MILITARY ROMANCE: The War Within Himself (Alpha Bad Boy Marine Army Seal) (Contemporary Military Suspense & Thriller Romance) by Claire Branson Read Free Book Online

dirt-covered, roach-infested places down on the strip. I won't be responsible for your death of some horrible infection. I took an oath."
    He huffed a laugh, then winced when it jostled his ribs.
    "You're really something else. Has anyone ever told you that?"
    "I'm an ER nurse," Erin answered, voice flat. "Of course I'm something else."
    She glanced at him as she pulled out onto the street.
    "You haven't told me your name," she said.
    "No."
    "I'm doing you a pretty big favor. You should probably tell me your name in return."
    Another quiet, careful laugh.
    "Is that so?"
    "It is."
    "Fine." He looked over at her, and though her own gaze was on the road, she could feel his eyes on her face. "It's Devlin."
    "Devlin." She wasn't entirely sure that was his real name. "Nice to meet you. I'm Erin. Erin Rivers."
    The blatant hint didn't draw anything from him, and she gave up on it for the moment. 
    "So,” she asked again instead. "Why did you end up bleeding on the side of a road?"
    He shook his head. "I could tell you, but I won't."
    "That isn't very nice." There were restaurants coming up along the side of the road. "Are you hungry?"
    Devlin looked out the window at the fast food places sliding by, and he nodded.
    "Famished, actually. But you don't have to pay for me. I've got cash."
    "We'll stop, at least. How does Chinese sound?"
    When he nodded, she pulled into the parking lot of the strip mall where her favorite Chinese restaurant sat. But he didn’t come in with her. She looked over at him, sitting shirtless in the passenger seat, and ordered him to stay in the car.
    "To go," she told the man behind the counter as she gave her order.
    "So," she said, when she was back in the car, waiting for their food to be brought out. "I'm going to do something really stupid."
    He raised an eyebrow at her. "And what is that?"
    "I'm going to ask you to come home with me for tonight. I have a couch that's pretty comfortable, and you can sleep there where it's clean, and you won't get something that's going to make you sicker than you already are. I can take a look at your injuries in the morning, and we'll decide where to go from there."
    Both eyebrows snapped upward.
    "Why would you do something like that?"
    "Because I'm a nurse and I took an oath to care for people. You say you can't stay in the hospital, but you're not well enough to go running around on your own, and you're certainly not well enough to be shacked up in some roach motel with healing lacerations."
    "And what if I'm dangerous?"
    Erin lifted one shoulder in a shrug.
    "I'll take the chance. Besides..." She met his eyes. "You try anything and I'll put a bullet through you. And that's not a joke."
    His eyes widened a little.
    "No," he said. "It doesn't sound like one. But I'm not going to try anything. I can promise you that."
    He looked over at her, and his expression was grave.
    "It would be a poor thank you for your help if I hurt you. But it would also be a poor thank you if I let someone else hurt you, and that's why I can't go with you. It's too dangerous."
    "Too dangerous?"
    "There's more to the story than you know, and I'm not going to turn your house into a target."
    The waiter knocked on the door of the car, and Erin rolled down the window to take the bag of food from him with a thanks and a tip. She saw him glance curiously at the shirtless, bandaged man in her passenger seat, but he didn't ask any questions, just turned and went back inside.
    "I don't really care about too dangerous," Erin said, handing the bag over to Devlin. "And I'm not going to take no for answer. Where would you go? If you're worried about other people getting in the way of something you've got going on, going to a hotel is going to put people in danger too."
    He looked down at the food and didn't speak for a moment. She knew he was considering what she'd had to say.
    "I suppose you're right. Just drop me off on the edge of town, then." He sounded a little breathless, and Erin looked over at