Patrick wasnât convinced heâd come to the right person
Nadine could see that, looking into his eyes.
Keeping her gaze direct and confident, she said, âLike I said earlier, finding missing persons is a specialty of our firm. As it happens, Iâm between cases right now and I could start on this immediately.â
Okay, technically that was a lie, but Nadine told herself it wouldnât matter, not as long as she found Patrickâs son for him. Which she was determined to do.
Patrickâs eyes held hers a moment longer, then he nodded. âOkay. Letâs do it. Whatâs the first step?â
She struggled to keep her excitement contained. âWe sign a standard contract and you pay a retainer.â She mentioned the base amount. When Patrick indicated his agreement, she asked him to wait while she drew up the papers.
âToo bad your receptionist isnât here to do that,â Patrick commented.
Dear Reader,
When I started THE FOX & FISHER DETECTIVE AGENCY series, I knew that Nadine Kimble was destined to be more than a receptionist. She knew it, too. Sheâs waited patiently for the opportunity to advance her career, only to be put off time and again.
What I love most about Nadine is that she turns her back on money and social status in order to follow her dream. And she steps well out of her comfort zone to make that dream happen.
Speaking of stepping outside her comfort zone, have I mentioned Patrick OâNeil? Heâs the kind of rugged hero you donât want to mess around with. So whatâs he going to say when he finds out the private investigator he hired to find his son is really the firmâs receptionist?
I love hearing from readers, so send me an e-mail sometime. Also, do check my Web site, www.cjcarmichael.com, regularly for news about my next trilogy and to enter my âSurprise!â contests.
Happy reading!
C.J. Carmichael
Hard to imagine a more glamorous life than being an accountant, isnât it? Still, C.J. Carmichael gave up the thrills of income tax forms and double-entry bookkeeping when she sold her first book in 1998. She has now written more than twenty-eight novels for Harlequin Books, and invites you to learn more about her books, see photos of her hiking exploits and enter her surprise contests at www.cjcarmichael.com.
With love to Mike Fitzpatrickâ¦who never
turns his back on a good adventure
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
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
NADINE KIMBLE WATCHED as the office printer spewed out a certificate proving sheâd aced the online private investigation course sheâd been taking the past six months. She knew her bossâLindsay Fox, founder of The Fox & Fisher Detective Agencyâwas in her office. It was now or never, unless she wanted to be a receptionist for the rest of her life. Which she didnât, since she was only twenty-seven and the rest of her life would hopefully involve many more decades.
With the certificate still warm in her hands, Nadine marched up to Lindsayâs office, rapped briefly on the door, then opened it.
Lindsay wasnât alone. Her partner and fiancé, Nathan Fisher, was sitting in the chair usually reserved for clients, while she paced the room in bare feet, her high heels, as usual, strewn on the floor next to her desk. They were arguing in a civilized yet heated manner, and didnât stop on Nadineâs account.
âPrinted invitations are classier than e-mail, Fox. Thatâs all Iâm saying.â
âI care about trees more than I care about âclass.â What do you think, Nadine? Should we send out stuffy printed invitations to our weddingâor speedier, cheaper and more environmentally friendly e-mail invitations?â
âWeâre having such a small wedding, all we need is a dozen invitations. Whatâs thatâa twig? Plus, we can use recycled paper.â
âNadine?â Lindsay asked.
âOh, no. Iâm not falling for this again.â Nadine thought the printed invitations would be nice, but no way was she stating her opinion. Getting between Lindsay and Nathan in one of their âdiscussionsâ was never a good idea.
While Lindsay and Nathan loved each other passionately and made excellent business partners, they had opposite ideas about many subjectsâ¦especially their upcoming wedding.
And both of them sulked like kids if she took one side over the other.
âWeâve left this so late. The wedding is in two months.â Lindsay flipped the pages on her day-timer. âDo we even have time to get something printed?â
âThe only reason weâre late is because you keep putting me off.â Nathan leaned forward in his chair, planting both hands on his well-muscled thighs. âI have a friend with a graphic-design shop two blocks from here on Amsterdam. She said if we come over right now, she can help us choose a design and have the invitations in the mail in three days.â