Breaking All the Rules (10 page)

“Arrow.” The
nickname was both a reference to his last name and that fact that Archer was
straight as one. He was one of the most upright, steadfast men Bobby had ever
met, and he’d known plenty of them.

Archer grunted.
“Guess it’s your turn to check on me, huh?”

Bobby
automatically started to shake his head. “It’s not like that—”

“So it’s just a
coincidence Davis was here two days ago, and Mac the day before that?”

Bobby shrugged.
“You can’t be surprised we’d want to see you, find out how you’re doing.”

“Uh huh.” The
grim look Archer gave him said how much be believed that—or appreciated the
concern.

“No conspiracy.
I would have come sooner, but the past few days have been kind of crazy.”

The corners of
Archer’s mouth twitched in the first traces of a smile. “Yeah, Mac said you
were going to see your girl.” He glanced down at Bobby’s chest and smirked.
“Good to see you remembered how to button your shirt again.”

It was all Bobby
could do not to grin. That was the Arrow he knew, the one able and willing to
bust his chops in that slow, sly tone. It was good to know that, for everything
that was different for him, he hadn’t changed that much.

“Sorry about
that. I know you could use a thrill these days.”

Archer snorted.
“If I wanted to know what a man’s chest looks like, I’d just check myself out
in a mirror. I might be a gimp but I still look a hell of a lot better than
you.”

“In your dreams,
buddy.” Bobby held up the case of bottles in his right hand. “I brought beer. I
know it’s early—”

“Nah, it’s never
too early these days.” Archer finally pushed the door open and stepped out of
the way. “Come in.”

As soon as Bobby
crossed the threshold, Archer pushed the door shut and motioned in front of him
with a jerk of his shoulder. “In here.”

He turned to
lead the way. Bobby hesitated a beat before following, his gaze automatically
lowering to watch Archer walk. The hitch in his step was unmistakable, the way
he leaned heavily on the left, the right dragging a little. But he was walking
pretty damn well six months later, and Bobby had to believe he would only get
better.

Knowing Archer
would hate it if he knew Bobby was paying attention, Bobby jerked his eyes up
and quickly followed him into what was obviously the living room. He stopped
just inside the entrance to the room to take it in. Damn. Mac had said the
place was sad. Bobby just hadn’t really understood what he’d meant.

The place was neat,
no clutter anywhere, nothing out of place. Mostly because there wasn’t much
here. A TV hung on the wall, the muted images on the screen displaying sports
highlights. Angled in front of it was a leather recliner with a small table
next to it. On the other side of the table a folding chair was set up, probably
to accommodate the guests Archer had had recently. The only other piece of
furniture was a bookcase on one wall. There weren’t any pictures on the walls
or any of the shelves that Bobby could see.

The place seemed
so empty. If Bobby hadn’t known better, he would have thought Archer had moved
in today. Even his and Mac’s apartment wasn’t this bleak. They might not spend
a ton of time there, but at least they had enough furniture to make it feel like
someplace people actually lived. Of course, part of that was Mac wanting the
place to look decent in case he brought a woman back, but even so.

Archer evidently
hadn’t even put that into consideration. He’d never married. Bobby remembered
him seeing a few women, but nothing too serious. Hell, Bobby knew firsthand how
difficult it could be starting any kind of relationship when they were gone as
long and as often as they were. Still, it had never struck Bobby as sad the way
it did standing here in Archer’s living room. The guy really did seem alone.

“Have a seat,”
Archer said, nodding to the folding chair.

“Thanks.” Trying
not to let his thoughts show, he raised the carrying case. “Should I put these
somewhere…?”

“They cold?”

“Cold enough.”

“Might as well
start cracking them open then,” Archer said. He held out his hand. Bobby pulled
a bottle from the case and gave it to him, taking one for himself before
setting the carrier on the floor. He’d limit himself to just the one to make
sure he was able to drive out of here in a few hours.

Lowering himself
onto the folding chair, Bobby popped the cap off the bottle. “So what are you
up to these days?”

“Finishing up PT
mostly.”

“How’s that
going?”

“Fine. They say
I should be back to seventy-five percent of what I was by the time we’re done.”
The disdain in his voice made it clear how impressed he was.

“That’s great,”
Bobby said, having no trouble making up for Archer’s lack of enthusiasm.

“If you say so.
That’s about it. PT and trying to figure out what to do next.”

“Any ideas on
that front?”

Arrow took a
slow pull from his bottle before finally muttering. “Mills offered me a job
with the security firm he’s working for.”

Bobby knew Jon
Mills. He was another Marine they’d served with, one who seemed to be doing
well in civilian life. “That’s great. You going to take it?”

“I’m thinking
about it,” Archer said roughly. “Depends what kind of shape I end up in, what
they have in mind for me, what I can do.”

“Sounds like a
great opportunity, and I’m sure you’ll be making a hell of a lot more. You
should be psyched.”

“I guess,”
Archer said, sounding more like he was talking about facing a death sentence.
“It’s not what I ever thought I’d be doing, some kind of corporate stiff doing
private security jobs, but I guess I’ve got to take what I can get. A Marine’s
the only thing I ever wanted to be. Now what do I have?”

Bobby’s heart
sank at the desolation he could hear in Archer’s voice. He knew better than to
say Archer had his life, which was more than some of the guys they’d known had
right now. It wouldn’t make him feel better, and it would sound condescending
as shit. Sitting in the emptiness of Archer’s apartment, it was kind of hard
not to agree with him. It did seem like he had nothing. Sure, he had the rest
of his life to build something, whatever he decided he wanted to do. But that
probably wouldn’t make it any easier for him now.

Before Bobby
could figure out what to say, Archer shook his head with a grunt. “Sorry to
bitch. I don’t have anyone to blame but myself. I mean, I knew I could get
hurt. I should have thought more about what I would do if it happened, if I had
to do something else. But I didn’t.”

“Nobody wants to
think about that,” Bobby murmured. They’d all made arrangements in case they
were killed, but getting hurt was somehow worse. Death was final, but an injury
was a lot more uncertain. There were a million ways it could happen, a million
different outcomes and ways it could play out afterward. Bobby hadn’t let
himself think about it. It couldn’t do him any good, and could only get in the
way of doing the job they all had to do.

“What about
you?” Archer said. “You thought about what you’re going to do after you leave
the service?”

The words
blindsided him. Bobby froze, the bottle raised halfway to his mouth. “Not
really,” he admitted.

“You should,”
Archer said flatly. “Take it from me. Doesn’t matter if you’re not planning on
it happening for a long time. Even if it comes by choice instead of having it
forced on you, that day will come sooner than you expect. Better to have some
idea what you want and what you’re going to do than find yourself out in the
cold without a clue.”

Bobby took a
pull from his beer, suddenly needing it in the face of Archer’s sobering
reminder. He was right, of course. It was something Bobby needed to consider.
The truth was, he’d never even thought he’d be a career Marine. When he’d
originally enlisted it was to eventually be able to pay for college and because
he hadn’t had any other direction in his life at the time. He’d reenlisted over
the years because he loved it. He knew there was a job to be done, and it was
important to him to keep doing it as long as he was still needed and could be
of service. But he’d known it wouldn’t last forever. It was getting tougher for
Marines to reenlist, and though he was still in prime shape now, he knew his
body wouldn’t hold up forever and remain in the kind of condition necessary to
do the job the way it needed to be done. He wanted to be on the ground, in the
thick of things. When he couldn’t be, it would be time to move on. But he’d
never much thought about when that would be, staying focused more on today.

Suddenly he
couldn’t think of anything else, his whole future staring him in the face, more
terrifying and uncertain than any firefight he’d ever been in.

Out of that
stark unknown, one thing suddenly came to mind. He may not know anything else,
but there was one thing he was sure of beyond a single doubt that he wanted as
part of his future.

Nina.

Rock-hard
certainty gripped him and held tight. He was wrong. The truth was, he
had
been thinking a lot about the future recently. And everything he’d thought
about had involved her. Whatever else happened in his future, he wanted her in
it.

He just had convince
her to let him be part of hers.

WHEN HE LEFT
ARCHER’S later that afternoon, Bobby picked up his phone and dialed a number
he'd programmed earlier.

The call was
answered on the second ring. “Good afternoon. Sweet Sensations Bakeshop.”

He recognized
the voice of Nina's friend Ashley. “Hi, could I speak to Nina, please?”

“I'm sorry,
she's not in right now. Is there something I can help you with?”

He grinned. It
was the answer he'd been hoping for. Nina had told him she often made
deliveries in the afternoon. Which meant he should be able to talk to Ashley
alone. “No, that's all right. I'll try back later. Thanks.” Ending the call, he
headed for the bakeshop.

Two women were
in the parking lot when he arrived, standing beside a tiny car. The blonde was
Ashley. The other woman had light brown hair and looked very young—and very
pregnant. In her arms she held a vase full of flowers.

Bobby had no
trouble recognizing them as red roses. He had a feeling he knew exactly where
they’d come from. He shook his head with a reluctant grin. Evidently flowers
really weren’t the way to go to win Nina over. He really did need some help,
which was exactly why he was here.

He pulled into a
space next to the women and parked. Both of them looked up as he climbed out of
his car. “Hey there,” he said, offering his best smile.

“Hi,” Ashley
said. Bobby could see she recognized him. She studied him thoughtfully, no
doubt wondering what he was doing here. The younger woman’s expression was open
and friendly as she echoed the greeting.

“Nice flowers,”
he said with a nod to the vase in her arms.

She
automatically glanced down at the roses, her smile deepening. “Thank you. They
are, aren’t they?” A hint of color entered her cheeks, the pleasure on her face
unmistakable as she took in the flowers. In an instant, Bobby knew that, no matter
how they’d ended up in her hands, he was glad they had.

“I think they’ll
be fine in the back seat,” Ashley told her. “At least if we put them on the
floor. Are you sure you’ll be able to get them back out?”

“I bet I can get
one of the neighbor kids to help me lift them out. Sometimes they help me with
my groceries.”

Bobby fought a
frown. That seemed like something the father of her baby should be helping her
with. He couldn’t help wondering where the guy was.

“Great,” Ashley
said. Taking the vase from the younger woman, she slowly eased it onto the
floor between the front and back seats. Once she had it stabilized, she stood
up and closed the door. “There you go. All set.”

“Thanks, Ash.
Have a good night!”

“You too. See
you tomorrow.”

Bobby and Ashley
watched the young woman climb into the driver’s seat, the process slow and
careful as she gently eased herself behind the wheel. For a second, Bobby
wasn’t entirely convinced she was going to fit. An instant later, she swung her
legs into the vehicle, her belly sliding in right in front of the wheel. Perfect
fit.

Ashley shut the
door behind her. The younger woman started the car, and with one final wave,
backed out of the space.

“Is she okay to
be driving by herself?” he asked as the car disappeared down the street.

“She says she
is. Nina and I worry about her, but Jackie’s used to doing things on her own by
now, and it’s not really our place to doubt her.”

“Where’s the
father?”

“Overseas.” She
shot a look at him. “He’s a Navy SEAL.”

“Ah.” So the guy
had a good reason not to be around right now. Although he wondered if Nina felt
the same way. Chances were, the young woman was a daily reminder of exactly why
Nina thought she didn’t want to date anyone in the military. He suspected that
wasn’t exactly going to help his case any.

Folding her arms
across her chest, Ashley cocked her head. “I’m sure you can guess that those
were your flowers.”

Bobby shrugged.
“They’re hers now.”

“And you’re okay
with that?”

“I would never
begrudge a pretty lady some flowers. At least it looks like she’ll enjoy them.”

Her eyes
narrowed slightly, her gaze appraising, as though she was trying to decide
whether she believed him. “Nina’s not here, if you’re looking for her.”

Bobby cracked a
grin. “I know. I called ahead.”

“Then what are
you doing here?”

“I came to see
you.”

She arched a
brow. “Me?”

“Yep. Look, I
don’t know how much Nina’s told you about us...”