Ranger’s Protection (SEAL & Veteran Series Book 3)

Leslie North

Description

Viktoria Jonsdottir is none too pleased with the personal bodyguard her father has insisted on hiring to keep her safe. Safe from what, she has no idea, but she’s convinced having this brooding man hovering over her is completely unnecessary. All she wants to do is get to New York where her father is conducting high level meetings for their corporation—meetings she arranged, to prove her value to the company. Sure, Lee MacCallister is sexy as hell and his eyes would make an ordinary woman swoon. But Viktoria is no ordinary woman. She’s not going to fall for Lee, even if he does make her feel things she’s never felt before. Like this strange new emotion that just might be…happiness.
It’s a simple enough assignment for the former Army Ranger—protect some rich, spoiled woman for a few days then pick up the check. Only thing is, Viktoria isn’t like any woman he’s ever met. She’s tough, smart, and has a body that’s more than a little distracting. He can keep it professional, even though she’s beyond tempting as sin. But when things get dicey and Victoria’s enemies prove to be far more dangerous than Lee anticipated, he realizes Viktoria has become more than an assignment—she’s become personal. And that could be the most dangerous thing of all.

Sujets

• Fiction
• Romance
• Military

Informations

• Publié par: Relay Publishing
• Date de parution: 12 février 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781386637677
• Langue: English

Extrait

SEAL and Veteran Series



SEAL’s Homecoming

SEAL’s Accidental Family

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


RELAY PUBLISHING EDITION, FEBRUARY 2019
Copyright © 2019 Relay Publishing Ltd.
All rights reserved. Published in the United Kingdom by Relay Publishing. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.


www.relaypub.com

Blurb

Viktoria Jonsdottir is none too pleased with the personal bodyguard her father has insisted on hiring to keep her safe. Safe from what, she has no idea, but she’s convinced having this brooding man hovering over her is completely unnecessary. All she wants to do is get to New York where her father is conducting high level meetings for their corporation—meetings she arranged, to prove her value to the company. Sure, Lee MacCallister is sexy as hell and his eyes would make an ordinary woman swoon. But Viktoria is no ordinary woman. She’s not going to fall for Lee, even if he does make her feel things she’s never felt before. Like this strange new emotion that just might be…happiness.
It’s a simple enough assignment for the former Army Ranger—protect some rich, spoiled woman for a few days then pick up the check. Only thing is, Viktoria isn’t like any woman he’s ever met. She’s tough, smart, and has a body that’s more than a little distracting. He can keep it professional, even though she’s beyond tempting as sin. But when things get dicey and Victoria’s enemies prove to be far more dangerous than Lee anticipated, he realizes Viktoria has become more than an assignment—she’s become personal. And that could be the most dangerous thing of all.
Contents



Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Epilogue


End of Ranger’s Protection

Thank you!

About Leslie North

Also by Leslie
1

L ee McCallister used his forefinger and thumb to widen the document filling the screen of his smartphone. His oldest brother, Chance, had taken a picture of the letter the Army mailed to their childhood home—the address Lee claimed as his permanent residence though he didn’t live there—and texted it late last night.
Below the official letterhead, his old lieutenant colonel invited (commanded) Lee to report to Fort Benning, Georgia, in three weeks. His former Army Ranger unit was to receive the Valorous Unit Award for their “extraordinary heroism in action.”
The phone edges bit into Lee’s fingers as he skimmed the words: your unit performed with marked distinction under difficult and hazardous conditions in accomplishing its mission…
Echoes of explosions, frightened screams, men shouting orders in multiple languages, and chaos invaded his mind.
Slamming his eyes closed, Lee ground the base of his palm against his right eye socket, forcing the sounds of that mission back into the hole deep in his mind. He hated thinking about that day. Their unit may have succeeded in rescuing the band of soldiers and the medical civilians also held hostage, but Lee had lost his career. His right eye looked normal to the rest of the world but thanks to a flying piece of shrapnel, it no longer had the perfect vision required to maintain his sniper status with the Rangers. He’d had to medically retire and suddenly become a civilian twenty years too soon. And he had no backup plan. At twenty-eight years old, he had to start over.
Then life decided to kick him in the nuts all over again. He barely had his discharge papers in hand when his father died. With his mother already gone in Lee’s early teen years, losing his father meant he only had his two older brothers left. Good thing he loved the SOBs and knew they’d always have his back or he’d be in even worse shape.
His phone chimed, ripping Lee out of his spiraling thoughts and into the present. Closing the letter, he glanced at the time and jerked away from the building’s stone façade. Early morning sunshine attempted to burrow behind his sunglasses as he rounded the corner and headed toward the main entrance, helping Lee box the last few months in his mind and focus on the present. San Diego, California, was about two-thousand miles away (depending on how you traveled) from that letter currently sitting in his hometown of Springwell, Georgia. He didn’t need to respond this minute, so he shoved it down on the list of priorities.
Tackling the stairs, he headed to the business located on the second floor and stepped inside the two-office suite. A clock on the wall above the small waiting area showed he’d arrived precisely at eight a.m. Right on time .
“Go on in.” The young man seated behind the reception/administrative assistant desk pointed to the open door on the left.
Lee dipped his chin in acknowledgement as he passed, then shut the door behind him after entering. More sun filtered into the windows, bathing the room in its rays. The various plants enjoyed the light, but it did nothing to brighten the face of the large man stuffed behind the wooden desk.
“Boom,” Lee greeted, marching with his hand out toward the man rising to his feet. Sebastian McKinney never went by any other name but Boom. It could harken back to his EOD—Explosive Ordinance Disposal—days before he did a stint as a Ranger or how loudly his voice carried. Either way, the moniker fit the man perfectly.
A massive hand engulfed Lee’s and squeezed just enough to be noticeable but not enough to cripple. Boom may be in his sixties, but he stuck to a strict workout regimen and diet that had him looking years younger and maintaining the solidly muscled width of a Humvee.
“Welcome back,” Boom replied, his deep voice bouncing off the walls as usual. “I read your report on the Asia assignment.” He motioned for Lee to have a seat in one of the two visitor chairs.
Lee dropped into the black-cushioned seat and nodded. “Nice and boring.”
Boom laughed. “Just how we like it.”
Yesterday evening Lee had returned from escorting a prominent politician to South East Asia for three days, then back.
“You’ve completed four assignments for us now.” Boom rested his hands on his desk. “And I’ve been very pleased with what I’ve seen so far. Are you settling in okay? Still want to stick with us?”
After Lee and his brothers buried their father, Lee’s former CO had reached out and asked if he had anything lined up for work. Lee had admitted he had no clue what to do with himself. His CO had offered to secure an interview with a retired Ranger who co-owned Elite Security Services based in San Diego that handled a lot of short- and long-term bodyguard assignments. His CO had then suggested Lee find a shooting range and become proficient in small arms. Welcoming the chance to do something besides wallow in the bitterness and anger , he’d bought himself a Sig Sauer. The foreign feel of the handgun versus the weight of his beloved sniper rifle grated, but he sucked it up. The mechanics of shooting a Sig were different enough from a rifle to be a challenge, even without his eye issues. His brother Harris, an active-duty Marine Raider, had helped him hone the skill during their road trip from Georgia to Las Vegas they’d taken after burying their father and he was grateful. With vision off in his dominant eye, he could still hit the bullseye but it wasn’t as easy anymore, and it took a lot more concentration than he’d ever had to exert before.
Did he still yearn to be with his unit, covering them with his rifle? Hell yeah. But he couldn’t, so, three weeks ago he’d walked into this office and accepted a job. He wasn’t fool enough to throw this opportunity away even if he couldn’t see himself as a career bodyguard.
“It’s different from the military,” Lee answered honestly. Boom could smell BS from a mile away so Lee didn’t try. “But I’m getting the hang of things and would like to stay on your payroll if you’re willing.” Maybe he’d stick around long enough to find a real place to live instead of the month-to-month sublease on a deployed SEAL’s condo.
“Glad to hear it.” Boom smiled wide and lifted a file off his desk. “Seeing how well you did with the politician, I’m convinced you can handle another sensitive assignment.”
Curiosity swamped Lee as he slid the file from Boom’s fingers.
“This new job,” Boom continued, “is confidential. Outside of the two other men assigned to help you, the fewer the people who know this client’s movements, the better, but the work itself should be a cakewalk.”
Lee opened the file—
Hol-lee … Piercing blue eyes shown from an exquisite face surrounded by miles of thick black hair. “Is it my birthday so soon?”
Boom laughed but waggled a finger. “Sorry, son. She’s strictly hands off.”
“Damn.” Regret lanced through Lee but he wasn’t too upset. The line between a professional bodyguard and his client needed to remain as impenetrable as a Kevlar vest. Boom told him that on his first day and Lee respected him for it.
“Viktoria Jonsdottir is the daughter of a very powerful man whose Icelandic company is a leading manufacturer of wool products,” Boom recited as Lee’s eyes skipped to the bio summary that said the same thing. “They’re in the U.S. on business and the father, Jon Aronsson, wants her protected while he handles some hard-nosed negotiations.”
“Why me?” Lee paused, flipping to the next page. “I mean, I’m grateful for the assignment and the vote of confidence to be the lead, but I’m still new and your tone tells me you’re cautious