Irresistible Stranger
Twenty years ago, Lily Campbell's parents died in a mysterious fire. Now she's back for the truth…but nobody in her sleepy hometown wants to talk about that night. And when the fires start up again, it's clear that somebody doesn't want her to stay.Griff Branchard has perfected his bad-boy persona. But the moment he sees Lily, nothing matters as much as getting close to her. Although rumors about her are flying around town, he just can't believe such a sweet woman could be a troublemaker…But trouble? She's deep in it. And he's going to make sure that the only heat she feels is from the flames of desire.
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He just kept getting an uneasy feeling that Lily was alone in town and in trouble.
They both stood up at the same time. This close, for that millisecond, he saw a pearl of perspiration on her neck. Saw the tilt of her head, proud, stubborn. Saw the sunset in her hair.
He had to bend down almost a foot to kiss her. Didnât know he was going to do it. Didnât plan it, didnât intend to.
Her face tilted to accommodate the landing of his mouth, not as if she were inviting him, but as if she just instinctively moved to make a meeting of lips more natural, more easy. He tasted ice cream. He tasted the vulnerable satin of her lips.
He lifted his headâalmost immediatelyâsaw the startled flush on her cheeks, thoughtâ¦oh yeah, she was tough, all right.
Tough as a rose petal.
Yet the irony hurt worse than any burn. If, by any chance, she and Griff did find the answersâ¦her reasons for being in Pecan Valley disappeared.
She had no more reason to be with Griff.
No reason to stay.
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Dear Reader,
This story has a bunch of elements I love working withâa hero whoâs not what he seems, a heroine who somehow has to find a way to right an old wrong, characters who have to take scary risks to get what they need in life.
He is so wrong for her. Sheâs so wrong for him.
What could be more fun?
I hope you enjoy the story!
Jennifer Greene
You can reach me at www.jennifergreene.com or on my Jennifer Greene page on Facebook.
JENNIFER GREENE
lives near Lake Michigan with her husband and an assorted menagerie of pets. Michigan State University has honored her as an outstanding woman graduate for her work with women on campus. Jennifer has written more than seventy love stories, for which she has won numerous awards, including four RITA>® Awards from the Romance Writers of America and their Hall of Fame and Lifetime Achievement Awards.
Youâre welcome to contact Jennifer through her website at www.jennifergreene.com.
To Lilâjust for being so wonderful
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
Epilogue
Chapter 1
The afternoon wasnât just hot. It was choking hot. Gasping hot. Suck-your-brains-out hot.
Lily Campbell stepped off the curb, feeling the pavement fry her feet even through her thick, cork sandals. It was only two more blocks to the sheriffâs office.
She could make it two more blocks without dying, couldnât she? Surely?
She wanted to laugh. Sheâd been so certain that this trip home to Pecan Valley after twenty years would be horrendously traumatic. Instead, every view so far had provoked a gush of hopelessly happy memoriesâof her dad pushing her in a creaking swing. Of her sisters shrieking and dancing through sprinklers. Or her being snuggled between her mom and dad on a porch swing, watching the fireflies at dusk.
Somehow, she always remembered the fire. Not the idyllic childhood before it. And for darn sure, she had no memory at all of this killer Georgia summer heat.
She pushed a heap of heavy chestnut hair off her neck, thinking sheâd either have to get her long hair cut off or suffer heatstroke, but her real attention focused on Main Street. She passed Annabelleâs Bakery, Susanâs Secret Treasures, Belle Hair, an insurance office. On the other side of the road, hugging the corner, was Debbieâs Diner and a shoe store.
None of the names latched in her memory, yet somehow she remembered other things. A woman with big hair and a white ruffled dress passed by her, nodding a polite hello. An old gentleman snoozed in a white rocker outside a storefront. A couple of giggling girls, sucking on popsicles, window-shopped across the street.
She knew this town. It smelled and tasted and looked like home, even if she hadnât been back since she was eight, even if she couldnât imagine living here ever again. Sheâd given herself exactly eight weeksâ¦to solve a twenty-year-old crime.
Complicating that problemâjust a wee bitâwas that no one twenty years ago believed there was a crime. Not the police. Not even her sisters. No one.
Sheâd plotted and planned this trip for almost two years, but back in Virginia the idea had made such sense. She needed to do this. Sheâd needed to forever. Now that she was here, trudging through this blazing, baking sun, she fully realized that everything about the plan was complete and total lunacy.
A red truck, older than her, stopped at the corner to yield the right of way. The next block echoed the last one. The storefronts were different, but the sleepy, Southern town mood was the same. First up was an old-fashioned pharmacy, then a crafty-type jewelry storeâshe had to gallop past that one, shielding her eyes, knowing how readily she could sucker into a new pair of earrings. Right now, sheâd likely sucker into any conceivable sales pitch to postpone her visit to the sheriffâs office.
