Now he tilted his head. “That was not a scene. I have nothing to hide. Do you?”
She shuddered, unable to conceal her reaction. “If that’s not creepy, stalkerish behavior, I don’t know what it is. So I’ll ask you one more time, what do you want?”
“To help you.”
“Of course you do.” Unable to rein in her sarcastic response, she crossed her arms. “Out of the goodness of your heart, right? You don’t even know me. And I sure as hell don’t know you.”
“Cop instincts, I guess. I used to be a detective in the Albany Police Department. Your sheriff’s department can vouch for me.”
Wearily, she nodded. Jayne had said something of the sort. “You still haven’t told me what you want.”
“I’d like to offer my services,” he said, his gaze steady.
“No, thanks.” She shook her head.
“For a fee, if that will make you feel better. If you need protection, I can help.”
Dumbfounded despite herself, Emily looked away. Whatever she’d expected him to say, it hadn’t been this. The idea of having help of some kind—any kind—felt so seductive that she nearly swayed with relief.
But she didn’t...because she knew better. Despite his movie-star good looks and the tug of sexual attraction she felt when she looked at him, she couldn’t afford to trust him. She couldn’t allow herself the luxury of letting her guard down. The sins of her husband’s past were too numerous.
“Look, I appreciate your offer.” Softening her voice, she tried to appear as if she meant it. “In reality, I had a couple of blind dates with a guy who liked me way more than I liked him. I’m pretty sure that’s all this is.”
Devilishly handsome, he studied her. With his hawk-like features and his too-sharp blue eyes, everything about him spoke of inherent strength. Ah, but she knew better than most how appearances could be deceiving.
“Give me his name, and I’ll talk to him,” he said. “If it is him, I’ll make sure he doesn’t bother you again.”
She recoiled, unable to help herself. Her late husband had been such a man, promising to take care of her, keeping her shielded from the rest of the world. At first, she’d found this charming. It wasn’t until later that she’d realized she’d been slowly suffocating.
And when she’d found out her entire marriage, her entire life had all been nothing but a pack of lies, she’d known she shouldn’t have been surprised. But she was. And hurt and betrayed. She’d vowed she’d never be so blind again.
This was why, even though this man’s rugged profile made her want to melt inside, she wanted to play it safe and send him away—with a smile, if possible.
Because the last thing she needed was to make another enemy. God knows she had made enough of those already, thanks to Carlos.
ISBN: 9781459241824
Copyright © 2012 by Carla Bracale
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
® and ™ are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.
www.Harlequin.com
The Cowboy's Claim Page 20