What Janie Saw
The last person she wanted was the only one who could keep her safeJanie Vincent had no use for cops. They’d never done her any favours. But when she uncovers a lead into the disappearance of a girl at the college where she’s a teaching assistant, suddenly Janie’s life depends on the officers of Scorpion Ridge. And one in particular: Sheriff Rafael Salazar.Rafe knows how much destruction a missing-persons case can cause a family, and so to solve this case, he’s determined to stick to Janie like glue. She’s clearly not a fan of the 24/7 surveillance, but he intends to break down her distrust. And maybe they’ll discover that what Janie saw can be the key to healing them both.
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The last person she wantedâ¦was the only one who could keep her safe
Janie Vincent had no use for cops. Theyâd never done her any favors. But when she uncovers a lead into the disappearance of a girl at the college where sheâs a teaching assistant, suddenly Janieâs life depends on the officers of Scorpion Ridge. And one in particular: Sheriff Rafael Salazar.
Rafe knows how much destruction a missing-persons case can cause a family, and so to solve this case, heâs determined to stick to Janie like glue. Sheâs clearly not a fan of the 24/7 surveillance, but he intends to break down her distrust. And maybe theyâll discover that what Janie saw can be the key to healing them both.
âI should never have opened his art book,â Janie muttered.
âBut you did,â Rafe said, âso now weâll deal with it.â He smiled, trying to communicate that she wasnât alone, that heâd do his job, take care of her.
Then she gave him a glare that almost stopped him in his tracks. He was used to people being grateful, looking up to him, believing him, wanting to be taken care of, trusting him. Janie Vincent didnât trust him.
Before he was quite ready, she stood, practically tapping her foot in impatience. âFine. Letâs do it.â
âYou want me to stay, Janie?â her sister asked.
âNo, you go on back to work. Iâll findââ
âIâll make sure she gets home,â Rafe asserted.
Janieâs eyes narrowed. For some reason, Miss Vincent didnât appreciate his offer. And that made no sense at all.
Dear Reader,
I read a lot because Iâm in love with words. I love old, used cookbooks where someone has written notes in the margin. I love diaries and letters and newspaper so that the past comes alive for me.
Besides writing for Mills & Boon, Iâm an English professor. I read a lot there, too. I have students who, by far, write better than me. Iâve read about midnight border crossings (Iâm in Arizona) and about midnight escapes from the Lost Boys of Africa. Iâve read about near-death experiences, special-needs children and about the path back to sobriety. Best of all, Iâve read about the dreams and goals of our future generation. Iâve also read a few things I wish had not wound up under my red pen. But, while the idea for What Janie Saw came to me one evening after a marathon grading session, Iâve never read a murder confession.
Like Janie, I entered teaching through the back door. But it doesnât matter how you came to the classroomâit matters what you do while youâre there. Janie makes all the right moves. She cares about her students even while trying to pursue her own dream. I think, for Janie, chasing the dream, questioning the dream and then reinventing the dream is what makes her grow. See, her childhood wasnât of the soil that allowed dreams to grow. She had much to overcome.
Rafael Salazar is too busy being sheriff to have dreams. He has to save the world. His world is the small town of Scorpion Ridge, Arizona. Soon he has to save Janie, and she could become his world if heâs smart enough to realize it and change.
My story is complete fiction with the world of what-ifs, flawed people and love triumphing. Itâs about hope and change and romance.
My editor, Adrienne Macintosh, is a master, full of ideas for cementing conflict. Mills & Boon Heartwarming is an awesome place to be. If youâd like to meet some of the Heartwarming authors, please visit www.heartwarmingauthors.blogspot.com. If youâd like to learn more about me, please visit www.pamelatracy.com. I love to hear from readers!
Pamela
PAMELA TRACY
is an award-winning author who lives with her husband (who claims to be the inspiration for most of her heroes) and son (who claims to be the interference for most of her writing time). She started writing at a very young age (a series of romances, all with David Cassidy as the hero, though sometimes Bobby Sherman would elbow in). Then, while earning a B.A. in journalism at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, she picked up writing againâthis time it was a very bad science-fiction novel.
She went back to her love and was first published in 1999. Since then, Pamela has had more than twenty romance novels in print. Sheâs a winner of the American Christian Fiction Writers Carol Award and has been a RITA ® Award finalist. Readers can find her at www.heartwarmingauthors.blogspot.com or www.pamelatracy.com.
To Rachel Pekera,
an extraordinary second grade teacher,
who stole my sonâs heart and taught him to believe in himself and much more.
Thank you.
Contents
CHAPTER ONE
KILLING SOMEONE IS not nearly as simple in real life as it is on television.
âWhat the...â Janie Vincent sputtered. She grabbed her coffee cup, more for comfort than for the caffeine at this late hour, and ordered herself to stop reading.
