Secret Assignment
Shannon Cooper came to Nightshade Island to carry out a mission. But she can't do it without the mysterious Gideon Stone. The enigmatic, battle-hardened former soldier is much more than just the island's caretaker. And the powerful feelings he's awakening go deeper than fleeting desire.Former special ops, Gideon has seen danger up close and personal. Now, protecting Shannon from deadly mercenaries is his first priority. But who will shield him from the onslaught of emotion the beautiful computer tech is arousing? As a storm hurtles up the Alabama Gulf Coast, mirroring the passion raging through his defenses, Gideon will do whatever it takes to survive…and explore a relationship as impossible as it is irresistible.…
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His business is protection
Shannon Cooper came to Nightshade Island to carry out a mission. But she canât do it without the mysterious Gideon Stone. The enigmatic, battle-hardened former soldier is much more than just the islandâs caretaker. And the powerful feelings heâs awakening go deeper than fleeting desire.
Former special ops, Gideon has seen danger up close and personal. Now, protecting Shannon from deadly mercenaries is his first priority. But who will shield him from the onslaught of emotion the beautiful computer tech is arousing? As a storm hurtles up the Alabama Gulf Coast, mirroring the passion raging through his defenses, Gideon will do whatever it takes to survive...and explore a relationship as impossible as it is irresistible....
âGuess we made it through the night more or less unscathed, huh?â
Shannon followed Gideonâs gaze and released a soft sigh. The cool morning breeze off the gulf lifted her dark hair, sending a few strands dancing against his cheeks. She smelled like a fresh morning rain, despite having traipsed through the sea grass, climbed up and down a thirty-foot lighthouse and taken down a special forces marine twice her size with her bare hands.
She was formidable, he thought, rolling the word around in his head, savoring it.
Fearing it.
Heâd known, the second he saw her waiting on the pier at Terrebonne Marina, that she was going to be trouble for him.
He just hadnât realized how much.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alabama native Paula Graves wrote her first book, a mystery starring herself and her neighborhood friends, at the age of six. A voracious reader, Paula loves books that pair tantalizing mystery with compelling romance. When sheâs not reading or writing, she works as a creative director for a Birmingham advertising agency and spends time with her family and friends. She is a member of Southern Magic Romance Writers, Heart of Dixie Romance Writers and Romance Writers of America.
Paula invites readers to visit her website, www.paulagraves.com.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Shannon CooperâThough Cooper Securityâs computer tech has long wanted to run a field operation, helping a widow archive her late husbandâs belongings isnât what she had in mindâuntil black-masked intruders show up, pursuing a deadly agenda.
Gideon StoneâOwing a blood debt to the family of the fellow marine who died saving his life, Gideon will do anything to keep Lydia Ross safe, even put up with a pretty young computer geek who wastes no time getting under his tough skin.
Lydia RossâThe army widow is still grieving the loss of her husband and her son. But when intruders strike the private Gulf of Mexico island where sheâs lived for most of her life, she shows the steel in her spine that made her the ideal army wife.
General Edward RossâThe late army general kept a coded journal during his last few years of service. Now a whole lot of dangerous people want to get their hands on the journal. What secrets does it contain?
Security Services Unit (SSU)âMacLear Securityâs secret unit disbanded when the company fell to scandal. But some of the operatives are still selling their services to whomeverâs willing to pay.
Damon NorthâThe undercover agent has finally made his way back into the SSU, dedicated to bringing the dangerous mercenary unit down. But how far is he willing to go to convince the unit that heâs trustworthy?
Raymond StephensâThe dishonorably discharged ex-marine who found his home in the corrupt SSU still nurses a grudge against Gideon Stone. Will the new SSU mission to steal the generalâs journal give him a chance to even the score?
For my mom,
whoâs always believed in me, even when I didnât.
Contents
Chapter One
Murky green water lapped against the pilings of the Terrebonne Marina docks, rocking the boats hitched to the moorings. The breeze blowing in from the Gulf of Mexico was steamy-hot, fueled by temperatures in the mid-nineties and eighty-percent humidity.
August in Alabama, Shannon Cooper thought bleakly as she wilted in the sweltering heat on a bench by an empty boat slip. The dog days were bad enough back home, where mountains and woods offered some small protection against the Southern summerâs excesses. But down here in Terrebonne, a mosquito-infested dot on the Alabama Gulf Coast map, August was a ruthless son of aâ
She heard the boat before she saw it, the engine rattle drawing her gaze toward the middle of Terrebonne Bay. Cutting through the wakes left by other boats, a drab white fishing yacht that had seen better days headed straight toward the boat slip where she sat waiting for her ride to Nightshade Island.
The boat eased into the slip, avoiding all but the lightest of bounces against the protective bumpers lining the dock. The engine growled to a stop, and Shannon pushed to her feet.
