Wounded Soldiers Trilogy

by Milly Taiden

  Nick and Addy can't fight their attraction. They also can't fight the fact she's related to someone he despises. Maybe, if they focus on falling in love, things will work themselves out? Soon, they're going to find out that in love and war, anything goes.

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are fictitious or have been used fictitiously, and are not to be construed as real in any way. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Published By

  Latin Goddess Press

  Winter Springs, FL 32708

  http://millytaiden.com

  A Hero for Sale

  Copyright © 2017 by Milly Taiden

  Cover by S.A. Price

  Edited by: Tina Winograd

  All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  Property of Milly Taiden

  November 2017

  —For our military heroes and heroines.

  Thank you for your service. Freedom is never free.

  ONE

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  “Don’t do this to me, man.” Navy SEALs Captain Nick Gates hated the way his voice sounded almost like he was begging. He held the beer in his hand in a death grip, palm almost going numb from the cold bottle.

  “Sorry, bro. You offered yourself to Kayla and this is what happens.” Ryan Mitchell, his friend and former SEAL unit member, chuckled.

  Ryan’s wife had cornered Nick at their previous get-together and asked for his help. Sure, he was glad to help in any way he could. She smiled devilishly at him and said thanks. He hadn’t heard back until now. “I didn’t realize she meant I was going up for auction.”

  Ryan’s laughter echoed around the yard. Though it was winter in New York, at Golden Island fifteen hundred miles due south, the weather was warm and beautiful. Sun shone through the tall palms and wind propelled the salty ocean breeze toward the beach house.

  It was the guys’ weekend, Kayla had insisted. She’d invited the entire unit to stay. Matt and his fiancée Jessie almost hadn’t made it due to a bad storm. Jessie was a good friend of Kayla’s and the two women were happy to entertain each other while the men hung out. Nick watched Matt bring Jessie a glass of wine. She smiled, curled an arm around his waist, and turned back to her conversation with Kayla.

  “Do the others know?” He watched some of his other friends get roped into Kayla’s ministrations.

  Ryan shrugged and drank from his beer. “If they don’t, they will soon enough. She’s going to make sure everyone knows what’s up by the end of this trip.”

  Nick sighed and slipped cold fingers through his still wet hair. Kayla was masterful. She’d made sure that she’d invited all of Ryan’s old combat unit down to Golden Island off the Florida Keys while the weather was crazy in New York. Made it easy for everyone to agree to go. It also made it easy for her to get her way.

  “Listen,” Ryan met his gaze with a cheeky grin, “all I know is that my wife is in charge of the hospital’s annual event to raise funds for the burn unit. That means she and Jessie are going to get each of you single men to strut your stuff for our donations. How can you say no to helping a good cause?”

  Fucking hell! He couldn’t. Nick couldn’t say no to any of the females in his family. How could he say no to Kayla, the woman who had brought happiness into one of his best friend’s lives? He couldn’t.

  “I have to get a tux, huh?”

  Ryan grinned. “Yeah. A tux, and it’s from this one store where she has had me buy a few suits. The owner and his sons are amazing. They work magic and can make you look great in a suit.”

  Nick gave his friend a look of disdain. “You sound like you’re enjoying this too damn much.”

  Ryan chuckled and drank his beer. “Look, you might as well get a nice suit and sit back and enjoy all the ladies putting their money up for you. I mean, you’re the one we’re sure can get the most money,” he told Nick. “Kayla is counting on your good looks to make women open up their checkbooks and go crazy.”

  Nick frowned. “As long as I don’t have to take anything off.”

  Kayla and Jessie turned to face him at that moment.

  Kayla gave him a wide grin and shook her head. “I can’t believe I’m hearing that come out of your mouth, Nick. I would never want you to feel pressured into anything just because some woman bought you for the evening.”

  Jessie snorted. “Oh, please, Nick. You’ll have most of those women fighting for a few hours alone with you. You can’t tell me that would be so bad.”

  “I’m not interested in hooking up with anyone,” he said, making his feelings clear. Nick hadn’t dated since he’d been brought back half alive from a bad explosion. He’d been lucky not to lose any limbs, unlike Ryan, but he never felt comfortable removing his clothing anymore. The multiple surgeries had taken a toll on his physique. He’d ended up with multiple scars all over his torso. He also had burn marks on his body and one giant scar from when he’d been opened to remove a piece of steel.

  Kayla nodded solemnly. “I get it. All I expect is for you to plan an outing that involves spending time with your winner. What you decide to do is up to you.”

  “As long as we understand each other,” he said and walked off to put his empty beer bottle in the recycling bin. He stared off at the waves lapping hungrily at the sand.

  It felt like forever ago that he’d been planning to be there with his fiancée, Gracie. But when he’d been injured, the first call he got after days of surgery was from her. She wanted to break up. She was afraid that he’d been disfigured to the point she wouldn’t be able to be with him.

  He hadn’t bothered explaining to her that his body was still in one piece and he’d eventually walk, though he’d need months of physical therapy first. No. Instead, he’d hung up and shut out that part of his life. He wasn’t Ryan or Matt. He didn’t expect to meet a woman who would love him despite all his surgeries and the massive hernia repair he’d gone through. Nick wasn’t sure he’d trust any woman to love him looking this way. To understand the nightmares and the reason he closed himself off.

  “Hey,” Matt said, walking up to him and putting an empty bottle in the bin. “You okay?”

  Nick was the latest one to be done with physical therapy. He’d already gotten a job offer from a security company Ryan had started. They could do different types of protecting.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.”

  “Listen, Kayla and Jessie, they mean well. They just want to help you all meet women and raise money for a good cause. She’s not going to play matchmaker on a large scale if that’s what you’re worried about.”

  “I was, yes,” he admitted. “I’m not interested in romance.”

  “You don’t have to be. Just have a good time and help out the charity.”

  Nick nodded. He would. That charity had helped many kids and knowing how insecure he felt about his looks, he could only imagine a kid having to go through it. He’d go. He’d get a suit and he’d smile and help raise money. But he wouldn’t allow any woman to get ideas about romance. He wasn’t looking for love. Not now, not ever.

  TWO

  Addilyn Walton had to count to ten before she punched her sister in the face. Since when had Gracen lost all traces of human decency?

  “No, Gracen. Taking the company jet to your friend’s wedding is not a business reason.”

  Gracen pouted. “Fine. I’ll talk to Daddy about using the family jet then.”

  Addilyn glanced down at the financials in front of her. “Fine. Do that. I’m sure he’ll give in to you. He always does.”

  One of the biggest problems her father had was the fact he didn�
��t know how to say no to Gracen. She was a spoiled brat and Addy still didn’t know how they could be twins. Talk about polar opposites. They didn’t even have that supposed twin connection people spoke about so much. When it came to their relationship, awkward and polite was more on point than warm and sisterly.

  Addy felt at least ten years older than Gracen. Having interned in the family business since high school and then moved in to the CFO position, she had always been more adult than her all-fun sister. When Gracen told Addy she met a cute soldier and she was in love, Addy knew her sister was once again infatuated. Gracen was good at infatuation and falling for good looking men until she grew bored of them.

  But then, when Gracen found out her military boy toy had suffered severe injuries that could mean disfigurement or even loss of limbs, she decided she was going to break it off with him. Addy couldn’t get her sister to reconsider. Not that she’d ever met the man, but nobody deserved to be dumped after almost losing his life. Certainly not while fighting for the country. Her sister had no compassion.

  Torn, Addy had gone to the hospital where Captain Nick Gates was going through life-saving surgery and sat in the waiting room for hours every day just to get a glimpse of him before he woke from anesthesia and was put to sleep for his next surgery. That went on for weeks. She hadn’t told anyone, and she’d made sure not to bother Nick once he woke.

  But for those few moments after surgery, she wouldn’t let him be alone. Eventually, his only sister had shown up and Addy had been careful to not be there when she was around. His sister lived in Japan with her military husband, so it was obvious why she’d taken so long to see him. There was no way Addy could leave the poor guy in a hospital with nobody to worry about him.

  Once Nick was on the road to physical therapy, she stopped going to the hospital. There were no more surgeries and no more alone time with Nick. But that hadn’t been the end of her involvement. She’d called every day to ask how he was doing.

  When she found out Gracen had broken things off with Nick, she couldn’t help but feel relieved for him. Gracen would never understand what he’d lived through and she wouldn’t care. Life was about her. Plus, those moments where she was alone with him after surgery, she’d opened up and told Nick about herself. Things she didn’t tell anyone. It was strange, but she felt like he was her friend and he didn’t even know it. He had no idea she even existed.

  “Are you coming to the wedding?” Gracen asked, snapping her out of her thoughts of Nick.

  “No. I have a charity function to attend.”

  Gracen rolled her blue eyes at her twin and tossed a super straight, long blonde strand behind her shoulder. “You are so boring. How is it you’re always doing something for charity? Doesn’t that get old?”

  “No. It doesn’t. We have a social responsibility to do what we can for those in need, as a large company. As people. Do you get that?”

  Gracen shrugged. “Meh.” She got up and pulled down on the hem of her mini dress. Addy didn’t understand why she wore it if she had to pull it down every few minutes. “I’ll see you next week then. Have fun at your whatever,” she said, waving her hand dismissively. “I’m going to see Daddy. Ciao.”

  Addy waited until her sister was gone to pull the envelope with the invitation from her drawer. She’d become good friends with the hospital administrators and the person in charge of the burn unit charity events, Kayla Mitchell. Once she found out how much help the burn unit needed, Addy made it her business to make sure their company donated enough to add a second wing to the burn area with the latest equipment. She’d also made sure Nick Gates had never gotten a single hospital bill and had gotten a private room while he dealt with the multitude of changes and surgeries he went through.

  Really, the idea of a bachelor auction had been her assistant’s, Dina. She said the best way to get every woman in their social group to spend money for a good cause would be to get some hot men up on stage. Short of getting them naked, this was the best they could come up with.

  She pressed a button and Dina came in with a notepad and pen. She walked over to the Keurig and made two cups of coffee.

  “I see you didn’t pulled out all your gorgeous hair after that little family visit. Has she finally grown into her years?”

  Addy shook her head but grinned. “I wish. You know, for a thirty-year-old woman, Gracen acts like life is going to be a party forever. I don’t know what she expects will happen as she gets older.”

  “Uh, you do realize your sister, like you, is gorgeous and gets any man she wants? She’s also, like you, very well off. She doesn’t have to do anything for the rest of her life but party and carry her little dog in her purse forever.”

  Addy groaned, her heart going out to her sister’s dog, Benji. “That poor animal,” Addy sighed. “He just pops his head out of her purse and yaps to be let loose.”

  “Teacup Chihuahuas are like that. They complain a lot, but they just want attention.”

  “Did you see the bow on him?” Addy sighed in frustration. “I can’t justify putting a pink bow on a male dog. I swear I feel like he looked at me and said, ‘Please hand me my balls back. I used to be a boy once.’”

  Dina laughed and handed her a fresh cup with cream and sugar, just the way she liked it, light and sweet.

  “Here. This will put you in a better mood. I don’t know how Gracen dared to show up here before you’d had at least five cups,” Dina told her and sat in the seat across from Addilyn.

  “Because she’s got a busy social life. I’m still trying to figure out how she is awake before noon. That part is stumping me.”

  Dina rolled her eyes. “Forget her. Let’s talk about the bachelor auction.”

  “Let’s not,” she laughed and sipped on her morning miracle worker.

  “Oh no, you don’t. You’re going to tell me how it’s going with this huge event that we, or better said, you are sponsoring with company funds.”

  She shook her head, pushing the blonde strands that fell forward behind her ear. “We have a foundation for these things. I’m glad to be chair. Besides, when I brought it up at our last meeting, nobody had an issue. In fact, most were receptive to it.”

  “Yeah,” Dina snorted. “They’re all older women excited to bid on a hot young stud.”

  “Dina!”

  Dina shrugged. “You know it’s true.”

  “It doesn’t matter. Raising money for charity is what matters.”

  “Will he be there?” Dina asked, meeting her gaze with curiosity and excitement. “You know, Captain Hot Stuff.”

  She honestly didn’t know. “I never requested anyone in particular be there. Kayla is in charge of that.”

  “Yeah, but didn’t she send you a list of the bachelors? I mean, his name was on it,” she said and drank from her mug.

  “She said it was tentative. Nothing final. She made that list up and hadn’t even asked the men if they’d do it. As far as I know, he could be having a cow about being put up for auction and saying hell no.”

  Dina made a face. “Please! He owes that burn unit for taking extra care of him. Your foundation made it possible for him to not have any hospital or utility bills to go home to.”

  She bit her lip. “I don’t get that. Why aren’t our wounded soldiers coming back with full paid medical and money to help them get on their feet? I mean, they need it. Not like they can find a job when they’re in the hospital for months.”

  Dina sighed. “I’ll never get a lot of shit, but that’s one thing I know. You made Nick’s life a lot easier. Even if he doesn’t do this for your foundation, he needs to do it for you.”

  Addy chuckled at her friend. “He doesn’t know I’m the foundation.”

  “He should. Maybe he’d finally realize who the worthwhile twin is,” she grumbled into her cup.

  “Oh, Dina, don’t. This isn’t a competition between me and Gracen. She’s very self-involved and I’m…”

  “Not. You’re giving and loving and kind.
He needs a woman like you,” Dina said and put her mug on the coaster on Addy’s desk. “Now, let’s talk dresses.”

  Addy groaned and dropped her head back. She was not looking forward to this event. Wanting for it to be a success was one thing, but him being there was mentally messing her up big time.

  THREE

  Nick fixed his bow tie once again. The damn thing was annoying and he didn’t want to wear it. In fact, he didn’t want to wear any of it. Not a tux, or a fucking bow tie and not the ultra-shiny patent Italian leather dress shoes. Thank god, he’d been able to switch those for dress boots instead, but still.

  “Mr. Attiomo, do you have anything without a bow tie?” Nick asked, turning to the proprietor of Attiomo and Sons, the place they’d been sent for their tuxes.

  Mr. Attiomo gave him a look from where he was bent taking in the hem of his pants, his thick-rimmed glasses gave him the appearance of an elder college professor. “Young man, a well-dressed man can make anything happen. You will wear a bow tie with your tux. It was a specific requirement by Mrs. Mitchell.”

  Nick glanced around the expensive shop. He loved Little Italy in New York City. They had the best food, after all, but he hadn’t expected this little shop to be there. From outside, it appeared to be a hole-in-the-wall place, but once inside, he realized just how big and grand it was.

  Kayla’s family came from wealth, so he shouldn’t be surprised she had chosen this place to dress the bachelors for such a big charitable event. Tickets alone were going for ten thousand per table. That was aside from the auction itself. Nick couldn’t fault them. The foundation working with the burn unit on the auction had done a lot for him in his time of need.

  “Don’t slouch, young man,” Mr. Attiomo chastised. “I understand you were at war.”

  “Yes, sir,” he replied, trying to look everywhere but at himself in the mirrors surrounding him.

  “That’s not an excuse for poor posture,” said the little old man. “The military taught you better.”