âYou have to get out of these clothes,â Raine told her.
He had to get this lady warmed up fast. As cold as she was, shock and hypothermia represented definite threats. Concern overrode his usual self-preservation instincts.
She lifted her hands to her blouse and worked on a button, her movements stiff and awkward. Raine swore under his breath. At this rate, sheâd never get her clothes off. If she couldnât do it, heâd have to do it for her.
He pushed her hands away and deftly released the remaining buttons. He peeled the wet blouse down her arms and pitched it to the bathroom floor. Steam billowed around them.
âThank you,â she murmured. She squeezed her eyes shut and swayed back against the wall.
He knew the hot water wouldnât hold out so he pulled her against him and turned her back to the hot spray. She clung to him helplessly. He bit the inside of his jaw to stifle the groan that rose in his throat at the feel of her firm breasts pressed into his chest.
This woman was going to kill him, and she didnât even have a weapon.
Debra Webb was born in Scottsboro, Alabama, to parents who taught her that anything is possible if you want it bad enough. She began writing at age nine. Eventually, she met and married the man of her dreams, and tried some other occupations, including selling vacuum cleaners, working in a factory, a day care center, a hospital and a department store. When her husband joined the military, they moved to Berlin, Germany, and Debra became a secretary in the commanding generalâs office. By 1985, they were back in the States, and finally moved to Tennessee, to a small town where everyone knows everyone else. With the support of her husband and two beautiful daughters, Debra took up writing again, looking to mystery and movies for inspiration. In 1998, her dream of writing for Harlequin came true.
Katherine Robertson, a.k.a. Kate RobertsâDanger follows her to a mystery manâs doorstep, but she canât remember why.
Jack RaineâHe trusts no one, but canât resist helping a woman who doesnât know her own name.
Victoria ColbyâThe head of the Colby Agency is worried when her new operative doesnât check in as scheduled.
Lucas CampâHe hired the Colby Agency to find Jackâto help Jack, or kill him?
Raymond CuddahyâThe leak in his organization means no one is safe.
Sal BallatoreâThe man who killed his son will pay.
DillonâHe wants his money, and Jack deadânot necessarily in that order.
Many thanks to an outstanding guide, Lee Lewis, for his superior knowledge of Smoky Mountain trails, and to a terrific friend and expert drawer of maps, JoAnn Reynolds.
A special thanks to Natashya Wilson, a wonderful editor, for believing in my work and giving me this opportunity. This book is dedicated to the man who helped make all my dreams come trueâmy wonderful husband, Nonie.
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
Epilogue
âFailure in this assignment is almost a given,â Victoria Colby told the investigator sitting on the other side of the immense oak desk that had once belonged to her late husband, James. âAnd should you choose to accept it, your life will be in constant dangerâperhaps from more than one source,â she added cautiously.
âI understand,â Katherine Robertson replied.
Victoria eyed the young woman with more than skepticismâuncertaintyâ¦maybe.
Did she really understand?
Victoria wasnât so sure that she understood, herself. This was the most sensitive assignment the Colby Agency had undertaken in the ten years since she had assumed the helm. Sheâd been reluctant to take charge at first, but the small Chicago-based private investigations firm her husband had operated for the final years of his life had been near and dear to his heart. So Victoria had worked hard to make the agency the best in the business. It was the one thing she could still hold on to and feel close to James.
She passed a thin manila folder with a red âTop Secretâ cover sheet on the front to the eager investigator, who immediately opened it to review the meager contents.
âWho does Jack Raine work for?â Katherine asked, glancing up only briefly.
âHe used to work solely for the CIA, but four years ago he shrugged off the brass and became a contract agent. Since that time, heâs worked for them allâNSA, DEA, CIA. Heâd been under deep cover for the FBI for seventeen months when things went sour. The story is that he left the son of a prominent mob leader named Ballatore dead and an extraordinary sum of money missing.â
âHe turned?â Katherine looked from Victoria to the folder and back in disbelief. âA guy with a record like this?â
Victoria nodded slowly. She could hardly believe it herself. Jack Raineâs work history might be restricted readingâwhich meant no significant details were available for their perusalâbut his reputation was spotless, not to mention unparalleled. The man had every commendation his government could give him. Somehow, between the known and the unknown, things just didnât add upâat least, not for Raineâs longtime friend Lucas Camp. Lucas had asked Victoria to take this assignment as a personal favor. Raymond Cuddahy, Lucasâs boss and the new director of Special Operations, didnât like the idea of a civilian agencyâs involvement. He had, however, given his consentâeventually, and off the record.