Hardwired
Andrea Bills
Publication date: September 1st 2018
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense
When Navy Seal Operative Luke Kiersey is finally granted leave after five years, he finds himself driving to a house he doesn’t recognize in a town he’s never been to. The house is home to a beautiful woman and a little girl with big blue eyes. Day after day, he drives back only to hide in the shadows and wonder why he can’t seem to walk away from them.
His therapist says is PTSD.
His handler tells him he’s just not cut out to be part of the civilian world.
Luke can’t help but feel like it’s more.
The dog tags that once hung proudly around his neck, now feel like a collar; leashing him to a life that he fears he didn’t choose. After the terrible things he’s done in the name of freedom, could he possibly be worthy of something as precious as the woman and child he continues to watch?
When the two worlds collide, Luke needs his mind to be stronger than the implant the government placed in his back. They’ve told him he can’t survive without the implant they use to control him, but Luke’s wondering if he can survive without the little girl with big blue eyes and the gorgeous woman she calls mamma.
Excerpt:
“Jen,
you can’t out swim the ocean,” Luke’s deep voice penetrates her disoriented
mind.
She
was swimming in the ocean, and the current was strong. Every time she thought
she had gotten the hang of it, she got sucked back under. This wasn’t how she’d
imagined her and Luke’s first trip to the beach, but the man was determined. He
was also deliciously sexy when he was spouting off his SEAL jargon. At his
insistence, she was stubbornly trying to show him that she could, in fact, get
herself back to shore if she were to be caught in a rip tide and pulled out
with the current. She was also failing miserably.
Just
when she was about to call his bluff and yell for help, strong arms wrapped
around her waist and swam her steadily back to the shore. Luke stood her up and
inspected her thoroughly. Jen snagged the opportunity to kiss him. At first, he
hesitated, letting her lips mold to his. Then he captured her lips, stealing
the breath from her lungs. His power emulated that of the ocean. Just as the
waves swept in and ripped the sand and shells back to their icy depths, Luke
somehow always managed to sweep in and steal her breath with one look, or
touch. She was hopelessly his.
When
Luke finally severed their kiss, Jen braced herself with a hand to his chest to
keep herself upright. He smoothed her wet hair from her face, letting his
fingers trace down her neck and across her collarbone. He paused when he was
stopped by the strap on her swimsuit, then his eyes darkened as he let his
finger trace the strap down to the swell of her breast.
Her
eyes bore into his, and she begged him to go further, touch her more. The beach
wasn’t overly crowded. They had chosen the location for its privacy alone, a
small beach front town in the Outer Banks. Luke’s deep brown eyes glanced up to
scan their surroundings. Jen knew he saw so much more than the average person
would. His training, though dormant when they were together, was always there
lying in wait. As he continued to calculate their chances of being caught, Jen
studied his beautiful profile. His dark hair was longer than normal thanks to
his two-week leave and his tattoos were prominent against his tan skin. His jaw
was clenched. Jen couldn’t help but reach up to trace the firm line down to his
chin, then she slowly moved up and drew her fingertip across his thin lips.
This
brought his eyes back down to hers. There was a heat there, telling her that he
was going to take her there with or without prying eyes. He lifted her up, her
legs instinctively wrapped around his waist as he waded back out into the
water. The waves crashed around them as if they didn’t even exist. Luke always
preached about the strength of the ocean, but it seemed to pertain to everyone
except him. He prowled forward until their bodies were mostly hidden by the
water.
His
lips found hers and the next kiss was full of dark promises of what was to
come. He commanded her body as his tongue worshipped hers in an erotic motion.
His fingers grazed over the cup of her swimsuit, but this time he wasn’t
deterred. He moved the fabric out of his way, his hand molding to her breasts.
“Luke,”
she moaned, and the sound woke her from her dream.
Jen
sat up in bed, her breath rushing in and out of her lungs at warp speed. She
touched her skin, and it was hot as if Luke’s lips had just left it. Her legs
clenched to ward off the throbbing sensation there.
“Shit,”
she muttered, throwing the covers off as she got out of bed.
It
had been months since she had a dream about one of her and Luke’s sexual
encounters. She poked her head into Bella’s bedroom just to make sure she was
still tucked in safe and sound. The sound of Bella’s soft snores greeted her,
bringing a smile to her face.
Jen
shut the door as quietly as possible before heading to the kitchen. She knew it
would be a while before she could fall back asleep, so she decided to make
herself some hot tea to calm her down. Not bothering with the lights, Jen used
the small light coming from under her microwave to fix her tea. The smell alone
comforted her. It wasn’t that she disliked the dreams of Luke, it was just that
there was no way she was going to get over him with their memories running on
repeat in her mind.
Once
she had her cup of tea she turned to walk into her living room hoping to open
the blinds up to look out on the moonlit beach. She took several steps before
she saw the figure in her living room. A man dressed in all black stood still
staring at her. Jen screamed, and the fight ensued.
Author Bio:
Andrea is a wife, mother and writer from small town West Virginia. She spends her time while she’s not dreaming up lovers and villains alike chasing after her two kids and husband.
Her overactive imagination and her husband’s wacky dreams attribute to her love of the written word. Guilty pleasures include reading all night and Reese Cups
2 comments:
Thank you so much for participating in my tour!
Thanks for hosting today, Jeanne! :)
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