Bronco's Rough Ride (Bad Boys of Beta Squad, 0.5) (15 page)

“
Darlin’, if screamin’ and cryin’ like a little girl didn’t make me run, I think you’re okay. And I’ve been yours since you showed up in that little cell in Vegas.”

“I didn’t scream. I squeaked with delight.
Big difference.”

John smirked and pulled the ring out of the box. “Let’s see how this looks on your hand.”

“Wait. What’s that?” She turned the ring over to look on the inside. Two words had been etched along the band. “Does that say ‘Lucky Charm’?”

“Yes, ma’am, ’cause you’re mine.” John slid the ring on her finger. “I love you, Lindsey.”

She beamed, her heart expanding in her chest. “I love you, too, John. Now take me to bed and let me ride you hard, Bronco.”

John barked a laugh as he hauled her off the boulder and swung her to her feet.

“Yes, ma’am.”

THE END

Siobhan Muir lives in Las Vegas, Nevada, with her husband, two daughters, and a vegetarian cat she swears is a shape-shifter, though he's never shifted when she can see him. When not writing, she can be found looking down a microscope at fossil fox teeth, pursuing her other love, paleontology. An avid reader of science fiction/fantasy, her husband gave her a paranormal romance for Christmas one year, and she was hooked for good.

In previous lives, Siobhan has been an actor at the Colorado Renaissance Festival, a field geologist in the Aleutian Islands, and restored inter-planetary imagery at the USGS. She’s hiked to the top of Mount St. Helens and to the bottom of Meteor Crater.

Siobhan writes kick-ass adventure with hot sex for men and women to enjoy. She believes in happily ever after, redemption, and communication, all of which you will find in her paranormal romance stories
.

Connect with Siobhan online at:

http://siobhanmuir.com

http://www.facebook.com/siobhan.muir.35

http://twitter.com/SiobhanMuir

http://siobhanmuir.blogspot.com

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Her Devoted Vampire
(
from Evernight Publishing)

Queen Bitch of the Callowwood Pack
(from Siren Publishing)

Not a Dragon’s Standard Virgin
(from Siren Publishing)

Cloudburst Colorado Series

A Hell Hound’s Fire
(from Three Lakes Books)

The Beltane Witch
(from Three Lakes Books)

Christmas ICE Magic
(
Happy Holidays from the Crescent Moon Lodge Anthology
)

Bad Boys of Beta Squad Series

The Navy’s Ghost
(from Three Lakes Books)

Coming Soon

Take the Reins

Cloudburst Coffee & Spa
(Cloudburst Colorado #3)

Second Chance Succubus

Read on for an Excerpt of
The Navy’s Ghost
, Book 1 in the Bad Boys of Beta Squad Series…

Chief Warrant Officer Todd “Magic” Hunter swallowed against the panic slamming against the walls of the box he’d confined it to in his mind. He secured Ensign Brickman to the deck of the helo and gave Lieutenant Jim “Retro” Waters a thumbs-up before tightening down the bandages around Chris’s thigh.
Holy fuck, I carved her up like a Thanksgiving turkey.
Guilt and anger rolled in his gut.
I had to. She’d have bled out if I didn’t get that artery clamped.
He’d butchered her and blood had been everywhere, but he’d somehow found the artery and staunched the flow before it took her soul with it.

Dear God, of
all of us, why her?

It didn’t matter. She’d survived. End of story. Magic made sure the morphine dulled some of her pain as they medevac’d her ass home and periodically checked the bandages around her thigh.
She’s fine. Stop fussing.
But he couldn’t help the checking or the worry.

As she lay dying on the grimy floor of the Nicaraguan warehouse, his feelings for Ensign Christiana Brickman had crystallized into blinding clarity.
I love her.
He’d ignored the thought in favor of saving her life, but now, with the squad around him and the action settled, it came roaring back into his mind, clear as day. Jubilation mixed with terror settled into his gut.
No fraternization within the ranks.
Too bad his heart couldn’t remember the rules.

“How’s she doing, Magic?” Retro shouted through the mic to Magic over the rotors.

“Stable for now. High as a kite, but stable.”

“Good to hear. Pilot says back on base in fifty mikes.”

“Roger that.”

“Why do they always use boys’ names for everything?”

Retro and Magic turned to the woman lying between them and met the clouded hazel gaze beneath the lowered brows. “Say again, Brickman?”

“Boys’ names. Why do they always use them for everything?”

“What are you talking about?” Retro raised an eyebrow.

“You know, Mike for minute, Roger for understood.” Brickman rolled her head to pin Retro with her focus. “Jimmy for futzing with locks. Hey, your name is Jim.” She licked her lips and swallowed. “I like your name, Jim Retro. And I like you, too. You’re handsome.”

“Yep. Definitely high as a kite.” Retro snorted and shot a smile at Magic. Todd tried to smile back, but his gut sank. What if she preferred Jim over him?
Get your head back in the game. She’s never shown interest in any of us.

“Yeah, but I’m pretty sure she’s not in pain. With the dosage I gave her, she should be floatin’ on cloud nine by now.”

“You’re my cloud nine, Magic.” The hazel gaze hit him and he tried not to fall into it or the words she murmured. “So sexy and smart and nice. All the Navy bunnies just love you.” Her lips tightened in irritation. “Sluts.”

Magic raised his eyebrows.
Don’t listen to her, she’s out of her mind.
Except morphine often acted like a weak truth serum, stripping away inhibitions to expose real sentiments underneath. Chris turned her head away to mumble something under her breath as a mild frown creased her forehead.

“Not good enough for you.”

“Say again, Ensign?” Retro leaned closer to her.

“They only want dick, you know.” Her gaze slid slowly back to Jim’s face. “You deserve better, Retro. Mo’betta. ’Cause Bravo Squad does everything mo’betta. They should call it Betta Squad.” She trailed off in a dreamy, sing-songy voice.

“At least she’s got that right.” Retro shook his head, a half smile quirking his mouth.

“Bravo Squad definitely does it mo’betta.” Ghost fixed him with a hard stare. “Just like you, Retro. And you need someone who knows you. You, and Magic, too. Perfect, sexy, tall, and hard. Like bananas.”

“What?” Magic traded looks with Retro.

“Oh, shit. You better knock her out before she says something really crazy.”

“Bananas. You know…” Chris raised one hand, curling her fingers into a C-shape before swaying it back and forth as if stroking something. “Long, hard, smooth, and warm.” She grimaced. “Bananas. So much better than cucumbers. Mo’betta in Betta Squad.”

“Knock her out, Magic.” Retro growled as the other squad members snickered in the background.

Magic curbed his own grin as he shoved another syringe of morphine into her IV. He could understand Retro’s concern, but the thought of Chris stroking his cock made said anatomy salute the idea from his fatigues. Chris yawned and mumbled something more about the virtues of bananas over cucumbers before her eyes closed and her breathing evened out.

“Bravo Squad does it mo’betta!” Petty Officer Killian grinned. “Why? ’Cause we’re the betta squad.”

“Not betta squad, Beta Squad. Second to none.” Seaman Rubenovich laughed.

“Aw, fuck, she’s never gonna live that one down with the squad.” Retro shook his head as he tucked the woolen blanket up to her chin.

“Yeah, but at least she’s gonna live.” Todd surveyed the woman before him and prayed for all he was worth she’d make it out okay. “Okay” meant she’d get to keep her leg, because he had the sneaking suspicion she’d be on the bench for a long time recovering.

“You’re sure of that?” Some of Jim’s concern leaked into his eyes though he kept his face stoic.

“Yeah, I’m sure. I got that artery clamped shut and she’s a fighter. She’ll make it out okay.” Todd didn’t know where the certainty came from, but he held onto it with both hands and his teeth. “We’ll update the docs when we get in.”

Jim grunted and nodded as they settled in to finish the flight. Todd tried not to stew on Chris’s words, but each compliment made his balls tighten and delirious excitement to run around his gut.
Get a grip, man. She’s completely high on morphine and terribly injured. It’s sick to think about anything like that.
Except he’d been having unauthorized thoughts of seeing Christiana Brickman naked and riding his cock for about a year now, and her slurred words only encouraged them.

They landed at the base and the squad erupted in a flurry of motion to help get Chris transported into the infirmary. They’d work on her leg and get her Stateside while the squad finished the mission. And by God, they’d take out the motherfuckers who led the squad into a trap, especially the “contact”.
You’re gonna pay and it ain’t gonna be pretty.

In a rare moment of quiet, Magic closed his eyes and inhaled the warm Nicaraguan air, trying to focus on something better than Chris losing her leg.
Like Chris sitting beside me in nothing but a tank top and bikini bottoms holding an icy long neck.
Yeah, that did nothing to relax him, but it certainly made him smile.

“What’s the grin for, Magic?” Retro’s hand on his shoulder broke the fantasy.
Good thing, too.

“Ice cold beer and a swimming pool. Nothin’ better.” Except maybe Chris Brickman laughing and smiling at him.

“She’s gonna make it, man. Don’t sweat it.”

Magic shook his head. “I butchered her leg, Jim.”

“Yeah, and she’ll still be tougher than the rest of our sorry crew. She’ll pull through.”

Magic scanned Retro’s face. His voice sounded certain, but his eyes said something else. “I love her, man.”

“I know. She’s your swim buddy. We all love her.”

“No, not like that.” Magic’s shoulders slumped and he exhaled everything. “I mean like one-and-only, want-as-my-life-partner, can’t-live-without-you kind of love.”

The great stone face Retro always wore when faced with something difficult slid over his features and his eyes flattened, but Todd ignored it. They were best buddies and honesty counted more than comfort. Things could still go wrong with Chris. The only easy day was yesterday.

“You know there’s no fraternization within the ranks, Magic.” Retro’s voice held no inflection.

“That’s within the squad, Retro, not the Navy.”

“She
is
in the squad. She’s an active SEAL.”

Magic shook his head and swallowed against the suspicious lump in his throat. “Not anymore, she’s not.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Jim rounded on Todd, his eyes burning with anger.

“You didn’t see her leg, Retro. You didn’t see what I had to do to get that artery closed. She’ll be lucky to walk again much less have the physical abilities to keep up with us now.” Todd kicked a loose stone on the tarmac. “I did that to her.”

“And saved her life.”

“I might have ruined her life!” Grief and anger exploded and he crossed his arms to keep from throwing a punch at anything. “Chances are better than great she won’t come back to the squad from that injury. Hell, we don’t even know if the fuckin’ docs in the base can repair what’s left of her leg, let alone the artery.” He picked up the stone and hurled it out into the night. “The SEALs were all she ever wanted.”

“And she’s not done yet, so don’t you give the fuck up on her, Magic.” Retro grabbed his shoulder and wrenched him around until they stood nose to nose. “If you love her like you say you do, don’t give up on her. She’s a SEAL, dammit, and SEALs don’t give up on anything. Pull yourself together and get your ass in the shower. We got a briefing at oh-four-hundred in thirty-five mikes and I expect you to be at the top of your game. Are we clear, Chief?”

The Navy’s Ghost
is available at
Amazon
and
Smashwords
.

Read on for an Excerpt of
Take the Reins
, a new science-fiction fantasy romance coming soon from Siobhan Muir…

Bethany viciously kicked the loose stones on the road as she walked while her sorrel horse Killian ambled along beside her. She wanted to scream and hurl the rocks in a tantrum, but she had too much respect for her equine companion to act rashly. Instead, her hands fisted on the reins.

“Damn him!”

Killian tossed his head at her outburst and she patted his neck. It wasn’t his fault her father was a controlling, arrogant bastard. Wearing the title of US Senator meant a lot in this country, but it didn’t allow him to dictate who she’d marry.
Dammit, the middle ages when men sold off women for land are supposed to be in the past
. Apparently her father had lost his knowledge of history.

“If the damn fool thinks I’m just going to accept his choice in fiancé, he’s got another think comin’.” Even allowing the thoughts to pass through her mind ignited her fury more. “How dare he, Killian? Why does he think he can make that choice for me? It’s the twenty-first century for God’s sake.”

Bethany tied Killian to a maple at the edge of the clearing to keep from jerking on his head in her rage. The open space ahead of them always filled her with peace and renewal, but today the usually gentle energy of the glade seemed as unsettled as her own. Bethany had often retreated to this spot on her father’s estate when she’d needed time to think, not knowing what treasures resided here.

Her gaze slid over the recently cleared land, scanning the ancient archaeological site they’d found a few weeks earlier. Bright pink flagging waved from posts driven into the ground in a grid pattern, marring the lovely symmetry of the ruins. Golden evening sunshine slanted through the trees, painting black shadows beneath the ancient stones set in a rough hexagon.

Hell, this site meant more to the pretentious bastard than she did. She was just chattel, a bargaining chip to wave at his competitors and possible allies. Just like her mother. Bethany’s anger crystallized inside her chest. Eloise Stanton had been a trophy, an arm ornament, and a broodmare for all her father paid attention to her.

“You’re an asshole!” Bethany wanted to scream it at his face and nearly had when de
ar old dad informed―
informed!
—her she’d be marrying his sycophantic protégé John Coolidge. John had stood there behind her father’s right shoulder and smiled smugly as if the deal was done. As if she had no say.

Bethany had been raised a lady, but the word
s bubbling up in her chest when she’d heard her father’s pronouncement shot straight past ladylike. She’d almost thrown them in their faces, lambasting them for their arrogance. Instead, she’d laughed, the cracking sound more angry than jovial, and watched the satisfaction melt away.

Her hands tightened into fists.
You bastards think you won. Not if I have anything to say about it.
She had no illusions about why Senator Stanton wanted her to marry Coolidge.
My trust fund.
With the senator facing a tough election year, he needed all the money he could get. The twenty-five million Granddaddy had left to Bethany became hers after she turned twenty-six, unless she married before her birthday. Her husband would share in the bounty, and get half if they divorced. Her birthday arrived in six months.

“Fucking bastards, all y’all!”

She ducked under the flagging and she swore her rage actually sparkled in the air. Triumph had been short lived as her father had told her invitations to the wedding had already been sent out. The date set coincided with the election in three months’ time. Fury had flared and she’d actually told her father to ‘fuck off’ and stormed out. So much for respecting her elders.

Despair gnawed at the edges of her awareness. What would she do? She couldn’t go back to what he had planned, but she didn’t know how she could fight it.
The best revenge would be to disappear.

Bethany had never run from anything in her life. Not that she’d get far. A sitting Senator’s prize daughter didn’t just disappear. He’d have the Alphabet Agencies after her faster than anyone could spell FBI.
I guess it helps that he’s on several of those secret government committees.

Bethany stopped in the center of the site on a slightly raised hexagonal stone and dropped her gaze to her feet, trying to find a way out.
I’m too young to get married.
She grimaced at the memory of her grandmother telling her no good girl waited until she’d become a spinster.
Thirty isn’t spinsterhood.
Besides, her father’s choices of men tended to be those who’d benefit him, not her. She wanted to find a man who loved her for her, not her father’s money or status. A sexy rancher out west somewhere who understood horses. Bethany sighed.
Yeah, not if dear old dad has anything to say about it.

The stone beneath her feet glowed softly in the fading evening light and Bethany frowned, crouching to get a better look. Swirls of sparkles, like faerie dust, puffed out of the central stone, filling the air with flashing illumination. Bethany jerked her head up as the glittering light coalesced and flowed along grooved lines on the floor from each corner of the dig, engulfing her in its radiance.

What the—

The wind kicked up, whirling the brilliance around her like a cyclone. Bethany dropped to her butt and threw her hands over her eyes, ducking her head. The rush of air stole her breath and dried her throat, raising to a screaming pitch. A whinny hit her ears and she remembered Killian tied outside the circle.

Oh, God, Killian.
She tried to open her eyes and crawl for the edge of the site, but the air currents buffeted her, holding her in the center. Dust and glitter clogged her nose and she coughed around the scents of horse, fresh cut grass, and…
Honeysuckle?

Blowing dirt whirled in a choking dance just beyond her toes and she hunkered down, coughing harder. She hoped Killian survived the strange dust storm as she covered her nose and mouth with the tails of her shirt. The wind howled around her, flinging stinging particles against her skin.

Bethany shook her head, rubbing the sight back into her bedazzled eyes. Wracking coughs rattled her chest from all the swirling debris in the air. Voices, some chanting, some
—whinnying?—
rose in a crescendo and her hacking added a treble beat to the cacophony.

Then something popped and the wind died down. Bethany’s coughs slowed and she prayed she’d be able to breathe clean air soon. Her eyes watered with all the dust, but she raised her head and scrubbed her face, hoping to clear her vision.

The archaeological site sparkled around her like the dying remnants of a fireworks display. Through the foggy air and flickering lights, she caught movement. Several large bodies shifted fluidly, as if she’d encountered an entire herd of wild horses. The chanting had changed into shouts of surprise and anger.

Aw hell, that sounds serious.

Squinting against the dust, turned her head around her, searching for a place to hide. Where had all the horses come from? Had her father actually sent the
cavalry
after her? To hell with that. Bethany crawled toward the maple where she’d left Killian, hoping the dirt and dust would obscure her identity. If she could get to her horse, she’d blend in with the others and no one would notice her riding away.

Protecting her eyes from flying debris, she scanned the sky looking for the spreading branches of the maple above the cloudy air. She scrambled the last few feet, searching for the only horse legs not moving. She’d almost reached the edge of the site when a pair of striped hooves stopped in front of her.

Bethany froze and looked up, way, way up, into the scowling face of a fierce man. Wait, how’d she miss the horse’s head? The butt of a spear hit the ground before her hands and she jerked back, falling to her ass again. So much for being a lady. Her mother would've been appalled.

The dust cleared a little more and she got a good look at the man mounted before her. Except he wasn’t mounted. The horse’s shoulders and chest sprouted from where his human legs should be, and the spot where his man parts should hang…

“Oh lordy, I don’t think I’m in Kentucky anymore.”