encased in those worn jeans of his. Heck, if he’d been wearing cowboy boots instead of tennis shoes, she might have climaxed just looking at him.
Whoops! Where had that come from?
Then he started talking, and she told herself to concentrate on his voice and his words.
“My dad’s getting older. Although—” he paused and sighed “—I can’t see him ever retiring. The point is, he needs us. Or at least one of us.”
He didn’t sound very happy about that at all. “And I’m guessing that you’re considering throwing yourself on the sacrificial altar?”
He winced slightly and shook his head. “Okay, it might not be that bad, but still…”
“That bad?” Annie got up, too, and walked closer to him. Not too close, mind you. But close enough. “How can you not be interested in building that company? P3 is the best new computer to have come out in years.”
“So Dad’s always telling us,” he said wryly.
“He’s right,” she said quickly.
“Excuse me,” he told her, “weren’t you just cussing at it a minute ago?”
She waved that aside. Everyone cursed at machinery. Technology was the devil. Still, it beat the heck out of chipping messages into a stone tablet with a hammer and drill. “Yes, but I didn’t mean it. And your father built this company himself?”
“Yep,” John said and let his head fall back. Staring at the ceiling, he went on. “Worked nights and weekends until he had it perfected. Then got a loan to start up the business, then left the Corps to run it. Now he wants us to leave the Corps to take over for him.”
“And you don’t want to.”
“Hell, none of us wants to,” John said. “This company isn’t our dream. It’s Dad’s. We like being Marines.”
“But it’s your family business. How can you not want to be a part of it?”
He tilted his head to one side, studied her for a long moment, then asked, “And are you just busting to get into Daddy’s archaeological digs?”
Direct hit. “No, but that’s not really the same thing, is it?”
“Why?” he countered. “Because archaeology doesn’t interest you.”
“Exactly.”
“Yeah, well,” he told her flatly, “computers don’t interest me.”
“To each his own, I guess,” she said, though she really couldn’t understand why someone wouldn’t want to be in on the ground floor of something as exciting as the computer industry. After all, the future was in technology, whether people liked it or not.
“That’s what I always thought,” John said, shifting his gaze until he was looking right at her. “But lately I’ve been thinking that one of us owes it to the old man to do what he wants.”
“Meaning you,” she said, instinctively knowing that John had already decided that he would be the brother to give up his dream for their father’s sake.
He shrugged, but his eyes couldn’t quite carry off the nonchalant attitude. There were shadows there. Deep, dark shadows, and she knew he wasn’t at all pleased with the decision he was going to make. “Sam and Nick are married now. Starting families.”
“Then wouldn’t one of them make the more logical choice to leave the Marines and settle down?”
He laughed to himself at the notion of either one of his brothers as civilians. Not a chance. “No. They’ve already worked out the logistics of married life in the Corps. Their wives are with them on it. No sense in disrupting lots of lives when I’m by myself.”
“Even if you’re miserable?” she asked, seeing the truth in his face, his eyes.
“Hell, misery doesn’t last forever. Maybe once I figure out how to work the damn computer, it won’t be so bad running the show.”
“Amazing,” she said, thoughts whirling through her mind. Her own family couldn’t be bothered to call andcheck on her. The last time she’d spoken to them, she’d been four months pregnant. Their disapproval of their unmarried, pregnant daughter had been palpable even on the phone lines, and
Whoops! Where had that come from?
Then he started talking, and she told herself to concentrate on his voice and his words.
“My dad’s getting older. Although—” he paused and sighed “—I can’t see him ever retiring. The point is, he needs us. Or at least one of us.”
He didn’t sound very happy about that at all. “And I’m guessing that you’re considering throwing yourself on the sacrificial altar?”
He winced slightly and shook his head. “Okay, it might not be that bad, but still…”
“That bad?” Annie got up, too, and walked closer to him. Not too close, mind you. But close enough. “How can you not be interested in building that company? P3 is the best new computer to have come out in years.”
“So Dad’s always telling us,” he said wryly.
“He’s right,” she said quickly.
“Excuse me,” he told her, “weren’t you just cussing at it a minute ago?”
She waved that aside. Everyone cursed at machinery. Technology was the devil. Still, it beat the heck out of chipping messages into a stone tablet with a hammer and drill. “Yes, but I didn’t mean it. And your father built this company himself?”
“Yep,” John said and let his head fall back. Staring at the ceiling, he went on. “Worked nights and weekends until he had it perfected. Then got a loan to start up the business, then left the Corps to run it. Now he wants us to leave the Corps to take over for him.”
“And you don’t want to.”
“Hell, none of us wants to,” John said. “This company isn’t our dream. It’s Dad’s. We like being Marines.”
“But it’s your family business. How can you not want to be a part of it?”
He tilted his head to one side, studied her for a long moment, then asked, “And are you just busting to get into Daddy’s archaeological digs?”
Direct hit. “No, but that’s not really the same thing, is it?”
“Why?” he countered. “Because archaeology doesn’t interest you.”
“Exactly.”
“Yeah, well,” he told her flatly, “computers don’t interest me.”
“To each his own, I guess,” she said, though she really couldn’t understand why someone wouldn’t want to be in on the ground floor of something as exciting as the computer industry. After all, the future was in technology, whether people liked it or not.
“That’s what I always thought,” John said, shifting his gaze until he was looking right at her. “But lately I’ve been thinking that one of us owes it to the old man to do what he wants.”
“Meaning you,” she said, instinctively knowing that John had already decided that he would be the brother to give up his dream for their father’s sake.
He shrugged, but his eyes couldn’t quite carry off the nonchalant attitude. There were shadows there. Deep, dark shadows, and she knew he wasn’t at all pleased with the decision he was going to make. “Sam and Nick are married now. Starting families.”
“Then wouldn’t one of them make the more logical choice to leave the Marines and settle down?”
He laughed to himself at the notion of either one of his brothers as civilians. Not a chance. “No. They’ve already worked out the logistics of married life in the Corps. Their wives are with them on it. No sense in disrupting lots of lives when I’m by myself.”
“Even if you’re miserable?” she asked, seeing the truth in his face, his eyes.
“Hell, misery doesn’t last forever. Maybe once I figure out how to work the damn computer, it won’t be so bad running the show.”
“Amazing,” she said, thoughts whirling through her mind. Her own family couldn’t be bothered to call andcheck on her. The last time she’d spoken to them, she’d been four months pregnant. Their disapproval of their unmarried, pregnant daughter had been palpable even on the phone lines, and
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