Beauty and the Marine

Justiss Alliance Series - Book 3.5

Short Story in The Way of the Warrior Anthology

By Tina Wainscott

Sourcebooks Casablanca - May 2015

Contemporary Romance


A model. Kristy Marsden was someone who cashed in on beauty. And she was going to be paired up with him. Griff Tate. Someone who had decided it was easiest to live on the remote family property that had become a resort of sorts that mostly catered to men. Men, vets, those interested in the outdoor experience. And for the most part was able to overlook his face.

Did she have to be a model? A gorgeous woman whose life had been put on hold because a stalker had fixated on her. The police were limited in what they could do, but a private security agency had hired Griff and the use of their property to try to trap the stalker. They would pretend to be part of a reality show, and lure the stalker. And hopefully reveal his identity.

But it was what Griff himself was revealing that was too raw. He was her partner in this endeavor, and she was everything he would want in a woman. Up for any challenge. A fighter. And even though she was stunning, she didn't seem to mind being with him. But he wasn't interested in pity, and he knew that once she had her life back, there would be so many better men, men without scars that she could turn to.

Kristy, however, had her own ideas of the perfect man. Griff might taunt her with his face, intentionally show her the destroyed side, as if mere scars could detract from the man that he was. A hero. And the only man she can turn to when the stalker finally comes out of hiding.

Beauty and the Marine was a fun emotional short story. It was entertaining to see Kristy battle in the "redneck" activities. It was even more touching to see how she drew Griff out of his shell and proved to be his perfect heroine. It seems to be lightly linked to Tina Wainscott's Justiss Alliance series, but can be read on its own.

The Way of the Warrior Anthology supports the Wounded Warrior Project and includes: Hot as Hell by Julie Ann Walker, In Plain Sight by Catherine Mann, Torn by Kate SeRine, War Games by Lea Griffith, Beauty and the Marine by Tina Wainscott, NSDQ by M. L. Buchman, SEALed with Passion by Anne Elizabeth, and Home Fire Inferno by Suzanne Brockmann

Kathy Andrico - KathysReviewCorner.com