Series: Team Poseidon/SEAL Brotherhood (Book 3)
The Poseidon team are hard-bodied, fiercely competitive
Navy SEALs. But when a sensitive mission goes disastrously wrong, three of the
team's finest will have to trust their hearts and instincts to uncover the
truth…
No strings. No questions. Just pleasure. For a few
blissful days, Lieutenant Commander Nic Savino is enjoying a wild fling with
the sexiest stranger he's ever laid eyes -- or any other body part -- on. It's
almost enough to make the stalwart SEAL let down his guard for once. Until he
learns that assistant US attorney Darby Raye -- his Darby -- is heading an
investigation designed to destroy him…and Poseidon.
The gorgeous eyes that Darby spent her nights gazing into
are now glaring at her across a courtroom. This case could build her career,
but if Nic's not a traitor, then he's being framed by forces powerful enough to
eliminate every obstacle in their way. And the tentative trust she and Nic are
rebuilding -- as well as their very lives -- could become collateral damage…
Fantastic conclusion to the series. In the first two
books, Call to Honor and Call to Engage, we saw the team deal with a mission
gone wrong and the fallout as they began to suspect someone in their midst
committed treason. As they searched for the truth, they quickly realized that
they could only trust their own team members. Though they caught the immediate
offender, it was also clear that there was someone else pulling the strings,
and they want that person. This becomes even more critical as the book's
prologue opens with their team leader, Nic Savino, about to be charged with
treason.
From there, the book goes back two months, to a resort in
Hawaii. Darby Raye, an attorney for the government, is on the first vacation
she's had in years. It isn't her idea. Darby is a workaholic, perfectly content
with the idea that her work is her life. But her boss made it clear that if she
wants that next promotion, he needs to see that she has balance in her life.
Darby is antsy and has no idea what to do with herself if she isn't working. I
loved her phone conversation with her secretary, who encourages her to let loose
for a bit. There's a man at the bar who catches her eye, but she's reluctant to
do anything about it. She's just ended a relationship with a fellow attorney, a
Navy lawyer who wasn't at all pleased when she broke things off. The man she is
staring at is Nic, who is also on a forced vacation, while the rest of his team
looks into who is behind the pending charges against him. He's equally antsy,
unhappy at being apart from his team and unable to work on clearing his name.
When he sees Darby sitting by herself, he is immediately attracted and not shy
about letting her know it.
Their attraction sets Darby and Nic on the path of a
mutually agreeable fling. The only condition they have is for complete anonymity.
They will stick to first names only, with no discussion of families, friends,
pasts, work, etc. I loved seeing these two workaholic people relax and escape
from their stresses. Though both agreed that this was a short-term affair with
no emotions involved, just intense physical intimacy, neither can prevent the feelings
that worm their way past their barriers. I loved how their connection deepened
and their sensitivity to the other's moods. In spite of their intentions, there
were a couple of emotionally charged moments when the past intruded on the
present. It wasn't long before each admitted to themselves that they'd like to
see where it would go if they were to continue to see each other. But fate
intervenes before either can pursue the thought, and Nic is called back to
duty. When Darby finds out who and what he is, she is devastated, and returns
home to drown her sorrows in work. Fate isn't done with Nic and Darby though.
Once she is back, Darby is assigned to a new case. She is to look at the
evidence provided and decided if one Dominic Savino is guilty of treason. She
is stunned to discover that it is "her" Nic, and reluctant to believe
that the man she knew in Hawaii is capable of such heinous crimes.
The suspense of the story is outstanding as we see events
from both Nic's and Darby's points of view. Nic and his team race against time
to trace Ramsey's traitorous actions to their source before Nic is convicted of
a crime he didn't commit. I loved seeing each team member use their unique
talents to help the man they respect and admire the most. On the other side of
the aisle, we have Darby, who is under a great deal of pressure to bring
charges of treason against Nic. Much of that pressure comes from her ex, who is
the Navy lawyer who is pushing hard for the charges, something that doesn't sit
well with Darby. I loved her independence and determination to do what was
right, in spite of that pressure. There was a fantastic scene with Darby and
the members of Poseidon. I loved seeing her hold her own with these men as they
discovered that they all wanted the same thing - to find the truth. The
intensity built as the day of reckoning approached. The final confrontation had
me on the edge of my seat as the tangled web of treachery unraveled. Desperation
on the part of the bad guy put Darby in extreme danger, leaving it up to Nic
and the men of Poseidon to come to the rescue in heart-pounding action. Darby
is no damsel in distress, though, and gets her own satisfying part in the proceedings.
I loved the ending, from a funny yet sweet scene with Darby and the men of Poseidon
to Nic and Darby finally opening up about their feelings and fears.
The entire series has been excellent, with fantastic
intrigue, suspense, action, and believable romantic relationships that came out
of desperate circumstances. Though this story arc is finished, I would love to
see stories for the rest of the men of Poseidon.
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