by Katie Knight
BLURB
Benjamin Steele just wanted to go on a well-earned vacation in Alaska. But instead he finds himself on a flight with Megan Foster, the one woman he’d ever loved. When their plane goes down in a fiery crash, Benjamin finds himself acting as protector to Megan and her little charge, Logan. Making matters worse, he quickly realizes someone is out there trying to kill one of them. The Navy SEAL wasn’t looking for romance, but it’s hard not to think about such things when Megan is near him. As they work together to escape danger, Ben feels unwanted stirrings in a heart he’d nearly forgotten he had.
As Logan’s nanny, Megan knows two things—she needs to get Logan safely back to his parents, and Ben is the best bet she has. Though he’d left her heartbroken years before, she trusts that he can protect them both. What she doesn’t realize is that Ben is a different man than the one who abandoned her, and it’s impossible to ignore the chemistry burning between them. As the danger increases and those hunting them draw ever closer, she’s finding it more difficult to resist his quiet strength. But will he still be around to protect her when they’re safe? Or will old habits kick in and leave her heartbroken once again?
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Available September 5, 2019
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EXCERPT
Benjamin Steele rolled his shoulders and tried to relax as he paced the airport gate. His upcoming flight from Anchorage to Fairbanks had him on edge. Flying didn't bother him as long as he was the person in the cockpit, the one making the decisions. Something about putting his life in a complete stranger’s hands, even for the brief flight to his buddy’s place for a much-needed fishing vacation, just didn’t sit well.
He checked his watch and paced back and forth in front of the floor to ceiling windows that showcased the sprawling Alaska Range, a fortress of snowy peaks and unforgiving terrain. Land that was beautiful but also deadly if you chose to venture into the wilderness unprepared. Of course, as a Navy SEAL, he prided himself on being prepared for any danger that might come his way. He was great in a crisis—but terrible at sitting around with nothing to do. He pressed his fingers to the back of his neck, kneading the dull ache pulsing under his skin.
He needed to chill and focus on the destination—not the journey to get there. A screech and little footsteps pounded down the hall, and he turned just as a freckled-faced toddler slammed into his leg.
The boy looked up, flashed a shy gap-toothed grin, and whispered “Sowwy.”
Ben sighed and looked around for the parent. There was only a handful of people at the gate: an elderly couple each passing the time with a book, a teenager bopping to the beat from a pair of bright red headphones, and a businessman with a briefcase at his feet and a cellphone to his ear. No one seemed in the least bit concerned for a missing child. Ben released a pent-up breath and crouched down to eye level. He wasn’t good with kids. Only one of his teammates had children, and on the rare occasion he visited the house, he never could seem to engage with them.
He released a pent-up breath, still scanning the crowd for a caregiver. "Where's your mom, kid?"
“I dunno.” He shrugged his shoulders, not seeming bothered in the least. An impish grin was still plastered to his face. That, at least, was a relief. Ben had no clue what he’d do if the kid started bawling. Instead, the boy seemed much more interested in examining Ben. “What’s dis?”
Ben froze as the kid stepped closer and touched his face. “You have a boo-boo.” The boy poked his tiny finger at an old shrapnel scar that snaked down his chin. “Don’t be sad. I have superhero Band-aids.” He smiled brightly, as though he was quite pleased with himself for thinking of the idea.
“Ah…It feels fine, but thanks. Let’s find whoever lost you.” He started to rise, then sank back down when the boy’s lip quivered.
“Lost?” His voice trembled and he glanced around with frantic eyes. When he turned back to look at Ben, his chin wobbled, and a fat tear escaped the corner of his eye. Damn it. He shouldn’t have said the word—it was like he’d broken some kind of spell and abruptly forced the kid realize his parents weren’t around.
He bit his bottom lip, shoulders shaking. “Meggy. Meggy!” he wailed.
Ben scanned the area, waiting to see if someone rushed forward at the sound of the cries…but no one came. Great. Just what the needed—a toddler on the verge of an apocalyptic meltdown with no caregiver in sight. “Whoa, whoa. Just calm down a sec. We’ll figure this out and find your…Meggy.” Whoever the hell that was. Maybe it was some weird way of saying Mama?
Some of the tension in the back of his neck dissipated when he saw a young woman sprinting through the gate, directly toward them, arms piled with luggage. There was something familiar about the long legs and slender build, the way she moved with natural grace despite the awkward amount of baggage she held. With each step the woman took though, the more his chest constricted, sealing off his breath with a painful gasp of recognition. She seemed utterly unaware of who he was as she fell to her knees in front of the boy.
“Oh, thank goodness. Logan, you know better than to leave my side.” She cupped the kid’s chubby cheeks and kissed his forehead a few times in quick succession. “Are you okay?”
The boy nodded solemnly and tucked himself against her side. Then, Megan Foster’s hazel eyes connected with his for the first time in eight years. In an instant, shock and recognition swept over her face, and her eyes widened.
Eyes that he’d gotten lost in the moment he met her at the University of California where he was studying on a Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps scholarship.
Eyes that would fill with passion when he kissed the sensitive skin at the nape of her neck or settled between her thighs.
Eyes that had darkened with hurt and a clear sense of betrayal the last time he’d seen her—the time he’d left her behind.
The woman standing in front of him once had the power to steal his heart. That was why he'd done what any self-preserving man would—run like hell. His skin prickled as he recalled the day he'd realized how serious their relationship had grown. She’d suggested moving in together—had talked about what their future might be. He’d panicked, and had immediately applied for the SEAL program to escape their relationship.
And yet despite everything he’d done to separate himself from her, picturing her lovely face was what had gotten him through the hellish training that molded him into the powerful force he'd become.
He’d left her, the one woman he’d ever loved, because life had taught him at an early age that the people you cared about would disappear when the going got tough, or a better opportunity presented itself. The only way to protect yourself was to leave first, before you got too attached. And that was exactly what he’d done.
“Ben…” Her voice was a little breathless. Was it from the frantic run, or was her pulse pounding as his was over the impromptu reunion? “What are you doing here?”
He raked his hand through his hair. It had gotten a bit too long over the last few missions. “I have a week of leave, and I’m meeting up with a buddy at his family’s fishing retreat.”
“I’m hungry, Meggy,” The toddler softly demanded.
"Okay, honey. Let's get ourselves to the gate and then we'll find you a snack." She brushed the hair away from his forehead and stood up, preparing to leave with the boy—with her son. He didn’t know why the kid called her by her first name instead of Mama, but the love between her and the child was clear. This was her family—the family Ben couldn’t have given her. The family she’d created with someone else. She didn't wear a ring, but that didn't mean anything nowadays. The kid alone was proof that there was someone in her life. No one seemed to be coming to join the pair, but maybe he was in the bathroom, or maybe Megan and her son were flying to meet her husband.
There was a pang in Ben's heart. She'd wanted to build a life with him, and he'd walked away. A heaviness settled over his limbs, but he schooled his expression. He h
ad no right to be jealous of the man who had claimed her. No reason to imagine the boy she tenderly nurtured might've been his if things had gone differently. "I promised him a bagel and cream cheese—his kryptonite." Megan offered Ben a shy smile, and his heart responded with a dull thud. He rubbed his chest and tried to tell himself it was nothing but heartburn from too much coffee that morning. It wasn’t—couldn’t be—anything else. Maybe he had loved her once, but love didn’t last. It made you vulnerable and then shattered your soul when the person you cared for inevitably left.
“Well, let me help you then.” He should let them walk away, turn and go to his own gate, and forget he ever ran into Megan. Something compelled him to reach for the mini Paw Patrol suitcase though, and the realization that he wanted to be in her presence just a little bit longer was a swift kick to his solar plexus. Guilt over how he’d left, and the desire to know everything she’d done with her life in the time since, had him picking up the carry-on that would barely come under the size limitations, then a bulging black suitcase. He easily threw the carry-on duffle over his shoulder and took the other luggage with his left hand. He’d walk them to the gate, ensure they were settled in, and then move on. Even though he had no right to feel the ugly jealously that was currently swarming inside his chest, he didn’t want to meet the lucky bastard who got to hold her close at night. Not when he could keenly recall how perfectly she fit against him.
"I wouldn't want to stand between a kid and his favorite snack." There was hesitation in her eyes.
“Are you waiting on anyone?” God, that sounded pathetic—but relief crashed over him when she shook her head. He didn’t want to be awkwardly introduced to her significant other.
Maybe her boyfriend or husband was in the picture but it was becoming increasingly unlikely that he was traveling with them. She certainly didn’t seem to give his question a second thought as she hoisted the boy up and started to follow Ben. Had she met someone in college after he’d left? Fallen in love with a coworker when she entered the workforce? Whoever she was with better treat her right and recognize how special she was. This guy needed to treat her better than Ben had. Even if it was for the best, he still regretted leaving her the way he did.
“I can carry that stuff, Ben. Really, I do it all the time.”
“Let me give your arms a rest, then. Besides, they already look pretty full to me,” he said nodding toward the kid. He didn’t like what her words alluded to—that maybe Logan’s father wasn’t very helpful. Didn’t matter that Megan was strong and capable, a man should never let a woman shoulder all the load without trying to help. He clenched his jaw and easily maneuvered them through a small crowd, purposely walking between Megan and the other travelers to shield her and the child from being touched or bumped. The least he could do was help them to their gate. The way he’d walked away from her eight years ago still left an empty hole in his gut, and he’d never forget the devastation in her eyes when he told her he not only wasn’t ready to move in with her, but he’d enlisted to get away. She’d deserved better.
“What gate are you headed to?”
“B7.” She tossed her hair away from her face in one fluid motion. He’d always had a fascination with her hair; it was neither blonde nor brown but waves of dark gold that fell down her shoulders and down her back. “Flight seventy-fifty to Fairbanks.”
“No kidding," he mused. Part of him was thrilled to find out she was on the same exact flight as him. The other part wished they'd never bumped into one another because old, uncomfortable feelings were twisting and tangling in his stomach, making him wish for things that were even more impossible now than they’d been almost a decade ago. "That's where I'm going, too.”
“This is so weird. Such a strange coincidence,” she laughed it off, but her eyes spoke to deeper emotions going on inside.
Fate. The word popped into his mind, and he shook it away.
Grab your copy of Her SEAL Rescuer.
Available September 5, 2019
www.LeslieNorth.com
BLURB
After an “incident” on his last SEAL mission, Zachary “Z” Raybourn has been relegated to babysitting duty. He’s spent the last six months guarding the daughter of a small foreign nation, a girl so valuable to the US that she apparently can’t buy milk without him trailing along like a lost puppy. He’d joined the military to make a difference and stayed enlisted because of the SEAL team he considers family. Now all he wants is to get back to them ASAP.
Esme Hollycombe is her country’s last hope. Her father the King controls a very important port that serves as a naval base for the US. But with her father’s rapidly declining health, and her US-hating cousin next in line for the throne, Esme has been frantically searching for a loophole in her country’s law that says only a man can rule. The only thing she finds is that she can rule in the stead of any male heir she gives birth to. Unmarried and certainly not pregnant, the loophole isn’t of much use to her. Until her attention turns to the hot SEAL protector who has been pacing the palace for the last six months like a caged animal. He’d do anything to get back to his squad; and she’d do anything to keep her cousin off the throne, leaving him unable to evict the US and all their military protection from her country.
Esme offers a contract to Z: get her pregnant, marry her so the heir will be legitimate, and he can have his life back. Z eventually agrees. But being the partner of a princess comes with far more action and intrigue than he’d ever dreamed. He also finds that making a baby is an easy way to fall in love. Now, Z will have to choose: the military family he misses, or the nuclear family he’s creating.
Grab your 99c copy of The SEAL’s Contract Baby here!
EXTRACT
CHAPTER 1
“I’m twenty-eight years old. I don’t need a babysitter.” Her Royal Highness, Princess Esme Hollycombe of the tiny southern European country of Prylea, squared her shoulders and raised her chin. “I’ll take a regular security team with me to Washington, DC and be done with it.”
Her father’s intelligence advisors exchanged a look, then the head of security—a slightly hunched older man named Greaves who’d been hired by her father before Esme was born—gave her a quizzical stare. “Yes, your grace. But please remember that this trip is not only about you. Your ailing father, the king, will also be making the journey to get a second opinion on his condition. We cannot afford to leave either one of you unprotected during these turbulent times.”
Darn it. He had a point. And he knew just the right buttons to push. Esme would do just about anything for her father, as Greaves was well aware. Never mind the fact that the king was dying. This new opinion he was seeking in Georgetown would only slightly prolong his life, at best, or put another nail in his already well-sealed coffin. But she couldn’t turn down the chance to extend her time with him, even by one more day.
She swallowed hard against the lump of sorrow that had been lodged in her throat since her father had first been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer two years prior. Since then he’d been in and out of treatments, traveling the world to seek a cure for what was, as of yet, incurable. Still, if it gave her father some small measure of hope, she’d do whatever she could to ensure he got to see the specialist in DC.
Her fingers itched to pull out the knitting she’d brought along in her purse, but she clenched her fists instead. The hobby kept her busy and sane during these dark times and also helped her with one of her dearest charitable causes. All of the blankets she made were distributed to a charity for Prylea’s poor—under a fake name, of course. It wouldn’t do to have the royal family seen as nothing but a bunch of crafters, even for a good cause.
Esme took a deep breath and looked across the room to where her usual contingent of security guards stood. Most of them were middle-aged and indistinguishable from the others. They blended into the background as their job demanded. Silently watching and waiting for danger to rear its ugly head, then they’d spring into action to defend and protect.
One man, though, a relative newcomer, stood near the window, the sunlight striking his blond hair and making it look like spun gold. After six months of service, he was still an enigma to Esme. She was intrigued by him, watching him as closely as he watched her, and not because he was gorgeous either. Sure, the guy had the ripped physique of an ex-military man. He was a former Navy SEAL after all. But there was something more about him, a lingering haunted look in his gray-green eyes that had her wondering exactly what had happened to him during his time as a SEAL. She’d tried to find out by snooping through his employment records, but with everything else going on, she hadn’t had time to do a proper in-depth search.
“Your highness, we need an answer before you leave tonight,” Greaves said, his stern, jowly look setting her nerves on edge again. She didn’t like being forced into a corner. “We must insist on the security detail, princess. If you refuse, we’ll be forced to send your cousin Silvester in your place.”
Oh, he was good.
Silvester had once been a friend who’d now turned rival. The guy was only interested in power—namely the throne of Prylea. Unfortunately, Esme’s father had failed to secure her place in the line of succession for the country by changing the outdated rule in the Prylean constitution that said a woman could not rule. So very nineteenth century. So very irritating.
The last person on earth she’d want representing her or her country in the United States was her cousin Silvester. Esme was having a hard enough time trying to figure out how to get around her country’s antiquated rules without thrusting her power-hungry cousin out on the world stage to strut about like the overblown peacock he’d become.
“Fine.” She took a deep breath. “But I choose the team lead.”
“Fine.” A muscle ticked in Greaves’s cheek, but otherwise his face remained stoic. He leaned closer to whisper to his cronies then turned back to Esme. “We agree. But you must choose from the current team members already in the room.” His beady black eyes glittered behind his wire-rimmed glasses, as if he’d just pulled off some wonderful coup. “May I suggest Sutherland. He’s quite accomplished and has long served your father with loyalty and distinction.”
