A man born
to protect
After a
major loss, Brody Carter found a home with the London office of McKay-Taggart.
A former soldier, he believes his job is to take the bullets and follow orders.
He’s happy to take on the job of protecting Dr. Stephanie Gibson while the team
uses her clinic in Sierra Leone to bring down an international criminal. What
he never expected was that the young doctor would prove to be the woman of his
dreams. She’s beautiful, smart, and reckless. Over and over he watches her risk
her life to save others. One night of pure passion leads him to realize that he
can’t risk his heart again. When the mission ends, Brody walks away, unwilling
to lose another person he loves.
A woman
driven to heal
Stephanie’s
tragic past taught her to live for today. Everything she’s done in the last
fifteen years has been to make up for her mistakes. Offering medical care in
war-torn regions gives her the purpose she needs to carry on. When she meets
her gorgeous Aussie protector, she knows she’s in too deep, but nothing can
stop her from falling head over heels in love. But after one amazing night
together, Brody walks away and never looks back. Stephanie is left behind…but
not alone.
A secret
that will change both their lives
A year
later, Stephanie runs afoul of an evil mercenary who vows to kill her for failing
to save his son. She runs to the only people she trusts, Liam and Avery
O’Donnell. She hasn’t come alone and her secret will bring her former lover
across the world to protect her. From Liberia to Dallas to Australia’s outback,
Brody will do whatever it takes to protect Stephanie from the man who wants to
kill her, but it might be her own personal demons that could destroy them both.
The door slammed and she suddenly
found herself with her back against it. Brody crowded in, taking up all the
space and staring down at her. His body brushed hers and she found both her
wrists captured in one of his. He dragged them over her head, forcing her chest
to come out, breasts skimming along his body. “I shouldn’t do this.”
Tough chick was winning. Steph let
her take over. It was surely better than the desperate girl who lived inside
her. She kept asking for love and affection and getting swatted away. This was
the next best thing, possibly the only thing she would ever get. “Then don’t.
Let me go and I won’t bother you again.”
“No, you’ll go find Ezra Fain and
bother him,” Brody said on a growl.
“Somehow, I don’t think he’ll find
me a bother.” She’d barely spoken two words to the man, but she wasn’t going to
admit it. It was better to let Brody think she wasn’t a love-starved girl.
“He won’t fucking find you anything
at all. If you’re determined to not sleep alone tonight, you can damn well do
it with me.” His mouth came down on hers and every inch of her skin came alive.
His kiss was overwhelming, hungry. There was no slow meshing of mouths. He took
her, his tongue surging inside and dominating her own. He let go of her hands
and started to explore her body. His hands were on her hips when he came up for
air. “I’m leaving in the morning. I’m going back to London and I can’t come
back.”
She’d known that would probably be
his answer. She’d known he wouldn’t want to stay and she couldn’t leave.
“One night. That’s all I want.” It
was all she could have. It had been foolish to think it could be any different.
His mouth came down on hers again
and she let herself get swept away. One night and her life would go back to
normal. One night and then she would be alone again. His hands started to roam
over her and she tried to forget all the reasons why this was a bad idea.
He stepped back, his entire body
set in hard lines. He strode over to the bed and sat down. “Take off the gown.
It’s pretty, but I want to see you.”
She hesitated, all her insecurities
coming to the forefront. Somehow, she’d thought he would simply take her. “Let
me get the lights.”
He was back in her space again, his
hand wrapping around her wrist. “I didn’t say turn off the lights. I said take
off the gown. How am I going to see you if you turn off the lights?”
“Brody,” she began.
He was having none of it. “You got
on your knees in front of me and you said you knew what you were offering me.
The first thing you were offering me was obedience. The second was your body.
You’re giving me neither right now.”
His voice had gone midnight dark
and something about the tone made her soften. He was right. She did know what
she’d offered him and now she was trying to have it all her way.
There was nothing wrong with her
body. It was feminine and she was healthy. What was she afraid of? “All right.”
He let go of her wrist and sat back
down, looking like a damn king waiting on his concubine’s performance. For all
his “I’m nothing but a grunt” talk, the man could be incredibly arrogant, and
damn if she didn’t find it sexy as hell.
Something about that voice let her
know that everything was going to be fine. He was past the point of rejection.
He was in and that meant he would play her Dom for the night. He would take
care of her. She was as safe with him in the bedroom as she’d been in the
field.
At least she was safe for the
night. In the morning she would be in a world of hurt, but she wasn’t thinking
past tonight.
I have been curious about Stephanie's story since she was introduced in Avery & Liam's book. Well, her story was everything I'd hoped for and more. She was such a strong woman and made something of herself, despite mistakes she made in her youth. She was told by Avery that she owes her two lives. Well, Stephanie dedicated her life to saving lives. Brody protected Stephanie and they ended up falling for each other, but Brody left when his mission was up. What he didn't realize was he was leaving a piece of himself behind. A year later, Stephanie's life was being threatened so she went to Liam and Avery for help. Brody didn't like that, and he went to protect her. Their love was not an easy love and they had to work to find their way. This book had everything you'd expect from this series: love, humor, family, steamy sex, and intrigue. I really can't say enough good things about this book and highly recommend it.
NY Times and USA Today bestselling author Lexi Blake lives in North Texas with her husband, three kids, and the laziest rescue dog int eh world. She began writing at a young age, concentrating on plays and journalism. It wasn’t until she started writing romance and urban fantasy that she found the stories of her heart. She likes to find humor in the strangest places and believes in happy endings no matter how odd the couple, threesome, or foursome may seem.
Juliana O’Neil’s promising future was burned away in the heat of battle. She had been an officer with a bright future in the military, but now she is struggling to survive. Her husband gone and her career in shambles, she finds a job at Top as a hostess and tries to put together the pieces of her life. The last thing she needs is any kind of male attention, but she can’t help but be amused at her neighbor and coworker’s lothario antics. Not that she would have anything to do with him, at least not for more than one night.
Javier Leones doesn’t understand monogamy. No woman could ever be enough for his endless libido, but he has to admit Juliana has his attention. For reasons he doesn’t fully understand, he can’t seem to get the gorgeous redhead with the sad eyes out of his head. After one scorching night together, he realizes he’ll never be able to get her out of his system. But with his reputation, he fears she’ll never see him as more than a one-night stand.
When their passions collide, these new lovers will be forced to confront Juliana’s past and come to terms with Javier’s present. Will they find their way or will this reservation be canceled at the last minute?
EXCERPT: 
About Kristen Proby:
Kristen was born and raised in a small resort town in her beloved Montana. In her mid-twenties, she decided to stretch her wings and move to the Pacific Northwest, where she made her home for more than a dozen years.
During that time, Kristen wrote many romance novels and joined organizations such as RWA and other small writing groups. She spent countless hours in workshops, and more mornings than she can count up before the dawn so she could write before going to work. She submitted many manuscripts to agents and editors alike, but was always told no. In the summer of 2012, the self-publishing scene was new and thriving, and Kristen had one goal: to publish just one book. It was something she longed to cross off of her bucket list.
Not only did she publish one book, she’s since published close to thirty titles, many of which have hit the USA Today, New York Times and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers lists. She continues to self publish, best known for her With Me In Seattle and Boudreaux series, and is also proud to work with William Morrow, a division of HarperCollins, with the Fusion Series.
Kristen and her husband, John, make their home in her hometown of Whitefish, Montana with their two pugs and two cats.
