She’d heard that voice before.
Commotion ensued as someone else entered the room. The lights suddenly came back on, and Lexi squeezed her eyes shut. She heard a thump and saw a man on the ground, blood spilling from his chest. Lexi hadn’t even heard a gunshot.
The man holding her yelled at the others.
“Tell Christopher we found her,” one of them barked. “She needs medical attention.”
The world faded to black.
***
“We found her,” Brent’s voice came through Christopher’s ear bud. “Repeat, we found her.” Christopher paused, mid-sweep of one of the upstairs bedrooms. His eyes continued a quick scan of the room, but he was literally frozen in place. “Mike’s attending to her now, but she needs medical attention.”
Fucking hell.
That spurred him back to life. “Where are you?” Christopher demanded.
The team had split up upon arriving at the house, with Christopher, Evan, and Patrick going one way, the rest of the team another. Patrick appeared in the doorway and nodded at him as Brent gave their location down in the basement. Christopher tore down the stairs from the top level of the home, taking several at a time. Two men lay on the floor of living room, but he stepped over them, rushing to the second set of stairs. Racing to get his girl.
Matthew appeared holding Lexi. She was limp in his arms and so very pale. His chest clenched. What the hell had they done to her?
Brent appeared behind him, holding a stack of something in his hands. He shoved them at Christopher, saying he would destroy the remaining copies. Christopher didn’t even glance down at the pictures. He took Lexi from Brent and rushed her outside as Mike called for an ambulance.
Her pulse was weak, and she was cold and pale, but he didn’t see any external injuries. She was fully clothed, and Christopher nearly fell to his knees, grateful that she hadn’t been harmed. He took her to his truck as sirens sounded in the distance. She’d be okay. They’d be okay.
His phone buzzed, and he pulled it from his pocket. His CO had texted the entire team: Edwards is in custody.
Christopher breathed a sigh of relief. Lexi mumbled something, and he swept his hand across her forehead, brushing her hair aside.
Violet eyes met his.
“Christopher,” she murmured.
“I’m here, honey. Everything’s all right.”
Epilogue
Christopher carried Lexi down the hall to his apartment two days later, only setting her down to pull his keys from his pocket. He was half tempted to kick the damn door down, he was so eager to get her alone.
Lexi gazed at him through lowered lashes as she stood at his side. For just a moment, she was that shy, bashful girl again. And he was a big, tough, Navy SEAL, ready to show her the time of her life. Too bad one kiss from her a lifetime ago was all it had taken for him to fall head over heels. He’d never meant for them to be together more than one night, but after that first kiss in Coronado? He’d been hers. And after nearly losing her this week? He wasn’t ever letting her go.
“All my stuff is at the hotel,” she protested.
“Not exactly. Remember when Kenley stopped by the hospital to visit you last night?”
“Yeah….”
“I convinced her to bring your things here. She agreed it was for the best.” He winked, knowing Lexi wouldn’t like them deciding what to do without her input.
“For the best, huh? And how on Earth did you get her to agree to that?”
“She may have made me promise that I introduce her to some of the guys on my team,” Christopher chuckled.
“Sounds about right,” Lexi muttered. “I can’t believe my best friend would betray me like that.”
Christopher chuffed out a laugh. “I plan for us to spend all the time you’re getting off from work together.”
“Two weeks isn’t bad considering everything I dealt with.”
Christopher’s eyes narrowed. Lexi had been joking about the situation, but it unnerved him. He’d thought he’d lost her, and hearing her treat it lightly didn’t sit well. He wanted to protect her and care for her. Love her.
He unlocked the door, and they walked into his apartment together. She’d barely set her purse down, before he pulled her into his arms. She glanced up at him—so soft, so innocent, so damn perfect for him. “Lexi.”
“Christopher.”
“I was scared out of my mind that I lost you.”
Her hands rose, and she cupped his face. “I was scared, too. But I’m okay, sweetie.”
Sweetie.
That one little word was enough to nearly make him come undone.
“I can’t stand the thought of not having you in my life, of spending another ten years, a lifetime, without you.”
“We’ll make it work,” she said.
Hope bloomed in his chest. He was worried he’d have to convince her to give things a go. He clasped her hands, lowering them between them, and brushed a soft kiss over her lips.
“You’re the only woman I’ve ever loved.”
Shock filled her eyes.
“Honey, it was always you. No one but you….”
***
Lexi froze, her heart palpitating. Certainly he’d been with other women over the years. But had he truly only ever loved her? He bent and kissed her again, the rough stubble of his jaw chafing against her skin as his hot lips moved over her.
Christopher abruptly stopped and took a step back from her, reaching into his pocket. “I want to do something I should’ve done years ago.”
Confusion flooded through her, and her heartbeat sped up.
In an instant, he was down on one knee before her. Heat bloomed over her skin. Love filled her heart. “Marry me, Lexi,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “I want to spend the rest of my life loving you, making you the happiest woman in the world.”
“But…when did you get that?”
“I bought it for you a lifetime ago. I was just a dumb kid, and I never should’ve let you walk out of my life. Losing you was the biggest mistake I’ve ever made, and loving you is the easiest thing I’ve ever done.”
Tears slid down her cheeks, and he took her trembling hand in his own larger one.
“I couldn’t get rid of it. Maybe, in the back of my mind, I always knew I’d find you again. That you were the only one for me.”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“Yes, you’ll marry me?”
She beamed, her face wet with her tears. “Yes, I’ll marry you, Christopher.”
He slid the ring onto her finger, then rose, capturing her mouth in a kiss. She’d always been his, even if she didn’t know it. And now it was finally time to start their own happily-ever-after.
Thank you for Reading A SEAL’S SURRENDER!
Thanks for reading book three in my Alpha SEALs series! If you enjoyed this book, please help me spread the word by leaving a quick review on Amazon or Goodreads. It makes a huge difference to independent authors like myself. I am very grateful for your support. Stop by my Facebook page and say hi! I’m always sharing teasers and excerpts of my upcoming releases.
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Alpha SEALs Series List
Are you caught up on the Alpha SEALs series? Want to read them again? Click below to borrow or buy!
SEAL THE DEAL (Patrick’s Story)
SEALed With a Kiss (Evan’s Story)
A SEAL’s Surrender (Christopher’s Story)
A SEAL’s Seduction (Mike’s Story)
The SEAL Next Door (Matthew’s Story)
Protected by a SEAL—August 2016
Loved by a SEAL—Fall 2016
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br /> About the Author
Makenna Jameison is a bestselling romance author. She writes military romance and romantic suspense with hot alpha males, steamy scenes, and happily-ever-afters. Her debut series made it to #1 in Military Romance on Amazon. Makenna loves reading, writing, the beach, and traveling to new places. She lives in Washington DC with her husband and two daughters.
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Thank you for reading!
Want to read more from MAKENNA JAMEISON?
Keep reading for an exclusive excerpt from the fourth book in her Alpha SEALs series, A SEAL’S SEDUCTION.
He’ll heal her wounds one night at a time….
Kenley Bristow has her future mapped out: she’ll meet a nice guy, settle down and have kids, and live the stable family life that she never had growing up. The last thing she wants is the assertive Navy SEAL who pinned her against the door, his hard body filling hers with desire she’d never felt before.
Navy SEAL Mike “Patch” Hunter prefers his relationships to be only one night. The petite woman with the face of an angel wasn’t who he thought she was. But after he felt her trembling beneath him, he knew one taste would never be enough.
When an accident leaves Kenley injured and alone, she’s forced to call on the one man she swore she’d never see again. But with heat she’s never felt before burning between them, can she fend him off long enough to escape what she really fears—a life together?
A SEAL’s Seduction, a stand-alone novel, is book four in the bestselling Alpha SEALs series.
Exclusive Excerpt from A SEAL’S SEDUCTION
Mike “Patch” Hunter locked and loaded his HK416 assault rifle, taking aim at the target downrange. There was a slight breeze on the brisk autumn day, whispering across his skin, and he adjusted his calculations accordingly. It was cool out. Clear. His finger itched as he caressed the trigger, ready to take the shot. Guaranteed to meet his mark. The target sat immobile 200 yards from where he stood, not exactly the same as the fast-moving targets his SEAL team took out in battle. But hell, he’d taken plenty of kill shots to unaware men. Drug kingpins. Terrorists. Armed guards. All part of his duty to Uncle Sam and the US Navy.
Just this spring his SEAL team had been sent on an op to the Middle East to retrieve a high-value asset. The other guys had been on the ground ready to grab him. Mike had the sniper’s roost across the street, and when their target—needed captured not killed—stepped out of the building flanked by two bodyguards, he’d taken them out in an instant. Pow. Pow. They hadn’t even known what had hit them.
Mike spat on the ground beside his dusty boots before returning his eyes to the prize. The men around him fired off shots on the range, and a couple of his SEAL buddies stood behind him, watching, but he tuned everything out. Let his vision tunnel. The only thing that existed was the target.
The slight chill in the air nipped at his skin. He blinked. Focused. It was nothing but him and his weapon. In the zone.
Eye on the scope, he pulled the trigger.
Bullseye.
Every damn time.
“Not bad, man,” his fellow team member Christopher “Blade” Walters said as Mike pulled off his headset and glanced back. Christopher lounged beside Brent “Cobra” Rollins, both of them looking relaxed and ready to roll onto the next part of their Saturday. Despite their intense training at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek Monday through Friday, the three of them had headed to a local gun range today to get in some practice and unwind. Or something like that. What was it about weapons and fresh air that made a man so damn content? The adrenaline rush of his job was what kept Mike going half the time, ready to take on the whole world. And shooting on the weekend with his buddies? He was fired up and ready to go, energy surging through his veins.
“Not bad?” Mike laughed. “That was fucking spectacular.”
Brent raised his eyebrows. “Modest as always, asshole.”
“I get it,” Mike said. “You’re jealous of my good looks, talent, and way with the ladies.”
Brent guffawed. “Not a chance in hell.”
Mike held back a grin. While some of the guys on their SEAL team were content playing happily-ever-after with their women, Mike, Brent, and the third single guy on their team, Matthew “Gator” Murphy, still enjoyed carousing for ladies at the local bar. Although Mike enjoyed female company when the mood struck, he usually kept things light. The chase was part of the fun, and some of those girls that hung around him and the other guys were just too damn easy to be caught.
While Mike and Matthew had enjoyed their fair share of women over the years—hell, maybe more than their fair share—no one seemed to have more fun than Brent. A new woman every night was his MO, and the trail of broken hearts in his wake was a mile long. At least.
“Speaking of the ladies,” Christopher interrupted as he stood. “I told Lexi I’d be back soon. Are you about wrapped up here or do I have to hoof it back to my apartment?”
Mike chuffed out a laugh. That guy was whipped. “Is she bringing any of her friends to the party tonight?” he nonchalantly asked as he gathered his gear.
Christopher’s gaze flicked over to him as Brent’s ears perked up. “Kenley will be there, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Hell.”
Brent guffawed. “She’s still pissed at you?”
“Something like that,” Mike muttered.
The petite, brunette beauty with a head full of curls and angelic face was a friend of Lexi’s. Lexi and Christopher were old flames who had rekindled their love over the summer after a chance encounter. Lexi, an IT whiz, had been sent down to their base in Little Creek from the Pentagon to stop some attempted hackings to their secure networks. When she was kidnapped by the man behind the ploy, her best friend Kenley had come racing to Virginia Beach to help find her. As Mike and Christopher had searched the condo Lexi had been in the afternoon she went missing, Kenley had appeared from one of the bedrooms. Mistaking her for an intruder, Mike had instantly pinned her to the wall. And holy hell.
Trapping her small, curvy frame against his had made him harder than steel. At that moment, he hadn’t even cared if she was the enemy or not. He’d had a sample, and he needed more. Her soft breasts had pressed against his hard chest, her lips almost brushing against his neck as he held her in place, her soft breath whispering against his skin. His fingers had wound round both of her slender wrists, holding her immobile, and the vanilla scent she wore had permeated the room, making his mind fuzzy and his dick stand at attention.
The second he’d realized she was Lexi’s friend, not a foe, he’d been a goner. He had images of holding her body against the wall every night as he drilled into her, sinking his throbbing cock into her soft, wet heat as she whimpered for more. As he pleasured her again and again. No doubt a woman as gorgeous as her was used to a man’s attention, but hell if he wouldn’t love to be the one to have the honor of exploring every one of her curves—and then making her come in every way imaginable.
She was so small, he could easily hold her up as he took her, lifting her petite body up and down his shaft. Her legs would wrap round his waist, and she’d arch back in ecstasy as he made her come in his arms. On his cock. He wondered if she tasted of vanilla or something else sinfully sweet. If she’d been wet as he held her there against his hard body—God knows he’d been thick and throbbing for her the second he’d touched her.
Not that she’d exactly seen it the same way. She’d trembled for him, but from fear, not arousal. Christopher had growled at him to get off of her, and the split second he’d realized she was Lexi’s friend, he’d gone from aggressor to protector. He’d wanted to haul her against him again, but this time, to keep her safe from the evils that were out there. From the men who’d kidnapped her best friend. Something didn’t sit right with him at leaving her
alone and defenseless in her condo while he and Christopher continued their search for Lexi, but what choice had they had? Kenley was a grown woman; she wasn’t his. If she wanted to stay there, they sure the hell couldn’t stop her. And Lexi had been the one being held by a crazed kidnapper, the one who needed their help.
The memories washed over him as Brent smirked. “Time to make a move, lover boy. Send her flowers or some shit like that.”
Mike raised his eyebrows. Brent had never bought a woman flowers in his life. He’d probably never taken a woman out on an actual date—his bed seemed to work just fine.
“She’s still pissed as hell at you from what Lexi says,” Christopher said, falling in step beside them as they walked off the range. “She didn’t take you pinning her against the wall like some criminal too well.”
“Don’t I know it,” Mike admitted.
“She asked about you though,” Christopher added.
Mike swung his gaze over to his friend. The way his heart pounded in his chest like a damn freight train was annoying. So what if she asked about him. Didn’t mean a fucking thing.
“I think she was hoping you got shipped out—without the rest of the team,” Christopher laughed.
“Crash and burn, lover boy,” Brent said.
“Damn it,” Mike muttered. So much for making amends. She’d probably be perfectly happy never seeing him again.
“What’s this chick look like anyway?” Brent asked, eyes sparking with interest.
“Don’t ask,” Mike and Christopher said in unison. Hell, Mike could understand why Kenley would be mad at him. She’d trembled against the wall as his much larger body caged her in, and it sure the hell hadn’t been with desire. She had to know why they’d be on her in an instant though. Everyone had been on edge the minute Lexi was taken. Kenley herself had raced down to Virginia Beach from DC in search of her best friend. It wasn’t like he made a habit of grabbing defenseless women in their own homes. The condo had been the last known location Lexi had been, and when she’d appeared unexpectedly out of the bedroom, his training had kicked in instantly.
A SEAL's Surrender (Alpha SEALs Book 3) Page 14