Ronin's Return (Hearts & Heroes Book 3)
Page 16
The men nodded. Noise from the rotors precluded talking inside the chopper. When they got back to the base at Little Creek, Virginia, they’d debrief before being dismissed for the night and hitting the club.
They’d played the same scenario five times, improving with each iteration. All six members of the team were highly
skilled Navy SEALs. The cream of the crop, the most highly disciplined officers and enlisted men from the Navy.
Like Tuck, the team was tired of playing pretend. They wanted to get in and do the job. But, like most missions, they didn’t know when they would go, who their target would be, or where they’d have to go to take him out. Only time and their commanding officers would tell. Only when they were about two hours out would they get their final orders and all the details.
In the meantime, they’d be off duty until the following morning’s PT, unless orders came in that night. It happened. But if Tuck waited around his apartment for it to come about, he’d go stir-crazy. Besides, he wanted to see O’Connell and pick up where they’d left off the night before.
BACK AT BASE, Delaney O’Connell climbed out of the pilot’s seat and grabbed her flight bag. Adrenaline still thrumming through her veins, she knew going back to her apartment for the night wasn’t an option.
Her co-pilot, Lt. Mark Doggett, aka K-9, fell in step beside her. “The team’s headed to DD’s Corral for a beer and some dancing. I know you don’t usually like to hang out, but it’s been a tough week. Wanna go?”
“Sure,” she said, a little too quickly. Any other time, she’d have cut him off with a quick, but polite, no. But if she went back to her apartment alone, Tuck might show up and what good would that bring? Somehow, she’d fallen off the abstinence wagon with a vengeance and she was having a hard time getting back on.
“Great.” K-9 cleared his throat. “Do you need a ride?” “No, thank you. I prefer to drive myself.”
“Probably a good idea. These Navy guys work hard and play harder.”
As well she knew. Tuck had played her in bed like a musician played an electric guitar, hitting every one of her chords like a master.
Her body quivered with remembered excitement, her core heating to combustible levels. Maybe going to the club was a bad idea. If Tuck was there...
She squared her shoulders. They didn’t call her Razor for nothing. She would cut him off like she’d done so many others who’d tried getting too close. And soon. Walking away from a physical relationship was a hell of a lot easier than walking away from an emotionally involved one. Delaney refused to invest her emotions in another man with an addiction to adrenaline rushes. She’d been there once and would not go there again.
Before Tuck, she’d gone two years without a man in her life. Two years since Mad Max, Captain Chase Madden, bought it on a leadership interdiction mission in Pakistan. When a Special Forces soldier had been left behind, he’d gone back into hostile territory against his commanding officer’s order. His helicopter had been shot down. Max had been injured, but was still alive until the Taliban found him and dragged him through the streets tied to the back of a truck. By the time they untied him, he’d bled out.
Delaney had been devastated. No one knew she and Mad Max had gotten engaged two weeks prior to his deployment. And no one would, if she could help it. Being a part of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment was an honor she took very seriously.
She understood her position was precarious. On more than one occasion, her CO had told her she was on probation as the only female ever entrusted with the honor of flight leader in an all-male corps. The powers that be were watching her every move. One misstep and she would be out, and she’d worked too damned hard to get here. Three years of training, and working her way up the food chain, and a rock- hard body, at least where it counted, had gotten her noticed.
Fooling around with Tuck, one of the Navy SEALs assigned to this training mission, wouldn’t go over well with her commander. But the strain of anticipation and the long bout of celibacy had taken their toll on Delaney. She’d needed a release. When Tuck and Reaper offered to help her change her flat tire, she never dreamed she’d end up in bed with one of them. But those damned SEALs with their massive biceps and quads...
Holy shit. What a mistake. And Tuck would probably think their liaison meant something.
Which it didn’t.
She didn’t need a man in her life. Not when her missions were as dangerous as they were. And a relationship with a SEAL was as dumb as it got. Her in the Army, him in the Navy. Both deployable at a moment’s notice and most likely to opposite ends of the earth. Only Kismet was what brought them together at Little Creek, Virginia, to train for a possible mission. If they deployed together, their sleeping together would only complicate matters. And she needed a clear head to complete the missions she would be responsible for flying.
Tonight, she’d tell Tuck not to expect anything. She wasn’t into commitment or the long-term relationships.
Also by Elle James
Hearts & Heroes Series
Wyatt’s War (#1)
Mack’s Witness (#2)
Ronin’s Return (#3)
Sam’s Surrender (#4)
Brotherhood Protector Series
Montana SEAL (#1)
Bride Protector SEAL (#2)
Montana D-Force (#3)
Cowboy D-Force (#4)
Montana Ranger (#5)
Montana Dog Soldier (#6)
Montana SEAL Daddy (#7)
Montana Rescue
Take No Prisoners Series
SEAL’s Honor (#1)
SEAL’s Ultimate Challenge (#1.5)
SEAL’S Desire (#2)
SEAL’s Embrace (#3)
SEAL’s Obsession (#4)
SEAL’s Proposal (#5)
SEAL’s Seduction (#6)
SEAL’S Defiance (#7)
SEAL’s Deception (#8)
SEAL’s Deliverance (#9)
Ballistic Cowboy
Hot Combat (#1)
Hot Target (#2)
Hot Zone (#3)
Hot Velocity (#4)
Texas Billionaire Club
Tarzan & Janine (#1)
Something To Talk About (#2)
Who’s Your Daddy (#3)
Love & War (#4) Summer 2017
Hellfire Series
Hellfire, Texas (#1)
Justice Burning (#2)
Smoldering Desire (#3) TBD
Up in Flames (#4) TBD
Plays with Fire (#5) TBD
Hellfire in High Heels (#6) TBD
Cajun Magic Mystery Series
Voodoo on the Bayou (#1)
Voodoo for Two (#2)
Deja Voodoo (#3)
Billionaire Online Dating Series
The Billionaire Husband Test (#1)
The Billionaire Cinderella Test (#2)
The Billionaire Bride Test (#3) TBD
The Billionaire Matchmaker Test (#4) TBD
SEAL Of My Own
Navy SEAL Survival
Navy SEAL Captive
Navy SEAL To Die For
Navy SEAL Six Pack
Devil's Shroud Series
Deadly Reckoning (#1)
Deadly Engagement (#2)
Deadly Liaisons (#3)
Deadly Allure (#4)
Deadly Obsession (#5)
Deadly Fall (#6)
Covert Cowboys Inc Series
Triggered (#1)
Taking Aim (#2)
Bodyguard Under Fire (#3)
Cowboy Resurrected (#4)
Navy SEAL Justice (#5)
Navy SEAL Newlywed (#6)
High Country Hideout (#7)
Clandestine Christmas (#8)
Thunder Horse Series
Hostage to Thunder Horse (#1)
Thunder Horse Heritage (#2)
Thunder Horse Redemption (#3)
Christmas at Thunder Horse Ranch (#4)
Demon Series
Hot Demon Nights (#1)
Dem
on's Embrace (#2)
Tempting the Demon (#3)
Lords of the Underworld
Witch's Initiation (#1)
Witch's Seduction (#2)
The Witch's Desire (#3)
Possessing the Witch (#4)
Stealth Operations Specialists (SOS)
Nick of Time
Alaskan Fantasy
Blown Away
Warrior’s Conquest
Rogues
Enslaved by the Viking Short Story
Conquests
Smokin’ Hot Firemen
Love on the Rocks
Protecting the Colton Bride
Heir to Murder
Secret Service Rescue
High Octane Heroes
Haunted
Engaged with the Boss
Cowboy Brigade
Time Raiders: The Whisper
Bundle of Trouble
Killer Body
Operation XOXO
An Unexpected Clue
Baby Bling
Under Suspicion, With Child
Texas-Size Secrets
Cowboy Sanctuary
Lakota Baby
Dakota Meltdown
Beneath the Texas Moon