Sudden Second Chance
A man with too many secrets. A woman with everything to lose.As if the Timberline Trio cold case isn't nightmarish enough for FBI agent Duke Harper, he runs into the TV reporter who loved and betrayed him–beautiful Beth St. Regis. Duke quickly concludes she's not after a sensational story. She's there to solve the haunting mystery of who she really is. But all her questions unleash a killer and Duke steps up to protect her when she becomes a target. Despite their bitter past, Duke finds he's still attracted to Beth and maybe they deserve a second chance. First, though, he has to keep Beth alive–and from discovering the shocking truth about her past…
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A man with too many secrets. A woman with everything to lose.
As if the Timberline Trio cold case isnât nightmarish enough for FBI agent Duke Harper, he runs into the TV reporter who loved and betrayed himâbeautiful Beth St. Regis. Duke quickly concludes sheâs not after a sensational story. Sheâs there to solve the haunting mystery of who she really is. But all her questions unleash a killer, and Duke steps up to protect her when she becomes a target. Despite their bitter past, Duke finds heâs still attracted to Beth, and maybe they deserve a second chance. First, though, he has to keep Beth aliveâand from discovering the shocking truth about her past...
Her frame trembled beneath his hands. âIt was... terrifying... Iâm going to hear that sound in my nightmares.â
âWhatâs it gonna take for you, Beth?â
âTo leave Timberline? The truth. Iâm going to leave Timberline when I discover the truth about my identity. Otherwise, what do I have?â
âYou have me.â He sealed his lips over hers and drew her close.
She melted against him for a moment, her mouth pliant against his. But then she broke away and stepped back.
âI just donât think you understand what this means to me, Duke. Itâs a lifetime of questions and doubts coming to a head right here. All my questions have led me here.â
âYou donât know, Beth. Itâs based on feelings and suppositions and red doors and frogs.â
âAnd thatâs a start.â
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He didnât want to take that all away from herâthe hopeâbut heâd snatch it all away in a heartbeat to keep her safe.
CAROL ERICSON is a bestselling, award-winning author of more than forty books. She has an eerie fascination for true-crime stories, a love of film noir and a weakness for reality TV, all of which fuel her imagination to create her own tales of murder, mayhem and mystery. To find out more about Carol and her current projects, please visit her website at www.carolericson.com, âwhere romance flirts with danger.â
Beth St. RegisâThe host of the Cold Case Chronicles TV show. She uses the show as a cover to find out if sheâs one of the missing children of the Timberline Trio, but she runs into a former adversary...and lover, who will either stand in her way or make her forget all about why sheâs in Timberline.
Duke HarperâThis FBI agent is sent to investigate the Timberline Trio cold case, but the dead-end assignment turns into a battle of wits and wills when he meets up with the TV reporter who used him for a story but has been on his mind and in his heart ever since.
Heather BriceâBeth believes she might be this kidnapped child and will stop at nothing to prove it.
Bill RaneyâHis realty business is suffering due to his chronic drinking and poor business practices, and heâs willing to do just about anything to get back on top.
Rebecca GeistâA local Realtor who knows more of Timberlineâs secrets than she realizes, which puts a target on her back.
Jordan YoungâThis Timberline mover and shaker is anxious to put the townâs dark history in the past, but are his motives civic or personal?
Gary BinderâA recovering drug addict and ex-con, heâs either trying to get his life back on track or heâs up to his old tricks.
Scarlett EastonâA local artist and native Quileute, she offers to help Beth get in touch with her past, but she pays a price for her generosity.
Serena HopewellâA bartender at a local restaurant, she owns a prime piece of property in Timberline. Is she a savvy investor or a savvy blackmailer?
Sheriff MusgroveâThe new sheriff in town may be a little too cozy with those who would circumvent the law in order to hide the truth.
For Chuck,
one of the most avid readers I know.
Contents
Bethâs heart skipped a beat as she ducked onto the path that led through a canopy of trees. The smell of damp earth and moldering mulch invaded her nostrils. She took a deep breath. The odor evoked the cycle of lifeâbirth, death and rebirth. Sheâd smelled worse.
She gasped as a lacy, green leaf brushed her face. Then she knocked it away. If she freaked out and had a panic attack every time she delved into the forest, sheâd have a hard time doing this storyâand getting to the truth of her birth.
Straightening her shoulders, she tugged on her down vest and blew out a breath. She stepped over a fallen log, snapping a twig in two beneath her boot. The mist rising from the forest floor caressed her cheek and she raised her face to the moisture swirling around her.
The scent of pine cleared her sinuses and she dragged in a lungful of the fresh air. Sheâd definitely classify herself as a city girl, but this rustic, outdoor environment seemed to energize her.
