Healing A Hero (The Camerons of Tide’s Way #4) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Two damaged people, with a history of lost love . . .

  The Camerons of Tide’s Way Novels

  Dedication

  Healing a Hero

  Copyright

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Please visit these websites for more information about Skye Taylor

  Sweet Potato Dumplings

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  “Bravo Zulu for Healing a Hero, the latest in The Camerons of Tides Way series! It’s filled with turmoil, tenderness, and painful secrets from the past. Will Gunnery Sergeant Philip Cameron have to choose between the Corps and the woman he loves?”

  —Heather Ashby, bestselling author of the Love in the Fleet series (Retired Navy, Navy wife, and mother of a US Army soldier.)

  Two damaged people,

  with a history of lost love . . .

  PHILIP CAMERON is a Marine sniper and gunnery sergeant, a leader of men in the field for most of his career. Although decorated for saving the lives of five fellow Marines when their vehicle hit an IED, he doesn’t feel like a hero. His right hand was crushed and bones in his shoulder and arm were broken. He was shot and nearly bled to death, but after several months at Walter Reed and multiple surgeries, he turned down a medical discharge and has been reassigned to a desk job in intelligence at Camp Lejeune, where he faces months of physical and occupational therapy to regain full use of his hand and arm so that he can get back to doing what he does best, leading quick response teams in the field.

  After the dissolution of her marriage, Elena Castillo is eager to move on with her life and cement her growing reputation as a top-notch therapist for recovering soldiers. She returns to the east coast with her teenage daughter to step into a very desirable position in the physical therapy department at Camp Lejeune, where her very first patient is Gunnery Sergeant Philip Cameron.

  But Elena and Philip have a past that could compromise both of their goals.

  Fourteen years earlier, home on compassionate leave, Philip fell in love with Elena, but she was young and he was afraid to declare himself until she had time to discover what she wanted in life. Elena fell hard for her older brother’s best friend, but was never sure Philip felt the same about her, so when his leave was up, they parted.

  Then 9/11 happened. And Elena discovered she was pregnant.

  War tore them apart.

  Can its aftermath bring them back together?

  The Camerons of Tide’s Way Novels

  Falling for Zoe

  Loving Meg

  Trusting Will

  Loving Ben (Short Story)

  Mike’s Wager (Short Story)

  Healing a Hero

  Dedication

  In memory of Philip Calvin Amico, a captivating little toddler who called me Gamma and took a piece of my heart with him when he went to heaven.

  Healing a Hero

  Book Four, The Camerons of Tide’s Way

  by

  Skye Taylor

  Bell Bridge Books

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead), events or locations is entirely coincidental.

  Bell Bridge Books

  PO BOX 300921

  Memphis, TN 38130

  Ebook ISBN: 978-1-61194-728-1

  Print ISBN: 978-1-61194-708-3

  Bell Bridge Books is an Imprint of BelleBooks, Inc.

  Copyright © 2016 by Skye Taylor

  Published in the United States of America.

  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 permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review.

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  Cover design: Deborah Smith

  Interior design: Hank Smith

  Photo/Art credits:

  Couple © Valery Bareta | Dreamstime.com

  Dog Tags © Skye Taylor

  Anchor © Natis76 | Dreamstime.com

  :Mhhu:01:

  Prologue

  September 2014

  Afghanistan

  PHILIP CAMERON jerked his eye away from the high-powered scope and scrambled to his feet. Time to get the hell out of Dodge. He shoved his sniper rifle into its case and began hustling back to the rendezvous point with his spotter hot on his heels. Just as he jumped the last few feet into the roadway, the explosion assaulted his ears.

  Bwoom . . .

  The armor-plated vehicle carrying half a dozen Marines lurched into the air. The blast wave hit Philip and his spotter, knocking them to the ground. His pulse jacked into the red, and he shook his head, trying to clear the ringing in his ears.

  “Fuck!” Ames spat dust from his mouth.

  The MRAP came down on two wheels, teetered, and, almost in slow motion, toppled into a canal of murky brown water.

  As an ominous silence fell, Philip shot to his feet and scanned the terrain in every direction. No movement. Nothing. Just the rumbling echo of the explosion.

  The MRAP settled into the canal upside down. His Marines could be trapped inside. If they were unconscious, they would drown. He bolted toward the canal, half expecting rounds from an AK-47 to start chasing him.

  But all remained eerily quiet.

  As he plunged into the water, the door cracked open. A dazed Marine almost fell into his arms. Philip dragged him clear of the MRAP and heaved him half way up the embankment. Ames grabbed the guy’s flack vest and hauled him the rest of the way onto the road.

  The second MRAP came into sight. Philip dove into the rapidly filling interior of the upended vehicle. He felt around in the dark and found a second Marine, this one unconscious, his head crammed at an impossible angle against the roof. He grabbed fistfuls of clothing and eased the man out.

  Two men from the second vehicle scramble
d down to relieve Philip of the unconscious Marine, and Philip returned to the murky darkness.

  A medevac chopper was on its way. Only one man left to pull to safety. Philip slithered down the embankment one last time.

  Then the shooting started.

  Chapter 1

  January 2015

  Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

  ELENA CASTILLO swallowed her panic, pushed the door open, and called out the Gunnery Sergeant’s name. Her first day on the job and the last man she ever wanted to see again was her first patient.

  The tall, broad-shouldered Marine in a short-sleeved service uniform got to his feet and started toward her.

  He was bigger than she remembered. He seemed to fill the whole room.

  The polite greeting she’d practiced stuck in her throat at the stunned look of confusion in Philip’s shockingly blue eyes. An hour hadn’t been nearly long enough to prepare for this moment. A week maybe. Or a month. Or forever.

  Her heart fluttered like a trapped bird as she took in the narrow bands of ribbons on his chest and the silver strands threaded through the blond hair at his temples. A wave of vertigo washed over her, and she grabbed the back of the nearest chair to steady herself.

  How could she possibly be expected to heal this man who had broken her heart?

  Sharp creases bracketed his generous mouth, and the spray of lines at the corners of his eyes were etched deeper. This was her Philip. And yet, he was not. The vertigo intensified as memories of the last time she’d seen him paraded unstoppably through her mind.

  He’d brushed tears from her face and promised to stay in touch. Then he’d kissed her like he really meant it. But he hadn’t. He hadn’t kept his word. He hadn’t loved her after all. Those three weeks that had changed her life forever had meant nothing to him.

  She stiffened her shoulders and pushed the door wider, hoping he would not notice her shaking fingers. Her knees weakened as he closed the distance separating them, but she couldn’t let him see the effect he had on her. Not now. Not after everything that happened between them that long ago summer or in the years since. Especially not now that he was her patient.

  “This way, Sergeant.” Elena gestured with the clipboard in her other hand. She was relieved her voice came out sounding calm and professional, without a hint of the panic clawing at her insides.

  Philip glanced down at her with that baffled look still haunting his eyes. “Philip,” he corrected. “It’s been a long time. How have you been?”

  Elena lifted her chin. “I’ve been fine, Sergeant Cameron. Now please, come this way.” She turned to lead him toward her section of the therapy department.

  “I thought you got your degree and settled on the west coast.” His voice followed her through the maze of equipment in the big therapy and exercise room.

  Arriving at an alcove with two chairs separated by a narrow desk, she dropped the clipboard holding Philip’s orders and the doctor’s assessment onto the desk and settled into one of the chairs.

  Philip had been checking up on her? Her heart stuttered. Or maybe he’d only been filled in on Tide’s Way gossip. How much did he know about the last fourteen years of her life?

  He took the chair across from her. “I heard you got married.”

  She hesitated. She was his therapist. He was her patient. He had no need to know anything about her life. But it wasn’t like her current situation was a secret. And Tide’s Way was a small town. It was surprising he didn’t already know.

  “I’m divorced. I moved back east a couple of weeks ago.”

  His eyebrows drew together in a frown. “I’m sorry. Are you living in Tide’s Way?”

  She shook her head. “We’re renting a condo just outside the main gate.” She thumbed through the thick wad of papers on the clipboard as if she hadn’t already read them through several times. She had to get a grip.

  “We?” Philip’s perceptive blue gaze sharpened.

  Elena took a deep breath. Her heart insisted on doing strange things, and there was no ignoring the fact that his physical closeness still melted her insides even after all this time.

  “My daughter and I.”

  A slight smile lifted the corners of his generous mouth and a dimple punctuated his lean cheek, easing the harsh brackets that had aged his face. “Is she as pretty as her mom?”

  Elena had the most insane urge to throw herself into Philip’s arms and tell him everything. But the time for that was long past. Way, way long past.

  “Prettier,” she replied. “Now, let’s see that hand, Sergeant.”

  The dimple disappeared. “Call me Gunny, if Philip isn’t good enough.” He removed his arm from the sling and rested it on the desk.

  Elena swallowed again, squared her shoulders and lifted his damaged hand to begin her examination.

  Chapter 2

  August 2001

  Tide’s Way, North Carolina

  WHEN A HAND touched Philip Cameron’s shoulder, he jerked in alarm. His heart thudded as he whipped his head around. His best friend’s kid sister plopped down onto the steps beside him.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you. Are you all right?” Elena Castillo smiled at him with contrition on her face.

  “Yeah. I’m . . . fine,” he answered, his fight or flight reaction fading quickly.

  She slid her hand across his thigh and laced her fingers into his. Her fingers were slender and warm. He hadn’t held a woman’s hand in a long time, and he’d forgotten the comforting intimacy of it.

  “I’m sorry you didn’t get home in time to say goodbye,” she said softly.

  “Me too.” Gran would have understood and forgiven him, even if he had a hard time forgiving himself.

  “I didn’t know your grandmother very well, but the church was packed so it seems like half of Tide’s Way and a big chunk of Wilmington thought pretty highly of her.” Elena’s fingers tightened around his.

  Philip turned away to look out toward the ocean so she wouldn’t see his eyes flood with tears. “Gran was a very special lady.”

  Last Thanksgiving, the last time he’d seen her, she’d seemed so strong and healthy. Like she’d live forever. How could cancer have claimed her so quickly? He should have asked for leave earlier. Not that it would have changed the outcome, but he could have hugged her one last time. He could have told her how important she’d always been in his life.

  “Wanna go for a walk?” Elena asked, tipping her head to one side. A silky curtain of black hair slid down to cover half her face.

  Philip studied the woman sitting next to him on the bottom step of his parent’s home on the beach in Tide’s Way. He was suddenly and pleasantly aware that Elena was no longer the tomboy he remembered. She was a college woman now. All grown up and gorgeous. And offering him a welcome distraction from the heaviness of the last several hours.

  “I’d like that. Mind if I change first?”

  Elena patted the shoulder of his navy blue tunic and chuckled. She let her fingers trail down over the ribbons and medals decorating his chest. “Since I’ve already been suitably impressed with the decorated Marine, I might as well have the chance to spend some time with the ordinary guy underneath.”

  “What makes you think I’m just ordinary without the uniform?”

  She flashed him a smile that made his pulse race. “Why don’t you show me, then?”

  He got to his feet. “I’ll be right back.”

  Five minutes later, she playfully ogled his favorite khaki shorts and the only sport shirt in his closet that still fit, and whistled her approval. They left the murmuring voices of the last few mourners behind on the deck and slogged through sun-warmed sand toward the receding tide.

  “Where were you when—” Elena broke off abruptly.

  Philip sighed. Plent
y of people had asked him that question or something similar. “In the South China Sea.”

  She frowned. “It must have taken forever to get home.”

  “Twenty-seven hours. Once the Red Cross got things arranged.”

  “I’m so sorry for your loss. What a sad trip for you.” She tipped her face up to his, sympathy deepening the chocolate brown of her eyes. Wisps of black hair blew across her face, and he felt an overwhelming urge to reach out and push them back behind her ear.

  “When did you grow up?” he blurted.

  “I’ve been grown up awhile now. You just haven’t been around to notice.” She grinned and the mood lightened. She reached to take his hand again.

  He laced his fingers into hers. “My loss.”

  She flashed an impish smile and began walking along the water’s edge, towing him with her as she kicked up spray with her bare feet.

  “Andy said you were going to USC. Couldn’t find a good school closer to home?”

  “It was my dad’s alma mater. I got a nice scholarship package. And they have a great physical therapy curriculum. Besides, it’s nice being somewhere everyone doesn’t think of me as Andy’s kid sister.”

  “Well, you are Andy’s kid sister,” he pointed out with a laugh. Memories of her tagging after them in pigtails made him smile.

  “Like Jake is your kid brother, but he got to grow up and now he’s not just your kid brother any more. You never had to cope with being the baby of the family, so I don’t expect you to get it.”

  Philip shrugged. “You got me there.” Being the oldest carried responsibilities he’d always taken seriously. And he’d never questioned either his position in the family or Jake’s. It just was.

  She grinned. “So I’m going to school where I can be just me.”

  Her dark eyes held mystery and mischief. They were the kind of eyes a man might never get tired of looking into. She was sexy and desirable and so not the girl he remembered as Andy’s kid sister.