by Lexi Post
Table of Contents
Poisoned Honor
Copyright
Poisoned Honor Summary
Acknowledgments
Author’s Note
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Epilogue
Read on for an excerpt from When Love Chimes (Broken Valor #1)...
Also by Lexi Post
About Lexi Post
Poisoned Honor (Broken Valor: Book 2)
Copyright © 2017 by Lexi Post
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author.
For information contact Lexi Post at www.lexipostbooks.com
Cover design and formatting by Bella Media Management
Photograph by Royal Touch Photography
Ebook ISBN: 978-0-9970003-9-9
Excerpt When Love Chimes (Broken Valor Book 1) Copyright © Lexi Post 2016
SUMMARY
After a near-fatal accident while on duty, Coast Guardsman rescue swimmer, Tyler Adams is determined to get back to work. Unfortunately, it has left him with a problem he can’t conquer, a problem he must hide from the sexy psychologist he’s interested in. But as more “accidents” occur at the Air Station, he is forced to involve her.
Dr. Meghan Haskell is thrilled to have landed the government contract to help the Coast Guardsmen and women in Crystal Waters, Florida. She’s also impressed that Tyler has had no need of her services even after his accident. Smitten, she jumps at the chance to spend more time with him…until he asks the unthinkable.
Beyond frustrated after another crew member is seriously hurt, Tyler pushes every boundary to expose the saboteur, inadvertently endangering Meghan. Now he must overcome his limitations or lose her forever.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
For Bob Fabich Sr., who introduced me to the Coast Guard and the wonderful friends we’ve made. And for my sister Paige Wood whose artistic eye and creative mind are always such a huge help.
Thank you to United States Coast Guard, Chief Warrant Officer, Brian Hennessy for his ideas and for providing me with the appropriate links to the information I needed. Thank you to Deborah Emery-Gigliotti, MS, LCMHC, for her expertise from the psychological side. I was glad I could give my character a love story almost as great as hers.
In addition to all this help, I want to thank KC Crocker, Pamela Todd, Susan Staebell and Carolyn Derrico for their final look over. I couldn’t have completed this without everyone involved.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Poisoned Honor was inspired by William Blake’s poem, “A Poison Tree,” first published in 1794. In the poem, the narrator tells a tale of no remorse about how he entrapped his enemy with a poisoned apple from his tree, purposefully luring him there so he could have revenge for what may or may not have been a valid reason. The point being that the narrator is no better than his enemy through his deceit and anger.
What if one among the honorable were to become poisoned in this way, having been wronged but then feeding his anger to exact revenge? Would his deceit win the day? Would his traps bear fruition? And if there is only anger, can love still find a way to survive in such a poisonous atmosphere, or will the innocent succumb as well.
A POISON TREE
By William Blake
I was angry with my friend:
I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe:
I told it not, my wrath did grow.
And I waterd it in fears
And it grew both day and night,
Till it bore an apple bright.
And my foe beheld it shine,
And he knew that it was mine,
And into my garden stole,
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning glad I see
My foe outstretchd beneath the tree.
1794
CHAPTER ONE
Tyler Adams heard the snap above him as the cable he held beneath the MH-65 Dolphin helicopter lost its tension and he plummeted toward the raging ocean.
Fuck. He was too high!
Fear shot through him, causing his heart to skip as adrenaline flooded his body. With the rush of energy, his brain clicked into action. Survive. What do I need to do to survive?
It hadn’t been the first time his life had been threatened and his training kicked in. He looked down at the fast-approaching waves.
Bend at the waist. Shit, no time!
His body made contact, but it didn’t feel like water, it felt like concrete as his knees gave way at impact. There was a blissful instance of nothing as he plunged beneath the surface and then pain exploded inside him.
“Arrggghhh!”
Tyler sat up in bed. Sweat coated his body. “Fucking goddamn nightmare.” He rubbed his legs, the remembered agony of contact too real for any sane person. He wiggled his toes first to reassure himself they worked then bent his knees and threw his legs over the side of the bed.
Letting his head drop, he ran his hand through his short hair. Would he have these dreams forever? It had been four months since the accident. Why wouldn’t they stop?
You have unresolved emotions.
The voice of the shrink he secretly went to hammered against his brain. He had only a week before he returned to regular duty. No one knew how much he dreaded that. How the fuck was he supposed to continue as a rescue swimmer when he’d woken in the hospital with a sudden fear of heights?
He glanced at the clock. 05:00. Today was his day off and he had an appointment with the shrink at 09:00. Maybe he could distract him, keep him from asking if he had the nightmare again. At least he’d convinced the Chief that he was fine, otherwise the government-contracted psychologist would never let him return to work.
Dr. Meghan Haskell was the one everyone was required to see if they needed help. He’d met her three weeks back when he’d given Drew a ride because it was raining. The kid didn’t like getting wet and never wore a helmet while riding his foreign motorcycle.
He had the chance to see Meghan three more times, and every time he left he was glad she wasn’t his shrink. There was no way he could tell her his issue. He’d be far too distracted.
Dr. Haskell was his age and stunning in a smart way. He always had a thing for gorgeous women in glasses. And she definitely qualified, grade A all the way. She dressed in a suit with a modest skirt, which showed off her toned legs in the high heels she wore. Her blouse was always demurely buttoned, but the profile of her suitcoat made it clear she had perfect curves.
It wasn’t her beautiful body though that had him thinking about her more than he should. It was her eyes. They were a unique mixture of blue and green and they caught everything, his body movements, his tension, even his mannerisms.
That combined with her unique scent had his body paying attention. It was something citrus and spicy, like the tea she had in her hand last time he saw her.
She was always polite, giving him a smile. Class-act was written all over her, and he had every intention of asking her out after he returned to duty. There was no way he’d get closer to her beforehand. The
last thing he needed was for her to figure out he was afraid of heights and tell his chief.
Even as he thought about her, his body started to respond, which was a lot better than how it felt a few minutes earlier. What he needed was a quick two-mile swim and three-mile run to help him shake off the vestiges of the nightmare. Standing, he stretched his arms upward, pulling at the knots in his back, more remnants from his accident.
He’d been lucky with a just a couple broken legs. Alix Buchanan had it a lot worse. He still couldn’t believe Alix was paralyzed from the waist down after her accident last week. Flying helicopters was her life. Her expert maneuvering of the out-of-control copter had saved the lives of everyone on board.
There had been so many freak accidents at the Station in the last six months that some of the crew members said it was haunted. Even Kolbe, Alix’s mechanic, had started researching the ownership of the land to make sure it wasn’t located on an old Native American burial ground.
Moving forward, Tyler limped toward his bathroom, his awkward gait pissing him off. As the hot water sluiced over his muscles, his body rearranged itself in to better working order.
He grabbed the soap. Too bad he couldn’t trade his nightmares for hot dreams of Dr. Meghan Haskell. He couldn’t quite read her. Sometimes he thought she might be interested and other times not so much.
Maybe that was another aspect that attracted him, her poise. She always seemed so together. As a rescue swimmer, he rarely had the chance to see that. Any women he saved were either panicked or in shock though for good reason.
No matter why or how much he was attracted to the doctor, he refused to do anything about it until he was back on regular duty and had kicked his stupid fear to the curb.
Rinsing off, he let the heat of the water sooth his still healing body. He wanted to get back to saving lives. It was what he did and in another week or so, ready or not, he would return to hanging from a hovering helicopter above the waves. Way above the waves.
* * * * *
Dr. Meghan Haskell hit “save” after jotting down a few notes on her last client and closed the file. She had five minutes before her eight o’clock appointment. She might as well have another shot of caffeine.
She stood and walked across the fake oriental carpet to her cabinet. Opening it, she poured boiling hot water from her electric tea kettle over a new teabag and watched it steep.
She’d never been a morning person, but the government contract for psychological services she’d won required her to be available starting at six in the morning. The powers-that-be wanted their military personnel in the right frame of mind for duty. Luckily, she didn’t have a 6:00AM today, but the number of Coast Guard men and women coming in had begun to concern her.
Picking up her mug, she walked back to her desk. She wasn’t complaining about the increase in clients. In fact, the contract had given her a credibility in the community that she had lacked as the newest psychologist to open up shop in Crystal Waters.
She took a sip of ginger-lemon tea and closed her eyes. Hmm, she loved the scent and taste of it, soothing while stimulating. Opening her eyes, she clicked her calendar open on her laptop. Lifting the mug to her lips as she scanned who she should expect next, she paused, the spicy aroma teasing her nose. It was Drew Linden.
He’d been coming to her the longest of any of the Coast Guard personnel. That man loved to talk, which made her job easy for a change. Her other Coast Guard male clients made her feel like she was pulling teeth with no anesthetic. On the other hand, those same males had completed their sessions. This young man, and he was young, really had no specific issues from his accident, but it was clear he wanted a sympathetic ear. That she could do.
Besides, it was the man who gave Drew a ride on rainy days that made her tingle. She glanced out the window. It was gloomy and wet, but it didn’t look like it was actually raining. Would Tyler come? He always came up to the reception area when he could as easily just drop Drew off at the door. She liked to think he enjoyed talking to, but he was so polite, it could just be that he wanted to be sure Drew made his appointment on time, since Drew had a tendency to flirt with the receptionist.
Even as she took another sip of what was soothing tea a moment ago, her body heated with anticipation. Tyler was the first man she’d ever met who wasn’t a lawyer or architect or other professional, and she was seriously attracted to him. Not just because of his stature, but with his smile, his looks, and his big heart. She’d learned a bit about the man since Drew started coming to see her a month ago.
Tyler looked far younger than his years. She figured he had to be about twenty-eight based on the clues Drew dropped. She wouldn’t be surprised if Tyler was still carded for alcohol. His blond hair was cut short, shaved at the base and sides, but a little longer on top. She itched to run her fingers through it like he often did.
As for his broad shoulders, that was the only part of him she was sure about since Coast Guard crews at Air Station Crystal Waters were required to wear their flight suits on duty, and Tyler Adams filled his out well. The loose jumpsuit hid his body except for his shoulders.
If she ever ran into him in a grocery store or at the mall when he was out of uniform, she doubted she could get three words past her lips. For someone with a doctorate in psychology, she could barely focus when he was around.
He had a strong jaw line with just a hint of a cleft in his chin. When she wasn’t looking into his gray eyes, she caught herself watching his very kissable lips. Unfortunately, they’d only had a few short conversations. She wanted to know the man.
Not everyone was cut out to be a rescue swimmer both physically and emotionally. Plus, the fact that he wasn’t sent to her after what Drew described as a horrifying accident had her heart fluttering. He must have nerves of steel.
Male laugher outside the building had her setting her tea on her desk then moving closer to the window. Oh crap. She was just in time to see Tyler smile at Drew and give him a friendly punch in the arm. That smile alone was enough to fluster her, but Tyler wasn’t in uniform. She watched the two men until they disappeared under the awning, her forehead pressed against the glass.
Stepping away, she took a couple deep calming breaths. She’d been taught to always play it cool, let the other person reveal what they would, but being around Tyler left her breathless. Now he’d be in the reception area any second and she’d have to contend with him in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt up close. Even from the window, with her glasses on, she could see the bulge of his caves two flights up.
“Pull yourself together, Meg. He’s just a great looking, heroic man. He’ll never ask you out if you slobber all over him.” Hearing her own voice helped, and she took one more sip of tea to help slow her pulse then strode to her door.
She paused and straightened her suitcoat. Drew often flirted with the shared office secretary outside, which always gave her a few moments with Tyler. A question about what he would do on his day off seemed the best way to start the conversation. She always liked to be prepared.
Opening the door, she walked out into the reception area and waited.
CHAPTER TWO
Within seconds of Meghan’s arrival, the door opened and the first thing she noticed was the residual smile on Tyler’s face from his conversation with Drew. Her insides warmed at the sight. The next thing sent her entire body into overheating.
Tyler wore a blue t-shirt that revealed his large biceps and strong forearms which were dusted with light blond hair and pale freckles. The shirt did nothing to hide the mounds of his chest or his narrow waist. She didn’t even want to contemplate what his butt looked like in the shorts.
She forced a smile, but couldn’t move forward, so she leaned back against her door frame to keep her from making a complete fool of herself. “Good morning, Drew, good morning, Tyler.”
Drew nodded, but immediately turned his attention to the secretary.
“Good morning, Dr. Haskell.” Tyler walked past Drew to face her,
resting his forearm on one of the winged back chairs set next to each other in the waiting area.
She stared at his hand on the back of the chair. It was large, with thick fingers. He wore no ring, which she knew from their very first meeting. Get a grip, Meg. He’s just a handsome man who happens to be your age, unlike many of the younger men at the Air Station.
She focused on his eyes to avoid the temptation of his body. “No uniform today?” Well, duh.
He shook his head. “It’s my day off. Heading to St. Pete’s Beach.”
She glanced toward the small side window to her right. “Hmm, I hope it’s not to get a tan.”
He chuckled, the sound making her almost dizzy as it flowed over her. “It’s going to clear up. By time I get there, it should be hot and baking.”
And he would take off his shirt and run into the water he loved so much. What she wouldn’t pay to see that. “I hope you have a lot of sunscreen then.” Really? He’s a grown man not an eight-year-old. You keep treating him like that, he’ll never ask you to dinner.
Tyler nodded, a half smile remaining on his lips. “Sure do. I’m all about safety.” He winked.
Why did the image of a condom float into her mind? She needed to focus. “I haven’t been to the beach in so long. You’d think now that I live so close to the ocean, I’d be able to make time.”
“Don’t you get weekends off?” He looked disappointed, which caused her stomach to ping with hope.
“I do, if I keep up with my notes during the week. You’re right. I need to go to the beach, even if it’s just one close by. They may not be St. Pete’s, but I don’t need a crowd, just sand, sun, and water.”
He broke into a wide smile. “Exactly. Back home in Maine, we have more rocky beaches than sandy ones, but they’re all great.” He glanced at his waterproof watch. “Well, I better get going, it’s a good two-hour drive and I want to make the most of the day. Already had my caffeine, breakfast, swim and my run. Don’t want to slow down now.”
