Free Her Sexy Marine Valentine by Candace Havens

hadn’t thought about the fact that while I didn’t have someone telling me what to do, I did have to deal with clients. But I learned to be a team player. There are better ways to approach things that won’t make anyone feel threatened. From experience I know you guys don’t like to be wrong.”
    â€œAnd you do?” He flipped his shades to the top of his head and rolled his eyes to take the bite out of his words.
    That might work for her interior design business, but being a Marine was a little different.
    â€œListen, no boyfriend of mine is going to suck at volleyball,” she said. Then she took his hand in hers and turned his palms-up. She traced the lines there.
    Her touch instantly made him hard. How would he be able to focus now?
    â€œPlay for me . Don’t think about anything else, except this.” She kissed his palm. “Every time you score or set up a shot, I’ll blow you a kiss.”
    A slow smile spread across his face. “And what happens if I win?”
    She waggled her eyebrows. “If your team wins, I have all kinds of surprises for you,” she said suggestively.
    He barked out a laugh. “Well, when you say it like that.” He turned her hand in his and then kissed her fingers. “Thanks.”
    He ran onto the sand to start the game.
    When he glanced back at her, she blew him a kiss. Damn. He had to remind himself for the hundredth time that day that this wasn’t real. But her affect on him was.
    â€œReady to play, Marine?” the CO asked.
    â€œYes, sir.” He glanced over at her one more time and she winked at him. “I believe I am.”
    * * *
    M ARI ’ S FINGERS TINGLED from his lips.
    Better be careful . This is also a game .
    Just before he was ready to serve, he held up a hand. He ripped off his T-shirt, then ran over and handed it to her.
    â€œThanks, babe.” He kissed her lightly on the lips. He might as well have stripped her naked on the beach given her body’s reaction to him. From her head to her toes, she was a hot, needy mess.
    She’d seen his muscles under the tanks and T-shirts he sometimes wore, but it was very different seeing them up close and personal.
    It’s just for show . It’s just for show .
    â€œHow do you keep your hands off him when he does that?” Carissa asked from beside her. The other woman wasn’t being catty, it was definitely admiration Mari heard in her voice.
    She glanced around to find that she wasn’t the only one with eyes on Brody. Though there were a lot of other very fit Marines playing the game, many sets of eyes were on Brody. She couldn’t blame them—he was magnificent. “It isn’t easy,” Mari said truthfully. “But I’ve promised him, since this was a work event, that I’d behave. He said your dad doesn’t appreciate PDA.” At least, she hoped that was true.
    â€œMy Dad . Is really my uncle, and he’s always a grump,” Carissa sighed. “But he means well—most of the time.”
    Mari laughed. Carissa was probably one of the few people around the CO who could get away with saying something like that. But she wasn’t supercrazy about her eyeing Brody. True, he wasn’t really hers, but they didn’t know that. And it was wrong for her to be drooling over another girl’s man.
    â€œIf I were you, I wouldn’t be able to keep my hands off Brody. By the way, how did you guys meet?”
    â€œI don’t mind saving it for when we get home. I like to keep him happy,” Mari said, as if she meant it. “And he lives across the street.” Once again she was sticking as close to the truth as she could. “It was one of those weird moments where he ran over to help me with some stuff in my car, and then...boom. Instant chemistry. Like I told you at the grocery store, I’d recently been through a bad breakup, so I was in no rush. But well, look at him. How