Defensive Action

by Jenna Kernan

  “Did you know that my orders included leaving you behind?” he asked.

  “They did?”

  “Yes. I was authorized to use deadly force against anyone who interfered with or impeded my mission.”

  License to kill, she realized. How many times had she slowed him down? But she’d helped him, too. More than once.

  “I never wanted to let you go until, well, until I knew my chances were poor. I couldn’t risk your life again.”

  “That’s why you left me?”

  He nodded.

  “But I could have helped you! I did help you. And leaving me was not best for your mission.”

  “No, it wasn’t.”

  “So why did you do that?”

  He pressed his lips together. “Don’t you know?”

  She shook her head.

  “Because it was best for you.”

  She stepped closer, hope flickering in her hammering heart.

  “I’ve fallen in love with you, Haley. You are an amazing, brave and resourceful woman.”

  “Ryan?”

  “I don’t want to cut you loose. I want to wake up to see you in my bed every morning.”

  “You do?” she squeaked.

  “What do you think about that, Haley?”

  In answer she leaped into his arms and kissed him with all the joy and promise she had kept locked so tightly in her heart.

  When they finally came up for air, he was laughing and she was crying.

  “I want to meet your parents,” he said.

  “Now?”

  “As soon as possible.”

  “To thank them?” she asked, hoping she had guessed wrong.

  “To ask their permission to marry their daughter. Their wonderful, fearless daughter.”

  Haley staggered back a step. He tethered her with one hand and then yanked until she fell flush against him.

  “I...I...think that could be arranged. But maybe we should have dinner a time or two first.”

  “If you think that’s best.”

  “So they’ll know we’re serious.”

  He chuckled. “Oh, we’re serious all right.”

  He threaded his fingers into her hair and kissed her again. When she came up for air, she saw a strange, unfamiliar look on his face, almost wistful.

  “What?” she asked as his brow swept low over dark eyes.

  “My mom would have loved you.”

  She made an involuntary sound in her throat at the sweetness of that sentiment.

  “I’m sure I would have loved her, too.”

  He clasped her hand and brought it to his mouth, brushing the lightest kiss across her knuckles.

  “I have a confession to make,” she said.

  His smile faded as he braced for bad news.

  “The FBI has tried to recruit me. Several times, in fact. But I make more money as a private contractor.”

  “You are too good for the FBI.”

  “You have no idea how good I am.”

  “Oh, I disagree with you on that one.”

  “Maybe I should consider the Company and the Bureau. Set up a bidding war between them.”

  “Maybe,” he said and laughed. His arm snaked around her waist and he squeezed. “It will be nice to have a brilliant fiancée who is in high demand.”

  “And to have a secret agent saving the world while taking only necessary risks. Right?”

  He laughed. “That sounds wise...for a married man.”

  Haley beamed up at him. “Are we really getting married?” she asked.

  “Appears that way.”

  “Do we plan on a honeymoon?” she asked.

  “That would be nice. Why? Do you have a spot picked out?” he asked.

  “Costa Rica.”

  He nodded, finding the spot appealing and surprising, just like his soon-to-be fiancée.

  “Why there?”

  “Because they have rainforests and a zip-line tour that runs right through them.”

  He laughed. “A zip line? Really?”

  She looped her hands around his neck.

  “Then we have to find a cliff jump.”

  “Sounds exciting.”

  “Yeah. I’m ready for some excitement.”

  “These last few days weren’t exciting enough?”

  “More like terrifying. But also just the first of many, many adventures together.”

  * * *

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Credible Alibi by Tyler Anne Snell.

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  Credible Alibi

  by Tyler Anne Snell

  Chapter One

  Julian Mercer didn’t know this woman from Eve and yet he knew exactly three things about her the moment her baby blues swung his way.

  One, she was hanging on to something that was heavy. As she made her way across the yard, following a path of mismatched stones embedded in the earth, there was an almost imperceptible drag to each step. Like there was an invisible weight on each shoulder that threw off a normal, happy gait. She was thinking of something and that something was difficult, whatever it was. Her polite, welcoming smile, which was required as the owner of the bed-and-breakfast, even had a tightness about it.

  Two, someone or something had hurt her. Not just physically—though Julian clocked the small but noticeable scar that broke the smoothness of her skin above the left cheekbone. In addition to the subtle, weighted steps she took toward him, there was a hesitation. So small, yet he was as sure as his own scars lining his body that it was there. It was like she wanted to meet him but at the same time wanted nothing more than for him to leave. Halfway between fight and flight. It intrigued and perturbed Julian all at once.

  And that third thing he knew about the golden-haired stranger making her way toward him?

  She was beautiful.

  Long braids thrown over each shoulder shone in the Tennessee sun and complemented a complexion formed by a life out in the elements instead of tucked in front of electronic screens. Crystal-blue irises took him in as his gaze dropped to the freckles dusting her cheeks. Those freckles, he had no doubt, probably made several other appearances across the skin of her arms and legs as well, but for now were hidden beneath a long-sleeved dress and a pair of black tights. It was a modest outfit, yet Julian didn’t miss the pleasant curves beneath the clinging fabric. She wore flats but only had to tilt her head up a fraction t
o see into his eyes as she came to a stop in front of him.

  “Well, you sure are punctual, aren’t you, Mr. Mercer?” She held out her hand.

  He shook it. “Is that a problem?”

  “Absolutely not.” Her polite smile stayed just as polite. “It’s just not that common around here. Most guests end up stopping along the road to take pictures. One time a couple showed up an hour late because they spotted a black bear hanging out in a tree.” She glanced down at her watch. It was one of those smart watches made for exercise. The time popped up on the screen as she moved her wrist slightly. “You said you were going to be here at eleven on the dot and here you are.”

  “You can thank my military training for that,” he said with a wry smile. “I don’t think I could be late for something if I wanted to.”

  She laughed. Julian made sure not to trace the scar against her cheek with his eyes again.

  “Well, either way, I’m happy you made it.” She angled her body and spread her arms wide toward the house. “I’m Madeline Nash, and this is the Hidden Hills Inn.”

  The bed-and-breakfast was aptly named. Near the heart of the very small town of Overlook, Tennessee, the road to the inn wound its way through fields, forests and hills. Mountains crested in the distance. No sound of cars or city life broke through them or the land they were boxing in. Julian had gone from big-city Tennessee to small-town Tennessee to this rural beauty. The inn was in the center of it all yet felt a world away from everything else.

  Julian appreciated the quiet, just as he did the privacy.

  “Let’s get you all signed in and then we can start the tour,” Madeline continued. He followed her up to the long covered porch. She paused before opening the front door. “I’m sorry but it wasn’t clear on the phone, are you expecting to meet someone here or are you traveling alone?”

  “It’s just me. I’m alone.”

  Madeline kept smiling. Customer service was in her wheelhouse and it showed. She kept to small talk without it ever feeling like small talk. After Julian signed in, she took him on a tour of the wide two-story house with all the best efforts of a seasoned host. From the common rooms to the private suites to the small bar that made up the surprisingly comfortable lounge at the back of the house, Madeline Nash made every space interesting and somehow intimate.

  When the tour concluded at the bottom of one of the two sets of stairs the house offered, his golden-haired tour guide fixed him with a grin.

  “I’ll leave you to it,” she said, already taking a step back. “If you need anything, don’t hesitate to call the number on the card in your room. Breakfast and dinner are served every morning and night at seven. There’s a list of activities and sights you might consider during your stay in a packet on your bed.”

  Julian had a flash of impulsive bravado. He almost asked the innkeeper if she ever considered accompanying guests to those sights and activities when a car door slammed outside. They both turned to the entryway window. A man with dark hair and a cowboy hat started up the walkway.

  Madeline didn’t say it out loud but she wasn’t happy to see him. Her already-tense body tightened. Yet her smile stayed where it was.

  “Again, if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask.”

  Julian tipped his head in acknowledgment as Madeline left through the front door, greeting the man. Instead of coming inside, they moved across the yard and disappeared from view. A part of Julian wanted to follow, to make sure she was okay, but then his senses came back.

  He didn’t know Madeline and thinking he had to protect her was foolish. His mother would have scolded him for his presumptions that the innkeeper was some kind of hurt, damaged woman in need of saving. For cripes’ sake, he’d only just met her.

  Julian knew from experience that there were more people walking the earth with scars than with smooth, untouched skin. That didn’t mean he had to try to save them all.

  That didn’t mean they needed saving in the first place.

  First impressions were tricky like that.

  The first smile was easy.

  It was everything after that got a little murky when trying to decipher them.

  His room was in the far corner of the second-floor landing. It was a big difference from the hotel rooms he’d been frequenting and, if he was being honest, the apartment he’d been living in the last several years. The room was spacious and stretched much wider than he thought was possible. Not only was there a king-size bed, there was an adjoining sitting area and a desk and a three-piece bathroom. He was surprised and happy to note that the showerhead was high enough to allow him to stand up straight beneath it, a luxury his apartment had never afforded him. In his Special Forces unit he’d been known as the Lumberjack. It wasn’t that inventive of a nickname but it was apt. Julian was built tall, wide and muscled like his father before him. Most times it translated into unintentional intimidation. Other times it meant he had to hunch over in the shower.

  Julian threw his bag down just as his phone started to ring.

  The caller ID read Chance Montgomery.

  “Mercer,” Julian greeted. He walked to one of the windows that ran along the room and looked through the blinds. He spotted Madeline at the table where she’d been sitting when he’d pulled up earlier. Her male companion stood across from her. Julian couldn’t get a read off of him.

  “You know, we’ve been friends for a few years now,” Chance said in his Southern twang. “Answering with a ‘hello’ or even a ‘howdy’ instead of your last name would make our conversations a little more casual and a little less like I’ve just accidentally called my old high school math teacher and she’s still mad about the gum I put on her chair that one time.”

  Julian chuckled.

  “Old habits die hard,” he responded, actively loosening his shoulders by rolling them. “Brevity and precision have been my friends in the military for a while now.”

  “Luckily for you, the private sector has a lot fewer friends.” He paused and then laughed. “Well, you know what I mean.”

  “It means I need to say ‘howdy’ apparently.”

  Chance laughed again.

  “You can’t see it but I’m giving you a type of salute you also wouldn’t find in the military. It has to do something with a certain finger.”

  They joked around for a few more minutes before Chance finally circled back to the reason for the call. Julian didn’t mind the chatter; in fact, it was one of the reasons he was headed to Chance’s workplace in Alabama. Chance, a cowboy by upbringing but, lately, a surprisingly skilled bodyguard, was one of the few civilian friends Julian had kept through his marine service over the last ten years. Julian not only liked him but was confident he could work alongside him, which was why he was interviewing at the private protection firm Chance’s uncle owned.

  “I just wanted to make sure you were stopping to smell the roses in Overlook and not rushing here,” Chance said, losing his earlier humor. “The interview isn’t until next week and as long as I’ve known you, you haven’t had a vacation, one that actually counted. So I’ll reiterate one more time and then let it go. Enjoy yourself, go watch a sunset, sleep in, buy a lady a drink. You’ll thank me for that advice when you’re out in Germany away from all the Southern hospitality you’ve been hitting on your way here.”

  Julian knew Chance was right. His last deployment before he officially left the military started the week after his interview. Then he would hopefully return to Alabama and finally, finally stay put for a while.

  “I’ll make sure to smell the roses,” Julian promised. “I’m here for two days and then on to Nashville for the next three. I should be at your place after that.”

  Chance must have thought this was acceptable. He ended the call without any more constructive criticism. Julian stayed at his spot by the window, admiring the curve of the mountain in the distance. Then his gaze dropp
ed to the innkeeper.

  Two days here and then he’d be one step closer to a new life.

  * * *

  “I’M NOT TRYING to destroy the family, Des.”

  Madeline Nash watched as her brother tried to save face moments after showing his backside. He took his dark gray Stetson, pressed it against his thigh and blew out a sigh she recognized as frustration.

  “I didn’t say that and you know it.”

  Madi pulled out her long braids, tamed the waves with her fingers and then sectioned her hair again. She separated it into three parts. Ever since she was a little girl she did what her eldest brother, Declan, had dubbed “angry-braiding.” It wasn’t like she could correct him. The evidence throughout her thirty years of life was fairly damning. Every scowl or frown captured in photographs or home movies was accompanied by long braids down her back or across her shoulders.

  Some people counted to ten to cool off; she made her hair more manageable.

  “You didn’t have to say the words, Des. You gave me that look and then that tone. Don’t for a minute deny it, either. Even outside our triplet telepathy I know your moods.”

  Desmond rolled his eyes. It was his trademark move for their disagreements.

  “All I asked was if you had been to the ranch lately,” Des countered. “I didn’t suggest you were destroying anything, let alone our family.”

  Madi tried not to let the guilt move into her gut again. Instead she channeled her irritation. Her hands went across her chest and her chin rose a fraction.

  “And why would you ask that? You’ve never asked about me going to the ranch before.”

  “Because up until three months ago, you lived on that ranch.”

  If Desmond had been anyone else, Madi would have blushed at how childish she knew she sounded. But he was her brother. So she huffed and pretended there was nothing wrong with what she’d just said. She finished the braid over her left shoulder, then looked at anything but him.

  “For your information, I had lunch with Ma and Nina a few weeks ago and it was lovely.”