Which gave him plenty of time to consider the real reason he remained unattached at the age of thirty-one. A reason that had far less to do with his military service than it did with his knack for tripping over his tongue and saying the wrong thing.
Six weeks later...
“AND THEY ALL LIVED HAPPILY ever after,” Lisa whispered, finishing the story for her own sake, though Tyler and the softly snoring Rowdy were both conked out after hours of raucous play.
Leaning forward to kiss the soft curve of her son’s cheek and smooth his tangled blankets, she reminded herself that this was the happily ever after she had prayed for during those dark nights in October. Nights in which she’d sworn that if Tyler were returned to her safely, she would never ask for anything again.
Would never dream of another fairy tale, especially not with a man she’d known from the start planned to leave town. A man who hadn’t even let her know where he was going.
Her heart ached with the memory of showing up at the home he had been renting and finding it had been vacated. But after she had so foolishly turned her back and walked out on him, avoiding him during all the days of questioning that took place before authorities had officially cleared them both, what had she expected?
It was for the best, she told herself as she headed downstairs, where her father was waiting to help her finish decorating the tree they had all picked out earlier. Between work and the more important job of raising her son, it wasn’t as if she had room in her life to build a future with a man who couldn’t put the past behind him.
Downstairs, she heard voices from the den and realized her father had abandoned his post to catch yet another football game. Smiling at his weakness for the sport, she shook her head, went over to the abandoned tree and began to hang the shiny red bulbs—a new set she had bought, vowing to build new memories—reminding herself to count her blessings with each one.
When she finished, she picked up the gaudy, glittering star Tyler had chosen and looked around for a chair so she could reach the top of the tree. But then the pocket door between the living room and the den slid open, and a tall man stepped into the room, the very man whose face she had been fighting so hard to banish from her dreams.
“Cole?”
“Don’t you screw this up again, boy,” her father called, grinning. Shifting his gaze to her, he added, “And you, sweetheart, this time you sit still and actually listen so I don’t have to suffer through your moping over the holidays.”
“Moping?” she asked, wanting to deny it, but her father merely shook his head as Cole slid the door closed. Looking at him, she said, “I wasn’t moping.”
“I was,” he admitted with a sheepish smile. “And I’ve been biting guys’ heads off at my new job.”
“You have a new job?” she asked, nervously fiddling with the star, her heart pounding.
“I do,” he said with a smile. “Turns out my old C.O. recommended me for a special critical response team. It’s a civilian law enforcement position that serves smaller communities throughout the state. They needed a good marksman to help save lives in hostage situations when negotiations break down and there’s no other option.
“After what happened in Lashkar Gah, I didn’t think I could ever do that work again,” he said, “but what we went through together reminded me that I can make a positive difference, a crucial difference, under stressful circumstances.”
“You made all the difference in the world for Tyler and me,” she said honestly. “If you can do that for other families, it’s wonderful, Cole, the greatest gift I can imagine. So, why are you biting people’s heads off and standing here looking so serious?”
“Because I’m so damned nervous.” His clear gray eyes locked with hers. “Scared to death I’ll say the wrong thing again, and this time I’ll lose you forever.”
“Lose me?” She shook her head. “But I thought you didn’t want me.”
“No, Lisa. God help me, that was never it at all. Far from it. I do want you, you and your son—all three of us together. But I couldn’t... Your forgiveness was one thing, a huge thing, but it never would have worked until I found some way to make peace with myself.”
“So have you, Cole?”
“I was shot that day in Afghanistan, too,” he said. “Ambushed on the way to respond. One of my men was killed and another critically injured, but I kept going, pushing. Until I saw the woman’s face in my scope. Saw the desperation in it.”
“She knew she was about to die.”
“Yes, and for just an instant I felt instead of acted—but I wasn’t there to empathize, or to wonder if she was being forced, and because I let myself wonder, that single second was enough to give her the chance to set off the bomb.”
“You were injured. You were human,” she said, compassion welling up inside her. “And you’ve proven since then that you’re more than capable of—”
“I just needed you to understood. To know all of it, before I could—” Taking the star from her, he set it down carefully on a lamp table before pulling her into his arms. “I’m finished living in the past, Lisa. And there’s no future that would make me happier than one that has you in it. I love you,” he said into her ear, his warm breath sending a delicious ripple through her body. “And I want nothing more than the chance to spend all the days and years of my life getting to know you even better. If you’ll only give me the chance to—”
“I’ll give you more than a chance,” she said. “I’ll give you everything, Cole.”
And then their lips met in a kiss that bound their fates and sealed their future. A kiss that vanquished bitter memories and helped them chart a path to forging new ones....
And at some point, hours later, allowed them to place a star together on the yuletide tree.
* * * * *
Keep reading for an excerpt of Wrangled by B.J. Daniels!
We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin Intrigue story.
You crave excitement! Harlequin Intrigue stories deal in serious suspense, keeping you on the edge of your seat as resourceful, true-to-life women and strong, fearless men fight for survival.
Visit Harlequin.com to find your next great read.
We like you—why not like us on Facebook: Facebook.com/HarlequinBooks
Follow us on Twitter: Twitter.com/HarlequinBooks
Read our blog for all the latest news on our authors and books: HarlequinBlog.com
Subscribe to our newsletter for special offers, new releases, and more!
Harlequin.com/newsletters
Harlequin and Mills & Boon are joining forces in a global search for new authors.
In September 2012 we’re launching our biggest contest yet—with the prize of being published by the world’s leader in romance fiction!
Look for more information on our website, www.soyouthinkyoucanwrite.com
So you think you can write? Show us!
Chapter One
The knock at the door surprised Zane Chisholm. He’d just spent the warm summer day in the saddle rounding up cattle. All he wanted to do was kick off his boots and hit the hay early. The last thing he wanted was company.
But whoever was knocking didn’t sound as if they were planning to go away anytime soon. Living at the end of a dirt road, he didn’t get uninvited company—other than one of his five brothers. So that narrows it down, he thought as he went to the window and peered out through the curtains.
The car parked outside was a compact, lime-green with Montana State University plates. Definitely not one of his brothers, he thought with a grin. Chisholm men wouldn’t be caught dead driving such a “girlie” car. Especially a lime-green one.
Even more odd was the young, willowy blonde pounding on his door. She must be lost and needing directions. Or she was selling something.
His curiosity piqued, he went to answer her persistent knock. As the door swung open, he saw that her eyes were blue and set wide in a classically gorgeous face. She wore a slinky red dress that fell over her body like water. The w
oman was a stunner.
She smiled warmly. “Hi.”
“Hi.” He waited, wondering what she wanted, and enjoying the view in the meantime.
Her smile slipped a little as she took in his worn jeans, his even more worn cowboy boots and the dirty Western shirt with a torn sleeve and a missing button.
“I wasn’t expecting company,” he said when he saw her apparent disappointment in his attire.
“Oh?” She looked confused now. “Did I get the night wrong? You’re Zane Chisholm and this is Friday, right?”
“Right.” He frowned. “Did we have a date or something?” He knew he’d never seen this woman before. No red-blooded American male would forget a woman like this.
She reached into her sparkly shoulder bag and pulled out a folded sheet of paper. “Your last email,” she said, handing it to him.
He took the paper, unfolded it and saw his email address. It appeared he had been corresponding with this woman for the past two days.
“If you forgot—”
“No,” he said quickly. “Please, come in and let’s see if we can sort this out.”
She stepped in but looked tentative, as if not so sure about him.
“Why don’t you start with how we met,” he said as he offered her a seat.
She sat on the edge of the couch. “The Evans rural internet dating service.”
“Arlene’s matchmaking business?” he asked in surprise. Arlene Evans, who was now Arlene Monroe, had started the business a few years ago to bring rural couples together.
“We’ve been visiting by email until you…”
“Asked you out,” he finished for her.
“Are you saying someone else has been using your email?”
“It sure looks that way, since I never signed up with Arlene’s matchmaking service. But,” he added quickly when he saw how upset she was, “I wouldn’t be surprised if Arlene is behind this. It wouldn’t be the first time she took it upon herself to play matchmaker.” Either that or his brothers were behind it as a joke, though that seemed unlikely. This beautiful woman was no joke.
She looked down at her hands in her lap. “I’m so embarrassed.” She quickly rose to her feet. “I should go.”
“No, wait,” he said, unable to shake the feeling that maybe this had been fate and that he would be making the biggest mistake of his life if he let this woman walk out now.
“You know, it wouldn’t take me long to jump in the shower and change if you’re still up for a date,” he said with a grin.
She hesitated. “Really? I mean, you don’t have to—”
“I want to. But you have the advantage over me. I don’t know your name.”
She smiled shyly. “Courtney Baxter.” She held out her hand. As he shook it, Zane thought, This night could change my life.
He had no idea how true that was going to be.
ISBN: 9781459238534
Copyright © 2012 by Colleen Thompson
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
Relentless Protector Page 19