Deadly Scandals (Deadly SEALs Book 3) Read online

  Deadly Scandals

  Alana Albertson

  Deadly Scandals

  Copyright © 2020 by Alana Albertson

  Cover Photo: Lindee Robinson

  Cover Models: Travis Bendall & Angel LaCoursiere

  Cover Design: Aria Tan

  Copyright © 2020 by Alana Albertson

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This book is dedicated to my pug Gizmo

  A lie has no leg, but a scandal has wings.

  Thomas Fuller

  Contents

  Author’s Note

  Also by Alana Albertson

  Acknowledgments

  Deadly Scandals

  1. Mia

  2. Grant

  3. Mia

  4. Mia

  5. Mia

  6. Grant

  7. Mia

  8. Grant

  9. Mia

  10. Grant

  11. Mia

  12. Grant

  13. Mia

  14. Mia

  15. Mia

  16. Ashley

  17. Ashley

  18. Mitch

  19. Ashley

  20. Mitch

  21. Ashley

  22. Mitch

  23. Ashley

  24. Mitch

  25. Ashley

  26. Mia

  27. Ashley

  28. Mitch

  29. Ashley

  30. Mitch

  31. Ashley

  32. Mia

  33. Ashley

  About Alana

  Author’s Note

  Deadly Scandals was originally published as the novellas Covet, Smug, and Slack. These books were 7, 8, & 9, in the Se7en Deadly SEALs serial.

  This edition has been re-edited and is a full-length book of 50,000 words. It ends on a cliffhanger.

  Also by Alana Albertson

  Want more romantic reads?

  Try my other books!

  Deadly SEALs

  Navy SEAL Romantic Thriller

  DEADLY SINS, DEADLY LUST, DEADLY SCANDALS

  Meet Grant! She wants to get wild? I will fulfill her every fantasy.

  The Trident Code

  Navy SEAL Romantic Suspense Series

  Invincible

  Meet Pat! I had one chance to put on the cape and be her hero.

  Invaluable

  Meet Kyle! I’ll never win MVP, never get a championship ring, but some heroes don’t play games.

  Heroes Ever After

  Military New Adult Fairy Tale Retellings

  Beast

  Meet Grady! With tattooed arms sculpted from carrying M-16s, this bad boy has girls begging from sea to shining sea to get a piece of his action.

  Triton

  Meet Erik! I’m a Navy SEAL, a Triton, a god of the sea.

  And she will never be part of my world.

  Rescue Me

  Romantic Comedy Series

  Doggy Style

  Meet Preston! When it comes to doggy style, he’s behind you 100%.

  Men of Oz

  Contemporary Reverse Harem Series

  Desiring Dorothy

  Meet Tin, Crow, Lev, & Wiz! Seven sexy Nave SEALs. Why should I limit myself to just one?

  (co-written with Nicole Blanchard)

  Blue Devils

  Military Pilots Contemporary Series

  Blue Sky

  Meet Beckett! I’ll never let down my guard for this Devil in a Blue Angel’s disguise.

  Blue Moon

  Meet Sawyer: One Night with this Blue Devil will make you a sinner.

  Snow and Her SEALs

  Contemporary Reverse Harem

  The Temptation of Snow, The Seduction of Snow

  Meet Snow’s SEALs! Seven sexy Nave SEALs. Why should I limit myself to just one?

  (co-written with Lisa London)

  Dance with Me

  Swing

  Meet Bret! He was a real man—muscles sculpted from carrying weapons, not from practicing pilates.

  Military Contemporary Stand Alone

  Badass

  Meet Shane! I’m America’s cockiest badass.

  (co-written with Linda Barlow)

  Acknowledgments

  To Kelli for your flawless editing

  To Nicole Blanchard to listening to me whine about this series. Thanks for putting up with me.

  To Deb Nemeth for always fitting Grant and Mia in and reading me the riot act when I wanted to nix their HEA.

  To Ashley Williams. Thank you for helping out Mia and Grant in their hours of need.

  Deb Rafique for your eagle eye proof.

  To my audio team at Brick Shop: Jason Clarke & Jennifer O’Donnell for bringing Grant and Mia to life. To Rob Granniss for doing an excellent job producing the book.

  To my husband Roger—for loving me in sickness and in health. Even when I’m writing all day in my fuzzy pajamas. For watching the boys while I write. For being my HEA.

  To my two beautiful sons, Connor and Caleb. You are my world. I love you more than anything. To my two unborn daughters who I lost while writing this series and will never meet, I love you both and wanted you so much.

  To my betas:

  Jen Negron—you are the bomb. I adore you. Thank you for believing in my writing. I can’t wait to read these books in Spanish.

  To all the wonderful bloggers who review my books.

  To all the fans that have written me about this series.

  Deadly Scandals

  Navy SEAL Grant Carrion will do anything to save his wife and child—even if it means confessing to a crime he didn’t commit.

  I will protect what is mine. At all costs. No questions. No doubts. No hesitation.

  I live by a code; will die by that code.

  As a Navy SEAL, I would lay down my life to help another. Especially for my wife and son.

  I will stop at nothing to save them.

  Even if it costs me my life.

  Deadly Scandals is the third book of seven in the twisted and thrilling Deadly SEALs series.

  1

  Mia

  I drove back to Grant’s place in a daze, trying not to completely break down. I didn’t have a clue what was going to happen. Would Grant go to jail? I was his wife, I needed to get him a lawyer. I prayed that my phone would ring soon.

  I arrived home, let Hero out, and just lost it on the sofa. My chest heaved, my breath came in short spurts, and I wanted to collapse into the sofa and die.

  The words our son rang in my head. Our son…our son. I couldn’t get Joaquín’s voice out of my head.

  My brother had raped me. He had just promised to take me to meet our son. He knew where he was because he had been the one to kidnap him.

  Holy fuck.

  Grant had been right. And I had been so stubborn that I’d refused to believe him. I’d doubted the only man who truly ever loved me, who had always had my back. Not only had I refused to entertain his logical conclusions but also I had accused him of trying to keep me from my brother.

  I am so messed up. I didn’t deserve Grant.

  I’d ruined my life to protect my brother. A man who was a killer. A rapist. A kidnapper.

  In my darkness, I realized a truth. I could’ve never imagined how determined I would become to free Joaquín when he had been arrested. But witnessing Grant being taken away in handcuffs was worse.

  I loved Grant more than I loved Joaquín.

  I stared at my phone. Should I call a lawyer to
get him out?

  No, I would wait until I heard from Grant. He was calling the shots, and he had sacrificed his freedom so I could find our son. I was desperate to hear his voice. But at the same time, I was dreading getting a call from Joaquín, knowing he could be set free. I knew this was my path—the only way to find my son—but I was terrified of being alone with my brother.

  As the minutes turned into hours, I fell deeper into the self-hate that had been sparked the moment I realized I had been so very, very wrong.

  I walked into the bedroom and caught a glimpse of my wedding gown covering my suitcase. I clutched it and could still smell Grant’s woodsy scent. I cradled that dress as if I were cradling him. I’d put him through so much that if I ever got a chance to have a real life with him, I would do anything to make him happy.

  I hung my wedding dress and grabbed the suitcase to store it. When I picked it up, the cocaine fell out. My fingers kneaded the bag of white powder.

  One line. One line to make me feel better. Replace this low with a high. Forget this day. Forget this life. Joaquín wouldn’t be released until tomorrow. I needed a fix to take the edge off my pain.

  Using a credit card, I cut a line of coke on Grant’s nightstand, and then I took a dollar bill from my purse and rolled it up. Before I could talk myself out of it, I snorted it.

  And then I snorted another.

  And then another.

  The high pulsed through my body, leaving my insides numb and humming with euphoria. My vision sharpened and wobbled as I bent to snort another, but I didn’t stop.

  My heart raced faster and my hand shook so hard the makeshift straw fell from my fingertips.

  My chest constricted, and I knew something was wrong. I reached for my phone and called the only person I could think of—Mitch. But before I could scream for help, my world went black.

  2

  Grant

  I was led to a holding cell and refused to talk to the detective without an attorney. But instead of calling a lawyer or my wife, I made my one call to Ashley.

  After an hour, Ashley showed up in a business suit. Her identification allowed her immediate access to me.

  “Dammit, Grant! What were you thinking? A false confession? I was with you the night of the party. All night. You did not kill Tiffany.”

  “No shit, Sherlock. But this is the only way I’ll find my son. Joaquín will be released as they investigate me. And he will take Mia to Julián.”

  “What makes you think he’ll do that?”

  “Because he told her he would. And as twisted as it is, he loves her.”

  She shook her head. “I hope you’re right. This stunt will ruin your career.”

  “No, it won’t. I’ll get a slap on the wrist. And honestly, I don’t give two shits about my career if I can’t find my son. I need you to make sure that when they release Joaquín, you have someone tail him. Mitch is on it, too. Promise me.”

  She reached for my hand, and I didn’t pull it back. “I promise. We’ll have every man on it. He will be released tomorrow at eleven.” She paused. “I admire you and your loyalty to Mia. I thought you would leave her, but I was wrong. She doesn’t deserve you.”

  “No, you’re wrong there. I don’t deserve her. And Mia’s as loyal to me as I am to her. That’s what true love is, Ashley. Willing to die for someone you love.”

  Ashley released a heavy sigh and flashed a longing gaze at me. “I’m going to go to the DA and give a statement about how I was with you the night of the murder. But per your request, I’ll delay my statement until Joaquín is released. I hope you’re right about this plan. And I promise I’ll follow Joaquín and find your son.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate it.” I squeezed her hand and felt a tinge of compassion for her. Being a female NCIS agent investigating secretive SEALs was by no means an easy task. She had thrown herself fully into this operation by transforming into Autumn the same way Mia had transformed into Ksenya. Mia’s motivation was clear—to free her brother.

  I wondered what motivated Ashley.

  Ashley left the conference room, and I was led back to my cell. NCIS and Mitch would be following Joaquín, who would hopefully honor his promise to Mia and lead her to our son. If this operation went according to plan, I would have Joaquín back behind bars and my family reunited within a few days. What could go wrong?

  3

  Mia

  Cold water drenched me, making me gasp for breath. My first vision as I began to regain consciousness was a man cradling me in the bathtub.

  Mitch’s face came into focus as he screamed my name.

  “Mia, are you okay?”

  As my vision improved, I wiped the blood from my nose. God, I was so stupid. What the fuck had I been thinking? Especially when I was this close to finding my child.

  “I’m fine. I-I just…” I couldn’t admit to my own stupidity so I waved at my bloody nose.

  Mitch carried me to the bedroom, undressed me, and put me in some new clothes. His hands grasped my wrist as he checked my pulse.

  “Your heart rate is elevated,” his hand moved to lift my eyelid, “and your pupils are dilated. How do you feel?”

  Like a fool. “Like I can’t feel my face and I’m going to throw up.”

  “It should pass. How much did you take?”

  “I wasn’t trying to overdose. I just wanted to take the edge off.” I knew he wanted to question that but he didn’t.

  “I’m going to monitor your breathing. I can’t let something bad happen to Grant’s wife.”

  I felt the urge to curl up in a ball and shoo him away from me, but instead I allowed Mitch to take care of me. After twenty minutes of him watching me breathe, he finally gave me a thumbs-up. “You’re good.”

  I sat up and exhaled. “Thanks, Mitch. You saved my life.”

  “Don’t mention it.”

  I turned to him. “Did you know Grant was going to confess?”

  “Yeah, he told me his plan yesterday. But he didn’t kill her. I was there that night. He was with Autumn the entire time. And your brother was with Tiffany.” As much as I hated imagining Grant hooking up with Autumn that night, I knew that her alibi would be the key to getting him out of jail. But was she a reliable witness? What if the court didn’t believe her because she was a stripper who had a fling with Grant? What if Grant wasn’t released?

  “Hey.” Mitch paused and reached for my hand. “Grant told me he told you what April saw.”

  I swallowed. “He did.” It was all I could manage.

  “I’m so sorry.”

  Yesterday, I would’ve screamed at Mitch for even suggesting Joaquín had raped me. But now everything was making sense. Mitch had told me the night I’d drugged him that the guy he’d found me with had sprinted past him. Joaquín would be out soon, and then I would finally get some answers.

  “So, what’s the plan? Am I going pick up Joaquín?”

  “No, I will. And I’m not supposed to let him out of my sight. He’ll probably want to be dropped off here, and I’ll be following you two. Grant will join me when, or if, he gets released. Joaquín won’t have a car, so I’ll put a tracking device on yours so we don’t get separated. I’m also going to monitor you on your phone.”

  “That sounds intense. Grant thinks my car already has a tracking device on it.” I pursed my lips. “I’ll be honest, Mitch. I’m scared. I’m not sure I can pull this off.”

  “You can. You fooled Grant and me. And I have your six.” His brow cocked. “Listen, Mia, I need you to keep your guard up around Joaquín. You have a gun—hell, you pointed it at me. Don’t be afraid to use it if you need to protect yourself.”

  I gulped. He didn’t need to elaborate. I knew he was telling me that I might have to kill my brother. “Okay. I’ll be cautious.”

  He took my hand. “I’m going to spend the night here, on the sofa. Grant wants me to stay with you until I get Joaquín.”

  I nodded. “Okay. That’s fine. I’m going to crash.”

/>   He kissed my forehead. “Night, Mia.”

  “Night.”

  As I fell into a deep slumber, I dreamt for the first time in a while. But my dream quickly turned into a nightmare. I was back at the frat house the night I had been raped, and I could hear the words, “Mia…Mia, are you okay?” But they weren’t spoken by Mitch.

  They were spoken by my brother.

  4

  Mia

  When I woke the next morning, Mitch was sitting on the sofa staring at his phone

  “Good, you’re up. Daniel called me a few hours ago. Joaquín will be released at eleven.”

  I glanced at the clock. It was nine-thirty. I would see my brother soon. But I didn’t care about seeing him. All I wanted to do was see my husband. “Any word from Grant?”

  “No. Kyle is trying to get access to him. Kyle’s pissed, by the way—I hope he doesn’t throw Grant in the brig. I’m going to head to the jail to get your brother.” Mitch walked over and knelt in front of me, forcing me to stare at him. “Stay here until I drop Joaquín off. And if he hurts you, make sure you protect yourself. Promise me.”