Betina Krahn - Soldier's Rescue

He has to find good in the world again...

Warmhearted Kate Everly is a veterinarian with a special love for dogs. But she’s about to find out if her inner strength and unique “puppy whisperer” skills extend to healing wounded humans, too.

Florida state trooper Nick Stanton, a struggling single dad, is former military, and his army exploits led him to avoid dogs with a passion. Then a fateful rescue on a lonely back road brings the veteran and the veterinarian together over a gravely injured dog. Before long, Kate has her hands and heart full with a man coming to terms with his traumatic past...

“I think he’s depressed,” Nick said. “It happens to military dogs when they lose their handler. They lose interest in training...forget how to play.”

“I’ve heard about that, but never treated it.” Kate watched the shepherd. “Well, now that we know more about him, we can handle him better and start to rehab him. Who knows? Maybe we’ll even find him a forever home.”

Ben looked up at her. “A forever home?”

“That’s what we call it when a dog finds people who will love it and make it a part of their family for the rest of its life. A forever home.”

There was a heartbeat’s pause. “So...some homes aren’t forever?” Ben’s eyes darkened as the meaning of that hit him. “Some people get dogs, then decide they don’t want them anymore and just...” He glanced up at his dad, then jumped down from the fence and headed for the sanctuary office.

Kate stared after him, speechless. She would never have expected to hear such hurt from a vibrant and seemingly well-adjusted child. Had she totally misread Ben’s relationship with his father?

“What was that about?” she asked Nick.

“It’s not exactly a secret.” Nick’s tone flattened as he spoke. “Ben’s mother left us after I returned from my last deployment. He had just turned four. He doesn’t talk about it or about her. But sometimes...it comes out.”

“So his mother is...”

“Not in the picture.” He produced a tight, humorless smile. “It’s just him and me.”

Dear Reader,

Animals have always been a big part of our family life, especially dogs. When the last of our beloved schnauzers passed away, we felt the loss keenly, but weren’t sure we wanted to go through another puppyhood. We searched online adoption sites for an older dog and found a golden retriever that touched our hearts. When we went to meet the dog, we found the “rescue” to be a very odd place that had household items stacked on upper and lower porches. But our attention went to the sweet golden girl who was to become our Gracie. After taking a short walk around the yard with us, she headed for our car and stood beside it as if to say, “Let’s go home, guys.”

Gracie is loving, attentive, mannerly and a world-class food mooch. But it was clear from certain behavior that she had been abused in her former life—she was frightened of human feet and cowered whenever we approached with something in our hands, even a food dish. With time and love, she has grown more confident.

Then one day we opened the local paper to find that the “rescue” where we had gotten Gracie was being investigated for animal hoarding. The stacks of household stuff were a symptom of good intentions gone terribly wrong. As the story played out, we watched on the evening news as volunteers removed animals from the place, and we could hardly believe what we saw. That experience led me to do eye-opening research. When a new shelter opened in our county, I knew I had to write about the people who give so much of themselves to make the world a better, safer place for animals. And about how rescuing an animal can sometimes rescue us.

I hope you enjoy this story of the veteran and the veterinarian!

Betina Krahn

Soldier’s Rescue

Betina Krahn

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Bestselling author BETINA KRAHN is a mother of two and owner of two (humans and canines, respectively) and the creator of dozens of satisfying happily-ever-afters. Her historical romances have received numerous reviewer’s choice and lifetime achievement awards and have appeared regularly on bestseller lists, including the USA TODAY and New York Times lists. Her books have been called sexy, warm, witty and even wise. But the description that pleases her most is “funny”—because she believes the only thing the world needs as much as it needs love is laughter. Visit her online at www.betinakrahn.comto learn more about her and her books.

Before you start reading, why not sign up?

Thank you for downloading this Mills & Boon book. If you want to hear about exclusive discounts, special offers and competitions, sign up to our email newsletter today!

SIGN ME UP!

Or simply visit

signup.millsandboon.co.uk

Mills & Boon emails are completely free to receive and you can unsubscribe at any time via the link in any email we send you.

For Kate and Nicholas

May each of you find a love that helps you become the person you are meant to be.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

EPILOGUE

Extract

Copyright

CHAPTER ONE

TO HELL WITH speed limits.

He was driving on a dry, sunlit back road without another vehicle in sight, the perfect place to open it up and make time. And he was already late.

Florida trooper Nicholas Stanton put his foot down hard on the gas and felt his senses make a corresponding shift into overdrive. He registered the wire fences along the sides of the county road, hummocks of scrub palmetto and stubborn live oaks, cattle grazing and smatterings of cowbirds and egrets around farm ponds. Heat radiated visibly off the worn macadam, and of habit, he touched the air-conditioner controls—which were already set on high. Barely five minutes went by before he spotted something in the road ahead.

“Sh—crap.” He was trying to work on expletives. He was a single dad with a kid who was all eyes and ears. And who was playing in his first ever soccer game in exactly—he glanced at his watch—fifteen f—frickin minutes. As he crested a small rise, he could see far enough to know he had to take his foot off the gas. The big engine of the cruiser whined as it slowed, and when he topped the final rise, there they were.

Dogs. One lying smack in the middle of the road with the other standing over it.

“Aw, hell.” Nick slammed on the brakes and came to a jarring stop twenty feet from where they blocked the center of the narrow two-lane road. He paused for a minute, breathing hard and taking in the situation. He could probably slide around them on the berm, but he could see a drop-off into a concrete culvert just ahead—and those dogs would still be here when some local came shooting down the road at breakneck speed. With a growl, he pulled his front wheels over the centerline and flipped on his light bar.

It was his job to make sure accidents like that didn’t happen.