His need to protect her is non-negotiable…
Navy SEAL Brent “Cobra” Rollins never met a woman he didn’t want. He’s gotten more action than his entire SEAL team combined, but the gorgeous brunette he barely even touched is the one he can’t get out of his head.
Ella Thompson is working her way through school, and the cocky, assertive Navy SEAL who stood up for her is also wrong in about a thousand different ways. Player? Check. Older man? Check. Interested in a relationship with her? Not a chance in hell.
When she’s all out of options, Ella returns to her former shift at a cocktail lounge to make ends meet. Her boss is willing to give her the job back—for a price. The only thing scarier than submitting to him is being pawned off as payment to his enemies. The man who can save her is the one she should never want, but he’s the only one who’d also protect her with his life.
Protected by a SEAL, a stand-alone novel, is book six in the bestselling Alpha SEALs series.
Protected by a SEAL
AN ALPHA SEALS NOVEL
Makenna Jameison
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 by Makenna Jameison.
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
ALSO BY MAKENNA JAMEISON
ALPHA SEALS
SEAL the Deal
SEALed with a Kiss
A SEAL’s Surrender
A SEAL’s Seduction
The SEAL Next Door
Protected by a SEAL
Loved by a SEAL (Fall 2016)
SOLDIER SERIES ROMANCE NOVELLAS
Christmas with a Soldier
Valentine from a Soldier
In the Arms of a Soldier
Return of a Soldier
Summer with a Soldier
HEARTS ABLAZE: MEN IN UNIFORM
A Marine for Christmas
Her Forbidden Marine
Table of Contents
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
Epilogue
Thank you for Reading Protected by a SEAL!
Alpha SEALs Series List
About the Author
Exclusive Excerpt from SEAL THE DEAL
Chapter 1
Brent “Cobra” Rollins stalked into Anchors, fists clenched at his sides as he wove his way through the popular bar he and his Navy SEAL team frequented, not far from Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek. Low music thumped through the speakers, shot glasses slammed down on tables, and snippets of animated conversations filled the air. Howls of laughter came from a full table in the back, but Brent made a beeline for the large, sleek bar that dominated the room.
The dark polished counter seemed to stretch on for miles, with chrome and leather barstools that Brent happened to know were perfect for perching a woman on, wrapping her legs around his waist, and sinking straight into heaven. After hours only, of course. He smirked, remembering the money he’d slipped the bartender last week. He and the pretty blonde he’d met had the place to themselves for hours. Good thing, too, because she was a screamer.
Not that he minded sending a woman straight to ecstasy. Again and again.
Specialized in it, really.
He shucked off his black leather jacket, tossing it aside as he gestured to the bartender. Row upon row of bottles lined the shelves, the mirror behind them reflecting the crowd in Anchors and making the assortment of booze seem practically infinite.
As if that would be enough liquor to get him through this fucking week.
A pretty redhead that he’d taken home a couple of weeks ago sidled up to him as he sank down onto a barstool, but he gave her a curt nod, muttering, “Not tonight, sweetheart.”
A brief look of hurt flashed across her face, but she flipped her hair over her shoulders and purred, “Your loss, baby.”
Brent watched her walk away, her sweet ass sashaying in those come-fuck-me heels. Hell. The woman was a tiger in bed, guaranteed to make a man beg for mercy, but he wasn’t in the mood for one of his infamous one-night-stands.
Imagine that.
He ordered two shots of whiskey and downed them one right after another, the burn of the liquor chasing down his throat and searing through his veins. He ran a hand across his dark stubble and then gripped his hands together, flexing his forearms in front of him as he stretched. Muscles rippled beneath his taut skin as some of the tension left his body from the day’s brutal training, but he ignored the gawking looks of the women seated across the bar from him. At the moment he needed a stiff drink, not a quick fuck.
And since when did he turn down a willing woman?
A gorgeous babe with a spectacular rack leaned over beside him, her cloying perfume overwhelming. Her breasts practically spilled out over her low cut lacy top, and his gaze momentarily roamed there before meeting her baby blues. Hell, had he met her before? It was getting damn hard to keep all the women he’d taken to bed straight anymore.
“Hi Brent,” she cooed in a low, sultry voice.
So that was a yes.
“Want to come back to my place tonight? I’ll let you drizzle chocolate sauce all over me again.”
Fuck yes. Now he remembered. Six months ago. They’d had a night for the record books—he’d licked whipped cream and chocolate from those gorgeous breasts, sucked red cherries from her wicked little mouth, and let her pleasure him with the stash of flavored condoms she had in her nightstand drawer. She was practically insatiable in the bedroom and had a spectacular body—but unfortunately her boobs were about ten times the size of her brain.
Which was why he’d left in the middle of the night without so much as a glance back. And hadn’t given her a passing thought since.
“Not tonight, beautiful, I’m meeting my team in a few,” he said, letting his gaze lazily roam over her.
“And I can’t steal you away?”
“No can do, sweetheart.”
“Are they all as tough as you?” she cooed. “Because I have a thing for big, strong military men.” Her red fingernails trailed over his bicep, and Brent guffawed despite himself.
“They only wish.”
“The offer is still open if you change your mind later,” she said, nonchalantly palming her breasts as she stood back up.
Fucking hell. Was this chick for real?
His gaze trailed after her as his dick unwittingly rose to attention. Shit. He was here to drown his sorrows in booze and shoot the shit with his teammates, yet the whole damn female population seemed to be on the prowl tonight. Normally that was just his style, but at the moment? Not a fucking chance.
“Want a beer?” the bartender asked, raising his eyebrows as the woman sashayed away.
Brent grunted in affirmation.
He took a swig of the beer the bartender placed in front of him, his stomach churning as the date on the calendar flashed through his mind—exactly four years ago this week, his younger sister had been killed. Not in an accident, not from some debilitating illness, but from her psychopath of an ex-boyfriend. Her ex had stalked her, unable to deal with the fact that she’d broken up with him, and then he�
��d followed her home late one night. Tied her up. Taken what she’d no longer freely give. Then choked the last breath from her body.
Brent had been deployed on a SEAL op with his team, halfway around the world, and his brother had been hours away working a case for the NYPD, unaware their sister was in imminent danger.
Fucking hell.
An NYPD detective and a goddamn Navy SEAL in the family, and they couldn’t protect their own sister. The local police hadn’t been helpful in issuing a restraining order, and he should’ve gone AWOL to make it home. To save her. By the time he’d requested emergency leave from his CO, it had been too late to do anything but plan a funeral.
Bile rose in his throat as he thought about her, helpless and scared, at the mercy of her murderer. The only reason the guy was still breathing was because he was rotting away in a jail cell for life. Not that that made Brent feel the slightest bit better. He was more of an “eye for an eye” kind of man. And wouldn’t he goddamn love to avenge his sister. To tie that bastard up and beat the life right out of him.
No doubt his SEAL team all wondered what had crawled up his ass with the foul mood he’d been in today. They knew the story about his sister’s murder but not that this week was the anniversary of her death. That the guilt fucking ate him alive most nights. He’d distract himself with an endless parade of women, burying himself night after night between a different woman’s creamy thighs, but some shit just never could be reconciled.
He took another swig of his beer as the barstool beside him was suddenly jerked back.
“Yo, Cobra, what’s up?” His SEAL team member Mike “Patch” Hunter sank down on the barstool next to him. “You shot out of base earlier like a bat out of hell.”
Brent’s gaze swept over to his teammate. “Just having a drink.”
Mike meaningfully eyed the two empty shot glasses beside Brent’s beer mug. “Right. And I’m a fucking girl scout.”
Of course he’d noticed Brent had already started without the rest of them. All of the men were trained to be observant, but Mike seemed to have a sixth sense about things. That knowledge had proved useful on more missions than they could count. That didn’t mean he wanted Mike getting on him over his shitty mood tonight though. Or guessing the reason behind it.
“Kenley’s grabbing a table with the other ladies,” Mike said, gesturing to the bartender for a beer.
Brent raised an eyebrow. “Ladies?”
Mike shrugged. “Everyone came here for a few drinks before we head over to the pool hall. Matthew and Evan are looking for parking spots,” he said, referring to Matthew “Gator” Murphy and Evan “Flip” Jenkins, two of the other SEALs on their team.
Brent smirked. “Those are the ladies that Kenley is with?”
“Very funny, asshole. They dropped Brianna and Alison off,” he said, referring to Matthew and Evan’s women.
“They can’t walk down the block anymore?”
“Hell, what do I know about pregnant women?”
Brent chuffed out a laugh. “You need me to teach you about the birds and the bees?”
“Fuck no. And I’ve got medical training for injuries in the field. I know more about limbs being blown off by IEDs than babies. Gator and Flip are probably just too overprotective for their own damn good.”
“No shit,” Brent agreed. “Next week they probably won’t even want to hang around Anchors anymore. Too hazardous.”
“Sounds about right.”
Brent’s gaze landed on a pretty brunette on the other side of the bar. The light pink tank top and snug-fitting jeans she had on highlighted her willowy frame, but his eyes were drawn to the perfect swell of her cleavage and gently rounded hips. Perfect for taking his mind off his troubles. She turned away, her dark, shiny hair swishing through the air. Just the type of thing he’d love to run his fingers through. Maybe tug on a little as he tilted her head back, claiming her mouth in a kiss. Or guiding her movements as she took him into her mouth, sucking him off.
Hell.
So much for avoiding the opposite sex tonight.
His groin tightened as he watched her. Nothing like chasing after a woman who wasn’t even looking his way. The other two ladies who’d approached him? Trying too damn hard. A guaranteed score. But this? She was exactly the type of challenge he needed tonight. Maybe she wasn’t looking to put out, but he loved persuading many a woman to change her mind.
Mike’s gaze followed his. “Thought you were going for blondes lately,” he said with a chuckle.
“Since when am I particular? With a smoking body like that, she could have pink hair for all I care.”
“Ain’t that the goddamn truth,” Matthew drawled as he grabbed the barstool on the other side of Mike. “The world keeps turning, and Brent keeps looking for an easy lay.”
“She doesn’t really look like your type,” Mike said. “Too much clothing.”
Brent chuffed out a laugh. “She’s got tits and an ass. Good enough for me.”
A feeling of déjà vu suddenly washed over him as he watched the brunette get change from the bartender. The glint of her gold bracelet caught his eye, and something about her seemed strikingly familiar. If she’d turn just back his way so he could get a better look at her face….
“You got a thing for Ella?” Matthew asked, eyeing the woman Brent had been watching. “Better keep your dick in your pants. Bri would kill you for sleeping with her. As a matter of fact, I would, too. Ella’s way too good for your sorry ass.”
Shit.
What the hell was she doing here?
“I thought she was supposed to be in college down in Florida,” he said coolly.
Hell, no wonder he was fixated on her. He’d met the gorgeous brunette weeks ago when he was down in Pensacola with his buddies but hadn’t recognized her tonight from all the way across the bar. Ella had been moonlighting as a cocktail waitress as she worked her way through school. She was friends with Matthew’s girl and absolutely nothing like the type of women he usually spent the night with. Nothing like the type who’d blatantly come on to him, practically begging for a night in the arms of a Navy SEAL. The kind of women he’d normally welcome into his bed.
But Ella was also the prettiest damn thing he’d ever set eyes on. Clear blue eyes, dark glossy hair, and skin that looked so soft he’d fucking love to run his hands all over it. She’d barely even glanced Brent’s way that night—and that was only because he’d jumped in front of her, yelling at her asshole of a manager. The women he was used to being around would be throwing themselves at him after a move like that.
Funny thing was, he hadn’t even been trying to get her attention. His first instinct had been to shield and protect her. And possibly beat the shit out of the man who’d come charging at a defenseless woman.
“She’s on spring break,” Matthew said. “Came up to help Brianna get settled in.”
“Is she staying with you guys?” Brent asked in disbelief.
Matthew chuffed out a laugh. “Bri just moved in with me a few days ago. No one is invited over for the next six months. At least.”
Mike grinned, and the two men bumped fists.
“You two are whipped,” Brent muttered.
“I’m not going to complain about waking up with a gorgeous woman in my arms every morning,” Matthew said. “Hell, having Brianna in my bed is fucking spectacular.”
“Best wake-up call ever,” Mike agreed, waggling his eyebrows. “Although I’m usually the one waking Kenley up if you know what I mean.”
Brent muttered a curse under his breath. “The whole damn bar knows what you mean.”
“And to answer your question,” Matthew continued, “Ella is staying with Kenley.”
“At Kenley’s place,” Mike clarified. “Her parents still have that condo close to the beach. Kenley and I have unofficially moved in together.”
“I can’t keep up with this shit anymore,” Brent complained. “I should go buy every last one of you a goddamn white picket fence.�
�
“That’d look great outside our apartment door,” Matthew quipped.
Brent nailed him with a glare. It was hard to believe that one year ago every man on his SEAL team had been single. The whole team used to spend their weekends at Anchors, flirting with the pretty women and more often than not taking one home for the night. Trading stories in the locker room on Monday mornings. But the other guys had dropped like flies, each becoming involved with their current girlfriends or fiancées, until he was the last man standing. Their SEAL team leader Patrick “Ice” Foster was with Rebecca; their IT guru Christopher “Blade” Walters was engaged to Lexi; and the guys here tonight, Matthew, Mike, and Evan, also each had women of their own.
Brent wasn’t into that happily-ever-after shit, but if his buddies wanted to pretend that some things lasted forever, then good luck to them.
“You guys are fucking pussy-whipped.”
“We get it—the idea of you with one woman is about as likely as hell freezing over,” Matthew said.
“I’m not about to let a woman lead me around, dick in my hand.”
The men on their team were protective and possessive as hell. Dedicated to their country and their careers. Apparently that trait carried over into their relationships as well. Once they found their woman, that was it. Not that he planned to ever test those waters himself.
His alcoholic father had left when he was a kid. His single mother raised him and his siblings the best that she could. But when his sister was murdered by her ex-boyfriend, when Brent had received her frantic calls and messages the week before and hadn’t been able to get home to her in time, it had almost destroyed him. Even today the guilt practically ate him alive.
Protected by a SEAL (Alpha SEALs, Book 6) Page 1
