Hot Alpha SEALs: Military Romance Megaset

by Sharon Hamilton

  The day passed quickly with so many patients the team and the entire hospital staff were constantly busy. By lunch, they’d seen over fifty sick or injured patients and administered hundreds of vaccinations.

  Natalie didn’t spot Jack until she took a brief break at lunchtime. She stood in the doorway of the hospital, taking a few deep breaths before plunging back into the work. A line of patients sat in the shade, sharing what little food they had.

  Jack had commandeered a bucket of water from the hospital and paper cups the team had brought along. He was busy handing out cups of water to those still waiting to be seen. He smiled at the ladies and they smiled back. When they spoke in Spanish, he was quick to chuckle and reply in their language. The children especially loved him, helping him by holding the cups while he poured water into them and laughing when he spilled it on them purposely.

  By the time Jack made it back to the door, Natalie was smiling, too.

  “I’d say good morning, but it’s lunchtime.” Jack winked. “Did you sleep well?”

  Natalie nodded. “I did. And you?” Her cheeks warmed, and not because of the sun shining down on her. She was surprised at how giddy she felt standing next to him, like a teenager after her first date with the sexy football player. Wanting to press her cool hands against her hot cheeks, she shoved them into her pockets and tried to act as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened, when in her heart she knew her life had actually changed by making love to this man.

  “You’re blushing,” Jack said. “I hope you’re not embarrassed by last night, because it was nothing to be embarrassed about. Being together was pure magic.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek.

  The children around him all giggled and hid their eyes behind their hands.

  “Shouldn’t you be looking for guerillas or something?” Mac said from behind Natalie.

  She sucked in a breath and let it out slowly to keep from turning and glaring at Mac. When she did turn, she smiled. “Let’s get back to work.”

  Mac scowled at Jack.

  Jack just smiled at him. “Have you two had lunch?”

  Natalie shook her head. “I rarely eat lunch while working with the locals.”

  Jack dug into a pocket in his cargo pants and pulled out several foil-wrapped protein bars. “I thought so. Take these for an energy boost.”

  Natalie gave him a wry grin. “Now, who’s giving health advice?”

  “Simple mechanics. Your body is like an engine. It can’t run without fuel.” He performed and about-face then hurried down the street and around a corner.

  “Something just doesn’t jive with that man. He seems to know a lot, but he isn’t sharing,” Mac said.

  Natalie handed him a nutrition bar. “He shared his lunch.” She patted Mac’s shoulder and entered the hospital to go back to work, ripping into the package. She found herself counting the hours until the day was done and she could see Jack again.

  Jack remained in relatively close vicinity to the hospital in Trujillo, afraid to venture too far and not be on hand should the guerillas attempt another attack on the medical staff. He’d checked in with his team aboard the Pegasus that morning once he’d gotten far enough away from the Nightingale that he wouldn’t be seen doing what would appear like talking to himself.

  The team was restless. Gator had been ready to recall him and look in other locations to find the guerilla hideout.

  Jack convinced them to give it one more night. After the boy’s report the day before and the creepy feeling of being watched, Jack was convinced it was only a matter of time before the Castillo Commandos made their move on the team of medical personnel. He felt positive the Black Hawk support had chased them back into the jungle and their next move would be more covert.

  “Fish.” A voice called out to him from a shadowy corner between two stucco buildings.

  Jack spun to face Gator, the six-foot tall, Louisiana Cajun who’d just gotten himself engaged to a NCIS agent a couple months back. He swore he wasn’t quitting the team, but Jack guessed it could happen someday. Marriage and family sometimes made SEALs think twice before committing to the next potentially deadly mission.

  Having never met a woman who could hold up under the pressure of being a Navy SEAL wife and one he could see himself spending the rest of what was left of his life with, Jack hadn’t understood the desire to marry.

  Until he’d met Natalie. Though he’d only known her a very short time, he could see himself coming home to her every night. She was gentle but tough enough to withstand the worry and uncertainty that went hand-in-hand with being a Navy SEAL wife.

  “Where’s the rest of the team?” Jack asked, shaking himself out of dreams he had no business dreaming.

  “Most are gearing up for tonight’s festival,” Gator said. “I have Dustman and Irish with me on opposites ends of Trujillo, watching the traffic going in and out of town. How are things with the doctor?”

  “What do you mean?” Jack shot a look at Gator. Had he guessed?

  Gator’s brows rose. “I asked a simple question. What should I mean?” He crossed his arms. “Spill. What’s going on between you and the pretty doctor lady?”

  When an answer didn’t come immediately, Gator shook his head. “Please don’t tell me you’re fucking the bait.”

  Anger flared and Jack shoved Gator, his superior, up against the wall. “Shut the fuck up about Natalie—Dr. Rhoades. She’s classy and she’s not like that.”

  “But you did her? Holy shit, Fish. I send you out to perform a mission of getting in good with the doctor team, not getting into the doctor.”

  “I said, shut the fuck up.” Jack shoved a hand through his hair and spun away.

  “Sorry, man. It’s just that I’m stunned. Two nights on the boat and you’re already in her panties. That has to be a record for you.”

  Jack didn’t respond, his focus destroyed. Falling in bed with someone when he was on a mission wasn’t like him. He saved that for when he had downtime and needed to let off a little steam. Natalie wasn’t stress relief. She was different. “She’s amazing,” he said on a sigh.

  “And when we’re done here?”

  “I’ll still be a SEAL stationed out of Virginia, and she’ll still be running a floating doctor boat in some of the poorest countries along the coast of middle and South America.”

  “Exactly. You’re only here for a couple days. Don’t get too wrapped around the axels with the good doctor. It will only set you both up for long lonely nights ahead.”

  Gator was right. Damn him. But he’d taken the plunge and committed to one woman. “How did you know Mitchell was the one for you? Did it take long? Hours? Days? Weeks?”

  Gator laughed, his gaze shifting to a wall in front of him as though he was watching a movie screen playing all his old, favorite memories. “I knew the moment I saw her deck a marine who’d gotten a little too fresh at the bar.”

  “But you didn’t get together that quickly.”

  “No, Brewsky asked her out first. I was too much of a dumbass to do it. He asked her to marry him before I had a chance and…well, you know the code.” He shook his head. “You don’t steal your buddy’s girl.”

  “Brewsky’s girl.” Jack nodded. Brewsky died during one of their missions. Jack was on that one, and watched his friend take the hit.

  “So, you’re telling me you have feelings for the doctor lady?” Gator’s lips thinned. “Are you getting too close to be objective? Do I need to pull you off and put another man inside the medical team?”

  “No!” Jack added, “No. I’ll be okay. I know whatever this is will go nowhere. We’d never be in the same place again.”

  “Not unless one or the other of you gives up your day jobs.” Gator’s brows dipped. “You’re not thinking about quitting the Navy, are you?”

  “No, I’m a frogman through and through.” He sighed again. “It’s just that she’s…”

  “Amazing?” Gator laughed. “I get it. Just know that your brothers wil
l be there to pick up the pieces when you fall apart. Do us a favor, though. Don’t fall apart when the Castillo Commandos come callin’.”

  “Right.” He had to maintain focus on his real reason for being there. Stop the guerillas from kidnapping rich yacht owners and holding them for ransom, and to recover the ones they already had. “What’s the plan for tonight?”

  “Twelve members of the team will be positioned surrounding the perimeter and intermingled in the crowd as tourists. The rest will be manning jet skis and motorboats in the bay, in case the guerillas show up in their gunboat again.”

  “Good. I want to tell the medical staff to stay on board the Nightingale, but if I do that, I have to tell them why.”

  “And that includes owning up to lying about your real job.” Gator patted his back. “I bet your lady doctor wouldn’t be too happy about being lied to.”

  “Probably not.” Hell, she’d be furious. “However, if the guerillas make their move tonight, the entire medical team could be in danger of being kidnapped or killed.”

  “And if they don’t make their move tonight, I will recall you, and we have to come up with a different plan to find our target.”

  Jack nodded. “Understood.” His time with Natalie was coming to an end, one way or another. Being together wasn’t meant to last to begin with. “I’d better get back to the hospital, they should be closing up shop soon.”

  “Jack.” Gator caught his arm. “We’re Navy SEALs, and we’re also people with the same needs and desires as others. If both parties are willing and passionate about being together, they’ll find a way.”

  “Thanks, man. Even I can recognize a lose-lose situation when it hits me in the gut.” Jack left Gator in the shadows and hurried back to the hospital.

  The line of patients had dwindled to two and they were being led in as he arrived.

  A few minutes later, they exited with smiles on their faces, thanking Dr. Rhoades and Dr. Biacowski who followed them to the door.

  Dr. Jimenez joined them, drying his hands on a towel. “It was a good day. Thank you.” He flipped the towel up on his shoulder and held out his hand to Dr. Biacowski and then Dr. Rhoades. “And thank you for the supplies. We rarely have all that we need or when we get it, the medications have already exceeded their expiry dates. Gracias, amigos.”

  The team packed up their cases that were much lighter than when they’d arrived. Members of the hospital staff helped carry them down to the dock.

  Jack fell in beside Natalie, who brought up the rear of the tired crew. “I believe you had some happy patients.”

  “Some more so than others.” She smiled. “Now to get out to the boat, clean up and come back for the festivities.” Natalie groaned. “All I want is a shower and bed.” Her gaze flicked to the side then straight ahead. “Oh, and a sandwich. By the way, thank you for the protein bar. I would not have made it without its calories today.”

  “You always come prepared for the patients, but not for yourself. Your health is as important, if not more important than the patients you see. If you let yourself get run down, you will be of no use to the people who rely on you.” He waved a hand as he spoke. “Add the fact that a run-down body is more susceptible to disease in a disease-ridden jungle, and you have a dangerous combination.”

  “Why, Dr. Jack, I don’t know why I bothered to get a medical license.”

  “Sorry, it’s all the advice you give your patients. But I’ve noticed that doctors are their own worst patients.”

  “You have a point.” She dropped her bag in the boat. Dr. Biacowski, Hallie and Steve had already climbed aboard. Mac tapped his foot on the dock.

  Jack glanced at his jet ski. “Want to ride with me?”

  Natalie glanced from the boat full of her team to the jet ski.

  For a moment, Jack thought she would decline his offer. Then she surprised him by saying, “Yes.”

  Mac glared at Jack. “She needs to ride with the team, and you need to be free to provide security or whatever it is you do.”

  Jack’s gaze didn’t leave Natalie’s face. “Your choice, Dr. Rhoades.”

  Natalie’s gaze moved from Mac to Jack and back to Mac. “You can transport the team back to the Nightingale without me. I’ll ride with Jack.”

  Jack fought hard to contain his grin. Once his back was turned to the others, he let it loose. Natalie was riding with him. He dropped down onto the jet ski and then held onto her hand as she settled onto the back of the seat. While the skiff turned and headed back to the boat, Jack followed at a slow pace behind it.

  “Is this as good as it gets?” Natalie yelled over the roar of the engine.

  Jack grinned, goosed the throttle and made a wide arc around the skiff. Keeping a careful watch on the bay, searching for guerilla gunboats, he blasted across the water, making sharp turns that had Natalie holding tightly around his middle and laughing out loud. He liked the feel of her arms around him and her laughter brightened his day.

  By the time they returned to the Nightingale, the others had unloaded the skiff and were headed toward the galley. After Dr. Biacowski’s stomach issues, none of them wanted to risk eating on the economy and coming down with an illness or a parasite.

  Jack helped Natalie off the jet ski and secured the line.

  She waited until he straightened before taking his hand. “Thank you.” Then she leaned up on her toes and kissed his lips, barely brushing them with hers.

  That simple touch wasn’t nearly enough. Jack clamped an arm around her waist and pulled her against him in a breath-stealing, heart-throbbing kiss that would set him back a long way on getting over the beautiful Dr. Rhoades. When he let her go, he whispered, “Save a dance for me.”

  Chapter Six

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  Natalie ran the brush through her hair one last time, pulled a big swath of it up on the left side and clipped it behind her ear, letting the other side fall down in silken waves over her shoulder. Laying the brush on the counter, she stared at herself in the little mirror over her sink. She’d applied mascara, a smoky blue eye shadow Hallie had let her borrow and shiny rose-petal pink lip gloss.

  She wore a white peasant blouse with the neckline pulled down on her arms, exposing all of her shoulders the way the woman at the Costa Rican market had showed her. And the flouncy bright red skirt that swung way out when she twirled complemented the blouse, her waist and the festival perfectly. And to top it off her cheeks glowed, not because of rouge or sunburn but because Jack was coming along.

  Her heart pitter-pattered like a teenager waiting for her date to prom. She pressed her hands to her cheeks and laughed. This was silly. What thirty-one-year-old woman got all excited about going on a group date with a bunch of her colleagues?

  This one.

  If she played her cards right and she hadn’t read Jack wrong, she might invite him into her bed for a repeat performance of the previous night’s activities on the deck. Natalie lifted a tiny bottle of perfume, another item Hallie loaned her, and sprayed on a dash of courage.

  “I’m ready.” Her eyes widened and her knees shook. Last night had been spontaneous, a product of moonlight and soft kisses. Tonight—holy crap—she had seduction on her mind.

  Smoothing her damp hands down the front of her skirt, she checked the fit of the buckle on her sandals and ran out of ways to procrastinate.

  A knock on her door made her jump.

  Ready or not, here I come.

  She twisted the handle and flung open the door.

  Jack stood in front of her, wearing a crisp white shirt, tailored black trousers and black dress shoes. His shaggy blond hair had been trimmed and he’d shaved. He could have stepped right off the pages of GQ magazine.

  Natalie pressed a hand to her chest. The man was so handsome, he took her breath away.

  His nostrils flared and his eyes darkened. “Hey, beautiful.”

  The way he said those words made Natalie’s knees wobble and her heart pound against her ribs. “Hey, yourself.”r />
  “Turn around,” he demanded.

  She frowned.

  He took her hand and twirled her under his arm until she faced away from him. Then he stopped her by placing his hands on her shoulders. “Just as I thought. As pretty from the back as from the front.” He moved his hands away.

  When Natalie started to turn back around, he said, “Uh-uh. Stay.”

  She snorted softly. “I’m not a dog.”

  “Humor me.”

  Then she felt his fingers against the bare skin of her neck and he draped a silver necklace around her throat, one with a bright red pendent hanging down from the middle. “What’s this?”

  “Just a little trinket. I couldn’t have planned it better. The pendent matches the red in your dress.”

  He hooked the clasp, his knuckles against the back of her neck sending delicious shivers across her skin, raising gooseflesh.

  “You smell good,” he whispered the words against her ear and turned her to face him.

  Natalie touched the pendent with her fingertips. “You didn’t have to bring me a present.”

  “Yes, I did.” He brushed his thumb across her cheek. “A beautiful woman should have beautiful things.”

  With a shake of her head, she laughed. “You’re such a romantic.”

  “Only when it’s warranted.”

  “Hey, are you two ready?” Hallie passed by in the hallway. “The boat leaves in two minutes.”

  “Who’s staying on board?” Jack asked.

  “Steve, Ronnie and their guns.” Natalie’s lips twisted. Why did their mission have to be so dangerous? All they wanted to do was help save lives. “Will they be okay?”

  “They should be.” He frowned. “But maybe I should let them use one of my weapons.” He grabbed her hand and led her down the hallway to the room he shared with Mac. Without Mac there, they had enough room to stand inside.

  The door shut behind Natalie and her breath caught in her throat. They were alone. No one would pass by in the hallway and see them without first opening the door. The perfect opportunity to steal a kiss.

  Jack went straight for his closet, pulled out his duffle bag and laid it on his bunk. “I keep a breakdown rifle in my duffle.”