him protecting her. Truth be told, it turned her on. Now, seeing him without his shirt on made her decide to take it a step further. She decided she would do a little flirting and see how he reacted.

  “I’m going tae get dressed now and try tae get in touch with Katie,” he said, as he turned around and walked toward his room.

  “Okay,” she replied, as she stood up and followed him.

  “Scott,” she called, as he was about to enter his room.

  “Thanks again, and sorry, I will get used to the noises… and I really like your tattoos.” She was genuinely sorry and did think she eventually would not panic every time she heard a bang. But, she also wanted another look at his body.

  “Thanks, I think, and nae problem, that’s what I’m here fer.” He closed the door behind him and got dressed.

  Scott thought the first couple of weeks went quite well. Each trip, they drove a slightly different route to her office and left at different times. There were no real problems, although the remnants of a previous day’s roadside bomb or other visible carnage was becoming more and more common. He would tell Britney to lie down on the back seat when they were driving by, so she did not see anything too graphic or be spotted by anyone who might do them harm. There was quite a bit of gunfire and the occasional explosion like the one she heard, but nothing too close. As far as he was concerned, at no point up till now were they in any immediate danger. They had not seen much evidence of the U.S. military presence in the city. Scott knew they were there, but the troops were still targets, so any patrols they conducted were few and far between. It was going quite well, and Britney was well aware of plans and directions to follow in the event of an emergency. He did regular perimeter checks of the hotel and her office building and everything so far had been fine. In addition, he notified the PCPS office every time they set out on a journey and again when they reached their destination. Everything that could be done to keep them safe, was being done. He lay down, thinking about taking a nap. He wanted to talk to Katie, but she was eight hours behind and would be at work. If he napped for a couple of hours, he could give her a call around midnight when she would be home. He missed her. He missed the times he would lie on his back and she would snuggle up to him and lay her head on his chest. Taking naps just wasn’t the same without her. Instead of going to sleep, he decided to turn on his laptop and check out some pictures she had emailed to him over the last few months. For an hour or so, he scrolled through old emails, reading them repeatedly, looking at her pictures and wishing she were there. He wanted to touch her, feel her soft warm body against his skin. He missed her touch, wanted to hold her, to be deep... He thought he probably should take another shower, and a cold one at that. Maybe it was better to try to sleep for a while, and then he could talk to her later.

  He walked into the main room to get a bottle of water and have another look out the main window. Britney was laying on the couch reading. Having taken a shower, she was wearing a pair of grey shorts and a tight fitting white t-shirt with a pink heart on the front. Her hair was still wet and she was lying with her legs crossed. Her shorts were very short, revealing a great deal of her long legs.

  “I’m going tae take a nap. If anything bothers yer, just wake me, it’s nae a problem.”

  She looked up from her book and smiled at him as she ran her fingers through her damp hair.

  “Okay, I’m not going to stay up long. Just going to read another chapter, then I’m going to bed.”

  Scott checked the window one last time. Everything seemed quiet, so he went to nap.

  “Guid night.”

  “Night Scott,” she replied. She wanted him to look at her in the same way that she looked at him earlier. He did not even seem to notice she changed her clothes or that she was flirting with him. She was disappointed. Either he wasn’t the slightest bit interested or he was a great actor. She wondered if he noticed her looking at him earlier. She really wasn’t sure, but in her mind, it was just harmless flirting. She would find out if he was interested in her. If he was, great. If he wasn’t, and she decided she wanted him to be, then she’d make him. She’d always been able to make men want her and she knew if she really turned on her charm and he was like all the others, he wouldn’t be able to resist her.

  A few thousand miles away Katie was at work. Her week had gone quite well. She heard from Scott almost every day. They were both trying to make the best out of the situation and to be strong for each other. It was just over two weeks, she thought, as she taught her class. He usually called her in the afternoon when she finished school and later on at night just before she went to bed. She knew the cell service in Baghdad was not always reliable so if she didn’t hear from him, she was not to worry. He told her that he always checked in with his office before and after any journey. If they did not hear from him when he was expected to check-in, she was his emergency contact and they would let her know if there was a problem. So she knew that no news or not hearing from him meant nothing was wrong. It was difficult, but she was beginning to come to terms with it.

  Just as Katie was getting in her car to drive home her cell phone rang. The unavailable number usually meant it was Scott. She answered, excited to hear his voice.

  “Hey baby, how are yer?”

  “I’m good, how are you doing?” she asked, as she began to leave the school parking lot.

  “I’m okay. It seems tae be going pretty well reet now, I miss yer, I want a hug.”

  “Awww, I want a hug too. How were your journeys today?”

  “Nae too bad, we got a wee bit held up at a check point coming back into the Green Zone, but other than that…”

  Katie heard what sounded like an explosion in the background as Scott was talking, and then silence. The phone was dead. She was frantic as she continued driving home, hoping her phone would ring again. Scott moved quickly to the window to see what was happening. The explosion was loud and so close, the hotel shook. He lost cell service and hoped Katie had not heard the explosion. Britney woke up and wasn’t sure if she was dreaming, a
s she stumbled out of her bedroom.

  “Get back in yer room and under the bed,” Scott quickly instructed her.

  As he looked out the window, he saw where the blast had occurred, and for the first time it was on their side of the river. He thought it was most likely a misplaced mortar shell and it landed on the riverbank just a few hundred yards from the hotel’s parking lot. He grabbed the binoculars. It was dark outside, but they were equipped with a night vision setting. He scanned the riverbanks and buildings on the other side of the river to see if he could see any activity or sign of anyone firing mortar rounds, but there was nothing. This blast was the closest so far, but it appeared to be just a one off wayward round that probably was not even meant to land anywhere near them. Scott waited patiently by the window for a few minutes, scanning for anything at all that would suggest there would be further trouble, but there was nothing. After a while, he went to Britney’s room.

  “It’s okay, yer can come oot now.”

  “What happened?” she said, rubbing her eyes.

  “Just a stray shell landed on the riverbank. Nae need tae worry. I doot if it was meant fer us. Just try and go back tae sleep.”

  “I’m not sure if I’ll be able to right away,” she replied. She was awake enough now to try to take advantage of the situation.

  “Will you come and sit with me for a while?” she continued.

  Scott had no idea of her newly found feelings for him. He was completely oblivious.

  “Aye, but only fer a few minutes, I was on the phone with Katie when the shell landed and we lost the connection, so I have tae call her back or she’ll be worrying.”

  “Do you have service now?” she asked, trying to appear concerned about Katie.

  “Nae, nae anything at all, but as soon as I get a signal, I’ll call her.”

  “Okay, please come sit on the bed. I know I’ll feel better about going to sleep if I know you’re here.”

  Scott sat down at the foot of the bed. The light in her bedroom was off, but the door was ajar so light from the main room was coming in.

  “Thank you,” she said, wanting him to look at her, knowing there was enough light for him to see her, but he continued to look at his phone. She had undone the top two buttons of her black-silk pajama top and moved the sheets downward to intentionally expose her cleavage.

  “Thank you, I really appreciate this,” she said, again wanting him to turn his head.

  “Nae problem, just try and sleep,” he replied, momentarily glancing towards her, but not taking notice of what she wanted him to see. She rolled her eyes and turned over, pulling the sheet back over her. It was unlike her to give up so easily, but she was tired and he was preoccupied. She thought there was plenty of time to make him notice her.

  “I’ve got a signal back, so I’m going tae call Katie. Yer should be fine now, but I’ll just be next door if anything happens,” he said, as he left the room, still looking at his phone.

  Katie arrived home and was sitting on her couch waiting to hear what was happening. The girls got home and she sent them to tidy their bedrooms. She was trying hard not to worry, but her heart was racing and she was finding it difficult to concentrate on anything else. When her phone rang, she answered in an instant.

  “Hello,” she said frantically.

  “That was quick, baby.”

  “What happened? I heard a bang and then you were gone. I’ve been so worried. I didn’t know what happened.”

  “I’m sorry, there was a minor blast. It was just a wee shell that landed by the river, but it did seem tae knock oot the cell fer a while.”

  “So you’re okay?” she asked, feeling relieved, but still sounding scared.

  “I’m fine, it was nae big deal, nae anything tae worry aboot at all.”

  “How close was it?”

  Scott wondered if he should tell her the truth or tell her it was further away than it actually was. He wasn’t sure, but he promised to tell her the truth about everything that happened there, and he always kept his word.

  “It was a few hundred yards from the hotel parking lot, but it was just a single stray shell, more than likely a mortar. Nae shells like that are going tae cause us any problems. We’re way up on the top floor of the hotel. Dinnae worry, baby.”

  “Okay, I will try not to. It was just hard hearing the bang and then losing you, I didn’t know what to think.”

  “I’m sorry. There was nae signal fer a while, I called yer back as soon as I could.”

  “I know you did.” Her voice was beginning to sound calmer.

  “So what are yer and the girls doing this weekend?” he asked, trying to get her to think about something else.

  “We’re going camping with my parents. I’ll have my phone, so you can call whenever you like.”

  “Sounds like fun! Hope yer have a guid time. Are yer leaving tonight or in the morning?”

  “In the morning.”

  “Reet, well, I should try tae sleep, I’ll call yer in a few hoors before yer go tae bed.”

  “Okay babe, I have to go and make the girls dinner anyway. Talk to you later.”

  “Night baby, love yer”.

  “I love you too. Sleep well.”

  Katie placed her cell on the coffee table and went to the kitchen, trying to decide what to make for dinner. She was very relieved, but the noise she heard on the phone freaked her out a little. She’d never been around any type of explosion or heard gunfire, apart from on TV, so this made her nervous. It did not seem to bother Scott. He talked to her as if nothing happened. He was used to things like this, from his prior military days. It was going to be difficult, but for him, she would to do her best to be strong.

  Chapter 7

  A month had passed since Scott and Britney arrived in Iraq. Her work was going very well and everything was progressing nicely. Her plan to seduce Scott was not going as well. No matter what she did, he showed no interest in her. The more he failed to notice her, the more she wanted him. She would need to try harder and find another way.

  There were many more violent incidents in the city, including numerous roadside bombs and insurgent attacks. They had still managed to avoid any real trouble. Within the last week, they drove by a couple of car bomb incidents, and one evening there was a large gunfight just across the river from the hotel. Aside from that, things were still relatively calm.

  Back in Ohio, Katie and the girls were enjoying their summer vacation. They had no big plans to go away anywhere, but were going to get away for a few day trips. Katie and Scott kept in touch almost every day. Aside from missing each other terribly, both were coping quite well with the situation.

  It was Wednesday, and another scorching, hot day in Baghdad. It was a little after 5:00 p.m., the temperature finally started to drop, and it was down to about 120 degrees now. Scott made his call to the PCPS office to inform them they were about to leave. Britney was finishing her last few projects for the day and preparing to leave for the hotel. There was a couch and television in a small rec room where Scott would spend most of his day, while she was working (although he hardly even watched TV because he didn’t understand the local channels). He spent most of his day on his laptop or talking with other PCPS security guards around the city, gathering information on potential trouble spots and the buzz around the city, always working out the best way to and from the hotel.

  As he walked down the hallway towards her office, a huge explosion rocked the building. Scott was knocked off balance, but managed to stay on his feet. The sound of shattering glass accompanied the sound of the blast. Scott raced to Britney’s office. She was under her desk, unhurt, but was visibly shaken. The windows in her office were not broken, although, elsewhere in the building, windows were blown out. He reached out and took her hand, helped her get her bullet-proof vest on and quickly led her out of the office and towards the exit. Scott stopped at the main door and assessed the situation. He knew this was not a small shell. It was more than likely a rocket, but it d
id not hit the building. Instead, it landed in the road nearby and the force of the blast had damaged numerous buildings all around. There didn’t seem to be any more rockets at the time and from where he was, the car appeared untouched by the blast.

  “We need tae get oot of here quickly. When we get tae the car, lay doon in the back and stay doon, until I tell yer.”

  She nodded, Scott gripped her hand tightly and led her across the parking lot towards the car. With several fires burning, the thick, black smoke was starting to spread everywhere. There were many screams heard and a lot of people were shouting things in Arabic. Many people were badly hurt. It bothered him to leave those desperately in need of help, but as much as Scott wanted to help, it was Britney who was his responsibility. He must get her out of the area and out of imminent danger. That was his job. It really bothered Scott to leave all those people in desperate need of help.