Her Forbidden Marine (Hearts Ablaze: Men in Uniform Book 2) (8 page)

Makenna Jameison is the author of seven romance novellas, including the bestselling
Christmas with a Soldier. 
Makenna writes stories with hot alpha males, steamy romance, and happily-ever-afters. She loves reading, writing, coffee, the beach, and traveling to new places.  Makenna lives in Washington DC with her husband and daughter.

I hope you enjoyed
Her Forbidden Marine
, the second book in the new series, HEARTS ABLAZE: Men in Uniform.

My stories sizzle with passion, complete with strong, sexy heroes and smart heroines following their own path to love.  They’re fun, steamy, and always red-hot!

Visit
www.makennajameison.com
to discover your next great read.

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Want to read more from MAKENNA JAMEISON?

Keep reading for an exclusive excerpt from the first book in her Hearts Ablaze: Men in Uniform series,
A Marine for Christmas.

Preschool teacher Amy Mitchell has been trying to move on with her life, regretful of letting “the one” get away.  She’s determined to forget about love and focus on her students and the art gallery she dreams of opening someday.

Her hunky neighbor Marine Captain Jason Patterson has regrets of his own—and although there’s no turning back to fix mistakes of the past, he’s determined to do things the right way this time around.  Preferably with the brunette bombshell right across the street.

As their paths cross, Amy realizes a little romance may not be a bad thing.  But after a heated night in her neighbor’s bed leaves her questioning their chance of a future together, she starts to wonder—will the sparks between them only leave her burned?

The wind whipped colorful leaves through the air, and Amy glanced up, watching them swirl around and around before landing on the path in front of her.  Red maple leaves mixed in with others that were shades of yellow and brown, covering part of the paved trail.  Many more still hung on the branches above, painting the trees in the forest fiery shades of crimson and burnt orange.  They wouldn’t stay this way much longer; in only another week or two the trees would be bare, leaving the landscape stark and bare for the upcoming winter.  But for now, at the peak of the season, she basked in fall’s perfection.

A crunch from the bushes nearby momentarily startled her before she realized it was probably just a small animal scurrying around, searching for food.  Or running away from her, perhaps—she was, after all, jogging through their forest.  Amy took a deep breath and smiled, looking up to the clear blue sky that was peeking through the branches.  It was a perfect fall day.  This time of year always energized her—the warm summer sun had given way to autumn, the air was cool and crisp each morning.  In the coming weeks there’d be much to look forward to—warm spiced cider in the evenings, the upcoming weekend getaway with some girlfriends, homemade pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving….  It was a gorgeous time of year for hiking and jogging through the many trails in the forest as well, and she relished this time alone each afternoon to recharge.

Her mind could drift away to thoughts of anything and everything as she ran, caught up in the rhythm of her movement, the sound of her breathing, and nothing else.  There was the art studio she dreamed of opening someday, if she could ever save up the funds.  The warm apple pies and cobblers she needed to bake this weekend for the school bake sale on Monday.  The preschool classes she taught every morning and afternoon, for which she devoted many hours in preparation.  The master bedroom of her house that needed to be painted, and the new artwork she would then dream up and paint to adorn the walls.  The pile of books sitting on her nightstand that she would get to if she ever found the free time to read for pleasure again.  And Ben.  Always in the back of her mind, drifting into her subconscious thoughts when she least expected it, was Ben.

Lately he was on her mind every evening before bed and every morning when she awoke.  His dark black hair.  Piercing green eyes.  Just the right amount of stubble to give him that sexy-yet-not-too-scruffy look that she adored.  The soft lips she’d kissed a thousand times.  The arms that had held her as they made love.  The many nights he’d fallen asleep beside her and the mornings she’d woken up at his side.  The one she’d loved and lost.  The one who got away.

It was her fault, really.  She’d been too scared to commit to him, to see all that he was offering her.  And when she’d finally realized her mistake—how much she really missed him, how much she might even
love
him—he’d already moved on.  It was hard to believe he could find someone new so quickly—I mean
really. 
They’d known each other forever but dated only a few short months before she panicked.  And the next thing she knew,
bam,
he was with another woman.  Occasionally she’d catch him glancing her way if they happened to run into each other when they were out, but she generally avoided him at all costs.  It was much too painful seeing
her
on his arm.  Sadly, it had become much easier to ignore him, to simply give him a passing nod, than to force herself to speak to him, to
her,
and to acknowledge the gut-wrenching pain in her stomach and the ache that never seemed to subside in her heart.

It obviously wasn’t meant to be.  Amy was a firm believer in that.  If they were meant to be together, then they would be.  Hadn’t she known him practically a lifetime before he even noticed her?  Before they kissed that one lazy summer afternoon and then barely left each other’s arms for three straight months?

She sighed, trying to clear him from her mind as she continued to jog through the forest.  It was better for both of them if she moved on.  I mean he obviously had.  Moved on that is. 
Moved on.  Moved on.  Moved on.
  She’d find a new guy soon.  I mean eventually, someone was bound to catch her eye.  But until then?  She pounded on the pavement in front of her, picking up her pace slightly as she dashed through the remaining stretch of path toward the parking lot.  Cranking up the music on her iPod, she let the song that was playing drown out any more thoughts.  There. 
Pound, pound, pound. 
Her feet hit the ground as she ran.  It was like she hadn’t even been thinking of him at all.

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