Chapter 1
The whole mess hall went silent when Claire hit the table.
Her tray flipped.
Mashed potatoes slid across the floor.
Coffee splashed over her sleeve.
A metal fork clattered under a bench and spun until it stopped beside Titan’s paws.
Claire caught herself with both hands on the edge of the table, breath sharp, shoulder burning from where Lieutenant Reed had shoved her.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Fifty sailors and Marines stared from their seats like the room had frozen around them.
Lieutenant Marcus Reed stood over her with a smile that made the silence feel worse.
He looked clean, polished, and cruel.
Claire looked like an easy target.
Young.
Quiet.
New to the base.
A K9 handler with dust on her boots and a service dog under the table.
To Reed, that was all she was.
A rookie.
A support soldier.
Someone he could humiliate in front of everyone and expect to stay quiet.
He leaned closer.
“Get out, rookie.”
Under the table, Titan growled.
Low.
Deep.
Dangerous.
Claire’s fingers tightened around the table edge.
Titan was a massive German Shepherd, all muscle and focus, with dark eyes that missed nothing.
He had been lying quietly beside Claire’s boots until Reed touched her.
Now his body had gone still.
Too still.
Claire looked down once.
“Stay,” she whispered.
Titan obeyed.
May you like
Barely.
Read Part 2 to find out why Reed’s next insult made Titan step between them.
