Hot SEAL, Rusty Nail coming OCT. 16th. A new excerpt

COMING NEXT TUESDAY. Hot SEAL, Rusty Nail. Part of the SEALs In Paradise series.  I'm getting so excited!! I thought I'd share another excerpt.


EXCERPT:
The hostess seated Sloane while Connor stood at the highly polished bar and ordered drinks. The same bartender, goatee and earring still in place, moved with quick assurance, setting up a tray of drinks for one of the waitresses.
He approached Connor with a smile. “Hey. Rusty nail, right?”
“Yeah. And the lady will have a California white.”
While the mixologist worked his magic, Connor turned to study Sloane as the soft light played over her golden skin and dark hair. The sweep of her lashes, the slant of her brows, gave her face an exotic touch, as did the tawny tone of her eyes. And that lush mouth drove him crazy.
He experienced the same powerful punch of physical need he had the first time he saw her. In fact, it had never stopped. Just thinking of her made him hard.
How the hell were they supposed to scratch that particular itch with her roommates keeping tabs at the condo and his dad’s presence at his house?
It seemed sordid to suggest a hotel room. Sloane didn’t seem the type to sneak around for a little afternoon delight. But damn, he wanted this woman.
“Here you go,” the bartender said.
Connor laid a twenty on the counter, waited for his change, stuffed two bucks in the guy’s tip jar, and scooped up the glasses. He set the wine glass in front of her and took the seat to her left.
“When did you start drinking rusty nails?” she asked as she opened her menu.
He grinned. “The guys on my team frequent a bar called McP’s Irish Pub. Go there to wind down after particularly tough training days, or to blow off steam. It’s run by a retired SEAL. So we were there shooting pool, and one of the guys decided we each needed to choose a signature drink that went along with our nickname. Mine is Hammer. Since I like scotch, I chose a rusty nail, and it stuck.”
“Why do they call you Hammer?”
Muscles tensed, he hesitated. She didn’t seem squeamish or thin-skinned. If she was, she’d walk away before the night ended. “They say I drop the hammer and take care business.”
She lowered the menu and laid a hand over his. “I know you have a dangerous job, and a great responsibility to protect the people you work with, as well as innocent people under fire who can’t protect themselves.”
She did get it.
The waitress arrived to take their order, breaking the sudden tension.
As soon as she left he asked, “How often do you come to Hilton Head?”
“Twice a year. It’s close enough to drive, but far enough away to give me a break from work.”

His idea of a break from work was hiking in the mountains or going camping. He couldn’t picture Sloane sleeping in a tent or cooking fish over an open fire, but he wondered if she’d be open to giving it a shot.
“How long will you be here, Sloane?”
“Two weeks.”
“How about we make those two weeks an adventure?”
The consideration in her expression gave him hope. “What do you have in mind?”
“Have you ever been scuba diving?”
“No.”
“I’m an expert, and I can teach you the basics in my dad’s pool, then take you out in his boat. What about camping and hiking?”
“I was a Girl Scout, and I did both. I do enjoy hiking, but I haven’t been camping since grade school.”
“Horseback riding?”
“Never.”
The finality bumped up against him, and he decided to try a gentle pushback. “The reason you didn’t want to?”
She raised one dark brow. “The long way down if I fell off.”
He chuckled. “The key is not to do that.”
She studied him. “Why do you want to do all those things with me?”
“So I can be alone with you.”
Her tawny eyes looked tiger bright with amusement. “Hoping to get lucky, sailor?”
“That’s certainly one consideration.”
A slow smile worked across her face, and that small dimple peeked out.
He fought back the temptation to lean over and kiss her and find out what kind of control lay behind that Mona Lisa smile. He took a sip of his drink to ease the need. “There’s another reason.”
“What’s that?”
“I want to lay hands on you, and if I’m instructing you, I’ll get to do that.”
A bit of color rushed into her cheeks. “Scuba diving seems a challenge, and I’m up for challenges, but it’ll be expensive, and I always pay my way. And I like hiking, but not the arduous kind where you’re trying to reach a steep summit. I’d rather enjoy the scenery and take some pictures. And I might be persuaded to get on a horse, depending on how the horse and I get along. But I won’t camp out. The mosquitoes think my Italian blood is candy, there are chiggers hiding behind every blade of grass, and I have a perfectly good bed in a mosquito- and chigger-free zone, and I intend to use it.”
Connor laughed. “I take it you didn’t have a very good Girl Scout experience.”
She picked up her wine glass and took a sip. “We aren’t even going to discuss the poison ivy issue.”
He laughed again. “Okay. No camping out. But you’re going to miss out on sleeping under the stars.” Among other things.
“I’ll get one of those machines that projects the constellations on my bedroom ceiling and use my imagination.”
“What about fishing?”
“I’m good with that, but you have to clean what I catch.”
He shook his head. “Uh-uh. The rule is, you catch it, you clean it.”
She moved her shoulders as though shrugging off something uncomfortable. “Okay. I’ll concede that. Although you’re assuming a lot. We haven’t even made it through dinner yet.”

“I’m not worried, Sloane.”

ADDING THE BLURB & LINKS in case you're interested: 

A broken engagement followed by six months of grueling work has Sloane Bianchi ready to hit the beaches of Hilton Head, South Carolina for some R and R. She isn’t looking for romance, but when she catches the gaze of a stranger at a local restaurant, her attraction is immediate. But he turns out to be just another guy who can’t follow through.

Karma isn’t always a bitch. Navy SEAL Connor ‘Hammer’ Evans decides a fender bender is a small price to pay for finally meeting the woman who got away. Even though he’ll only be on the East Coast a short time, he’s convinced he and Sloane can enjoy a sexy, no-strings adventure together while he’s here.

Their first kiss ignites a hunger for each other they can’t seem to quench. As their relationship deepens, Sloane realizes she has to be honest with Connor and share the reason behind her broken engagement. When he learns the truth, will he go wheels up and leave her behind? Or will he follow through?


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Teresa Reasor 

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