Series: Red, White and Built (Book 3)
A navy SEAL's mission is to protect a vulnerable target, not give in to temptation…
Saving Gina De Santos from attempted kidnappings is one thing. But navy SEAL sniper Josh Elliott's assignment requires getting close to the ravishing widow to ascertain what she knows. And that feels more dangerous than combat. In her presence, Josh has to remind himself she's not to be trusted.
Gina's drug-kingpin father had been negotiating with terrorists when a CIA raid killed him and Gina's husband. Now someone is after the vulnerable single mom and her little boy. While traveling to the Caribbean in search of clues, Josh and Gina find their sizzling desire overpowering. But when they're attacked again, they must overcome their mutual mistrust to survive at the hands of an unknown enemy.
Good book. It starts with a bang as Josh was part of a team sent in to stop a drug cartel leader who was negotiating with terrorists. A year later, he was sent to get close to the widow of one of the cartel members, to find out if she knows anything about her father's and husband's activities. There's something about Gina that gets to him, which makes him wary, as he isn't sure that he can trust her. But when he saves her from two kidnappings in the space of a few hours, he does know that she needs protection.
A year after the death of her husband, Gina begins receiving texts that appear to be from him. The texts ask her about the location of the drugs and the weapons. She's freaked out by the idea that Ricky might still be alive when all she wants to do is move on with her life. She's extremely on edge when a potential new client arrives to look at a house she is showing.
I liked the first meeting between Gina and Josh. She's on edge, but not paralyzed by her fears. I liked Josh's calm reaction and inner admiration for her presence of mind. There was a spark of attraction between them also, which disturbed each of them. Gina doesn't trust her instincts about men any longer, and Josh isn't sure that he needs the distraction. But he is willing to use those sparks to get closer if he needs to. Their later meeting for drinks was very awkward, as Gina second-guessed herself with everything she said, and Josh couldn't deny his suspicions about her. He does manage to maintain his cover for a while, but that falls by the wayside after the first kidnapping attempt. It was interesting to see Josh's inner struggle with how much to tell her.
I liked both Gina and Josh. Gina is a survivor. She's smart, persistent, and determined. When she realizes the depth of the danger she is in and is ready to trust Josh, she is all in. I liked the fact that she didn't gloss over the mistakes of her past, but admitted them and learned from them. Josh is a SEAL sniper who is good at his job but isn't all cocky about it. He is very protective by nature, and that protectiveness is evident when he's around Gina, even when he was still suspicious of her. There were also a couple of really sweet scenes with Josh and Gina's son, RJ, showing a softer side of him. The development of their relationship happened pretty quickly. The sparks that were between them at the beginning continued to grow as they worked together to track down the drugs and weapons that were missing. Those sparks turn into something deeper as they learn to trust and depend on each other. Though their declarations of their feelings are somewhat overpowered by the danger they're in, they are no less meaningful.
The suspense of the story was good. The partnering of drug cartel and terrorist is believable in today's world, giving the book an extra edge of realism. The escalating attacks on Gina and Josh kept me glued to the pages as I waited to see how it would work out. There were several twists and turns on the way to the final confrontation. Their time on the island seemed to have bad guys popping up right and left, with some more unexpected than others. I was impressed by Josh's creativity during some of those situations, and also by the fact that Gina was smart enough to know when to stay back. The final confrontation was intense, and I loved the part that Gina had in it. The immediate problem was solved - keeping the drugs and weapons out of the terrorists' hands. Unfortunately, another part of the mission - capturing the leader who has a vendetta against Josh's SEAL team - remains unresolved. I expect that it will continue through the rest of the series. I'm looking forward to how it turns out.
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