The Second Chance Hero

Book 4: A Forever Love Story

by Jeannie Moon

Genres: Women's Fiction; Contemporary Romance; Military Romance

Synopsis

The eternal bachelor finally finds his match—if he can get her attention…
 
After her fiancé dies in her arms in Afghanistan, combat nurse Kim Torres decides to get as far away from men and the war as she can. Now a nanny to a little girl, she’s trying to date again, but her heart just isn’t in it. Not even for a man as sexy as Owen Kent…
 
When Major Owen Kent returns from his deployment with the Marines in Afghanistan, he discovers how much things have really changed. The billionaire CIO’s friends are settling down and having families—things a serial dater like Owen doesn’t expect to do. But he’s also not expecting his friend Harper’s new nanny to be the woman who stole his heart half a world away. Kim may want nothing to do with Owen, but he’s not about to surrender without a fight.

Release date: October 21, 2014

Publisher: InterMix

Print pages: 229

Sample

 

Prologue

Role 3 Joint Forces Medical Facility

Kandahar, Afghanistan

Late June

Sometimes, it was the quiet that got to her. Kim knew that if people were screaming, at least they were still alive. But now, there was nothing. Nothing except the hum of the equipment, the glare of the harsh lighting, and the beating of her own heart.

Looking down at her hands, her breath caught; her throat tightened. So much blood.

Tom’s blood.

She snapped the gloves off her hands and threw the pair in with the other biohazards, then pressed her back against the wall. As she slid down, her arms folded over her middle. Holding in her heart, maybe? Her bleeding, breaking heart.

Her emotions started to close in, her eyes started to burn, and she wondered if she would ever get the memories out of her head. If she would ever be able to see his face as it used to be. The boy next door. Her handsome marine. Her love.

Usually, the team knew at least fifteen minutes before the inbound dustoff landed with the wounded—especially when it was coming from that far out. Today, they didn’t have near that. They had five. Five minutes to prepare for men who were so gravely injured they shouldn’t have survived the flight.

The gurneys came crashing through the doors and they all had their jobs in the ER. Kim was ready for her patient—an alpha—the designation given to the patients with the most life-threatening injuries. They knew he had a massive belly wound and burns on his neck and face. As bombs went, this one was a widow-maker.

Kim remembered descending on the patient with scissors, cutting off the bandages applied in the field so they could get to the bleeding in his abdomen. If they could get that under control, he had a chance. A slim one, but a chance. She hadn’t gotten far when the big man took a gasping breath and she heard the impossible.

Hoarse. Strained. “Kim.”

No.

“Baby, look at me.” It was barely a whisper, but the words were screaming in her head. Her eyes traveled away from the blood, hesitating for a moment over his chest where his name was displayed. Albanese. God. How had she missed it? Again she took in every inch of him, and when she got to his face and looked in his dark eyes, she saw the pain, the fear he was facing. And Kim knew they would be saying good-bye. Even as the doctors worked on him, she knew.

He was dying. And there was nothing anyone could do.

It seemed unimaginable. She and Tom were part of each other. Together since they were just kids, he went into the marines after high school, she went into the navy after nursing school. He gave her a ring.

The wedding was in six months.

His fingers found hers and he gripped them with desperation. He squeezed hard. Kim reached out and wiped away the tear tracking down his face. His breathing was more labored, shallower. And he was scared. So scared. She leaned in and kissed his temple.

“It’s okay,” she said softly. “I’m here.”

“I’m sorry. I love you. I’m so sorry.”

“I love you, too. It’s okay. It’s okay.”

But there was no response. The end rushed up. She could see he was losing his fight, his body convulsed, his eyes rolled back—then he flatlined.

The tone from the cardiac monitor numbed her brain, told her a truth she wasn’t ready to hear. Tom was gone.

There were no measures taken. No dramatic chest pounding. No paddles. The doctor called his time of death.

That’s when Kim turned and walked into the corridor. That’s where she was now and where she would likely stay, running over the last few minutes again and again.

***

Major Owen Kent eased his way out of the passenger seat of the MRAP, blasted by the oven-like temperatures that had baked the provinces for the past week. They’d been driving for over an hour, and even with the windows closed and the air conditioning cranking, he still felt like he’d eaten a bag of dirt. As he turned toward the building, he saw his driver, Corporal Lynn, take off into the hospital at a dead run, almost forgetting to turn off the engine. Everyone knew about the rules regarding fraternization between the troops, but war being war, and humans being humans, sometimes the regulations were ignored. Owen wondered what she was going to find inside. The marine she’d been involved with probably wasn’t going to survive his injuries.

Carlson, the corpsman who’d traveled with them, checked the wound on Owen’s left hand. It hurt like a bitch, but it wasn’t serious, a single gash that might need a couple of stitches. “I just want to make sure this is completely cleaned out, sir.”

“I understand.” Owen glanced toward the door. They could have irrigated and dressed his wound back at their base, but like the corpsman, Owen wanted to know what had happened to the two men who had been airlifted. “What do you think?”

It was a vague question, he knew that. But he was too superstitious to ask anything more specific. And it was likely the corpsman wouldn’t answer.

Carlson shook his head. “I don’t know. We did our best.”

Owen’s stomach lurched. He’d only been back in country for two weeks. It was his third tour and it was going to be a long one. Now for the duration, he’d think about the twisted, smoking metal. The bodies. The smell. The men were under his command and that made him responsible. They were checking out possible insurgent activity in a small village and had made a quick detour to drop off some toys for kids they knew didn’t have anything. They were just trying to do a nice thing and now, more than likely, they were both dead.

He thought about the families . . . the parents and grandparents and siblings. All the people who would miss them. Neither one was married, but they’d both left people behind.

A picture of his mom popped in his head. It had been too long since he’d called her.

The hospital on the air base provided the best care in the field, but all Owen could think about was that it smelled like death. Holding the compress on his hand he saw people milling around at the end of the hall. He recognized Lynn, and as he closed in he saw there were three people in scrubs . . . two were talking to the MP, consoling her, and a tiny, dark-haired woman was standing against the wall, her back stiff, her lips pressed tightly together, her knuckles white. Something was up. Finally, she looked at him and that’s when he saw it. Something in the gray-green depths of her eyes revealed her pain.

She reached behind her and took a pair of rubber gloves from a dispenser on the wall, donned them, and moved in his direction. She stopped in front of him and reached out, cradling his hand gently in hers. Torres. USNR. RN. “You’re hurt,” she said.

So are you, he wanted to reply, but didn’t. “It’s a pretty deep cut.”

Her lip quivered and she nodded, carefully pulling away the bandage. Blood oozed from the wound, but the bleeding had definitely slowed down. “You’re going to need some stitches. I can . . .”

“Lieutenant Torres, why don’t you take a break?” A tall man, an air force doctor according to the information embroidered on his uniform, stepped forward and laid a compassionate hand on her shoulder. He knew what was wrong, what was eating at her.

“Thank you, sir, but I was going to take care of . . .”

He cut her off, looked at Owen. “Major, if you want to step into the treatment room, I can stitch you up and get you and your people on your way.” He nodded toward the corpsman and Lynn and then turned back to the nurse. “Kim, it’s okay, I’ll handle this. Go take care of yourself.”

“I’m FINE.” The pretty young woman was still holding onto his hand, but now Owen could feel her trembling. “I don’t want to take care of myself. I want to take care of my patient.” Her words were controlled, but strained. He’d seen this before. This was a person who was reaching the breaking point. “I . . . need . . .” She drew a shaky breath. “I n-need to do . . . m-my . . . j-job.”

No one said anything. No one moved, until finally the woman’s knees buckled and she crumbled right in front of him. Owen’s arm shot out and grabbed her around the waist, pressing her back into his chest as she started to go down. Unable to stop the momentum, he went with her to the floor.

Holding onto his good arm with both of hers, she clung with everything she had, her body shaking and her breathing coming in gasps. Her tears weren’t dramatic, but soft, personal. Owen had no idea what had caused her to lose it like this, but listening to her broke his heart.

“Shhh,” he whispered. “I’ve got you. Shhh.” Her head was against his bicep and something inside him stirred. Something primal, protective. While he was there, no one would hurt Lieutenant Torres. No one.

He was still holding tight, trying to console her, when another nurse crouched before them. “Sir, let me take her somewhere private. She needs to be away from here.”

He nodded, because that was the right thing to do, and started to release her, but the lieutenant held on. “Go with your friend,” he said, taking in the light flowery scent of her hair. “She’ll take care of you.”

Looking up at him, awareness flooded her eyes and pink stained her cheeks. Damn, she was beautiful. She was also embarrassed and he wished she wasn’t.

“Oh, God. I apologize, sir.” She rose and he did as well, each taking a step away from the other. “That was inappropriate. Excuse me.”

“Don’t apologize, please.” He didn’t know exactly what had happened, but he couldn’t help feeling responsible and the last thing he wanted was her apology. “I hope . . .” I hope I see you again. “I hope everything is okay.”

She nodded and went with her friend, looking back once and offering him a weak smile. He turned to the doctor in charge once she was out of eyeshot, grateful to focus on something else, even the fate of his two marines. “Albanese and Scott?”

“Dead within minutes of arriving.”

Owen looked toward the door through which Nurse Torres had gone. “Will she be okay?”

Shrugging, the doctor let out a long breath and pulled Owen aside. “Staff Sergeant Albanese was her fiancé.” He tilted his head toward Lynn. “It went from bad to worse when his girlfriend made an appearance. Obviously, the lieutenant didn’t know about her.”

“Oh, shit.” It was time for him to get Corporal Lynn out of there in case Lieutenant Torres came back. “We’ll get out of your way—”

“Not so fast. You aren’t making the drive back to camp with your hand like that. Come back here, I’ll stitch you up and get you out of here.”

Glancing down, he remembered his hand. Great. The stitches were going to hurt like hell, but then he thought about today’s casualties, and nothing compared. Nothing.

Chapter 1

Memorial Day—the following year

Kim hated this.

It was a beautiful day—the unofficial first day of summer—and she was standing with Tom’s family around his grave at the Calverton National Cemetery on eastern Long Island. They came every month. Sometimes she was with them. Sometimes she wasn’t. Lately it was getting harder and harder to stand there and hear about their wonderful, honorable son. The man who could do no wrong. How she was so lucky to have had him in her life.

That it was a privilege to be loved by a man like him.

The problem was she didn’t feel lucky or privileged. In fact, she doubted if he really loved her at all. How could he when he cheated on her?

Tom Albanese was a model marine. Larger than life, even as a kid, he was strong and brave and loyal to his buddies. He was a good leader, and she wished he hadn’t died. But he wasn’t loyal to her and she couldn’t let it go.

So as she stood there, listening to his family take turns talking to his headstone, Kim was wondering what they would do if she made a run for it.

She was next. His youngest sister, only nineteen, was standing next to her and pouring out her heart. They missed him. She knew that, and she did, too. But Kim lived in a silent world of hurt and betrayal that wouldn’t allow her to grieve, wouldn’t allow her to miss him the way they did.

How could she love and miss a man she obviously didn’t know?

“Kim, honey,” his mother said through her tears. “It’s your turn to talk to Tommy.”

“Not today, Mrs. Albanese.”

“Come on, you’ll feel better.”

“No,” she said quietly. “I don’t want to talk.”

“But Tommy would want you to.”

That was it. Unwilling to keep up the charade, unable to keep faking it, Kim turned and walked away.

His sister, Jenna, one of her best friends, grabbed for her, but Kim brushed her off. She wasn’t going to be disrespectful to his family, but she didn’t give a shit about anything Tom may have wanted from the great beyond. Kim would have liked to avoid the breakdown that forced her to leave the navy, the nightmares that were keeping her from being a nurse anywhere because she didn’t know if she could handle it. Hell, she wanted to trust people again.

She walked and walked. Past the rows of headstones adorned with small flags. Past other families paying respects, finally settling on a bench close to the main entrance. She had to stop running. From her grief. From her past. From everything.

“Kim! What the hell?”

She looked up, and coming toward her was Tom’s oldest sister, Christina. Tina was one of the good ones, but she was fiercely loyal to her family. She was a doctor and she’d been the only one not to press her too hard about what had happened.

“You got the job of coming after me?”

Tall and leggy, she sat on the bench with a huff and smiled. “You are damn quick for someone so small.”

“Am I?”

“Yeah, but the real question is why did you bolt? What’s going on, Kimmy?”

Kim’s eyelid started to twitch, a sure sign her nerves were getting the better of her. She needed to tell her. Needed to be honest, but how? “Tina, I can’t do this with your family every month. I can’t stand here and live this over and over again.”

“I know it must be hard for you.”

“Not for the reasons you think . . .” Shit. She didn’t mean to say that out loud.

Of course, his sister didn’t miss a beat. “I don’t understand.”

She had to cut ties with them. It wasn’t fair to her and it wasn’t fair to them to keep pretending that she was going through the same thing. She wasn’t. They were mourning the loss of their son and brother. Kim was mourning the loss of, well, everything. “I won’t be coming around anymore.”

“Kim, you’re family. Take some time if you need it, but don’t do that. I mean, you’ve already cut Jenna off and it’s killing her, but Tom would have wanted us to be there for you.”

She shook her head. How could she tell his sister that Tom didn’t even want to be there for her? That after asking her to marry him and promising to love her forever, he cheated on her. “I know you might think this is selfish, but I have to deal with this my own way.”

At first, Tina didn’t say a word, and in truth, Kim didn’t want her to. His sister rose, circled behind the bench several times, getting her bearings, no doubt, and figuring out what this all meant.

“He loved you. You wore his ring. His memory has to mean something.” There was no sympathy in her voice now, just betrayal. Anger. “What the hell happened over there?”

“I know this seems cold, but every time I come here, I relive that day. I need to back away from it for a while.” That wasn’t a lie. She did relive it. She relived every minute of seeing the MP from his base cry when they told her he was dead. “As far as what happened? I watched my fiancé die a violent death. Let’s leave it at that.”

And he took my heart with him.

Kim knew she’d probably just destroyed her relationship with Tina and everyone else in the family and that upset her, but she couldn’t keep living the lie. “I’m not feeling the same things all of you are. I’m grieving, but it’s different.”

“You’re not telling me something.” Tina dropped her head in her hands. “Are you ready to move on? Is there someone else?”

“No. That’s not it.” It wasn’t. She didn’t know if she’d ever be able to trust anyone again, so she didn’t know if moving on was in the cards for her. “I can’t explain it.”

“I don’t understand, and I don’t think anyone else will, either. You’re family, Kim. Family sticks together.”

“I’m not family. He died.” He betrayed me. “We all need to accept it.”

She didn’t know if the Albaneses would ever accept it. Tom was the only boy. He was worshipped. She and Tina sat in silence for several minutes; the only sounds were birds flying overhead and the breeze rustling the leaves.

“Are you doing okay?” Tina finally asked. “We’re all worried about you.”

“I’m getting there. It’s slow going, but I am. I really just need to focus on myself for a while. I mean, my new job is great. Nothing gets you farther away from war than taking care of a baby.”

“You like being a nanny?”

“I do. The change has been good for me.” Her job as an au pair to a beautiful little girl had done the most to heal her broken spirit. Harper, her boss, had become a good friend and had welcomed Kim into all aspects of her and Anna’s life.

His sister stood and nodded. “I’m not going to say I understand. I don’t. But get back in touch when you’re ready, okay?”

Kim didn’t think she’d ever be ready. There was too much pain associated with the relationship, and it wouldn’t be fair to destroy their memories of him.

Staying away from Tom’s family, even if it did end up being temporary, would be hard, but she couldn’t help but feel relief as she got in her car and pulled out of the cemetery knowing she wouldn’t have to go back there until she was up to it. Everything she’d accomplished since she’d left the navy had been a series of baby steps.

This time she’d taken a giant leap.

***

Owen was still exhausted. He’d been back from his deployment for three weeks, but it had been an especially tough tour. Six men in his company had died. Six, starting with two just weeks after he arrived. It sucked, and it always would.

The smell of fresh coffee made him think about his need for caffeine even though he’d slept a ridiculous fourteen hours. But he had to get moving if he was going to be on time for the big barbecue at Jason and Meg’s house. He was looking forward to seeing everyone, getting back into the groove with his friends, but his brain had been all over the place for a while. He still hadn’t been to work because he hadn’t been able to focus, and thinking about anything more than a sail and a beer made his head hurt. But he did find he was getting itchy to do more, to get back to his life.

That didn’t mean he wasn’t getting work to do. Jason Campbell and Nate Bayard, his partners at Reliance Software and his best friends, sent him plenty. He was just doing it from the deck of his boat when he felt like it. Also not like him.

He poured himself a cup of coffee, put in the milk and four sugars, and looked out the back window across the harbor. It was going to be a gorgeous day, sunny and warm but not too hot. Which was good because he was done with the fucking heat. Nothing sucked worse than an Afghan summer.

He’d missed a lot being away from home this past year. His parents finally sold their old house and bought a great condo on the North Fork as well as a place in Florida for cold months. Meg and Jason had had a baby and were expecting another, and Harper, their director of operations, who was pregnant when he left, had given birth to a little girl. She was marrying into that damn Rossi family, too. Sipping his coffee, he grinned, wondering if there was a secret Rossi sister for him.

Great. He had to go and think about women. Now he’d have a raging hard-on for not keeping his thoughts in check. Although, since he hadn’t been laid in months, he could get hard thinking about a bag of potato chips. Beyond the sex, though, he was starting to hate the whole being alone thing. This last tour showed him family was everything, and while a warm body in his bed was nice, he was starting to wonder about what his life would be like moving forward.

When his cell phone buzzed, he figured it was one of three people calling: Jason, Meg, or his mother. He was surprised when he saw Harper’s name on the caller ID. “Hey,” he said, answering the phone. “You finally decided to call me.”

“And your fingers are all broken?” Leave it to Harper not to cut him any slack at all. Which was good—he needed to get back to the real world and there was no one better to help him with that than Harper Poole.

“I’m glad you called. How’s the baby?”

“She’s the most amazing thing in my life, and you’ll get to meet her later on, Uncle Owen.”

“Awesome. And when is the wedding?”

“November. After the World Series.”

She said it like the play-offs were a given. Harper was engaged to Kevin Rossi, a superstar catcher. “That’s optimistic.”

Harper laughed. Owen figured she was running her personal life, and relationships, the same way she ran Reliance Software—with total control. If she told Kevin to be in the World Series, the man would be smart to listen.

“Owen, I need a favor.”

“Name it.”

“My au pair, Kim, was driving in from out east and she hit a pothole—the tire and wheel are done. Can you pick her up and bring her to the barbecue?”

The clock on the stove told him he was going to have to hurry. “Ah, sure. Where is she?”

“At the Starbucks on Main Street in Huntington.” Making a few mental calculations, he figured he could be there in about forty-five minutes if he hurried.

“No problem. Does she need me to do anything else? Is the car being moved?”

“Yes, we handled that.”

“Okay, tell her to sit tight, have another latte. I’ll shower and be by to get her in a bit.”

“You’re sure? I’d get her, but I’m picking my mom up at the airport. Who the hell travels on Memorial Day weekend?”

Harper’s mama, that’s who. Someone else he had to meet. He’d been hearing a lot about Diane Snow.

“I’ll see you soon,” he said, happy to have something to do.

“Thanks, Owen.” There was a pause—which usually meant Harper was thinking. “I’m glad you’re back. And that you’re safe.”

“Thanks, babe. I actually have a scar to show you when I see you.”

“A scar! You were hurt?” She kept yelling but he couldn’t make out anything she was saying.

“Calm down! It was just a scratch. Three stitches.”

“Don’t scare me like that! Dumb-ass. You’re good otherwise?”

Wow, this was a softer Harper. He thought Jason and Nate had been kidding when they’d told him she’d mellowed. Even with all the ranting, he could tell she was really upset. “No worries, I’m good. Still adjusting to the real world, but good.”

“Kim was over there. She doesn’t talk about it much.”

“Your nanny was in Afghanistan?”

“Yeah, but like I said, she doesn’t really talk about it.”

“It’s hard to explain to people. Some days it’s like living inside your worst nightmare. Other days the boredom could kill you.”

“Well, I’m glad you’re back. I might actually have to hug you.”

Owen laughed, ready to respond, but Harper ended the call before he could say anything else, probably because she was going on emotional overload.

He felt good. Relaxed. Looking at the clock one more time, he knew he had to get moving.

He had a lady to rescue.

Chapter 2

Owen parked his new Range Rover about half a block away from Starbucks. Town was pretty busy for a holiday weekend Sunday, but then, Huntington was always busy. The shops were trendy and the restaurants plentiful. He couldn’t wait to sit at a sidewalk table at his favorite Mexican place and enjoy a cold beer and some great food. He liked the whole vibe, which was why he chose his house on the water in Centerport rather than an apartment in Manhattan. He got enough noise and chaos when he was deployed.

Harper had texted him a quick description of Kim—a little over five feet tall, long, wavy dark hair—so he put up his radar as soon as he stepped inside the coffee shop. After Harper told him she’d been in the military, he wanted to know the nanny’s story. Everyone who served had a story.

Making a quick visual sweep of the place, Owen relaxed a little. It was half full. There were families with kids, couples, and a few singles scattered around. It was nice. Safe. No one here was trying to kill him.

And that was Owen’s story in a nutshell. His last tour made him feel like he had a big old target on his back. In reality, it was probably true. He’d been on an adrenaline high for the last eleven months. Constantly on guard, always ready to fight. He guessed his exhaustion was really a crash.

He took a few more steps into the store and looked down the long side where there were even more chairs and tables. There in the back, sitting in an oversize leather chair, was a woman who matched Harper’s description.

Harper had said Kim was tiny and she wasn’t kidding. From where he was standing it looked like the woman was being swallowed by the big chair. Her head was down, her mane of hair falling forward while she tapped something into her cell phone.

His long legs closed the distance quickly, not knowing what was driving his curiosity. Still a few steps away, the girl looked up, and Owen stopped dead. Dark hair, gray-green eyes . . . beautiful.

Holy shit.

It was her.

It was the nurse who’d collapsed in his arms at the hospital. The one who lost her fiancé, who found out he was cheating.

The one he hadn’t been able to get out of his head. The one he’d thought about every damn day since.

He knew she’d left Afghanistan. He’d made the drive back to the hospital at one point and the commander of the facility said she’d gone home a few weeks after Albanese had died. They were sorry to lose her. According to her commander, she was his best nurse, compassionate, yet tough as nails in a crisis. But everything she’d suffered had rendered her unable to cope. Since she was coming to the end of her tour, they sent her home.

Owen remembered being disappointed at the news. He’d wanted to see her again. He didn’t know exactly why.

Suddenly, there were a hell of a lot of questions spinning through his brain. The first was him wondering why the universe was fucking with his head. He hadn’t made another move toward her when she stood and approached him. The woman was tiny, the top of her head didn’t even reach his chin. Wearing a black dress with little polka dots, flat shoes, and a sweater, she looked like the girl you took home to meet your mother.

Her smile was wide, her eyes twinkled. She was a stark contrast to the distraught woman he comforted less than a year ago.

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