Forever My Protector (The Ryder Brothers), page 1
FOREVER MY PROTECTOR
________
A RYDER BROTHERS MILITARY ROMANCE
DANI RYAN
Copyright © 2023 by Dani Ryan
Cover couple photo by Lightfield Studios via Adobe Stock
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Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.
To finding that person that’ll love you, flaws and all.
CONTENTS
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Epilogue
About Dani
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A NOTE TO READERS
Dear Reader,
Thanks for picking up this book, I’m so glad you did! One small thing, though, if you don’t vibe with books that have minimal swearing, then I’m sad to say perhaps this book isn’t right for you. However, if you’re willing to get past some swearing to read this military romance, then I’m doing a happy dance right now.
I hope you enjoy this book as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it!
With much love,
Dani
Prologue
10 years ago
The thunder sounded the exact moment the bat connected with the ball and I bolted. First base. Second base. Third base. Home run. “Out!” Deacon shouted.
“What? That’s bullshit!”
“Chill, man, it’s just a game.”
I ran my hands through my hair, frustrated, and let out a sigh. “Whatever.”
“Colt, you’re wound tighter than a two dollar watch tonight. What’s the matter with you?” Deacon asked.
Just because he was my older brother didn’t mean I wanted to talk feelings with him. “I take the ASVAB test tomorrow, remember? That’s going to make or break my future.” Even the acronym for the test, Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, was tedious.
“Let’s not be so dramatic. Dad will be proud of you whatever happens.”
That was the problem. He didn’t care as long as I was enlisted and followed in his footsteps. “Not everyone’s as lucky as you, Deke. You scored high and got exactly what you wanted. The Army placed you in the aviation and aerial defense unit.”
Before Deacon could respond, it started to rain, I guessed it was only a matter of time after the thunder earlier. “Let’s just get the hell out of here,” I said, deciding to change the subject. I picked up my bat, he grabbed the ball, and we ran to the car as the rain started pelting us. However, the rain actually felt good, it was the refresher I didn’t even know I needed. If I could afford to get sick, I would just stand in the middle of the ball field and let the rain fall down on me.
Enlisting in the Army was my chance to make Dad happy. I knew that.
It was all he ever wanted, to see each of his sons serve in the Army. Follow in his footsteps.
The Army comes first. That’s what Dad always told us. Everything else falls in line after that. He’s been out of the Army for over two decades now and he still lived by that rule of thumb. It’s like it was engrained in him or something.
The car ride home felt like a lifetime and with the rain it took longer than usual to get home, it seemed like just because it was raining everyone had an excuse to drive at a snail’s pace.
“Whatever you do, hide your nerves from Mom, because you know she doesn’t do well with this. It’s a lot harder on her than it is on us.”
Deacon spoke the truth. I knew he did because I’d watched her send off Deacon and all the others. Each time my brothers broke her heart. She didn’t stop crying for days, probably another reason I didn’t really care to go. I didn’t want to be the reason for all that pain. And I had never uttered a word of my disdain for the entire thing to my mom or brothers. They wouldn’t understand, but I knew Deacon wasn’t like that. He’d seen shit he could never unsee and been through things he always said he’d never want anyone else to experience. When he got back, he was seriously messed up, but he went to counseling twice a week and it had really been helping. Of course, there would always be a chance he could be asked to go on another tour, but we didn’t talk about that.
“Can I ask you something? You’ve been out for almost a year, but you still haven’t really moved on. Why is that?”
“Look, you’ve got a visitor.” I looked out the car window at the front door and there she was. Christina. “Is she going to the drop-off?” Deacon inquired, clearly dodging my question.
I had to lighten the mood because it was clear Deacon didn’t want to talk about it. “Dude, you’re getting ahead of yourself. Let me take the damn test first, then we can talk drop-off,” I said sighing. “You’re such a planner it’s ridiculous. Can’t you ever just chill?”
Deacon laughed. “You do enough of that for the lot of us.”
I got out of the car, walked up to Christina, picked her up, and swung her in my arms. “Is it just me or do you look more beautiful tonight than ever before?”
Her blue eyes sparkled in the moonlight and I couldn’t help but kiss her.
She backed away and cleared her throat. “Colt, your brother is trying to get inside.”
We moved away from the door as Deacon whistled. I punched his arm as he passed by and went inside the house.
“It’s just us now,” I said, placing my hands on her waist.
She sighed cutely and tucked a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear. “Baby, I’ve been here for almost three hours. Your mom invited me to stay for dinner, your dad showed me the boat he’s been fixing up in the garage. It’s been quite an evening. Where were you?”
“Playing baseball with Deke. I didn’t know you were stopping by or I never would’ve gone.”
She grew serious. “What are you stressed about?”
I acted cool. “No stress here.”
The icy stare I was getting from her, though, made me want to confess. “Just thinking about the test, that’s all.”
“To get into the Army?”
“Yeah, that one.”
She leaned her forehead on mine. “You’re going to do fine. But I don’t think you’re as nervous about taking the test as you are about passing with flying colors.” She brushed my lips with her own. “You’re one of the smartest people I know.”
I took a play from Deacon’s book and tried to divert her attention. “What do you say we go inside and watch a movie?”
Christina brushed a light kiss on my forehead. “I can’t. It’s already passed my curfew and my mom isn’t going to be too pleased.”
Halfway down the driveway she hollered back, “And just so you know, Colt, you may be able to avoid a question you don’t like, but you’re going to have to stop avoiding the situation. It’s happening whether you like it or not.”
Lord knew I had a choice in the matter, but it didn’t feel like it from where I was standing. It felt like I was stuck between a rock and a hard place—my dad and the Army.
“I can’t let him down, Christina,” I responded.
I could hear her sigh heavily. “I know.”
Chapter One
Scarlet
Present Day
The sun was shining so bright I couldn’t see without sunglasses, and with the windows open and no air on, I could feel the full effects of the Miami sun. Oh how I’d missed the hot weather, the warm nights, and the beaches. Miami was my hometown and now that my brother was gone I knew it was going to feel different, but his memorial service was also the perfect excuse to leave New York. It never felt like home to me anyway, but I stayed for Nick, my boyfriend of two years who I thought I knew everything about. Guess you didn’t really know a person as well as you thought you did, I mused. At least not when they’re keeping you out of parts of their life and keeping secrets from you. Big secrets, like the fact that they’ve been a successful accountant on Wall Street, one of the best really, because he’d been cooking the books. Nick had been part of illegal activity for years and had I not walked in on his private conversation with one of his partners I would’ve never known the truth. He would have happily kept me in the dark forever.
That was all in the past now, though, because what Nick didn’t know was that
Stopped at a red light, I picked my brown wavy hair off the back of my neck and tossed it into a sloppy bun at the top of my head. I guess I really underestimated the heat. I remembered it so fondly, but being in New York since I was eighteen years old, it seemed like a lifetime ago. My mind began to reel with the knowledge that it had been six years since I’d lived with my brother in Florida. After our parents died, he practically raised me, but once I turned eighteen, he told me he wanted to enlist. I was never going to stand in his way, so I waved goodbye and watched as the only family I had left got on a bus to protect our country.
“Damn it,” I cursed at the noise sounding in my car and hit the steering wheel. I hadn’t checked the gas and now I was on E. “That’s just great, Scarlet, now you’re going to be stuck on the side of the road.” Just my luck, I thought to myself.
Sitting on the side of the road while I waited for AAA was the last thing I thought was going to happen today. I’d walk to the nearest gas station, but that was miles away. I could get out of my car and wait for some passerby to be nice enough to help me, but I doubted that was going to happen—it wasn’t the midwest, after all.
My best friend, Brooke, didn’t live far from my old family home, though, and I was only about twenty minutes from there. She answered on the second ring, thank God. “Hey, girl, I was wondering when you were going to phone me. I hadn’t heard from you since you made that pitstop in Virginia. Are you okay?”
I exhaled. “I’m fine. My car, not so much. Brooke, I’m an idiot. I forgot to check the gas before I passed the last station and I’m on E. I called AAA, but I was hoping to see if you might make it here faster?”
I could almost hear the air being deflated from her balloon as Brooke responded, “I wish I could, but I’m at the salon. I’m getting my hair done. I’m so sorry, sweetie.”
“No, it’s fine, forget it. It was a long shot anyway.”
“You know, what?” Brooke continued, “Max’s friend is in town and he’s got a brother who fixes cars. He might be able to help.”
I nearly jumped out of my seat. “I just need gas, but yes, yes, that’s great. I’ll take whatever help I can get.” I waited.
“Where are you?” she asked. “I’m texting now.”
I gave her my location. “How soon can he get here?”
“Ten minutes, he says. I guess he’s close by.”
“Maybe he’s at the grocery store. I’m not far from Whole Foods.”
Brooke laughed. “Funny, you haven’t been back here in years, but still remember where the grocery store is located. I came back from my three month honeymoon and it felt like a whole new world.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Okay, Aladdin, I’m going to hang up now before you start breaking into song.”
Brooke laughed. “All right, girl. And don’t forget to visit Max and I. I’m cooking my famous meatloaf tonight if you want to come over for dinner.”
“That sounds great. I still have to go shopping for groceries and unpack. I was just going to order pizza.” I might have come to Miami for my brother’s memorial service, but with everything going on with Nick, I wasn’t leaving anytime soon. So, groceries would be a necessity.
“Forget that. Home-cooked meatloaf is so much better, especially mine.”
I couldn’t remember the last time I had a home-cooked meal. I wasn’t much of a cook, anything I made ended up burnt or undercooked, and Nick spent so much time at the office that by the time he got home, more often than not I had already ordered takeout for the both of us. He never complained, though. We didn’t start dating for my cooking, that’s for sure. Right off the bat, he knew I wasn’t a cook. My parents died when I was young and my brother tried his best, but it was a lot of pizza and noodles for us when I was growing up.
* * *
A gentle tap on my window startled me. Was it just me, or did the sun seem to shine brighter after you closed your eyes? It was a man, the man I could only assume was the mechanic Brooke sent. The sun was shining so bright, I held up a finger, grabbed my purse and opened the door. There we go, I thought, as I looked at the handsome man. He was roughly six foot, chestnut brown hair, brown eyes, and exceptionally fit. My guess, he went to the gym religiously every morning, had a smoothie for breakfast, and never ate carbs. The gentleman was wearing a leather jacket and white shirt with jeans and a pair of sneakers. He was also wearing an Army dog tag around his neck. Figures he’d be from the Army. Because why not give me another reminder of the Army that took my brother away from me?
All that aside, he was there to help me, and I was appreciative. “You’re the mechanic, Max’s friend, right?”
He shook his head and I got nervous, until he followed it up by saying, “That’s Damon. I’m his brother, Colt. He was busy so he sent me.”
I let out a sigh of relief and put a hand to my chest. “Thank God. You can’t do that to a woman on the side of the road, you know? When you shook your head, I nearly died. I thought you were some ax murderer or something.”
Colt raised a brow. “An axe murderer who tapped on your window?”
I rolled my eyes. “Okay, maybe it’s not sensible, but you never know.” I may have sounded illogical, but I was sticking with it. You just never knew.
“So you can help me, right?”
“Yes, ma’am. I just have to fill up your tank. I’ve got everything I need in the back of my truck.”
Looking beyond Colt at the truck parked behind my car, I nodded. I got out and stood by my car. “Great, thanks. AAA still hasn’t come, and I really don’t want to be stuck on the side of the road all afternoon.”
Once he returned and began filling up my tank, he started making small talk. “So, where are you coming from?”
“New York, but I’m no stranger to Miami. I grew up here.”
“I didn’t catch your name,” he said.
I replied, “Scarlet, but everyone calls me Scar.”
“Scarlet. You wouldn’t happen to have a brother named Brandon, would you?”
“Yes,” I responded, “how did you know that?” Then it clicked. The Army tags. “Did you serve with him?”
“How did you know—” he looked confused.
“The dog tags. You served with him, didn’t you?” I swallowed hard, unsure if he knew Brandon’s fate.
“I did. He was a good friend of mine. A good guy, too. I’m sorry for your loss.” He closed the tank and just leaned against the car now. “I assume you’re here for the service?”
I nodded, grateful I didn’t have to say the words—he died. “Yes and no. Of course, I’m attending the memorial service. But I’m also moving back. I’ve missed Miami and I guess a part of me feels like I’ll feel closer to him if I move back into our old apartment.”
“Right, he told me he raised you.” He cringed. “I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant, he’s told me a lot about you.”
I put my hand on my hip. “Let me guess, Brandon told you to watch out for me, didn’t he?”
Colt smiled. “He was just trying to make sure you were taken care of. He always worried about you.”
“Well, I’m all grown up now and I’ve been without him for a while now, you know, so I don’t need his friend to look out for me. I’m a big girl.”
He shrugged. “I’m not here to take care of you. I’m just here because Max called in a favor with Damon and Damon asked me to assist. I had no idea I’d know you. Us bumping into each other was purely coincidental.”
“I don’t believe in coincidences.” I didn’t mean to say that aloud.
