He nodded. "In the meantime, I look forward to a long honeymoon period in your house in Aspen Corners before we start making all of these babies. It's the perfect place for newlyweds. Reminds me of Mrs. Milanesi's."

She smiled, brushing a lock of hair from his forehead. "What will you do about your business in Denver?"

"Brian runs the day-to-day stuff, and there's plenty of wild areas to be found in your part of the state. We may even open a second branch of the store in Breckenridge. Or start a restaurant where you can attract guests from around the world to enjoy your fabulous cuisine. I have a need to..."

When he didn't continue, she quirked her head. "To...?"

"You said you wanted us to be equal partners, but what will that mean to our Dom/sub relationship?"

"I didn't say equal; I said true partners. There will be many times when we won't be able to maintain an equal partnership. We're both stubborn Italians, remember? And I would die if you didn't take me in hand from time to time to assert your authority over me."

He grinned. "Love to."

Angelina held up her hand. "But that's in the bedroom. Well, in whatever room we're having sex or getting kinky in. But I will have control over my own career. I'll probably need to have control over the household finances, too, because you truly have no business sense whatsoever."

"They're all yours."

She smiled. "Thank you, Sir."

He grew serious. "But when you submit to your Dom, you will behave and be a good girl."

"Yes, Sir. Most of the time." He swatted her butt. "Oh, you know you love it when I'm your naughty little brat."

He acknowledged her statement with a grin. "No, pet. What I love is punishing your brattiness. With you, I've learned what it means to have the responsibility of a Dom, not just the kink and fun. So you've been warned."

"Perhaps once a year, you'll allow Mistress A to see to your needs, as well, Sir."

His eyes smoldered, making her wonder if he hadn't enjoyed that a little bit. She certainly had. Angelina giggled. Maybe she was a bit of a switch.

No, not really. Being the Top was more work than she wanted to do. She preferred to have him do all the planning and let her simply unclutter her mind-and feel.

As his wife and his submissive, she wanted nothing more than to devote herself to making this man happy. She bit the inside of her lip. "Sir, you've always been the perfect Dom-the heroic guardian angel-for me."

Marc grew serious. "I'm nobody's angel, cara."

She leaned in closer. "Marc D'Alessio, you've been a heroic angel to many. Ask Damian if you don't believe me. He told me once you were the reason he didn't kill himself after Fallujah. You wouldn't give up on him from that rooftop in Fallujah or that hospital in Germany or even the hospital in San Diego. You even called Adam out to Balboa when you thought you were losing him."

He grew serious once more. "I've spent a lifetime playing the Dom-and the hero-but I'm not sure I ever succeeded. I know I did a lousy job of saving myself."

"That's because you needed me to save you, Marc. We saved each other."

"Thank you for letting me be a part of your life, tesoro mio."

Tears filled her eyes. "You've been my special avenging archangel and owned my heart from the moment you rescued me from Allen, even if it took me a while to recognize you without the mask." She sobered. "Marc, life has no guarantees. We've both learned that the hard way. And lots of times we aren't going to have a clue what to do or why something is happening. But we have guardian angels watching over us now-my papa and your brother."

She stroked his cheek. "Don't you ever forget that, Sir. But I'm even more blessed because I have my angel here in the flesh, too. As far as I'm concerned, you're somebody's angel, Marc-mine."

Glossary of Terms

Alla mia bellissima ragazza-Italian for "to my very beautiful girl"

Bambino mio-Italian for my boy; bambini for children Bebe-Spanish for baby Cara-Italian for dear Cover-military term for head covering or hat Cuor mio-Italian for my heart Desert Digitals-a description of the desert Marine uniform used by older Marines (also see MARPAT) Devil Dog-term for a Marine Dio-Italian for God DM-Dungeon Monitor (volunteer usually at a play party or club who ensures the safety of those in scenes/activities) Grunt-term for a Marine Had My/Your Six-has our back; watching out for you Head-bathroom (Navy jargon) IED-improvised explosive device (homemade explosives, often detonated by vehicles on roadsides in Iraq and Afghanistan) In-Country-term used by military personnel to describe being in the country of deployment Lido-Lidocaine, a topical ointment used as a numbing agent for stings, cuts, or burns Maman-French for mama (Savannah's mother and Savannah herself are referred to as maman) Mamma-Italian for mama (used only in places where Marc is actually speaking Italian) MARPAT-stands for Marine Pattern, a more recent term for the Marine uniform (also see desert digitals) Merda-Italian for shit Mi munequita-Spanish for my little doll Mio angelo-Italian for my angel (il mio angelo in third person) Mio Dio-Italian for my God PsychO/Psycho-Navy jargon for a psychologist (Psych Officer) Rack-bed (Marine term) RACK-Risk Aware Consensual Kink. This is a BDSM scene that is negotiated ahead of time and doesn't need to adhere to the standard of Safe, Sane, and Consensual (SSC). Most still have a safeword, unless the participants have a high level of play experience and trust built.

RPG-Rocked-propelled grenade SAR-Search and Rescue Scusami-Italian for I'm sorry SERE Course-an intense training program teaching Marine and Navy personnel the tactics for survival, evasion, resistance, and escape Si-Italian for yes SNAFU (snafu)-Situation Normal, All Fucked Up Spazzolami i capelli-Italian for brush my hair SSC-Safe, Sane, and Consensual kink scenes with a safeword that doesn't carry the level of risk some edgeplay does.

Tesoro mio-Italian for my treasure Twentynine Stumps-a derogatory term used by Marines who served or trained at the base in Twentynine Palms, Calif.

About the Author.

Kallypso Masters writes emotional, realistic Romance novels with dominant males (for the most part) and the women who can bring them to their knees. She also has brought many readers to their knees-having them experience the stories right along with her characters in the Rescue Me series. Kally knows that Happily Ever After takes maintenance, so her couples don't solve all their problems and disappear at "the end" of their Romance, but will continue to work on real problems in their relationships in later books in the series.

Kally has been writing full-time since May 2011, having quit her "day job" the month before. Masters at Arms was her debut novel (published in August 2011), followed by Nobody's Angel, Nobody's Hero, Nobody's Perfect and Somebody's Angel. Next she looks forward to writing the long-awaited book of Luke, Nobody's Dream.

Kally lives in rural Kentucky and has been married for 30 years to the man who provided her own Happily Ever After. They have two adult children, one adorable grandson, and a rescued dog and cat.

Kally enjoys meeting readers at national romance-novel conventions, book signings, and informal gatherings (restaurants, airports, bookstores, wherever!), as well as in online groups (including Facebook's "The Rescue Me Series Open Discussion" secret group-send a friend request to the Karla Montague link below on Facebook to join; she also visits the Fetlife "Rescue Me! Series Discussion Group" regularly) and in live online chats. She hopes to meet you in her future travels! If you meet her face to face, be sure to ask for a Kally's friend button!

To contact or interact with Kally, go to Facebook (facebook.com/kallypsomasters), her Facebook Author page (facebook.com/KallypsoMastersAuthorPage), or Twitter (@kallypsomasters).

To join the secret Facebook group Rescue Me Series Open Discussion, please send a friend request to Karla Montague (facebook.com/karla.montague.1) and she will open the door for you. Must be 18 or older to join.

Keep up with news on her Ahh, Kallypso...the stories you tell blog at KallypsoMasters.blogspot.com Or on her Web site (KallypsoMasters.com).

You can sign up for her newsletter (e-mailed monthly) at her Web site or blog, e-mail her at kallypsomasters@gmail.com, or write to her at Kallypso Masters.

PO Box 206122.

Louisville, KY 40250.

Excerpt from.

Captured Innocence.

Copyright 2013 Kennedy Layne.

"Sir, wait." Lauren lifted her head upon hearing the nurse's tone coming from outside of the curtain. The emergency room was busy for a Friday night, but the staff still ran a rather tight ship. Maybe it was the police coming back to ask more questions. "You aren't allowed back -"

The curtain was yanked aside, revealing Connor Ortega. His presence never failed to leave her breathless. No man had the right to look like him. His blue eyes zeroed in on her and she instinctively wrapped her fingers around her wrist. Ouch. The action brought her out of her reverie for two reasons. One, it helped stabilize her feelings and two, her wrist hurt like hell.

"Connor? Why are you here?"

"Do you want this gentleman removed?"

Lauren glanced at the nurse holding her discharge papers. A frown marred the woman's haggard face. She hadn't been the most pleasant. After Lauren had discovered she was closing in on the end of a twelve-hour shift, she didn't blame the nurse for her fatigued attitude.

"No, she knows me." Connor stepped into the room. Lauren prevented herself from looking for something to throw. This back and forth between them only further fueled her irritation. She didn't need more bullshit right now. What she needed was for him to go back where he came from. He'd somehow upset the balance of her daily routine and she needed it back desperately. "Where are the police?"

"They left. Connor, how did you know I was even injured?" Lauren asked, still wondering what he was doing here.

"Left?" Connor turned to address the nurse and Lauren felt her irritation with him return. It had only been two days, but he seemed to have a gift when it came to raising her ire as well as her...maybe she had hit her head a little too hard. "Is she being released?"

"Yes."

The nurse ripped off the top sheet of her clipboard and pushed the paper into his chest in what could only be an act of dismissal. Nurse Broomhilda actually smiled as she paused before launching into what seemed like a drill sergeant impression. Lauren would have thrown her hands up in disgust if she thought she could handle any more pain.

"I'm glad to know that she won't be alone this evening. She hit her head pretty hard against the cement. We tried to get her to stay the night for observation, but she insisted she'd be fine. I can see where she learned that trick. Here are her discharge papers. It wouldn't hurt to wake her every couple of hours. No sex, buddy boy. Got that? She should eat light and there is to be no alcohol consumption. The rest of the directives are included on the discharge order and she should make a follow-up appointment with her doctor. See that she does that."

"Thank you, Sergeant." Connor returned her smile. Lauren resisted the urge to roll her eyes, knowing all too well it would only make her headache worse. "I'll see to it that she follows orders."

Lauren's heart skipped a beat at the double meaning of his words, but chose to ignore it. There was no way in hell he was coming home with her. She'd resisted calling him for two days and would continue to do so, for both their sakes. In her experience, as well as by observing customers on a daily basis, a true Dom didn't date vanilla girls like her. She turned and picked up her purse out of the chair, realizing that her hands were still trembling from the attack. Connor's presence didn't help anything at all.

"What happened?"

Lauren slowly faced him, and only then noticed the nurse had left. It was now only the two of them in the tiny emergency room area. Still not understanding why Connor was even here, she pulled the strap of her bag over her shoulder with every intention of leaving. Lauren couldn't help but wince when her wrist started to ache from the movement. It wasn't her issue that the nurse misunderstood why he was here. Bottom line, her mugging had nothing to do with him.

She was surprised when Connor stepped forward, crowding her space. What shocked her even more was when he laid down the papers he'd been given and gently took her hand, exposing her wounded wrist.

"Lauren, I asked you what happened."

A feeling of utter provocation overcame her at the sound of his voice and she found that she needed to get away from him before he changed her mind and she took him up on what he offered. If he would just stop coming around her, Lauren knew she wouldn't have a problem with ignoring these overwhelming feelings of longing that he stirred within her. She tried to pull back her hand, hoping that he would release it. She should have known better.

"I was mugged," Lauren said rapidly, hoping the faster she spoke, the sooner she could leave. She continued to stare down at their hands as his fingers encircled her wounded wrist, not wanting to look into his bright blue eyes and get sucked in. Her emotions were unstable and she didn't want to do anything stupid. "Someone must have heard me scream and called the police. Within moments of the guy attacking me, I heard sirens. He ran off. They called for an ambulance. End of story. Can you please move?"

"Look at me."

That was the last thing she wanted to do. Before Lauren even lifted her gaze, she felt tears sting her eyes and berated herself for it. She didn't want him to think she was some weak woman who couldn't handle herself in a crisis. And that annoyed her even more. Why should she care what he thought anyway? Unable to prevent herself from following his command, Lauren connected her eyes with his and saw his immediate sympathy. His warm grip seemed to stop time in her small world. She could only barely perceive that around her the planet continued to spin as they were trapped in this moment. Why did he care? That was all it took for a tear to escape.

"You're fine," Connor murmured, gathering her up in his arms. Lauren couldn't suppress the sob that escaped her chest. His warmth enveloped her and though she knew the safety she felt was illusory, that didn't stop her from relishing in his embrace. "I've got you, Red."

Buy Captured Innocence at Amazon.

The Rescue Me Series.

Masters at Arms.

(First in the Rescue Me Series).

Masters at Arms is an introduction to the Rescue Me series, which needs to be read first. The book begins the journey of three men, each on a quest for honor, acceptance, and to ease his unspoken pain. Their paths cross at one of the darkest points in their lives. As they try to come to terms with the aftermath of Iraq-forging an unbreakable bond-they band together to start their own BDSM club. But will they ever truly become masters of their own fates? Or would fate become masters of them?

Buy Masters at Arms at Amazon.

Masters at Arms & Nobody's Angel.

(First and Second in the Rescue Me Series).

Masters at Arms is an introduction to the Rescue Me series, which needs to be read first. The book begins the journey of three men, each on a quest for honor, acceptance, and to ease his unspoken pain. Their paths cross at one of the darkest points in their lives. As they try to come to terms with the aftermath of Iraq-forging an unbreakable bond-they band together to start their own BDSM club. But will they ever truly become masters of their own fates? Or would fate become masters of them?

Marc d'Alessio might own a BDSM club with his fellow military veterans, Adam and Damian, but he keeps all women at a distance. However, when Marc rescues beautiful Angelina Giardano from a disastrous first BDSM experience at the club, an uncharacteristic attraction leaves him torn between his safe, but lonely world, and a possible future with his angel.

Angelina leaves BDSM behind, only to have her dreams plagued by the Italian angel who rescued her at the club. When she meets Marc at a bar in her hometown, she can't shake the feeling she knows him-but has no idea why he reminds her of her angel.

Buy Masters at Arms & Nobody's Angel at Amazon.

Nobody's Hero.

(Third in the Rescue Me Series).

The continuing romantic journey of Adam and Karla, which began in Masters at Arms and continued in Nobody's Angel, and ended in a dramatic cliffhanger that sets up the opening scene of Nobody's Hero.

Retired Marine Master Sergeant Adam Montague has battled through four combat zones, but now finds himself running from Karla Paxton, who has declared war on his heart. With a twenty-five-year age difference, he feels he should be her guardian and protector, not her lover. But Karla's knack for turning up in his bed at inopportune times is killing his resolve to do the right thing. Karla isn't a little girl anymore-something his body reminds him of every chance it gets.

But their age difference is only part of the problem. Fifty-year-old Adam has been a guardian and protector for lost and vulnerable souls most of his life, but a secret he has run from for more than three decades has kept him emotionally unable to admit he can love anyone. Will she be able to lower his guard long enough to break down the defenses around his heart and help him put the ghosts from his past to rest? In her all-out war to get Adam to surrender his heart, can the strong-willed Goth singer offer herself as his submissive-and at what cost to herself?

Damian Orlando and Savannah (Savi) Baker also will reunite in this book and begin their journey to a happy ending in Nobody's Perfect.

Buy Nobody's Hero at Amazon.

Nobody's Perfect.

(Fourth in the Rescue Me Series).

The continuing story of Savannah Gentry (now Savi Baker) and Damian Orlando from Masters at Arms and Nobody's Hero.

Savannah/Savi escaped the abuse, torture, and degradation forced upon her by a sadistic father for eleven years and has made a safe life for herself and her daughter. When her father threatens her peace of mind-and her daughter's safety-Savi runs to Damian Orlando for protection. Eight years earlier, young Savannah shared one perfect day with Damian that changed both their young lives and resulted in a secret she can no longer hide. But being with Damian reawakens repressed memories and feelings she does want to keep hidden-buried. At Damian's private Masters at Arms Club, she discovers that sexual healing might be achieved through sadomasochism administered by a loving Service Top named Damian.