Code Name: Nina's Choice (Warrior's Challenge) (7 page)

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 they see me standing at the altar.”

Nina’s eyes
softened,
and his stomach breached like Flipper
doing a water
show. Yeah, she was the one, all right.
They stared at each other. It was easy to lose track of time in Nina’s eyes.
Neither of them spoke, but there was plenty of cross-chatter passing between
them, and it drew him closer until their lips were moving in a
soft dance together.

A tap on the glass
broke the spell. “Uncle Mace, I brought my Frisbee,” his nephew Andrew said,
barely seeing over the door into the car.

Nina chuckled. He
kissed her quickly. “Remember, this is friendly fire.”

Movement was
restricted
in the tiny house with everyone’s kids
running around their ankles. He was used to it, but Nina seemed a little in
awe. The running joke in his family was have three and be surprised by one.
Five of his siblings had four kids each.

Initially, he’d
worried
his mother would be tough on Nina. She’d
always hoped he’d fall for a nice girl with Mexican roots. In his last year of
high school he’d dated one, and his mother was ready to start sending out
wedding invitations. It broke her heart when he told her that
he’d decided to join the Navy and try out for the SEALs.
His girlfriend dumped him, saying she wasn’t going to wait around. He figured
the real reason was because she had her eye on one of his friends on the
football team.

His family had plenty
of relativ
es on his mom’s side
who
still lived in the Mayan Riviera region
of Mexico, and there were yearly family reunions. His father had emigrated from
England to the States when he was three. They’d heard the story over and over
again about how his parents met a
nd fell in love, to
the chagrin of both families. His mom couldn’t make much of a fuss, since she’d
created a stir in her family by marrying a gringo.

In
under
five minutes Nina had his family laughing at her quick wit
and loving her open and friendly pers
onality. His mom
had trapped him in the kitchen with a tray full of quesadillas for the grill
and whispered (in Spanish) “
She’s going to be my daughter. I know
it, my youngest boy. I see the love in your eyes, and she has the same in hers
.”

“
Mamá, nos da
algo de tiempo.
”
(Mamma, give us time.)

When he came back
inside for a second armload, his mother stood beside Nina at the tiny
fireplace. The broad mantle didn’t have an inch to spare with all the family
pictures. They even crept up the wall behind it. He
quietly approached, curious as to what they were talking about.

“This is my beautiful
Leslie,” his mother said.

Nina smiled warmly at
her. “My friend, Kayla, said you lost her to cancer.”

“
Si
, she was my oldest. Mace is my baby,
and yet they were the clos
est of my children. Mace
took it very hard losing her. We all did. I will miss her for the rest of my
days.”

Nina wrapped an arm
around his mother’s shoulder and gave her an empathetic squeeze, but remained
silent. His mamma quickly wiped a tear away. “And
this is a picture of a proud day.” She turned the photo of him and his parents
the day he graduated and was given the SEAL trident.

“Are you ever scared?”
Nina asked.

“Aw, my
mija
,” his mother answered, and he wondered
if Nina understood what that meant,
which was
daughter. “I watch the TV and I fret. My family draws my attention away from
worry, but I still own it in my heart every time Mace is deployed. I am proud
of him. Every night I pray to God and remind him he has taken one of my
children already. I
cry for the Gold Star mothers.
They too are proud, but they have sacrificed too much for this country.”

Nina’s forehead
creased, and he saw her eyes glaze with tears. “I’m scared,” she said quietly.

“No, no,
mija
, don’t be.
Our Mace will always come home
to us.”

Nina nodded with a
quick jerk of her head and allowed her gaze to stray to all the pictures. “You
have a wonderful family.”

“Mace tells us your
father is a doctor, and plans to help him recover.”

Nina nodded.

“Your father is wise,
and his daughter
is beautiful.” His mother’s voice
took on an inquisitive lilt. “I understand you already have a daughter. I have
more love and room on this mantle for more grandchildren.”

Nina’s smile warmed
his heart, and it obviously had the same effect on his mother. O
ne of his nephews toddled up and began chattering away at
their knees.

“Ah.” Maria Callahan
clapped her hands around her grandson’s cheeks.
“My little talker.”

His nephew Christopher
was a blabbertrap. That’s what they called his sister’s three year old. T
he kid never, ever shut up. He even talked in his sleep.
Mace’s mother scooped him up and wandered into the kitchen. Nina looked across
the room and saw him watching her. He spent a lot of time doing that. Mostly in
awe at how beautiful she was and how she
affected
him. There was always more room for another portrait on the mantle, and he
hoped it would be theirs together.

* * * *

Mace had been to
Canada a few times over the years, mostly for training exercises. This trip
made him a little nervous. In fac
t, he’d rather be
facing a platoon of terrorists with one bullet left in the chamber than trying
to impress Nina’s family, but he was willing to do it, because the second
they’d stepped on the plane in San Diego, she was out of the Shark’s scope.

 
The wait
in Vancouver was short
as they grabbed a small commuter to Victoria, landing just before sunset. The
plane flew low over the Gulf Islands, and since Nina had her eyes closed for a
nap, he took in the orange hues of early summer making the landscape even m
ore enticing. British Columbia was a beautiful place,
forged by mountains, the land nudged against the Pacific, and trees spiraled
into the heavens. Victoria was in full bloom as the cab drove through an
affluent neighborhood.
Shortcut?
Mace wondered, but
it didn’t take long to realize the mansion-sized brick
homes weren’t a shortcut, but a destination. Nina kept darting glances at him
as they sat in the back of the taxi, and she fiddled with the door handle. Her
nervousness wasn’t helping him any.

The taxi
slowed, pulling him from his thoughts, and his pulse
quickened as the cabbie shoved his arm out the window and pushed a button in
front of a massive wrought-iron gate. The gates yawned open, and he suddenly
feared he was way below standard. Not a common f
eeling,
until recently. His capability to please Nina hadn’t come to fruition, although
his ligaments and mobility had returned to fighting form. Endurance was his
only hurdle; that and passing his physicals to get back on the team. Her dad
was a neurosurg
eon, and he hoped like hell that he
was the best in the country. By the look of the estate, and there was no better
word for it, he probably was.

Nina nibbled on her
lip and darted another glance at him. “We’re here,” she said and forked her
hands together
tightly.

“Hey, you can’t be as
nervous as me, babe.”

“Not nervous,” she
lied.

He leaned over and
kissed her cheek. “Baby, I have manners, I wasn’t born in a cave. Your family
fared well. I don’t plan on swinging from the chandeliers and embarrassing
you.”

“No, Mace.” She
clutched his cheeks. “That’s not it at all.” She cleared her throat and was
going to continue, but the cab swung around the large oval garden sitting in
the drive and stopped in front of massive front doors.

They’d just gotten out
of the
car when the front door swayed open. The damn
thing had to be four inches thick and twenty-five feet high. A little redheaded
girl vaulted out of it like a cannonball. She skipped down the stairs and ran
with arms and legs swinging, jumping at the last sec
ond
into her mother’s arms.

“Mommy, I missed you.”

Nina lifted her
daughter, and swung her in circles. Wow, like mother, like daughter. Gabbs’
hair was a mass of soft red curls, and big green eyes blinked when they stalled
on him. Little Red wrapped her ar
ms around her
mother’s neck and buried her face.

Mace looked up the
impressive staircase. A man and woman appeared on the landing. He nodded and
took the stairs. “Mr. and Mrs. Samson, I’m Mace Callahan.”

Her father had a solid
grip, and Nina’s mother offer
ed a genuine smile.
“Hello, Mace, welcome to our home.”

So
far, so good.

Another woman stepped
into view. “Hey,” she said with a sweet, enticing smile. “I’m Dawn, Nina’s
sister, and you’re even more gorgeous than she described.”

The coquettish flutter
of h
er lashes followed and launched a parachute flare
of warning.
“Nice to meet you,
Dawn.”
He offered a broad smile and Dawn blushed. He’d keep his distance from this
one. He’d gotten between sisters once before and there was nothing bloodier,
not even war.

“
Mace.”
Nina’s voice lowered an octave.

She didn’t have to
worry. His heart was locked and loaded with Nina.
“Yeah, babe.”

“Gabbs, are you going
to say ‘hi’ to Mace?”

Gabbs had her head
tucked under Nina’s chin, and she watched him, carefully. “Hi. I’m Gabr
iella, but Mom calls me Gabbs.”

“I know. I know a lot
about you,” he said leaning over to be eye to eye with her.

“You do?” she said,
straightening up in her mother’s arms.

“Uh-huh. I know you’re
eight years old, and really good in sports, just like me.”

“
Mommy said you were hurt.”

He nodded. “That’s
true, but I’m getting better.”

Gabbs blinked then
gazed at him. He could tell her little mind was working away, trying to figure
things out from a little girl’s perspective.