The interview ended, and Chloe took the stage with her band. He blew out a quick huff of relief and went back to stand next to Rafe. Jake couldn’t even bring himself to scowl. As Chloe sang a song about a romance that flew to the skies, he knew he’d crashed hard into love. A smile spread across his face, filled with a fullness he never thought he’d feel again.
Epilogue
Rafe’s gut twisted as Jake sat next to Chloe and endured the interview. He never thought he’d see his friend emerge from the dark place he’d camped in since the mission. He hated when thoughts of that mission sprang up on him.
His hands trembled with the memory of taking a life much too young to be holding a rifle in battle. He shoved them into his pockets and rocked back on his heels. No use thinking about that right now.
He laughed as the spunky host hit on Jake. If Jake could put his beasts to rest and grab hold of life, could Rafe?
He peeked at Piper. She had her fingers over her cheeks, a beautiful smile stretched across her face. Her very being encompassed joy and innocence. He tore his gaze away.
Davis would kill Rafe if he knew the thoughts threading through his brain. Friends didn’t cross that dating-sisters line. Rafe shook his head. What was he thinking?
He gazed back over at the interview, his stomach knotting. He wasn’t like Jake.
Jake was a hero, taking a bullet for his friend and almost losing his life.
Rafe was nothing more than a child killer.
He closed his eyes, springing them open when all he saw was that adolescent boy he’d had to kill in the rescue mission that had gone wrong. No. Rafe deserved nothing but the false facade he put on to stop others from asking.
He chanced another glance at Piper. He definitely didn’t deserve someone as pure and unsullied as Piper.
Rafe swallowed. He’d keep her safe until they could figure out who stalked her. Then he’d go back to his life at the ranch where he could bury himself in work and keep the jokester mask firmly in place.
Will Rafe be able to push aside his regrets and accept Piper’s love, or will the hauntings of his past leave her brokenhearted again? Find out in Discovering Rafe, the fifth book in the Stryker Security Force series.
Also by Sara Blackard
Vestige in Time Series
Vestige of Power
Vestige of Hope
Vestige of Legacy
Vestige of Courage
* * *
Stryker Security Force Series
Mission Out of Control
Falling For Zeke
Capturing Sosimo
Celebrating Tina
Crashing Into Jake
Discovering Rafe
It was a mission like any other ... until it blew apart around them.
When the Army's Special Ops team is tasked with infiltrating the Columbian jungle and rescuing a kidnapped State Department family, the mission seems like every other one they've executed. But as the assignment unravels, not only is the mission's success at stake, but all the brothers-in-arms leaving the jungle alive hangs in the balance.
Mission Out of Control is the prequel short story for both Vestige in Hope and the Stryker Security Force Series.
www.sarablackard.com
About the Author
Sara Blackard has been a writer since she was able to hold a pencil. When she's not crafting wild adventures and sweet romances, she's homeschooling her five children, keeping their off-grid house running, or enjoying the Alaskan lifestyle she and her husband love.
Contents
FREE Stryker Security Force prequel
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Epilogue
Also by Sara Blackard
Mission Out Of Control
About the Author
Crashing Into Jake Page 15
