AN FBI AGENT TAKES THE BIGGEST—AND MOST DANGEROUS—RISK OF HIS CAREER: LEAVING BACHELORHOOD BEHIND

Crime investigator Thadius “Thad” Winston must protect his high-ranking political mother after she is shot and nearly killed. He is prepared for risks. What he isn’t prepared for is Lucy Sinclair. Hired as his mother’s nurse, Lucy is capable, compassionate and entirely inconvenient for Thad. He doesn’t enivision a life of shared love or commitment, yet he can’t deny the intense attraction growing between them. And when a stalker sets his sights on Lucy—possibly the same man who tried to kill his mother—Thad realizes just how much he has to lose.

His grin faded as they continued to stand close and look at each other. Her gut instinct yearned for him to stay, not to leave. He should leave, though.

“I should go.”

“Yes.”

Neither one of them moved.

Lucy breathed a wry, awkward laugh. He reacted with more heat going into his eyes. The awkwardness fell away and suddenly it became incredibly important to her to explore where this would lead.

He took a single step toward her. She lifted her head, his face close to hers. Her skin flushed and a shaky breath eased out of her. His face lowered, maybe an inch. His gaze fluttered from her mouth to her eyes, where it stayed. And then as quickly as the heat had rushed upon them, he withdrew and stepped back.

“Good night,” he said, and walked out the door.

Lucy went there and turned the dead bolt, resting her forehead against the wood until her heart calmed and the excitement of Thad kissing her reduced to a warm memory.

Dear Reader,

Continuities are one of my favorite types of books to write. There’s always something titillating going on, and the stories span more than one book. In this second installation of The Adair Legacy, I am fortunate to have Thad Winston as my hero. He’s a crime scene investigator who’s in the thick of an assassination attempt and a struggle with his feelings for Lucy Sinclair.

Other than weaving the tale of Thad and Lucy’s love, one of my favorite parts of writing this book was tossing a character like Sophie into the mix. She challenges Thad’s ideals and enriches his relationship with Lucy. See if you agree!

Jennifer Morey

Executive Protection

Jennifer Morey

www.millsandboon.co.uk

JENNIFER MOREY

Two-time 2009 RITA® Award nominee and a Golden Quill winner for Best First Book for The Secret Soldier, Jennifer Morey writes contemporary romance and romantic suspense. Project manager par jour, she works for the space systems segment of a satellite imagery and information company. She lives in sunny Denver, Colorado. She can be reached through her website, www.jennifermorey.com, and on Facebook.

MILLS & BOON

Before you start reading, why not sign up?

Thank you for downloading this Mills & Boon book. If you want to hear about exclusive discounts, special offers and competitions, sign up to our email newsletter today!

SIGN ME UP!

Or simply visit

signup.millsandboon.co.uk

Mills & Boon emails are completely free to receive and you can unsubscribe at any time via the link in any email we send you.

To Susan LeDoux and Laura Leonard for their ever dependable proofing.

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Extract

Chapter 1

Thadius Winston left the muggy, late-February air and stepped into the Raleigh, North Carolina, police department. Bright fluorescent lights shone over the reception area, closed off to the rest of the station. Gladys saw him from her post behind the desk straight ahead and gave him her customary once-over. She’d been after him for a couple of months now. And though he never encouraged her, she hadn’t gotten the hint he wasn’t interested, and he wouldn’t hurt her by telling her.

“Mornin’, Thad,” she greeted, flirting again. Maybe it was her nature. Maybe she flirted with all the cops.

She wore a lot of makeup. Blue eye shadow, heavy mascara, caked-on foundation that embedded in the wrinkles forming around her eyes and mouth. She dyed her hair blond and used too much hairspray. Hurricane force wind wouldn’t ruin her style for the day.

He’d heard her husband had left her for someone younger. She was about twenty years older than Thad. If it made her feel good to flirt with younger men, what harm did that do? It sometimes made his stomach turn, but he could tolerate a few moments of discomfort every now and then.

“Good morning, Gladys. Is Darcy Jenkins in yet?” He always kept their interaction to business.

“Yes, he is, handsome. He’s waiting for you in the first conference room.”

Slipping the lanyard holding his badge over his neck, he nodded his thanks and strode to the double glass doors. Entering through those, he followed a sterile white hall to the conference room at the end. The door was open.

Darcy’s five-eleven frame leaned over some photos. He always wore a dress shirt and tie with slacks. Never a jacket. He looked up when Thad entered, his thick black hair cut short and dark eyes intuitive and a little haunted, but not from all he’d seen as a special victims unit detective.

Straightening, he moved around the table. “Hey.” He gave Thad’s back a firm pat.

“Does Gladys flirt with you?” Thad asked.

“She flirts with everybody. Don’t let it go to your head.”

Thad grunted a laugh, not offended by his friend’s sarcasm. They’d met at the police academy and had been friends ever since. There wasn’t anyone Thad trusted more than Darcy. Thad had trained for crime scene investigation. Darcy had grown up aspiring to become a detective. Thad wasn’t sure if it was catching killers that had drawn him as a kid, more likely it was the heroism. Reality had overruled. Darcy did the most good in Homicide, the closest to a superhero he’d ever get. Thad was more interested in the science behind solving crimes. Superheroes had never enchanted him. Maybe that was due to the fact that there had never been anyone in his childhood who’d fooled him into believing in them. As with Darcy, reality had overruled.

He looked down at the photos Darcy had studied more than once and picked up the images of the conference room where Thad’s mother had been shot.

“How’s your mom?” Darcy asked.

As one of his closest friends, Darcy knew how much these photos bothered him. “Out of ICU.” Finally. Things had been touch and go for a week. “Doctors are going to keep her a few more days.”

“That’s good news.”

There was nothing good about his mother being shot. Thad should have seen it coming. He should have been able to protect her. There had been a lot of hype about the possibility that she’d run for president. A well-liked former vice president, she was a viable candidate. That also made her an open target for anyone against her views, anyone who wasn’t sane. He should have been more vigilant, should have been aware of the danger. Had his lukewarm sentiments toward politics made him too lax?

Thad didn’t relate to his mother’s thirst for politics. It consumed too much of her time and energy for one thing, and made her skirt direct answers. His mother was a good politician. While he wasn’t fond of her chosen profession, he knew her in a way the public never would. She was his mother. He loved her with all his heart. If she’d have died, the grief would have crushed him. And he’d have never been able to get over the feeling that he hadn’t done enough to save her.

He dropped the photos onto the table and turned to Darcy. “Anything new?”

“The SAC passed along some preliminary results from the forensics lab,” Darcy answered. “Still waiting on some cytology reports they promised, but thought you’d want to see this.”

The SAC was the special agent in charge of the Washington field office of the U.S. Secret Service. In a conversation Thad had had with him, he’d indicated the government was being secretive with their investigation. They claimed to be working with the USSS and local police, but as far as Thad could see, they were only putting up a good impression. And Thad wouldn’t put it past the SAC to know more than he admitted.

Thad took a report Darcy handed him.

“The bullet is a .308 caliber from an LWRC manufactured SABR,” Darcy narrated while Thad read. “Sniper assault battle rifle. Popular for its versatility and grain. A shooter gets accuracy along with a little weight. Not overly expensive. Portable.”

“Yeah, and if a guy wanted to find one, he wouldn’t have a tough time,” Thad said.

“He gets distance, too.”

His mother had been holding a fund-raiser at a historic hotel. The twelfth-floor ballroom had two walls of windows, and there was an office building across the street. Darcy had to wait for search warrants to get into the vacant unit that Thad was pretty sure the shooter had used. Thad didn’t have to hear Darcy tell him the government had beaten them to it. “Anything on the location?”

“Yeah, and you aren’t going to like this part. I’m getting pushback from Chief Thomas,” Darcy answered. “He knows we’re doing some looking around. Said the government is taking over the investigation. I think this is the last we’ll see from them.”

“The SAC may know more than he’s letting on.” Thad verbalized his earlier thought.

“Why would they cut us out of the investigation?”

That’s what Thad would like to find out. As a crime scene investigator, he had been involved in gathering all the evidence. Federal agents from the USSS and FBI had been there, of course, and hadn’t put up too much resistance. Now they were clamping down, no longer sharing what they found. Why? The assassination attempt of the former vice president of the United States and possible presidential candidate did warrant taking care and being discreet, but Thad was Kate Winston’s son. He was also a good investigator. So was Darcy. They could help.

“I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised,” he said. “It all comes down to politics.” Politics drove how the government would reveal progress of the investigation to the public. Local police made for too many hands in the fingerprint powder.

“I’m not keen on politics, either.” Darcy gathered the photos and put them in a neat stack. “But the fact is our hands are tied. We can’t work on your mother’s case anymore...not overtly.”

Thad caught Darcy’s unspoken reassurance. He’d continue to help him. Thad would carry on without him if he had to, but between the two of them, they’d make a solid team. Darcy had connections Thad didn’t, and Thad had the mind to unravel details from evidence.

His mother’s gunman was still running free, free to take another shot at her. Thad hadn’t been able to protect her. The Secret Service hadn’t been able to protect her. The gunman had shot Kate and tried to shoot her again when the first bullet didn’t kill her. Agent Dan Henderson had put himself in the line of fire and saved her life. After getting off a couple more misses, the killer had gotten away. Thad vowed to find that person.

Why had someone tried to kill Kate Winston? And who? What reason did they have? Was it just some crazy person with extreme political views or was there another reason? The clampdown on information relating to the case made Thad suspicious.

“I can understand the need for secrecy, but...” Darcy left the sentence unfinished.

“Something about this isn’t right,” Thad said for him.

“Yeah. Why is it so important to keep it quiet? The chief isn’t happy, either. He got into an argument with the SAC of the USSS.”

At least he’d fought for them. Thad put the report down on top of the stack of photos.

“He’s probably going to talk to you, too,” Darcy added. “He’s been talking to everyone who was involved in the investigation.”

“Always runs downhill, doesn’t it?” The chief had received his beating and would make sure he wasn’t alone in the suffering.

Darcy answered with a dry grin and then asked, “What do you want to do next? Anything you need me to do?”

“What you do best.” Thad gave his friend a pat on the back of his shoulder.

“I’ll let you know if anything comes up.”

“Thanks, Darcy.” Thad turned for the door.

“Hey, you still coming over to watch the hockey game tonight?” Darcy asked as Thad reached the door.

“Wouldn’t miss it.” His friend was having a hard time dealing with the finalization of his divorce. Darcy was too much of a man to admit he needed a friend right now, but he did need one, and Thad would do what he could to support him.

Thad was halfway to the exit when Chief Thomas appeared ahead of him.

“Winston,” Wade Thomas said. “In my office.”

Boy, when Darcy was right, he was right. Thad followed the average-height man of a considerable girth. Fifty-three years old, he had thick, gray hair and wore glasses.

The chief walked around his cluttered desk and sat his heavy frame down. The lighting in here was dim. Everyone joked about how Chief Thomas was a vampire. He claimed his eyes were sensitive to light and that was why he only had one floor lamp on in his office and kept the blinds shut over windows that faced the sea of cubicles where all the detectives worked.

“How’s your mother doing?” he asked.

“She’s going to recover. Thanks for asking.”

He dropped a newspaper on top of a stack of folders, the headline reading something about the attempt on the former vice president.

“Kate Winston may be your mother, but she’s also a prominent political figure. The media is going to stay on this story until the shooter is captured.”

“I’m good at avoiding the media,” Thad said, trying to keep the sarcasm out of his tone. But then he said, “Darcy told me you’re getting some pressure from the feds.” Wade didn’t take orders from outside his jurisdiction well.

“They’re going to handle the case,” Wade said, his voice dripping with resentment.

“I know.” He took pity on the man. His hands were tied just like Thad’s and Darcy’s.

“I’m concerned that you’ll try and solve it on your own,” Wade said.

The pressure must be heavy for him to push this so hard. “Why so much security?”

“The shooter isn’t caught. That’s embarrassing for the Secret Service. They told me hands off or else, and I believe them...as should you.”

“The Secret Service told you that?” Thad would try to fish for information. “I thought it was the FBI investigators who were keeping things tight.”

Frustration made Chief Thomas shake his head. “The rumor mill around here is like a bad virus. I’m sure they’re working together.”

“But excluding us.”

“Don’t get any ideas,” Chief Thomas said.

“I just—”

“I know you, Winston.” Chief Thomas cut him off. “You don’t lack initiative and that sometimes gets you into trouble.”

He’d taken initiative to catch the man who’d tried to kill his mother. “It’s my mother.”

“You can take all the time you need helping her recover. I hear it may take her a few weeks before she’s 100 percent. Beyond that, leave it up to the feds.”

Thad stopped himself from arguing. Chief Thomas was following orders.

“Are we clear?” Chief Thomas asked.

“We’re clear.” Clear that Wade Thomas could not find out what he and Darcy did to investigate the shooting.

Wade stared at him for several seconds, not believing. If Thad’s poker face wasn’t working, he couldn’t tell.

“If that’s all, I’d like to go see my mother,” he said to get out of there.

“That’s all for now.”

Thad nodded once and turned, vowing to be extra careful not to clue Wade into anything. He’d fallen short in that duty once. He’d be damned if he’d fall short again.

* * *

Lucy Sinclair looked forward to coming to work every day. She loved being on her feet at Duke University Hospital, helping patients recover from whatever had put them there. Talking to them, getting to know a little about their lives. Except when they died, of course. No nurse she’d ever met enjoyed that part of the job. Today was a good day because nobody was going to die.

Her smartphone vibrated. Stopping on her way to Kate Winston’s room, she removed the phone from her uniform pocket and leaned against the hallway wall to get out of the way of a gurney being rolled toward an operating room. Lifting one white New Balance walking shoe, she propped it up on the wall behind her and navigated to the new message on her phone, smiling when she recognized the name. Cameo Harmon. Or Cam as he called himself, the new man she’d met online who had exciting potential. She’d gone on two dates with him this week. He called and texted her every day. A man who gave a girl that much attention had to be interested. That put him on the top of her list of eligible bachelors.

A sales director for a data management company, her first impression of him was that he was a hard worker with a vibrant personality. She supposed he got that from being a salesman. Her mother had cautioned her about that. She said salesmen couldn’t be trusted because they were like actors. They acted their lives out instead of living in reality. But Cam was nice and successful—and not bad-looking.

How’s my new girl today? his text said.

“It must be good if it puts a smile like that on your face.”

Lucy looked up to see Thad Winston standing before her in the hallway, handsome in dark slacks, black leather shoes and a black leather jacket over a lavender dress shirt. The first thing that struck her was how much better looking he was than Cam. Taller. Four inches taller than her five-nine, to be precise. His hazel eyes had a powerful certainty to them. His light brown hair was stylishly messy. And then she recovered. Why had those thoughts run through her head? Why the comparison to Cam? Especially with Thad. Her first meeting with him had been nearly intolerable. He’d barked orders and snapped at her.

“I’m glad I ran into you today,” Thad said. “About when we met...”

Closing the text, she tucked her phone away and pushed off the wall. “Irritability is a symptom of the snake flu, you know.” She started walking down the hall.

“Snake flu?” He fell into step beside her.

“Swine, bird. Snake. It’s the latest strand. Haven’t you heard? It’s been in the news.”

“No.”

“Aside from irritability, infected victims get a low-grade fever that they don’t always notice, and that develops into a body rash and blisters. Vomiting. Dehydration. And then blood vessels weaken and rupture. Eventually, you bleed internally and die.”

“Sounds pleasant.”

“I treated a patient who had it. The poor man was so sick. Barking orders at everyone the whole time. He was the first fatality in North Carolina.”

“You’re joking.”

She sent him a straight face that flattened his near-grin.

Before he could question her further, they reached his mother’s room. Two Secret Service agents were posted outside the door. Not everyone was the son of a former United States vice president.

The agent closest to them gave them a nod and stepped aside so they could enter.

“I didn’t know it was your father who operated on my mother,” Thad said as they entered the room, the door swinging shut behind them.

Before tending to Kate, Lucy turned to Thad. “You think I’m kidding about the flu?”

“I don’t know what to think about something called snake flu. I’m trying to apologize.”

Seeing his humble face, with smart, sexy eyes looking right at her, a sense of humor lurking somewhere in there, she resisted the softening coming over her. “Why does it matter who my father is? Would knowing that have changed your attitude?”

His gaze traveled down her body and back up, as though he was trying to gauge her attitude. “I was worried about my mother. I’m sorry for the way I behaved.”

She folded her arms, tolerating him and trying hard not to be affected by his handsomeness and the macho part of his ego that he’d tamed in order to apologize.

“I read about him,” he continued. “Your dad. He’s a good doctor. Well respected. No wonder you’re such a good nurse.”

“I’m a good nurse because of who my father is?”

He missed her rising temper. “He must have been a great role model. Is he the reason you’re here?”

She scoffed. “Yes. Yes, that’s it exactly. I’m a good nurse because I’m Dr. Sinclair’s daughter. There’s no other reason for it. How would I have gotten this job if it weren’t for my father?”

He eyed her peculiarly. “I’m detecting a note of sarcasm.”

“If you like my dad so much, why don’t you go and tell him yourself?” With that, she turned and saw Kate Winston watching them.

She had been moved from the intensive care unit yesterday and would be held in recovery for a few more days, possibly a week. She was lucky to be recovering from a gunshot wound to her abdomen. She was still weak, but alert and observant. Lucy would rather she didn’t observe her with Thad.

“You aren’t close to your father?” Thad asked.

“I’m very close to my father.” She checked her vitals and IV fluids. The oversized blue hospital gown didn’t suit such a dynamo. She had short brown hair with a hint of graying at the temples, wasn’t tall at five-five and had a petite frame. It was a miracle the bullet hadn’t killed her.

“How are you feeling today, Ms. Winston?” Lucy asked.

Her clever, light sapphire eyes turned from her son, who’d moved to the other side of the bed. “Better than I was the day I was rolled in here. Call me Kate.”

Lucy had to look at Kate again to make sure she’d heard right. The potential presidential candidate was asking her to call her by her first name?

“Lucy is a fine nurse, Thad. That has nothing to do with who her father is, although I believe I do owe him my life.” She struggled to sit up more. Lucy helped her.

“I didn’t mean to imply—” Thad started.

“Do you need anything?” Lucy asked Kate, going to the clipboard on the built-in desk to jot down some notes.

“Yes. I need my son to find a girl like you.”

Lucy turned in her surprise. “You must be feeling better,” she quipped. “I don’t think your son can handle a woman like me.”

Thad’s brow rose as they spoke as though he weren’t there.

“Au contraire, my dear. He needs someone who isn’t afraid to call him to task when he’s being politically incorrect.”

What if she was the one who was incorrect? She glanced at him standing there so comfortable in his skin while enduring what she and his mother were saying.

She did get defensive when people implied that bragging rights belonged to her father when it came to her abilities. It was the only complaint she had about her father—her whole family for that matter.

“Most women are all too eager for a chance to marry Kate Winston’s son. Little do they know he’s altar-shy.”

“Mother...”

Kate laughed softly and then coughed with a wince.

Thad went to her side and held her hand. “Take it easy. Don’t try to talk too much.”

Lucy watched the care he had for his mother. Altar-shy, huh? Too bad. She studied his strong hands and from there his arms and face, profiled with chiseled features. Nose. Jaw. Eyes. Everything about him was sexy. But he wasn’t what she was looking for.

Why was she even considering that? Flustered over her reaction, she put down the clipboard. “Press the button if you need me. I’m here until three today.”

“Thank you, Lucy,” Kate said. “Don’t give up on Thad, okay?”

Give up on Thad? She glanced back over her shoulder and saw Kate’s wily smile. Even in her weakened state she was shrewd and perceptive. How had she picked up on the undercurrents between her and Thad? They were subtle, especially to Lucy. Sure, he was great to look at, but not a dating option.

He stood by the bed, watching her. Or was he waiting for a reply to Kate’s comment?

This was too much. Leaving the room, she heard footsteps hurrying to catch up to her.

“Lucy.”

Lucy kept walking and he caught up to her.

“I... Look, we got off on the wrong foot before, and...” He struggled for what to say. What did he mean to say? Why had he come after her?

She stopped and faced him. “Are you here to see your mother or me?”

“My mother, but that could be about to change.” He grinned.

Was he flirting with her? When unexpected heat flashed in response, a welcoming response, she couldn’t gather her wits. She took in his hazel eyes that now held a little mischief, and a mouth she suddenly found kissable.

What on earth was going on?

“Would you like to go out for a drink later?” he asked.

A date? With Mr. Altar-shy? While her heart urged her to say yes, her much smarter defenses rose up to protect her. As sexy as he was, he would be a waste of time.

Her cell phone vibrated in her pocket, offering a diversion. She saw Cam had sent her another text, this one asking her what she was doing later.

Lucy showed him her phone. “I have a boyfriend.”

Thad looked at her phone and then those clever eyes shifted back to her. “Is it serious? ‘How’s my new girl’ doesn’t sound serious.”

Lucy replied to Cam, agreeing to dinner tonight. “Not yet, but it could get to that point.” Finished with the text, she noticed Thad’s amusement. Far from intimidated, he was about to pursue her. She sensed it.

“How long have you known him?” he asked.

He had to know it wasn’t long. But she played along. “Almost a week.”

“I just broke up with someone I saw for that long.”

She tucked her phone back into her pocket. “What happened? Did she start talking about marriage and babies?”

“Don’t listen to my mother.”

“Is it true?”

“That I’m altar-shy?” He cocked his head. “I wouldn’t say ‘shy,’ but I do question the ideology of marriage.”

“You don’t believe in it?”

“Let’s just say I’ve seen too many people fooled by the illusion.”

“Have you ever been married?”

“No.”

Then how could he know if marriage was an illusion? What made him view it so negatively? She couldn’t afford to care.

She leaned so that her face was close to his. “I joined an online dating site so that I could find a man to marry and have babies with.”

The way his head moved back a bit, she thought he may have flinched.

“I’m twenty-nine,” she said. “I want babies by the time I’m thirty-two or thirty-three.” If that didn’t scare him away, nothing would. This attraction they seemed to have stirred up made her uneasy. His idea of love and family was the opposite of hers.

“You have it all figured out.”

“It’s called plans. I have plans for my future.” What kind of plans did he have? None? He’d romance women his entire life?

Why did going out with him tempt her still? It had to be the masculine aura about him, the inner strength and confidence. And, of course, those green-gold hazel eyes and hard, strong body.

“Aren’t you thirty-two?” She had to put an end to this crazy attraction that made no sense.

“Yes. How did you know my age?”

“Do you ever plan on settling down?” she asked instead of answering.

“Did some reading on me, huh?” he said, dodging her question.

Caught, she didn’t respond. She’d been curious enough to look him up online. Why would she do that if she wasn’t interested enough to go out on a date with him?

“Nothing is private with a mother like mine,” he said with a hint of teasing.

“That bothers you?” Stop trying to get to know him, she inwardly chided herself.

“Immensely.”

His tone sounded full of humor but she could tell he was being honest. He obviously loved his mother despite the shortcomings of her being a notable politician. He’d been fiercely protective of her when she’d first arrived at the hospital. And helpless. He’d feared for his mother’s life and could do nothing to save her. He’d had to leave her in the hands of doctors. Were it not for seeing that, she’d have thought he was a complete jerk.

He must be capable of love, and maybe that was what prevented her from easily rejecting him. For a moment she imagined taking a chance on him. His eyes darkened as he noticed the change in her.

Snapping herself out of that daydream, she cleared her throat and stepped back, tucking a few strands of dark hair that had escaped her ponytail behind her ear.

“I should get back to work,” she said.

They both turned their heads toward some movement outside Kate’s hospital room door. A black-haired man wearing a hat walked down the hall and stopped, looking at the agents and the open door. He was shorter than Thad, but taller than Lucy. One of the Secret Service agents had noticed, too, and was walking toward the man.

The man spotted him and started down the hall toward the exit. He passed Lucy and Thad. Thad started after him. The Secret Service agent put up his hand.

“I’ve got this.”

Thad followed him to a stairwell. Lucy trailed behind. Down three flights of stairs to the lobby, she stopped beside Thad and watched the Secret Service agent run outside.

The man was gone.

Chapter 2

“Can you believe that she cheated on me?”

Feet up on an ottoman, bowl of popcorn on his lap and a beer on the side table, Thad munched as he watched the hockey player ram into the wall as he tried to take the puck.

“Did you hear me?” Darcy asked.

“Yes.” But Darcy had mentioned his ex-wife’s many trysts several times now. And Thad was distracted by thoughts of Lucy. He couldn’t get her out of his mind. Lucy with her long, auburn hair in a ponytail, thick and swaying and begging for someone to free it from its grip. Clear, light green eyes so full of life and humor. She was infectious. And she had a body that was impossible to ignore, tall and slim, well-proportioned breasts that pushed out her uniform top every once in a while.

“You’re normally more enthusiastic about sports. Didn’t you see that hit?” Darcy paused in his self-pity long enough to comment. His divorce was final today and this was his way of celebrating; invite his best friend over for the hockey game, drink beer and whine about how he had discovered his wife was a cheater.

She’d bought out his half of the house and Darcy had bought this one, a smaller bachelor pad with a pool table in the dining room and two of the three bedrooms empty. There was nothing on the walls in the living room and most of the decorating money went into the leather furniture and big-screen TV.

“I feel like such a fool,” Darcy said.

“How could you have known?” Thad asked, trying to be a good friend but wishing Darcy would hurry up and get past it.

“Wasn’t I...you know...enough for her?” The black leather of the sofa squeaked as Darcy leaned over for his beer.

“Some people are just that way. They look for other people and don’t care about how the one they’re with will feel.” He hoped Darcy wasn’t going to need reassurance that he wasn’t bad in bed.

“Yeah, but why’d she marry me if she wasn’t sure she wanted me?”

“She probably didn’t know what she wanted. She still probably doesn’t.”

Darcy took a swig of beer. The hockey game went to commercial.

“I should have listened to you,” Darcy said, sipping some beer again.

“Are you going to get drunk?” Should he be concerned?

Darcy put the beer down. “You warned me this would happen.”

“All I said was half of all marriages fail and that I didn’t want to contribute to that statistic.”

“And now I am. I’m never getting married again. Everybody I know is divorced. That statistic is probably wrong. It’s probably more than half that fail.”

Thad looked over at his friend and wondered if he really meant he’d never marry again. He was sure marriage wasn’t for him, but it might be for Darcy.

“Just because your first one didn’t last doesn’t mean your next one won’t.” He didn’t want to taint Darcy’s outlook on love. He had to make up his own mind about what suited him and his life. He couldn’t go by Thad’s opinion.

Darcy grunted. “I thought my now-ex-wife was the love of my life until she dropped the bomb on me over hamburgers and French fries. It was one of my rare nights off. I thought we were on our way to a romantic evening. A little dinner. A little wine. Go to bed early. You know? And then she hits me with ‘I have a new lover. Move out.’”

“Yeah, that’s rough.” The hockey game came back on.

“What’s with you changing your tune on marriage?” Darcy asked.

“I haven’t changed my tune.”

“You just encouraged me to try again.”

Thad took a handful of popcorn and passed the buttery bowl to Darcy. Women cried and ate chocolate. Men watched sports, drank beer and ate popcorn.

“What’s up with that?” Darcy pressed. “You meet a girl?”

“No,” he answered defensively, and Darcy noticed.

“Who is she?” Darcy grinned. “I have to meet the woman who made you start softening up on marriage.”

“I haven’t softened. I’m never getting married or having kids. That hasn’t changed.” Lucy wanted both. Marriage and kids. She’d be dangerous to get involved with.

Darcy eyed him as he munched on a handful of popcorn, not believing him. Had meeting Lucy made him fantasize that marriage wasn’t as harmful as he originally thought?

No. He barely knew Lucy. She was sexy and opinionated and determined to procreate, but she hadn’t affected him that much. He’d just have to be careful that she never did.

“You’ll have to keep me posted on that, Thad. Let me know if you start dating this mystery woman.”

“I didn’t meet anyone I want to date.”

“That nurse is pretty hot. You notice her?”

Thad looked over at him, amazed at how intuitive he was. It must be the detective in him.

“Aha. It’s the nurse!”

“I’m glad that’s working to get your mind off your ex.”

Darcy chuckled and put the bowl aside. “How’s your mom doing?” Darcy asked.

Thank God. He’d stopped talking about Lucy. “Much better. I need to make plans for when she comes home. She’s got a long recovery ahead of her.”

“After being shot like that I’m not surprised.”

Darcy had come to visit her a couple of times when she was in the ICU. He’d joined in on a lot of family functions over the years.

“There was a man at the hospital today,” Thad said. “He left when the Secret Service agents saw him and tried to talk to him. I think he ran out of the hospital.”

“Really?” Darcy looked concerned. “Did the agents chase him?”

“Only to the front lobby. He was gone by then.”

Darcy took a while to respond, thinking it all through. “Do you think he was trying to get close to your mother?”

“That’s what it looked like.”

“That’s strange. Why go out in the open like that?”

Why, indeed.

* * *

Lucy had fun getting ready for her date. She showered and took her time making herself pretty, drinking a glass of wine with some upbeat music playing. She’d told Cam she’d meet him at the restaurant. Safety first. She didn’t know him and wouldn’t risk being trapped in his car. He’d tried to get her to change her mind, but she had steadfast rules on dating. She wasn’t ready to let him pick her up at her house. On their first date they’d met for coffee. On the second date, they’d met for lunch. Now it was dinner. The serious date.

Her stomach was full of butterflies all the way to the restaurant, an upscale seafood place that had excellent reviews. She’d only been here once before with her family.

Cam was waiting for her outside. She loved that he did that rather than get a table.

He smiled when he saw her, appreciating her little black dress with his brown eyes. He was a little taller than her and had short blond hair. Handsome in a clean, businessman way. It made her feel funny. Thad’s face popped into her head at that moment.

Why would she think of Thad now? He drove her insane. And he was a bad choice for her.

“You look beautiful,” Cam said, stepping forward and offering his arm.

She looped hers with his, her butterflies becoming listless. Why was she having this unexcited reaction to him?

Inside the restaurant, they were led to a table that he already had waiting for them.

“You plan ahead.” That normally would have thrilled her. Why didn’t it now?

He smiled as he held the chair for her and scooted it in when she sat.

Was she having some sort of bad-boy episode? The bad boy attracted her more than the sure, stable type? Did her heart crave a challenge?

“Are you going to let me pick you up next time?” he asked.

“Maybe,” she answered in a light, teasing tone.

His eyes showed annoyance, just a little, before he caught her teasing and smiled.

“I was thinking we could go to a movie tomorrow night,” he said after a bit.

Tomorrow? So soon? She didn’t like how fast he was moving this. Calling every day showed his interest but so many dates in one week might be too much. Luckily, she had plans.

“I’m going to my parents’ house for dinner tomorrow night.”

He looked disappointed. “What about the next night?”

“I work until nine.”

“And the night after that?” He wasn’t going to give up.

“I volunteer at the Westside Literacy Group. Sorry.”

More disappointment intensified his expression. “Do you have to go to your parents’ tomorrow night?” He removed the silverware from the napkin on the table.

“No, I don’t have to.” She tried to keep this light. “I want to.” She wasn’t kidding when she’d told Thad she was close to her father. She was close to everyone in her family.

His hand curled around the knife as the waitress appeared and took their drink order.

When the waitress left, he said, “Why don’t you meet your parents another time? Go out with me. Besides, if you’re tied up the next three nights, that means I won’t see you for almost a week.”

“I can’t reschedule. If I reschedule that means I won’t see my family for almost a week.”

He didn’t like that answer. She saw it in his eyes. They went hard and he didn’t say anything, just fidgeted with the knife, which gave her an uneasy feeling.

She was beginning to change her mind about this one. Was he a control freak?

“Your family is very important to you,” he finally said, the intensity softening from his eyes.

“Very. I love them. We do things together all the time.”

The waitress dropped off their drinks and took their food order.

“Do you want kids?” Cam asked after she left.

She didn’t hide her enthusiasm. “Do I ever. Three.”

He smiled and the Cam she’d first met returned. “Me, too. I don’t care about the number, but I want a family.”

“And one wife?” she joked.

He laughed. “Yes. I’m a faithful man.”

“Then you’re perfect.”

He seemed to take that to heart. The way he looked at her, his brown eyes warming to almost a creepy degree, unnerved her.

“What about work?” he asked.

“I would still work.” Aside from liking her job, she needed to prove to herself and everyone else that she was capable without her father’s influence. She respected him and his well deserved reputation, but she’d work for her own, on her own.

“Wouldn’t you rather stay at home with the kids?”

“And be worthless if my husband ever left me for another woman?” She laughed at her own teasing, which he didn’t find funny. “I like my job,” she verbalized her thoughts.

“I want my wife to stay at home. I want to provide for her and my kids.”

His kids?

“I would stay home after delivery. Maybe for about six months or a year, but after that I would be itching to get back to work. I like to stay busy.”

“You don’t think kids would keep you busy?”

“Oh, I’m sure they would. But I need adult busy. Brain challenge. Catch my meaning?”

His smile faded and his eyes got that offended look again.

“Why do you want your wife to stay at home?” To control her and everything in the household?

“It’s just my idea of an ideal family. I make a lot of money. My wife shouldn’t have to work. And I don’t want my kids being raised by strangers.”

“That’s understandable. My nursing job could be flexible. I wouldn’t have to work full-time.” And maybe she wouldn’t want to. She didn’t know yet.

When she realized it felt as though she were arguing with Cam and that he’d push the issue if he were ever in a position to have a say on the matter, all-out dread brewed in her.

This was not going to work.

Their food arrived, and Lucy was no longer hungry or excited about this evening.

“Part-time would be all right with me,” he made it worse by saying.

“It wouldn’t be up to you,” she said.

This time he covered his dislike. And he did dislike her response. She could feel it in the energy between them, in the way his eyes shifted from his food to her.

“You wouldn’t take your husband’s wishes into consideration?” he finally asked.

“Would you take your wife’s into yours?” She was not putting up with this.

He surprised her by smiling and then laughing it all off. “You sure are a spitfire.”

“An independent one.” He better believe it, too.

“I like a little fight in my women.”

He still smiled, but what he said could be construed as a taste for violence. What kind of fight did he like in his women? The kind that “made” him start swinging punches if his woman didn’t act according to his warped script? Or was she reading too much into this, into him? Maybe he was only trying to get a feel for her boundaries. His ego would love to have a woman he kept at home, but that wasn’t as much of a priority as love and family. That would be the normal way of thinking in a secure man. Abnormal would be he’d resort to domestic abuse to have it his way.

Eating their dinner was awkward and she was glad when it was over and she had her own car there.

Cam tried to lighten up the conversation by talking about other things like barbecues and sporting events. He liked going to festivals, too. She didn’t reveal anything else about herself. She wasn’t sure if she was going to see him again.

He walked her to her Subaru and when he leaned in for a kiss, she allowed a brief one.

“Thank you for dinner,” she said. “It was delicious.” And it had been.

“You’re welcome.” He smiled, liking that she’d thanked him. “I’ll call you.”

She faced her car.

“I’d like to take you to a movie when you’re free. How about next Wednesday night?”

“Maybe. I’ll talk to you soon.”

“‘Maybe’? Did something upset you tonight?”

She sat in her car, shut the door and started the engine before rolling the window down a few inches.

He looked concerned. “All that talk about working and having a family didn’t upset you, did it? I’m sorry if it was too soon to start talking about something so serious.”

“It’s okay. I do like to take things slow.” She meant to keep things neutral for now.

“I can see that. Otherwise you’d let me pick you up at your house for these dates.”

“Thanks again.” She pulled out of the parking space and drove away, seeing in her rearview mirror that he stood there watching her. It gave her an uncomfortable feeling. There was something about him that didn’t ring true. In fact, it rang like a warning bell, one of those outdoor warning sirens cities used to signal evacuation during dangerous storms.

* * *

Just before noon the next day, Lucy walked into Kate’s room to find her sitting up on the bed. Her eyes were much clearer today and her brown hair neatly combed.

“Feeling better today?” Lucy deposited a tray of food on the bedside table and moved it over to her so she could reach it easily.

“Much better. The doctor thinks I should be able to go home in a day or two.”

“That’s wonderful.” She checked the IV fluids and found their levels right where they needed to be.

Kate picked up a spoon and investigated the bowl of chicken noodle soup. “But he says I have a long recovery ahead of me. I’ll need some home care and physical therapy.”

“That’s to be expected after being shot and nearly killed.” Had she imagined the leading tone in Kate’s voice? She went about her usual routine.

“Yes, I do suppose that’s true.”

There were more flowers and a bag of cards that the Secret Service had filtered before bringing into the room.

“It smells like a flower shop in here,” Lucy commented, adjusting a few of the vases that were too close to the edge of the deep window frame.

“That’s not even the half of it. I’ve had to donate a good portion of the deliveries.” Kate sampled a spoonful of soup. All of her meals were specially made due to tightened security.

“It’s good to know you’re loved.”

“Beats being shot.”

Lucy laughed a little. “At least your sense of humor is returning.” Kate had been shot in the abdomen. She’d undergone major surgery to repair her intestines. The bullet had narrowly missed her right kidney and a major artery. She was incredibly lucky. “Have they caught the man who shot you?”

Kate put the spoon back in the bowl, her hand a little unsteady but managing the job. The topic appeared to bring down her mood and ruin her appetite. “Not yet. How is Daniel Henderson doing?”

Lucy had checked on him before coming to the room, predicting that Kate would ask about the Secret Service agent who’d taken a bullet that would likely have finished her off. The gunman had fired four times from a building across the street from her fund-raiser. One had injured her, another had nearly killed Daniel Henderson, and the last two had hit a wall.

“He’s still in critical condition in ICU,” Lucy reluctantly said. Kate seemed to be attached to the agent.

Her worried blue eyes met Lucy’s. “Is he going to be all right?”

“I don’t know. He isn’t improving yet.” She kept her tone neutral.

Kate turned away with a weak sigh. She may have the outward appearance of healing but she still had a long way to go.

“He’s in good hands,” Lucy reassured her. “The best doctors at Duke are taking care of him.”

“Your father?”

Lucy adored her father and he deserved all of the attention he received. Someday she hoped to earn the same level of respect. “He’s one of them.”

“You’re a very good nurse, Lucy.” Kate grimaced as she moved too quickly to pick up the spoon again.

Lucy helped her, handing her the spoon. Why had she said that?

“Thank you.” She stirred the soup. “I can see you enjoy what you do. And you take the time to do everything right. You don’t miss a thing. You care for your patients.”

She did care for them. That was what she loved about the literacy program where she volunteered. Helping others gave her a sense of achievement and self-worth. And she met a lot of people. Lucy loved talking to people, the social side of it. She wasn’t one who liked being alone. She lived alone now, and frequently talked to herself. Maybe a dog or a cat was in order so she could at least talk to something with a beating heart instead of her empty home.

“If it wasn’t your father who inspired you to become a nurse, what did?”

Realizing she hadn’t responded to Kate’s compliments, and that she had strategically done so, Lucy felt as though she should explain. “It was my father who inspired me. I loved listening to the stories he’d tell. The lives he thought he couldn’t save but did, who the people were. He believes in what he does. He believes he’s making a difference and he appreciates having the talent and the brains to help others.” Lucy smiled fondly. “My father is doing what he was meant to do. He doesn’t do it for the status. He does it because he loves it. And that’s why he’s so good at it.”

Kate smiled with her. “And you’re the same way.”

Appreciating that Kate recognized that about her, she said, “You’re being awfully kind.”

“Kindness has nothing to do with it. My son could learn a thing or two from you.” Kate grimaced again as she tried to sit up straighter.

“Thad?” Lucy went to help her, adjusting the pillows behind her and the angle of the bed. What could Thad possibly learn from her?

Kate breathed contentedly, more comfortable now. “Thad is a very good crime scene investigator. Smart. Tenacious. But he’s also bullheaded when it comes to his personal life.”

Lucy wasn’t sure she wanted to continue this conversation. “I doubt I can help him with that.” Not his personal life.

“You love and respect your father. Enough to want to be like him.”

Lucy didn’t reply, not quite knowing what to say to this or why Kate had broached the subject.

“It’s not the same for Thad,” Kate continued. “And I feel that I’m partly to blame.”

Lucy opened the blinds a bit more, letting more cheery light into the sterile room. The busywork didn’t keep her curiosity at bay. She turned from the window. “Why do you say that?”

Kate sipped some iced tea. “I was home with the boys when they were young, but then I started working more in politics. Buck had always aspired to go into politics, ever since he was a teenager. He was a senator when he died.”

“I don’t see how Thad’s bullheadedness relates to that.” So his parents had both been busy. That didn’t mean they didn’t love their kids or could be blamed for how they’d turned out.

“I wasn’t around much. I was vice president and then U.S. ambassador to France. And Buck...”

Her voice trailed off as she fell into memory.

“What happened?” Lucy had to ask. She was drawn in now. She’d read some news reports, but to have it come right from Kate’s mouth was sensational.

When she turned sad eyes to her, Lucy felt contrite. This was a living, breathing person. As famous as she might be, her relationship with Buck and his infidelity had hurt her.

“Buck was a fantastic senator who unfortunately had a taste for extramarital affairs,” Kate said.

“I’ve heard a little about that,” she said gently. “I’m sorry.”

Kate waved her hand, letting it fall to the hospital bed, a testament to how weak she still was. “I’m over it.”

“Why are you telling me all of this?” Lucy had to ask. There had to be a point. Kate seemed to be delivering it quite deliberately.

“If Thad seems bullheaded about marriage, it’s because he endured the fallout from his father’s bad behavior,” Kate answered. “The press had a field day when Buck’s body was found in his mistress’s bed. It wasn’t his first affair. He had many and I knew about them. I didn’t do anything because I did love him and I was having a hard time working through the fact that he didn’t love me the same way. The boys were aware of his infidelity, too. Thad saw what it did to our marriage. To me. I gave Buck my heart, unfettered. It was difficult to overcome his betrayal. It broke me for a while. The press was merciless. They found out about all of the other affairs and that I had done nothing about them. I stayed with him. It was awful that his body was found where it was, but it was worse with the string of other affairs splashed everywhere in the media. I was humiliated. Thad resented his father for that. And after Buck died, he couldn’t mourn the way he should have. He lost his father, but he was robbed of mourning the loss of a father. He lost his cheating father, not the man he grew up idolizing.”

Lucy could see how that would mar a person’s outlook on marriage. “You still haven’t told me why you’re sharing this with me.” She was a true politician, skirting direct answers.

Apparently coming to the same conclusion, Kate said, “I see the way you look at each other. And at the same time, I hear the things Thad says. I know my son, Lucy. He’s attracted to you.”

Lucy held up her hands. “Whoa.” She waved them in protest. “Whoa. Thad is easy on my eyes, but I am not interested in him.”

“Because he’s opposed to marriage and a family? You want a husband and kids and you don’t think he’s capable, isn’t that right?”

Wow, how had she gleaned all of that? She’d heard some of their conversation, but...to confront her with it? “I’m not even remotely entertaining any such possibility with your son.”

“Yes, I know. And I’m not trying to force you. I’m only trying to help you understand that Thad needs to adjust his thinking when it comes to women, and it will take a special woman to make him do that.”

Adjust his thinking? Did Kate consider Lucy the kind of woman who could do that? A special woman...

“Thad is all hot air when he talks about marriage and kids,” Kate continued. “When he falls in love, he will see how wrong he is. He’ll want marriage and children because he’ll finally realize that it will be different than it was for me. He uses me as the basis for his judgments, and that’s a mistake.”

“He also may never fall in love.” He could spend the rest of his life believing marriage wasn’t for him. He may never get married, may never have children. He may live with someone, even for the rest of his life, but there would always be that part of him that he withheld.

Lucy did not want a man who’d cut himself off to the full potential of love, a man who expected any and all relationships to fail. She was a firm believer that thoughts manifested themselves. If he believed and expected marriage and family to fall apart, they would.

“I’m not asking you to start dating my son,” Kate said. “All I’m asking is that you keep in mind the cause of his wrong thinking when you’re with him.”

Lucy didn’t respond. What could she say? If she agreed to do that, she’d agree to spending time with Thad on romantic terms. Kate may claim to not coerce her, but she definitely supported something along those lines.

Chapter 3

Lucy arrived home from her parents’ house. Her mom had made her favorite brisket recipe, and her dad had rented a funny movie. Her older brother had been there with his wife and young boy. They were expecting another baby. He was a lawyer and practiced in Raleigh. He’d stayed close to family the way Lucy wanted to. Family nights were the best. She felt rejuvenated. Happy. Content.

What made the night awkward was how many times Cam had text messaged her. Everyone had noticed. She’d tried to keep up with answering them and then finally gave up. Cam wouldn’t quit. He knew she was with her parents and he kept interrupting her.

Removing her shoes, she checked her phone. There were six more messages, each one a desperate attempt to get her attention. The last one said, Why are you ignoring me?

“That’s it,” she said aloud. Not only would she not reply to any of his messages, she would never see him again. Thank God she never gave him her address.

Maniac.

Her cell rang. Seeing it was Cam, she subdued a rush of alarm and quieted the ringing. Going to her front window, she peered outside into the darkness. No cars were parked on the street and nothing seemed amiss. She went through her 1930s era two-story Victorian house and made sure all the windows and doors were locked. Then she went up to bed. Her phone rang again fifteen minutes later.

Another text message chimed five minutes after that. When he called yet again another fifteen minutes later, she gave up trying to fall asleep and grabbed up her phone, mad as hell.

She answered. “Why do you keep calling me?”

“Lucy,” he answered, sounding relieved. “I got worried when you didn’t answer.”

Worried? What was he? A freak? “Look, Cam. I think you’re a nice guy and all, but I don’t want to see you anymore.”

“What?”

“I told you I was going to my parents’ tonight.”

“I know.”

“You kept text messaging me and calling. You’ve texted and called me about thirty times tonight.”

“Not thirty.” He snorted a laugh.

“I don’t want to see you again. Please stop calling and texting.”

He was silent for several seconds. “Are you serious?”

“Yes.” God. Just get lost, she thought. She normally wasn’t a mean person but he was about to turn her into one if he didn’t listen.

“I don’t understand. I thought we hit it off great.”

“We barely know each other.”

“Then why not give it a chance? Aren’t you being a little rash?”

Lucy sighed. “I’m not interested anymore. I’m sorry.”

“Why not?”

“I need to be able to live my own life without being interrupted every fifteen minutes. I can’t watch my phone and constantly text you. I have a life I’m living here.”

“I won’t text you, then. Come on. Don’t give up yet. Let’s get to know each other. I’m sorry I texted you so much tonight. I’m just...I don’t know...excited to have met you. I didn’t mean to freak you out.” He laughed at himself. “I can see why you don’t want to see me anymore. I’m sorry. Really.”

She hesitated. “All right. It’s late. I need to get some sleep.”

“So, you aren’t breaking up with me?”

“Breaking up with you? We aren’t in a relationship yet.”

He was silent on the other end.

“Look, why don’t you let me call you next time, okay? I’m going to be busy over the next few days.” Then she’d call him and tell him she didn’t want to see him. For now, she just wanted him to leave her alone.

Several seconds passed before he said sadly, “All right. I understand.”

“Thank you.”

“Bye for now.”

She disconnected, not liking the way he said “bye for now.”

* * *

Thad thumbed through a magazine, sitting in a chair waiting for the doctor to come and tell them when his mother could go home. His mother stirred, waking from sleep.

“Ah.” He put the magazine back on the table.

“You’re still here.” She blinked past her drug-induced grogginess, growing more and more alert. Not even drugs could douse the fire in his mother. No wonder she was such a good politician. She kept going and going.

“We need to make arrangements for when you come home,” he said.

“That’s easy. Hire Lucy.”

When she tried to sit up on her own and grunted in pain, he went to her. Stacking her pillows, he helped her sit up and lean against them.

“Lucy has a job.” And he didn’t need her that close to him while he searched for his mother’s shooter. “I’ll call a home care company.”

“I want Lucy.” His mother moved toward the side table where a container of water sat.

Thad reached over and put it in her hand. She held it by the handle and sipped through the plastic straw.

“Why do you want Lucy?”

“Offer her the job, Thad.”

His mother could be stubborn, and he could see she was going to be regarding this. “Me?”

“Yes, you. Please, do this for me.”

“Why Lucy?” he repeated.

“You yourself mentioned how good you thought she is. I agree. There is no better nurse for me. Offer her the job.”

“What about after you’re better? You won’t need a home care nurse after you heal. She’s not going to give up her permanent job just because you want her for a month or two.”

“Offer her twice what she makes here. And talk to her boss and see that he gives her a leave of absence so she can have her job back when I’m no longer in need of her. If she wants it.”

What was his mother up to? “What do you mean, ‘if she wants it’? Why wouldn’t she?” At Duke University Hospital. She had a great job there.

“Who wants what?” Another female voice joined in.

Thad inwardly cringed as he recognized Lucy’s voice. Facing her, he took in her trim shape in the white uniform and her long, auburn hair up in a ponytail. And those green eyes. He could stare at them for an hour.

“Just the person we need to talk to,” his mother said. Her energy was returning with each passing day.

“Mother...”

“This is my decision, Thadius H. Winston.” She leaned to put the water container on the table.

Thad took it from her and did it for her. If he didn’t suspect she was playing matchmaker, he wouldn’t care who she chose for a home care nurse. But Lucy...?

“What’s going on?” Lucy went about her usual routine in the room.

“My mother is going to need a home care nurse and she’s decided that should be you,” Thad said. If he didn’t say it, his mother would. She was in one of her I-will-have-my-way modes.

Lucy stopped what she was doing over by the IV lines and shot a look at him, and then Kate. “What?”

“I’ll make all the necessary arrangements.” Thad explained the terms on salary and that he’d make arrangements with her boss. “All you have to do is move in with my mother until she can take care of herself.”

“Is that all?”

Hearing a note of sarcasm, he pressed ahead regardless. “Yes. I’ll take care of everything.”

“You’ll take care of everything.” More of that sarcasm came into her tone.

“You won’t have to do a thing. Other than...take care of my mother.” He studied her eyes, those green windows that revealed nothing but patient contemplation, yet he sensed there was more burning behind them.

She folded her arms. “Last I recall, this was my life and I made all the decisions regarding it.”

She was offended. He hadn’t meant to offend her. Why was she so hard for him to predict? With most women he saw what was coming ahead of time. With Lucy, he never knew what he’d get.

“I wasn’t trying to control you. I...” Jeez. What the hell? She’d reduced him to a blithering idiot. Maybe it was that uniform and ponytail.

“What Thad meant to do is ask if you’d be willing,” Kate said, stepping in. “It was my idea. I’m the one who requested you.”

Lucy’s eyes shifted to her and her stance eased. She lowered her arms, uncertain now. Would she agree? Thad almost hoped she wouldn’t.

He was near panic over the idea of having her so close to him, because he’d already planned to stay with his mother after she was released from the hospital. He wasn’t taking the chance that the gunman would try again...and succeed. There was no one else available, no one he’d trust anyway.

His middle brother, Sam, was still recovering from being held captive for three months in a foreign prison while on duty with his army special forces unit. His physical wounds had healed in the six months he’d been back. It was the mental wounds that needed more time. His oldest brother, Trey, was busy running the family business, Adair Enterprises. He was also grooming for a senatorial run and getting ready for his wedding. That left Thad to step up and take care of his mother. His brothers stopped by as often as they could to visit her, but couldn’t be there around the clock.

And now Lucy would be part of that equation, if she agreed.

“That’s a very generous offer,” Lucy finally said, “but I don’t need anyone to talk to my boss, much less take care of everything.”

“Does that mean you’ll do it?” Say no. Say no. Say no.

Dating her was much different from having her living under the same roof, even though it was a big roof.

“Thad isn’t the best at diplomacy,” Kate intervened again. “A politician he is not.” She reached for Lucy. “Come here.”

Reluctantly, Lucy stepped over to the bed.

Kate took her hand. “Please, Lucy. I mean it when I say I think very highly of you. You’re the best nurse I’ve seen at this hospital. I need someone I can trust while I heal. You’d be doing me and your country a great service if you agree to be my home care nurse.”

“But...”

Thad heard the wavering in her tone and refrained from clenching his fist.

“You’ll have your own private room with a bathroom and a balcony,” his mother continued. “You can come and go as you please, as long as you take care of me.”

How could anyone refuse that plea? Thad had to hand it to his mother. When she wanted her way, she could be very persuasive. But she did have two valid points. She did need someone she could trust until she was well enough to take care of herself, and Lucy would be serving her country by helping her.

Lucy slid her gaze to Thad. “Are you sure about this?”

Not in the least, but he kept that to himself. “If twice your salary isn’t enough, just tell me what you require and I’ll see that you get it.”

“No...” Lucy hesitated again. “That sum is...quite adequate.”

“Good.” Kate let go of Lucy’s hand. “Then it’s settled. All we need now is the doctor to tell us when I can go home.”

Lucy stammered without saying anything. Shell-shocked, she stared at Kate, whose exuberance was clear. She wanted Lucy as her nurse, and not just to set her up with Thad. She recognized Lucy’s skill, and Lucy could see that.

She didn’t refuse. She hadn’t agreed, either, but Thad would make sure that she did.

Her cell phone vibrated. Thad heard it going off in her pocket. She took it out and read the message. Her brow lowered and her mouth pressed subtly tighter. She also stared at the message longer than normal and then didn’t respond to it.

At last, Lucy looked at Kate. “We’ll talk about the home care work later.”

“I’m so happy it will be you taking care of me.” Kate ignored what she’d said. “I feel like I’ll be in such capable hands.”

Lucy smiled awkwardly, but Kate’s genuine praise softened her. Kate did want Lucy, not only for Thad, but because she did truly believe she was the best choice.

Without further comment, Lucy finished up in the room and said goodbye to them both. Thad heard her cell vibrate again. She stopped in the hall and read it, another frown clouding her profile. Who had just tried to contact her? Was it the same man who’d text messaged her before? She didn’t appear to welcome it.

He followed her out into the hallway. She saw him but barely acknowledged him, her attention returning to the phone and her brow creasing deeper.

“Someone you’d rather not hear from?” he asked.

She merely looked up at him.

“Who is it?” he asked, holding out his hand.

“Cam. The man I went out with.”

“Do you mind if I take a look?” When she didn’t move to hand him the phone, he said, “It’s the cop in me. I can tell when something isn’t right.”

Breathing a sigh he had to call relief, she handed him the phone. He read the first text message asking how she was. And then the second, and then the third. The fifth asked why she was ignoring him.

“How many of these does he send you?” He memorized the cell number.

“I lost count.”

“Have you told him you aren’t interested?”

“Yes, but he talked to me about it and I agreed to give it more time...sort of. I need to tell him in no uncertain terms that I don’t want him to contact me again.”

“Why haven’t you?”

She looked off into the distance, down the hall. A doctor walked by and then a nurse pushing a wheelchair. Someone was paged over the intercom. Lucy was oblivious to all of it. She was concerned over this Cam person.

“Are you afraid of his reaction?” he asked.

She turned back to him. “No. Well...I...”

“Would you like me to tell him?”

Now she laughed. “No.”

“Not used to anyone doing things for you, are you?” She had a fierce independent streak, something he found attractive.

“It’s not that.” She waved a hand up and then let it slap against her thigh, a very slender, long thigh. “Not to the point where it feels suffocating. I’m a capable woman.”

“What did Cam do to make you feel suffocated?”

“Some things he said over dinner, but then he backed off. It made me feel funny. Like he’s a control freak.”

And then he’d text messaged her excessively. “I don’t like control freaks, either.” Women who wanted to control him into marriage.

“I’ll tell him tonight that I don’t want to see or hear from him again.”

Thad didn’t get a good feeling from this. “Let me know how that goes, okay?”

She nodded. “I’ll be fine. If he doesn’t stop calling and texting, I’ll change my number.”

“You shouldn’t have to do that. If he doesn’t stop after you tell him to, let me know. I won’t say I’ll take care of it, but I can arrange to make him stop contacting you.”

“I don’t want it to get to that point. I’ll tell him to get lost.” Although she smiled, he sensed her dread. She’d rather never talk to the man again.

“You could just ignore him. Eventually he’ll get the idea.”

The flattening of her smile and another distant look said she wasn’t convinced. The cop in him urged to protect, even if she wasn’t the type to like being protected.

* * *

Lucy left work a little after nine and headed for her Subaru. It was dark and chilly outside, having rained all afternoon. The temperature had sunk below fifty once the sun had set. She dug into her purse for her keys. Reaching her car, she unlocked it just as she heard a car door open behind her.

Someone had parked in the space beside hers. She turned and saw Cam get out of a black Honda Accord.

Alarm snapped her heart into a frantic shudder.

He held up his hand. “Before you go ballistic, let me say that I just came to talk to you.”

“I was going to call you,” she said, not really sure if she would have. She wasn’t the type of woman who blew people off to avoid confrontation, but she may have become one temporarily because there seemed to be something peculiar about him.

“I couldn’t wait. You still going to volunteer at your literacy program tomorrow night?” He took a step toward her.

Lucy moved back against her car. “Yes.”

He controlled his disappointment but it flashed across his eyes for a second. “Are you free the following night?”

She was, but she wasn’t going to see him again. “Cam...”

Brushing the lapels of his suit jacket aside, he put his hands on his hips, looking belligerent and on the verge of losing his temper. “What did I do to make you change your mind about me?”

“It’s not something I can itemize.” Not without offending him. “It’s just a feeling.” That you’re a jerk—a Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde jerk. She’d stay far away from a man like that. “Sometimes it just doesn’t work out between two people.”

“Why isn’t it working with me anymore? We hit it off when we first met.”

“Yes, we did.” But then I got to know you a little. “But then something changed. I’m not interested in you anymore.” Even more so now.

“Why won’t you tell me why?”

Plain English wasn’t working on him. “Look, I don’t have to tell you a damn thing. All you need to know is I’m not interested. I’m not going to date you. I’m not going to talk to you. We aren’t friends. So, stop calling me. Stop texting me. I can’t make it any clearer for you!” Turning, she opened her car door.

A meaty hand clamped around her upper arm and spun her around.

“Nobody talks to me like that.”

She yanked her arm free and shoved him. He only stepped back a foot or so, anger storming his blond brow.

“Keep your hands off me!” she shouted, turning for her car again.

“Who do you think you are?” He yanked her around as before, scowling like a whining six-year-old who wasn’t getting his way. “You pretend to like me and now you’re turning on me?”

Lucy tried to wrench her arm free. His grip was painful. “I never pretended to like you. I don’t even know you. The only thing I know is that I never want to see you or hear from you ever again!” If she had a shred of doubt before, she had none now.

“You are interested.” He looked down at his hand on her arm as though only then realizing he held it and then let go. “We just talked about some things that should have waited. You’re interested.”

No didn’t mean no to this man. “If I ever see you outside this hospital again—or anywhere near me—I’m calling the cops!” She turned to her Subaru once more.

“Don’t you turn your back on me,” he growled, pure evil spitting from him.

She began to get scared. This situation was beginning to feel as if it was headed toward becoming a crime. She prepared herself for a fight, ready for him to grab her again, vowing to slap or punch him, only he didn’t get the chance. She heard him grunt. Looking back, she saw Thad pushing him against his car, slamming his back over the rim of the back window.

“I’m only going to say this once. If you don’t leave now and stay away from her, I’ll have you arrested.” Thad’s tone was calm but ferocious as he leaned over Cam, a good three inches taller than him.

“Who the hell are you?” Cam grabbed ahold of Thad’s wrist that clamped over his throat.

“Someone you don’t want to mess with,” he answered.

“He’s a cop,” Lucy said, happy to provide that piece of information.

That got Cam’s attention. He stopped struggling to be free and stared at him. Thad let him go, and Cam smoothed his suit jacket.

Then he looked at Lucy. “If we could just talk sometime...”

He kept saying that. And tonight he’d attacked her. “What makes you think I’d ever want to talk to you again?”

“You know. We really do have something special. I don’t understand why you’re fighting it. We just have a misunderstanding. We can get past this. I promise. You won’t regret it.” His sick, pleading face unnerved her.

“You’re the one with the misunderstanding.” Thad reached out and shoved Cam, jabbing his fingers on the man’s chest. “She doesn’t want to see you anymore. Didn’t you hear her? She should only have to say it once. How many times has she told you now?”

“This is none of your business.” Cam’s lightning temper flared again. It didn’t take much.

“It is now.” Thad moved closer, intimidating and fearless.

“I don’t have to take this from you.” Cam took a swing at him.

Thad easily deflected that and slammed his fist to Cam’s jaw. Then another punch drove into his sternum.

Cam gasped for air as he went down onto his knees.

“That’s it. You’re under arrest for assaulting an officer of the law.”

Lucy put her hand on his shoulder. “No, Thad. Let him go.” This was bad enough. Arresting him would only escalate things and prolong her dealings with Cam.

Leaning down, Thad pushed Cam’s head back, forcing him to look up at him. “Leave her alone or I’ll make you.”

Cam met Thad’s fierce eyes and didn’t say anything—for once. Finally, he was forced to accept that he could not control this situation, that he could not control Lucy, a woman he’d imagined in his crazed mind belonged with him.

Giving Cam’s head a harder shove that sent it banging back against the Honda, Thad rose and stepped back.

Cam glared at Thad as he stumbled to his feet. Thad had given him one more chance than he deserved.

Standing up, Cam walked around the front of the black car. Over the hood of the Honda, he looked at Lucy with such resentment that it gave her a shiver.

When Cam drove away, Thad went to Lucy. “Are you all right?”

“Yes.” She was now, thanks to him.

He touched her arm where Cam had grabbed her. She might be bruised. She’d never had anyone defend her the way he had tonight, never had a reason to need that from anyone. But tonight she had, and Thad had been there for her. Appreciation mushroomed into more, warmth that her undeniable attraction fueled.

“Maybe you should stick to the traditional method of meeting someone,” he said.

His logical solution to her scary encounter chased the rest of her tension away. She stepped closer to him. “Okay, Officer. Traditional it is.” She played with the collar of his shirt. He wasn’t wearing a badge. She never saw him actually wear it. “Does this qualify as traditional?”

“We’re in a parking lot, and I almost arrested someone.”

Hardly traditional. Just then she realized he must have waited for her in the parking lot. “What are you doing here, anyway?”

“I’m a cop.” Giving her a grin, he stepped back and then headed toward his blue Charger.

That was the reason he gave her, but Lucy was certain there was another reason he’d waited. He’d been concerned. And more than the cop in him had compelled him to stay and keep an eye on her. He liked her, and he’d protected her. And, strangely, she loved that he had. Not only because he’d saved her from whatever Cam would have done. If anything, he’d cared enough to ensure she made it home safely.

“Hey,” she called.

Thad stopped at his fast car.

She was going to take a plunge headfirst. “I have to volunteer for a literacy program tomorrow night. Would you mind going with me?” She had two motives for this. One, she was afraid of what Cam would do, and two, she wanted to torture Thad with children. What better way to see just how interested he was?

There went that grin again. He had a really nice grin. “Not at all,” he said. “What time?”

“I have to be there at six.”

“I’ll pick you up.”

“But you don’t know my address.”

“I have your address.”

Cop. He was starting to sound like Cam, except there was no comparison. Thad’s reasons for hanging around and looking up her address were completely different from Cam’s. They were two completely different men. Still, she couldn’t let Thad’s boldness go without at least a little teasing...

“You’re not a stalker, are you?” she asked. “Should I be worried?”

He took her seriously. His grin went flat. “No, not you. But Cam should be real worried, because if he ever comes within ten feet of you again, he’ll have to answer to me.”

Sexy, handsome, protective cop...

The way her heart thumped gave her second thoughts about inviting him to one of her most cherished pastimes.

Chapter 4

Darcy wiped the coffee that had dribbled onto his lavender dress shirt with a damp napkin. “He’s got a rap sheet.”

Thad leaned against Darcy’s desk, looking at the mug shot of Cameo Harmon that Darcy had brought up on the screen. Cam’s mouth drew a defiant line, eyes gleaming hatred and reddened from the consumption of alcohol.

“Surprise, surprise,” Thad murmured.

“Domestic violence. His former wife pressed charges after he beat her for the last time. Put her in the hospital.” Darcy reached for the small printer on his desk and handed a few pages to Thad.

Thad took them. “Does somebody have to die before this guy gets sent to jail?”

“Yeah, he’s a real dream date,” Darcy said. “Two restraining orders. One DUI. Robbery when he was a juvenile.” Standing up from his desk chair, Darcy pointed to the line on one of the printed pages. “Stole a camera from a Walmart.”

Thad had seen sheets like this before, and many worse.

“Amazingly, he has a good job,” Darcy said. “Nice house. Decent car. He puts up a good front.”

“Lures them in and then the beatings begin, huh?” Thad could see how Lucy might have missed what a loser Cam was. “His online dating profile is a real smoke screen, too.”

“Guys like that have to fool women into getting close to them,” Darcy said. “This one’s probably on his way to doing something that will land him in prison for a few years. I wouldn’t be surprised if he winds up with a life sentence someday.”

As in murder. That didn’t sit well with Thad. Domestic violence usually escalated in men like this.

He flipped through the printed pages until he found what he was looking for and put it back in front of Thad. “Lucy met this piece of work online a little over a week ago.”

“What are you onto?” Darcy asked, looking at the page. When nothing there clued him in, he met Thad’s gaze. A few seconds later he caught on.

“Kate was shot around then.”

“But not killed.” Thad pointed to the page.

Darcy looked down and read the part about Cam having a military background. Gunnery sergeant.

“He was a sniper,” Thad said. “According to this, he has an NRA membership. Gun permit. And I’ll bet if we got a search warrant, we’d find all kinds of weapons in his house.”

“Guys like that feel big and powerful if they own a bunch of automatic weapons and a few Rambo-style hunting knives,” Darcy added. “Do you really think this could be the gunman who shot your mother?”

“I’m not saying anything, but let’s not leave any stone unturned.”

“He drives a Honda.” Darcy chuckled cynically.

“Smoke screen.”

“His favorite movie is probably some gory slasher film.”

Thad nodded along with Darcy’s dark humor and checked his watch.

“Going somewhere?” Darcy asked.

“I’m on my way to pick up Lucy.”

“Lucy?” Darcy cued in on that. “You have a date?”

“It’s not a date.” Some might argue that it was...like Darcy...and his mother.

“Where are you taking her?”

“Not dinner.” He headed for the door. “Thanks, Darcy.”

“Where are you taking her?” Darcy called after him.

Thad just looked back with a grin. Out in the hall, he didn’t escape Chief Thomas. Like the rest of them, he worked too much.

“Hey, Winston,” Wade shouted from across the room of desks, wiggling his finger and not looking happy. He stood in the doorway of his office.

Thad looked back at Darcy, who’d stepped out of the conference room carrying a folder with the photos inside. “Good luck,” he mouthed.

Reluctantly, Thad started toward Wade’s office. Once he reached it, Wade let him in and then closed the door.

“What’s with the background on Cameo Harmon?” Wade asked.

He had found out. Thad stopped before Wade’s desk as the chief of police walked around to his chair. “How—”

“Don’t ask me how I know.” Wade sat down. “Answer the damn question.”

Thad knew he’d have no choice, given the sound of his tone. He explained about Lucy and her date Cam, leaving out his hunch that Cam may be connected to his mother’s shooting.

Wade scrutinized him like the hardened chief he was. “Is she your girlfriend or something?”

“No.” Why did everyone keep making references to that?

“Who is she to you?”

“My mother’s nurse. She’s an acquaintance.”

Thad suffered more scrutiny. “Why are you involving yourself in her affairs? She’s an adult. Nothing’s been reported yet. If she decides to report something about this man she met, she can do so on her own.”

“I can’t stand aside and do nothing. The man nearly assaulted her in the hospital parking lot.”

“Then let her report it.”

There was no reasoning with him, so Thad stopped trying.

“Taking matters into your own hands?” Wade asked.

“No, sir.”

After another lengthy scrutiny, Wade pointed his finger at Thad. “I don’t like how sneaky you’ve been lately.”

“It’s not intentional. It’s a personal matter. My mother’s been shot and her nurse was attacked. I want to protect them, that’s all.”

Wade seemed marginally placated by that.

“Maybe I should take a leave of absence,” Thad offered. “My mother is going to be released from the hospital soon and I’d like to be home with her while she recovers.”

Wade didn’t believe him. He thought Thad would run his own investigation on his mother’s shooter. He was, but that didn’t have to be confessed.

“I need you here,” Wade said.

Where he could keep an eye on him. “I need to be with my mother. She’s got a long recovery ahead of her. She needs me.”

He watched Wade consider it. Would he really stop him from being with his mother—especially when she was almost murdered? Employees were entitled to take time off. Wade could find a way to get rid of him for it, cover up the true reason with other documented infractions, but Thad didn’t think he’d take on that fight. And fight Thad would.

“You have one month. You start snooping around on the Kate Winston investigation, I’ll find out about it.”

Maybe he would, maybe he wouldn’t. Thad decided it didn’t matter. The only thing that did matter was putting the shooter behind bars.

* * *

Thad picked Lucy up five minutes early. Punctual. Lucy liked that. She liked too many things about him, a man who didn’t agree with marriage. Not that she meant to set out to marry him. He was disqualified from the start. And that’s what ruined all of the fun. Cam had looked good on paper but in person he’d done nothing for her. Thad was different. He’d probably look good on paper and he definitely did something for her in person.

Thad parked in front of the Westside Library, an old, two-story building on a quiet street corner. After performing his job to make sure Cam wasn’t following them, he lifted the box of children’s books Lucy brought along out of the backseat of his car.

Walking beside him toward the library, she was so glad he was here. Last night, she’d been afraid Cam would find out where she lived and come to her house. She hadn’t slept very well.

She opened the library door for Thad, who easily carried the box of books inside. This was her favorite part about volunteering for a literacy program. She’d gotten the books from a local festival that had gathered donations for tonight’s event. Lucy was supposed to read a short story to the kids, but she had her own idea. Besides, she wanted them to do the reading. That’s how they learned.

Inside, she led Thad to one of the meeting rooms. She could hear the kids already. It was playtime until her program began.

She checked on Thad, who looked ahead to where the noise was coming from, his brow low with dread.

“Kids aren’t complicated,” she said. “Just go with it. Be a kid again yourself if that helps.”

“I’m okay.”

She smiled at his false bravado and then led him into the room. It wasn’t a large room. There were four round tables and a small platform where she was supposed to sit on a stool and read while they followed in their own copies.

Thad put the box down on the nearest table, and Edith noticed their arrival.

“All right, everybody,” Edith said, an older, plump woman in a pink dress who was in charge of this event. She clapped her hands. “Take a seat.” Parents sat talking at one of the tables in the back. Some of them dropped their kids off and picked them up after the two-hour session was over.

Edith was a retired schoolteacher who inherited a comfortable sum from her mother and who wasn’t ready to stop teaching.

The yelling and running around slowly calmed. Boys and girls scurried for seats at the tables, swinging feet and fiddling with the books in front of them.

Lucy had to stop a quick laugh when she saw how Thad stiffened and watched out for small torpedoes with feet.

Lucy spotted seven-year-old Sophie charging toward her. She crouched for the impact of the girl’s hug.

“Lucy! Lucy!”

Lucy’s heart soared with affection. Why this youngster had taken to her so tightly, Lucy couldn’t guess, but it warmed her to the nth degree.

“Hey there, Sophie.” Sophie Cambridge was a special little girl. Recently orphaned after her mother was killed in a car accident and her father hadn’t stepped forward to take responsibility for her, she’d been thrust into the hands of the state. Her studies in school had rapidly declined, as anyone would expect.

She ruffled the child’s thick head of shoulder-length light brown hair. “How’s my girl?”

“I read a book!” Her golden-brown eyes were alight with innocent pride.

“You did? Which one?” Sophie reached out for approval whenever she could.

“A red dog.”

“A Clifford book? Good for you!” Sophie was behind the others in her class in reading. Lucy was sure she’d struggled with the book. “Did Rosanna help you with it?”

Sophie’s face fell, and she shook her head. “She had to do dishes.”

Housework was more important than a child’s ability to read? Rosanna seemed like a good foster mom. Lucy searched for her in the room and didn’t see her. “Where is she?”

Sophie shrugged.

Rosanna had dropped her off and hadn’t stayed for the program. Something must have come up. “Well, that’s okay. At least you’re here. Are you ready for a story?”

The child’s face beamed once again, and she nodded vigorously.

Lucy steered her to the table where Thad stood. Sophie grew shy when she saw Thad towering over her, but she sat down as Lucy guided. She’d be good for him. Nothing like a sweet seven-year-old to melt a few cubes of ice around a heart.

“Take a seat here.” Lucy pointed to a chair and waited for Thad to register her command. He looked from the girl to the chair and then Lucy.

“She won’t bite.” Wow. Was he really this awkward with kids? The hero cop had a handicap.

He saw how Sophie eyed him uncertainly and sat down. “Hi.”

Sophie glanced up at Lucy. “Thad is a police officer, Sophie. You’re safe with him.”

Sophie wasn’t convinced, staying in her shy shell that had probably intensified since her mother had died.

Edith came over and Lucy introduced him to her and Sophie. The old woman studied the handsome man and then turned speculative eyes to Lucy. Lucy never brought anyone to her literacy volunteer job and Edith was well aware of her hunt for a husband. Helping kids read better was a deep part of her, a part that meant a lot to her. She didn’t share her love of written words and belief that all children should be able to read them with just anyone. Reading was intelligence, and with intelligence, kids could make their dreams come true.

Lucy held up the book to Edith. “We aren’t going to start with this. I have a story I’m going to tell first.”

Edith smiled with her good-humored reproach. “In one of your moods, huh?”

Every once in a while she broke free of the expected and went with whimsy. She began to pass out the box of books, and Edith helped, announcing to the room of kids, most of whom hadn’t settled down yet, “Quiet down now. It’s time to start.”

Lucy took a seat on the stool and waited for the buzz of children’s voices to go silent.

“Before we read from the book you each have in your hands, I’m going to tell you a story,” Lucy began, capturing the attention of ten young faces. Stirring their imagination was her favorite part. “It’s a true story about a girl from New York. She lived a long time ago, long before any of you were born. She was an orphan who wanted to learn all she could about the world.” Lucy saw Sophie listening with wide eyes, immediately connecting to the girl in Lucy’s story. It’s what Lucy had intended. “Imagene Evertine ran away from her mean stepmother and went to live in a library. At the library, she could read all the books she wanted and could learn about the world. She taught herself how to read, and read she did. She read and read and read.”

Lucy paused and met each one of the children’s faces. “Imagene lived a long and happy life. She got married and had kids of her own, who she taught to read and took to the library where she grew up. Like all people, one day Imagene became old and, at last, God said it was time for her to come to Heaven. He had a calling for her. A job. So after she passed here on Earth, she took over as Heaven’s chief librarian. She’s still there today, happily making sure all children have books to read.” Lucy held up the one she was going to read tonight. “That’s where these came from.”

Murmurs spread across the tables, and some of the parents exchanged knowing smiles. Thad sat back on his chair and smirked at her.

“Did she give them to you?” one of the boys asked. He was about six.

Lucy nodded. “Yes. I know Imagene very well.”

“Does she really give you books for us?” a little girl asked.

“Oh, yes.” Lucy nodded.

“She was an orphan?” Sophie asked.

“Yes, except she grew up in a library, not a foster home. And no one adopted her.”

Sophie mulled over that, too serious of an issue for a child.

“But she was very successful and happy her whole life,” Lucy said, giving the girl more to ponder.

She didn’t let her ponder too long. She began reading from the book. On words she suspected would be difficult for this crowd to read, she spent extra time pronouncing them and used a whiteboard to write them out and explain what they meant and why they were spelled the way they were before moving on in the story.

* * *

Two hours later, Lucy’s mouth was dry and she sipped from a bottle of water Edith had given her. After closing the book, she looked up to see Rosanna sitting at one of the tables in the back with all the other parents. Kids dispersed, meeting up with their parent or both parents, depending on who’d brought them here. Rosanna went over to the table where Sophie sat. She hadn’t gone to her foster mom.

Lucy went over there.

Rosanna smiled. “You do such a fantastic job with these kids.”

“Thank you. I enjoy teaching them.”

Thad stood. “I especially liked the true story.”

Lucy didn’t miss the way he said “true story” and smothered a smile and introduced him to Rosanna.

“What do you think, Sophie, you ready to go home?” Rosanna held out her hand to the girl.

Sophie didn’t take it and stood, turning to Lucy. “I was thinking. Imagene lived in a library, why can’t I live where I want?”

Rosanna looked at Lucy, perplexed. She hadn’t been here when she’d told the story.

“Where do you want to live?” Lucy asked, keeping her wariness out of her tone.

“Well...” Sophie hedged. “I was thinking maybe I could live with you.”

“Me?” Lucy was shocked. Where had this come from? Her story about Imagene? Lucy checked on Rosanna, who seemed hurt.

“The people who brought you to me won’t let her, honey,” Rosanna said. “Let’s go home and make chocolate milk.”

That worked to lift Sophie’s spirits some.

As Rosanna met Lucy’s gaze, Lucy wondered if she’d imagined the somber self-awareness in the foster mom. Was something bothering her and had Sophie picked up on it? Sophie had never behaved this way before, as though she dreaded going home with Rosanna.

“Come on.” Rosanna took Sophie’s hand.

Sophie looked sullenly back at Lucy, whose heart melted with the sight.

Thad moved to stand beside her.

Lucy shook her emotions back into line and gathered her purse. “Ready?”

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“What do you mean?” Had he noticed what she had?

“Is Sophie okay? Is there something going on with her mother?”

“That’s not her mother. Rosanna is a foster mom. Sophie’s mother died in a car accident almost two years ago, and her father wouldn’t take responsibility for her. She doesn’t have any other family. Her mother had no siblings and her parents aren’t alive anymore.”

Lucy waved to Edith and walked with Thad out of the room.

“That’s tragic,” Thad finally said.

He seemed at odds with learning that news, as though it had touched him but he wasn’t sure what to do with how it made him feel. Lucy suspected he needed to feel more when it came to kids and love. He probably hadn’t been exposed to much of either.

“Is anyone going to adopt her?” he asked.

“I’m sure someone will come along. She’s an adorable little girl.”

They left the building and walked to Thad’s car. He opened the passenger side for her and she got in.

“My mother is being released from the hospital on Monday morning,” he said when he sat behind the wheel and started driving.

“I heard.” Why was he bringing that up now?

“It would mean a lot to her if you’d go with her,” he said.

Lucy wasn’t so sure that was a good idea. It wasn’t in her plans. And she never liked it when people made plans for her.

“She talked to your boss.”

Lucy shot a look his way. “What?” Without talking to her first?

“He supports you helping her.”

She was too stunned to respond right away. Of course her boss had to agree. Kate had been the vice president of the United States!

“Your job will be waiting for you after my mother is fully recovered,” he said.

“So I’m to report to your mother’s house and be her home care nurse? Just like that?” she finally asked.

He glanced over at her. “No. I’m asking you. My mother spoke to your boss to help sway you to agree, that’s all. She would like you to say yes.”

Lucy relaxed and wondered if she’d overreacted. She had a choice. She could refuse and go on with her life. Or she could agree and go on a mini adventure.

She looked over at Thad’s profile. It was too dark in the car to see his hazel eyes, but she remembered well that they had hints of gold and green. She took in the rest of him, his messy hair that wasn’t really messy, his broad shoulders, his trim hips.

That’s when she realized he was the only thing stopping her from saying yes. And she shouldn’t allow that. So he had an unconventional outlook on marriage and family. So she was attracted to him. She wasn’t afraid of falling in love with him...was she?

Regardless, she refused to let that be her deciding factor. Kate needed her. “All right. I’ll do it.”

As he pulled to a stop in front of her house, a sexy grin lifted his mouth, creasing the skin slightly on each side.

Mesmerized, Lucy remained seated in the vehicle while Thad walked around and opened her door. When he extended his hand, she took it, and he guided her out.

It seemed natural for that moment that he accompany her to her door. It would be old-fashioned if not for Cam’s frightening behavior.

“Would you like me to take a look inside?” he asked.

She’d locked everything tight before leaving. But the assurance would be nice so she said yes.

Unlocking the door, she felt him touch her hand when she reached to turn the knob.

“Me first,” he said in that deep, gravelly voice that shouldn’t be doing hot things to her.

She stepped aside, and he entered. Following, she watched him check her living room, opening closets and turning on more lights than she’d left on before leaving. All of the rooms were small in her old house, but the previous owners had renovated the kitchen and opened the space. Her long and narrow kitchen was visible over the snack bar. Pendant and recessed lighting illuminated white cabinets and dark granite countertops.

Lucy waited in the living room for him to finish his search. It didn’t take long. When he returned downstairs, he came to stop before her.

“Did you scare the boogeyman away for me?”

“No boogeyman. Not under your bed. Not in any closet. You’re safe.”

There was that sexy grin again. He liked being with her as much as she liked being with him right now. That indelible energy wouldn’t cool.

His grin faded as they continued to stand close and look at each other, the consequences of allowing passion to take flight settling in. As with her, temptation made him yearn for him to stay, but leaving was the smart action.

“I should go,” he said.

“Yes.”

Neither one of them moved.

Lucy breathed a wry, awkward laugh. He reacted with more heat going into his eyes. The awkwardness fell away and suddenly it became incredibly important to her to explore where this would lead.

He took a single step toward her. She lifted her face so that it was just beneath his, anticipation building. Her skin flushed and a shaky breath eased out of her. His face lowered, maybe an inch. His gaze fluttered from her mouth to her eyes, where it stayed. And then as quickly as the heat had rushed upon them, he withdrew and stepped back.

“Good night,” he said, and walked out the door.

Lucy went there and turned the dead bolt, resting her forehead against the wood, unanswered and unsatisfied desire churning inside of her.

Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.