Acknowledgements



FuriousFotog—you’re a genius at your trade. I adore all of your work, and I can’t wait to keep working with you in the future.

Chase Ketron- Thank you so much for posing for this shot. You were perfect for this character.

Asli, my editor, thank you for all that you do.









Bennett had the world in the palm of his hands when he was sixteen, then he allowed his dick to do the thinking for him.

That one night changed his life, giving him a child that would forever alter the course of his life, and an ex that was a crazy nut case on the best of days.

With the help of his parents, he went into the Navy, becoming the SEAL that he always wanted to be. However¸ with that came a price.

A price he wasn’t willing to pay anymore once his little girl started to realize why he wasn’t there. So he came home and joined the local SWAT team, starting his life anew, just his daughter and him.

Then he meets the cute little physician’s assistant that looks down upon him like one would an annoying fly, and he finally realizes just what he’s been missing.

Something that takes his mind off of the challenge of everyday life. Someone that dares him to be a better father and cop.

And Lennox is one hell of a motivator.

Their relationship starts off rocky as the two of them circle each other like opponents ready to do combat rather than two civil adults. Every day brings a new battle for the two of them to overcome, and before they realize it, they’ll be fighting for each other instead of against each other.

Because there’s one woman who doesn’t want either one of them to be happy…especially not together.





Chapter 1


Brothers and sisters may fight like they hate each other, but they’ll always have each other’s backs. So watch your face if you say something about one in the other’s hearing.

-Note to self

Bennett

“I can’t fucking believe that that stupid cunt marked my face!” I hissed, staring at my face in the mirror of the exam room.

“Your face was too pretty anyway. You need to get over it,” my sister said distractedly, not even bothering to look up from her magazine.

I turned around and glared at the crazy girl.

“Why are you even here? How’d you know I was here so fast?” I asked with annoyance.

I loved my big sister and all, but she really was a shit head. We fought like cats and dogs, even now, with both of us well over the age of eighteen.

Payton was nearly thirty two, and I’d just turned twenty five. And I still couldn’t count the number of times we got into a hitting match each week.

Something that annoyed our parents and Max, Payton’s husband, to no end.

Then again, we found it amusing that they didn’t like it, which was probably why we did it so often.

“Hey, how about we not do this right now?”

That was Nico, always the voice of reason.

Nico was what I’d call my best friend, even though he was a little standoffish at times.

He was on the SWAT team with me and the reason I’d joined the team myself.

I’d been on the team now for three years and I enjoyed it, most of the time.

Today, however, wasn’t one of those days.

Today was a total cluster fuck that I’d like to forget if at all possible.

However, now I had scratches that started just under my ear and went all the way down my neck and collarbone.

“You’ll probably get rabies, and they’ll have to put you down like the dirty dog that you are,” my sister said helpfully.

I threw the bloody compress I was using, to stem the flow of blood oozing from the cuts at her, nailing her in the middle of her breasts.

“Bennett, you dirty, rotten bastard!” She hissed.

I grinned evilly at her. “What were you saying?”

She flipped me off, took the rag at the cleanest portion between two fingers, and threw it towards the trashcan.

She missed, and it landed on the foot of the nurse who’d just walked in through the door.

“Hmm,” the nurse said, lifting her foot and kicking it off into the trashcan. “Nice try, at least.”

I snorted, but didn’t say anything.

The woman was cute. Long wavy brown hair in a ponytail at the top of her head. The blonde and red streaks in her hair, paired with her makeup, as well as her jewelry, practically screamed ‘high maintenance.’

“Which one of you is Bennett Alvarez?” She asked, scanning the room.

It could be hard to tell, I was sure. There were five people stuffed into the tiny room, and I was the only one standing. I was fairly sure she would have a hard time figuring out who she was supposed to be taking care of, especially since the scratched part of my face was facing away from her.

“That would be me,” I said, drawing her attention, and the full force of her gaze.