She was never ugly. She was just unseen...until he came along. Weird. Strange. Ugly. All her life, Brinley Deaton has been described with those words-and worse. And not just by strangers and schoolyard bullies, but by her own family. Raised by a mother who's hated her since birth, in the shadows of a younger sister who's a literal beauty queen, Brinley's carved out a life as a pageant designer, making other women stand out, even as she hides her own light. Until she meets Dash... Delta Force Operative Dash "Shadow" Carlson is on assignment with his team, protecting the VP and his wife in Fiji as their daughter competes in a pageant, when he meets the woman of his dreams. But she's not some Barbie in a ball gown. Wild red hair, unique features, smart and talented...Brinley stands out in a crowd full of plastic women. And when he learns they both live in Alaska? It's fate, pure and simple. Convincing her to go on a date once they're back in Fairbanks is easy. Making her believe she's beautiful-inside and out-is much harder. But first he has to get them both home alive...then keep her that way, when trouble follows them all the way from Fiji. **Rescuing Brinley is the 1st book in the Delta Force Heroes: Guardians Series. Each book is a stand-alone, with no cliffhanger endings.soldier military Army special forces