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The Rangers of the 1st/75th fight
hard, train hard and play hard. They are physically strong and mentally tough,
disciplined and courageous. But all their military training hasn't prepared
them for falling in love.
Former
Ranger Medic Lucky James feels right at home working long night shifts in the
ER, but less so during the day, when his college classes are filled with
flirtatious co-eds. When his 19-year-old chem lab partner shows up at his work
with dinner for “her Lucky,” he quickly enlists the help of Rachel Dellinger, a
nurse and fellow third shift vampire.
Rachel is
a people pleaser at heart, but she’s finally decided enough is enough when it
comes to her on-again, off-again boyfriend. When Lucky begs Rachel to help him
ward off the advances of his teenager pursuer, she blackmails him into helping
move her things out of the apartment she shared with her ex into a place all
her own.
From there
a friendship is born between two people just trying to make it through the
night. Neither are living in the past or planning for the future. Until one day
changes everything.
June
2006
Even though he knew it was coming,
Lucky James flinched at the first volley of gunfire. He remained steady for the
next two volleys, the loud crack giving way to the mournful sound of the bugle.
During his five years with the 75th
Ranger Regiment, he’d never attended a stateside service for a fallen soldier.
He’d stood at attention on a tarmac halfway around the world as the American
flag was lowered to half-staff and “Taps” blared from loudspeakers. He’d
carried flag-draped metal coffins holding the remains of his brothers-in-arms
up the ramp of the C-130 that would deliver them home. He’d knelt beside many
of those coffins, placed his hand atop them, silently begging forgiveness for
failing them. After all, as a Ranger medic, his number one priority was to
return his fellow soldiers home to their loved ones safe and sound. Not in a
box. Never in a box.
When the bugler finished, the honor
guard lifted the American flag from Ethan Dellinger’s casket and began the
ceremonial folding. Everyone watched in silence as the soldiers worked in
tandem, pulling the fabric taught, smoothing each crease, making each fold with
precision. It had been years since he’d last seen Ethan; his last memories of
him were as a chatty middle schooler who invited himself to shoot hoops with
Lucky at a nearby playground one day. Over the course of the next few years,
Ethan would show up out of the blue and follow Lucky around as he worked on his
car, mowed the yard, whatever he was doing. Right up until the day Lucky left for
basic training.
To be completely honest, Lucky hadn’t
given much thought to Ethan during the past five years. After all, he was just
a kid he once knew. He hadn’t even known Ethan had joined the army immediately
following his high school graduation. Only after arriving home on leave the day
before had Lucky learned from his father that “the youngest Dellinger boy” had
been killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq.
Barely three weeks into his very
first deployment, Army Pfc. Ethan Dellinger died two months shy of his
nineteenth birthday.
His immediate family assembled only
feet away from his casket with the remaining friends and family forming a
semicircle around the grave site. From where Lucky stood at the back, he could
see each of their faces. Ethan’s mother and father sat side by side on small
folding chairs with elderly relatives, grandparents perhaps, seated next to
them. The youngest of four children, Ethan’s immediate family was large to
begin with, and when in-laws, nieces, and nephews were thrown into the mix, it
grew to massive proportions.
Despite the large gathering, his eyes
were drawn to Ethan’s sister, Rachel. She stood out even among her own siblings
with her fiery red hair and bright blue eyes.
She and Lucky were of the same age,
had attended the same schools from the time Lucky and his father moved to
Durant, Oklahoma, in the middle of seventh grade. In all that time, he’d never
spoken more to her than the occasional hello, goodbye, or single-word answer.
And for as long as he could remember, while she’d never paid any mind to him,
she’d always had his attention, despite the fact they traveled in different
social circles.
But what stood out about her today he
found upsetting. There she was, surrounded by all these people, all family or friends
of her brother, and she stood completely alone. With her arms wrapped tight
around her middle, Rachel comforted herself at a time when no one else seemed
to notice or care.
It took every bit of self-restraint
for him to not make a scene, march over to where she stood, and pull her into
his arms. He was on the verge of saying to hell with being polite when the
service ended and the crowd began to disperse. Everyone except him. He remained
right where he stood, watching Rachel as she walked over to Ethan’s casket,
pressed a kiss to her fingertips, and laid her hand upon the polished wood.
He had only taken a few steps in her
direction when her head lifted and she caught sight of him. Much to his
surprise, she stepped away from Ethan’s casket and walked toward him. Her blue
eyes were red and swollen, her face tearstained.
“Rachel,” he began the moment she was
in earshot. “I’m very sorry about Ethan. He was a great—”
Before he could finish his
condolences, her palm met his cheek with a resounding crack.
“How dare you come here,” she said
bitterly.
The tears fell freely down her face
now. Her hands shook and her body vibrated with restrained fury.
He apologized a second time for
reasons unknown even to him. But judging from the expression on her face and
the hurt in her eyes, the words needed to be said.
“This is your fault,” she said,
pointing to the hole where her brother’s casket would be lowered and the
adjacent pile of red dirt that would bury him deep beneath the earth’s surface.
“Ethan idolized you. Wanted to be you. He joined the army in hopes of following
in your footsteps. Except he didn’t score high enough to be a medic. Wasn’t fit
enough to be a Ranger. I hope you’re happy.”
Stunned into silence, he could do
little more than watch as Rachel Dellinger turned her back on him and walked
away.
Lucky and Rachel had a bit of rough start, but soon became really good friends as they are both starting a new phase of their lives. Pretty soon they are spending their working and non-working hours together and it seemed like they became a couple without almost without them noticing it, except that is was strictly platonic. Or at least it was until it wasn't. Lucky has always had a thing for Rachel, but after a moment of weakness brings them together intimately and a misunderstanding has Rachel setting boundaries of friendship only, Lucky figures out that we wants Rachel as more than just a friend. The only problem is that Rachel will never leave their small town, while Lucky is having a hard time adjusting to civilian life and all its limitations regarding his medical skills. They both faced some tough decisions in order to be with the one they loved and I loved the way that it played out. Overall a sweet and sexy friends-to-lovers story without too much drama and can be read as a standalone.
I received an ARC via Edelweiss for the purpose of an honest review. I was not compensated for this review, all conclusions are my own.
I received an ARC via Edelweiss for the purpose of an honest review. I was not compensated for this review, all conclusions are my own.
Cheryl
Etchison graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a degree in journalism
and news communications and has worked as a newspaper reporter, marketing
coordinator and in public relations for a MLB and NHL team. Currently, she
lives in Austin, Texas and is a stay at home mom to three girls. ONCE AND FOR
ALL is her first novel.
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