Covert Kisses

by Jane Godman

  Sons of Stillwater: Jane Godman’s heart-stopping new miniseries where no one is who they seem...

  Coincidence? The beauty who washes up on Mayor Cameron Delaney’s private beach eerily resembles his dead girlfriend, Carla. But Laurie Carter, Carla’s lookalike cousin, is actually an undercover detective. She’s on the job, investigating Cameron’s connection to a human-trafficking ring. Laurie knows she must keep her cover—but she’s struggling to deceive the man she finds irresistible...

  When Cameron discovers why Laurie is in town, he’s furious to realize he’s being framed—and stunned at his sudden feelings for the lovely agent. But as they uncover the traffickers, a savage serial killer targets Laurie. Can Cameron save the life of the woman he’s come to care for...and unmask the threat haunting his family and Stillwater?

  “I’m not sure it’s safe for you to leave the cabin.”

  Laurie’s eyes shifted again to the window. It was completely dark now. “Cameron, I’m a police officer. I’ve worked undercover many times. I’ve felt afraid before, but never like I did when I was here alone.” Her eyes seemed huge as they met his.

  Cameron rose and went to the window, closing the drapes and shutting out the night. “Then we’ll just have to take care we don’t bump into our suspect.” He held out his hand. “Let’s get some sleep.”

  She rose, coming to him and placing her hand in his. “Sleep?” There was a trace of disappointment in her voice.

  “Among other things.”

  She rose on the tips of her toes, fitting the contours of her body intimately to his. “It’s the other things that have me interested.”

  * * *

  Sons of Stillwater: Danger lurks in a small

  Wyoming town

  * * *

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  Dear Reader,

  Covert Kisses is the first book in the Sons of Stillwater series. Thank you for joining me on this new adventure! Stillwater, Wyoming, is a beautiful place. Cradled low in the embrace of a towering mountain range, the town has been largely untouched by time and retains its historic buildings and Western charm.

  Cameron Delaney is Stillwater’s charismatic mayor and one of the area’s wealthiest businessmen. The good fortune he enjoys professionally has not been reflected in his personal life. Cameron is still grieving for his girlfriend, Carla, who died twelve months ago, when his world is rocked by the appearance of her double in Stillwater.

  Laurie has come to Stillwater for a reason. She is working undercover for the FBI investigating a drug and people trafficking ring, and Cameron Delaney is her prime suspect. Her likeness to Carla is the weapon she intends to use against him.

  The attraction between them is sizzling and instant. On Laurie’s part, this is unexpected and inconvenient. She can’t afford to have feelings for a man she intends to put behind bars.

  Laurie has only been in Stillwater a matter of days when her life is endangered. She is forced to seek help from the very man she has come to Stillwater to investigate.

  I’d love to hear from you and find out what you think of Cameron and Laurie’s story. You can contact me at www.janegodmanauthor.com, on Twitter, @JaneGodman and Facebook at Jane Godman Author.

  Happy reading,

  Jane

  COVERT KISSES

  Jane Godman

  Jane Godman writes in a variety of romance genres, including paranormal, gothic and romantic suspense. Jane lives in England and loves to travel to European cities that are steeped in history and romance—Venice, Dubrovnik and Vienna are among her favorites. Jane is married to a lovely man and is mom to two grown-up children.

  Books by Jane Godman

  Harlequin Romantic Suspense

  Sons of Stillwater

  Covert Kisses

  Harlequin Nocturne

  Otherworld Protector

  Otherworld Renegade

  Otherworld Challenger

  Immortal Billionaire

  The Unforgettable Wolf

  Harlequin E Shivers

  Legacy of Darkness

  Echoes in the Darkness

  Valley of Nightmares

  Darkness Unchained

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  This book is dedicated to Debbie, Dan and Luke.

  And Gravy. Because, somewhere in the world,

  there should be a book dedicated to a dog called Gravy.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Excerpt from Colton Undercover by Marie Ferrarella

  Chapter 1

  Take his breath away.

  That was her one and only aim for this first encounter, and Laurie Carter had three things working in her favor as she kept the target in her sights.

  First, there was the understated designer swimsuit that molded itself to her curves, while also cleverly drawing attention to the length of her legs.

  Then there was the fact that she was wading ashore onto his private lakeside property. As he sprang to his feet from the rock where he had been sitting gazing out across the water, no doubt he was about to point that fact out to her. Laurie did a rapid check, reconciling this man’s physical attributes with the photographs she had carefully memorized. Dark, wavy hair, swept back from a broad brow and worn slightly long so that it curled onto his neck. Deep-set eyes above high, Slavic cheekbones. A hawk-like nose and lips that were contrastingly full. She had the right man. There was no mistaking him. Tall and powerfully built, he moved toward her with the grace of an athlete, a frown line pulling his dark eyebrows together.

  Judging the distance between them to perfection, Laurie waited until he was close enough. As she fell into a pretend faint, she saw shock and something more register in the hazel depths of Cameron Delaney’s eyes. Advantage number three was always going to be the one that clinched it. As his reflexes kicked in and he scooped her up into his arms, Laurie let her head flop back, allowing him a clear view of her face.

  His exhalation was an audible hiss. Mission accomplished. The fact that she was trespassing on his land had been the thing that made him notice her. The swimsuit had drawn his attention to her curves and kept him looking. Neither of those things had succeeded in driving the breath from his lungs. That had been achieved for one reason only...because she was the mirror image of his dead girlfriend.

  * * *

  Pure adrenaline fired through Cameron Delaney’s nerve endings as he gazed down at the head resting against his arm. It’s not her. His head insisted on repeating that mantra, even as his heart tried to tell him a different story. Her eyes were closed, so he was free to drink in the features he thought he’d never see again.

  Subtle differences began to imprint themselves into his brain. Her weight in his arms felt different. She was an inch or two taller, a few pounds lighter than Carla. Her hair was a tumbling mass. Eve
n though this woman’s was wet, he could tell it was the same dark chestnut as Carla’s—although Carla’s had been longer and artfully streaked with lighter highlights. Carla’s skin tone had been a touch closer to gold than the pale porcelain he was studying so carefully now. This smattering of freckles would have been a cause for outrage if it had dared to spoil the perfection of Carla’s dainty nose and smooth cheeks. A corner of his mouth lifted in amusement as he imagined Carla’s horror at the prospect. My God, am I finally able to remember her with something other than guilt and sadness?

  The thought was chased away as the girl in his arms stirred. Her eyelids fluttered open, thick eyelashes lifting to reveal eyes that were a brilliant cornflower blue, a shade lighter than Carla’s. She fixed him with a slightly unfocused stare, then, apparently becoming aware of several things at once—she was in the arms of a complete stranger, her own state of undress and his naked torso in contact with her body—her eyes opened wide.

  “Oh, goodness!” Her voice was husky, deeper than he’d expected, her accent hard to place, but definitely not local. “I’m so sorry. I don’t make a habit of trespassing on private land and flopping into the arms of men I don’t know. You can put me down now.”

  “Are you sure you can stand?” It seemed incredible, impossible to be talking to someone who looked so much like Carla, yet wasn’t Carla. To not be asking her the dozens of questions that were chasing around inside his head.

  “No, but I’ll try...if you don’t mind lending me your arm.” She smiled as she spoke. In that single instant, the subtle physical differences ceased to matter. That smile was pure Carla. It was like an electric shock to his heart and a karate kick in his solar plexus at the same time.

  Carefully, Cameron lowered her to the ground. “Who are you?”

  As far as he knew, Carla had no family. Could two people who were not blood relatives bear such a striking physical resemblance to each other? The living proof that they could seemed to be standing right next to him.

  She clung onto his arm, testing her ability to remain upright. Apparently satisfied with the result, she let go and held out her hand. “Laurie Carter. It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Delaney.”

  Cameron raised his eyebrows as he shook the proffered hand. “You know who I am?”

  She smiled again. He might have to ask her to stop doing that. It was playing havoc with his heart rate. “Surely everyone in Stillwater knows who you are?”

  “But you’re not from around here.” He could make that statement with absolute certainty. Stillwater, Wyoming, was a closely knit community. He and Carla had been together for almost three years. During that time, someone would have mentioned the fact that the mayor’s partner had a double living in the county.

  “I was born here in Stillwater, but my dad died when I was three, so my mom went back home to her folks’ place in California. That’s where I was raised. I’m here on vacation...curious to see where I started life.” Laurie shivered, wrapping her arms around herself.

  Cameron silently cursed his own clumsiness. Were the biographical questions necessary when she’d sustained a severe shock? “Let’s go up to the house and you can warm up.”

  “Oh, hey—” she glanced up at the striking wood and glass structure, just visible through the pine trees bordering the lake, her teeth chattering slightly “—I don’t want to be any trouble.”

  Ignoring her protests, he smiled down at her. “It’s an election year. Rescuing tourists who get into difficulties is good for my public image.” Turning away for a second, he stooped to pick up the lightweight sweater he’d discarded when he came down to the beach. “Put this on.”

  “It’ll get wet...” Her protests faded at the determined look on his face. Taking the sweater from him, she slipped it on, tugging it down over her swimsuit. “Thank you.”

  “Didn’t anyone warn you how difficult it is to swim across the lake?” He gestured for her to precede him up the steps that were hewn into the rock face. The sight of those long, slim legs beneath his sweater did something to his insides. It was a sensation he hadn’t experienced for a long time.

  Laurie glanced back at him, a hint of mischief in her smile. “Actually, they did.”

  “But you didn’t listen?”

  One slender shoulder hunched in a hauntingly familiar gesture. “I’m a good swimmer. I’m also very stubborn. If someone tells me I can’t do something, it becomes the one thing I have to do.”

  Cameron’s heart clenched. Hard. It could be Carla talking. How many times had he cursed her obstinacy? She’d made him so mad that last night with her refusal to listen to reason...

  He realized Laurie was still speaking and forced himself to tune back in to what she was saying. “If I’d known I’d get a cramp and end up trespassing on your private land, I would have listened to the warnings.”

  He returned her smile. It was impossible not to. “I’m glad you didn’t.”

  * * *

  So far, so good. The house was amazing. All glass and natural wood, it perched above the rock face, jutting out over the lake so every room seemed to be suspended above the water.

  “It’s amazing.” Laurie stood at the full-length glass wall in the kitchen while Cameron made coffee. She had used the towel he gave her to get the worst of the lake water out of her hair. When it dried, she would look like a wild woman, but that couldn’t be helped. She was here, inside Cameron Delaney’s house. She’d take successful over well groomed any day. “Who designed it?”

  He paused, and she wondered if he was about to tell her the truth. She already knew the answer to her question, of course. Carla Bryan had been one of several architects to submit plans for this beach house. The youngest and most inexperienced, she’d won the contract and Cameron’s heart at the same time. It had all been in the file. The one Laurie had spent the last few weeks painstakingly memorizing.

  “The ideas were mine. It just needed a professional to bring them to life. Cream and sugar?”

  They took their drinks through to a large family room with floor-to-ceiling windows that opened onto a wraparound deck overlooking the lake. Furnished in colors reminiscent of the pine forest outside, the room managed to be elegant and comfortable at the same time. Tucking her legs under her, Laurie curled into one corner of a big, comfortable sofa.

  “Are you warm enough now?”

  She nodded. His sweater had done the trick. And it smelled delicious. Some sort of expensive cologne lingered in its folds. A woodsy, musky, peppery evocative scent that suited him perfectly. Because, my God, he was a stunning-looking man. Get a grip, Laurie. You knew that before you came here. It had all been in that file. No matter how hard she had tried to keep things businesslike during her research, her eyes had developed a tendency to linger a little too long over his photograph. Much in the way his gaze kept straying to her face right now. That was hardly surprising. As far as he was concerned, she was a dead woman come to life.

  “You said you’re here on vacation. What job do you do?”

  Keep it as close to the truth as possible. That was so important in this line of work. Like her name. If she strayed into an elaborate charade, it became too easy to slip up and get it wrong. “I’m an artist.” The freelance work she did in her spare time was a hobby rather than a career, but it had always worked well as a cover story.

  His raised brows told her she’d hit a nerve. Architect. Artist. She supposed it was close enough to hurt. “Will I have seen your work?”

  “Probably not. I illustrate children’s books.”

  “You must be good to make a living from it.” Was this the interrogation? So soon?

  Before she could respond, footsteps sounded on the hardwood floor and a voice called out, “Cam? That consignment from Pinedale...”

  The man who entered the room had to be related to Cameron. The family resemblance was too
strong for it to be otherwise. Mentally, Laurie reviewed the contents of the file. There was an older half brother, Vincente, and a younger brother, Bryce. Both men worked for Delaney Transportation. Assessing this man’s age in comparison with Cameron and recalling the family photographs, Laurie figured she was looking at Bryce Delaney. Her memory for detail kicked in. Twenty-eight years old. Two years younger than Cameron. An injury in Afghanistan had brought an abrupt end to a promising army career.

  Whoever he was, the man stopped speaking, breaking off in midsentence when he saw Laurie, his jaw dropping in an almost comical expression of surprise. His gaze swiveled from her to Cameron and back again.

  “C-Carla?”

  Cameron’s eyes seemed to flash a warning message. “Bryce, this is Laurie Carter. Laurie, meet my reprobate brother.”

  She smiled at Bryce, who was still gazing at her in shock. “Nice to meet you. But I can’t help thinking you mistook me for someone else.”

  He ran a hand through his hair in a helpless gesture. “You look just like someone we used to know.” He cast a glance in Cameron’s direction and encountered a frown like thunder. “Sorry, but you must admit it’s uncanny. You know what? I’ve just remembered something I need to do. The Pinedale stuff can keep. Nice to meet you, Laurie.”

  When he’d gone, Laurie turned to Cameron. “What was that all about?”

  Knowing that, if she played her part successfully, he’d have to confront the Carla issue sooner or later—probably sooner—she’d rehearsed this conversation. It was a strange job. One that relied on her ability to play a part 24/7, while those around her had no idea of their roles. Improvisation and fast thinking, those skills were the key to survival.

  Cameron rose to his feet and went to the desk that stood in a corner of the room. It looked out over the lake, and Laurie thought what a wonderful place it would be to work. Or maybe not. Maybe that view would distract from doing anything productive. Opening one of the drawers, Cameron withdrew a framed photograph. He brought it over to Laurie and, sitting next to her on the sofa, held it out.