Meagan's Marine (Halos & Horns)

by Lori Leger

  Meagan’s Marine

  Halos & Horns: Book Three

  By

  AMAZON BESTSELLING AUTHOR

  Lori Leger

  Cajunflair Publishing

  Copyright © 2013 Lori Leger

  This story is a complete work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from Lori Leger

  P.O. Box 641

  Kinder, LA. 70648

  www.CajunflairPublishing.com

  http://www.facebook.com/CajunflairPublishing

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  To my wonderful husband, Michael. You will always be my hero.

  Our five great children, who support me in so many ways,

  and to our grandchildren…from eighteen to a year…you are all adored!

  Special thanks to Kim Killion of The Killion Group

  for the fabulous cover design, yet again.

  www.thekilliongroupinc.com

  Once again, to the two tiny book stores with big hearts

  who carried my books long before anyone else did:

  Sean and James Gayle of Patti’s Book Nook in

  My old hometown of Gueydan, La.

  www.pattisbooknook.com

  and

  Christy Lepretre of Java Joltz in

  Jennings, La.

  Other books by LORI LEGER

  La Fleur de Love Series

  Book One: Some Day Somebody

  Book Two: Last First Kiss

  Book Two and a Half: Hart’s Desire (Novella)

  Book Three: Brown Eyed Girl

  Book Four: Heaven in Your Eyes

  Halos & Horns Series

  Book One: Green Eyed Temptation

  Book Two: Sarah Smile

  Book Three: Meagan’s Marine

  Seasons of Love Series

  Book One: Hearts, Hearths & Holidays

  Book Two: Spring Promise

  Book Three: Sweet Summer Romance

  Book Four: Candlelight & Christmas (title subject to change)

  (Release date of November 2013)

  DEDICATION

  To MOM, I hope you’re gardening to your heart’s content, and watching Saints football on the biggest jumbotron in heaven…with surround sound! I surely do miss our game time discussions over the phone, only one of many things.

  And to the Book Club ladies: Melissa Landry, Dolores Derouen, Lee Derouen, Joan Granger, Margaret Viator,

  Debbie Andrews, Renee Bertrand, Trish Leger, and Sherrill Sonnier. Thank you for your honest critiques and for forcing me to read books out of my ‘box’ every now and then.

  Special thanks go out to the techs from Talecris Plasma Resources in Lake Charles, LA, for all your hard work and help in researching the subject matter. Plasma donations save lives, so always remember that you’re all doing a good thing.

  Table of Contents

  1 THE ARMPIT OF THE MIDDLE EAST

  2 WEDDINGS, RECEPTIONS, AND MISCONCEPTIONS

  3 THE SAD MAN (PART 1)

  4 BARTENDING TRICKS AND FEELING LIKE A DICK

  5 MARINE 1 AND MARINE 2

  6 KITES AND CONFESSIONS

  7 TWO JARHEADS AND A COWGIRL

  8 BIRTHDAYS, BRAWLS, AND BROTHERS IN ARMS

  9 FEAR OF FLYING PHOTOS

  10 COWBOYS, CROWDS, AND COMPETITIONS

  11 THE NORMALCY OF PARANORMALCY

  12 EMPATHS AND ACCIDENTS

  13 BROKEN BONES, BALD TIRES, AND BLOOD MONEY

  14 HOVERING MARINE AND A MESSAGE

  15 BIG NEEDLES AND BIGGER PROMISES

  16 THE NEW NORMAL

  17 DISAPPOINTMENTS AND DECISIONS

  18 BACHELORETTES AND BARFING

  19 FEVERISH NOT-SO-FRIENDLY FIRE

  20 COSTUMES AND CAMOUFLAGE

  21 ACCUSATIONS, DENIALS, AND RESTLESS NIGHTS

  22 STORAGE UNITS AND CHANCE MEETINGS

  23 HULKS AND HEROES

  24 HALLOWEEN HELL

  25 THE SAD MAN (PART 2)

  26 HOUSTON TEXANS AND #8

  27 RETURNS AND REVELATIONS

  EXCERPT OF RAINY SEASON

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  CHAPTER 1

  The Armpit of the Middle East

  September1st

  “Well, I’ll be damned!”

  Master Sergeant Mitchell Hebert fell on his cot with a pensive sigh. The lean, muscular Marine lifted his arms over his head, and stretched to his full 6’ length.

  Sergeant Matthew “Tex” Broussard swaggered over to Mitch, leaned his massive frame against the makeshift desk made from wooden crates. “You’re already in Afghanistan, the arm pit of the Middle East. How much more damned could you be?” The East Texas drawl that prompted his nickname in boot camp twenty years earlier, still present and accounted for. “What’s up, Cajun Heat?”

  “Looks like I’ll have time for that barbeque at your place after all, Tex. My sister, Sarah, is getting married in two weeks. My soon to be brother-in-law emailed me to see if I could walk her down the aisle in my dress blues two Saturdays from now. He doesn’t want her to know he contacted me, but wants me to show up just in time for the ceremony.” Mitch grinned at his friend, his Marine brother he considered as close as blood.

  Tex beamed at him, revealing his pearly whites. “That’s great, man. She still doesn’t know you’re going home for good?”

  “Nope. I want to surprise her. Sarah’s wanted this for so long.”

  “She’ll be surprised, all right,” Tex snorted. “You’re gonna give that poor girl a heart attack on her wedding day. So, what gives with the guy she’s hitching? You think he’ll be good to her?”

  Mitch scratched at his two-day stubble. “I think this one’s worthy of her, Tex.”

  “Well, if he ain’t, I’m sure you’ll be there to whip him into shape.”

  Mitch stretched out on the cot. “You got that right. I dropped the ball for years with that first son of a bitch she married. That ain’t happening again.”

  “Man, you couldn’t stop what you didn’t know about. She kept all that from you.”

  “I know. She took beatings so I wouldn’t be distracted over here.” He muttered a low string of curses. “I owe her, man. She had to deal with my mom’s cancer, then dad dying, and she did it all on her own. She was just a kid when I joined up, and she’s had it rough.”

  Tex grunted in agreement before tossing a dirty sock at Mitch. “Well, if that dude’s really a brain surgeon like you said he is, she won’t have it rough anymore. Big brother will be around this time to make sure nobody’s mistreating his little sis. I can understand how you feel, though. God help the poor bastard who ever lays a hand on my little sister, Haley.”

  “Damn straight.” Mitch shuddered at the stinky sock and threw it back at Tex, who caught it before leaving the room. He settled back on his cot and thought about his sister and her impending nuptials to Dr. Tanner Collins.

  For nearly a year, he’d beaten himself up about nearly losing her to an abusive husband. She’d tried hard to escape, had moved into a woman’s shelter and began divorce proceedings. The controlling bastard had tracked her down, kidnapped her and her twin babies. After beating the hell out of Sarah, he’d left her and the girls locked up with no food for nearly a week while he went to work on a land rig. Her breast-feeding had sustained the infants, but had nearly killed their mother. Finally, someone had heard the cries and they’d been rescued.

/>   Mitch clenched his fist, regretting his no good brother-in-law had met an untimely demise in the treacherous storm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. What a waste. He’d longed to give the bastard a painful reminder of what a man could and would do to protect his family.

  He settled in for an unaccustomed nap, on what would be his last afternoon in Afghanistan. He owed it to his sister and nieces to be there for them. After twenty years as a Marine, maybe he owed it to himself as well.

  His eyes drifted shut, and his thoughts shifted from his sister, to a pair of cobalt blue eyes framed by long, black lashes. A face materialized suddenly, one with a perky nose, slightly cleft chin, and high cheekbones, with hair as black as coal. He pictured the engaging smile of a certain bar maid in Lake Coburn, Louisiana—her straight, white teeth and pouty red lips—lips made for kissing, though he hadn’t had the opportunity on their one and only date his last visit home. Not one that counted, anyway. He’d wanted to, but she held back, pulled herself away from him. It hadn’t stopped him from fantasizing about her, holding her tight little body in his arms.

  The initial image faded, turning instead to one of her, this time holding a little boy…the spitting image of his mama. His gut wrenched painfully. No way in hell was he ready for the commitment of a woman with a child.

  He winced as Tex’s drawl floated to him from outside the tent. Why, he asked himself, for the thousandth time, did Meagan have to speak with the same twang as a guy he saw and heard nearly every day since he’d been back here? Each time he heard it, he couldn’t help but think of her.

  Mitch folded his pillow over his head, issuing a silent plea that Tex would just once, shut the hell up. It didn’t work, of course, as the twang filtered through the barely there pillow.

  Meagan.

  Not good. Not good at all.

  CHAPTER 2

  Weddings, Receptions and Misconceptions

  Meagan Hutton released her breath in a rush as she entered the room where the bride waited impatiently. “Oh, honey! Tanner is going to flip when he sees you.”

  Sarah faced the full-length mirror and ran both hands down her sides. “I can’t believe it’s me in this gorgeous dress.” She looked up, catching the reflected gazes of her friends. “It still feels like a dream. No way could I ever be this happy.” She smoothed down the delicate layers of champagne colored silk and lace clinging to her slim body. “I just wish my brother could have been here to give me away.”

  Meagan stepped forward, taking her by the shoulders. “Today’s not the day for regrets, Sarah. None, whatsoever. You know he’d be here if he could, and he sure as heck wouldn’t want you to be sad about it.”

  Sarah dabbed at the corner of her eye with a tissue. “I know, and you’re right, Meg. No regrets, not today.” She spun around, letting the dress flare out around her. “I’m so ready to marry Tanner. Is it almost time?”

  A swift rapping on the door had them all pivoting in that direction.

  “Is it safe to come in?” Daniel LeBlanc’s voice sounded muffled through the thickness of the wooden door.

  Tiffany McAllister headed to the door and opened it a crack for her own father. “As long as you don’t have Tanner with you. I don’t want him seeing his bride until she’s walking down that aisle.”

  Daniel chuckled, tugging on his elegant black tux. “No, but someone almost as important to her. It seems I’m being robbed of my bride escorting duties for the day.”

  Tiffany released a shocked gasp a second before she pulled the door open for the U.S. Marine to enter the room.

  Sarah flew to Mitchell and threw her arms around him. “What are you doing here, big brother?”

  Mitch wrapped his sister in a bear hug. “You didn’t think I’d miss your wedding, did you?”

  Sarah laughed, straightening her dress as he finally released her. “I didn’t think they’d give you leave again this soon. How did you manage this?”

  He shrugged a sharply jacketed shoulder. “Turns out your timing was impeccable. I’m out, Sis. For good, this time.”

  Sarah waved her hands in front of her eyes, trying not to cry. “Seriously? I don’t want to ruin my make up, but this would be so worth it.”

  Even through Sarah’s tears and squeals of excitement, all Meagan could do was stare at the vision before her. Mitch Hebert in plain old jeans and a tee shirt had been a pleasure to behold nearly a year earlier during their first meeting. The sight of Master Sergeant Mitchell Hebert in full dress blues, complete with his cover and white gloves, was enough to turn her insides to liquid heat.

  Out for good. Permanently. No more praying for his safe-keeping while he was in Afghanistan, without his knowledge, of course. Maybe now she could manage to relax a little?

  A second later, his gaze found hers, pinning her to the spot.

  Meagan’s breath hitched in her throat at the perceptible widening of his eyes. Maybe not.

  Red cleared his throat and spoke, breaking her out of her trance.

  “Time to get this thing rolling, people. Father Carlos has another wedding in two hours.”

  Meg managed to slip out of the room without a word to anyone, and made her way to the pew reserved for wedding participants. Although Sarah only had one bridesmaid, Melanie Finley, she’d thoughtfully included her other friends for readings, gift-bearers during the communion for mass, or as witnesses. She’d chosen Meg as a reader for her favorite reading from Corinthians.

  Meagan stood with everyone else in the church as Melanie and Red McAllister appeared, each carrying one of Sarah’s twin daughters. Audible gasps of admiration rippled through the guests at the sight of the toddlers. Sarah’s adorable girls, dressed in matching pink gowns, pristine white shoes, with their glossy curls framed in delicate flower braids, worked the crowd like the little hams they were. The gasps turned to laughter, as Sammi and Danni shrieked with delight upon catching sight of Leah and Daniel LeBlanc, seated in the first pew. For all intents and purposes, the couple filled in as welcome replacements for Sarah’s deceased parents, and the twins adored them. Since generously opening their home to Sarah and her girls a year earlier, the Leblancs were the only grandparent figures they’d ever known, up until Sarah and Tanner had begun dating. Now his parents claimed them as grandchildren as well.

  The bridal march began and all eyes turned to where Sarah and her brother began their leisurely walk up the aisle.

  Meagan tried…honestly she did, to direct all her attention on Sarah, the beautiful and glowing bride. She must have given up at some point, because her gaze zeroed in on Mitchell. Sarah’s escort carried himself straight and tall beside his sister. Already agonizingly handsome, his impeccably clean shave and neat uniform gave him an air of masculine elegance that called forth heroes from decades gone by.

  She hadn’t even realized her mouth had fallen open until his soft brown eyes found hers, rooting her to the spot. She blinked, and closed her mouth in order to swallow a groan of appreciation at the sight of him, all six feet of him, buff and sexy as hell.

  Meagan watched his approach—close—closer still. Close enough to notice a scar at his left temple, just missing his eye. Had that been there before? She didn’t think so. What horrors had he seen since he’d been away? What horrors had he survived in his twenty years in the Marines?

  Survived. A cold sweat overcame her at the thought. She’d spent weeks tracking down Christopher’s brothers in arms, hoping to find someone who could fill her in on the last days of her fiance’s life. No one else had understood her need to know, but at the time, it had been important to her. In the end, she’d heard more than she should have heard, seen more than she should have seen. Everyone else injured in the same incident had survived, in one form or another. Some without limbs, but with enough strength of character to bear their losses well. Others, either with more severe injuries, or with more psychological than physical damage, hadn’t coped so well. One man had called her dead Marine, the lucky one.

  During the months that follow
ed Christopher’s death, pregnant with his child, heartbroken and alone, she’d even found herself agreeing with him occasionally. Until the night she’d given birth to her son.

  She pictured her handsome little boy, with his mother’s dark hair and blue eyes. That’s where her genetic similarity ended, though. Once she’d set eyes on him, she knew Chris hadn’t left her completely. He was there, in the shape of his son’s head, to his ears, chin, and shape of his nose. He was Christopher made over, only with her hair and eye color, and he’d been her reason for battling her way out of the darkness.

  All too soon, it was time for Meagan’s reading. She approached the wooden lectern on shaky legs, suddenly terrified at having to read in front of the church full of people. She took a deep breath and tried to relax her shoulders. What was she, an unwed mother, doing up here in a church about to read from the holy bible? Where was that archangel—the one on the lightning bolt committee? Any second now, he’d throw a bolt in her direction, just for being present in God’s house.

  Heat infused her face through and through, accompanied by a feeling of complete unworthiness. She managed to look up, intent on finding an escape route, but instead found Mitchell. He sent her a nod of encouragement from his seat directly in front of where she stood shaking in her three inch heels. For some reason, it helped to know he was there. She took a deep breath and found her passage.

  “Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud…” She continued, making a conscious effort to read slowly, steadily, with full range, finally reaching the end. “And now these three remain: Faith, Hope, and Love; and the greatest of these is love.”

  ****

  She stood with everyone else, applauding the newly married couple, and grinning from ear to ear as Sarah and Tanner clasped hands and headed down the aisle, practically at a run. Red, the best man, took Melanie’s arm to lead her out, leaving Mitchell standing alone. Meagan met him at the center aisle and he smiled down at her, placing his hand at her lower back to lead her out of the church.