One You Can't Forget

by Lexy Timms

  Alex just looked amused, which made Jamie even more embarrassed. “I live here,” he said. He smirked. “I actually own the house here, too.”

  She stood there, too embarrassed to respond. Of course he lived here.

  Alex continued when he realized she didn’t know what to say. “You must be tired, Ms. Connors,” he said. “Let me walk you to your apartment.”

  “No, I’m fine, really, Mr. Reid,” she said. “You don’t have to walk me.”

  “I insist,” he said. “You’re exhausted and besides, you only moved in yesterday. I assume the apartment is satisfactory for you?”

  “It’s fine.” Fine? She crushed the heel of her hand against her forehead. “It’s fantastic. Sorry. I haven’t had much time to unpack.” She kept her eyes to the ground wishing Murray were there instead of Alex. She felt awkward and shy. This was his house and she was living on the main floor, overlooking the pool. That’s where he’d been. She realized his hair was wet and the t-shirt and shorts he wore were dripping. She licked her lips and shot a glance out of the corner of her eye. Dressed in a suit or casual, the man had an air about him. Hot, hot—Focus, Jamie, focus!

  She never did like seeing her bosses out of work, even in meetings as innocent as this. She had read too many of Christine’s collection of trashy romances growing up to ever feel comfortable with it.

  Alex didn’t seem to notice though. “When’s your sister’s wedding?”

  “Why?”

  He smiled. “I have to make sure you have that week off.”

  “The third week of June,” Jamie said. “I thought…”

  “What? That I was invited? I may be friends with Stephen from college but I’m not that close to him.” Alex looked at her intently. “Trust me.”

  Jamie swallowed and nodded. She wasn’t sure what to make of Alex’s expression. Unless he was mad at Stephen on her behalf or something. She wasn’t sure why he would be, but the thought was nice. Stop it. Whatever you’re thinking about, just stop it. She was definitely too tired to be near people right now. Her thoughts were going every which way.

  “I have a gym in the house.”

  “Pardon?”

  “Gina mentioned she showed you the gym at the office.” He ran his tongue over his lower lip. “If you want to use a gym and don’t feel comfortable there, I have one here in the house. You are welcome to use it anytime.”

  “Oh.” Great, now he was going to push her to lose weight?

  “I don’t mean it in any way. You look okay. Fine.” His cheeks flushed red. “I just meant to offer the quietness here if you ever wanted it… before the wedding and stuff. It’s the room beside your apartment. The code to get in is one-four-nine-six. Top left, down, Right bottom up.”

  Jamie wanted to crawl into a hole and hide. She nodded, unable to say anything, terrified she’d burst into tears. She gratefully stopped in front of her apartment door. “Well, this is me,” she said lamely. Of course he knows it’s your place. She took a deep breath in and let it out, hoping she didn’t embarrass herself again. Not in front of him. “Goodnight, Mr. Reid.”

  He smiled at her. “Goodnight, Ms. Connors.”

  His smile made her stomach flip and before she completely humiliated herself, she opened the door and quickly shut it in Alex’s face.

  Yeah, that wasn’t humiliating at all.

  END OF EXCERPT

  More by Lexy Timms:

  Book One is FREE!

  Sometimes the heart needs a different kind of saving... find out if Charity Thompson will find a way of saving forever in this hospital setting Best-Selling Romance by Lexy Timms

  Charity Thompson wants to save the world, one hospital at a time. Instead of finishing med school to become a doctor, she chooses a different path and raises money for hospitals – new wings, equipment, whatever they need. Except there is one hospital she would be happy to never set foot in again--her fathers. So of course he hires her to create a gala for his sixty-fifth birthday. Charity can’t say no. Now she is working in the one place she doesn’t want to be. Except she’s attracted to Dr. Elijah Bennet, the handsome playboy chief.

  Will she ever prove to her father that’s she’s more than a med school dropout? Or will her attraction to Elijah keep her from repairing the one thing she desperately wants to fix?

  ** This is NOT Erotica. It's Romance and a love story. **

  * This is Part 1 of a Five book Romance Series. It does end on a cliffhanger*

  Heart of the Battle Series

  Celtic Viking

  Book 1

  Celtic Rune

  Book 2

  Celtic Mann

  Book 3

  In a world plagued with darkness, she would be his salvation.

  No one gave Erik a choice as to whether he would fight or not. Duty to the crown belonged to him, his father's legacy remaining beyond the grave.

  Taken by the beauty of the countryside surrounding her, Linzi would do anything to protect her father's land. Britain is under attack and Scotland is next. At a time she should be focused on suitors, the men of her country have gone to war and she's left to stand alone.

  Love will become available, but will passion at the touch of the enemy unravel her strong hold first?

  Fall in love with this Historical Celtic Viking Romance.

  * There are 3 books in this series. Book 1 will end on a cliff hanger.

  *Note: this is NOT erotica. It is a romance and a love story.

  Knox Township, August 1863.

  Little Love Affair, Book 1 in the Southern Romance series, by bestselling author Lexy Timms

  Sentiments are running high following the battle of Gettysburg, and although the draft has not yet come to Knox, “Bloody Knox” will claim lives the next year as citizens attempt to avoid the Union draft. Clara’s brother Solomon is missing, and Clara has been left to manage the family’s farm, caring for her mother and her younger sister, Cecelia.

  Meanwhile, wounded at the battle of Monterey Pass but still able to escape Union forces, Jasper and his friend Horace are lost and starving. Jasper wants to find his way back to the Confederacy, but feels honor-bound to bring Horace back to his family, though the man seems reluctant.

  NOTE: This is romance series, book 1 of 3.

  All your questions will not be answered in the first book.

  The Recruiting Trip

  Book Description:

  Aspiring college athlete Aileen Nessa is finding the recruiting process beyond daunting. Being ranked #10 in the world for the 100m hurdles at the age of eighteen is not a fluke, even though she believes that one race, where everything clinked magically together, might be. American universities don’t seem to think so. Letters are pouring in from all over the country.

  As she faces the challenge of differentiating between a college’s genuine commitment to her or just empty promises from talent-seeking coaches, Aileen heads to the University of Gatica, a Division One school, on a recruiting trip. Her best friend dares who to go just to see the cute guys on the school’s brochure.

  The university’s athletic program boasts one of the top hurdlers in the country. Tyler Jensen is the school’s NCAA champion in the hurdles and Jim Thorpe recipient for top defensive back in football. His incredible blue-green eyes, confident smile and rock hard six pack abs mess with Aileen’s concentration.

  His offer to take her under his wing, should she choose to come to Gatica, is a temping proposition that has her wondering if she might be with an angel or making a deal with the devil himself.

  Hade’s Spawn Motorcycle Club Series

  One You Can’t Forget

  Book 1

  One That Got Away

  Book 2

  Coming September 2015

  One That Came Back

  Book 3

  Coming Winter 2015/16

  Find Lexy Timms:

  Lexy Timms Newsletter:

  http://eepurl.com/9i0vD

  Lexy Timms Facebook Page:

  https:
//www.facebook.com/SavingForever

  Lexy Timms Website:

  http://lexytimms.wix.com/savingforever

  SNEAK PEAK

  NAVY SEAL ROMANCE

  Only available on paperback

  Scars of War and Romance

  By

  Lexy Timms

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One – Much Needed Break

  Chapter Two – Back to the Grind

  Chapter Three – Hot Summer Nights

  Chapter Four – Chao Wrapped in Confusion

  Chapter Five – When the Smoke Clears

  Chapter Six – Home: A Bittersweet Affair

  Chapter Seven – An Oasis of Healing

  Chapter Eight – Love Thrives on Common Ground

  Disclaimer: All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, either living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  Chapter One

  Much Needed Break

  Gunnery Sergeant Terrence Howard descended the stairs of the Boeing C-17 Globemaster and stepped onto the tarmac of Patrick Air Force Base. He stopped, closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. It was a gorgeous day with the sun casting down its warmth unimpeded by a clear, blue sky. A light breeze tamed the heat which was a relief from the stifling conditions Terry had just experienced in Iraq.

  Although he would have preferred to be greeted by the forests and rolling hills of Kentucky, Terry embraced the fact that the warm Florida weather would provide a more pleasant transition to the Iraqi desert heat than the still chilly temperatures of his home state. Besides, his mother needed him there to provide both support and comfort. Terry’s father had died nearly a year earlier in their Morehead, Kentucky home and Terry, his brother Kurt and mother Patricia had decided that moving to Florida would be best for her overall health as well as mental state.

  The death of, Edward, her husband had taken a toll on Patricia as he was the rock of the family. He was a decorated Vietnam War veteran who didn’t wait to be drafted, but joined the effort early to fight for his country. His example was followed by the couple’s three sons after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. The oldest of the brothers, John Henry, answered the call to serve, joined the marines and was in the first wave of American troops to set foot in the country during the Iraq invasion of 2003. Kurt volunteered for service a little more than a year later, delaying entry until he finished his current semester at Morehead State University where he was studying Engineering Technology. He had struggled to pay for the first two years of university and figured the military service would be a good way to receive financial assistance for the remainder of his education once he decided to leave.

  Terry yearned to join his brothers, but was only 17 when Kurt was shipped to Iraq. Edward told Terry on numerous occasions that there would be plenty of time for him to join and he shouldn’t be in a rush to run off to war which was exceptionally brutal. The reality of the war came home too soon as Kurt hadn’t been in Iraq for more two months when John Henry was killed by an IUD explosion that ripped apart the Humvee he was riding in. IUDs were a relatively recent form of attack which grew in intensity as the war progressed. Explosions occurring in close proximity to the sides or directly underneath vehicles caused a great deal of damage and resulted in a high death toll in the beginning years of the war. John Henry’s death was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back as far as Terry was concerned. He joined the marines three months prior to his eighteenth birthday, lying about his age.

  Unlike John Henry who had completed ROTC training and entered the war as an infantry officer and Kurt who had a background in engineering and entered as a combat engineer, Terry accepted the role of an entry level rifleman. There were a couple of good reasons for his choice. First of all, he was underage and couldn’t really haggle for better positions without blowing his deception. Grunts were desperately needed in the war time situation and the Marines tended not to investigate backgrounds of entry level signups too extensively. Secondly, Terry had grown up under his ex-military father who had taught him and his brothers how to shoot at a young age. He was damned good and the Marines quickly embraced his marksmanship skills.

  To top it off, Terry’s best friend Jerrod Walker was of Shawnee and Cherokee ancestry and taught him a great deal about woodland survival, tracking, camouflage, hunting and trapping. Jerrod was several years older than Terry and preferred to be called by his Shawnee name Chiksika by close friends, which Terry did. One of Terry’s favorite skills that he acquired from Jerrod was throwing tomahawk. He became nearly as proficient at throwing ‘hawk’ as he had at shooting a gun and he even carried a specially made steel hawk with him during service. He gained the nickname “Tomahawk” or simply “Hawk” Howard shortly after arriving in Iraq which spread rapidly after he used his unusual weapon to stop a crazed Al Qaeda fighter that bolted out of hiding wielding a machete against a nearby squad companion. Terry instinctively drew his hawk from his belt and hurled it towards the assailant, planting it in his forehead and saving his comrade’s life. After that incident, everyone serving with Terry called him Tomahawk.

  Within less than a year, Terry was promoted to squad leader. He liked to give all the credit for his lighting fast assent in the ranks to his fighting skills, eagle eye for spying out hidden targets and uncanny sense of upcoming dangers and attacks that gave his squad an edge on multiple occasions. However, losing key command personnel during combat played a nearly equal role. Terry’s skills simply helped the higher-ups make the decision that he was the best choice for filling up line vacancies. Regardless, Terry “Tomahawk” Howard gained a great deal of respect from his men who came to rely on him heavily for their success and survival in the harsh war conditions.

  Terry felt a hand firmly grasp his shoulder which brought him out of his daydream. It was his buddy Bradley Huffington, or Huff as everyone in the squad called him.

  “Ready to roll, Hawk?” Huff asked.

  “Yeah, I’m ready.”

  Terry picked up his duffle bag which he had sat on the tarmac and the two took off walking towards a parking area. His brother Kurt had been on leave several weeks earlier and had left the family car at the base for him to use when he arrived. Their mother never had driven much, but she stopped altogether when her husband and son had passed which left her in a severely depressed state that affected both her physical and mental health. Terry and Brad located the car, loaded their duffle bags in the trunk and began the nearly sixty-mile drive to Sanford.

  Brad had been assigned to Terry’s squad eight months earlier. He was eighteen years old and green as springtime grass when he entered the war fresh out of boot camp as a Private. He was noticeably frightened by being in a real war situation and his fears were only amplified by the increasingly solemn environment created by the aggressive and stealthy tactics of the resistance that was responsible for a growing amount of U.S. casualties. Most figured it would be a much easier task securing control in Iraq, but the resistance, along with a surge of Al Qaeda involvement, proved to be more of a challenge than anticipated. Al Qaeda’s involvement in other campaigns throughout the Middle East and Afghanistan provided the movement with both battle experience and improvised military tactics that proved to be increasingly effective against the more superior U.S. military as well as the struggling fledgling Iraqi nationals under U.S. supervision.

  Although Brad was emotionally shaken by the steady stream of U.S. deaths, he quickly caught hold of himself and began taking on extra responsibilities when situations called for action. Terry took notice of Brad’s efforts and growing courage and took him under his wing in order to help develop and guide his raw emotions and sometimes undisciplined actions. They were roughly the same age, with Terry being only a few months the older, but his time in the marines and Iraq had matured him beyond his years.

  The additional attention towards Brad proved to be a good move. One day on patrol, Terry found himself cut off from the other members of his squad b
y a surprise mortar attack and was surrounded by a group of advancing Al Qaeda and resistance fighters. He was pinned down and would have been overcome by the advance except for the spontaneous move by Brad to charge the group. He took out several fighters with bursts from his M16 and then blew a hole in their position surrounding Terry using several grenades, allowing him to break away. Terry was hit in the thigh as he rushed towards Brad’s position. Although it was only a flesh wound, it slowed him down and made him an easier target for the fighters that were recovering from the confusion of Brad’s crazed advancement. Seeing Tomahawk drop to the ground from his leg wound, Brad ran screaming and firing into the fray until he reached his fallen comrade. When Brad’s magazine was depleted, he drew his M9 pistol and continued firing as he pulled Terry to the safety of several buildings where some of the squad had regrouped and were providing cover fire. Brad dropped three more advancing fighters during the retreat.

  That episode sealed Tomahawk and Huff into a friendship that extended beyond the boundary of brothers. Terry had successfully submitted for and gained a promotion for Brad to Lance Corporal, or Terminal Lance as those of such rank were often called by fellow Marines, which allowed him to skip Private First Class. Terry knew instinctive action when he saw it and he wanted to not only keep Huff around, but put him in more of a leadership position. He figured that providing Brad with the reward for his heroic actions would also encourage him to think more maturely and make moves more in line with what Terry was trying to teach him. LCpL Bradley Huffington would now be in charge of newbies under him and the move definitely made him sober up, better resist uncertain fear and start thinking more like a leader than a scared grunt. His respect for Hawk also grew considerably.