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      A DEAL MADE TO BE BROKEN

      Everything about Alex McKnight was hard—hard body, hard heart and damn hard to ignore. Yet architect Ellie Hart couldn’t deny her immediate attraction to the dark-haired, handsome contractor assigned to complete the Mercy Medical Center with her. Ellie traveled with her own emotional baggage and there was no way she was going to fall so fast for a man like Alex. But when she actually did fall fast—by tripping and injuring her foot—Alex came to the rescue by offering her a place to stay while she recovered.

      Then Alex suggested the unthinkable: a no-strings-attached, passion-unleashed affair…at least until their project was finished and Ellie could walk again. But as restless days became tender, sleepless nights, could Ellie keep her heart safe? And more, could Alex?

      “Stay.” Alex reached out and loosely encircled Ellie’s wrist in his strong fingers.

      There was surprise in his eyes now, and he didn’t look particularly happy about saying it, but he also didn’t let her go. “I bared my soul. Isn’t that worth a drink and dinner?”

      The touch felt so good. The warmth peeled back several layers of protection that hid her loneliness from the rest of the world. It had been so long since a man had touched her, casually or any other way. And nearly as long since she’d allowed herself to consider having dinner with a man.

      She simply couldn’t make herself pull free.

      If she hadn’t really wanted to stay, it would have been easy to walk away. And if she’d just walked away, everything would have been fine.

      Dear Reader,

      On a plane recently I was making small talk with the woman seated next to me. I was tired and mostly wanted to close my eyes, but I didn’t want to be rude during the forty-five-minute flight from L.A. to Las Vegas and we ended up sharing information about our jobs. An avid reader, she was excited to meet a published author, which is flattering because I don’t consider myself all that exciting. Then she posed a question no one has ever asked before. How do I name my characters and do I ever change the names?

      The first part of my answer was easy. In a continuing series I keep a list of existing characters and try to make sure no two names start with the same letter. In my humble opinion it’s less confusing when a reader is trying to keep everyone straight. For Her McKnight in Shining Armor I did change the heroine’s name. Starting a book is never easy, but this one was more of a challenge than usual. Originally I called her Emma but was having trouble getting this character to talk and decided to change her name. She’s a Texas girl and I wanted something very Lone Star State. The TV show Dallas is set in Texas and when I ticked off the characters, Sue Ellen struck a chord. A “voice” began to form. But she’s not a Sue or Susie, so I settled on Ellie and the name felt right. I had her voice and Chapter One took off.

      A hero is only as satisfying to the reader as the strong, sassy woman who wins him over. Ellie Hart sashayed into Blackwater Lake on her four-inch heels and rocked Alex McKnight’s world. She was an incredibly fun character to create and I hope you enjoy reading her story as much as I did writing it.

      Happy Reading!

      Teresa Southwick

      Her McKnight in Shining Armor

      Teresa Southwick

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      TERESA SOUTHWICK lives with her husband in Las Vegas, the city that reinvents itself every day. An avid fan of romance novels, she is delighted to be living out her dream of writing for Mills & Boon.

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      To Mary Karlik, a Texas girl and real-life heroine. You’re one of the strongest women I’ve ever met and I’m proud to call you my friend.

      Contents

       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 One

      Alex McKnight needed a woman.

      More specifically, he needed his architect, who just happened to be a very hot woman. The fact that he’d noticed was a problem because he didn’t date coworkers, or any other ladies in Blackwater Lake, Montana, for that matter. He had a business to run in this town and couldn’t afford to feed the rumor mill and tick off prospective clients with stuff from his personal life.

      A bigger problem was that the very hot female architect was two hours late for work, and that didn’t bode well for completing the Mercy Medical Clinic expansion on time. He had projects stacked up like planes waiting to land and if this one ran behind all the rest could crash and burn.

      He looked at his watch and swore softly. It was going on noon and still no word from Miss Suellen Hart. Tomorrow the cement foundation was being poured, and last Friday, when he’d spoken with her, she’d promised to fly out of Dallas in plenty of time to be here for the event on Monday.

      “They don’t call. They don’t write. So much for promises,” he mumbled.

      Maybe he was a tad critical, but in his opinion, he had an excellent reason. His wife, ex-wife, had promised to

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