Caught by Menace by Lolita Lopez Page B

because it’s close to friends who have taken
    wives. I thought it would be good for you to have
    support nearby.”
    His consideration touched her. Even before he’d taken
    a wife, he’d put thought into how to make her transition
    to this new and scary life easier. “What made you decide
    to enter the Grab now? Earlier you said you’d been a
    soldier for twenty-four years. Why not do it earlier? Did
    you not have enough points?”
    “I had the points.” He drank some juice. “I’ve had
    enough points for years, but we were on the front lines
    for so long. Fighting in the field for months on end isn’t
    conducive to building a new relationship. It’s one of the
    reasons why they rotated our battle group out here. It’s
    stil dangerous but it’s much quieter. It’s our reward for
    fighting in the very worst battles of the war.” He suddenly
    fighting in the very worst battles of the war.” He suddenly
    had a far-off look. “There were battles where less than
    twenty percent of our forces returned. It was more than
    the enemy, but just barely.”
    Naya tried to reconcile those figures. To go into battle
    knowing that only twenty out of one hundred men would
    survive must have been harrowing. Menace had been
    one of those lucky ones. Of course, she wasn’t so sure if
    lucky was the right word for surviving an experience like
    that.
    “I was happy living my single life. I didn’t realy see a
    reason to change anything until Halie.”
    She remembered the woman’s name from earlier.
    “Your friend’s wife?”
    “Vicious,” he said. “He’s a general and the highest-
    ranking member of the land corps in this sector.”
    “So he’s your boss?”
    Menace nodded. “He’s a good one. There isn’t a man
    I’d trust more with my life. Wel,” he hesitated, “maybe
    Terror. He’s just as honorable and brave. The three of us
    were raised together at the academy and fought side by
    side in the worst of it.” He took another drink. “I never
    thought Vicious would take a wife, but he found Halie
    thought Vicious would take a wife, but he found Halie
    down there in Harper’s Wel and his whole life changed.
    In a good way,” he added. “I grew envious of his
    happiness and thought, why not me? Why shouldn’t I
    take my reward?”
    Naya tried to process the idea that he considered her
    his greatest reward. “Menace,” she said gently, “you
    shouldn’t put so much stock in me. I don’t want you to
    be disappointed.”
    His gaze snapped to her face. “How in the world
    could I ever be disappointed in you?”
    She blew out a noisy breath. “I’m a nobody. I’m
    nothing, okay? I’m just some poor kid who never
    finished school. I’m not the kind of person most men
    would consider worthy of being deemed a reward.”
    “Don’t say that.” Menace looked irritated. “You’re a
    survivor. You had a successful business. You showed
    loyalty and honor during the Grab. You’re a good
    person.”
    “You don’t know me.” She dropped her gaze to the
    plate of half-eaten food. “I’ve done things that you would
    not understand.”
    “Look at me.” She didn’t dare refuse him. His gaze
    burned her skin. “We al have a past, Naya. I don’t much
    care about yours. It’s done. It can’t be changed. Let’s
    leave it where it belongs.”
    “You make it sound so easy. In my experience, the
    past has an ugly way of finding its way right back into the
    present.”
    “If it does, we’l deal with it.” He spoke with such
    definitive finality.
    She arched an eyebrow. “Just like that?”
    He nodded. “Just like that.”
    She marveled at his certainty.
    Menace reached for an orange. “What’s that look?”
    She shrugged and picked up the last bit of bacon on
    her plate. “I was thinking about how nice it would be to
    have an ounce of your arrogance.”
    Menace laughed and sat back in his chair. “It’s a
    cultural thing, apparently. At least, that’s what Halie is
    always teling me.” He