Page 80 of Bad Girls Don't Marry Marines (Rock Canyon, Idaho 3)

Val felt like a heel and was thankful when Justin patted her arm. “It’s okay. We’ll be right in.”

Val went into the living room with Fred and sat down, watching him tip back a tumbler toward his lips.

“You like football?”

“Not really.”

“It’s just because you don’t understand. Here are the rules . . .”

JUSTIN WALKED INTO the living room to tell them it was time for dinner only to hear Val yelling at the TV. “Come on, come on, hurry up you son of a—”

“What’s going on in here?” Justin asked, amused.

“Your dad is teaching me why football is awesome.”

Justin took hold of her hands and laughed when his dad stood up and winked at him. “The girl catches on quick.”

Helping her to stand as his dad passed by, Justin leaned over to whisper in her ear, “Why are you so awesome?”

“Just born that way, I guess.”

Justin led her into the dining room and sat her down across from him.

“So Valerie, you’re a dog groomer, right?” Fred aske

d.

“Yes. It’s not what I went to school for, but I really wasn’t interested in joining some big corporation.”

“Damn the man,” Everett said deeply, and they laughed.

“Maybe you can give my Australian shepherd a trim this summer. He gets these huge mats, and his coat is so heavy, I can’t imagine it’s comfortable for him,” Fred said.

“I’d loved to. Bring him by any time you want, no charge.”

“Now, now, I’ll pay whatever you charge—”

“I wouldn’t dream of it—”

“I insist—”

“If you try to pay me, I’ll give it back. I’m stubborn; ask your son.”

Justin nodded solemnly. “It’s true. The time I had just getting her to go out with me was brutal.”

Suddenly, he was hit in the forehead by a cherry tomato. His father and brother burst into surprised laughter, and Val stuck her tongue out at him.

“Man, I like you, Val. Hey, Just, can we keep her?” Everett asked.

Val stiffened but his dad saved the day by telling her about the time Everett and Justin had snuck into the kitchen to steal a piece of pie but had ended up dropping it. They’d tried to blame the dog, but their mom had had a look that could crack a walnut.

“I always said she could have worked at Quantico,” his dad said, finishing off another whiskey.

Through the meal, Justin watched Val’s easy interactions with his father and brother, telling jokes and laughing at their stories, even as his dad tipped back his fifth drink and started to slur his words.

Can we keep her?

His brother’s question still raced through his brain, and Justin knew, without the shadow of a doubt, that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Val. His mother would have called it romantic, but he wasn’t so sure Val would like his train of thought.

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