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THE SPECIAL OPS HERO FEARED NOTHING—
UNTIL HE MET A WOMAN TOO HOT TO HOLD.…
Lieutenant Jake Hansen has survived some of the riskiest missions known to man. But now the wounded Navy SEAL faces his toughest job yet: smuggling Dr. Isabelle Markham out of Africa without triggering an international incident. Not easy to do when the gorgeous hostage happens to be a senator’s daughter—and about as easy to resist as an oasis in the desert.
If it weren’t for Jake, Isabelle would still be halfway across the world, where rebel forces left her for dead. The special ops warrior may have saved her life, but she doesn’t need him to protect her now. Tell that to the ruggedly handsome hunk in full battle fatigues who’s just been assigned as Isabelle’s personal bodyguard. Close quarters aside, Isabelle won’t let Jake anywhere near her heart—until danger throws them together again. And nothing in the jungles of wildest Africa could prepare them for a passion this wild. This crazy. This hot…
Chapter One
two months later
Isabelle Markham knocked lightly on the heavy metal door, heard the sharp What? come from the other side and thought briefly about turning away.
“The SEALs who rescued you are stationed here. I’m sure you’ll run into them at some point. Will that be a problem for you?” The admiral—and the man she knew simply as Uncle Cal—eyed her sharply across the desk, his words a final test.
“That’s not a problem,” she said, right before she signed the final papers that declared her commitment to the U.S. Navy as a civilian consultant for the next three months.
She’d meant it. It was not a problem. She needed closure on this situation. She’d start working on base tomorrow and didn’t want any surprises to throw her off the finely honed balance she’d fought for over the past two months.
She pushed her way inside the office and found herself face-to-face with the man who’d saved her life.
Jake Hansen stood well over six feet tall, dressed in full jungle camouflage BDUs. In Africa, his hair had been completely covered by a dark green bandanna. His whole face, except for his eyes, which were somewhere between the color of steel and smoke, had been camouflaged with paint—most of which had begun to fade. As the hours had worn on, she’d been able to get glimpses of what lay behind the SEAL’s mask.
She remembered the medic wiping the greasepaint off her own face during the transport to the hospital.
His hair was longer, blonder than she’d have guessed, but the rest of her instinct had served correct. He was one of the most handsome men she’d ever seen—rugged good looks really, made even better by the way he didn’t seem to notice it.
He just stared at her, like if he looked at her hard enough, she might disappear.
“Lieutenant . . . Jake . . . I’m Isabelle Markham.” Her voice seemed to echo in the small room and she forced herself to breathe.
“I know who you are,” he said, and she tried to hold back a smile at hearing his voice again. The tone was low, rough, just like she’d remembered, a voice that had forced its way into her dreams.
When she’d been stuck in the hospital, right after the rescue, she’d wake up in the middle of the night reaching for his hand, sure he was right there next to her.
She still found herself seeking out his touch, but now it was from the comfort of her own bed.
“I really wanted to see you—to thank you. For saving my life,” she said. She wondered how such an important sentiment could sound so completely lame, but it was nothing less than the truth.
He walked toward her and for a second she wondered if he was going to . . . hug her or something. But he only shut the door behind her.
“How did you find me?” he asked, and no, it wasn’t exactly the type of reunion she’d been hoping for.
“I . . . Admiral Callahan told me where you might be. He knows my mother,” she said, and maybe she could sound more like she was in high school. Jake didn’t make her feel any better, because he just sighed, shook his head and mumbled stuff under his breath.
He’d done that a lot in Africa. She’d found it comforting then. Now, not so much.
“I don’t remember much about the rescue,” she said quickly, because she saw the partial horror in his eyes. Obviously sharing secrets in the dark when their lives were in danger was one thing, but the cold stark reality of daylight was a different story entirely. “I mean, they told me what had happened to me—what you did for me, but I was really out of it. It’s all one big blur.”
He relaxed slightly, but his guard was still up.
When the FBI and CIA questioned her, she’d just kept thinking about Jake, focusing on his gray eyes, pretended she was telling him the story. Because he was the only one who knew the truth—her truth—the only person besides her who ever would.
And he’d understood. If he hadn’t, he never would’ve bared his soul to her. She hadn’t been sure if he’d topped her story, but she had to admit they were neck and neck.
“You shouldn’t have come here,” he said finally.
“You’re welcome would’ve sufficed and been a much nicer response.”
“If you’re looking for nice, you really did come to the wrong place. I don’t need thanks for doing my job. And besides, it wasn’t a one-man mission,” he said.
“But you stayed with me. Stayed behind when you didn’t have to.”
“That’s my job,” he said tightly and she wondered if he was going to ask her to leave his office.
“I know. But it still meant a lot to me,” she said quietly. He stuck his hands in his pockets and looked up at the ceiling for a second, as though the sentiment caught him off guard. She knew that didn’t happen often.
“Do you want some coffee or something?” he asked finally.
“Coffee would be great.”
“I’ll be right back.” He motioned for her to sit in one of the chairs that flanked his desk, which was piled impossibly high with files.
She heard the door close behind her and she sat in the hard wooden chair and tried to take in as much as she could of his office, as though this room could give her more of a glimpse into the soul and psyche of a man who routinely risked his own life to save people he didn’t even know, and most likely would never see again.
He really seemed to prefer that last part.
A recruiting poster for the Navy hung to the left of the desk and, she discovered on further inspection, covered a large hole in the wall. A broken chair, the likely culprit for the hole, lay in pieces underneath the poster.
On his desk, on top of the piles was a book on policy and procedure, an iPod and an empty box of donuts. A uniform hung from a dart in the wall behind the desk—dress whites with an impossible array of medals across the chest.
It was the space of a man who wasn’t around much to care about what his office looked like.
The door opened behind her sooner than she’d expected, and Jake handed her a Styrofoam cup of steaming liquid. He hadn’t asked how she liked her coffee and she took a tentative sip. It was light and sweet, just the way she liked.
“How did you know how I take my coffee?” she asked.
He sat across from her and gave a small shrug. “Because that’s how I take mine.”
“So everyone who drinks coffee with you has to take it the way you do?”
“Yes,” he said simply. He sat behind his desk, stretched his legs out so his feet rested near hers.
“Are you all right?” he asked finally.
“Yes. I’m fine,” she said firmly, and for a second she swore she saw the hint of a smile on his mouth. “What?”
“You’ve answered that question a lot. Too much, probably.”
“You’re right but—”
“You’re fine, right?”
“I am.”
“I’m not arguing.”
“I want to go back there. To Africa,” she said.
“I’m sure I’ll be back there too,” he said. “And don’t take this the wrong way, but I really hope I don’t see you there again.”
“You think I’d be putting myself at risk unnecessarily.”
“What I think at this point doesn’t matter. Shouldn’t.”
“Why can’t you have an opinion on my life? Everyone else does,” she muttered.
“That’s exactly why I don’t.”
He was just the way she’d remembered—the way she’d figured he’d be in an everyday, normal situation. He was not handling her with kid gloves, didn’t look at her like she was a victim, and she knew she wanted to do more than just thank him.
“I’d like to see you again,” she said before she could stop herself. These days, more so than before, it was all about taking chances, about really living and not letting fear win. She’d come out of this stronger. She was just having a problem finding someone who could deal with her strength, who could see through to her softer side.
“Are you asking me out? Because I’m more than capable of asking you out if I wanted to.”
Yeah, she hadn’t wanted to be treated with kid gloves. “So you’re saying you don’t want to?”
“I didn’t say that, Isabelle.” He leaned forward on his elbows, his strong hands flexing on the desk between them. “It’s just that I don’t like doctors. I mean, as a general rule.”
God, those eyes . . . they could be a weapon all on their own, and she was sure she wasn’t the first woman to fall for him.
And he wanted nothing to do with her.
Dr. Isabelle Markham was thirty-one years old, had been to Brown undergrad and Harvard Medical. Top of her class. Area of specialty—reconstructive plastic surgery. She could’ve gone anywhere.
She’d chosen to volunteer with Doctors Without Borders, aka Médecins Sans Frontières, and she’d been doing stints four months at a time for three years. Working in local clinics on her off time. There had never been any trouble until her mother ran for the Senate last year—and won. The threats started soon after.
In Africa, she’d been betrayed by her own bodyguard, an ex–Special Forces soldier who’d been kicked out of the Army years earlier, turned merc and, finally, turned on his own country. Jake just couldn’t figure out why and the FBI agents who’d debriefed him hadn’t been interested in sharing.
And Jake had visited her every chance he’d gotten those first two weeks she’d been in the hospital. It was three hours away from base and he’d arrive at three in the morning or later, watch her for a bit while she slept and slip out before anyone noticed him. He watched her bruises fade and the machinery and tubes removed, saw all the signs of progress, including her deep, easy sleep.
He saw the way she sometimes reached out for something with her hand, tighten a fist around empty air, and he’d tighten his own fist at his side and tell himself that this was all so fucking ridiculous. And then he’d been called away and spent the last month in the mountains of Afghanistan, gathering intel and getting shot on his way out of the country, which seemed to be his MO these days.
He’d come in late last night, gotten stitched, thought about calling around and gathering some intel of his own about Isabelle and figured that she had to be back into the normal routine of her life.
Before he’d left the States, he’d discovered that she was engaged.
But she sat across from him now, her dark hair long and loose down her back. She looked beautiful and carefree, like she’d recently made the best decision of her life. And her left hand was bare.
He’d never really been scared of anyone or anything in his life, but this woman, the possibilities she held out to him, shook him in a way he’d never been prepared for.
“What do you have against doctors?” she asked.
“They ask a lot of questions.”
She stood up, dropped her empty coffee cup in the garbage can. “Why don’t you think about it.”
He willed his beeper to go off, the phone to ring, a small war to break out—anything—and wondered why he suddenly needed saving from a woman.
He couldn’t do this—not with her.
She says she doesn’t remember anything.
An odd sense of disappointment settled over him, even though there was no way to deny the palpable connection between them. If she didn’t know what had happened, she knew something had.
Kissing her like that—touching her—had not been professional. He’d let his guard down completely. Like he hadn’t already learned how bad the consequences of doing something like that could be.
“Are you used to getting what you want?” he asked.
“Aren’t you?” She smiled before she walked out of his office, shutting the door quietly behind her.
He didn’t even have time to wonder what the hell he was going to do now before his cell phone rang. He glanced at the number, flipped it open and said, “I’m fine.”
“Shot is not fine,” Kenneth Waldron, the only man Jake ever thought of as Dad, shouted across the line.
“Is that what your tarot cards told you?”
“I don’t need any cards. I told you last month, something big is barreling down on you.”
“Yeah, well, it missed me. Mostly.”
“Jake . . .”
“I’m fine,” Jake repeated, his hand automatically passing over his right side, still heavily bandaged. “Flesh wound. I’m just getting ready to run some drills.”
“I wasn’t necessarily talking about gunfire, by the way. And put your brother on the phone.”
He didn’t even bother to say, They’re not here. Instead, he waited a beat, and Nick and Chris burst through the door of his office, arguing as usual.
Sometimes having a father who was psychic was a real drag. “Which one?”
“Whichever one won’t lie to me!” his father roared.
Jake looked between Chris and Nick and figured it was a draw. He tossed the phone to Chris while Nick took the rest of his coffee and drank it in one gulp.
“He’s fine, Dad,” Chris said. “Why would I lie?” He paused to listen. “Well, yeah, you’ve got a point there.”
Kenneth Waldron was known as Twist to his earliest friends, cher to his wife, who’d died twelve years earlier, and Dad to his three grown boys. At work, they called him Kenny to his face and Crazy behind his back, and tonight, during a meeting with his newest group of wannabe rock stars who spent more time pissing out the windows of moving cars and smashing bottles onstage than actually singing, the boys in the band began to call him Boss. “Your pitch is off. Stop holding back and open up your voice. And I want to hear you play the shit out of that bass!” he yelled over the din.
He’d become some sort of legend in the music business, managing the most unmanageable of rock bands, taking them on when every other manager in town with a lick of sense dumped them on their asses and left them crying in the street. And he made them. Kept track of them. Fathered them and brought them to the top of their game.
Everyone always wondered how he did it. Why he did it. Hell, it was the easiest thing going compared to what he’d reared. Was still rearing, as his three sons continued to raise hell and heaven and everything in between.
He was young for the business, just turned forty-three, with a biological son who was twenty-six, and two adopted sons about the same age. He’d married Maggie when they were both just seventeen to escape his family, moved in with hers along the swamps of the Bayou, St. Charles Parish, and got her pregnant within the month. By then, he’d already been managing some local bands, and by nineteen, he and Maggie started their own company and signed with a city label to recruit the new talent.
They’d moved to New York to be near the city when Christopher had been thirteen. Already six feet, six inches tall, he would put on another three quarters of an inch before he finally stopped growing. He’d been used to being homeschooled back in Louisiana, but in actuality, he’d been used to running wild and doing pretty much whatever he’d wanted. He’d grown up rock and roll, had the talent and the voice to forge his own career in music but had never seemed all that interested in that kind of life. Which was why he’d gotten suspended on his very first day of private school in New York for lighting up a cigarette in the middle of the cafeteria.
When he’d been dragged to the principal’s office, cursing anyone within earshot in Cajun French, Nick and Jake were already there. For what, Kenny couldn’t remember clearly, although it was most probably for skipping school, which the two of them had had a tendency to do on a regular basis. They’d both been on the verge of expulsion.
Maggie had gone in to collect Chris and came home with the two other boys as well. They’d each gotten suspended for two weeks, because they’d all started fighting—with one another—right outside the principal’s office, for no other reason than there was nothing better to do. Or at least that was the explanation Jake gave to him later on that same afternoon, when Kenny had bandaged a cut on his neck and discovered an even bigger problem.
To this day, Kenny couldn’t remember when the boys officially moved in, but it seemed as though after that first day they’d never left.
It had seemed right, he mused as he lit another cigarette and waited for the band to get their shit together onstage. He’d corralled them in a strip joint earlier that afternoon, attempting to get drunk and stupid, and he’d dragged them out and babysat them until they were ready to go on.
The band members thought they’d been caught because someone turned them in, but in reality, it was because Kenny had what the Cajuns called the sight. Chris had it too, something Maggie’s mother had pronounced immediately upon seeing Chris seconds after he was born with one blue eye and one green.
What they dubbed the psychic Cajun bullshit drove Nick and Jake crazy, although Chris had pretty much refused to use his after Maggie died. And if anyone could fight a mental force of nature, it would be Chris.
Kenny disappeared, both mentally and physically, from the boys for a year after Maggie’s death—there on the surface, with phone calls and brief visits in between his band’s tours, but grief had taken its toll on him. In that year, his already fragile and wild sons had gone out of control, and he hadn’t been sure if he could bring them back.
Some days, he wasn’t sure if he ever had. And recently he’d been up half the night, pacing holes in the floor and worrying about all three of them. Because something just wasn’t right.
“I think you need to stop worrying about us now,” Chris had announced not that long ago over dinner, as Kenny fought not to ask about the cast on Nick’s leg, or the two on Jake’s forearms or the heavy bandage on the side of Chris’s neck.
“I think you need to get a hobby,” Nick said, and Kenny had wisely not brought up the fact that Nick had spent the better part of an hour turning the answering machine into some kind of detonating time bomb because he’d been bored.
“I think you need to get laid,” Jake told him, his gray eyes steady and serious. Kenny had laughed and silently agreed that Jake was probably right.
But still, he worried. Worried when Nick caught a cold or his voice rasped more than usual, worried when he noticed that Jake wasn’t sleeping well or that Chris needed to eat more and smoke less.
He wondered if they’d ever settle down, but as each year passed and they climbed to new heights of crazy rather than calming down with age, he’d begun to think that there weren’t women born yet who could handle his boys for longer than a night. If that.
He’d talk to them more tomorrow night. For now, he lit another cigarette and prepared to storm the damned stage to get the current group of boys who stood in front of him under control.
ReadersGroupsLiaison
Posted October 20, 2009
I Also Recommend:
Get ready for a thrilling new Navy SEAL trilogy by Stephanie Tyler debuting with HARD TO HOLD by Bantam Dell (Dec. 2009). At Navy SEAL headquarters in Virginia, Lt. Jake Hansen thought he'd never see Dr. Isabelle Markham again after rescuing her from the African Congo. Isabelle was there working for Doctors Without Borders but had been kidnapped, raped and nearly beaten to death by the ruthless mercenary, Rafe, who she now thinks is in prison. However, Isabelle is determined to put her skills as a plastic surgeon to good use by returning to the Congo and joining the military. Their second meeting on base is awkward since Jake revealed his darkest secret to Isabelle about his terrible childhood during their dangerous time together that he never talks about to anyone. However, their immediate attraction is still there and when Jake is ordered by his CO, Admiral Callahan to guard Izzy, he must keep it a secret from her. Isabelle feels smothered by her high powered Senator mother and Uncle Cal, so when Jake invites her to stay with him in his large house's guest room, Isabelle agrees. Jake also shares the house with his two SEAL brothers, Nick Devane and Chris Waldron, who were all raised together since their teens by Chris' father, a rock band manager with second sight. At the house things really heat up between Jake and Izzy and they both discover they have a common bond of either physical or emotional scars. However, when Izzy discovers Jake has been ordered to protect her, she feels betrayed and wonders if he really cares for her, so she decides to go with the FBI instead. Will Jake be in time to rescue Isabelle from the evil, Rafe and convince her he truly loves her? HARD TO HOLD will hold readers in thrall from first page to last with its intricate romantic suspense plot and pulse-pounding romance! Romance fans will be clamoring for brother SEALs, Nick and Chris' books and luckily won't have long to wait for TOO HOT TO HOLD (Jan. 2010) and HOLD ON TIGHT (Feb. 2010). Add to that a steamy secondary romance that deserves its happy ending in a future book.
Brava Ms. Tyler for the superb beginning of such a great new military romance series!
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.missmarsha
Posted February 20, 2010
If you like Cherry Adair's TFLAC books, you will probably enjoy Stephanie Tyler. She is an autor I will continue to read.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Zosia82
Posted January 10, 2010
I Also Recommend:
There were a lot of good ideas in this story, but too many tangents for it to come together in a satisfying way.
I did love some aspects of the story, but there is so much great romantic suspense out there, and having just reread some of my favourite Cindy Gerard and Shannon K Butcher books, I expect more from military romance.
However, if you're looking for a decent, quick read, give this a go. After being rescued from a horrendous attack in Africa, Isabelle tries to put her life back together. Her new job finds her working near Jake, one of the men who saved her. But the nightmare is far from over for Isabelle, and, unbeknownst to her, Jake has been assigned to protect her.
There is a lot happening in this story. It is the beginning of a series, and while I love reading series where each book focuses on a different pair of characters, this book tries a little too hard to establish too many characters. I would have loved more time devoted to Isabelle and Jake.
I would also have liked to have seen a little more in the way of plot. Most of the interactions between the hero and the heroine involved them talking - and experimenting - with how to help Isabelle get over her attack. As such there wasn't much in the way of suspense, but plenty in the way of relationship development. I loved the relationship development, to an extent, but it dragged sometimes.
And what's the deal with the psychic aspect? Is this a paranormal or not? It was a part of the story that didn't seem to serve any particular purpose. In fact, the psychic father (and son), and the bizarre birth scene involving secondary characters (a scene that played no part whatsoever in the story) seemed like a waste of space. Perhaps they were setting up future stories, but they did not belong in THIS story unless they had something to do with it. Why did the editor not insist on taking them out?
That said, I enjoyed the story enough that I will keep reading the next two books.
Two and a half stars, if I could give that rating.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.This was a great book. It is the first in the series. Jake is a Navy Seal who rescues a doctor named Isabelle in Africa. They are attracted to each other immediately. Isabelle comes to work on the base Jake and his brothers are at after her recovery. They play "cat and mouse" for awhile. In the mean time, the man who had held and tortured Isabelle is now threatening to find her and claim her once again. She moves in with Jake and is protected by the three brothers. The story has many twist and turns and in the end the man Rafe who had held her gets to her. The ending is full of suspense. I am looking forward to reading the next two books, Chris and Nick's stories; Jake's brothers.
The romance was a little weak, I think it could of been stronger. I think the book is more suspense than romance. A good read though.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted March 5, 2012
this was a really good book, the story was fast paced, lots of action and a great love story,you wont be able to put it down
DoB77
Posted September 4, 2011
I Also Recommend:
Fast paced action, sexy Alpha heroes and a strong heroine. New author for me... looking forward to reading more.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.cjw813
Posted January 12, 2011
This book wasn't bad. It was well written but a little too detailed in the physcology of each character. The plot was almost predictable, but I like that. Well enough to purchase the rest of the series.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Great book, really enjoyed it.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.The first of three got off to a great start, regardless of a few flaws.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.In the Congo, Navy SEAL Lieutenant Jake Hansen arrives to rescue Doctors Without Borders plastic surgeon Dr. Isabelle Markham from a ruthless mercenary Rage who kidnapped and raped her and left her for dead. Jake finds her barely alive without a stitch of clothing. He gets her out of Africa but a connection from the moment they met is evident.------
When Rafe escapes captivity, Admiral Callahan assigns Jake to keep Izzy safe. He has mixed feelings about the assignment because he told her some things about himself he told no one. However, he would die to keep her safe, but feels bad that he has been ordered to conceal the truth about Rafe who is believed to be stalking Isabelle. When she learns the truth she leaves, but Rafe has been patient.---------
This is an exhilarating romantic military suspense thriller with the emphasis on the love story line over the dark SEAL operations. The lead couple makes the tale fun as each fall in love with the other but share in common relationship issues to overcome. The support cast that includes his SEAL mates (stars of future tales) and the man who took two of Naval officers into his home when they were teens (; the third is his son) add depth to the suspense and even more so the romance. Fans of SEAL romances in which the thrills of the coupling supersede that of the enemy actions will want to read this enjoyable tale.----------
Harriet Klausner
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Overview
THE SPECIAL OPS HERO FEARED NOTHING—
UNTIL HE MET A WOMAN TOO HOT TO HOLD.…
Lieutenant Jake Hansen has survived some of the riskiest missions known to man. But now the wounded Navy SEAL faces his toughest job yet: smuggling Dr. Isabelle Markham out of Africa without triggering an international incident. Not easy to do when the gorgeous hostage happens to be a senator’s daughter—and about as easy to resist as ...