Laura Altom - The SEAL's Stolen Child

A Man On A Mission

He’s defended his country and upheld the code of the navy SEALs, but Garrett Solomon has never faced a mission quite like this. As teenagers, he and Eve Barnesworth were passionately in love. Eve’s unplanned pregnancy only deepened his commitment to her. But Eve’s powerful father, fearing a scandal, whisked her away. As far as Garrett and Eve knew, their baby had died—and with it, their love. Years later, the loss and betrayal still pain Garrett deeply.

Then comes shocking news: the child is still alive. Determined to find their stolen son, Garrett and Eve join forces. Working together is strictly business…until it isn’t. Because it seems their powerful attraction—like the child they once thought was gone forever—is still very much alive.

“Want to dance?”

A slow song played and the floor filled with couples. The lighting was low and thousands of white Christmas lights twinkled on the wood-beamed ceiling.

“Ah, sure.” Garrett set his beer on the bar, then held out his hand to help her down. Eve’s heels set her indecipherable stare at nearly his eye level, and wondering what was running through that pretty head of hers was making him nuts.

With his hands low on her hips and her cheek pressed to his chest, Garrett couldn’t remember a time he’d been more confused. Holding her felt right. As if all that time between them had been erased and they were back in their high-school gym.

Could she feel the chaotic beat of his heart?

Eve looked up. Her eyes were shiny, but the hard set to her jaw said she wasn’t about to let anything ruin their night.

He wanted to kiss her. Damn, he wanted to kiss her....

Dear Reader,

As I’m putting the final touches on Eve and Garrett’s story, it’s Mother’s Day here in my “real” world. If you’ve read any of my previous books, you may have noticed I have an affection for children of all ages and when it comes to my own, I’m the world’s biggest softy!

Because of my Mama Bear love for my brood, I struggled with the resolution to this story. While I won’t give it away, it produced a surprising debate and made me really think about the way I might have handled the situation had it happened to me.

Especially on Mother’s Day, I’ve always been happiest with my babies on my lap, but alas, they kind of grew up on me! My twins are twenty and my Russell will soon be twenty-one! When they were all little, I used to think those were the tough days, but now I know better. Diapers and late-night feedings have nothing on soothing broken hearts or proofing college papers.

My wish for all of you moms out there—and dads—is for you to always have your kids close, no matter their ages, if not physically, then at least in spirit. When it comes to love, as Eve and Garrett discover, no problem is insurmountable...just more of a challenge than they’d ever expected!

Happy reading!

Laura Marie

The SEAL’S Stolen Child

Laura Marie Altom

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

After college (Go, Hogs!), bestselling, award-winning author Laura Marie Altom did a brief stint as an interior designer before becoming a stay-at-home mom to boy-girl twins and a bonus son. Always an avid romance reader, she knew it was time to try her hand at writing when she found herself replotting the afternoon soaps.

When not immersed in her next story, Laura teaches art at a local middle school. In her free time, she beats her kids at video games, tackles Mount Laundry and of course reads romance!

Laura loves hearing from readers at either P.O. Box 2074, Tulsa, OK 74101, or by email, BaliPalm@aol.com.

Love winning fun stuff? Check out www.lauramariealtom.com.

Competition for book dedications in this house is fierce, and this time, my not-so-little Terry won. He’s had a rough year, but just finished a great semester at school and his father and I couldn’t be more proud.

Love you, sweetie. I’m so excited to see what wonderful surprises your future holds.

Contents

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

Epilogue

Excerpt

Chapter One

“Garrett, thank you for coming.” November rain fell in wind-driven sheets just beyond Barnesworth Mansion’s two-story colonnade. Eve Barnesworth leaned against the imposing mahogany door, fingering her triple strand of pearls. “Calling this moment merely awkward would be the world’s biggest understatement.”

He cleared his throat, brushing past her with a nod. “That about sums it up.”

“Can I take your coat?” Ever the perfect hostess, Eve held out her arms, glad to replace the inevitable hell to come with routine.

He shrugged off his rain-splattered pea jacket, handing it to her with a half smile. In the eight years since circumstance ripped them apart and she’d left their small Florida town, Garrett had changed from boy to man. He seemed taller. He’d become a navy SEAL, and the breadth of his chest and shoulders told the story of how physically powerful he’d become. His hair used to be on the long side when she could’ve spent hours fingering his curls. Now he wore it in a painfully neat regulation crew cut that struck her as distant and cold as his impenetrable gray eyes. In high school, she’d known every nuance and expression of his dear face. With time and tragedy between them—and more anger than she’d sometimes thought her heart could bear—she doubted she’d have even recognized him as her first love had they met in a crowd.

He cleared his throat, his gaze landing on the entry hall’s chandelier. “You, ah, look well.”

“Thank you.” But have you bothered to take one long look at me since you stepped in the door? On such an upsetting occasion, it was understandable she’d be a well of emotions. Being on the verge of losing her father—her everything—was hard enough without tossing this reunion into the mix. Not sure what to do with her hands, she clasped them neatly against the small of her back. “Like I said on the phone, Daddy hasn’t even told me what it is he has to say.”

“Right.” A nerve ticked on his hard, square jaw as Garrett nodded. “Well, I don’t mean to rush something like this, but your dad and I have never exactly been close and with me only in town on holiday leave, we’ve got a houseful of folks at Mom’s holding our Turkey Day dinner until I get home.”

“Of course.” Reading between the lines, Eve got the gist of Garrett’s words. He didn’t give a damn about her beloved father’s deathbed request to see him any more than he’d cared to talk to her all those years ago. “I’ll take you to Daddy’s room.”

* * *

TRAILING EVE UP AN ENDLESS flight of marble stairs, carefully avoiding the sight of her rounded derriere, Garrett Solomon might as well have been in the Buxton County courthouse for all the warmth this place contained. Because Eve’s father, Hal, had been Coral Ridge’s mayor —like her grandfather—for the past forty years, it’d been dubbed the Mayoral Mansion.

Garrett preferred the Snob Hill nickname one of his football pals had thought up. Regardless of the name, the sentiment was the same—enter the old place at your own risk. Garrett might be a SEAL now, but back when he’d been sixteen, sneaking up the servants’ staircase to Eve’s room, he’d had no idea how many years of torment the occupants of this house would cause him.