No strings. No tomorrow. Just here and now...
Luke ââMacââ MacKenzie has no past. Orphaned at twelve, he doesnât remember his real name or why his parents were on the run. The name âAileen Quinnâ means nothing to him. Now Mac wanders through the country as a pilot, never settling down...until he finds somethingâor someoneâwho stops him in his tracks.
After all sheâs been through, Emma Bryant just wants a flingâa hot man for a passionate night sheâll never forget. Preferably someone tall, dark and really, really hot. Like Mac. The problem is, thereâs nothing casual about the heat between them...or the bond that threatens them with something neither thought they could have: a future.
Praise for Kate Hoffmannâs The Mighty Quinns
â[Kate] Hoffmann always brings a strong story to the table with The Mighty Quinns, and this is one of her best.â
âRT Book Reviews on The Mighty Quinns: Eli
â[Hoffmannâs] characters are well written and real. The Mighty Quinns: Eli is a recommended read for lovers of the Quinn family, lovers of the outdoors and lovers of a sensitive man.â
âHarlequin Junkie
âHoffmann always does a great job creating different stories for the members of the Quinn clan.â
âRT Book Reviews on The Mighty Quinns: Rogan
âA winning combination of exciting adventure and romance... This is a sweet and sexy read that kept me entertained from start to finish.â
âHarlequin Junkie on The Mighty Quinns: Malcolm
âAs usual, Hoffmann has written a light yet compelling tale with just enough angst and long-term background story to provide momentum for the next member of the Quinn family we are most certainly going to meet.â
âRT Book Reviews on The Mighty Quinns: Ryan
Dear Reader,
Iâve been writing for the Mills & Boon Blaze line for about as long as the imprint has been in existence. And the Mighty Quinns have been a part of my writing life for fifteen years and thirty-four stories!
In this final book of my âBlack Sheepâ series of the Mighty Quinns, Iâve taken on an unusual challengeâa virgin heroine and a hero with no past. Working with quirky characters can be a lot of fun and opens new doors when it comes to the romantic relationship.
I hope you enjoy Mac and Emmaâs story as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Happy reading,
KATE HOFFMANN celebrated her twentieth anniversary as a Mills & Boon author in August 2013. She has published over eighty books, novellas and short stories for Mills & Boon Temptation and Mills & Boon Blaze. She spent time as a music teacher, a retail assistant and an advertising exec before she settled into a career as a full-time writer. Her other interests include genealogy, musical theater and vegan cooking. She lives in southeastern Wisconsin with her two cats, Winnie and Gracie.
To Birgit Davis-Todd, who first suggested I write about the Quinns.
Prologue
âWHATâS YOUR NAME, SON?â
Lukas sat on the edge of the gurney, his gaze darting around the exam room. He was trapped by a pale green curtain on three sides, and he fought the impulse to run. It would only make him look more suspicious and he was unsure of what was waiting on the other side.
The police officer pulled up a stool and sat down, resting his hand on Lukeâs knee. âDo you know where your parents are? They were with you ten days ago when you checked into the motel. What happened?â
Tears welled in the corners of his eyes. How long had it been? Heâd lost count of the days since the fight. It had been a particularly violent argument between his mother and father, and, as usual, heâd locked himself in the bathroom, covering his ears against the bitter words theyâd flung at each other.
But this fight had been different. The next morning, when heâd woken up, they were gone. Heâd found himself alone, his meager belongings scattered around the motel room. Heâd waited, certain theyâd return for him. As the days passed and heâd been forced to search the trash cans for food, Luke realized that he was twelve years old and he was on his own.
âDo you have any relatives we can call?â the officer asked.
It had always been just the three of them, as long as he could remember. Theyâd moved around a lot, sometimes staying in motels for weeks on end, other times settling into a house or an apartment when his father found work. Luke would enroll in school and life would seem almost normal.
Then, something would happen and theyâd be off again, slipping away in the dark of night, leaving behind anything that couldnât fit in the car.
He couldnât remember when life wasnât like this, when his father wasnât angry and abusive and when his mother wasnât terrified. They were running from somethingâor someoneâdangerous. Whoever or whatever it was, it was always just a few steps behind them.
âIâIâm not sure where they are,â Luke murmured.