Hot military heroes, the women who
love them, and the devoted dogs that always have their backs. ULTIMATE COURAGE
is the second book in a high adrenaline contemporary suspense series from Piper
J. Drake published by Forever Romance. Fans of D.D. Ayres K-9 Rescue series and
Cindy Gerard’s One Eyed Jacks, will love this action packed romantic suspense
series.
Title: Ultimate Courage
Author: Piper J. Drake
Series: True Heroes #2
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Release Date: July 26, 2016
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing- Forever
Print Length:
336 pages
Format: Digital and Mass Market Paperback
Synopsis:
Elisa Hall
is good at starting from scratch. Leaving an abusive relationship in her
rearview, she packs everything she owns into the trunk of her car and heads for
refuge with her friend in Hope's Crossing, North Carolina.
Alex Rojas
returned from his second deployment as a Navy SEAL to find his condo empty and
divorce papers on the breakfast table. Now he's building a life for himself and
his daughter at Hope's Crossing kennels training younger dogs and handlers to
search and rescue, struggling to adjust to life back in the States and as a
single father.
When Elisa
shows up at the kennels, it's obvious she's running from something. Luckily,
the dogs and trainers at Hope's Crossing are more than capable of warding off
trouble. And with every minute he spends with Elisa, Alex becomes even more and
more determined to protect the woman he's certain he won't be able to live
without...
Also in this series:
EXCERPT:
Beautiful
blue-gray eyes met his briefly before the woman dropped her own gaze to focus
on someplace lower on his face, like his nose or mouth. Subtle. Most people
would probably not even notice the way she avoided direct eye contact.
But then
again, not many people made eye contact a challenge the way he and his
colleagues did. It wasn’t on purpose, really; more of a common quirk in their
personalities.
Funny, he
hadn’t expected to see her again. Okay, maybe he’d been hoping to find her at
Revolution MMA for those self-defense classes he’d recommended. But here she
was. A weird tingle jolted through his chest.
This woman
was about as non-aggressive as possible without cowering outright. Despite her
upright posture, her hands hung at her sides in a loose, non-defensive
position. Her left wrist was covered in a brace and it was easy to see she held
something in her right hand. She was far enough back on the landing to easily
drop down a step or two without having to back up more than a few inches.
But the
mannerisms didn’t fit her energy, the straightness of her shoulders, or the set
of her jaw. Whoever this woman was, she’d developed habits. She wasn’t a mouse
by nature. He wouldn’t be as irritated to see these behaviors if these things
came naturally to her.
Who had forced her to assume those
mannerisms to survive?
“Mr. Rojas.”
Her voice was steady.
Another sign
of her being more than what she seemed, as far as he was concerned. The timbre
was almost soothing, and he realized he’d balled his hands into fists. Well,
shit. He let his hands loosen.
She
presented the object she held in her right hand. “I think your daughter left
this behind at the ER last night. I hope you don’t mind, but the logo for the
kennels was on the inside label, so I googled the address.”
Slowly—because
he didn’t want her to snatch her hand back—he took the glove from her.
“Thanks.”
“The
hospital lost and found was overflowing, and I wanted to make sure Boom got her
glove back,” the woman continued, then bit her lip. “And I wanted to be sure to
thank you.” Her cheeks took on a fascinating pale pink blush.
Caught by
surprise, Rojas raised his eyebrows. “Me?”
Maybe his
tone had been the right encouragement, because she looked up again, her gaze
meeting his, and the chemistry shocked him right down to his toes, hitting
every vital organ—including his balls—along the way.
Blue-gray,
cool as a calm day out on the water, her gaze held his. “You were very kind
last night, and I didn’t thank you then. I try to thank the kind people I meet.
So thank you.”
Rojas
cleared his throat. “You’re welcome.”
He didn’t
know what else to say. He’d only given her some ice, a cup of coffee, and a
card about the martial arts center. Boom had a good sense for people, and when
she’d said the woman needed the referral for the self-defense classes, he’d
been inclined to agree.
She broke
their eye contact, and he felt the loss as if someone had broken the circuit on
an electrical current. “I should be going now.”
“Wait.” He
didn’t know what made him ask her to. But she paused, balanced on the balls of
her feet at the edge of the landing. He was sure if he didn’t catch her now
she’d be gone for good. “I didn’t get your name.”
“Oh.” She
turned to face him. Another sign that she’d learned caution but she wasn’t
afraid by nature. She was open. A people person. Or at least more of one than
he was. “Elisa Hall.”
About Piper J. Drake:
Piper J. Drake (or “PJ”) began her
writing career as “PJ Schnyder” writing sci-fi & paranormal romance and
steampunk. She has recently received the FF&P PRISM award for her work as
well as the NJRW Golden Leaf award and Parsec award.
Now, PJ is exploring the complexity
of romantic suspense, incorporating her interests in mixed martial arts and the
military into her writing.
Connect with Piper at:
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