ENSLAVED
ENRAPTURED
TEMPTED
ENTWINED
MARKED
Firebrand Series
(Paranormal romance)
POSSESSED BY DESIRE
SLAVE TO PASSION
BOUND TO SEDUCTION
Anthologies
SINFUL SECONDS
WICKED FIRSTS
DARK NIGHTS DANGEROUS MEN
BODYGUARDS IN BED
Read on for a sneak peek at
EXTREME MEASURES
The first book in
Elisabeth Naughton’s
sexy new Aegis Series:
Being prepared for any scenario is the trademark of any good CIA operative, and Eve Wolfe is one of the best. But when her latest mission literally explodes in her face, she wakes up labeled a traitor and—even more surprising—in the custody of elite Aegis Security operative and ex-lover Zane Archer. Although she still secretly has feelings for Zane, he’s now demanding the one thing that she can’t give him: the truth.
When he caught her breaking the rules years ago, Zane let Eve walk away without an explanation. Now someone has not only sabotaged Aegis but also turned an American city into a war zone, and all signs point to Eve. Zane needs answers that can come only from Eve’s still-tempting lips, and he finally has the elusive operative right where he wants her—at his mercy.
The first full-length book in bestselling author Elisabeth Naughton’s new steamy romantic suspense series brings a spy in from the cold…and sets her heart ablaze.
CHAPTER ONE
Guatemala
ETA to extraction: Twelve minutes and counting.
Zane Archer scanned the darkened compound from the trees just beyond the perimeter wall and tried to ignore the sweltering jungle heat.
Too bad it didn’t work.
Sweat gathered under his fatigues and beneath his helmet, but he knew soon the temperature would be the least of his worries. Wiping a hand over the moisture dripping into his eyes, he looked through the scope. At this hour—nearly three A.M.—the only lights flickering were in two windows on the second floor of the Mediterranean-style mansion. A guard roamed the portico outside the first floor, and other than a few howler monkeys chirping in the jungle canopy nearby, no other sound besides leaves and palm fronds rustling met his ears.
He glanced at his watch again. ETA to extraction: Eleven minutes, Twenty-five seconds.
Nerves fluttered in his belly, but he ignored those too. Keeping the M4 carbine rifle trained on the guard, he tipped his head toward the com unit near his shoulder. “Look alive, boys. We’re coming up on go time.”
In his earpiece, the radio squawked. “You’re sure he’s in there?”
Jake Ryder’s skepticism was nothing new. But on this, Zane was confident. “Carter’s intel is sound.”
“It’d better be,” Jake muttered. “Our balls are dangling out here in the breeze, Archer.”
Zane bit back the smartass comment because Jake had let him take the lead on this one and looked through his scope again, scanning the perimeter once more.
His heart picked up speed, and adrenaline flooded his system. Ryder and Hedley should have their men in position on the far side of the compound by now. Though Zane was confident this extraction was going to go down without a hitch, he knew Jake Ryder—CEO of Aegis Security, the private company comprised of Zane and a handful of elite specialists from around the globe—wasn’t so sure. Jake didn’t know “Carter” from a fart in the wind. And though he was aware Zane and Carter had teamed together during Zane’s five years with the CIA, he still questioned the fact this whole op hinged on the intel Carter had passed along to Zane. Intel that said one Adam Humbolt, Ph.D. and specialist in chemical weaponry, was being held in this Guatemalan compound by a gang of thugs who worked for Central American drug lord Roberto Contosa.
“Humbolt’s in there,” he said into his com unit. “Trust me, Carter and the Company want this guy free as much as we do.”
Not as much. More. Humbolt “officially” didn’t work for the U.S. government, but word on the street was the scientist knew some super top secret shit the U.S. didn’t want shared with anyone—Central American drug lords included. And though logic said this extraction probably should have fallen to a SEAL or DELTA team, because the State Department didn’t want this op on record, the job had been handed off to Aegis with its superior track record. Their orders were simple: get the job done quietly and quickly and with no link back to the U.S. government whatsoever.