Make Mine a Ranger (Special Ops: Homefront Book 4) Read Online Free Page A

view, the sight of endless cars from his window
made his stomach tie up.
    At Bess’s, he could roll out of bed and paddleboard
every Saturday morning. Put out a hammock and wile away his Sunday. And when he
had a date…well, he’d just have to head to her place if things heated up rather
than to his place. He doubted that would turn a woman off, he figured, glancing
at the lust-struck eyes of the rental associate leaning seductively against the
wall. Women were pretty easy to come by when a guy wore a Ranger scroll on his
right shoulder.
    “So, are you interested?” she asked, clearly
implying something other than his interest in the apartment.
    “I’ll keep it in mind,” he said, looking
back at the window with a frown.
    She handed him her business card before
he slipped out the door, inviting him to a party on Saturday night. Why did he
bet the party was a party of two?
    She wasn’t what he was looking for. At
least not at the moment. He’d keep the card handy in case he changed his mind.
    Picking up his cell, he texted Bess. “How
do you feel about a male roommate?” he wrote.
    And he hit send.
    He paused a moment and picked his phone
up again, typing, “And I should add, I mow the grass and am good with plumbing.”
    Better to increase his chances. After
all, it was one hell of a view.

Chapter Two
     
    “ Tyler ? Are you serious?” Maeve’s
voice rang through the cell phone, and Bess could picture the wide grin on her
face.
    “Well, I like your reaction better than
Lacey’s. She thought I was out of my mind.” Bess stood at the kitchen sink with
her phone in hand, struggling to make some kind of dent in the morning dishes
with her one remaining hand. She would have put the phone on speaker mode, but
Abby was upstairs playing in her room. And Maeve had a tendency to let too many
colorful words slip during a conversation.
    “Hell, no, you’re not. I couldn’t have handpicked
a better housemate for you. You’re a lot safer there living with a guy you can
trust as opposed to some random bozo. And he’s certainly not going to do
anything wrong with Mick and Jack looking over his shoulder.”
    Bess stooped to open the dishwasher. “You
don’t think they’ll give him a hard time, do you?”
    “Not if he behaves himself. When does he
move in?”
    Bess hesitated. “He actually already
moved in last week.”
    “You waited this long to tell me?”
    Bess sighed, loading the plates into the
rack. “I wasn’t sure how you and Lacey would react. I know you both think I’ve
had a crush on him or something.”
    “Yeah-huh. We might still think that.”
    Bending low to retrieve the detergent
from underneath the sink, Bess struggled with the child safety lock on the
cabinet door. “But I don’t. I mean, anyone would find him attractive, of
course. But the thing is, he’s so out of my league he doesn’t even tempt me.”
    “Girl, he could tempt an eighty-year-old
nun.”
    “Better watch that talk about nuns. You’re
not Catholic, but your hubby is.”
    “Yeah, yeah. So what kind of a housemate is
he?”
    Shutting the dishwasher door, Bess paused
thoughtfully. “Quiet, actually. Barely even here. His work hours are killer. He
doesn’t get home till after eight and he leaves at 4:30 for PT.”
    “Not much opportunity to impress him with
your cooking skills.”
    She filled a cup with water from the tap.
“I’m not trying to impress him, Maeve. Out of my league, remember? And if you
don’t remember, I’ll email you a picture of my thunder thighs.”
    “Will you stop cutting yourself down like
that? It gets old, Bess. Really.”
    “Oh, and you’ll hate this. He planted a
recliner in the middle of your living room.”
    “Ugh—no!” Maeve all but hissed. “A
recliner? In my house?”
    “Serves you right for taking most the
furniture with you to Little Creek.”
    Maeve groaned. “Just tell me it doesn’t
have built-in cup holders.”
    “It doesn’t.” Bess grinned at the sigh of
relief on