Badge of Honor
Author: India Lord
Publication date: December 5th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Scars—a badge of honor denoting strength.
Milly
My hellish month is looking up!
I’ve scored a private nursing job.
No more sleeping in my car, stressing about my debts.
My patient is a military man. Gorgeous. Tattooed. Built. He’s also temporarily blind and tries to sack me during my first hour on the job.
I’m way past desperate, so let him try to banish me.Connor
All I want is to recover and return to my men in Afghanistan.
The problem is without my sight, I’m helpless as a kitten.
My family treats me like a child. When they get tired of my temper, they hire her.
The woman is determined, I’ll give her that. But there’s something about her that intrigues me, makes my mind wander to kissing and pleasure and soft curves.
Too bad we have no future.Contains a grumpy, injured military man, a scarred nurse, and a little small town instalove, which makes everything better.
an excerpt
“I should think half of the people in Clare can hear you.”
A smartarse. That’s all I needed. Why didn’t my family understand I wanted solitude to mourn the loss of my friend? My goal was to recuperate and rejoin my men. Control my life again. “Leave. I don’t want you here.”
Another pause and frustration bubbled inside my gut, spreading to my chest and tightening my throat. The lack of vision was killing me.
It robbed my sense of awareness and self. It made me a prisoner in this room when I was usually active—hiking, swimming, building things. Kicking butt. The doctors told me they thought the loss of sight was temporary. But the specialist had also stated there were no guarantees.
This bit of info kept me awake at night, and I lived in fear of permanent blindness.
If I couldn’t return to my men, what would I do?
The crinkle of paper jerked my head to the right. “Are you still here?” I barked.
My men never argued if I used this tone. Slowly, I stood. I was a big man, and, given my current mood, I wasn’t above petty intimidation.
“Not leaving,” she said.
“I fired you.”
“Your mother hired me to do a job, and I intend to do it.” Determination rang out. Truth.
I turned toward her voice and took a step closer. Pungent iodine and the sweeter scent of flowers filled my nostrils. An unusual perfume that I couldn’t quite place. I shuffled forward another half a pace and sniffed again, the floral sweetness transporting me to my grandma’s house during the heat of a summer day. Ah. Carnations. God, I’d loved that cranky old woman. She and I had been close, and I’d missed her funeral because I’d been overseas.
I sighed, suddenly tired. “Please, just leave.”
“I know you don’t want me here.” Her voice emerged as quiet and exhausted as mine. “But I can’t leave. This job was my last chance. I don’t have anywhere else to go.”
The defeat in her words had me halting. Frowning and battling with curiosity.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I’m not going anywhere. Too bad if you don’t want me here. You’re gonna have to deal. Suck it up, buttercup.”
about the author
An incurable romantic and a lover of reading—romance, of course—it was inevitable India Lord turned to writing next. India writes sassy, steamy romances with strong alpha heroes, curvy heroines who are no pushovers, and a happy ending. A must, in India’s opinion.
When India isn’t writing, she loves to walk and explore the countryside. She’s also a dedicated researcher of cheese scones—her favorite treat to eat with a cup of tea.
Keep in touch by joining India’s newsletter: https://indialord.substack.com/
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