Matched with a Hot SEAL (Hot SEALs) Read online

  MATCHED WITH A HOT SEAL

  Hot SEALs

  by New York Times & USA Today Bestseller

  CAT JOHNSON

  A SEAL’s life isn’t all deadly missions. Commandos need love too. But when Naval Special Warfare computer guru Will Weber puts the fate of his love life in the combined hands of a dating app and his teammates, he fears he’s about to learn what real terror feels like.

  He was wrong. That happens when his ex’s sister walks into his life, and his heart, then walks right back out again.

  Catch up with the rest of the

  Hot SEALs

  Night with a SEAL

  Saved by a SEAL

  SEALed at Midnight

  Kissed by a SEAL

  Protected by a SEAL

  Loved by a SEAL

  Tempted by a SEAL

  Wed by a SEAL

  Romanced by a SEAL

  Rescued by a SEAL

  Betting on a Hot SEAL

  Escape with a Hot SEAL

  Matched with a Hot SEAL

  SEAL the Deal

  Visit catjohnson.net/hot-seals

  Never miss a new release or a sale again! Sign up for email alerts at catjohnson.net/news

  CHAPTER 1

  Breathless and spent, Will Weber rolled off the woman beneath him. Flopped flat out on his back on the rumpled bed, he tried to catch his breath.

  “Damn.” He’d thought he was in good shape.

  Hell, he was. In great shape, as a matter of fact, at least according to his Navy physical readiness test. But the workout his girlfriend had given him tonight had stolen his breath completely.

  It shouldn’t surprise him. Four years ago his brown-haired, hazel-eyed vixen had stolen a good-sized corner of his heart.

  What was a surprise was the intensity of tonight’s workout between the sheets with Sara. Lately things between them in bed had felt, for lack of a better word, off.

  There had been a definite decrease in her interest in their physical activity together the past couple of months. Lack of interest on her part, specifically. Certainly not on his end.

  He understood why Sara might be feeling that way. She had a lot on her mind. Too many responsibilities, all tugging at her at once. She was working hard, both at her job and in her night classes.

  It couldn’t be easy for a woman over thirty to make the decision to stand on her own two feet financially after being dependent on her ex-husband for years.

  Will didn’t blame her for the occasional lack of enthusiasm between the sheets—but they’d both been plenty enthusiastic tonight.

  He’d been so happy to finally get some after what had stretched to be a month long dry spell that he might have gotten a little too enthusiastic, which explained why he was covered in sweat and still trying to catch his breath. He’d run the obstacle course on base and recovered faster than this. That said a lot about the energy he’d just expended.

  Whatever the reason for it, tonight had been pretty damn good. And he hoped it was just a precursor, a prelude to things between them getting back to normal.

  Better than normal, actually.

  As his stomach growled he slapped one hand over his belly to silence the noise. Good sex made a man hungry. He’d definitely burned through some major calories this evening.

  Will stared at the ceiling while deciding if he had the energy to get dressed to take her out to dinner or if they should take advantage of take-out delivery and stay in.

  That last idea definitely had its benefits. Maybe they could go for round two as dessert.

  Turning his head on the pillow, he was just about to make the suggestion when Sara stood.

  Will propped himself up on one elbow and watched as she reached for her clothes on the floor. He wasn’t opposed to her staying naked, but she was probably as hungry as he was.

  He watched as she stepped into her underwear. “I thought we could order in so we don’t have to get dressed and go out.”

  She glanced back at him over her shoulder. “I’m actually gonna go.”

  He frowned. “Really? Do you have something to do?”

  She’d only been there about an hour. They’d made damn good use of that time together but he hadn’t realized when she’d called asking if she could come over that she’d be going again so soon.

  “Um, yeah. Actually, it’s my sister. I promised her I’d get home early tonight.” She pulled on her dress and shoved her feet into her sandals.

  “Is Jessa okay?” He’d always liked Sara’s sister. He’d hate to think anything was wrong with her.

  “Um, yeah, she’s fine.”

  That didn’t answer why Sara was rushing home to her, but it wasn’t his place to pry into Jessa’s private life.

  “Okay. I’ll walk you to the door.” He swung his legs over his side of the bed and stood.

  Not bothering with underwear, he pulled on a pair of shorts. No use getting dressed since his decision for dinner was definitely made now.

  He wasn’t keen on eating out alone so he’d just order something to be delivered. A night with Sara would have been better, but since that was off the table, Netflix and pizza on the sofa in front of his big screen sounded pretty good to him.

  She was already by the door by the time he reached her.

  “Where’s my purse?” She spun, looking around.

  The apartment was pretty small and he didn’t like clutter so it was fairly bare. Not much place for anything to get lost.

  Will glanced toward the kitchen and saw her bag on the counter. “I got it.”

  “Thanks.” She took it from him when he returned and reached for the doorknob.

  He stepped after her. “Text when you get home so I know you’re safe and sound.”

  “Okay.”

  The door was open and she was about to walk through when he grabbed her arm. She was definitely distracted, by what he didn’t know. But they never said goodbye without at least a quick kiss.

  Will leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. “Good night.”

  “Bye.” She glanced at him and then turned for the door.

  He leaned against the doorframe and watched as she walked to her parked car and opened the door.

  After one final look back at him and a tiny wave, she slid behind the wheel and started the engine. He waited as she backed up and pulled away before closing and locking the door.

  Something was definitely strange. Kick ass sex and then a quick escape. He wasn’t sure what to think of it. But if he understood women he could probably write a book and make a fortune off all the other men in the world who were just as confused by the fairer sex as he was.

  Before Will knew it, hours had passed as one episode of the show he was watching rolled right into the next.

  The pizza had been good. The beer he’d had in the fridge, even better, and there was still half a season of the show left.

  He glanced at the time.

  Shit. It was late.

  Since his military career was full of rules and regulations, Will wasn’t all that into restraint in his personal life, but he did have an early morning.

  He needed a shower and then get to bed because his zero-five-thirty run wasn’t going to come any later because he’d been in binge mode.

  Hoisting himself off the sofa he grabbed his cell phone off the table, about to turn toward the bathroom when he realized Sara had never texted to say she’d gotten home safe.

  She really had been distracted tonight, for whatever reason. It wasn’t a surprise she’d gotten home and had forgotten her promise.

  He put the cell on his nightstand and headed into the bathroom for a quick shower. And it was quick. He’d toweled off and brushed his tee
th and was back to the bed in less than ten minutes. Even so, the red numbers on his bedside clock glowed 11:06.

  He’d better set the alarm on his cell phone to make sure he was up in time. His team would never let him hear the end of it if he was late for the run he’d planned.

  Will hit the button and the display lit up. He smiled when he saw the text bubble on the screen from Sara.

  I just wanted you to know that you’re a really good man.

  As he read her sweet words, he might have actually cooed aww aloud.

  A combat hardened Navy SEAL, cooing like a lovesick teenage girl. He shook his head at himself, but since there hadn’t been anyone there to witness his shame, he didn’t feel too embarrassed about it.

  Smiling, he punched in a reply.

  Thank you, baby. You’re pretty great yourself. I love you. Have a good night.

  He waited for a bit, but nothing came right back.

  Hoping that was because she’d finally gone to sleep at this late hour, which is where he should be, he set an alarm and crawled into bed.

  Morning was going to be there much too soon and tomorrow Will had a full day.

  CHAPTER 2

  Jessa watched Sara grab a handful of clothes from the drawer and toss the whole jumbled mess into the suitcase open on the bed. “I don’t understand why you’re taking so much stuff.”

  “I don’t know how long I’ll be gone. It’ll just be easier to take everything. It’s not that much.”

  Looking at the already overflowing bag, Jessa couldn’t agree. “Do you want me to fold it for you?”

  “No, it’s fine.” Sara shook her head and turned back to the dresser to open the next drawer.

  Jessa pressed her lips together and literally sat on her hands to stop herself from getting up and folding the clothes anyway.

  She decided instead to move on to the other issue she had with Sara’s plan. “Are you sure you don’t want to leave in the morning when it’s daylight?”

  “No. There will be traffic then.”

  Jessa frowned. There couldn’t be that much traffic between Norfolk, Virginia and Bryant, Alabama.

  Even if it were a valid excuse, driving almost ten hours straight through the night, alone, didn’t sound like a good idea.

  Jessa glanced at the clock on the nightstand. The glowing red digits told her it was time to be thinking about settling in for the night. Maybe watching television and getting ready for bed.

  It was not the time to start a multi-state road trip.

  They’d both been awake early this morning. Jessa was exhausted at the end of the long day. She could only imagine Sara was too, not that it showed in her frantic packing.

  “If you’re really worried about traffic, why not stay here tonight, sleep late tomorrow and then leave tomorrow evening when you’re rested.”

  “I’ll be fine. I’ll pick up some energy drinks at the gas station when I fill up the car.”

  Jessa pressed her lips together again in disapproval. Those things weren’t good for a person. But falling asleep at the wheel would be far worse. Why didn’t Sara just wait?

  She came up with another tactic. “What did Will say when you told him you were driving that far tonight?”

  Sara shrugged. “Nothing.”

  Jessa frowned at that answer. She couldn’t imagine Sara’s Navy SEAL boyfriend would approve of a woman driving so many hours alone at night.

  But her sister was a grown woman and no one could tell her what to do. Not Will. And obviously not Jessa.

  She couldn’t even get a straight answer from Sara about why she felt the need to go visit the man who would hopefully soon be her ex-husband—if he’d ever sign the papers—and the home where she hadn’t lived in more than four years. Almost five.

  If there were things still there she wanted surely she had a friend in town who could ship them to her if Jerry wouldn’t.

  If the trip had to do with the divorce papers, that was something her lawyer should be handling. Unless—maybe this was for a hearing with the judge to finally end this mess.

  Maybe Sara didn’t want to say anything until the divorce was finalized because it had dragged on so ridiculously long already.

  Maybe the appointment was tomorrow afternoon and that’s why Sara was in such a hurry to leave tonight.

  Satisfied with her new best case scenario theory, Jessa stopped trying to dissuade Sara and instead decided to help her. “Can I make you some coffee to take with you? Or a sandwich for the road? I’ve got some turkey breast.”

  Sara drew in a breath that sounded as if she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. “Thanks but I’m not really hungry. I’ll just grab a bottle of water before I leave.”

  “Okay.” Jessa nodded but still didn’t understand her sister’s malaise when—if Jessa’s theory was correct—this trip was a good thing. The start of a new life completely freed from the ties to her old one.

  Still, she supposed it was going to be stressful facing her husband again, possibly in court before a judge. Jerry wasn’t going to be happy and in light of that, Jessa didn’t blame Sara’s reluctance for the events to come.

  But her sister still needed to eat, whether she was hungry or not.

  Jessa stood. “I’ll just throw a couple of water bottles and a snack in a bag and put them in the passenger seat of your car.”

  “Okay. Thank you.” Sara zipped up the oversized bag, which barely closed, and slid it off the bed and to the floor with a thud.

  “Let me take that out to the car.” Jessa reached for the suitcase, which thankfully was on wheels, given its weight.

  “I can—”

  “Nope.” Jessa cut off Sara’s protest. “You finish your packing. I got it.”

  “Thank you. I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me, Jess.” There was no reason for the tears that made Sara’s eyes glisten except that apparently her sister’s emotions were running high.

  “Anything. You know that.”

  “I know.” Sara nodded.

  Finding herself choked up at this sudden show of emotion, Jessa drew in a breath. “I’ll put it in the trunk of the car for you.”

  “Thanks.”

  After grabbing Sara’s keys off the counter, Jessa tugged the suitcase behind her, all the way out the front door and into the parking lot, fighting the emotion the whole way.

  She’d miss her sister while she was gone. Hopefully everything would be resolved fast and she’d be back shortly.

  Jessa was so wrapped up in her own thoughts, she didn’t see the man standing off the side of the parking lot by the bushes until she was right on top of him.

  She almost ran into him with the giant suitcase but diverted her path just in time. “Oh, jeez. Sorry. Almost ran you over there.”

  She forced a laugh but the man dressed in all black didn’t look as if he was amused. He grunted in response and then turned and strode away.

  Frowning, Jessa decided some people were just rude. But she didn’t give it much more thought than that as she struggled to heave what had to be close to sixty pounds of luggage into the back of Sara’s car.

  She slammed the trunk and, happy to be helping in some way, rushed back to the apartment. She was making Sara a sandwich for the drive whether she wanted one or not.

  ~ * ~

  Jessa had a hell of a time getting to sleep after saying goodbye to Sara. Sending her baby sister off into the night alone still didn’t feel right, no matter the reason.

  When she finally did fall asleep it had to have been really late, which explained why her ass was dragging after she woke up the next morning. Not to mention how horrid she looked with the dark shadows under her eyes.

  Tired or not, she had to get to work so Jessa pulled herself away from the dismal reflection staring back at her in the bathroom mirror and stumbled to the kitchen.

  That’s where the two things she needed most were—her cell phone and the coffee maker.

  She grabbed the cell
from the counter where it was charging and glanced at the display. She’d been hoping for a text from Sara but there wasn’t one.

  Jessa counted the hours on her finger. It was early but possibly late enough that Sara could have arrived where she was going and not still be on the road.

  It would be nice if where she was going was a hotel and not the house where Jerry still lived.

  Even if they were still married, Jessa hated the idea of Sara being there with him. It might give him ideas that Sara was having doubts about the divorce. She’d moved out on him years ago and yet the man still wouldn’t take the hint the marriage was over and sign the damn divorce papers.

  Marital drama aside, Jessa needed to know her sister was doing all right before she’d be able to get on with her day or concentrate on anything at work.

  Once the coffee was starting to brew, Jessa picked up her cell and dialed Sara’s number. When there was no answer, she left a voicemail and disconnected.

  Hopefully the call going to voicemail meant that Sara had decided to stop at a hotel en route, put the phone on silent and was getting some much needed sleep.

  Jessa had just poured herself a cup of coffee when the cell rang and she saw Sara’s name on the display.

  Shit. The call must have woken her.

  “Hey. I’m sorry to call. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

  “It’s fine,” Sara said, sounding exhausted.

  “Did you stop for the night?”

  “No. I’m still in the car. I was just on the phone talking to Jerry. Telling him what time I should be at the house.”

  “So you’re going to stay there at the house then?”

  “Yes.”

  “Sara, do you think that’s wise? I mean it might make him think you’re reconsidering the divorce.”

  The length of silence on the line before Sara answered had Jessa wondering what was going on.

  Finally, Sara said, “I am.”

  “Am what?” Jessa asked.

  “I am reconsidering the divorce.”

  Jessa’s eyes widened as the questions ricocheted through her head. What had happened to change Sara’s mind after well over four years of being apart?