Page 1 of Adoring Delaney

PROLOGUE

“What the hell is he doing?” I asked the army grunt beside me.

“Lenox! Take the fucking shot.” Master Chief’s angry demand sounded in my ear.

“Tell him to get back.” I ignored the order and told the guy next to me.

I angrily swiped the sweat off my brow and focused on the scene in front of me. Chaos. The air so thick with death and destruction you could taste it. The fear. The desperation. Shit that I was so tired of swallowing.

Now a wet-behind-the-ears Army Specialist on his first deployment was going to get us killed.

“She’s not a threat. She’s holding a—”

“He needs to get the fuck back.”

I adjusted my aim, my finger slipped into the trigger guard, slowly sliding down, and before I could fully press the trigger, in a moment of hesitation and moral dilemma I waited. She adjusted the baby in her arms exposing the suicide vest she had strapped around her chest and I had no choice.

Fuck, shit, fuck.

“Take the—”

My gut soured, my heart hurt, and my soul died a little more.

“Goddammit!” I roared.

I was too late. Waited too long.

A fury of commotion.

A life-changing event.

“Lieutenant, you’re needed in the TOC.”

My gaze slid to the unfortunate soldier who’d been tasked to find me. “I’ll be there in a minute.”

“But, sir….”

I felt my temper rise and my jaw clenched, his words died and he took a step back. Smart kid.

“Yes, sir, I’ll tell them you’ll report soon.”

I sat down on my cot, my knees spread, my elbows on my thighs, and my head hanging.

Jesus Christ, what had I done?

I hesitated.

Total fuck-up.

I picked my head up, grabbed my personal tablet off my footlocker, tapped the home button, and instantly found what I was after.

Delaney.

I just needed to see her pretty face even if it was only a picture.

My touchstone. My home.

Big pretty smile. Long, shiny black hair and the prettiest blue eyes. She was standing next to my niece, Carson, both of them smiling at the camera. I knew Honor, my sister-in-law, had taken the picture. She’d emailed it to me months ago. I immediately made it the background image.

---