STRONGHOLD
“Fight Hard! Play Wild! Love Strong!"
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A Force Recon Marine who thrives in the kill zone.

 

Dawsyn “Valley” Vale isn’t a fan of mercy missions. He’s the guy you call when the job requires precision, violence, and a body count. Twelve years in Force Recon taught him one truth: The only way through is with brute force. As Stronghold’s stealth and diversion expert, it’s his job to ensure his team always stays one step ahead of the Grim Reaper. While he’d much prefer to spend his days over the anvil with a hammer in his hand, when duty or his country calls, he answers, period. Stranded behind enemy lines when a recon mission in the DRC’s blood-soaked interior goes south, Dawsyn finds himself with a civilian he must protect at all costs. Even if the person she needs protecting from most is… himself.

 

A teacher who just wants to dream.

 

Loren Watts didn’t cross an ocean to teach girls how to dream, only to end up kneeling in the dirt with a gun to her head. She’s fought for everything she has—her school, her students, her life—and she’ll be damned if she lets some warlord be the thing that breaks her. But when rescue comes in the form of a cowboy mercenary with a swagger hot enough to make a girl swoon, Loren’s tempted like she’s never been before to take a walk on the wild side and see what’s waiting on the other side. If only she could get him to stop running long enough to see maybe he wants to take a chance on her, too.

 

Once more into danger to save her.

 

Racing through the African jungle, Dawsyn’s got one thing on his mind: get her out alive. The deeper they push into hostile territory, the more he realizes this isn’t just another mission, and she’s not just another civilian. Loren challenges everything he thought attracted him before, and her fierce spirit ignites a reckless urge to keep her at all costs. With her life on the line, Dawsyn faces a brutal question: how far is he willing to go to protect the one woman who shows him that love can exist when a warrior comes home to the Stronghold?