Out Of Her League Read Online Free PDF Page A

better than it looked, the beef tender, the potatoes aromatic with garlic and rosemary. Man, he could get used to this. “I was raised in Charleston, but born in Montreal.”
    “So how come you ended up in Vancouver?”
    With his attention riveted on her fork as it slipped between her lips, he lost the thread of conversation. God, she had a sexy mouth. Realizing she was staring at him expectantly, he struggled to remember what she'd asked him and cleared his throat. “Right after I left the Marines I moved here to live with Nate and his family. He's kind of like my surrogate father, heads up the serious crimes unit for the force.”
    She glanced up from her plate. “And you knew him because... ?”
    Rayne leaned back in his chair, smiling at her curiosity. She seemed genuinely interested. “Nate did a tour in Beirut and became best pals with my dad. While I was a teenager, I used to come out here to spend the summers with Nate's family. They've got a beach house down on the Oregon Coast they still let me use. And since I'm a dual citizen it was easy enough to move to Vancouver when my enlistment was up.” He savored another bite of meat. “This is amazing, by the way.”
    “Thanks.” Her smile made her eyes shine like aquamarines. “So your dad was a soldier?”
    Rayne shook his head, swallowed the mouthful. “A Navy SEAL.”
    Her eyes widened. “Really?”
    “Yep. He's a real-life professional ass-kicker.” In spite of all the bad history between them, he couldn't keep the pride out of his voice.
    “That must have been some tough act to follow. Is that why you joined the Marines?”
    He had to laugh. “No. Dad didn't want me in the service at all, but the summer I turned eighteen I was kind of a handful and piled my mom's car into a bus stop after I'd been out drinking with some friends, and I knew there was gonna to be hell to pay. My parents split up when I was eight, so when I woke up the next morning and saw my dad standing in the doorway, I knew I was in deep shit. He'd flown in from Louisiana that morning to kick my ass. He took one look at me and said, ‘Downstairs. Ten minutes.’ Don't think I'd ever moved so fast.” Now, he could chuckle at the memory. “He handed me a packed duffel bag, made me apologize to my mom and then told me to get in the car. Drove me straight to Parris Island without another word.”
    Christa stared at him, her fork frozen halfway to her mouth. “That's pretty harsh, Rayne.” Her head tilted as she considered him. “And you stayed there? No arguments?”
    He nearly laughed at the idea of taking on his father, verbally or otherwise. “Oh, I stayed all right. Nobody argues with my dad, Chris, not even me when I was dumb and eighteen. I've got three inches and twenty pounds on him, but believe me I still wouldn't mess with him.” He reached across the table and helped himself to another Yorkshire and gravy. “In the end I guess he figured a stint in the Corps would straighten me out. He never imagined I'd end up following in Nate's footsteps, become a tactical officer once I was out.”
    Her pale eyes gleamed in the flickering candlelight. “He must be proud of you.”
    “I couldn't say.” Honestly, he didn't care one way or the other. “He came to my Marine Corps graduation, though, and when I marched onto the parade ground there he was, decked out in his dress whites with about six pounds of medals decorating his chest. I went up and saluted him in my uniform, feeling all macho, and after he saluted back the son of a bitch actually handed me his Trident— that's the pin the SEALs wear. God, I had goose bumps about an inch high all over me.” He'd never admit it to his old man, but he always carried it in his fatigues when he went on an operation. Like a talisman or something.
    Christa set down her fork and propped her chin in one hand. “Sounds like you admire him a lot.”
    Man, she had no clue how beautiful she was. “I did, once.”
    “Oh. You don't