Page 1 of Loving a Warrior

Chapter One

Embrace the suck, motherfucker.

His boots squelching in the thick sand, the soaking wet fabric of his uniform pants clinging to him, Matt Knytych gritted his teeth against the burn in his thighs and calves.

Mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter. Right? Right.

“Hooyah!” A man sitting under a beach umbrella nearby hoisted his beer can in Matt’s direction. “Good luck, sailor!”

After flashing him a “hang loose” sign, Matt refocused on his rhythm and breathing. Toward the end of his seven-mile route, instead of resting, he dropped immediately into push-up position and powered out a set of twenty-five before rolling to his back for some punishing flutter kicks.

He groaned, sweat pouring off him, abs on fire.

“C’mon, boy.” His uncle’s voice echoed in his mind. “They’re gonna push you past what you can endure, and then push you some more. Dig deep. Don’t quit.”

He didn’t quit. Flutter kicks, leg lifts, combat crawls in and out of the surf, Matt kept going, driving himself on, until he was covered head to toe in sand and grit. Finally he surged to his feet and ran full tilt over to a nearby lifeguard tower. With a giant leap, he grabbed on to the cement ledge and went right into a series of pull-ups.

The lifeguard peered down at him. “Hardcore, dude.” He jumped off his high perch and propped his elbows against the railing. “You here for SEAL training?” When Matt nodded, the guy’s expression morphed into one of admiration tinged with envy. “I thought about trying out someday. I’m a really good swimmer.”

Matt dropped back to the sand and fought not to roll his eyes. He heard that every time he told someone about BUD/S. I’m a good swimmer. I’m a long-distance runner. I can bench-press blah, blah, blah. I should try out, too!

“You should” was all Matt said, mainly because the guy was cute and he was hoping for a smile. Sure enough, he flashed Matt some even white teeth and a set of dimples to die for.

“Maybe I will. When do you start?”

“On Monday.”

“Well, good luck, man.”

The lifeguard offered his knuckles for a bump before climbing back into his tower. As he did, Matt took the opportunity to appreciate one very nice ass.

If only he had more time…

With a regretful sigh, he trudged his way over to the asphalt path that ran next to the beach, grimacing at the sand caking his sodden boots and pants, which had taken on the consistency of cement. Not only that, it was in his nose, his ears, and up the crack of his butt. He snorted. Better get used to it.

After a futile attempt to stomp off the mud, Matt turned to gaze at the Pacific, a thrill of excitement mixed with dread slicing through him. In just a few days, he’d be spending a lot of time in that frigid surf.

Well, bring it on. I’m ready.

He started a slow jog along the road toward the main gate of the base. The path was crowded with people out for their early evening runs and walks, and several times Matt had to dodge groups of women chattering together while they pushed their kids in exercise strollers.

One such group was ahead of him now, being led by a little boy wobbling to and fro on his bike. Concentration scrunched up his face, and his fingers gripped the handlebars. Despite his best efforts, the wobbles were only getting worse.

As he drew alongside him, Matt called out, “Pedal a little faster, buddy! You can’t keep your balance going so slow.”

Whatever the cause—the sound of the strange male voice, or maybe a desire to check on where his mom was—the boy turned his head to look over his shoulder and that’s when disaster struck. Wide-eyed with terror, he careened directly into Matt’s path, lost control and crashed.

With a yelp, Matt leapt to the side, almost instantly colliding with a wall of something hard and sweaty that knocked him clear off his feet.

“Oof!” Matt smashed to the ground, starbursts of light exploding behind his eyes. He sprawled out, struggling for air, high-pitched exclamations from the women ringing in his ears.

“You okay?” This voice was deep, and anxious. “Can you breathe? Here, lemme help you—” An arm slid under his shoulders, but Matt shoved it away.

“Get…off…me,” he gasped. “Clumsy asshole.”

“I’m really sorry, dude. It all happened so fast.”

Matt blinked as his vision finally cleared and the man’s face swam into view.