A Second Chance
A quiet ranch in the Oregon desert gives Mary OâRoarke the solace she craves after a painful childhood. Concealing her growing feelings for her boss, government agent Lou Riley, is a small price to pay. Then an abandoned little girl is placed in Maryâs care, awakening dreams sheâs all but forgotten.
In all the years Lou has known her, how could he not have noticed Maryâs courage and warmth? Seeing her care for a child is a bittersweet reminder of the lonely widowerâs loss. But if Mary wonât give up on young Josieânot even when real danger approachesâthen Lou canât give up on bringing this unlikely family together for good.
âThis never could have lasted,â Lou said gently.
âIt just felt so blissful, so perfect.â He felt Maryâs stare. âIâve beenâ¦lonely, I suppose.â
âSince Gracie and Trevor left?â
âNo.â
He glanced at her then pulled the wheel to the side to avoid a shrub growing in the middle of the rough desert road.
âFor years now, I think,â she continued. âIt took meeting Gracie to realize I was nothing but a shadow of a person. And now, seeing Trevor so happy and fulfilled, itâs as though a light has been cast on this deep, hollow well thatâs my life.â
Lou frowned. She talked like he and James meant nothing to her. âYou might want to explain, because Iâve always liked having you at the ranch. James and I depend on you.â
âYouâve both been blessings. A sanctuary for my soul. But what youâve liked hasnât been me. Itâs been good food and clean clothes.â
âThatâs a bunch of hogwash.â
âIs it?â
He swerved to the side of the road and slammed the brakes. âYou better believe it.â
JESSICA NELSON,
in keeping with her romantic inclinations, married two days after she graduated high school. She believes romance happens every day and thinks the greatest, most intense romance comes from a God who woos people to himself with passionate tenderness. When Jessica is not chasing her three beautiful, wild little boys around the living room, she can be found staring into space as she plots her next story. Or she might be daydreaming about a raspberry mocha from Starbucks. Or thinking about what kind of chocolate she should have for dinner that night. She could be thinking of any number of things, really. One thing is for certain, she is blessed with a wonderful family and a lovely life.
He shall call upon me, and I will answer him:
I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
âPsalms 91:15
Dedicated to my sister Josephine, who has Maryâs heart. And to my niece Jayla, who is Josie.
Chapter One
June 1920
Oregon
âBag the body and donât forget to ink his prints.â Special Agent Lou Riley moved away from the man who had met his demise in the bowels of an illegal liquor operation. He slipped Wrigleyâs peppermint gum into his mouth and gnawed on it as he thought through his circumstances.
This dead witness meant more time on assignment trying to track down the one whoâd hired the foreign bootlegger to do his dirty work.
Prohibition in Oregon wasnât a thing to be trifled with. After a decade of chasing murderers, traitors and thieves in his job as special agent for the Bureau of Investigation, Lou guessed helping the local police track speakeasies and distilleries served him well enough.
Better than the more dangerous spying heâd done until this past year.
He rubbed the back of his neck, feeling the stress of a hard dayâs work combined with personal pressures. Day before last heâd left his secluded ranch to tackle this assignment. His housekeeper, Mary, had everything under control at home, but he couldnât shake his unease. Over a year ago his niece and his best friend, Trevor, had married, and ever since heâd been thinking about the past. About people long gone. And lately, when he saw Mary, a strange tension filled him, which was odd because theyâd always had an easygoing rapport in the twelve years sheâd been his employee.
Not that his job ever kept him home with her for long.
Grimacing at the kink in his left shoulder, he wheeled around and left the dim building. An overcast afternoon greeted him, heavy with mist and promising rain. He nodded to one of his field agents as he picked his way to the bureauâs automobile.
Summers in Oregon werenât exactly sunny. Not warm, either. He missed the aridness of his home in east Oregon, the openness of the desert range. Small cities like this one tended to weigh him down with memories. Buildings pressed in on him....