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  All In

  By

  Aliyah Burke

  Blurb for All In

  Sometimes you just have to go all in…

  Tate Irvin, former SEAL and current member of GAPS, is tasked with going over to Cameroon to help foil a potential threat to the US before it begins. His cover depends on a woman he’s never met, a doctor. Unsure of the brilliance of using a civilian in such a task, he’s surprised when he meets her, sexy, smart, fearless, and at times, more than a bit reckless. A perfect combination in his mind.

  Albany Schovanec has traded in her life of luxury in the States to work her own clinic in Cameroon, and truly do some good. A friend asks to utilize her clinic as a cover for an operation, she agrees. Not new to the undercover world given her work with Tungsten Protective Services, she agrees. She didn’t count on her instant attraction to him. As things heat up both between them and with the situation, will their passion be ignored or will she agree with him and jump all in?

  Dedication

  To my readers who are full of amazing support. To Yvette Hines, thank you again for everything!! DH, I know we don’t see each other much these days with our work schedules but I always know you support me. Love you!

  To Cat Johnson, I can’t thank you enough for allowing me to join you and these other amazing writers in your Hot SEALs world. It’s been my honor!

  I hope y’all enjoy the story. And last and never least, to the real heroes, those who serve their country and give up so much for so little in return. Although we may never meet, you have my eternal gratitude and thanks.

  Chapter One

  “You’re leaving again? Going where! Never mind; I know, even if you could tell me, you wouldn’t. Damn it, Tate. I can’t do this, anymore. I won’t. You’re not home in a day and I won’t be here when you finally do decide to return. I thought, once you were out of the Navy, you would be home.”

  Tate Irvin sighed, annoyed at the voice on the other end of the call. He’d told Linda Shelton numerous times that just because he was no longer a SEAL didn’t mean his work with GAPS wouldn’t take him out of the country, at times. Her ultimatum was pointless.

  GAPS, Guardian Angel Protection Services, was an organization created by some of his fellow SEALs. He loved they work they did, and it gave them more power to actually act as opposed to waiting for the bundles of red tape to be cleared before they could go in and get their job accomplished.

  “Do what you have to. I’ll have Jamie come for my things today.” Linda was more than what he wanted to deal with today. He made a mental note to call his sister and have her pick the items up and deliver them to his place. Right now, he longed for a shower and some chow. That wasn’t going to happen, his trip home diverted by a call from GAPS. He waved for a taxi and slid along the leather seat in the back when the ride stopped before him.

  “Goodbye, Linda.” He hung up.

  His driver pulled away from the curb, and he glanced up to find the driver looking back at him in the rearview. The driver was one of GAPS’ main members, Zane Alexander.

  “You look like shit.”

  “Good to see you, too, Zane. I really think being a taxi driver could be another job for you if you get tired of GAPS. You look like driver material.” He placed his solid blue bag on the floorboard and picked up the brown canvas duffle. Then, he put his phone in the blue one. “Where’m I headed?” Two seconds later, he dug his hand back in and pulled the phone out, sending the text to his sister. Then, he returned it to his bag. He couldn’t take his phone with him.

  “Cameroon.” The man wove expertly through the traffic.

  He arched a brow. “Cameroon.” Withdrawing the passport, he tucked it into his pants pocket. “Mission?”

  “We need you to learn if there’s any validity to claims of polonium being held by one of the local warlords in the area. If there is, you need to steal it.”

  “You want me to go into Cameroon and steal polonium. If I find some,” he repeated. “So, this trip wasn’t going to be a vacation. Not in any sense. Warlords, in plural. Not singular. “Polonium-210, I assume?”

  Zane nodded and slid across a few lanes of traffic. “That rescue last month in Columbia, one of the men mentioned overhearing this, and it’s too much of a risk not to check out.”

  Tate didn’t disagree. Not to mention GAPS’ motto was, We cover your six when God’s too busy. If someone was making dirty bombs, he had to stop them. Or if their plans were using it to poison as it had been done when they knocked off the ex-FSB man, Litvinenko.

  “My in?”

  “You’re going in as a worker in a clinic that the locals use.”

  “And they won’t find that odd?”

  “Actually, the only things the warring factions can agree on is having the clinic. It keeps the young warriors they take healthy. Not quite sure how it works out but that’s our intel.”

  He curled his lip. “So, me showing up out of the blue will be nothing that will trigger suspicion?”

  “You’ll have a contact in the clinic. Missy had a friend from when she was in Nigeria. Her name is Albany Schovanec. She’s a doctor who returned to Cameroon almost a year ago. She will tell those who stop by she’s been expecting you, if they ask.”

  Great, a woman who has something to prove by heading over there. “Roger that.” He didn’t know this woman nor was he keen on using a woman who was a civilian. They tended to freeze when things went south. Any civilians. Which was what usually happened no matter on how well planned the operation was. And this, wasn’t exactly planned.

  “My exfil?”

  “A Sat phone is in with the meds you are accompanying over. Give us twelve hours; we have extraction set up, just need the time to get it to you.” Zane pulled up to the doors at the airport. “See you when you get back.”

  Swiping the blue bag, he stepped out. Hand on the door, he dug for a dollar then tossed it at the man behind the wheel. “For your trouble.”

  “Ass,” Zane said.

  “Don’t spend it all in one place.” Tate shut the door on the very colorful response from his employer and friend. Shouldering his new bag, with money and basic necessities, he strode into the building and made his way through security, then on to his gate.

  Once seated on the plane, he stowed his bag beneath the seat before him and figured no time like the present for a nap. He needed sleep, and the nearly thirty-hour flight before he hit Yaoundé was a perfect time to catch up on the missing rest.

  He had a lot to do once he arrived. There were Central African bandits, the warlords, and who knew what this Albany was going to be like. And, lest he forget, he was there to find some polonium. Definitely needed sleep.

  Tate woke when the flight attendant asked for everyone to prepare for landing. He yawned and gazed around him. A group of people to his left sang, and he smiled. One young boy peeked over the shoulder of the woman who held him and waved. Tate returned it and checked the time. All he had to do was land, get through customs, then make his way — with the meds— to the small village out in the middle of nowhere, and meet this doctor who could make or break his cover.

  Exciting.

  After clearing customs, he discovered a black man holding a sign with his name printed on it. His grin was easy, and he gave a small wave.
r />   “You are Mr. Irvin?”

  “I am. Are you my transport?”

  He poked his chest. “I am James. I’ll be taking you and your supplies to Lomié. From there, you’ll catch another ride out to the clinic the following day; a guesthouse is waiting for you. It’s about a day and half away from there.” He lowered the sign. “Let’s get on our way.”

  Lomié resided along the immediate fringe of the Dja Faunal Reserve. A good place as any to stop, for it was Cameroon’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tate shouldered his bag and gestured to the medical supplies that were loaded on the cart beside him. “Lead on.”

  They stacked the medical supplies into a dusty and rusted van then he slid onto the passenger seat as his driver climbed behind the wheel. While James had ducked inside to grab something else, Tate swiftly assembled one of the sidearms stored in a case. His ease at the situation grew with the familiar press of the weapon against his back.

  They made idle chit chat as the vehicle bounced along the road, moving farther away from the city and out into the vastness of the countryside.

  Two days later, he waved away some dust as the vehicle lurched to a stop. James had actually been the one who’d driven him out the rest of the way. Tate looked around, instantly cataloging the scene. Single thatched long building, wooden posts out front holding up a small awning. A few windows, all open, as was the door. Three small huts were off to the side, blackness leading into their interiors. A bit farther off to the left resided another cluster of huts. Almost like a village had popped up around the clinic.

  Barely anything stirred, and he reached for the handle. By the time, his feet hit the hard-packed ground, seven kids had arrived, surrounding the vehicle. Tate was careful to keep the .45 concealed by his shirt when he landed on the ground.

  Excited chatter surrounded them as the children bounced over to James and talked to him in a language Tate didn’t understand. The man’s smile grew as he spoke to each child. Tate met him at the back of the van and opened the hatch.

  “Follow me.” James grabbed two of the boxes of medication then headed for the clinic’s entrance.

  Mindful of the children around him, Tate grabbed a few of boxes and walked to the entrance. The interior was well lit and clean, much more than he expected.

  “We put the stuff in the back; I’m sure Albany has a spot for everything.”

  He glanced at the three people lying in beds. One hooked to an IV, the others just out cold in their beds, some bandaging on their skin.

  “Where is she?”

  “You know Albany, always out helping someone somewhere.”

  “Right.” For a moment, he’d forgotten he was supposed to know the woman. “How does she keep from having the medicines robbed?”

  “She’s saved people on both sides and refuses to get between them. All she wants to do is save people. You know her, so you know how she is. So far, it’s worked, but I fear one day it won’t.”

  This time, he grunted. Placing the boxes down on spotless counter space, he made a mental note of which box the Sat phone resided. He’d get it later.

  The rumble of engines filled the air, and in the space of a heartbeat, the children were gone. The air crackled with menace, and his head yelled a warning. He looked at James as they headed back to the main part of the clinic.

  Five men, armed to the teeth, leaned against their vehicles. AK-47’s across their chests, the butts of handguns poking up from their waistbands. Shit. This could get ugly. Their bandoliers were full of bullets, adding to the fierceness they presented. Bullies, they were just bullies. Bullies with guns.

  One man—leader from the look—stroked his goatee, adjusted his ball cap and cigarette, then pulled the Smith & Wesson M&P9 free to point it at him.

  “Who are you?” He swaggered close, a sneer alighting his features. “I think I kill you. Military?”

  Tate made sure to keep his gaze on the weapon, as if he were scared of it. Time to find out if Missy’s friend was ready to be plunged into this world of espionage. His world.

  “I’m the new worker, Tate. And, no, I’m not military. I was, but now, I’m not. Is someone hurt?” All true words for he was no longer active duty military.

  The man shoulder-bumped him, bringing the pungent scent of unwashed male. Tate allowed the hit to turn him, despite wanting to punch him. Not to mention disarm him.

  “Where is Albany? Her, I keep around because I want to fuck her. You, I will just kill.” A shrug. “Although, some of my men may prefer you.”

  You think you or your men will touch me and it’s going to turn into a bloodbath. “Not sure where she is; I just got here.” He forced a nervous smile on his face. “Are you sure no one is hurt?”

  “Just you,” he snipped, slugging him in the gut.

  “I’d really appreciate you not assaulting my staff, Mykelti. It’s hard enough to do my work without you injuring them or running them off.”

  The voice wove and punched through the air Tate gasped for then wound around his soul. Shit, he was in trouble if her voice affected him in such a way.

  “You didn’t ask for permission to bring in someone else. This is a white American.”

  Tate stood and looked beyond the green swathed shoulders of his assailant, Mykelti, only to find himself staring at a woman who had all the blood in his body rushing south.

  Holy Christ. Pigtails have never looked so hot. He ran his gaze over her then did it, again, just because he had to make sure he wasn’t imagining this woman. He wasn’t entirely sure how an Albany Schovanec was supposed to look, but this wasn’t anything his mind had created. Her heart-shaped face was covered by smooth brown skin, as was the rest of her. No polish on her nails and this nearly hidden sultry look on her face. Her full lips taunted him. Did pin-up models work in small clinics in the middle of Africa?

  Her black cargo pants clung to her curves and gave him this insane urge to draw them down and explore the limbs beneath. He smiled as he read her off-white shirt. Try not. Do, or do not. There is no try. A woman who quoted Yoda couldn’t be all bad.

  She crossed her arms and glared at the man who looked like he wouldn’t have an issue killing his own mother. “I don’t answer to you. None of us here do. We’re here because we want to help people in the region. Take you and your damn guns and get out. You’re scaring my patients.”

  He muttered something, his men replied then they all left. Not just one but all of them eyed Albany as if they were seeing her naked. Hell, Tate’d done the same thing, but the possessiveness in him didn’t want them to even consider it. I didn’t know it was supposed to happen this way. Christ, I’m damn near hearing bells.

  Tate lingered near as she spoke to James, gave him a hug, and waved as he drove away. The children came back out and began playing a game of soccer. He walked to her and pushed his hands in his pockets.

  “Why don’t you help me put away the supplies,” she said in a friendly voice. Albany led the way, and once it was just the two of them there, she whirled on him, eyes hard and cold. “Look, Tate, or whatever your name is, you can use this place as your cover, and I’ll vouch for you as my assistant. All I know is I hope to God you can do basic doctoring. Don’t antagonize the ones with guns, and whatever you do, don’t get my people shot.”

  Guess she’s not hearing bells, which is a damn shame. His brow went up, and she rolled her eyes before expertly flicking open a cutting blade and slicing through the tape on the box.

  “I know enough. I don’t want the any more detail. You will be sharing that hut with me. Most of the time, I’m here, so you’ll have it to yourself.” She stepped up close to him and got right in his face. “Make no mistake, you’re bringing added danger to my clinic, and I find that reprehensible. Don’t make me regret saying I’d help.”

  She left with a strong stride, and he stood alone with the smell of a clean room and something softer. Delicate, even. Yellow lilacs. He knew that from childhood.

  She’s the one who antago
nized the man, not me. Better yet, how the hell does someone smell like lilacs way out here?

  αβ

  Albany ignored the unease bubbling up in her gut. This couldn’t be good. What was I thinking by telling Missy I would be willing to vouch for a guy I’d never met? She dropped her head to rest against the wall by the small window back by the curtained off area she had designated as her office. That wasn’t her only issue. The other and main one was he was so damn hot. Broad shoulders, lean waist, and muscles that made her think of security in his arms. Bow-shaped lips she wanted to taste so much. Blue eyes were intense as hell, seeing everything visible and even that which wasn’t. I want to kiss him and see what those eyes look like when he’s deep inside me. She gave herself a mental shake, drawing her attention back from the sexual abyss she’d dipped her toes into. When did I start thinking like this about a man I just met? Do I need to get laid so bad I just think such about this man?

  “I have enough issues with the idiot Mykelti and his brother on the other side. Drop this man into the mix, and I’m sure it’s going to get volatile.” Or hot in a whole other meaning.

  “Dr. Schovanec?”

  Schooling her features, she turned to face Sarki Lendon, a friend from England who worked at the clinic with her. “What’s going on?”

  “Mykelti is on his way back.”

  “Of course he is,” she griped. “Check on the three we have in the beds. I’ll find out what he wants this time.”

  “You need to be careful of him. He is dangerous.”

  “I know, and I do try.” Sarki laughed and tried her best to cover it up with a cough. “I do try,” Albany reiterated. “Just I’m a doctor first, and no one is going to push me around. I will take the men up on putting up a fence around the area, though.”

  “You are a wonderful person, Albany.”

  She smiled at her friend. “Just a doctor doing her job. Go on, I know you don’t want him to see you.”

  Relief spilled over her face. “We also have some lacerations; one of the boys was playing nearby and is cut.”