YOU HAVE ME ~ JAKE SULLY

17

This is probably the longest chapter I've had in this book yet, I tend not to go more than 2500 words but there was no other way to split this up that I was satisfied with, so here we are.

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The base was the busiest it's been since the upper forest arrived.

Warriors and hunters from both clans, old and new, reported to base for evaluations. Each hunter and warrior would be evaluated on their skills pertaining to riding, flying, hunting, bow and arrow, gun use, daggers and knives, and spheres.

Each Na'vi warrior would also go head to head with another warrior, repeating until one came out on top.

Whoever came out on top would become Jake's second lieutenant, working alongside Jake's current lieutenant Roxto. Jake, of course, gave the option to opt out of the competition if one desired to.

Jake had spent the past several days trying to convince Tamai to take the position but Tamai had insisted he couldn't, needing the flexibility to fly back and forth between Omatikaya and Matkayina.

Jake told him he could give Tamai all the flexibility he needed, but Tamai said it wouldn't be fair and Jake knew he was right.

Tamai was currently back in Metkayina, Jake knowing full and well that he left during evaluations to escape Jake's pestering about the new position.

Li'Nessa was currently preparing for evaluations, as she was also required to be evaluated. She was standing in Jake's private bunker that sits right at the edge of the entire base.

Nessa insisted on helping Jake and his men set up last night, not realizing just how late they would end. Jake argued with her multiple times to just go home and rest but Li'Nessa won each time so Jake eventually stopped asking.

Jake almost had to force her to stay the night at base, Nessa insisting on flying back home as her eyes were involuntarily trying to shut themselves.

After going back and forth for about five minutes, Jake just picked Nessa up and threw her over his shoulder, carrying her all the way to his bunker and dropping her on his bed.

Nessa secretly wished that Jake would've climbed in and held her in his arms while they slept, but Jake being Jake took the spot on the floor right next to the bed.

Leaving Li'Nessa on the bed, slightly disappointed and colder than she wanted to be.

Since the night Jake had spent consoling Nessa for twenty hours straight, nothing further had happened.

There were multiple flirty looks and touches, Jake loving to get so close to her that all he had to do was move an inch to intertwine their lips, but ultimately never closing the gap.

His hands always found a way to touch her, finding its way to her thigh under the table during a feast, her hips as he stood behind her on base with his lips incredibly close to her ear while he whispered to her, her face while she stared up at him practically begging him to kiss her through her eyes.

Li'Nessa was always left wanting more, wondering if maybe she had misread what Jake was saying the night of her breakdown. Or, worse, he had only said it to calm her down.

Either way, she was growing increasingly frustrated that two weeks had passed and still, nothing. At this point, it was all Nessa could think about when she saw him and it almost angered her how distracted it's been making her.

So one can only imagine the nerves that grew as she thought about today. It wasn't her skill she was concerned about. Call it cocky, but Li'Nessa knew she performed well at almost everything.