Shielding Aspen (Delta Team Two, #3)

by Susan Stoker

“I’m attached to a team of about eight guys. Derek is best friends with the sergeant in charge of my team.” “Derek, the asshole who can’t take a hint?” Brain asked. Aspen winced. “Yeah. It was stupid to go out with him in the first place, especially considering how close he is to the guys I work with, but he was pretty insistent, and he’d stuck up for me when some of the other guys were giving me crap. In a moment of weakness, I said yes. But within two dates, I realized we weren’t compatible.”

“He graduated from high school at age fifteen. Went to college right after that and got his first degree in two years. His parents were pissed that he joined the Army; they wanted him to be a rocket scientist or something.”

“It’s because I want to spoil you. When I take a woman out, I don’t want her to have to worry about anything. You need a ride? I’ll take you. You prefer a taxi? I’ll call one for you. You want to order the most expensive shit on the menu, fine. Do it. When I’m dating someone, I want them to know how special I think they are. And being special doesn’t include worrying about paying the bill, the tip, dealing with assholes harassing them, or figuring out how they’re going to get home. It’s just how I’m wired.”

this is our first date. You don’t know me, and the last thing I want is to make you uncomfortable in any way. And invading your personal space could not only be discomforting, but it’s dangerous. You shouldn’t invite anyone into your home before you really know them. What would’ve prevented me from closing and locking the door behind me and attacking you? I’ll always keep you safe, even if you don’t need me to. Because that’s what a man does for the woman he’s dating. He keeps her safe, doesn’t let anyone else take advantage or disrespect her, and he tries to make her feel comfortable in his presence.”

“If we go back this afternoon and are told we’re being sent on a mission in two hours, what would your first thought be?” Trigger asked. Brain inhaled sharply. “That,” Trigger pounced. “What was that thought?” “I’d want to call her. Tell her in person what was going on. Tell her that if she didn’t hear from me for a while, it’s not because I’m blowing her off.”

“That’s how she’s different from other women,” Trigger told him firmly. “When your first thought is for her, whether she’ll be all right while you’re gone.”

The best way to win a woman’s heart is by being her friend first. Let her bitch about her day, don’t offer to fix all her problems; generally, they just want someone to listen. But when it counts, stand up for her, and don’t let anyone give her shit. She might be strong and tough, but it always feels good to have someone in your corner when shit hits the fan.”

“Feels good, doesn’t it?” Trigger said. “What?” Brain asked, tearing his eyes from Aspen to look at his friend. “Wanting happiness for someone else more than you want it for yourself.”

He wasn’t sure how, or when, but he’d make sure Mesmer regretted dumping him, regretted ruining his perfect record. And make sure that Delta regretted ever kissing her that night in the bar. No one made Derek Spence look bad. He was a fucking Ranger—and he’d show the world he was no one to be messed with.

“I swear to God, all this better not be for nothing.” “What do you mean?” Trigger asked. “All what?” “All the hell I’ve been through to help pave the way for women in combat medics,” she said tiredly. “I worked my ass off to be the best medic I could be, Trigger, and what did I get in return? Hatred because of my gender. Harassment. I had to prove myself over and over, and even after I’d been in the job for years, I still got passed over for men who had way less experience than me. Someday, I hope women can do whatever job they want for our country and be respected for it.”

“Aspen saved your life.” “And I’m thankful. But then again, she was the reason I was lying facedown in floodwater unconscious in the first place, wasn’t she?”

“The second she realized what happened, Aspen threw herself overboard after you,” Lefty seethed. “Into the fucking floodwaters that were full of sewage and live electrical wires. You weren’t breathing, and she gave you rescue breaths until you started breathing on your own again! Then she hauled you who the hell knows how far to the closest available flat surface. Then she sat in those same floodwaters looking after your ass for hours until we found you. “She was willing to fight the nurses for the right to stay by your side, but we convinced her to get looked over first. She fell asleep the second she lay down, her body just shutting down, but when she woke up, she barely tolerated anyone checking on her wellbeing before she was in here, waiting for you to wake up. She hasn’t eaten. She hasn’t slept again. She hasn’t showered. Her first concern was you. Then you have the nerve to tell her you need some fucking space? What the hell’s wrong with you?”