He smiled at me and leaned in to kiss me right below my ear. I shivered as his teeth grazed my sensitive skin and my nipples tightened. ‘Are you rea...y’ he whispered against my ear, his breath softly tousling my hair. I closed my eyes, wondering if we should just go upstairs and order take-out. But I shook my head and proceeded him out the door, looking over my shoulder at him and adding a little extra sashay to my walk. He was watching me, smiling and shaking his head. I knew he was teasing me. A blast from the past was standing beside me laughing his ass off."Hey Mark, thanks for waking me up" I said. Mark was my best friend for years and I was really glad I hadn't decked him.We messed around like that all the time. "Man", he said, "you were lost in space or something; I've been screaming for two blocks!" Sorry, dude", I responded. "Guess I was kind of out of it there for a minute"."Thinking about tryouts next week?" He asked "I know I am. I hear there are some guys trying out who. Ashley glanced at the front page, and then looked up, "Hmmm. Ever spend any time in this part of California?" No, just in the Bay Area and farther north up the coast." Well, then, as a native, I am bound by sacred tradition to show you the tourist attractions that are on the 'required' list. When we finish those, we'll work on electives." Sounds good. I saw the film, Sideways, and wanted to see some of those wineries, too." Oh, do I have some treats for you! Tell you what. This morning, we can. On the rifle range a private got stupid with his weapon. He turned away from the target for some reason and his rifle was pointed in my direction when one of the other noncoms saw it, slapped him on the shoulder and told him to keep his weapon pointed down range. The slap surprised the man and in a reflex he pulled the trigger. The bullet passed through the meaty part of my left calf. It didn’t hit bone, but it bled like hell.I was rushed to the post hospital and the first person who came to.