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CHAPTER1
Magnus Lundgren was an officer and as much of a gentleman as a Marine could be.
But oh, that ass.
The woman in his bar swung her lusciously curved hips in a tantalizing, natural rhythm that drew his eye like the bullseye on a target. Ordinarily, he’d look away again because of that gentleman thing, but not today. Today, his gaze lingered. And savored.
And wondered how the hell she’d gotten in the door when they didn’t open for another week.
She slowed to take in the clean, but empty spaces of the old building and he realized she had zero situational awareness. She hadn’t displayed a single clue that she wasn’t alone or that she was being watched by a man who, immediately after he clocked that hourglass figure, also noticed that she wore no ring on her finger. A man who very much liked the look of those curves and the way her long strawberry blond waves swung in time with that swattable ass.
The sun came out from behind the clouds and aimed a beam across the wooden floor. Like a flare shot by whatever shitty god looked after broken and battered Marines, it lit her up in shades of ultra feminine pink. A soft-looking light pink cardigan and matching top reminded him of what good girls wore in the fifties, even as the knit faithfully outlined the curves of her generous breasts. Pink and cream checked trousers showcased the full hips that had caught his eye and skimmed down to end just above her trim ankles. The light reflected off pink bling on her giant handbag, the toes of her stylish shoes with the cute little heels, and the glittery band holding back her hair.
He’d always been entranced by women who put that much thought into their appearance. They made it look easy, but the outcome was worth all the effort from his perspective. He was well aware they didn’t do all that work just so he could admire them, but he still appreciated the hell out of it.
She fucking well sparkles.Magnus surprised himself when he felt an actual smile, with lips and teeth and eyes and everything, cross his face. Obviously, he’d gone far too long between smiles if this one was noticeable.
“It’s not what I planned, but I can make it work,” she said to herself in a quiet voice before she paused. “Pink is going to be a challenge.”
He blinked. What now? More pink?
“Pink what is going to be a challenge?”
She spun and the high pitched screech she let out vibrated in the empty socket beneath his eyepatch and shook a layer of dust off the newly refurbished light fixtures above. The aftermath of the sound seemed to linger, humming across the long antique mirror behind the bar while she stood frozen with one arm extended, the other clutching her handbag.
“Are you done?”
Her head twitched in a nod, but she didn’t move. At all. Long seconds passed before he realized she was turning the same rosy shade as her giant ass purse, and her soft, plump, pink lips were starting to open and close like a fish seeking water.
“Jesus, breathe before you pass out!”
She gasped, a hoarse sound that shook him to his boots, and started rooting through her purse like it held the key to life. Fuck.
“Doc! Get in here!” Magnus called out for Kyle Rivers, the former Navy corpsman who had saved their lives in the field more than once, and leapt forward. He reached her in two steps and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, slowly lowering her to the ground as her knees buckled. Her deep blue eyes, touched with sea green edges that turned them into jewels, were wide with panic, the pupils expanding to swallow the color entirely.
“Stay with me, sparkles. I’ve got you.”
She nodded, her fingers digging into the bag, searching frantically for something as she sprawled in his lap. Magnus grabbed the tote and upended it, spilling all the neatly compartmentalized contents onto the freshly mopped floor.
Doc’s boots thundered toward them in a familiar rhythm, then slid a little as the man slung himself around the end of the bar, carrying a dun colored canvas backpack that bristled with pouches and pockets and straps. He dropped next to them on his knees and barked, “What am I looking at?”
“She quit breathing.” Dread weighed down Magnus’ words. He’d been here before, holding someone he cared about in his arms while Doc did his best to save them. At least there was no blood this time, but somehow, the slight weight of this woman was the heaviest he’d ever carried. “I startled her - I didn’t mean to scare her so bad - and she screamed, then she quit fucking breathing.”
“Asthma?” Doc had already pulled out a pen light and was shining it in her eyes as he directed the question to the woman in Magnus’ arms. She nodded frantically, tears streaming down her cheeks while she choked. “Got an inhaler?”
She nodded again and both men surveyed the clear baggies all over the floor.
“Found it.” The corpsman grabbed the small L-shaped container and attached the spacer that was in the bag with it before he shook the medicine to get it ready. “Get her sitting up straight, boss.”
Magnus moved her around like a doll until she was upright in his lap, held securely against his body while she reached weakly for the inhaler. Her chest heaved for breath and he tucked his hand just under the scooped neckline of her sweater. He rested his palm over the area below her collarbone where he could touch her skin, trying to soothe her as he rubbed gently.
Riley Hayes, a gentle giant of a man who regularly beat the shit out of people as an MMA fighter, thundered into the room and skidded to a quick stop behind Doc. “What the fuck, Odin?”
Ignoring him, Magnus focused on the woman struggling to breathe in his arms while the corpsman spoke. “Ready? Blow out.” She sputtered in an attempt to follow Doc’s instructions before he held the blue inhaler to her lips. “Here we go.”
Magnus felt her try to suck in with the sharp hiss of the medicine while Doc counted to ten. Everyone in the room held their breath with her, then exhaled together. She still couldn’t push out a full breath, but it was better than the one before and he rubbed her chest in encouragement. It was the only thing he had to give and he remembered this feeling of helplessness as one of his men lay wounded. He fucking hated it.
“Relax and we’ll give it a few more seconds before we go again.” Doc smiled at her calmly as he pulled a stethoscope out of his bag and adjusted it in his ears. “Riley, can you get her a glass of room-temp water?”
