Code Name: Nina's Choice (Warrior's Challenge) by Natasza Waters Page B

that time she wasn’t looking for a
ring anymore, she’d just wanted to have a good ti me,
and they had.
    Manchester evaluated
his answer and nodded. “Her boyfriend is over there,” he said twisting.
    It was easy to
identify him. The guy stood within a circle of Marines who all had a hand on
him. He wept, his hands gripping his friends’ arms to steady himself .
    “He’d just asked her
to marry him.” Manchester’s scowl deepened. “Shame.”
    Manchester’s sympathy
was as cold as he was, but Mace imagined it came from many years of dealing
with death. It was hard to keep your empathy intact.
    Someone called Manchester again and he waved. “There’s still nothing on
Kayla. I’ll let you know if there is.”
    “Sir, if you don’t
mind, I’d like to come see you tomorrow. I want to look through Kayla’s
things,” Nina asked.
    “Why?”
    “I want to check
something. Can I come in the afternoon?”
    Manchester pulled out
his phone and tapped something into it. “One o’clock, I’ll be in my office.” He
wandered into the melee of men hovering around the body.
    Nina pulled on Mace’s
arm, but he couldn’t take his eyes off Casey. Blood. Dea th. It was a staple in a warrior’s life on
the battlefield, but not here. Not with someone like Casey, who deserved a
long, happy life. He swallowed a dry lump and twined his fingers with Nina’s.
Her warmth seeped into him, and a flag of determination flip ped up, waving in his conscience. His gaze veered to the
grief-stricken Marine, who no doubt thought if one of them would be taken, it
would be him. How fucking awful to fall in love and have it ripped away like
this.
    Nina tugged on him.
“Come on, Mace. Le t’s go home.” She kissed him on the
cheek and clutched his hand.
    “Yeah.” He took a step and stalled. “Wait.”
Nina set her green gaze on him. He palmed her cheeks. “I’m not infatuated with
you, Nina.” His brow tightened. “I’ve fallen in love with you. This is crazy fast, but it’s true. I’m not going to play the
macho guy role and wait for the appropriate time. There is no such thing when
you fall in love. And I’m in love with you.”
    Nina’s eyes closed,
and she wrapped both arms around his neck. “Good, because I love you too,” she whispered in his ear.
    They took their time
walking back to the apartment, arm in arm. His thoughts drifted from Casey to
Nina to Kayla. They had to find the Shark, because they were all living in a
nightmare right now. He needed to ge t Nina out of San
Diego, at least for a while. Casey’s death scared the hell out of him. He
needed to take Nina home to Canada.

 
 
 
    Chapter Five

 
 
    In his twenties, Mace
had brought a few girls home he’d dated. This was different. This time it meant
somethi ng.
    His parents’ urban
bungalow sat in the middle of a humble neighborhood. His mom and dad worked
hard and made ends meet when he was growing up, but barely. There was a time
when both of his parents worked two jobs, but there was always plenty of food
on the table and love to spare. Mace gazed at the
modest home and wondered what Nina would think of his unpretentious beginnings.
    “You’re not helping,”
Nina said an octave higher than she normally spoke.
    He laughed, realizing
his silence had her worried. “Na h, babe.” He parked and twined their fingers
together. His brothers and sisters cars were already parked hood to bumper on
the street. Sunday afternoons were a big family affair, but he’d bet no one was
skipping out today. “I’m the youngest, and it’s been my
sister’s prime directive to hitch me up for years. My family thinks you can
only be happy if you’re married and making grandbabies for mom. I’m the only
one left in the family who’s not married.” The word had spread like flame in a
puddle of gasoline th at he was bringing his
girl with him. “Any time
you want to leave, just give me a sign. My sisters aren’t going to let off of
the gas pedal until