âYour father believes that the only place youâll be safe is Texasâ¦â
âThen you should listen to my father,â Dixie said, eyes blazing with anger before she spun around and headed out the deck door, slamming it behind her.
Chance swore as he watched her walk to the edge of the railing, her back to him. The light breeze stirred her hair. He could see her breath coming out in small white puffs. Forty-eight hours. Hadnât Bonner told him not to let Dixie get to him? Just find her and take her to the plane. Period. Bonner had said it was a family matter. Let them work it out. It had nothing to do with him. Hell, what were the chances that anyone was really trying to kill her anywayâ¦?
This one is for my Uncle Jack Johnson,
whom we lost this year. Jack will be greatly missed, especially his big heart, his laugh and his Texas barbecue.
A former award-winning journalist, B.J. Daniels had thirty-six short stories published before her first romantic suspense, Odd Man Out, came out in 1995. Her book Premeditated Marriage won the Romantic Times BOOKclub Best Intrigue award for 2002, and in the same year she received the magazineâs Career Achievement Award for Romantic Suspense. B.J. lives in Montana with her husband, Parker, two springer spanielsâScout and Spotâand a temperamental tomcat named Jeff. She is a member of Kiss of Death, the Bozeman Writersâ Group and Romance Writers of America. When she isnât writing, she snowboards in the winters and camps, water-skis and plays tennis in the summers. To contact her, write P.O. Box 183, Bozeman, MT 59771 or look for her online at www.bjdaniels.com.
Chance WalkerâTracking down Southern spitfire Dixie Bonner before Christmas should have been easy for the private investigator.
Dixie BonnerâWhen she found some old snapshots hidden in her motherâs jewelry box, Dixie had no idea of the dangerâor that the trail would lead her to Montana to the man sheâd always loved.
Beauregard BonnerâHeâd kept the truth from his daughters all these years. But now not only was the secret out, it had unleashed a killer and an even bigger secret.
Rebecca Lancaster BonnerâAll she ever wanted was to shed her familyâs white-trash past and be one of Houstonâs high society. How far would she go, though, to make sure no one ever found out the truth about her?
Oliver LancasterâThere were only two things in the world that got his blue blood going: money and power. Unfortunately, he stood to lose both unless his luck changed.
Carl BonnerâHeâd always lived in his younger brotherâs shadow. Everyone thought Carl had reason to resent Beauregard. Others thought he was just biding his time until he could get even.
Ace BonnerâIt was hell being the poor, looked-down-upon cousin of Beauregard Bonner.
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
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Epilogue
The rain had stopped, but the parking garage seemed unusually cold and dark as Dixie Bonner started to step from the elevator.
One booted foot poised on the edge of the concrete, she hesitated, sensing something was wrong. She stood listening for whatever sound had alerted her, only now aware of how late it was. The library had closed for the night as had all the other businesses around it except the coffee shop back up the street where sheâd been the past few hours.
She hadnât realized the time or noticed how dark and empty the streets were. All the holiday shoppers had gone home for the night. Sheâd foolishly paid no attention because sheâd had other things on her mind.
Now she felt vulnerable. Not that she wasnât used to taking chances. It went with her job. But taking chances was one thing. Just being plain dumb was another.
She let one hand drop to her shoulder bag as she eased back, but kept her free hand holding the elevator doors open as she scanned the parking garage.
Her fingers found the purseâs zipper and began to slowly glide it open, speeding up as she heard the scrape of a shoe sole on the concrete floor of the garage.
She was in danger, but then sheâd suspected that the moment the elevator doors had opened. Sheâd been on edge all night, at one point almost certain someone had been watching her beyond the rain-streaked window of the coffee shop.
There were two vehicles left in the unattended garage. A tan cargo van and her fire-engine-red Mustang. The van was parked right next to the Mustang.
Her hand closed over the can of pepper spray in her purse as she debated making a run for her car or returning to the upper level of the parking garage. Neither seemed prudent.
The decision was made for her as a man wearing a black stocking mask suddenly appeared in the open elevator doorway. A gun glinted in his right hand. She hit the door close button at the same time she brought up the can of pepper spray and pointed it at the manâs face.