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The Reunion Mission
Beth Cornelison
Though it’s been five years since Black Ops agent Daniel last saw Nicole, his desire for her burns as strong as ever.But he’s got to stay focused on his mission – rescue Nicole and an innocent child from a Colombian prison camp. Yet, sharing such close quarters, Nicole and Daniel must confront the past – and a passion that won’t be denied.
This Christmas, we’ve got some fabulous treats to give away! ENTER NOW for a chance to win £5000 by clicking the link below.
www.millsandboon.co.uk/ebookxmas (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk/ebookxmas).
“I need to know … you remember. Tell me … you remember.”
The Cajun’s dark eyes were wild with agony, and his face contorted in misery. She hated seeing him suffer.
“Nicole,” he repeated, and held a hand out, summoning her to come closer.
At that moment, the morning sun broke over the tops of the trees and shone through the open side door of the helicopter, casting his rugged face in sharp relief. For the first time, she could truly see the man who’d risked his life for her. Her heart clenched, and the prickle of déjà vu returned. He seemed so familiar …
“I … need—” He stopped, clenching his teeth and growling in torment. “Please … I need to know … you remember.”
“I remember,” she lied, leaning closer to be sure he heard her.
“Then say my name, Nicole.”
And in a heartbeat, an echo from her past yanked her back five years to a hotel room in New Orleans. Her heart wrenched, and tears spilled from her eyes.
“Oh, my God!” She curled her fingers into the hair at his nape and buried her face in his neck. “Daniel …”
Dear Reader,
As I was writing Soldier’s Pregnancy Protocol, I found myself more and more fascinated by Alec’s missing partner, Daniel LeCroix. What had happened to him? I asked myself. Just who was this mysterious Cajun? Even though he was not “on screen” most of the book, I felt his presence throughout writing the book. Secondary characters sometimes take over, demanding their own story be told. By the time I finished Alec’s book, Daniel’s history with Senator White’s daughter was already playing out in my head.
I was thrilled to have the chance to write Daniel and Nicole’s story … so much so that the opening chapters of The Reunion Mission almost wrote themselves. This is a true story of my heart, even though I shook my head at times wondering what I’d done to myself by having characters who needed to speak not just Spanish, but Colombian Spanish, and not just French, but Cajun French. (Yes, there is a big difference!) I hope you enjoy Daniel and Nicole’s story as much as I enjoyed telling it …
Oh, and keep an eye out for book three in the BLACK OPS RESCUES series. I hope to have Jake’s story ready soon! As always, more information about all my books is available on my website, www.bethcornelison.com.
Happy reading,
Beth Cornelison
About the Author
BETH CORNELISON started writing stories as a child when she penned a tale about the adventures of her cat, Ajax. A Georgia native, she received her bachelor’s degree in public relations from the University of Georgia. After working in public relations for a little more than a year, she moved with her husband to Louisiana, where she decided to pursue her love of writing fiction.
Since that first time, Beth has written many more stories of adventure and romantic suspense and has won numerous honors for her work, including a coveted Golden Heart Award in romantic suspense from Romance Writers of America. She is active on the board of directors for the North Louisiana Storytellers and Authors of Romance (NOLA STARS) and loves reading, traveling, Peanuts’ Snoopy and spending downtime with her family.
She writes from her home in Louisiana, where she lives with her husband, one son and two cats who think they are people. Beth loves to hear from her readers. You can write to her at PO Box 5418, Bossier City, LA 71171, USA or visit her website, www.bethcornelison.com.
The Reunion
Mission
Beth Cornelison
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
To Keyren Gerlach Burgess, who believed in me and
helped bring Alec, Daniel and Jake to life.
Thank you to fellow Mills & Boon
Intrigue author Gail Barrett and her friend, Margarita Unger, for their help with Colombian Spanish translations.
Thank you also to Jennifer Malone and her father,
Monte Bonin, for their help with Cajun French, as well
as answering questions about Cajun culture.
Thank you to Sara Beth Salyer for sharing her name
(as the winning bidder in the Brenda Novak Diabetes
Auction for a Cure) and allowing me the honor
of paying homage to her beloved kitty, Oreo, as
characters in The Reunion Mission.
Chapter 1
“Left perimeter clear.” Shifting his night vision goggles, Daniel LeCroix peered through the inky blankness of the Colombian jungle, his body humming and ready for action. He focused on the large tent at the far end of the rebel encampment. No sign of the soldiers who slept in the canvas shelter. Lowering the night vision goggles, he cast a glance to his partner, who monitored the camp through an infrared imaging camera. “What do you have?”
Months of preparation had led to this moment. With their objective moments from fruition, he’d be damned if he’d let anything screw up their mission now.
“No movement,” Alec Kincaid confirmed. “Looks like the guards watching the ammo are the only ones awake.” Alec stowed the infrared imager in his pack and slid his NVGs into place. “Ready to move?”
Adrenaline spiked in Daniel’s blood, readying him for battle. “Hell, yeah. Let’s go.”
Silently, he and Alec dropped from the tree where they’d been perched for hours, watching the faction of rebel soldiers who held several captives in the remote camp. Only one of the prisoners interested Daniel.
Nicole White. A U.S. senator’s daughter kidnapped from the medical mission where she was working and held as a political pawn.
Freeing her and returning her safely to the United States was their sole objective tonight.
Leading with his sidearm, Daniel crept down the steep, vegetation-dense hillside to the clearing in the narrow Colombian valley where Nicole had been held for close to thirteen months.
Would she recognize him, remember him?
Daniel shoved down the jangle of anticipation that skittered through him when he thought of seeing Nicole again. Touching her. He had to stay focused on his job if they were to get out of that jungle alive.
When they reached the crude wire fence at the edge of the camp, Alec pulled a pair of wire cutters from his pack and quickly created a hole large enough for them to crawl through on their bellies. Daniel wiggled through first, then Alec. Using hand signals, Daniel directed Alec to the right. Daniel walked backward, following Alec and guarding their six. Keeping to the shadows, they made their way toward the back of the camp where Nicole was being held.
As they rounded the tent where they’d determined supplies were kept, Alec stopped abruptly. He pointed to the guard stationed at the entrance of the supply tent.
I’ve got this one, Alec signaled, then soundlessly dispatched the man before the guard even knew he had company.
Behind them, a squeak drew Daniel’s attention. The door to the ramshackle latrine by the perimeter fence opened, and a soldier stepped out, shining a flashlight toward the camp. When the beam passed over Alec, Daniel tensed. Just as the man swung the light back and opened his mouth to shout a warning to the camp, Daniel fired a single head shot, and the soldier crumpled. Despite the silencer muffling the gun’s noise, Daniel knew someone could have heard the telltale pop. They had to hurry.
By unspoken agreement, Alec set a faster pace toward the fenced area where Nicole was being held. Farther down, they encountered two more guards, playing a game with dice as they monitored the cache of arms stacked in crates under a tarp. Skulking through the night like panthers, Alec and Daniel snuck up on the duo and took them out, as well.
All clear.
With Alec keeping watch, Daniel hurried to the fenced area where the rebels held their captives. The cages holding the prisoners were little more than dog pens, and two teepeed sheets of rotting plywood provided Nicole’s only protection from the elements. Rage flashed through Daniel seeing the squalid conditions in which Nicole had been forced to live. Gritting his teeth, he funneled his fury into cutting through the fencing of her cage, then crawled to the tented plywood where she slept.
She wasn’t alone. Daniel frowned but dismissed the small form huddled beside her. His mandate was clear. Nicole was his only objective.
Shifting his attention, Daniel held his breath as he caught his first up-close glimpse of Nicole in five years. Her long slender legs and feet were bare. Dirty cargo shorts and a sleeveless T-shirt hugged her womanly curves, and the fetal position in which she slept heightened his sense of her vulnerability. Her arms pillowed her head, and her tangled blond hair spilled over her cheek. Even disheveled and grimy, she was still every bit as beautiful as he remembered.
Daniel’s heart performed a tuck and roll, and he allowed himself the briefest moment just to look at her and thank God she appeared unharmed. But even a few seconds of delay were an indulgence, and he steeled himself for the task ahead. It was go time.
Beth Cornelison
Though it’s been five years since Black Ops agent Daniel last saw Nicole, his desire for her burns as strong as ever.But he’s got to stay focused on his mission – rescue Nicole and an innocent child from a Colombian prison camp. Yet, sharing such close quarters, Nicole and Daniel must confront the past – and a passion that won’t be denied.
This Christmas, we’ve got some fabulous treats to give away! ENTER NOW for a chance to win £5000 by clicking the link below.
www.millsandboon.co.uk/ebookxmas (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk/ebookxmas).
“I need to know … you remember. Tell me … you remember.”
The Cajun’s dark eyes were wild with agony, and his face contorted in misery. She hated seeing him suffer.
“Nicole,” he repeated, and held a hand out, summoning her to come closer.
At that moment, the morning sun broke over the tops of the trees and shone through the open side door of the helicopter, casting his rugged face in sharp relief. For the first time, she could truly see the man who’d risked his life for her. Her heart clenched, and the prickle of déjà vu returned. He seemed so familiar …
“I … need—” He stopped, clenching his teeth and growling in torment. “Please … I need to know … you remember.”
“I remember,” she lied, leaning closer to be sure he heard her.
“Then say my name, Nicole.”
And in a heartbeat, an echo from her past yanked her back five years to a hotel room in New Orleans. Her heart wrenched, and tears spilled from her eyes.
“Oh, my God!” She curled her fingers into the hair at his nape and buried her face in his neck. “Daniel …”
Dear Reader,
As I was writing Soldier’s Pregnancy Protocol, I found myself more and more fascinated by Alec’s missing partner, Daniel LeCroix. What had happened to him? I asked myself. Just who was this mysterious Cajun? Even though he was not “on screen” most of the book, I felt his presence throughout writing the book. Secondary characters sometimes take over, demanding their own story be told. By the time I finished Alec’s book, Daniel’s history with Senator White’s daughter was already playing out in my head.
I was thrilled to have the chance to write Daniel and Nicole’s story … so much so that the opening chapters of The Reunion Mission almost wrote themselves. This is a true story of my heart, even though I shook my head at times wondering what I’d done to myself by having characters who needed to speak not just Spanish, but Colombian Spanish, and not just French, but Cajun French. (Yes, there is a big difference!) I hope you enjoy Daniel and Nicole’s story as much as I enjoyed telling it …
Oh, and keep an eye out for book three in the BLACK OPS RESCUES series. I hope to have Jake’s story ready soon! As always, more information about all my books is available on my website, www.bethcornelison.com.
Happy reading,
Beth Cornelison
About the Author
BETH CORNELISON started writing stories as a child when she penned a tale about the adventures of her cat, Ajax. A Georgia native, she received her bachelor’s degree in public relations from the University of Georgia. After working in public relations for a little more than a year, she moved with her husband to Louisiana, where she decided to pursue her love of writing fiction.
Since that first time, Beth has written many more stories of adventure and romantic suspense and has won numerous honors for her work, including a coveted Golden Heart Award in romantic suspense from Romance Writers of America. She is active on the board of directors for the North Louisiana Storytellers and Authors of Romance (NOLA STARS) and loves reading, traveling, Peanuts’ Snoopy and spending downtime with her family.
She writes from her home in Louisiana, where she lives with her husband, one son and two cats who think they are people. Beth loves to hear from her readers. You can write to her at PO Box 5418, Bossier City, LA 71171, USA or visit her website, www.bethcornelison.com.
The Reunion
Mission
Beth Cornelison
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
To Keyren Gerlach Burgess, who believed in me and
helped bring Alec, Daniel and Jake to life.
Thank you to fellow Mills & Boon
Intrigue author Gail Barrett and her friend, Margarita Unger, for their help with Colombian Spanish translations.
Thank you also to Jennifer Malone and her father,
Monte Bonin, for their help with Cajun French, as well
as answering questions about Cajun culture.
Thank you to Sara Beth Salyer for sharing her name
(as the winning bidder in the Brenda Novak Diabetes
Auction for a Cure) and allowing me the honor
of paying homage to her beloved kitty, Oreo, as
characters in The Reunion Mission.
Chapter 1
“Left perimeter clear.” Shifting his night vision goggles, Daniel LeCroix peered through the inky blankness of the Colombian jungle, his body humming and ready for action. He focused on the large tent at the far end of the rebel encampment. No sign of the soldiers who slept in the canvas shelter. Lowering the night vision goggles, he cast a glance to his partner, who monitored the camp through an infrared imaging camera. “What do you have?”
Months of preparation had led to this moment. With their objective moments from fruition, he’d be damned if he’d let anything screw up their mission now.
“No movement,” Alec Kincaid confirmed. “Looks like the guards watching the ammo are the only ones awake.” Alec stowed the infrared imager in his pack and slid his NVGs into place. “Ready to move?”
Adrenaline spiked in Daniel’s blood, readying him for battle. “Hell, yeah. Let’s go.”
Silently, he and Alec dropped from the tree where they’d been perched for hours, watching the faction of rebel soldiers who held several captives in the remote camp. Only one of the prisoners interested Daniel.
Nicole White. A U.S. senator’s daughter kidnapped from the medical mission where she was working and held as a political pawn.
Freeing her and returning her safely to the United States was their sole objective tonight.
Leading with his sidearm, Daniel crept down the steep, vegetation-dense hillside to the clearing in the narrow Colombian valley where Nicole had been held for close to thirteen months.
Would she recognize him, remember him?
Daniel shoved down the jangle of anticipation that skittered through him when he thought of seeing Nicole again. Touching her. He had to stay focused on his job if they were to get out of that jungle alive.
When they reached the crude wire fence at the edge of the camp, Alec pulled a pair of wire cutters from his pack and quickly created a hole large enough for them to crawl through on their bellies. Daniel wiggled through first, then Alec. Using hand signals, Daniel directed Alec to the right. Daniel walked backward, following Alec and guarding their six. Keeping to the shadows, they made their way toward the back of the camp where Nicole was being held.
As they rounded the tent where they’d determined supplies were kept, Alec stopped abruptly. He pointed to the guard stationed at the entrance of the supply tent.
I’ve got this one, Alec signaled, then soundlessly dispatched the man before the guard even knew he had company.
Behind them, a squeak drew Daniel’s attention. The door to the ramshackle latrine by the perimeter fence opened, and a soldier stepped out, shining a flashlight toward the camp. When the beam passed over Alec, Daniel tensed. Just as the man swung the light back and opened his mouth to shout a warning to the camp, Daniel fired a single head shot, and the soldier crumpled. Despite the silencer muffling the gun’s noise, Daniel knew someone could have heard the telltale pop. They had to hurry.
By unspoken agreement, Alec set a faster pace toward the fenced area where Nicole was being held. Farther down, they encountered two more guards, playing a game with dice as they monitored the cache of arms stacked in crates under a tarp. Skulking through the night like panthers, Alec and Daniel snuck up on the duo and took them out, as well.
All clear.
With Alec keeping watch, Daniel hurried to the fenced area where the rebels held their captives. The cages holding the prisoners were little more than dog pens, and two teepeed sheets of rotting plywood provided Nicole’s only protection from the elements. Rage flashed through Daniel seeing the squalid conditions in which Nicole had been forced to live. Gritting his teeth, he funneled his fury into cutting through the fencing of her cage, then crawled to the tented plywood where she slept.
She wasn’t alone. Daniel frowned but dismissed the small form huddled beside her. His mandate was clear. Nicole was his only objective.
Shifting his attention, Daniel held his breath as he caught his first up-close glimpse of Nicole in five years. Her long slender legs and feet were bare. Dirty cargo shorts and a sleeveless T-shirt hugged her womanly curves, and the fetal position in which she slept heightened his sense of her vulnerability. Her arms pillowed her head, and her tangled blond hair spilled over her cheek. Even disheveled and grimy, she was still every bit as beautiful as he remembered.
Daniel’s heart performed a tuck and roll, and he allowed himself the briefest moment just to look at her and thank God she appeared unharmed. But even a few seconds of delay were an indulgence, and he steeled himself for the task ahead. It was go time.
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