Breaking All the Rules (7 page)

Turning back to
face him, she saw he’d propped himself up on one elbow. “And if I don’t want
to?” she asked.

“Why not? It’s
not like I’m giving you a ring. It’s just dinner.”

“And then what?”

His eyes drifted
down her body pointedly. “And then we’d probably end up doing what we just
spent the last five hours doing.”

“No, I mean it
starts out as just dinner. Is that going to be it, or are you looking to see if
something develops from there?”

“Sure. Why not?”

She grimaced.
“I’m sorry. No.”

The first hint
of a frown crossed his face. “No, you won’t have dinner with me?”

“We agreed, no
dating. This”—she motioned between the two of them—“is all there’s supposed to
be between us.”

“But we’re so
good together. You really don’t want to find out if where it could go?”

“I really
don’t,” she said firmly. “This is enough for me.”

It was his turn
to be incredulous. “I know the sex is terrific, but it can’t be all you want
for the rest of your life.”

“No, someday I
want to meet the right guy and settle down.”

“Just not with
me.”

It would have
been so easy to agree and end it right there, making a clean break. It was the
kind of answer from which there was no turning back.

He looked so
wounded she couldn’t do it. “No, it’s not just you.”

“I don’t get
it.”

“You’re going to
make me say it, aren’t you?”

“I think you’re
going to have to.”

She drew in a
deep breath, already knowing how well this was going to go over. “I don’t date
guys in the military.”

He just stared
at her. “What?”

“You heard me.”

“Yeah, I was
just waiting for the version that makes sense.”

“It makes
perfect sense. I’m not interested in being in a relationship with someone who’s
in the military.”

“What do you
have against the military?”

“Nothing.”

“So it’s just
guys who are in the military?”

“I don’t have
anything against them—
you
—either. I just not interested in getting
involved with one. I know what that’s like. I don’t know if I ever told you
that my father was in the Navy all through my childhood.” He nodded. “So I know
firsthand what it’s like to be with someone who’s in the service. Dealing with
the absences, moving from place to place when he’s reassigned. I spent most of
my childhood living that life and I don’t want to spend the rest of it doing
that. Your life isn’t your own, and mine finally is. I don’t want to lose that
again, so I made a decision a long time ago that I would never get serious with
someone serving in the military. I’m sorry.”

Bobby scratched
the back of his neck. His chest muscles rippled just out of her peripheral
vision, and she had to struggle to keep her eyes on his face. “Yeah, I’m sorry
too.”

“I mean, it was
fine when we were just casual and nothing was ever supposed to come of it. But
there’s really no point in us dating if there’s no future.”

“I guess not.”

They lapsed into
a long, uncomfortable silence, neither quite looking at the other. She wanted
to suggest that everything stay exactly the way it was. She didn’t want to lose
him. At the same time, it was obvious they’d gone too far for that. Something
had changed between them, and there was no turning back from that.

Still, she’d
give anything for him to say they could.

Bobby broke the
silence by sitting upright and shoving his legs off the side of the bed. “Maybe
I should go.”

Even though he
wasn’t looking at her, Nina tried to keep the disappointment from her face.
“Maybe you should,” she agreed softly.

He’d left all
his clothes in the living room, the bathroom, and the hallway, so there was
nothing for him to pull on. He didn’t reach for a sheet as she had, rising and
standing nude with a complete lack of self-consciousness. This time she didn’t
bother to avert her gaze. If this was the last glimpse she had of his
magnificent body, she wasn’t going to waste it.

He was amazing.
She took in the wide shoulders, the muscled back, and the tapered waist
trailing into two tight, firm buttocks that flexed slightly as he moved. Boy,
the man had a great ass. Her gaze was lingering there when he turned, leaving
her staring at the thick cock swinging low between his massive thighs. She
lifted her eyes quickly, or at least she tried. They seemed to want to remain
there, then on the hard ridges of his stomach, then the solid pecs dotted with
two perfect male nipples. Every moment of pleasure this body had provided her
came flooding back. It was impossible to believe she’d never feel it pressed up
against her again.

Finally she
managed to look him in the eye. Something shined there that made her shudder, a
steely glint of purpose. One corner of his mouth slowly quirked.

“Then again, I
might just have to change your mind.”

Her insides
seemed to have turned to goo, but she dredged up her most serious voice. “I
won’t,” she said, her tone hard as granite. There was nothing there to give him
even the slightest hope.

The other side
of his mouth shifted into a full-blown smile. “We’ll see,” was all he said as
he turned and strode from the room.

Nina’s eyes
automatically lowered to take in that butt of his, knowing she was watching it
walk out of her life for the last time.

In spite of his
words, as long as he wanted a relationship, that was how it had to be.

Chapter Three

After a few
restless hours of tossing and turning, Nina gave up on trying to get any sleep.
It wasn’t happening. She’d changed the sheets on the bed after Bobby left, but
it didn’t matter. His smell—that masculine scent that was uniquely and distinctively
his—still clung to the mattress, still filled the air in her room. Every time
she inhaled she breathed it in. Breathed
him
in. Bobby. And every time
she felt a jolt low in her belly, the ache heavy and unrelenting.

Normally she
basked in the way the scent lingered long after he left. It reminded her of all
the good times they’d shared—and made her hungry for when he’d return. In the
past she’d clung to it until it finally faded away, probably still imagining it
long after it was gone.

Now it felt like
she was choking on it. They hadn’t had nearly enough time to satisfy all the
pent-up energy and need she had for him before he’d gone and ruined it. Now
every whiff of him seemed cruelly tantalizing, reminding her of what she’d
never have again.

Leaving the
bedroom wasn’t enough. The rest of the apartment was too imprinted with
memories of him, of everything she’d done with him in every inch of the place
over the years, not to mention the damn scent.

Geez, Nina,
you couldn’t have moved sometime in the last three years? You had to stay put
in a place where you’ve been naked with the guy in every room, on pretty much
every surface?

She needed to
get out of her apartment, as far from the memories as she could get.

She needed to
smell something comforting and warm and sweet.

Fortunately
there was someplace she could go.

It was still the
middle of the night when she arrived at the shop, several hours earlier than
she normally did. The sight of the place instantly relaxed her a little. Making
her way inside, she left the lights off in the front and moved to the kitchen,
stopping just inside the doorway. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply,
pulling the smells of the place into her lungs—and her heart and soul.

Perfect
.

Her mind
cleared, every thought that had been dogging her for the past few hours
floating away. She didn’t think. She just breathed. The lingering scent of
baked goods, of cupcakes and cookies and numerous treats she’d created herself,
filled the room. It smelled familiar and reassuring and wonderful. The uneasy
churning in her gut receded, everything inside her going completely, blessedly,
still.

Ever since she
was a little girl baking with her mother, the smells of the kitchen had felt
like home to her. No matter where they moved in the world, those smells were
the one constant that told her she was home. Just as they did now.

Opening her
eyes, Nina finally flipped the lights on. She let her eyes drift over the
space, taking it all in. In the past three years she’d spent more time here
than in her apartment. That probably wasn’t unusual; she figured a lot of
people spent more time at work than they did at home. The difference was how
comfortable she was here, how much it had come to feel like home, as much so as
her apartment.

Growing up, she’d
wanted a place like this, a place that was permanent, a place that was hers.
And it was—hers and Ashley’s. They’d built it together, creating it from the
ground up. They’d painted the walls. They’d chosen the appliances. They’d
planned the layout. Every inch of the place was ingrained with their sweat and
hopes and dreams—dreams they’d made a reality. No matter what, she could tell
herself she had this place.

She quickly hung
up her jacket and her bag on the hook inside the door and moved toward the sink
to wash her hands and get started. Baking had always made her feel better. She
was counting on it working for her now.

BY THE TIME
ASHLEY ARRIVED a few hours later, Nina was in a much better mood. At least
until she told Ash the details of what had happened with Bobby.

Her supposed
friend stared at her with a combination of dismay and disbelief that said it
all before she even opened her mouth. “You’re crazy.”

“Thanks for your
support.”

“Let’s see…An
amazingly hot guy who has repeatedly given you the best sex of your life wants
to date you. For some insane reason, you say no. Why the hell would I support
that?”

“Because you’re
my friend and you’re supposed to support my decisions even if you don’t agree
with them.”

“I don’t think
that’s true. I certainly haven’t seen it written down anywhere.”

“Guess I’ll have
to get you a new copy of the friend handbook,” Nina muttered.

“Seriously,
Nina. This is a man who not only is unafraid of commitment, he’s actively
pursuing it. We both know men like that aren’t exactly a common breed. Most
women would be jumping for joy.”

“And those women
can now jump for joy that he’s still on the market. They are welcome to him. I
can verify he can make them happy in so many ways.” Memories of last night
brought a wistful smile to her face—and a sharp pain in her chest. “Many, many
ways.”

“So why don’t
you want him?”

“He’s not my
type.”

“Give me a
break. You jump his bones every time he’s in town, but he’s not your type?”

“He’s a great
guy to have some fun with, but even if I was looking for a serious relationship
at the moment, which I’m not, he’s not what I would be looking for.”

Ashley lifted
her hand and started ticking off on her fingers. “He’s steaming hot. He’s
funny. He’s crazy about you. He’s—”

“A Marine.”

“What’s wrong
with that?”

Nina was glad
Jackie hadn’t arrived yet to overhear. “I’m not interested in getting serious
with a guy who’s actively in the military. It’s a rule I’ve always had, and I
never would have had anything to do with Bobby at all if I thought he would ever
want to pursue anything more serious than the casual arrangement we have now.”

“Why not? Wasn’t
your dad in the Navy?”

“Exactly. So I
know what it’s like to be a military wife. You don’t just marry the man, you
marry the military. It’s just as much as part of the wife’s life as it is the
husband’s. When I do get married, I want to marry a man, not an organization.
It’s just not a lifestyle I want.”

“Who said
anything about marriage? He just wants to date you.”

“And for the
last three years, all he’s wanted was sex. That changed, so the dating probably
will too. Besides, what’s the point in dating if it’s not going to go
anywhere?”

“It would give
you time to come to your senses by the time it does go somewhere.”

“I’m in perfect
control of my senses. I’ve always known exactly what I wanted from my life,
both personally and professionally. And I know that I don’t want to get
involved with a sailor or a soldier—or a Marine,” she added. “Case closed.”

“You’re really
going to throw away the chance at something special just because you don’t like
one little thing about him?”

“It’s not one
little thing. It’s an integral part of who he is, and one that tells me it’s
not meant to be. Everybody has someone who’s right for them, and Bobby’s not
right for me.”

Ashley opened
her mouth to say something more. Nina held a hand up to stop her before she had
the chance. “I can’t talk about this anymore. I’ve spent too much time thinking
about it—”

“Which you
wouldn’t have done if you didn’t have some doubts,” Ashley interjected.

“—And I need to
move on,” Nina continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “As you can tell, I got an
early start on things.” She pointed toward a tray at the edge of the counter,
the cupcakes perfectly iced and ready to go. “Do you want to start filling the
display cases?”

For a moment,
Nina wasn’t sure Ash was going to let her off the hook. They stood there in a
silent standoff, staring at each other. From the furious twist to Ashley’s
mouth, Nina was sure she was going to say something more. She steeled herself
for more of an argument.

In the end,
something in her face must have convinced Ashley there was no point. She turned
away with a small shake of her head, picked up the tray, and swept out of the
kitchen.

Nina exhaled
slowly once she was gone, closing her eyes for a brief moment before getting
back to work. She’d made the right decision. She knew it.