Chapter 5
5
TROPHY
“Oh gosh…”
Lance groaned, covering his eyes as he lay there trying to discern where he was and who was using a jackhammer on his head – only to feel a hand on his chest, and he froze.
Craaaaap!
First rule of being single: never stay overnight. Girls got weird ideas in their heads and started talking about relationships or worse. He never stayed, always told them he had to get back to the ship, and should have done the same thing unless … oh, nooooo, he thought wildly as a flash of memories slammed into him.
Her smile.
The martinis.
The rushed marriage to get her into bed, followed by flashes of them during intimate moments. He remembered pulling her panties off of her with his teeth and that delightful gasp. Those memories went from a very ‘ good-sorta-bad ’ moments… to ‘ earth-shattering-really-great-bad-boy ’ moments.
He was a wild guy in the sack, but his ‘wife’ wasn’t opposed to letting go with him in the slightest. He remembered several breathless moans of carnal delight followed by her waterfall of hair over his face as they…
His eyes shot wide open.
Ohhh nooo…
Lance didn’t move a muscle as his eyes darted around the hotel room in horror, looking for the tell-tale signs of a ‘really good time.’ A little noise escaped him as he remembered every detail of what happened last night, from the keg stand to saying ‘I do,’ to making love to his new wife several times… without protection.
There were no wrappers on the bed or beside the bed, nothing. In fact, there were no used condoms anywhere. He didn’t remember putting one on while making love to the woman who was lying beside him, asleep.
Crap – what was her name?
Sally? Sunny? Stephanie?
Stephanie! I think that is right…
Oh my gosh, how could I have messed up this badly? I can’t be married to some stranger. Heck, I love ‘em and leave ‘em – I never marry them!
The longer Lance lay there, the more panicked he felt. His stomach was churning, and he was really concerned he was going to puke in the bed. Slowly, he plucked her hand off his chest and heard her faint, groggy protest.
“Shhh, babe, it’s okay. I’m going to the bathroom. Sleep,” he whispered, hoping that his voice didn’t warble or sound as high-pitched as the panicked shriek within him was.
Honestly, he was afraid to call the woman by name because while he thought Stephanie was right – he wasn’t sure – and he really didn’t want to throw an entire tanker of fuel on an already destructive situation.
Pulling back the sheets gingerly, he cursed silently at the evidence before him. Oh yeah, none of this was a dream. The sheets were stained, and he desperately needed a shower – but not here. No, right now, he needed to get his things together and run like hell so he could think of how to get out of this mess.
She was sweet, or at least that was what he remembered. Maybe he could visit the JAG office and file for a divorce or catch Pasteur before he did any of the paperwork. Surely, this wouldn’t hold up in a court of law – would it?
Stepping over his wrinkled uniform, her clothing, and their shoes, he tiptoed into the bathroom to pull himself together. Sure enough, there on the counter were three cosmetic bags of varying sizes.
Her friends.
“Ohhh gosh…” he whispered in a wail and put his fingers in his hair as he sat down on the toilet, feeling nauseous.
Did they show up?
He didn’t sleep with them, too, did he?
His legs, stomach, and other things ached in what would be normally a very satisfying awareness – except this time he wasn’t so confident of what he’d done.
“No… there’s no way. I couldn’t have because I remember her, not them.”
And shivered .
He wouldn’t have slept with those two friends using Shellac’s junk, much less his own. Those two women were a couple of tramps that probably had some disease or…
Oh noooo! Could I have gotten a disease from Stephanie? No wait, she was a virgin – or at least from what I remember she was. I was clean according to my last check… and immediately inspected his junk.
Nope. I’m good, he sighed, breathing a sigh of relief and nervously laughed at his own foolishness. Maybe this was the wake-up call he needed?
Yeah, he needed to get out of here, put this behind him, and get this whole mess straighten out before Stephanie awoke and started using the whole slew of words that made him antsy.
“Lance?”
His eyes shot up to the door in a panic, heart slamming on his rib cage. Usually, he was out of here before morning, but not this time. This time, he was trapped like a rat in a cage.
The biggest sort of rat , he thought swallowing in sudden realization. I can’t do this – to her or me. I’m not ready for any of this and…
There was a knock on the bathroom door.
“Lance? Can we talk?”
“Um, s-sure?” And his voice cracked.
Wincing, he yanked a towel off the shelf and wrapped it around himself, which was ironic that he was finding a morsel of modesty at a moment like this. Opening the door, he flinched as he met her eyes.
She was obviously panicking, too.
Stephanie had dressed herself quickly, her buttons askew on her blouse. Half of her shirt was tucked in, and the other half looked like an attempt was made at some point. His uniform was in her hands along with his dress shoes that were scuffed. He would need to polish them quickly. Everything was wrinkled, and he was going to get trouble for being in such a sad state when he went back to the ship. He was definitely going back to his bunk – and not leaving it again.
Certainly not in New York City.
Maybe never.
He sure wasn’t drinking ever again.
“Morning,” he said in a fake voice, trying to be polite and avoiding her eyes.
“It is morning,” she began and hesitated, thrusting the clothing at him. “We probably need to talk about last night.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
“There’s a lot to talk about, the first item of issue being our marriage.”
Alert! Alert!
Mayday! Mayday!
Man overboard! he thought wildly, visibly seeing his own sense of self running in sheer panic and jumping the bow of his mind, doing a cannonball into anything else but this conversation.
“There’s nothing to discuss,” he repeated brightly. “You’re you. I’m me. I’m due back on the ship any minute – and if something comes up, we can tackle it then.”
Exactly. Good idea, bro. If something comes up – like, oh… a pregnancy test – then they would talk about it at that time, he mused, yanking on his pants over the towel in a panic, not caring that she was standing there.
“We should talk about all of this…”
“We probably should, but when things calm down,” he tossed casually over his shoulder as he turned away, yanking on his shirt quickly as he plucked the towel from his pants so he could button them. “I mean, if you think about it… There was a lot that happened last night. We need to stick with cool heads and let things settle down.”
And heard her intake of breath.
Oh nooo, no, no – please don’t start crying, he thought painfully as he turned to look at her. Sure enough, her eyes were glassy, and her lips were pressed firmly together.
“I messed up,” she began bluntly, and he hesitated, stunned. “This was a mistake, and while it was nice…”
“Nice?” he interrupted, shocked and correcting her immediately. “It was freakin’ great . That was probably the best night of my life and…”
“It was nice ,” she repeated firmly, turning away from him and running a hand through her hair to get some of the snarls out. “But you are not what I’m looking for in a husband.”
Everything came to a halt at that moment causing him to jerk back like he’d been slapped. She seemed like she had enjoyed herself thoroughly in bed or that was the best acting he had ever witnessed. He had a steady job, was a fighter pilot in the Navy, gone for months at a time giving her plenty of ‘me’ time to enjoy on her own. How was he not what she was looking for?
“Wait… what?”
Was it really going to be this easy?
“I think you should go,” Stephanie began again. “You should go before my friends come back.”
“Well, I’m gonna,” he retorted, putting his finger in her face and knowing he looked like a jerk… but his feelings were hurt, dang it, and he would be darned if he would admit it. “And it was spectacular , do you hear me? We put X-rated movies to shame last night. I have never felt so good in my life, so don’t you dare cheapen it or say that it was ‘nice’,” he snapped. “And if I’m not your type – that’s on you – not me, because I’m amazing ,” he finished lamely, sticking his thumb at his chest, pointing at himself.
“Ahhhh-mazing,” he repeated in the silence as she stood there looking at him, before crossing her arms over her chest and lifting an eyebrow at him, smirking. “What?”
“Oh, you are amazing, all right,” she chuckled, obviously laughing at him. This slip of a woman, his little librarian, was laughing at him and calling sex with him ‘nice’? That was like claiming it was mediocre, and it was far from that. He saw stars behind his eyelids and would never forget how she touched him or held him close.
“I’m not going to stand here and listen to this,” he began again, trying to cling to his dignity that was being smashed into the ground by his wife. She couldn’t have done anything worse to him right now except maybe point at his trousers and laugh.
Walking past her, he hopped for a second, yanking on his shoe, before doing the other one, and grabbed the hotel pen laying atop a small notepad of paper.
“Your friend wasn’t really a pastor, was he?”
“Are you calling me a liar now too?” Lance snapped, looking at her in disbelief. “I’m good in the sack, a freakin’ catch for some woman, honest as the day is long… and you obviously don’t know me,” he muttered, scribbling down his name, address, phone number, and email address.
“Well, you don’t have to get your knickers in a twist.”
“They are your knickers,” he retorted immediately, ripping off the piece of paper. “They aren’t, but they could have been. You are just as much of a freak in the sheets as I am, but if you have problems accepting it – don’t put that on me. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying making love with your husband , and if you have regrets, that’s on you – not me.”
Her mouth dropped open in shock, and for a moment, he was afraid she was going to say something to hurt his feelings again or laugh at him. Instead, he kissed her swiftly, taking the piece of paper with his information and tucking it in the front of her bra, directly between that delicious cleavage that would haunt him for months to come.
“I’ve got to go report for duty,” he muttered, immediately racing out of the room before she could say anything else. He was halfway down the hall before the door shut loudly behind him, and thankfully, the elevator was waiting.
Lance darted into the elevator just as he saw Stephanie walking into the hallway of the hotel, looking at him in disbelief. He raised a hand and wiggled his fingers at her before the door closed, and he put down three of the fingers, holding up one of them in a foul gesture.
His feelings were hurt - badly.
“You cannot tell a dude that he was ‘ nice,’ ‘ pleasant,’ or anything of the sort when it was the best freakin’ night of my life ,” Lance uttered thickly at the closed doorway before him. “I may not want to be married or end up being someone’s papa, but that doesn’t mean I’ll forget any of this – and screw you, Stephanie, for being a female version of me .”
He let out a shaky breath, horrified that he might actually cry.
Lance was on the ship, lying in his bunk hours later, when a few of the guys made their way back into berthing loudly. He had a headache from being utterly miserable, stewing angrily in frustration, and cursing at himself silently for a while now because the whole interaction this morning shouldn’t have bothered him.
But it did.
It hurt his feelings that she didn’t trust him – even if he had planned on running out on her this morning. It was one thing to know you were a slimeball, but another to have someone point it out and show you to your face, and she pulled the same tactics.
His hot little bank teller!
She might have been a virgin, but she was uncannily street-smart when it came to people. She had Shellac’s story pegged as a lie; she knew what her friend was going to blab about at the bar before the woman opened her mouth, and she had him under a microscope, feeling very uncomfortable.
“Hey! Hey!” Ohio grinned, walking into the room, slapping Shellac and Pasteur on the shoulders. “Look, the groom is back in his bunk, already pouting and missing his lady love.”
“Shut up,” Lance muttered. That was hitting a little too close to home from his friends, because he was pouting. If he was a kitten, he was licking his paw someplace where he felt safe.
“Ooooh, did things not go so well with the Missus?”
“Pasteur, I need that paperwork – now,” Lance snapped, sitting up and bending forward so he didn’t hit the other bunk above his own. All three men looked at each other in confusion. “The marriage license? I know you, and I know you filled it out right away. I’m going to need that thing because I’m not staying married to that— that woman.”
Ohio and Shellac burst out laughing wildly again – and Pasteur did not. The man stood there looking at him with a very uncomfortable grimace and then pointed at the two giggling hyenas nearby.
“Why don’t we get some coffee – and talk?”
“I just need the papers.”
“I’ve already mailed them to the address that your wife gave me.”
“What?!” Lance jumped up and grunted at the explosion of pain in his upper back as he nailed the bunk railing above him painfully. Standing up finally, he glared at the other man. “You mailed it already?”
“Yes. We were walking past a post office, so I popped in and mailed it to her, so she could turn it in at the county clerk’s office.”
“I don’t want to be married to her or anyone.”
“Then why did you have me do the ceremony last night?”
“So I could get laid.”
“I thought you loved her?”
“Do we even know each other, Pasteur?” Lance scoffed painfully and saw someone walk past the open doorway, looking in and pointing. That was odd. “Since when have I ever professed to be in love with someone? Love is a bunch of drivel, and we both know it.”
“Actually, I do believe in love – and fidelity,” Pasteur began just as another person walked past the doorway, looking in. “That was weird.”
“I was just thinking that too,” Lance admitted. “Are we supposed to be on deck or something?” Shellac and Ohio had finally stopped laughing, looking as concerned, and Lance was starting to get.
Something was up and just as another set of people walked past, looking into their berthing, Ohio piped up .
“Hey! Eyes to yourself unless you are looking for someone in specific.”
Only to see both faces look at Lance, before rolling their eyes and walking away. All three men’s heads swiveled at that moment, looking at him.
“What did you do?”
“More than you did,” Lance piped up, mouthing immediately. “Several times in fact…”
“With your wife,” Pasteur reminded him pointedly, causing Lance’s smug grin to fade quickly as he began to glower at the other man. “I mailed it – you are married. Get over it, or go home and get it yourself.”
“I don’t know where she lives,” he mumbled, mortified at the realization… especially when all three men gawked at him. Ohio burst out laughing first as Pasteur shook his head slowly, folding his arms across his chest in disapproval. Shellac dug out his wallet and handed Ohio a twenty-dollar bill, who immediately kissed the paper, shoving it in his pocket.
“Thank you, buddy.”
“I told you I’d pay up.”
“I cannot believe you bet on me…”
“I cannot believe you married a perfect stranger to sleep with her.”
“Those were her rules, not mine!”
“Well, you are married, and it’s a done deal. The only way you are getting out of this one is if… WHAT ARE THEY LOOKING AT?” Pasteur snapped hotly, moving toward the doorway and craning his neck into the hallway. “Why are you all gathering down here and being nosy.”
“Where’s Trophy? He’s on the news.”
“DO WHAT?” they said in unison – including Lance, who immediately shoved out the door toward the lounge area.
They had a small lounge that served almost as a rec room. There were board games, magazines, puzzles, video games, and a large television where they could watch movies, and as he launched into the room, he stopped.
And it seems that when the fleet comes to visit, they mean business. There are reunions aplenty – including this one. Just look at this sweet image that was sent into the new station by an observer. Apparently, this young man…
“She called you a young man, ya’ old fart.”
“Shut up!” Lance snarled, trying to listen as the two news anchors talked about the photo of him and Stephanie kissing at the bar, there, plastered in the corner of the screen. The bar racing across the bottom of the screen was calling the photograph the newest ‘welcome home kiss’ for Time Magazine.
Found true love and married his girlfriend in an impromptu ceremony held by Louis ‘Pasteur’ Gagne of Louisiana – who is an ordained minister.
Well, that’s certainly interesting – a pilot and a minister?
Talk about a hobby, huh, Mark? As I was saying, the happy couple in question is Lieutenant Lance ‘ Trophy’ Cavanaugh, also from Louisiana, and Miss Stephanie Wood, from Louisville, Kentucky. Lieutenant Cavanaugh is stationed upon the carrier docked in the harbor until nine a.m. tomorrow when it departs on its way back to Mayport, Florida…
“Trophy! You’re famous, dude!”
“You made the news, bro…”
“This is so cool…”
“I had no idea he had some girl on the side…”
“Isn’t he Ohio’s buddy who is always picking up girls in bars?”
“Aviator… yes. Faithful, guess not…”
“Pasteur, I’m gonna need that address,” Lance said hoarsely, looking at the other aviator whose lips were pressed together grimly.
“My part was done. The address is written on a napkin in a trashcan somewhere along Forty-Second Street or Fifth Avenue when we were headed here.”
“You threw it away?”
“Yes. I’m sorry, but I had no idea that you didn’t know the woman.”
“Nooooo?? I didn’t know her, dude. She was my bacon!” Lance exclaimed in a panic and heard laughter all around him at the term.
“Ohhh no, Trophy,” Ohio groaned in awareness, looking shocked. “Really?”
“Awww crap, bro,” Tic-Tak chuckled. “She was your bacon?”
“Yup! I knew it immediately - smells amazing, tastes even better… but not worth getting killed over later on if you ea t too much. I need that marriage license, Pasteur. No more kidding around, bro!”
“I’m so sorry, Trophy. It’s gone.”
Lance was going to be sick.
His ears were ringing, and he felt like he had cotton stuffed in them as he continued to stare at the screen, completely befuddled. Someone had taken their photo and sent it to the news station – and submitted it to Time Magazine?
Stephanie was from Louisville, Kentucky?
The marriage license was on its way to Louisville – and he was headed in a completely different direction, sailing south to Florida. Stephanie worked at a bank, and her last name was Wood. That was all Lance knew, and now he was married to the woman.
He had no clue how to get a hold of her and never thought about it. Maybe she would reach out to him since he’d left his contact information tucked between those mind-numbing boobs he’d been so fond of last night. He really needed to get his act together – and this was a huge wake-up call.
Lance was good and truly stuck now. It would be just a matter of time before his parents or his sister called to congratulate him. Oh man, his mother was going to be upset that she was the last to know – and his dad would be beyond hurt for keeping secrets, even if he did hide things from his parents. His know-it-all sister would really give him a hard time, rubbing his nose in the situation if she knew the truth.
It wouldn’t be hard to hide, either. The first time they asked him for Stephanie’s contact information, he was doomed. If he couldn’t get his hands on the marriage license, it was going to be hard to relay her information to a very loving and inquisitive family .
He was so screwed.
“I’ve gotta call home,” he said weakly, turning and leaving the room. His legs were trembling, and he heard his friends talking around him, but nothing was clicking. No, he needed to sit down somewhere privately and call his mother to let them know what was going on.
Returning to his rack, he grabbed his cell phone from the drawer and grimaced. It was at forty percent charge, but that was enough. He rarely used the darn thing except to call his family when needed, like now. Shoving his phone in his pocket, he looked for a place to hide that would get reception inside the massive metal hull of the carrier – and ended up leaning against one of the walls, looking out the plane elevator on the side of the ship while others worked in the distance.
Dialing, he swallowed back bile as he realized just how bad this was going to be if they already knew or had seen the footage regarding fleet week. He would have to be open about this because there was no hiding things anymore. —not when the fact you had gotten married was on display for anyone who watched television.
“I was wondering when you’d call,” his mother began, answering the phone on the second ring. “What’s going on Lance? We just turned on the news because Mrs. Chumley from my quilting club called and told me that she saw you on television.”
“Mama…” he said hoarsely, hesitating.
“Honey,” her voice softened, and he immediately felt a lump in his throat. “What’s going on? Talk to me. You know you can tell me anything, right?”
“I don’t think I’m a very good person,” he began and slumped down along the wall because his knees would not hold him anymore. “I’ve done a lot of things that I’m ashamed of – but I really think that I’ve messed up this time. Please don’t say anything to Dad or Laura.”
“Give me everything from the start, and let’s figure out what is so terrible that it has my brave boy quaking in his boots.”
And Lance did.
He told his mother about everything, every moment leading up to the marriage, leaving out all of the more sordid details – and surprisingly brought up how bitter he felt when he left the hotel.
“She hurt your feelings.”
“Mom, I’d have to care to have feelings about it.”
“Don’t put on that brave face with me, Lance. I know you better than you know yourself,” his mother chuckled. “Now, where is Stephanie?”
“I don’t know,” he whispered. “I know she’s from Louisville, but I didn’t bother to ask for her phone number or anything else.”
“I see.”
“Mama, I never expected any of this to happen or for it to stick. I’ve made so many mistakes in the last twenty-four hours that…”
“Enough,” his mother interrupted quietly. “Enough with the ‘poor me’ attitude because that selfishness is why you don’t have your new bride’s contact information. Here’s what you are going to do – nothing .”
“Wait… I don’t think I heard you right.”
“Lance, don’t you do a thing right now, do you hear me? Trust me when I tell you that you need to let sleeping dogs lie and stop charging into the middle of a mess waiting for someone to notice you.”
“But…”
“I’m not finished, young man,” his mother retorted, and he chuckled tearfully, remembering how he’d said something very similar to Stephanie. “You are going to let things calm down. Let her file the marriage license because it’s a done deal – and you don’t know if there is going to be a baby or if she’s about to go running to the police saying that you’ve crossed a line physically.”
He put his hand over his forehead, letting his head sag slightly as he held the phone to his ear, listening.
“If she contacts you, then you need to put your best foot forward – because this girl sounds like she isn’t going to be a pushover. The only reason she might contact you would be if there is a child. So you better drop your bruised ego at the door if you ever want to be involved in the baby’s life.”
“Mama, I’m not sure I want to be a father.”
“Well, you should have thought of that before you had sex or got married. How many times have I told you to be careful? We’ve had this discussion a few times over the years, ever since you were fourteen years old, learning about the changes in your body. This is not something we’ve ever shied away from because it’s serious – and I think you understand that now.”
“What if I look up every bank in Louisville and just start calling, asking for her, and try to get ahead of this…”
“Do you think stalking some poor girl is going to change whether she’s pregnant or not? Do you think it will magically make you suddenly single? No. Don’t hunt her down. Bide your time and call me if she reaches out.”
“Oh?”
“Because then we’re going to have another heart-to-heart, but in the meantime – I need you to do something.”
“What’s that?”
“Go sign up for base housing or start looking for a place to live nearby. ”
“I live on a ship,” he blurted out, confused.
“If Stephanie is pregnant, things are going to change. You might as well get on the waiting list – but that is the only thing I want you to do right now, okay? Don’t panic. Breathe.”
“I’m trying.”
“I know you are struggling with all of this, and you’ve always been stubborn, wanting things to go your way… but this is out of your control now. You are going to have to be patient and see what happens next so you can take control of your life once more.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he whispered quietly, feeling a little better.
“Oh, and Lance?”
“Yeah?”
“If Stephanie does – or doesn’t – contact you,” his mother began tightly. “Let this be a lesson that you need to change your ways and grow up right now. Do you hear me? No more of this partying all the time. You need to keep it in your pants, young man – period!”
“Oh my gosh…” he chuckled, mortified.
“What? How do you think you got here? Now, unless you want to have this conversation again in a few months – behave! ”
“Yes, ma’am,” he repeated before hanging up the phone and letting out his breath. It was going to be a long couple of days, weeks, or months – and he wasn’t sure which it would be. He hoped Stephanie would contact him in a few days so they could talk, but something deep down inside of him already knew that wouldn’t be the case.