Silver Creek Bodyguard

A former Navy SEAL falls for the woman he’s hired to protect in McKenna’s gripping fourth Silver Creek romance (after Strength Under Fire). After a combat injury forces tribeless half–Native American Wes Paxton to leave the Navy, he moves to Silver Creek, Wyo., for a job with Guardian Security. He’s assigned to protect Sara Romano, an Eastern Cherokee healer hiding out from her half brother, Manny Romano, who wants Sara dead so he can inherit their mobster father’s estate. Wes’s attraction to Sara is unlike anything he’s experienced before, and as he opens up to her about his difficult past as a foster child, he discovers that her beauty is matched only by her kindness and skill as an herbalist. But when Sara and Wes’s idyll in Silver Creek is shattered by an attack from Manny’s henchmen, will Wes’s attraction get in the way of his efforts to keep Sara safe? McKenna capably incorporates favorite characters from earlier series entries into the fast-paced plot while highlighting the natural beauty of Wyoming and the characters’ genuine efforts to be responsible stewards of the land. Fans and newcomers alike will be drawn to the strong, resilient characters and simmering suspense. (Apr.)