LITMIR.BIZ

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      To Max. This one is for you.

      Special thanks and acknowledgment to Delores Fossen for her contribution to the Daddy Corps series.

      ABOUT THE AUTHOR

      Imagine a family tree that includes Texas cowboys, Choctaw and Cherokee Indians, a Louisiana pirate and a Scottish rebel who battled side by side with William Wallace. With ancestors like that, it’s easy to understand why Texas author and former air force captain Delores Fossen feels as if she were genetically predisposed to writing romances. Along the way to fulfilling her DNA destiny, Delores married an air force top gun who just happens to be of Viking descent. With all those romantic bases covered, she doesn’t have to look too far for inspiration.

      CAST OF CHARACTERS

       Parker McKenna —Former army captain who joins the Daddy Corps as a bodyguard for the governor’s daughter, Bailey Lockhart. Parker closed down after his wife’s death five years ago, but protecting Bailey makes him see that he still has a lot to lose—and win—if he can only trust his heart again.

       Bailey Lockhart —The governor’s headstrong daughter and owner of Cradles and Crayons Daycare and Preschool. Even though she’s in danger, she’s reluctant to rely on Parker, the hot GI, but Bailey soon realizes that Parker is her best chance at staying alive.

       Zach McKenna —Parker’s thirteen-year-old son. He lives with his father, but they haven’t really communicated in years.

       Bart Bellows —The eccentric Texas billionaire and head of Corps Security and Investigation who would do anything for his old friend, the governor. But all Bart’s money and influence might not be enough to save the Lockharts.

       Lila Lockhart —The governor of Texas who’s considering a run for the White House…but first she has to deal with the threats against her daughter, Bailey.

       Timothy Penske —Lila’s personal bodyguard. Bailey rejected his advances, but does he still have feelings for her, and are those feelings a part of what’s happening to her now?

       Sidney Burrell —The handyman at Cradles and Crayons. He’s kept a secret about his past. Just how far will he go to make sure no one finds out what he really is?

       Chester Herman —The mystery man who shows up in town at the same time the threats on Bailey begin. He could be Bailey’s stalker…or maybe someone wants it to look that way.

      Contents

      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

      Chapter Seventeen

      Epilogue

       Prologue

      Parker McKenna stopped cold. The dinner invitation sure hadn’t said anything about sharing a fancy meal with an assassin, but he was pretty sure the guy in the far right corner fit that particular bill.

      “Takes one to know one,” Parker mumbled to himself.

      Except Parker had killed only when there’d been no other option, when it had been necessary to protect someone in the line of duty. He wasn’t sure this guy could say the same.

      Parker eased out of the doorway and stood next to the wall so he could take in the rest of the private dining room in the posh Dallas hotel. The Wainwright wasn’t exactly his kind of place. Too rich for his middle-class army blood with its glossy marble floors and crystal chandeliers shimmering overhead.

      Normally, Parker wouldn’t have come within a mile of a place like this, but the invitation had, well, made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. His host, Bart Bellows, had sent the handwritten dinner request along with round-trip plane tickets.

      This is your chance to be part of a brotherhood again. A chance to make a difference. A chance for freedom.

      Freedom.

      Now, that was a complex word and not usually associated with a dinner invitation, but Parker had to admit that without that word, he might not be here. He’d probably still be in Mankato, Minnesota, supervising an apartment construction site. He hadn’t felt anything close to freedom in the past five years, not since his wife’s death, and until he saw that oddly worded invitation, he hadn’t realized just how hungry he was for it.

      Freedom from the guilt. The bad memories. From all the things he’d screwed up.

      “Parker McKenna,” he heard someone say. It wasn’t exactly a question, and the man who approached him seemed to know exactly who Parker was.

      Parker couldn’t say the same. The man had black hair, a neatly trimmed beard and wore dark pants and a casual shirt. Parker was six-three, and this guy was at least four inches shorter, but there was something in his demeanor that let Parker know this man knew how to take care of himself.

      He extended his hand to Parker. “I’m Wade Coltrane.”

      “You a cop?” Parker asked, shaking hands.

      “No.” The corner of Wade’s mouth lifted, but the smile didn’t make it to his intense black eyes. Oh, yeah. Here was a man in search of freedom as well and probably something even more. “I’m former army special ops.”

      So was Parker, though he was sure Wade already knew that. “Who’s the guy in the corner, the one who looks ready to kill us all?”

      Wade didn’t even glance in that direction. He kept his attention on the center of the room where a team of tux-wearing waiters was setting up the table for seven. “That’s Harlan McClain. He used to play minor-league baseball, but he was special ops, too. The non-PC term for his job title was assassin.”

      So, Parker had been right. “You did background checks on all the guests?”

      Wade nodded, sipped his champagne. “Old habits.”

      Parker snagged a glass of champagne from a waiter who was passing by. His throat was suddenly bone dry, and he was wondering what the hell he’d gotten himself into. “I would have done the same if I’d known the guest list,” Parker mumbled.

      “It took some doing to get it. From what I could

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