It was dawn on the morning of the 23^rd annual rifle and pistol tournament and Kate was beyond nervous. In fact she was so terrified that her stomach had clawed its way up her throat and threatened to expel itself all over her companions. As a Staff Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps that would be a singularly disgraceful occurrence and might ruin her reputation as a hard-charging, A.J. squared-away, jarhead.

Kate was deceptively small and fragile in appearance with auburn hair, a light dusting of freckles and pixyish features. Because of her size most of the other Marines in her unit had immediately discounted her as serious competition in the shooting trials. That had been their mistake and she had happily taken advantage of their overconfidence. She’d beaten out everyone else in her company to take the top spot. That left her in the position of facing the top shooter from the other twenty companies battalion wide. The fact that this was the second year in a row that she had won her company’s competition was no consolation.

Kate was a little older than her compatriots because she had joined the Corps later than most other Marine recruits. Her plans to attend college had been shattered when her father had suffered a severe heart attack mere weeks before she was to leave for the Ivy League college that had accepted her. His medical bills had devoured the money earmarked for her education and she’d stayed to work the farm in order to hang onto the land that had been in her family for generations. Her father had died after a four-year battle and three more coronaries. The life insurance money had insured her mother was taken care of for the rest of her life and a tenant farmer was working their land. But Kate still dreamed of college and the Marines Corps promised to help with the financial costs.

She had managed to get promoted meritoriously through the lower ranks rather than having to wait to be selected due to time in grade and that helped her catch up pretty quickly. Still, she thought her more varied life experiences prior to joining the service gave her more patience and led directly to her being the top shooter in her company.

"I hope you’re planning on winning this year, Staff Sergeant Evans," her commanding officer teased, jolting her out of her private thoughts. Even though distracted she still caught the sting of a thinly veiled jibe. Kate ignored him since her personal opinion was that he couldn’t hit a bull in the butt with a base fiddle.

"Yeah," Lance Corporal Thomas added, clearly missing the seriousness in the comment. "I hear Captain Pierce is competing. You can’t let her beat you again. The company’s honor is at stake."

"Hey, she only won by a single shot last time," Kate pointed out.

She would never admit to the others why the lovely captain in question had beaten her. Secretly she thought the attractive young officer had deliberately distracted her when she brushed her full breasts against Kate’s back; purportedly an accidental occurrence as she passed behind her. How honorable was that?

"Well, the competition starts in twenty minutes so we’ll leave you to get ready." Major Daniels didn’t even look back to see if the rest of the company was following him. He knew they would and Kate was happy to see them leave.

Twenty minutes, she thought as she listened to the din of voices coming from the stands outside the women’s locker room.

Kate shook her head and walked around a corner of the locker room for relative privacy to remove her civilian attire. Since this was a military sporting event she would be expected to compete in uniform. Because of the positions they were expected to get into most Marines fired weapons in dirty, grubby camouflage utilities with scuffed boots that they didn’t care about damaging. But Kate wasn’t ‘most Marines’, and she took a great deal of pride in her appearance. She carried a neatly starched cami uniform and brightly spit-shined boots into the locker room. As she walked around the corner she came to a dead stop and forgot to breathe for a few seconds. There at the end of the bench, among rows of lockers, was the woman she’d been dreaming about for a year.

Captain Pierce, first name currently unknown, was a tall, gorgeous woman. Kate could have stood there for an eternity just looking up the length of her. At roughly 5’11 with brilliant blue eyes, long, golden-colored hair and a command aura that was just so much of her personality; Pierce would have caught anyone’s attention. As she stood now, Kate couldn’t force herself to look away.

My God, who would have imagined she was built like that? BDUs were a sexless uniform and until that instant Kate hadn’t realized just how much.

The young captain had apparently entertained the same idea to change in the locker room before the match. Kate found her clad only in a white lace bra, brown shorts and bare feet. The muscles in her abdomen and legs seemed to be carved from granite and Kate could almost imagine the sensation of the hard muscles on the tips of her fingers.

Captain Pierce suddenly seemed to realize that she had an audience and turned her head to see Kate standing quietly. As she noticed the intense appraisal one eyebrow climbed toward her forehead and a grin curled her full lips.

"Staff Sergeant…Evans isn’t it? Nice to see you again."

"Uh…yes ma’am."

Oh, very smooth. That was certainly like none of the fantasies Kate had enjoyed over the last year where she had swept the gorgeous captain off her feet. Embarrassed, she considered heading to another obscure corner of the locker room to change and immediately changed her mind. If she did that the captain might think she was being a bad sport about being beaten the previous year. Better to be embarrassed and suffer in silence than be seen as a bad loser.

Kate swallowed and headed for the end of the same bench where the captain had her uniform laid out and began to change without looking at the other woman. She changed quickly and was just about to lace up her boots when the captain spoke again.

"You did really well last year. You almost beat me."

Kate thought there was something odd in the other woman’s voice and turned to look at her. The captain was looking directly at her with a soft expression in her eyes that was unlike anything she had ever expected from an officer and a stranger at that. She felt her blood begin to heat up and realized just looking at the Nordic beauty was turning her on.

"I don’t even know your name," she mumbled.

"Excuse me?" Captain Pierce asked in confusion.

"Uh, sorry. Of course I know your name, what am I thinking? You’re Captain Pierce." After last year’s competition Kate had asked as many questions about the winner as she could without creating suspicion about her sexual orientation. That was hard to do in the military and she worded her questions to sound like she was measuring up the competition for the next year. That was as much as she was willing to do and had drawn the line at actually seeking the woman out. It was too big a risk and Kate had worked too hard to throw it away over a woman who might not return her interest.

Kate knew she sounded like a lunatic but the captain had pity on her and bailed her out.

"If you mean we haven’t been formally introduced your right. My name is Anne Pierce, Charlie Company, and it’s nice to meet you."

Anne held out her hand and Kate took it dazedly. The contact was almost electric and she felt the touch all the way up into her skull. For a moment everything else was forgotten, the tournament, other female Marines as they wandered around the locker room and most certainly the Marine Corps. For that second Kate was just a woman that desperately wanted physical contact with someone that had haunted her for three hundred and sixty five days. From the way the captain held onto her hand she wondered if the feeling was mutual. Blue eyes dilated, their hands held more tightly and then a discreet cough interrupted the moment.

Both women turned to find a buck private standing nervously at the end of the aisle. "The competition starts in five minutes. They’re waiting for you to start."

Captain Pierce let go of Kate’s hand and said, "I guess we’re holding up the show."

Kate regretted the loss of contact but quickly strapped on her holster and loaded her .45. Her M-16 rifle had already been placed in her locker along with spare magazines and she quickly retrieved them while the captain did the same. When they were both ready they started to walk out into the arena together but Kate was reluctant to let things go as they were.

"Don’t think you’re going to beat me the same way you did last year," she said. With all the brass hanging around and still not quite sure how the other woman would react that was all Kate could manage. At least the comment sounded like a friendly challenge and if the captain proved to be oblivious then Kate would have her answer.

Captain Pierce grinned while looking straight ahead and said, "I have no idea what you mean."

The competition began with the rifle portion. Each contestant was expected to fire ten rounds from the standing, kneeling and prone positions toward a target two hundred yards away. Kate knew she was in the zone and let everything else drop away as she concentrated on the target far down range. Each time she fired the target dropped down in the butts and when it re-emerged one white disc had been placed dead center of the bulls-eye.

At the end of that segment of the rifle portion she was unsurprised to find that Captain Pierce, Anne, was still in the running along with several other Marines. Anne finished a moment later and glanced over toward her. Kate started to smile at her when Anne suddenly winked. She was so surprised that her eyebrows did their best to climb off her forehead. That only made the captain chuckle and walk away.

While Kate waited for the others to finish she considered her position. She was an enlisted person in the Marine Corps and an officer was flirting with her. Oh, this could be big trouble. On the other hand, this could be great fun.

Kate grinned as visions swirled in her mind. She was new at this and had only been involved with one other woman in her life, but she was pretty sure she knew a come-on when she saw one. Tonight a battalion party would be held for the end of the shooting tournament and no doubt a certain captain would be present. Lots of drinking would ensue and the compound was full of secluded places that offered…possibilities.

She mentally rubbed her hands together as the rapid-fire portion of the competition began. The competition progressed through the rest of the rifle segment as the champions moved through the two hundred, one-hundred and fifty yard-line courses. Then they changed over to hand weapons and began the pistol portion of the competition. Everyone had been eliminated except Captain Pierce, Kate and a male Lieutenant from motor transport. For a time it was close, but when they finally got down to moving targets things got interesting.

Anne fired past a swinging pendulum toward her target that was fifty yards down range. The pendulum swung at just the right moment to graze the round as it went by. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to move the bullet from the center of the bulls-eye to the right edge of the black. Instead of five points she received four.

The lieutenant passed the pendulum course cleanly, as did Kate. Kate couldn’t believe it. She was a point ahead!

Next was the rapid-fire course at fifty yards. Shooters were expected to fire ten rounds, reload magazines and fire another ten rounds in the space of one minute. This was the part where the captain had rubbed against her back the year before and distracted her.

Kate took her place behind the table and laid her weapon down on the green felt to reload her magazines. Anne came around the corner from the pendulum course and went to walk behind Kate toward her designated place. One of Kate’s magazines clattered to the concrete floor and without thinking she stepped back to see where it had landed. Although unintentional, the move brought her straight into the captain’s full breasts. Kate froze and looked around at the other woman; horrified that Anne would think her actions deliberate. The captain only looked at her curiously and Kate desperately searched for something to say to ease an awkward moment.

"What do I get if I beat you this year?" Oh shit! That was smooth! But she couldn’t help it. For some reason just this sight of this woman made Kate act like a teenager. In that instant she was thrilled that they were in a lull during the competition and standing alone to one side.

A long slow smile crossed the captain’s smooth features. "Reckless little thing, aren’t you?"

That wasn’t a refusal and Kate took her first easy breath while speaking with this woman. She knew Anne had just taken a massive chance by making such a remark, ambiguous though it was. As an officer the captain would have so much more to lose than an enlisted person and Kate couldn’t ask more from her than she had already given.

She knew she wasn’t wrong about their mutual attraction and felt brave enough to say, "When I win and collect my reward I’ll show you how reckless I can be."

Both women had deliberately kept their voices low. This was still the military even if it was the ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ era. The fact that Captain Pierce had also kept her voice low made Kate feel a lot better, but she knew she had just taken a major chance. Either Anne would play along and let her know she was interested or Staff Sergeant Evans was about to become Private Evans.

"Well since I don’t intend to let you win we’ll have to decide what my reward will be later."

The captain didn’t wait for a response and squeezed past Kate to take her place at the table. Her breasts rubbed across the top of Kate’s chest and she could have sworn Anne inhaled as she did it to increase the pressure. Kate decided she needed to get herself together before someone noticed that she was being less than professional. She absolutely refused to do anything else in public that might cause the Marines around them to question their behavior. Anne deserved better than that and Kate wouldn’t throw away everything she had fought for because of a hormonal response.

Concentrate…concentrate…she chanted silently as she tried to force the sensation of Anne’s breasts from her mind. Concentrate on the procedure: breathe, aim, slow steady squeeze to the rear.

Kate turned resolutely back toward the table and slammed a magazine into the .45 before she chambered a round and holstered the weapon. The line coach instructed shooters to take their stance and Kate crammed a pair of foam earplugs back into her ears before she hastily took her place.

The whistle went off and she reached for her weapon. Bang, bang…After the tenth round Kate pressed the button to drop the empty magazine and reached for her reload.

When the round was over she realized it had happened again. She had missed the bulls-eye twice. Fortunately the lieutenant’s fire had been all over the target and he was out. Unfortunately, Anne hadn’t missed a single shot. She turned her head and saw the knowledge of what had happened in the other woman’s eyes.

"It’s not over yet," Kate said. "There’s still one more course."

Anne dipped her head and said, "Good luck."

At this point Kate didn’t care who won. Her reward or Anne’s reward, what was the difference? She scared, nervous and excited all at the same time. A lot of that was generated by a lack of experience, one girlfriend in her past was hardly an enclave, but the danger of getting caught also added to her fear. Then there was the very real possibility that Anne actually meant what she had only implied.

The next course was a move and shoot. Contestants exited a jeep and fired two rounds down range over the door. From there they moved through a series of fixed and unfixed obstacles and progressively closer to the targets. A total of twelve targets were utilized until the shooter was standing in front of dual targets from a distance of ten feet.

When it was over Kate was stunned at the outcome. She hadn’t missed a single shot. Anne had dropped one point. The competition was a tie!

"Looks like we’ll be sharing that reward," the captain murmured just before the crowd overwhelmed them.

Kate lost sight of her rival as her company surrounded her with many congratulations and slaps on the back. Even Major Daniels had a kind word to say for once that wasn’t laced with ire. "Good job, Evans. Even if it was a tie, it still counts as first place!"

"Now that that’s over," someone else piped in, "we can have some real fun. The party starts at what time, Major?"

"Nineteen hundred, and I expect everyone to be there."

Slowly the crowd broke up and Kate headed back to the locker room with a huge grin on her face. With any luck the captain would be there and they might be able to enjoy a little more of that flirting. She knew that the attraction might turn out to be one-sided, but even if that was so she had enjoyed it while it lasted.

When she got to the locker room, however, Captain Pierce was nowhere in sight. Even her bag was gone and Kate could only determine that the other woman had decided to remain in uniform and simply retrieved her gear. Well, she was an officer Kate reasoned. No doubt she still had a lot of work to do before the party. But a nagging doubt at the back of her mind made her wonder.

What if the captain hadn’t meant anything by what had transpired between them? What if it had all been a little bit of harmless fun to her? It wasn’t like either of them had really come out and said anything to cross the line.

Totally unsure and starting to feel a little uncomfortable she decided she would follow the captain’s example and remain in uniform. She didn’t feel like changing in the public facility now and would simply retrieve her civilian attire and return to her barracks room. At least as a Staff Non-commissioned Officer she had a room to herself where she could brood in private until the party.

**************

The party started promptly at nineteen hundred. Kate could hear the music someone had started on a hi-fi and set of huge speakers, but she wasn’t really in a hurry to get there. At seven p.m. the sun was just beginning its downward track and she wasn’t quite through feeling sorry for herself. A knock at the door sounded and she scowled in frustration.

Couldn’t they just leave her alone? She knew they were just enthusiastic because she had tied for first place, but she would get there when she felt like it! A second knock sounded and she strode purposefully for the door, but whatever she was going to say died instantly on her lips.

"Captain Pierce! What are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you too, Evans," the other woman grinned. Then she looked around to make sure they were alone before she asked, "Mind if I come in?"

Kate stepped back to allow the captain entrance and quickly closed the door. It would be hard to explain an officer’s presence in her room if another enlisted person happened to pass by.

"You clean up pretty good," the other woman complimented her.

Kate felt her cheeks heat up and realized her hair was still wet from her shower and she had little more on than a robe. "Uh, thanks?"

Captain Pierce didn’t laugh at her predicament, but looked vaguely uncomfortable. "Look, I just stopped by because I wanted to apologize."

Uh oh, here it comes.

"I wanted to wait for you after the shoot, but I had some urgent business to take care at headquarters."

She was apologizing for ducking out of the locker room without saying goodbye? Great! That meant she didn’t regret flirting with her on the firing range.

"So you were coming by now to escort me to the party?" Kate teased lightly.

Anne only grinned and moved into her personal space. She ignored the sudden rush of Kate’s breath and stared pointedly at the naked skin of her chest above the robe. "I really came because I have a question for you."

Captain Pierce stepped closer and forced Kate back a step. She didn’t realize how close she was to the wall until she impacted it. Anne moved in even closer until the tops of their bodies were touching, but her hands remained in the pockets of her shorts. She studied Kate’s face intently, looking for some unknown response. Kate thought she would burst out of her skin and felt her nipples tighten painfully at the sudden rush of arousal.

"Wha…what did you want to ask," Kate asked breathlessly.

"I think you just answered it." Anne suddenly dipped her head and claimed Kate’s lips in a soft, hesitant kiss. Her lips were gentle, barely touching and her tongue reached out to caress Kate’s mouth.

Kate groaned and opened her mouth to the tender invasion. Then Anne’s hands were in her wet hair and pulling her tightly against the chiseled frame. Kate wrapped her arms around Anne and held her with her hands splayed against her back.

The kiss was fire; more passionate than any Kate had known before. She felt wanted, desired desperately and she cheerfully immersed herself in the sensation. She almost didn’t notice when insistent hands left her hair and moved to the lapels of her robe. Then she was yanked forward as Anne dragged her toward the military cot without losing contact with her mouth.

This was certainly better than trying to find some place to grope each other at the party, Kate decided and happily went along with the other woman. She was pressed back onto the scratchy blanket and felt desperate hands pulling at the sash of her robe. Kate pulled away from the kiss and looked up into Anne’s blue eyes glazed with desire.

"Easy, slow down. We have time," she murmured.

Anne nodded and swallowed with difficulty. "I’ve been thinking about you for a year. Wondering how your body would feel, how you would taste…"

Anne closed the distance between them to claim another kiss, but this time it was slower and hungrier at the same time as though she was trying to memorize the feel of Kate’s lips.

Kate’s eyes closed in a soft moan and she wrapped her arms around the other woman. She didn’t know if this was the beginning of something deep and lasting or merely a one-time occurrence, but if it was a one-time deal she intended to make it memorable. Gently she eased the taller woman onto her back, rising over her to unbutton her shirt.

Anne pulled away and said with a slight frown, "I want to touch you."

"You will. I want to see you."

Gently she removed the button-down shirt and tossed it across a nearby chair. She discovered that Anne’s bra was hooked in the front and was delighted by the immediate exposure of soft, full breasts to her gaze.

"Nice tan," she complimented with a grin.

Anne had obviously been tanning in a bikini. Her skin was a light bronze and only the places covered by her bra and panties concealed pale creamy flesh. Unable to help herself she lowered her head and took a hard nipple into her mouth. Anne groaned aloud and arched into the sensation, her hand behind Kate’s head holding her in place.

"Harder," Anne groaned. "That feels so good."

Kate rained soft tender kisses back and forth along the other woman’s chest before she returned to the full lips for another kiss. Anne’s tongue tenderly invaded her mouth and Kate reveled in the sensation of moist flesh sliding over her teeth and slipping against her own tongue.

Their legs dovetailed and Kate threw her head back to groan at the sensation of a strong thigh pressed against her center. Seeing her response Anne pressed more fully against her and reached for the belt of her robe. The garment was removed and quickly dropped to the floor. Kate tried to ignore the sensation of warm muscles slathered liberally with her desire and reached for Anne’s waistband. Shorts and underwear came off together and were tossed aside. Anne kicked off her sandals and Kate quickly pressed her against the mattress again.

"I thought you wanted to go slow," Anne whispered.

"I do, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want full body contact at the same time."

Kate didn’t wait for a reply but dipped her head to take a puckered nipple back into her mouth. Anne grunted at the sensation and arched into her lover. Kate tried to gentle her touch and slid her fingertips along the smooth skin of Anne’s ribs before cupping both breasts and pressing them together so she could pay attention to the hardened peaks simultaneously.

Anne raised her thigh and pressed back between Kate’s legs, making her cry out as strong fingers latched onto her hips. Not to be denied the pleasure of touching the other woman Anne’s strong hands encouraged Kate to slide against her thigh. Soon Kate was lost in the rhythm of the movement and the sensation of sliding over hard muscle.

Her breathing became ragged and her hands reached for support as she steadied herself against the mattress. The new position lowered her body toward Anne until her breasts were dangling in front of the other woman’s face. Anne kept her hands on Kate’s hips but took a turgid nipple into her mouth.

The dual sensations were too much for Kate and her body tensed as she peaked with a low shuddering breath. Somehow even in her pleasure she realized that a shout of sexual release might gain the attention of someone walking by outside the room.

Slowly she came back to herself and relaxed onto Anne’s chest. Long arms wrapped around her and Kate rested briefly, feeling more secure and content than she had in a very long time.

"I never allowed my fantasies to get this far," she admitted softly.

"You fantasize about me?"

The question was timid and unsure, so out of character with the self-assured woman Kate had seen wandering around the compound. She lifted her head and smiled as she gazed into deep blue eyes.

"Oh, yes. I’ve fantasized about you. And now I intend to do a lot more than that."

She pulled away from the sheltering arms and slowly kissed a trail down the lithe form. Anne began to groan when she had completed only half the journey as she anticipated the touch she knew was to come. Kate noticed that the officer had grasped the sides of the pillow with both hands in a white knuckled grip and smiled unconsciously at the erotic picture of the naked captain with her chest thrown out in sharp relief. The woman was so thin that she could count each one of her ribs if she wanted, but at the moment she had another task in mind.

She could smell the heat and desire before she reached her destination. The captain’s arousal was obvious and spread half way down her thighs. Kate realized that her own gyrations earlier had helped spread the moisture, but it was still a heady rush to see the desire so copiously displayed.

Kate gasped as a new flood of arousal surged through her body. She lowered her head to swipe her tongue through the heat and wetness. It was meant to be a gentle tease and she was unprepared for the delight that swept through her at the first taste of the other woman.

"Oh my God, you are so good," she mumbled before she lay down against the mattress and wrapped her arms around the strong thighs to hold Anne in place.

Anne’s head thrashed against the pillows while Kate explored her fully with her tongue. She swirled over hardened flesh before dipping back into the wellspring of moisture and starting over again. Light and with barely any pressure, it was almost maddening. It was perfect.

Then Kate switched things up a bit just to keep Anne’s attention. She touched the tip of her tongue to the top of Anne’s sex and ever so slowly drew it along the length toward the tip. The journey seemed to take an eternity, but when she reached the bundle of nerves the sensations were so intense that Anne had to bite the inside of her upper arm to keep from crying out too loudly.

She finally covered Anne fully with her mouth and began to suck gently on the sensitive tip. It wasn’t long before Anne planted her feet against the mattress and began to undulate her hips in time with the motion of Kate’s tongue. Kate held on to the wavelike motion of Anne’s hips as she felt the tension increase in her lover’s body.

Suddenly Anne tensed and raised half off the bed, her body a taut bow of unmitigated pleasure. The sensation was far too short as far as Kate was concerned and she continued lapping at the flesh in front of her until the only responses she received were a series of twitches. Finally Anne nudged her gently away from her overindulged sex and pulled her up into her arms.

"Did anyone ever tell you that you are fantastic?" Anne asked in a husky voice.

"No, but you can tell me as much as you want."

"You were fantastic!"

Both women chuckled as they snuggled for a few moments together. Then Anne took a deep breath and said, "I guess we really should make an appearance at the party. It might look suspicious if both guests of honor didn’t show up."

"It might look suspicious if both guests of honor showed up with silly grins on their faces, too," Kate pointed out.

The comment was meant to be light, but Anne must have sensed something deeper, a tone that Kate had tried to shield from her.

"What is it? Are you sorry for what happened between us?"

"No! Never!" Kate answered honestly. She tried to shrug in a casual manner, but the gesture felt forced. "I knew this was a one time thing, our reward for winning the match."

After a moment of careful consideration Anne asked, "Is that what you think? That this was a one night stand for me?"

The way the question was phrased gave Kate hope that she had been mistaken and she tried to answer as honestly as possible. "I guess so. I mean you are an officer and if this isn’t fraternization I don’t know what is."

"Do you want it to be a one night stand?" Anne asked carefully.

"To be honest, no. I’ve thought about you constantly for a whole year. I can’t even find the desire to be interested in other women and it’s your face I see at night when I dream."

The words flowed over Anne relieving her doubts and insecurities, but it was just as important that she be honest. "Good, because I don’t want it to be a one night stand either. I do have to point out that it won’t be easy. Both of us have careers that could be ruined by this so we have to be careful. Fortunately I live off base so there’s no reason it can’t work out. We’ll just have to see how it goes."

Comforted by the words Kate smiled and relaxed fully into the strong embrace and said, "I can live with that. But does that mean we have to wait another year before we can reward the winner of the shooting match again?"

Anne growled in mock exasperation and flipped the smaller woman onto her back. "I don’t know about you, but I’m just not prepared to wait that long."

She dipped her head and planted a thorough, dizzying kiss on Kate’s lips before she pulled away. "Now about that party. I better get dressed and get out of here. Meet you there in…twenty minutes?"

"You bet."

Kate threw on a t-shirt and pair of shorts while Anne dressed. Then she opened the barracks door to check that the coast was clear before Anne left. Even though they had to act like they weren’t together at the party it was a balm on her heart to know that they were.

Oh well, she thought with a smile. It was just another part of the game of being gay in the military. At least she would have some nice scenery during the party.

The End

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