by Amy Gamet
He jerked his head back. “I love you, Olivia. You have to know that by now.”
“You are a self-centered, egotistical micromanaging asshole, and I most certainly don’t love you,” she said.
Lockheed’s eyes widened, his nostrils flaring. He turned toward Trevor. “You did this to her.” He lifted the gun.
“No!” screamed Olivia, reaching for the weapon. But Trevor was already in motion, his foot connecting with the revolver and sending it flying. “Freeze.” Just like that, he held his own weapon trained on Lockheed.
The director looked at her, his dark eyes nearly black in the dimly lit room. He was menacing, but she refused to cower.
“What are you going to do if I don’t?” Lockheed asked. He took two steps toward Olivia.
Hawk fired. Lockheed stood motionless for a beat before falling to the floor.
“Are you okay?” asked Trevor.
“Yes.”
The sound of someone running outside the door had Trevor on alert, his weapon at the ready as he stepped into the hallway, ready to shoot. “Jesus, Mac, you fucking scared me.”
“Lockheed was the stalker, not the bodyguard,” said Mac, reaching the room.
“Yeah, we figured that out,” said Hawk, putting his weapon away. “How did you know?”
“The bodyguard survived his injuries. After a good dose of lithium, he couldn’t say enough about his cousin the director and Lockheed’s manipulation of his fears. Led us right to him.”
Olivia stared at Lockheed’s lifeless body. She’d stood up to him, just like the marquess would have done, but it didn’t feel like she was acting. It felt like she was strong. She took a deep breath.
“You okay?” asked Trevor.
She nodded. “I’m going to be just fine.”
13
Two months later, New York City
You wouldn’t know they were fucked up to look at them.
Physically, Mac’s SEALs looked just like Jax’s crew down in Atlanta, their broad muscles and trim fatigues making them appear imposing. So far, Trevor had resisted the temptation to ask the stories behind the men—the reasons these twelve men had each been selected by Mac.
He stepped out of his office at the new HERO Force headquarters and onto his private terrace overlooking the New York Public Library and Bryant Park behind it. Olivia stood with her back to him, but turned at his approach and smiled. “It’s beautiful out here,” she said.
“My wife has excellent taste in real estate.” He wrapped his arms around her midsection. They were settling into married life, spending time together in their new apartment and getting to know New York City. It was a whole new life from the one they were sharing before she went to France. It was better than he could have imagined.
She leaned her head back against his shoulder. “Are you sure these men will be okay?”
“Mac believes in them, and I believe in Mac.”
“Are they all from your SEAL team?”
“No, only one. He did another tour since I saw him last, though.”
“Hmm. What about the others?”
“I’m not sure. But I trust him.” Mac had sobered up and was back to his old self, for all intents and purposes.
She sighed and twisted in his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I heard from my agent. I got the part.”
“That’s awesome. When does it start?”
“We’re filming on location in Vancouver starting in March.”
“HERO Force should be up and running by then. Mac won’t need me here.”
“You’re sure you don’t mind coming?”
He rested his forehead on hers. “You’re the most important thing in my life. I’m not going to forget that ever again.”
She kissed him soundly on the lips. “I love you, Trevor.”
He grinned and raised his eyebrows. “I’ll bet you’re glad I ran into your car on that mountaintop.”
She hit his chest. “You’re just lucky you didn’t kill me.”
“Hey, if I were a better driver, none of this would have happened. You should be grateful I crashed into you.”
She laughed and turned back to face the skyline. “Every day, you idiot. Every stinking day.”
Epilogue
Mac leaned back in his chair and rubbed his knuckles over his lips, staring at the list of names on his computer screen.
One of them might be his wife.
He’d been sober for four and a half weeks—what some people might call a month—but he’d barely graduated from counting days and wasn’t ready to change units again just yet.
It was HERO Force that got him through. Flying across the country collecting his recruits like a child plucking seashells from the shore. These men needed him more than he needed to drink, and for now, it was enough.
All but one of the guys had come easily. Because of the way they were, they didn’t have relationships that tethered them to their towns, no wives or children who needed to move across the country. Families were for men who had something to give, and his shattered SEALs had a whole lot of nothing.
They’d stayed in shape, for the most part. Pumping iron had a tendency to keep you sane when life tried to flush you away. Mac had kept it up, too, during his time in France—exercising between daily hangovers and that night’s drinks.
Yes, he knew from whence they came, and his rules for the men were the same as his rules for himself. You need to be sober. A couple were on pain pills, but those had to go, too. It was easy to fall into that trap. The wounds of war were painful, doctors all too eager to prescribe something to take that pain away. Throw in a good shot of depression and you were lucky more of these men didn’t end up addicted.
Already they were down to twelve. They’d started with fourteen, but two of them lost their shit when it came time for weapons training. Too many bad memories, and Mac knew a thing or two about memories.
He brought the computer screen back into focus. Yes, one of these women might be his Ellie, but then again, maybe not. She could be using her maiden name or an alias that would make it far more difficult to find her.
And what the fuck are you going to say when you do?
Sobriety had a funny way of mocking his good intentions. He pushed back his chair, stood, and moved to the window. The Chrysler Building shone in the distance.
“Mac?”
He turned. T-ball stood in the doorway, a dirty-blond guy with a prominent Y-shaped scar running down his cheek like a zipper. He was a sniper from Mac’s third tour who’d taken captive by tangos for more than a week. He’d been tortured in ways Mac could barely stand to contemplate.
“Cowboy’s on the phone,” said T-ball. “We’ve got our first assignment.”
Adrenaline shot spiders into Mac’s stomach. He nodded and reached for the phone. “Hi, Leo.”
“Hey, Mac. You ready to get started?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be.” He pulled out a pad of paper and a pen. “Keep talking.”
The Shattered SEALs Have Arrived
Scientist Summer Daniels is a witness to a bombing by an ex-employee who now wants her dead. Luke “Wiseman” Arroyo is a broken Navy SEAL who’s given up on redemption. On the verge of quitting HERO Force, Luke must stay and protect Summer while they work together to find a rare element stolen during the attack on her family’s company—but he’s hiding a bombshell secret that could detonate a lot more than the explosive chemistry between them.
Protecting His Witness is the first book in the Shattered SEALs military suspense series. If you like heroism, intrigue, and spicy romance, then you’ll love this heart-wrenching spinoff of Amy Gamet’s gripping HERO Force series.
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Also by Amy Gamet
Including Series Order
HERO Force
Stranded with the SEAL
Sheltered by the SEAL
Harbored by the SEAL
Married to the SEAL
Justice for
the SEAL
Targeted by the SEAL
Kidnapped by the SEAL
Forever with the SEAL
Box Set: HERO Force Books One - Three
Box Set: HERO Force Books Four - Six
Box Set: HERO Force Books Seven, Eight, and Shattered SEALs Book One
Box Set: HERO Force Complete Series
HERO Force: Shattered SEALs
Protecting his Witness
Resisting his Target (summer 2018)
Holding his Hostage (fall 2018)
Love and Danger
Meant for Her
The One Who Got Away
Artful Deception
Meghan’s Wish
Box Set: Love and Danger Complete Series
Love on the Lake
Treasure on Moon Lake
Fortune on Moon Lake
Return to Moon Lake
Box Set: Love on the Lake Complete Series
About the Author
Amy Gamet is a USA Today bestselling author who lives in upstate New York with her husband, children, too many pets and the occasional foster animal or litter. She likes to swim in the sunshine, make jewelry, and lobbies professionally for household remodeling projects. She owns an unusual number of brightly colored T-shirts and black yoga pants, and her children always ask who’s coming to visit when she runs the vacuum cleaner.
www.amygamet.com
