But naturally no one would ever admit it.
Then there was Marie. Gina smiled to herself as she looked at the middle Santini sister. Since meeting and falling in love with Davis, Marie had really come into her own. Oh, she was still a great mechanic, and spent most of her time happily involved in some greasy job or other. But there was a sparkle in her eyes and a glow about her that hadn’t been there before Davis.
So basically, she told herself with an inward frown, every Santini at the table looked happy as a clam. Except of course, for her.
“I saw your Gunnery Sergeant Paretti today,” Davis said, and reached for the bowl of pasta.
Well, that came out of nowhere.
Gina looked at him. “He’s not my anything,” she said, and forked up a bite of salad.
“Yeah, well, I had a little talk with him, anyway,” her brother-in-law told her. He looked pretty pleased with himself about it, too.
Eyes wide, she hurriedly chewed, swallowed and said, “You talked to him? When? Where? What do you mean? What did you say?”
Davis shrugged, smiled at his wife, then looked back at Gina. “To answer your questions in order…after work, at the Staff NCO club, and I just told him you were my sister-in-law and I’d appreciate it if he’d back off.”
“Oh, great.” She dropped her fork with a clatter and sat back in her chair.
“Wasn’t that nice?” Mama asked no one in particular and reached out to pat Davis’s hand fondly.
“Nice?” Gina said, staring at her mother. “You think it’s nice?”
“What’s wrong with you?” Marie demanded. “Davis was just trying to help you out.”
“If he wanted to help,” Gina said, glaring at her sister, “then he should have simply run the man down in the street.”
“Oh,” Angela piped up, “there’s a plan.”
“Run who down?” Eight-year-old Jeremy asked.
“A nice Marine like Davis, dear,” Mama told him, and handed him more garlic bread. Unflappable, Mama let nothing interfere with dinner.
“No he’s not,” Gina said quickly.
“Nice?” Mama asked.
“Like Davis,” Gina clarified.
“What’s the big deal?” Angela asked as she poured her son more milk. “So Davis talked to him. You’re overreacting, Gina.”
“Big surprise,” Marie muttered.
“I am not overreacting,” Gina snapped. “How does this look? Now he thinks I went crying to my big brother-in-law wailing for help.”
“You did,” Marie reminded her, rising to her husband’s defense like a lioness defending its den.
“I did not,” she argued hotly, and shifted her gaze from Marie to Davis. “Did I ever ask you to talk to the man? Did I plead for your help?”
“No, but…” Davis squirmed in his chair.
Ordinarily Gina might have felt sorry for him, surrounded by women, the only other jolt of testosterone in the room coming from a boy too small to be on his side. But not tonight.
“Cut it out, Gina,” Marie said sharply. “Davis was trying to help you, for crying out loud. It’s your own fault. All you’ve done since starting those classes is complain about the man.”
Okay, so she’d complained a little. Wasn’t that one of the perks of having a family? They were supposed to let you rant and rave. She hadn’t noticed them rushing out to buy her new clothes when she complained about her wardrobe.
“Papa would have been pleased with what Davis did for you,” Mama said. “Family takes care of family.”
Oh, for pity’s sake, she made it sound like they were in the Mafia. What’s next? We send Nick a dead fish wrapped in newspaper?
“But…” Gina began.
“Davis went out of his way to find this guy, you know. He did you a favor. The least you could do is thank him.” Marie stared at her, silently waiting for Gina to do just that.
Five pairs of eyes watched her. She could hear the ticking of the mantel clock in the living room. No one moved. Damn it. Didn’t they understand that even though he’d meant well, Davis had just made a complicated situation even more difficult?
In an instant she recalled everything Nick had said to her after their last class. Spoiled. Pampered. Princess. Well, now, thanks to Davis’s well intentioned meddling, Nick would think himself proved right.
Why was her life suddenly so complicated?
Men, that’s why.
First, there had been Richard. A lawyer she’d dated long enough to convince her to take ballroom dancing lessons in order to fit into his social sphere. Unfortunately she’d stopped dating him before her second class. Though a perfectly nice man, they hadn’t shared enough chemistry to set off a sparkler.
Sparklers. Fireworks. Skyrockets.
The thought of which brought to mind the new male in her life. Nick Paretti. Her blood hummed in her veins. Her stomach pitched and rolled.
Oh, for Pete’s sake.
“Gina!”
Marie’s voice dragged her back to the moment at hand.
“You could at least pay attention when we’re arguing,” her sister said.
“Oh, I’m paying attention,” she muttered, then continued, “all I said was that Nick Paretti is a pain in the—”
“Gina.” Mama’s voice broke in, firmly.
She closed her mouth, sighed then said, “He’s a pain in the drain, that’s all.”
Mama nodded, satisfied.
Jeremy snickered until his mother shushed him. Apparently, he hadn’t been fooled by his aunt’s quick save.
“I only meant to help,” Davis said, looking directly into Gina’s eyes.
Instantly she regretted shouting at him. He had meant well. And if you stopped to think about it, it was really very sweet, him rushing in to play big brother. Boy, would she have loved having him around when she was a kid.
“I know,” she said, giving him a smile and letting him know he was forgiven. It wasn’t his fault she had such conflicting feelings for Nick. Then she forced herself to add, “Thanks, Davis. You’re a good brother.”
He grinned at her. “Yeah, I think I’m getting the hang of it.”
Conversation flowed again, swirling around and past Gina. No one seemed to notice that she wasn’t taking part.
“Okay, let’s have it,” Gina said as they left the dance studio.
“Have what?” Nick glanced up at the starry sky and shrugged deeper into the windbreaker jacket he wore.
“I’ve been waiting all night,” she said, and grabbed his arm to bring him to a stop.
Scowling, he turned his gaze down at her. He should have known they wouldn’t be able to go an entire night without an argument. Although, up until now the evening had gone fine. They’d hardly spoken and they’d danced better than ever. Maybe that was the secret to getting along with Gina Santini. No talking.
“Waiting for what?” he asked.
“For you to make some smart remark about my brother-in-law hunting you down on base.”
“Oh…” Nick nodded and immediately understood. She was wondering why he hadn’t said anything. But the truth was, he’d been doing a lot of thinking since Davis Garvey had spoken to him a few days ago. In fact, he’d been trying to figure out exactly why Gina Santini rubbed him the wrong way more often than not. He’d lost his temper more times since he’d met her than he had in the past five years. And that wasn’t like Nick at all.
Then last night the truth had finally dawned on him. Gina reminded him—too much—of his ex-wife. Oh, she didn’t look anything like her, and if truth be known, Gina was a helluva lot nicer than Kim had ever been. But there were too many similarities to ignore, too.
Both of them spoiled, used to getting their own ways and not above using their looks to do it. Every time Gina tried to flirt her way out of an argument, Nick’s defenses went on full alert. He’d fallen once for a woman with more looks than heart. He wouldn’t let it happen again.
As for her brother-in-law’s visit, there was no ne
ed to say anything about that. If Nick had been in the same position, he would have done the very thing Davis had. In the Paretti household they’d learned one lesson very early in life. Family comes first.
“Forget it,” he said finally, and saw wary relief wash over her features.
Obviously, she wanted to believe him, but didn’t.
“Why are you being so nice?”
“I can’t be nice without an ulterior motive?”
“I don’t know.”
Well, hell. Good to know she thought he was a complete jerk. “Look, why don’t we call a truce for the duration of the lessons?”
“A truce?”
“Yeah. You know, a cease-fire.”
“I know what it is, I’m just not sure why you’re offering one.”
He inhaled sharply and let the cold ocean breeze reach down inside him and quench his budding temper. Even when he was trying to be agreeable, she fought him. “We both want to learn these damned dances, right?”
“Right.”
“We don’t have to like each other. All we have to do is dance together.” There. He couldn’t make it plainer than that. “Deal?” He held out his right hand.
She stared at it for a long moment as if it were a snake in striking distance. Then she slipped her hand into his and said, “Deal.”
Warmth skittered up from their clasped hands, and Nick released her quickly. Then she flashed him a million-watt smile, and he had to firmly remind himself that it would be easy to resist her charms.
“As long as we’re being so friendly,” Gina said as they started again for their cars, “maybe you’d like to reconsider entering that competition.”
He snorted a laugh. A private truce was one thing. Announcing publicly that he was taking dancing lessons was quite another. “Not a chance, princess.”
“So much for a truce,” she muttered.
“I’m not entering that contest.”
“But we’re really getting good,” she argued.
“No way,” Nick said and shook his head for emphasis.
She took his arm and stepped in close. “You could at least think about it.”
Her perfume drifted to him, and he inhaled it deeply. Light, flowery, it seemed to fill his head with images of summer nights. Her hand on his arm felt warm and entirely too good. He didn’t dare risk a look at her. No doubt she was wearing her patented, “pouting for prizes” expression. And as much as he’d like to pretend he could easily resist it, he knew darned well it would be tough.
“Gunnery Sergeant Paretti?” A woman called out to him from off to their left.
Nick glanced her way and simply stared at the woman. Good Lord. The new Colonel’s wife. A thousand thoughts ran through his head in an instant. Would she know that he and Gina had come from the dance studio? No, he told himself. Close by, there was a theater, the Bayside Seafood Restaurant, an art gallery and a drugstore. They might have been in any of them. Nope. He was in the clear. Relaxing just a bit, he smiled and said, “Mrs. Thornton, ma’am. Good evening.”
“Hello,” she said and walked closer, smiling warmly at both Gina and him.
Gina.
Oh, man. How could he silently tell his dance partner to keep quiet about what they’d been up to?
“Mrs. Thornton, Gina Santini,” he said, unable to avoid introducing the two women.
“Nice to meet you,” Gina said.
“Thank you.” The Colonel’s wife smiled at the two of them again before saying, “My, what a lovely couple you make.”
Nick almost choked.
Gina actually chuckled.
“Taking in a movie?” The other woman asked.
Gina opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Nick said, “That’s right.”
Gina frowned up at him, but he ignored her and slipped his arm around her shoulder. If the Colonel’s wife believed he and Gina were a happy couple, then he’d just play along. It was certainly a better option than letting her know the truth.
“Well, I’m so glad I ran into the two of you,” Cecelia Thornton said.
“Ma’am?” Hurriedly, Nick tried to think of a way to get Gina and him out of there. But there was no polite way to leave the Colonel’s wife standing alone in a parking lot, so he could only hope to escape this meeting unscathed.
“As you know, we’re new on base…”
“Yes, ma’am.” He shot a glance at Gina. What was she thinking?
“The Colonel and I will be hosting a small get-together at our house in a couple of weeks for the staff NCOs and their wives. A barbecue, if the weather looks fine enough.”
Nick nodded. It was customary for a new officer to get to know the noncoms in his command.
“I look forward to it, ma’am.” He’d already heard about the coming party and had been planning on making an appearance and then leaving as soon as politely possible. Just like every other single Marine he knew. The married guys always stayed longer at these things, mainly because their wives were enjoying themselves too much to leave.
“I hope you’ll attend as Gunnery Sergeant Paretti’s guest, Gina,” the Colonel’s wife was saying, and Nick’s breath knotted in his chest. Okay, he hadn’t expected that. Maybe trying to look like a couple hadn’t been such a good idea after all.
“Well…” Gina stalled as she looked up at Nick.
Silently he attempted to tell her to say “thanks, but no thanks.” Giving her shoulder a hard squeeze, he tried to give the appearance of a solicitous boyfriend all the while, wiggling his eyebrows and scowling slightly in warning.
She knew what he wanted her to say. He could see it in her eyes. Naturally, though, she didn’t say it. Instead, she leaned into him, laid one hand on his chest and smiled at the Colonel’s wife. “Thanks so much for inviting me,” she said. “Nicky and I are looking forward to it.”
Nicky?
His mind blanked out briefly while he enjoyed the play of Gina’s fingers against his chest. Oh, she was really burying herself in the part, he thought as she cozied into him. And damn if it didn’t feel good, too.
A few more minutes passed while Gina and the Colonel’s wife chatted aimlessly. He didn’t even hear what was said. Nick’s mind whirled with thoughts of murder while he continued to play the good boyfriend.
When the other woman finally strolled off toward the drugstore, Nick grabbed Gina’s arm and turned her around to face him. “What was that all about? Didn’t you get that I was trying to tell you to say no to the invitation?”
“Of course I got it,” Gina said, and pulled away from him with a smile. “You’re not that hard to read.”
“Then why?”
“Because, Nicky,” she said, “something suddenly occurred to me.”
“Yeah…?” Oh, this didn’t bode well for him at all. She looked entirely too sure of herself.
She grinned up at him and pushed her dark-brown curls out of her eyes. Devilment shone in their chocolaty depths, and he knew he was in for it.
“You didn’t want her to know you were taking dance lessons, did you?”
Shoving his hands into his back pockets, he said shortly, “No, I didn’t.”
“That’s what I thought,” she said, nodding slowly.
“Now, why’d you agree to go the party?”
“So that I would have a good position to bargain from.”
Here it comes, he thought, and tried to brace for whatever was coming. Hell, he’d been in combat. Surely he could take whatever Gina Santini could dish out. “Bargain for what?”
“I’ll go to that party with you—” she paused and smiled “—and you’ll enter the dance contest with me.”
So much for bracing himself. “Whoa,” he said, and held up one hand. “Back up and regroup.”
She shook her head. “Excuse me? I don’t speak Marine.”
Over the roaring in his ears, he said, “Trot that past me again, slower this time.”
Now she grinned. “No problem. I don’t blow your cover with the C
olonel’s wife, and you enter the contest with me.”
“That’s blackmail,” he said, and silently congratulated himself on the even tone of his voice.
“I prefer the word extortion,” she responded, still smiling. “It sounds so much…friendlier.”
He drew his head back and stared down at the woman who’d trapped him so neatly. Oh, he hadn’t given her nearly enough credit.
“Of course,” Gina said, and her smile broadened, “you could tell Mrs. Thornton that we’ve broken up. But then I could attend the Colonel’s party on my own, since I’ve been invited, and tell every Marine there about how we met while you were taking Fred Astaire lessons.”
“Lady,” he said tightly, “why are you trying to ruin my life?”
“Don’t take it so hard, General,” she said, patting his arm. “Who knows? We might even win.”
Damn it. He was caught and he knew it. She had him over the proverbial barrel. He had to choose between being humiliated in front of strangers—or his friends. Victory was plainly written in her expression, but before he conceded defeat, he had to know something.
“Why are you so interested in that competition, anyway?” he demanded.
Gina gave him a smile that sent shock waves rippling through his body. “It’s a contest,” she said, as if that was explanation enough. Then she added with a shrug, “I like winning.”
“Okay, that works for me. I like winning, too,” he said tightly. “And, princess, I don’t often lose.”
Four
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Gina asked as she took a step back, still keeping her gaze on him.
“It means, blackmailing a Marine isn’t always the wisest course of action.”
His blue eyes narrowed into dangerous slits, and his jaw was clenched so tightly the muscle there ticked with the regularity of a heartbeat. He was trying to look intimidating. And doing a pretty darn good job of it, too. Unfortunately for him, she’d already spent three weeks in his company and she knew for a fact that no matter how angry he became, Nick Paretti remained a gentleman.
The Last Santini Virgin Page 3