Cold Case at Cobra Creek

Home > Other > Cold Case at Cobra Creek > Page 19
Cold Case at Cobra Creek Page 19

by Rita Herron


  To have Benji and Sage in his life forever?

  Sage looked up at him with a tentative smile, but Benji vaulted up and leaned over the porch rail. “Your horse is cool, Mr. Dugan.”

  Gone was the traumatized kid from the night before. One night at home with his mother had the boy smiling and at ease.

  “Thanks. If your mama agrees, I’ll take you riding sometime.”

  Sage stood, walked to the rail and leaned over it, then looked down at him. “Maybe you can take us both out?”

  The subtle question in her eyes made him smile. Was she flirting with him?

  “Maybe I will,” he said with a wink.

  She laughed softly in response, and he realized she was flirting.

  One night with her son had erased the shadows and pain from her eyes.

  Benji ran down the steps. “Can I pet him?”

  “Sure.” Dugan showed him how to gently rub the horse’s mane.

  “We brought dinner for you,” Sage said. “That is, if you don’t have plans.”

  Dugan met her gaze. “That was real nice of you.”

  She walked down the steps and rubbed a finger along his arm. “It wasn’t nice. I missed you, Dugan.”

  He liked this side of her. He angled his head, heat sizzling between them. And something more. An attraction that went far beneath the surface. He admired her. Liked her.

  Loved her.

  “I missed you, too,” he said in a gruff voice.

  For a brief moment, his breath stalled as he waited on her to make the next move.

  Finally she lifted a finger to his lips. “Did you?”

  A grin split his face. She was fishing for a compliment? “Yes.” He suddenly couldn’t help himself. That big rambling farmhouse needed her and Benji in it.

  He yanked her up against him. “I’m in love with you, Sage.”

  Her eyes sparkled as she looped her arms around his neck. “Good, ’cause I’m in love with you, too.”

  Then she rose on her tiptoes, closed her lips over his and kissed him. Dugan had never felt anything so sweet, so wonderful.

  And suddenly he knew what being in a family was like. He would make one with Sage and Benji, and he would never let them go.

  * * * * *

  Look for award-winning author Rita Herron’s next book, COLD CASE IN CHEROKEE CROSSING,

  on sale in December 2014. You’ll find it

  wherever Harlequin Intrigue books are sold!

  Keep reading for an excerpt from DELIVERANCE AT CARDWELL RANCH by B.J. Daniels.

  We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin Intrigue story.

  You crave excitement! Harlequin Intrigue stories deal in serious romantic suspense, keeping you on the edge of your seat as resourceful, true-to-life women and strong, fearless men fight for survival.

  Enjoy six new stories from Harlequin Intrigue every month!

  Connect with us on Harlequin.com for info on our new releases, access to exclusive offers, free online reads and much more!

  Other ways to keep in touch:

  Harlequin.com/newsletters

  Facebook.com/HarlequinBooks

  Twitter.com/HarlequinBooks

  HarlequinBlog.com

  SPECIAL EXCERPT FROM

  Read on for a sneak peek of

  DELIVERANCE AT CARDWELL RANCH

  by New York Times bestselling author

  B.J. Daniels

  Part of the CARDWELL COUSINS series.

  Daniels delivers another Cardwell Ranch keeper with a woman on the run...

  and the lawman sworn to keep her safe.

  “Maybe you don’t understand the fine line between snooping and jail. Breaking and entering is—”

  “I’m going with you,” Donning a hat and gloves, Gillian turned to look at him.

  Austin was smiling at her as if amused.

  “What?” she asked, suddenly feeling uncomfortable under his scrutiny. She knew it was silly. He’d seen her at her absolute worst.

  “You just look so…cute,” he said. “Clearly breaking the law excites you.”

  She smiled in spite of herself. It had been a while since a man had complimented her. But it wasn’t breaking the law that excited her.

  She breathed in the freezing air. It stung her lungs, but made her feel more alive than she had in years. Fear drove her steps, along with hope.

  At the dark alley, Austin slowed. It was late enough that there were lights on in the houses.

  “Come on,” Austin said, and they started to turn down the alley.

  A vehicle came around the corner, moving slowly. Gillian felt the headlights wash over them and let out a worried sound as she froze in midstep.

  Her moment of panic didn’t subside when she saw that it was a sheriff’s department vehicle.

  “Austin?” she whispered, not sure what to do.

  He turned to her and pulled her into his arms. Her mouth opened in surprise and the next thing she knew, he was kissing her. At first she was too stunned to react. But after a moment, she put her arms around his neck and lost herself in the kiss.

  As the headlights of the sheriff’s car washed over them, she gave a small helpless moan when Austin deepened the kiss, drawing her even closer.

  The sheriff’s car went on past, and she felt a pang of regret. Slowly, Austin drew back a little. His gaze locked with hers, and for a moment they stood like that, quick, warm breaths coming out in white clouds.

  “Sorry.”

  She shook her head. She wasn’t sorry. She felt…lightheaded, happy, as if helium filled. She thought she might drift off into the night if he let go of her.

  “Are you okay?” he asked, looking worried.

  She touched the tip of her tongue to her lower lip. “Great. Never better.”

  Find out what happens next in

  DELIVERANCE AT CARDWELL RANCH

  by New York Times bestselling author B.J. Daniels,

  available December 2014, only from Harlequin® Intrigue®.

  Copyright © 2014 by Barbara Heinlein

  ISBN-13: 9781460342213

  Cold Case at Cobra Creek

  Copyright © 2014 by Rita B. Herron

  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 are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and in other countries.

  www.Harlequin.com

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapte
r Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Excerpt

 

 

 


‹ Prev