Cruisin’ For Love, page 1
Cruisin’ For Love
SEAL Brotherhood: Legacy Series
Book 5
Sharon Hamilton
Sharon Hamilton’s Book List
SEAL BROTHERHOOD BOOKS
SEAL BROTHERHOOD SERIES
Accidental SEAL Book 1
Fallen SEAL Legacy Book 2
SEAL Under Covers Book 3
SEAL The Deal Book 4
Cruisin’ For A SEAL Book 5
SEAL My Destiny Book 6
SEAL of My Heart Book 7
Fredo’s Dream Book 8
SEAL My Love Book 9
SEAL Encounter Prequel to Book 1
SEAL Endeavor Prequel to Book 2
Ultimate SEAL Collection Vol. 1 Books 1-4 /2 Prequels
Ultimate SEAL Collection Vol. 2 Books 5-7
SEAL BROTHERHOOD LEGACY SERIES
Watery Grave Book 1
Honor The Fallen Book 2
Grave Injustice Book 3
Deal With The Devil Book 4
Cruisin’ For Love Book 5
BAD BOYS OF SEAL TEAM 3 SERIES
SEAL’s Promise Book 1
SEAL My Home Book 2
SEAL’s Code Book 3
Big Bad Boys Bundle Books 1-3
BAND OF BACHELORS SERIES
Lucas Book 1
Alex Book 2
Jake Book 3
Jake 2 Book 4
Big Band of Bachelors Bundle
BONE FROG BROTHERHOOD SERIES
New Year’s SEAL Dream Book 1
SEALed At The Altar Book 2
SEALed Forever Book 3
SEAL’s Rescue Book 4
SEALed Protection Book 5
Bone Frog Brotherhood Superbundle
BONE FROG BACHELOR SERIES
Bone Frog Bachelor Book 0.5
Unleashed Book 1
Restored Book 2
Revenge Book 3
Legacy Book 4
SUNSET SEALS SERIES
SEALed at Sunset Book 1
Second Chance SEAL Book 2
Treasure Island SEAL Book 3
Escape to Sunset Book 4
The House at Sunset Beach Book 5
Second Chance Reunion Book 6
Love’s Treasure Book 7
Finding Home Book 8
Sunset SEALs Duet #1
Sunset SEALs Duet #2
LOVE VIXEN
Bone Frog Love
SHADOW SEALS
Shadow of the Heart
Shadow Warrior
SILVER SEALS SERIES
SEAL Love’s Legacy
SLEEPER SEALS SERIES
Bachelor SEAL
STAND ALONE BOOKS & SERIES
SEAL’s Goal: The Beautiful Game
Nashville SEAL: Jameson
True Blue SEALS Zak
Paradise: In Search of Love
Love Me Tender, Love You Hard
NOVELLAS
SEAL You In My Dreams Magnolias and Moonshine
PARANORMALS
GOLDEN VAMPIRES OF TUSCANY SERIES
Honeymoon Bite Book 1
Mortal Bite Book 2
Christmas Bite Book 3
Midnight Bite Book 4
THE GUARDIANS
Heavenly Lover Book 1
Underworld Lover Book 2
Underworld Queen Book 3
Redemption Book 4
FALL FROM GRACE SERIES
Gideon: Heavenly Fall
NOVELLAS
SEAL Of Time Trident Legacy
All of Sharon’s books are available on Audible, narrated by the talented J.D. Hart.
About the Book
Mark Beale and his wife, Sophia, plan to celebrate ten years of marriage by going on a trans-Atlantic cruise from Italy to the Caribbean at Christmas with their three daughters. Hoping to erase the memories of past cruises which turned out to be complete disasters, they plan to renew their wedding vows, enjoy a relaxing family vacation, and visit Sophia’s mother in Italy.
But for this Navy SEAL and his family, will the third time be the charm, or will they be unlucky again? Why does danger threaten to not only ruin their cruise, but their family?
Enjoy appearances by Captain Teseo Dominichello and other characters from SEAL Team 3.
Readers should enjoy reading Cruisin’ For A SEAL first, the story of how Mark and Sophia met years ago. This book is a continuation of their relationship and the growth of their family after ten years have passed.
Begin Reading
Dedication
About the Author
Table of Contents
Copyright © 2022 by Sharon Hamilton
Kobo Edition
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. In many cases, liberties and intentional inaccuracies have been taken with rank, description of duties, locations and aspects of the SEAL community.
License Notes
This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.
Author’s Note
I always dedicate my SEAL Brotherhood books to the brave men and women who defend our shores and keep us safe. Without their sacrifice, and that of their families—because a warrior’s fight always includes his or her family—I wouldn’t have the freedom and opportunity to make a living writing these stories. They sometimes pay the ultimate price so we can debate, argue, go have coffee with friends, raise our children and see them have children of their own.
One of my favorite tributes to warriors resides on many memorials, including one I saw honoring the fallen of WWII on an island in the Pacific:
“When you go home
Tell them of us, and say
For your tomorrow,
We gave our today.”
These are my stories created out of my own imagination. Anything that is inaccurately portrayed is either my mistake, or done intentionally to disguise something I might have overheard over a beer or in the corner of one of the hangouts along the Coronado Strand.
I support two main charities. Navy SEAL/UDT Museum operates in Ft. Pierce, Florida. Please learn about this wonderful museum, all run by active and former SEALs and their friends and families, and who rely on public support, not that of the U.S. Government.
www.navysealmuseum.org
I also support Wounded Warriors, who tirelessly bring together the warrior as well as the family members who are just learning to deal with their soldier’s condition and have nowhere to turn. It is a long path to becoming well, but I’ve seen first-hand what this organization does for its warriors and the families who love them. Please give what your heart tells you is right. If you cannot give, volunteer at one of the many service centers all over the United States. Get involved. Do something meaningful for someone who gave so much of themselves, to families who have paid the price for your freedom. You’ll find a family there unlike any other on the planet.
www.woundedwarriorproject.org
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Sharon Hamilton’s Book List
About the Book
Copyright Page
Author’s Note
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
About the Author
Reviews
SEAL Prayer
Chapter 1
Mark Beale entered his small galley kitchen, cartoons playing in the background. The girls had awakened him again, just like they did every Saturday morning, no matter if he was just returning from a deployment the night before or not.
He was wearing a pair of shorts, but no T-shirt, and was barefoot. His wife, Sophia, was reading a newspaper and had her hair flopped on top of her head, secured with a big clip, dark curly strands running all down the back of her neck and shoulders. Her peach-colored nightie was gaping in front. The nightie was well used, slightly frayed, and hopelessly stained where she had spilled coffee in previous days.
Mark remembered giving it to Sophia on their anniversary some nearly ten years ago.
How things change.
But then he looked down at himself with his bare feet, wrinkled boxers, and sleep crust clinging to both eyes. He could have said something but chose to just reach for the coffee and overlook that part.
Sophia didn’t say a word and didn’t look up at him, just like his girls had done
He moved aside the pickles, the lime yogurts, and almond milk to find his coveted heavy whipping cream, which was as important to his morning routine as the coffee.
“Well, would you look at us, honey?” he said to his wife.
That’s when Sophia did manage to get a good look at him. “Whatever do you mean?”
“Aren’t we a pair? Did you ever think when we got married some ten years ago that we would be spending Saturday morning looking like this?”
He demonstrated on himself first and then motioned to her with a stylish gesture.
“I did not.”
She was rather blunt. Okay, he could have expected that.
“And instead of elevator music or Italian romantic songs playing in the promenades and hallways of the cruise ships, we’d be listening to Sesame Street and Mr. Buck on the TV? Not to mention the dog channel or the Cockapoo station.”
“You’re complaining now? Is that what’s going on now?”
He should have answered he discovered too late.
“Mark, maybe it’s just as simple as not getting laid enough?”
God help him for her frankness, the way she just skewered him with the look of her eyes, the little flippant comments she made in Italian—sometimes under her breath, her haughty attitude, and her vivaciousness. She exuded confidence over the table, even when she was in her nightie, her stained nightie, and had been up half the night with their youngest, Domenica.
“So, it was a tough night for you?” he asked her. “Sorry about that, but thanks for letting me sleep a little at least.”
“My fault then?”
“Don’t start with me. I woke up to the sound of the TV blaring, and you know, I got in last night at two o’clock. I like to sleep in on Saturdays. It’s always been like this, at least since the children came. With babies, even without babies. Before I got married and all ten years since we got married. It was even like this on the cruise ship. Remember?”
“How could I forget? The mysterious man coming back from missions all hours of the night, his need for sex so strong we could fuck for six hours afterwards. But no, now you come home and sleep for a day and a half. And what about the sex? You know, Mark, I have needs as well.”
Mark knew it wouldn’t be very smart to mention something about her appearance. Especially as he realized his own appearance looked far from sexy or masculine or warrior-type. Yes, he had tattoos, he had some scars, and he certainly had muscles, including six pack abs and biceps. He knew that even though she was shorter and weighed half what he did, he would pay dearly for that comment. He kept it to himself and decided to finish his coffee.
“You’re just gonna leave it like that?” she asked him.
“I am.” It was Mark’s turn to be smug.
“What are you saying exactly?”
“Nothing, just that your nightie reminded me of the fact that there are anniversaries, and there are people who celebrate them. I just thought that since we’re going to have a ten-year coming up here soon, that we could do something special for it. Maybe take the kids to. Disneyland or some other thing? How about camping?”
Sophia looked over the newspaper like he was wearing the contents of Domenica’s dirty diaper.
“So, I’m open to suggestions now. This is me being flexible, being awake, and asking you what you would like to do for your anniversary?”
Sophia sighed heavily, looking down at the paper rattling between her hands, letting her feet tap on the floor, which was something Mark had discovered was common amongst dancers, and impatiently returned an answer he didn’t expect.
“I’d like you to surprise me. Do something spontaneous, dangerous!”
“Can you give me a hint?”
“Then that wouldn’t be spontaneous.” Sophia shook her head from side to side. “No.”
Mark knew better than to walk on thin ice, and the kitchen certainly had lots of thin ice. “What do you think the kids would like to do?”
“I thought you said this is for our anniversary?”
“Dammit, Sophia, this is for our anniversary. But are you thinking about leaving them somewhere?”
“I guess that’s out of the question then. My mistake.” She was getting frostier by the minute.
He knew that, in very short order, she was going to be suggesting that perhaps they could spend their anniversary apart, and since it was Christmas, she might make an exit to Italy to visit her mother, who had been failing health-wise. He didn’t like the idea of it, and, if he could stop her from doing this, he certainly would try his darndest.
He poured himself another cup of coffee, adding more cream, asking her if she’d like a refill, which she declined. Grabbing his mug, he sat at a forty-five-degree angle to her at the table. Putting his chin in his left palm, his elbow on the table, in his best masculine, sexy voice, he said, “Sophia, the love of my life, the mother of my insanely beautiful daughters, who are the most spectacular little girls in the whole world, I want to do something that is special for you. I’d like to do something that would excite you, and I’d like to do something the kids would like as well. I don’t even care if it’s something like going to ballet camp because I’ll do anything. I just want to do something that doesn’t cost too much money, but something that we can do as a family, to celebrate our family after ten years. It’s gone by so fast, and I’m gone so much of the time, that it would be really a good idea if we could try to do a family vacation. All of us together!”
At first, he waited for her answer. Her eyes studied him, moving from his right eye to his left eye and back to his right, examining the stubble on his chin, then following the trail of chest hair down lower, making him swallow with a parched mouth. He was hoping that was a good sign. He certainly needed a good sign right about now.
And then she folded the paper up in front of her, lacing her fingers together, and waited again.
“Sophia? Well?”
“I think we should take a trip to Italy. Take the girls to see their grandma. What about that?”
“Well, it’s Christmas time, and the flights to Italy are going to be outrageously expensive. It’s November. No deals this time of year. I just am not sure whether we can afford to do that right now, with your studio closing. I mean, we could max out our credit cards, but is that smart? It’s Christmas.”
“Exactly, it’s Christmas. We can go as a family for our family Christmas present.”
He thought about this for a while and knew that Mrs. Negri lived in a very tiny apartment over the meat market. He also knew that there was no way all five of them could fit there, so it would involve renting a hotel room, a car, and other things. As he started to add up the numbers, his stomach began to tumble a bit, not just from the coffee, but from the understanding that he was looking at a vacation that was easily going to cost him about ten grand. And he didn’t have it in his bank account.
But giving up was not an option.
“I’ll tell you what, I’ll go to the bank today, and I’ll see if they’ll give me a small loan for the vacation. Maybe then we could pay for it on an installment type basis, not use the expensive credit cards. How about that?”
“OK.”
Little Ophelia their middle daughter, who was seven years old, entered the kitchen, asking for some breakfast.
“Would you like cereal this morning or would you like some eggs?”
“Pancakes,” she blurted out stubbornly.
“OK, but your daddy’s gonna go to the store to get a few things that I’m missing. Why don’t we have cereal today, and then tomorrow we can have the pancakes.”
Mark watched as Ophelia protruded her lower lip as she so often did on just about every occasion when she wasn’t going to be getting her way. He fully saw in his young daughter his wife’s spirit and personality. He imagined that Sophia probably was just like her when she was young.
It was no wonder Mark felt trapped. He was surrounded by his women.
And he loved them all to the ends of the earth.
By Monday morning, Sophia had arranged their trip, through the cruise ship she used to work for, which had several unblocked bookings that were bargains at nearly seventy-five percent of the original price. She even signed up to be a tour director, and part-time dance instructor, requesting a paid position for Mark to be her co-instructor as well. The arrangement would nearly pay their expenses in full. The airfare was included in the price, and there were slots available for the cruise over Christmas, so the girls wouldn’t miss more than a few days of school. The cruise would originate in Naples, and after a stop in the Caribbean, would arrive in Miami.
