Brothers in Arms

Mason Adler: Hot. Cocky. Sugarcoated Bad Boy. The type of man who knocks the big "O" clear to the front of the alphabet every time. Wrap up that eight-pack with Navy khakis and top it off with a shiny SEAL Trident, the kind that makes the girls swoon. That's Mason. My best friend. For me, he's off limits. Now that I've finished college, I need to focus on my writing career. And without his help, I don't stand a chance. But I need something from him. Something only he can give me.

Stein Adler: The first time I saw him, he was splitting logs like my filthiest lumberjack fantasy. A Delta Force hero with a heart of gold . . . hidden behind pecs that should be sculpted in marble. And then there's that eight-pack that renders me speechless as I stare at him from behind a bush during my vacation. He's not what I'm looking for. Really. A fling with Stein is the polar opposite of the calm, peaceful week I planned when I booked this trip. His piercing eyes are full of secrets that should make me run for cover.

Intoxicating smile. Sculpted arms. To-die-for eight-pack. And enough medals on his uniform to set off airport security from a mile away. He doesn't resemble the kid who shared my tree house with me, along with every perfect memory of my childhood. He protected me—long before he protected our country.

Graydon Adler: A man who's impossible to forget. Yet the first time our paths crossed on a SEAL mission—the kind that requires computer nerds like me to mingle with SEALs like him—I was so terrified that I barely remember him there. But every time after that? Oh, I remember plenty. Abs for days, shoulders that fill up a doorway, and a hard-earned SEAL trident on his uniform.

When matchmaker Freya Hansen-Adler is inspired by the holiday spirit, she'll stop at nothing to see former Navy SEAL Harris and single mom Ava get the happily ever after they deserve . . . I set the bar pretty low when it comes to the holidays. I have to. As a Navy officer, I spend plenty of them far from anyplace I'd call "home" . . . sometimes getting shot like I did on my last SEAL mission. So, yeah, I set the bar low enough that I can roll over it. That is, until I meet my neighbor Ava.

I should be immune to a man like Dax. Tall, dark, and deadly . . . quite literally with that sexy Army Ranger scroll on his uniform. But I know firsthand the headache, the worry, the grief that can come with a Special Ops guy like him. And I'll have no part of it. Even after Dax starts living in the extra room in my house. Even when he greets me in the morning, showcasing those glorious pecs-of-perfection before I've even had my coffee. Even when I find out that the man behind that devilish grin is ten times as tempting as his flawless form.

I'm a SEAL. Women toss sex at me like it's free candy in a Fourth of July parade. But I'm tired of hook-ups, short-term relationships, and mindless, hedonistic sexual encounters. No, wait. Scratch that last one. Point is, I want the kind of woman who will stick. Yeah, she'll drool at the sight of my standard-issue pecs and eight-pack, but she'll also put up with the baggage of Navy SEAL life.

Are some mistakes destined to be repeated? I can't help thinking it as I look at him now-feeling that surge of desire inside of me and that eerie connection that I can't explain, just like I did ten years ago. The West Point graduate I foolishly hooked up with one night in New York City has transformed into a hardened warrior-an Army Ranger and twice the panty-melting heartthrob he was back then.