Page 46 of Bad Girls Don't Marry Marines (Rock Canyon, Idaho 3)

Val shook baldy’s hand and grinned as Justin approached the table. It was the last round, and the whole time it had felt like a competition between just the two of them, with Valerie and whoever she was with at four wins to Justin’s three.

“I won!” she crowed as he sat down.

“Yeah, you’re a rock star,” he said with a smile.

“Hell yeah, I am!”

“And such a gracious winner,” he teased as Ned reset the screen.

“Hey, I grew up being told to be a winner. Don’t hate on me just because I enjoy it.”

He grabbed her hand under the table and squeezed it. “I’d never hate on you.”

Her heart jumped at the touch, and a warmth spread through her fingers and up her arm.

“All right, folks, last round. Remember, this is a teamwork exercise.” Ned looked pointedly at Val. “The category is epic love stories. In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, what is Juliet’s surname?”

Val dropped Justin’s hand abruptly and slammed down on the buzzer. Ned gave her an exasperated look. “Yes, team ten?”

“That would be Capulet!” Val said loudly.

“Correct,” Ned grumbled, and Val did a little dance in her chair.

“Do you have a search engine inserted in your brain?” Justin asked, laughing.

“Please, every girl over the age of thirteen knows Romeo and Juliet front to back.”

“All right, next question: Who directed the movie Valentine’s Day? Was it (a) Michael Bay, (b) Steven Spielberg, (c) Garry Marshall, or (d) Penny Marshall?” Ned asked.

Val hesitated and Justin whispered, “Isn’t Gary Marshall one of those directors who uses all the same actors?”

“Yeah, so?” Val whispered, just before she remembered where she’d heard his name before. “Doesn’t it have Julia Roberts in it?”

“I think—”

She slammed down on the buzzer.

“Team ten.” Ned breathed out.

“That would be . . . Garry Marshall,” Val said, holding her breath.

“Correct.”

She squealed and threw her arms around Justin’s shoulders, which were shaking with laughter. His hard arms squeezed her back, and against his ear, she said, “You are a genius.”

“Or a dork, depending on how you look at it.”

She pulled away and shook her head. “No way. I forgot that Garry Marshall has five go-to actors he uses and you remembered. You’re kind of my hero.”

“I thought I already was your hero?” he teased.

“Well, aren’t you humble?” she said, her mouth pursing as she fought a smile.

“Final question!” Ned hollered, getting everyone’s attention. The man looked frazzled and red-faced, and Val had the feeling they were the cause of his upset.

“I think we’d better stop or Ned is going to kick us out,” Val whispered in Justin’s ear as Ned went through his note cards.

“What do you mean?”