The SEAL's Baby
To Save A SEAL…When Navy SEAL Heath Stone's wife died, he thought his heart was closed forever. When he finds Libby Dewitt, eight months pregnant and stranded outside Bent Road, Oregon, he is drawn to her beauty, but also to her sweet and generous nature. But how can he even think about being with someone else? He had love once and lost it–and he's not sure he can take that kind of loss a second time.Alone and estranged from her family, Libby Dewitt always wondered what it would feel like to truly belong. She feels at home with Heath, but he just won't let her in. Despite her own troubles, her heart aches for everything Heath has been through. To save this SEAL, Libby is ready to fight–for love!
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âI guess Iâm destined to spend the rest of my life alone.â Libby sobbed harder.
âLibby, no.â Heath hugged her close. âThatâs not true. And as for Liam not finding you desirable, well â¦â He gripped her shoulders and nudged her back just far enough to meet his gaze. âHeâs a fool, because I think youâre adorable.â
âYou do?â She sniffled, peering up at him with her pretty blue eyes.
âOf course. Youâre sweet and funny and thoughtful. Any guy in his right mind would think youâre a serious catch.â
âReally?â
He nodded, intoxicated by her sweet smellâstrawberries and snapdragons and summer night air all rolled into one.
âB-because I think youâd be a good catch, too.â He couldnât fully focus on her words, because as she spoke, she drifted closer and closer until her warm breath tickled his lips. Lips that had been so long without comfort or warmth theyâd forgotten the simple pleasure of pressing against anotherâs.
She leaned closer.
And so did he.
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 boygirl 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 PO Box 2074, Tulsa, OK 74101, USA, or by e-mail, [email protected].
Love winning fun stuff?
Check out www.lauramariealtom.com.
For my dear old friend and talented author, Amy Lillard.
Have I mentioned lately how blessed I feel to have you back in my life?!
Contents
Chapter One
âSam? Where the hell are you?â Southern Oregonâs dense coastal fog absorbed Heath Stoneâs words, rendering his words useless in the search for his dog, who lately felt like his only friend.
Heath had let him out the previous night at 2200 for his usual evening constitutional, but the dog had caught the scent of something, and a chase ensued through the forest thick with sitka spruce, western hemlock and red cedar. Heath had spent the entire night searching the pungent woods, his footfalls silent on winding pine needle-strewn paths, all the while fighting the urge to panic.
Now, in dawnâs fragile light, with his heart empty from mourning Patricia and the pain still too raw, he couldnât even consider suffering another loss. âCome on, Sam! Quit fooling around!â
Heath clapped, then whistled, hoping the shrill sound carried.
It did not.
Thirty minutes later, heâd wound his way back to the one-bedroom log cabin that for the past year heâd called home. After relieving himself, he washed his hands and splashed cold water on his face.
He took an energy bar from the cabinet alongside the propane stove and a bottled water from the fridge. Stopping only long enough to retrieve his wallet and keys from the metal bucket he stored them in beside the door, he soon sat behind the wheel of the 1960 Ford pickup that his grandpa had bought new.
The trek down the cabinâs single-lane drive proved daunting, with visibility being a few feet at best. After rolling down both windows, he called periodically out either side.
By the time he reached the main road, the fog had thinned to the point he could at least make out the double yellow lines on the pavement. Usually, at this time of the morning, he and Sam set out to fish on the Umpqua River. Most weekdays, the road was deserted. Hell, most weekendsâunless his hometown of Bent Road was hosting a holiday festival or fishing tourney. Most tourists traveling north from Coos Bay on Oregon Coast Highway 101 blew right by the lonely road leading to the largely forgotten town. With no trendy B and Bs or campgrounds, visitors had no reason beyond curiosity to ever stop by. A fact that suited Heath just fine.
âSam! You out there, boy?â Crawling along at the harrowing rate of fifteen miles per hour, Heath continued calling, intermittently scanning the faded blacktop for the potentially gut-wrenching sight of his woundedâor even deadâdog.
âWhat theââ Heâd driven maybe five miles before pumping his brakes, having damn near hit not his dog, but a womanâa very pregnant womanâstanding in the roadâs center, waving her arms. âWhatâs the matter with you?â he hollered, easing the truck onto the weed-choked shoulder. âGot some kind of death wish?â
Upon killing the engine, he hopped out and slammed the door shut behind him. The dense fog stole the thunder of a gratifying bang, leaving him with a less satisfactory thud.
