Code Name: Nina's Choice (Warrior's Challenge) Read Free

gotten to know
each other in the last three weeks. At first, she’d thought he was a pain in
the ass, always calling her and coming around, until
she realized he was as worried about his friend as she was. Mace and Tinman
were like bookends. Find one, and the other wasn’t far away. She couldn’t help
but wonder whether or not they had played with a woman together. She hadn’t
asked because the thought of Mace with another woman
rankled.
    Mace and Tony had been
swim buddies in BUD/s, and they’d both been assigned to Alpha Squad. At least for now. The life of a SEAL took a crooked path
through their careers. They’d do time with teams on both coasts , and assignments as instructors. Training, workups, and deployments. Repeat. From the first moment she
stepped foot on the base she’d been sucking everything in like a sponge.
    The U.S. Navy wasn’t
all that different from the Canadian Navy, they just had m ore. Canada had a small, elite team called JTF2 (Joint Task
Force) whereas the U.S. had the SEALs and other specialized warfare groups.
They watched each other’s backs and stuck together like family.
    She let her breath out
slowly when Mace’s gaze stalled o n her. No
strategist makes a move until she can see three moves ahead , Kayla had always taught her. Keep it
light, friendly. “Hey, Mace, it’s good to see you home,” she said breezily.
    He looked at Tinman
and then the floor. She couldn’t imagine what he was thinking; his warrior face was cemented on. “It smells good in here,” he said,
his gaze softening when he lifted it to look at her again.
    Her insides trembled.
It only happened with Mace, and she knew that had to mean something. Either she
was about to ge t ditched by the only guy that made
her crazy or….
    “That’s because you
haven’t been living here for a few months,” Tinman said, raising a brow at his
bud.
    “I’m talking about
food, asshole.” He shifted his hips, exchanging the weight to the other foot.
    “I t hought I’d make dinner for your homecoming.” She took a
brave step, and he kept his gaze pinned on her. “You must be sick of hospital
food.”
    “I am kinda hungry.”
    Tinman began backing
toward the door. “Well, I’ve gotta…”
    “No,” both she and
Mace said at the same time. Oh
God, that was embarrassing.
    Tinman’s hands settled
on his hips, and a grin formed on his lips. “Ya want a baby sitter or what?” he
taunted.
    Mace offered up a sour
look. “Funny.”
    “I’ll leave ya with
the sexy Nurse Hatchet here. I’ll come by to morrow to
take you to physio.” He dropped Mace’s sea bag on the floor, slapped him on the
back and winked at her. “See ya round, kids.”
    “What’s the hurry?”
Mace fired back.
    As Tony drew back, he
said, “She’s blonde and has great hips. Catch ya later.”
    The proverbial pin dropped with Tony closing the door. Their
limited, but passionate past hovered like an elephant in the room, sniffing at
an unknown future like a stale peanut. She was about to say, do you need to sit
down, but that was wrong. Inferring he w as weak was
definitely wrong. She swung a look at the timer on the oven. “Dinner will be
ready in twenty minutes. You’ve got time for a shower if you want.” Suddenly
she had globs of glue flowing through her tight veins.
    “Any
word about Kayla?”
    She chewed the inside of her cheek, then shook her head. “I haven’t seen Captain
Austen. He only talks to Captain Redding, and no one wants to talk to Redding
these days. He’s being a real bear.”
    Mace nodded, his eyes
doing a quick once over his apartment. “You haven ’t
changed anything.”
    She drew her arms
behind her back, and clutched her hands together. “No. I mean it’s your place.
I’m just a prisoner here.” Damn it, this wasn’t going well at all. Mace was probably just too kind to say
get the hell out.
    “I can bunk w ith Tinman.”
    Her stomach did a
belly flop. It hurt like hell when she hit the bottom of the