“Hey, that’s no joke. The two of you are a fire hazard.”
He stroked her face and smiled, a smile that ran so deep he’d never known he could feel so much love for one person. “You’re too late,” he told Colton. “The blaze is already a raging inferno.” He pulled his hand through her hair and stared into her eyes. “I’m so sorry I ever doubted you, Holly. I was being stupid and irrational. I know you would never betray me.”
“I wouldn’t.”
“I tried to come back for you sooner. I got here as soon as I could.”
“I know. You came just in time. Mason had the gun to my head. I thought I was about to die.”
Her words stung him like a thousand bug bites and he groused angrily. Why hadn’t he returned sooner?
“My last thought was of you, Blake Michaels, and how much I love you.” She touched his face and her voice choked. “I thought I would never get to see you again. I love you. I know it’s quick and I know you might think we don’t know one another well enough yet, but I won’t deny it anymore.”
“I love you, too, Holly Mathis. You’re right. It is too soon and we hardly know each other, but I never want to spend another moment apart from you. Will you marry me?”
It seemed her entire body was full of joy, so much so that it wouldn’t even contain it. She smiled and nodded, barely able to speak. “I will,” she finally managed to squeak out between her tears. “I would love to marry you. Now take me in your arms and kiss me.”
He thought his heart would burst from his chest with the wellspring of happiness that flooded him. In an instant he knew that anything he’d ever felt for Miranda paled in comparison to his love for Holly. This was real. This was true love. “Yes, ma’am,” he said then pulled her into his arms and kissed her long and lovingly.
This was where he wanted to be and it couldn’t be more perfect.
EPILOGUE
Holly stared in awe at the colors that lined the sky as the sun set on a perfect day. She’d celebrated with Blake at the wedding of his friends Colton and Laura. They, as well as the other Rangers and their wives and girlfriends, had made her feel so welcome and accepted into their obviously tight-knit group. Now she was standing on Blake’s back porch in Compton, Louisiana, watching God show off His creativity. It all seemed a far cry from only two weeks ago when they’d been fighting for their lives in Northshore.
She sensed Blake’s presence as he emerged from the house and wrapped his arms around her. She leaned into his protective embrace. This was where she wanted to live, right here in his arms, but she couldn’t. She had to make plans for her future.
She hadn’t set foot back in Northshore since the federal government had swooped in and taken over the town. Chief Waggoner had been arrested along with Gabriel and twenty-eight other people found culpable in the drug manufacturing and distribution organization.
And the corruption hadn’t been limited to the police force, either. The DEA had uncovered evidence naming local businessmen, tourist facilities and even high-level hospital employees. It broke her heart to realize her town had been infected with corruption and that it had prevailed for so long. Jimmy had seen it and fought against it and now, thanks to Blake, it had been stamped out. But the town was a shell of what it had once been and Holly knew their tourism would take a hit next year. The only bright spot was that Pastor Dave had been released unharmed from the jail when the agents had taken over.
Truthfully, she didn’t even know if she wanted to return. Her life there had also been decimated, yet she had to admit that God had already started the healing process. He was truly repaying her for what had been taken.
She turned and stared up into Blake’s face. She didn’t know what her future held, but she knew she wanted this man to be a part of it. She hoped he felt the same way. He’d asked her to marry him two weeks ago after the ordeal with Mason had ended, but he hadn’t mentioned it again. Had he misspoke in the heat of the moment? Or had he changed his mind completely?
He examined her now. “What are you thinking about so intently?” he asked.
Embarrassment caused her face to flush. Didn’t he know she was always thinking of him? “I was wondering about my future. I need to start making some plans.”
He nodded. “I was thinking about that, too.”
“You were?”
He nodded. “The DEA offered me a job working as a field agent, but it would require me to be gone most of the time working undercover.”
Her heart fell but she tried not to let it show in her expression. He was going to take another dangerous assignment and be gone for months on end. She’d known this was the kind of man he was yet she wasn’t prepared for the stab at her heart his plans caused her. But she couldn’t let him know how it affected her. She hadn’t wanted to fall for a risk-taker again, but she had. Now she had to live with her choice. She steadied her voice. “That sounds like a great opportunity for you.”
He touched her face, his finger playing with a wisp of hair on her forehead. “It would be...if I were going to accept it. I’m not. Trust me, I’ve had my fill of undercover work. Too many secrets to keep. I prefer the transparency of good, honest police work.” He gave her a wry smile. “And I just so happen to know there’s a job opening for chief of police in Northshore.”
The elation she felt only moments ago faded. “Wait, you want to go back to Northshore?”
“You don’t?”
“I don’t know. I’m not sure. That town took so much from me. How can it ever feel like home again?”
“It’s up to us to make it a home, Holly. There’s a lot of rebuilding of trust to be done. Bitterness and hopelessness were so much a part of life there for so long. It’ll be hard to believe in anything else, but I have faith that we can make a difference there.”
He pulled away from her. “But I won’t go without you. From now on, wherever we go, we go together.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out something. Her breath caught when she realized it was a ring. “I asked you a very important question a while back and you said yes. I hope your answer hasn’t changed.”
Hot, happy tears threatened her eyes as she looked up into his blue eyes and saw the only future she cared about—a future as a wife to this man. “It hasn’t,” she whispered. “I love you, Blake, and if you’re going back to Northshore, then so am I.”
He slipped the ring on her finger and she leaned into him for a kiss that sealed their future. In that moment she knew God had truly restored to her what the locusts ate. And with hard work and faith, she knew He could restore her town, as well, and make it a place she and Blake could call home.
* * * * *
If you liked this story, pick up these other RANGERS UNDER FIRE books by Virginia Vaughan:
YULETIDE ABDUCTION
REUNION MISSION
RANCH REFUGE
MISTLETOE REUNION THREAT
Available now from Love Inspired!
Find more great reads at www.LoveInspired.com
Keep reading for an excerpt from QUEST FOR JUSTICE by Kathleen Tailer.
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Dear Reader,
After I wrote Ranch Refuge, I had many people ask me if Blake would get his own story. I was happy to tell them he would! I loved giving Blake his second chance at love in Mission Undercover. Only, after his fiancée’s bitter betrayal, Blake is struggling to trust anyone, especially himself.
Usually we get into our biggest messes by relying on our own judgment instead of listening for God’s guidance. Proverbs 3:5–6 reminds us to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to H
im, and He will make your paths straight.” It’s a truth we all need to be reminded of from time to time.
I love hearing from my readers! You can contact me through my website, virginiavaughanonline.com, or through the publisher.
Blessings!
Virginia
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Quest for Justice
by Kathleen Tailer
ONE
Bailey Cox eased carefully up to the corner of the building, her 9 mm Glock locked and loaded, but pointed at the darkened sky above her. Her finger tensed near the trigger as she moved slowly along the wall, sticking to the shadows. Her heart slammed wildly against her chest. She heard movement up ahead and voices, but they were muffled and she couldn’t recognize them, or hear what they were saying. All she could tell was that they were angry. She moved closer, still not sure what to make of the situation. Her father, a private investigator, had texted her half an hour ago, asking her to rush over to his office because he’d had a break in the case he was working on and he needed her help.
Even though it was after 2:00 a.m., she hadn’t hesitated and had headed out the door as soon as she had received her father’s message. Bailey was used to staying up late and actually did her best thinking in the wee hours of the morning. She hadn’t expected trouble but was now glad that she always traveled with her pistol.
When she’d arrived at her father’s office, she’d found the door cracked open and the small office abandoned. The light had still been on, and her father’s coffee was still steaming on his desk, so he had to be nearby. It wasn’t like him to call her and then not be there when she arrived. A tingle of fear shot down her spine. She’d heard noises in the alley behind her father’s office building and had followed them, having no other clues to lead her.
The voices got louder. She eased around another corner and could barely make out two men arguing near a dark sedan parked by the Dumpster. The trunk door was open, and the men were gesturing toward its contents with angry waves. To her disappointment, neither man was her father. Still, she was glued to the argument as it played out in front of her. One of the men, dressed in a dark sweatshirt, moved closer to the car and kicked angrily at the bumper. They weren’t arguing in a language she understood, which ruled out English, Spanish and French. If anything, she guessed it sounded Slavic, but she was no expert. A soft light emanated from a nearby street lamp, but it wasn’t giving off enough light to help her identify either of the two men. Both had pale skin. The one in the sweatshirt had dark bushy hair. The other was in jeans and a black T-shirt and had dirty blond hair. Both were muscular and well built. The blond’s face was red and seemed to darken with each passing minute as his anger consumed him. She edged closer.
“Freeze, or the next step you take will be your last.” The words were whispered but as hard as steel. Bailey felt the cold metal barrel of the pistol against her neck and did as ordered. She hadn’t heard anyone behind her and was instantly angry at herself for letting someone sneak up on her like that. She had been so focused on the men’s argument that she had totally failed to watch her six. She tried to turn to see who was holding a gun on her, but as she did so, the gun pushed harder against her skin. She prayed the aggressor wasn’t a friend of the two Slavic men.
“I said freeze. That doesn’t mean move. Got it?” The deep voice was masculine and as cold as ice, but it also sounded familiar. Did she know this man? Her mind reeled. Even though he had spoken softly, a seed of dread was planted in her chest and she suddenly felt short of breath.
It couldn’t be. Not here. Not now.
She almost wanted her assailant to speak again so she could prove herself mistaken. It couldn’t be him. There was only one man on the planet who hated her and always thought the worst of her—Franklin Kennedy. She hadn’t seen or heard from Kennedy in years, but she was certain Kennedy was still a cop. He was the kind of man who was born to work in law enforcement and would toe the line until he either got killed in the line of duty or retired to work in some security firm. He was a cop, through and through. He was also a straight arrow that never bent, regardless of the circumstances. But why would Kennedy be here at her father’s office at two in the morning?
“Hands up. Slowly.”
The voice was gritty, but still spoken so softly that she couldn’t verify that it was Kennedy. The gun twisted slightly against her skin and she tensed, then she slowly raised her hands. The man reached forward and took her Glock and stowed it, then roughly shoved her up against the brick wall and frisked her, removing the small knife she had hidden in her waistband and the second pistol she’d secured in her ankle holster. He moved in closer so only she could hear his voice. She could even feel his exhalations warm against her neck and smell the mint from his breath. “Got any more hardware I should know about?”
“No,” she answered softly, unable to keep the frustration out of her voice. “Look, I’m not trying to make trouble. My father called and when I got here, he wasn’t in his office...” She tried to turn around to explain herself face-to-face, but he stopped her before she could turn, grabbed her wrists with one hand and cuffed her with the other.
“We got a report that there was a disturbance in this alley. The caller heard a gunshot, and you’ve got a gun. You have the right to remain silent. I suggest you exercise that right until we get this sorted out.” He tightened the manacles until they bit into her skin. It was Kennedy. She was sure of it now. She didn’t know how or why, but Franklin Kennedy now had her cuffed for the second time in her life. The first had been a living nightmare. She hoped this time wouldn’t be a repeat. She pulled against the cuffs as frustration filled her.
“Easy.” His voice was still low, and when he paused, she imagined he was listening to other policemen through an earpiece. When he spoke again, he wasn’t talking to her and her suspicions were confirmed.
“Roger that. I’ve got one suspect in cuffs. You’re a go. Repeat, you’re a go.”
Suddenly she heard screeching tires and blue police lights lit up the side of the building. The yelling around the corner escalated, but now it wasn’t the foreign language she heard, but cops yelling at the two suspects to halt and put their hands up. The men didn’t obey though, and she heard running and more shouting, but thankfully it sounded like they were moving away from her instead of getting closer. A few seconds later, gunfire erupted. Kennedy instantly pushed her to the ground, shielding her with his body, his own gun drawn, ready to shoot if they were threatened. For the first time, she got a glimpse of his face.
Clean-cut. Bold, direct features. It was Franklin Kennedy, alright. A spike of adrenaline soared through her veins.
“Stay low. Got it?” he growled.<
br />
He didn’t wait for an answer and kept his eyes peeled on the area around them.
Bailey’s fear erupted. What was going on? First her father had sent her that bizarre text, and the next thing she knew she was handcuffed by her nemesis just a block or so away from a gun battle. Was her father caught in the middle? Was he even involved at all? Questions filled her mind, as well as a sense of dread. None of this could be good. Being handcuffed and forced to give up her weapons hadn’t helped matters. How was she going to help her father if she was under arrest?
The bullets stopped flying and she felt Kennedy relax against her. He stood and pulled her to her feet. It was only then that he took a good look at his prisoner’s face. His eyes widened and then narrowed.
“Bailey Cox?”
“In the flesh,” she said with a touch of sass and then instantly regretted her tone. The last thing she needed to do was antagonize Kennedy while she was handcuffed and once again at his mercy.
He shifted, started to say something, apparently thought better of it and shook his head. Finally, he muttered, “I never thought I’d see you again.”
“Same here,” Bailey agreed.
“How long has it been? Five years?”
“Six.” She said under her breath, “Six very long years.”
He ignored her comment and a wave of anger seemed to sweep over him. “What are you doing armed to the teeth out here in the middle of the night?”
“My father is a private investigator and his office is in this building. He sent me a text and asked me to come over, so here I am. And I don’t go anywhere unarmed.”
Kennedy raised an eyebrow.
“Don’t worry. I have a permit for the guns. It’s in my wallet.”
He raised his eyebrow and she continued. “I petitioned the court and got my rights reinstated. I’m allowed to carry a weapon.” She swallowed. She would rather do anything else than ask for his help, but, at this point, she didn’t have a choice.
Mission Undercover Page 18
