"Thank you for not giving up on him," Bruiser said gently.
"Never," she stated with resolve.
Something warm clutched at River's hand as he fought his way through the swampy darkness trying to claim him. He could hear someone speaking but couldn't untangle it from the background noise of electronic equipment and the hiss of air being fed into his lungs. Finally, he was able to pry one eye partially open and realized he was in a hospital room. Well, that made sense since everything in his body hurt.
He tried to lift a hand to push the oxygen tube from his nose but a hand stopped him. "No, leave it alone," the soft voice admonished.
A buzz sounded too loud and he winced. Another voice, asked, "May I help you?"
"He's awake," said the angelic tone.
That voice. He knew her voice.
Forcing both eyes open he looked around and spotted her. Sitting in a chair next to his bed was Joselyn. Wearing a loose workout shirt and black yoga pants, one arm was resting in a sling and the other was grasped tightly around his. Her long blonde hair was up in a messy bun at the top of her head and there was a strain around her eyes. The beautiful smile she gave he made his heart lurch.
"You're okay," he croaked.
"Yeah. I'm okay," she agreed, "and so will you."
A nurse burst into his room and Joselyn reluctantly let his hand go. After several moments of being poked, prodded and questioned, he was allowed some water. Yanking the cannula from his face, he rubbed his nose. Much better. That tube was irritating.
The nurse shook her head with a small laugh. "If you get light-headed put it back on," she admonished. He promised he would although he had no intention of following through.
After the nurse disappeared, Joselyn returned to her seat.
"Your parents, Shaun, Hannah and Marla are at my house. Aaron and Celia needed to get back to the farm but I'll call them when you are ready. I'm glad you are finally awake. Bruiser, Toad, and Cowboy are hoping to see you before they leave to go back to California in the morning. They went to get some coffee."
"My team is here?"
"Of course they are. SEALs never leave SEALs behind. Not even after retirement."
He grinned. "How long was I out?"
"Couple of days but you would come too for a few minutes then drift back to sleep. I'm guessing you don't remember any of it. They moved you out of ICU into this room yesterday. I was worried but they said you would wake completely when you were ready. Typical of you. Doing everything on your own time."
"You know it."
He reached out and touched her face and groaned, letting his hand fall to the bed. "Jesus, what did they do to me?"
"I don't know if I'm the one to tell you."
He narrowed his eyes at her. "You are the perfect one to tell me. What happened?"
Relenting, she told him everything she knew about the fight and the aftermath. He remembered most of it but some, thankfully, he didn't. When she finished, he nodded. "Down a kidney, eh? Think you can love a man with parts missing?" His tone was light but there was a bit of apprehension in his question.
She stood, let the side rail fall and sat on the edge. Carefully as not to jostle him, she laid beside him and placed her head on his shoulder. "I love you exactly how you are. Doesn't matter to me if you are missing a kidney, a lung, a leg or whatever." She pressed a kiss to his chest. "Get some rest. There will be plenty of time to talk about all this later."
Wrapping his arm around her waist, he closed his eyes with a smile. Joselyn was in his arms, safe and sound.
Epilogue
Four months later
Joselyn's face felt like it was going to break from smiling so much. She watched Maddox as he stood on the stage, microphone in hand, belting out the lyrics of "My Girl" while his SEAL brothers executed perfect moves as his backup singers. Looking dashing in their dress whites, the six men had every eligible woman in the room panting. Truth be known, there were probably a couple of married ladies who were enjoying the show as well.
Married ladies. She sighed happily as she realized today she had joined their ranks. Glancing at the beautiful but simple platinum and diamond ring Maddox had placed on her hand a few hours ago, she felt her heart swell with love for this incredible man. Mrs. Maddox Benson. It had a nice ring to it.
Entering into the final chorus, her new husband dropped from the stage, advanced over to her and tugged her to her feet. With a swirl, he danced with her a moment before finishing the song, dipping her until her head almost touched the floor and kissing her soundly. Hoots and catcalls filled the air and she blushed.
Tossing the microphone toward the stage, Bruiser caught it in one hand and placed it with the others. Acting as emcee, he announced the next dance as a special dedication to Joselyn from Maddox and cued the DJ in the corner. The first few strains of Blake Shelton's "God Gave Me You" lifted into the air and her breath hitched. Maddox swayed with her, whispering the words into her ear in his rich baritone. Lowering his head, he placed a kiss on her bare shoulder where a silvery scar showed above the décolletage of her grandmother's white silk wedding dress. She stilled in his arms. How lucky could one woman be? She was loved by this amazing man and she returned that love with wholehearted abandon. She thought of the day her father placed his ring on her hand and her eyes misted. "Daddy would have loved you."
He hugged her close. "I'm sorry he couldn't be here today. I would do anything to take that hurt from you. I believe he's watching over you."
She sniffed quietly. "I know he is."
He gently wiped away the tears pooling in her eyes with one thumb. "Hey, this should be a happy day. "
She gazed up at him with every ounce of the love she felt in her heart. "It is the happiest day of my life."
When the song was done, he led her back to the head table and pulled the chair out for her before sitting beside. Lifting her hand to his lips, he pressed his lips to her knuckles before brushing them across his cheek.
Bunches of flowers filled the air with their fragrance with not a single rose in sight, much to her florist's chagrin. Her aversion to the once beloved flower had even affected Mom's rose bushes in her corner garden. Every time she saw the delicate pink petals, she shuddered with revulsion as visions of her destroyed bed assaulted her mind. Once Maddox was well enough, he quietly replaced both bushes with hydrangeas. The roses were taken to Mississippi where they now live in a place of honor on the farm near the pond where Celia and Aaron were building a retirement cabin.
Following the simple but elegant ceremony with just family and a few close friends, Joselyn and Maddox celebrated their nuptials by throwing a huge lavish party. Yards of white bunting and twinkling miniature lights draped the ceiling and walls creating a magical setting. Dozens of tables crowned with elegant bunches of white magnolias, snowy gardenias, and baby's breath were scattered about the huge space. The dinner catered by Giovanni had been cleared away leaving plenty of room for guests to mingle. In the back of the room, there was a white chocolate fountain surrounded by platters of fruit and cake for dipping. On the other side of the table was a cascade of another sort. Maddox had made a secret request to Giovanni and the culinary artesian had come through. When Joselyn spotted the beautiful arrangement of crystal bowls simulating a waterfall containing green apple Happy Orchards candies she burst into laughter and hugged him tightly. It was perfect!
At the front of the room, directly behind the bride's table sat a huge wedding cake of white smooth fondant covered with hundreds of tiny edible pearls on a silver pedestal. The table next to it held a groom's cake shaped like a large SEALs trident pin being cut by Annabeth. Her riotous laughter filled the room as she took time between slices to flirt with Hick. Joselyn chuckled to herself. Annabeth had finally given up on trying to coerce Maddox into becoming a model. It looked like she now had her sights on another SEAL. Joselyn watched as Hick whispered something into Annabeth's ear, causing her face to flush as red as her hair. She pushed on his arm in mock
horror but her eyes were shining brightly. Grabbing a flute of champagne she gulped it down. Picking up several napkins, she used them to fan herself. Interesting. Perhaps there was more than cake being discussed between those two.
Her musing was interrupted as the room echoed with calls from a couple hundred guests crowded into the lavishly decorated ballroom housing their reception. "Speech! Speech!"
Kissing her knuckles again, Maddox rose and faced the room. Tapping on his champagne glass, he waited until the noise died down. Clearing his throat, he spoke.
"I spent twenty years serving my country in the Navy. When the time came to leave, I didn't know what I was going to do with the rest of my life. I knew of a lot of brothers who went on to work in the private security sector or even the police force." He raised his glass toward Bull sitting nearby. "The only thing I knew before enlisting was how to work a farm but given all the years of excitement I had lived, I wasn't sure if I could settle down again." He turned to look at Joselyn with love so pure, her heart stuttered in her chest. "Then I found my reason for living." Reverent awws filled the room as he continued. "I had no idea when I came to help a friend, I was walking into destiny. I had no clue sitting in the back booth of a coffee shop in downtown New Orleans was everything I could ever hope or dream of. Looking back, I wonder how you put up with me. Grouchy, cold - you even nicknamed me Frost Giant. I was so determined not to get involved. I would be frosty, clinical, reserved and get the job done." He chuckled. "It was a lost cause. With the first glimpse, I was hooked. Every time you stood up to me, that fire showed in every word you spoke. I felt a little more of the frost melt. When you showed confidence in me, I found I can do anything... Well, anything except deny you whatever you wanted. Joselyn, you did the impossible. You stole my heart and tucked it away deep inside of you. It's yours. It has always been yours and I never want it back again. Everything I ever can be is found in your eyes." He knelt beside her and placed her hand on his chest. "This is all yours, forever. I love you, Joselyn Benson."
Applause erupted from the gathered throng as he touched his lips to hers. Just like always, flames of heat licked through her body and she trembled. He growled softly. "Later, love. Just a couple more hours and we can leave this shindig." He gave her a saucy wink and stood with a fiery passion burning in his eyes. She was happy she wasn't the only one affected by the smoking hot chemistry between them.
The DJ started another song and soon the dance floor was filled with laughing people moving to the beat of a pop tune. A throat cleared, catching her attention and she smiled at Aaron standing behind them. Pulling a chair out, Maddox motioned to it. "Hey, Uncle Aaron. Have a seat." Picking his bride up, he sat in her chair and settled her into his lap. Kissing the nape of her neck he rested his chin on her shoulder.
The older man hesitated and dropped into the chair. Pulling out an envelope, he pushed it into Maddox's hands. "I wanted to give you two our gift."
Opening the envelope, Maddox pulled out a stack of papers. His brow wrinkled as he looked them over and shock registered. "We can't take this."
"You can and you will. The cabin on the lake is almost finished. We'll be moving out there and retiring on ten or so acres. Shaun and Hannah will stay in the big house." He jabbed a finger at the paper. "This deed is for the old homestead and forty acres on the west side of the property. You always loved that piece of land so it's only fitting you get it. You and Shaun have been restarting the breeding program. I also know you are concerned about the distance between Meridian and New Orleans. Now, you don't have to worry about it. Joselyn has assured me she can work from anywhere in the world so there you go. I reckon you'll have to get a decent internet service out there but I'll leave it to you."
Maddox swallowed. Gently nudging Joselyn from his lap, he stood as Aaron did and hugged the man tightly. "Thank you," he said simply.
"Family," he stated with a shrug as if that was the answer to any question. He kissed Joselyn's astonished face and rejoined his wife and sister at their table nearby.
Maddox stared at the deed in his hand and then at her. "I guess we need to talk about this. I mean, we have been spending a lot of time on the farm lately but this is permanent."
She cut him off. "You and Shaun spend loads of time on Skype talking about the possibilities for a new breeding program. That tells me you are both wanting to get it started. Honey, I am not blind. I see how happy it makes you there on the farm. It's where you need to be and I want to be by your side. Aaron is right. I can write from anywhere. You need to be where your heart is."
He dropped the papers on the table, grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into his lap. "That's easy, then. My heart is where you are. You've given me a precious gift. Your love means more to me than anything on this Earth. I will protect and cherish it every day for the rest of my life. I will never let anything happen to it or to you. I swear to protect you, Joselyn."
"Forever."
Also by Melissa Kay Clarke
The Legacy RebornSeries
Reclamation
Stand Alone Books
Protecting Joselyn
About the Author
Melissa was born in Tupelo, Mississippi and raised in Houlka, a small rural town forty-five minutes southwest down the famous Natchez Trace. She found a love of reading very early and quickly devoured everything she could. Told repeatedly that she had a wonderful imagination, she turned to scribbling her musings and wrote her first novel while in college. It was never published and has since vanished. The death of a close friend who aspired to become an author reawoke her own desire resulting in penning her first book, Shattered Dreams, published in 2013. It was quickly followed by two sequels with a fourth final book in the works.
Melissa now resides in Meridian, Mississippi with her supportive family – husband, Robert and daughter Rebecca, two cats, and a precocious Chihuahua. When she isn't writing, she spends way too much time communicating with her online friends and feeding her ravenous appetite for the written word.
For more information:
https://www.mkclarke.com
Special Forces: Operation Alpha: Protecting Joselyn (Kindle Worlds) Page 19