Forged in Fire (Delos Series Book 3) Read online

  It was then that Alexa realized how much the ghosts from his past still had a stranglehold on him. She saw his quiet reserve melt away as the evening wore on, and maybe, Alexa thought, she’d begun to wear down his resistance to sharing.

  She’d pulled down that dark family mask he wore like a good friend, and when it slipped, she’d actually seen the real Gage. What she saw made her heart race with excitement, and with it her need to be close to him grew.

  The darkness surrounded them in the Humvee. It was 2100 and most people were in bed by now. Alexa studied his profile. Gage silently regarded her, the moment rich with promise, with yearning. Alexa didn’t try to think with this man; instead, she leaned over the large console and lifted her hand against his jaw, coaxing him to lean toward her. Stretching, she brushed his lips with hers. It was something she’d wanted to do all night. At first, she felt a split second of reaction in Gage, a momentary tension. But then, as her lips flowed against his, she heard him groan, his hand moving around to her nape, drawing her hard against him.

  Her breath came faster as his lips took hers, and she felt the tenderness with which he slid across her mouth, engaging her, inviting her. Her fingers tightened against his jaw and she felt a sound of deep pleasure escape her, telling him how much she enjoyed his kiss.

  Gage certainly wasn’t shy in that respect, but he was a man who monitored himself with his partner. His mouth was seeking, caring, and he sipped from her lips, tasting her, placing small kisses at each corner of her mouth. He flowed into her, and she inhaled his rich, masculine scent, sending fire streaking straight down through her body. She felt him controlling his reaction to her returning response, felt him monitoring her. How like a sniper.

  Almost smiling beneath his mouth, she opened up to his nudge and felt herself losing herself in him. Gage knew how to kiss a woman and instill fever in her blood. There was a decided art to kissing, and he knew it well. She thrilled to his touch as he slowly deepened his exploration of her.

  His fingers moved lightly across her nape, her flesh skittering with heat and promise. Her breasts tightened, her nipples hardened, and he’d barely touched her. But Gage knew a woman’s erogenous areas, and her nape was particularly sensitive. She spiraled into the heat and strength of his mouth taking hers. Small explosions fired off within her, and she hummed, wanting so much more from Gage.

  Gradually, Alexa eased from his mouth, drowning in those narrowed, shadowed eyes that studied her with such intensity. Gage removed his hand from her nape, allowing her to sit down. They were both breathing erratically. Alexa could see the bulge of his erection against his chinos, had felt that he’d wanted to do a helluva lot more than just kiss her into oblivion. She tasted him on her lips and boldly held his gaze.

  “Where are we going with this?” he asked in a low voice, searching her eyes.

  “I don’t know,” Alexa whispered, clasping her gloved hands in her lap, “but I’m not sorry I kissed you, Gage. Are you?” She might as well find out right now if he was as interested in her as she was in him. Alexa was determined, this time, to be a realist. And instead of assuming he was in as much as she was, she would ask. That way, her rose-colored glasses would not interfere.

  Studying his expression, she saw he was torn. “Darlin’, as much as I’d like to entertain something long-term and serious with you, we have a few fire walls in the way. You’re an officer, Alexa. I’m an enlisted person.”

  Her mouth flattened and she nodded. “I understand.”

  “You’re getting out in March, but until then”—he picked up her hand, holding it—“the Uniform Code of Military Justice is going to run your life. We can’t have a personal relationship or you could get into trouble, Alexa. I don’t want that.”

  Alexa held his concerned gaze. “I know.”

  “What if I told you that I think we can be careful, Gage? That out in public we won’t fraternize, but behind closed doors where no one can see or hear us, there are no barriers? Would that make a difference in how you feel about me right now?”

  “Alexa, I’m so damned drawn to you I can’t think two thoughts without you being one of them. Since I met you, I feel like I’ve been in free fall. I don’t know what is happening, but I’m not afraid to take it on.” And then his eyes glittered with amusement. “And obviously, you aren’t either.”

  She grinned. “Guilty as charged. I kissed you. Not the other way around. Guess it’s my combat pilot personality, huh?”

  “I like you that way. I like a woman who’s confident and isn’t afraid to go after what she wants.”

  Alexa studied him, her fingers wrapping around his. “I wasn’t planning on meeting someone like you, Gage. I wasn’t looking.”

  “I wasn’t, either.” He scowled and checked down the street, seeing an MP Humvee slowly moving toward them. The roads were patrolled regularly by security.

  Then, turning his attention to Alexa, he saw her eyes burning with arousal. “I’m not the kind of man to chase a woman down just for sex, Alexa. You have to know that about me. I know a lot of men do, but it doesn’t feel good to me to be like that.”

  “I kind of figured that out,” she admitted. “I’m like that myself.” She knew that the mind of a sniper was like a vast computer, weighing, measuring, sensing, and evaluating current conditions before they took a shot. Alexa realized she wasn’t a target, at least not like that, but she filled his world just as he filled hers. Anxiety moved through her because she wasn’t certain about anything anymore.

  “It’s too soon to try to figure out what we have or where it’s going,” Gage told her somberly. “From my perspective, you’re quitting the Air Force in less than three months, Alexa. You’re leaving for home and for a great job you can hardly wait to fill. I’m over here for the next five months before I rotate stateside and finish my enlistment.” Gage didn’t try to fool himself. There would be a two-month separation between them, and his enlistment didn’t end until this coming June. That was a long time to wait for each other.

  “I know,” she whispered painfully. “I’m leaving soon …”

  Gage stared down at her gloved hand in his. “We’re like two ships that have met in the night, crossed, but our paths aren’t the same. We’re going in different directions after that initial meeting.”

  Alexa knew what he was asking. Giving him a stubborn look, she said, “I can only speak for myself, Gage, but I want the right to get to know you, explore you, be with you when we can make it happen. I have no idea where this is going or what it might be for us. But I’m willing to give it a try. I’ve always been a risk-taker, and I want whatever time we have left to us. Maybe I’m selfish, but I can’t think of anything I want to do more in the time I have left here. That is, of course, if you want it, too.” She smiled gamely and waited for his answer.

  The Books of Delos

  Title: Last Chance (FREE Prequel)

  Publish Date: July 15, 2015

  Learn more at: http://delos.lindsaymckenna.com/last-chance/

  Title: Nowhere to Hide

  Publish Date: October 13, 2015

  Learn more at: http://delos.lindsaymckenna.com/nowhere-to-hide/

  Title: Tangled Pursuit

  Publish Date: November 11, 2015

  Learn more at: http://delos.lindsaymckenna.com/tangled-pursuit/

  Title: Forged in Fire

  Publish Date: December 3, 2015

  Learn more at: http://delos.lindsaymckenna.com/forgedin-fire/

  Title: Broken Dreams

  Publish Date: January 2, 2016

  Learn more at: http://delos.lindsaymckenna.com/broken-dreams/

  Everything Delos!

  Newsletter

  Please sign up for my free quarterly newsletter on the front page of my official Lindsay McKenna website at lindsaymckenna.com. The newsletter will have exclusive information about my books, publishing schedule, giveaways, exclusive cover peeks, and more.

  Download FREE Novella Last Chance

  Last Chanc
e is the prologue to Nowhere to Hide! It is available on most publishing platforms or you can download it from my Lindsay McKenna bookstore at lindsaymckenna.selz.com. Last Chance is in eBook format only. It will be FREE forever!

  Delos Series Website

  Be sure to drop by the website dedicated to the Delos series at delos.lindsaymckenna.com. There will be new articles on characters, publishing schedule and information about each book written by Lindsay.

  Quote Books

  I love how the Internet has evolved. I had great fun create “quote books with text” which reminded me of an old fashioned comic book…lots of great color photos and a little text, which forms a “book” that tells you, the reader, a story. Let me know if you like these quote books because I think it’s a great way to add extra enjoyment with this series! Just go to my Delos Series website delos.lindsaymckenna.com, which features the books in the series.

  The individual downloadable quote books are located on the corresponding book pages. Please share with your reader friends!

  Follow the history of Delos:

  The video quote book will lead you through the history of how and why Delos was formed. You can also download the quote book as a PDF.

  The Culver Family History

  The history of the Culver Family, featuring Robert and Dilara Culver, and their children, Tal, Matt and Alexa will be available as a downloadable video or PDF quote book.

  Nowhere to Hide, Book 1, Delos Series, October 13, 2015

  This quote book will lead you through Lia Cassidy’s challenges in Costa Rica and hunky Cav Jordan, ex-SEAL. Download the book and enjoy more of the story.

  Tangled Pursuit, Book 2, Delos Series, November 11, 2015

  This quote book will introduce you to Tal Culver and her Texas badass SEAL warrior who doesn’t take “no” for an answer.

  Forged in Fire, Book 3, Delos Series, December 3, 2015

  This quote book will introduce you to Army Sergeant Matt Culver, Delta Force operator and Dr. Dara McKinley.

  Broken Dreams, Book 4, Delos Series, January 2, 2016

  This quote book will introduce you to Captain Alexa Culver and Marine Sergeant Gage Hunter, sniper, USMC.