excerpt chapter 1.

I stopped thinking about chat room weirdos and made a firm decision.

Tomorrow, I would drive north and visit with Mac.  What I needed was fun, and he was the perfect person for the job.  Mac was fun with a capital F.  It didn’t hurt that he was drop-dead yummy either.

Half way up the stairs, I heard a car door slam followed by heavy footsteps moving in the direction of my back door.  The chat room screen flashed in my mind.  No one I know would be visiting at this hour of the night.  I scurried up the remaining stairs to my office, snatched my gun from the desk, and crept back down.  The kitchen light was out, but from the glow of the security-lights outside, I could see the silhouette of a head through the back door’s frosted glass window.  A stupid rhyme popped into my head, One two they’re coming for you, three four don’t open that door.  I slipped through the darkened room and stood on the hinge side of the door it.  It took conscious effort to keep my breathing calm and mind centered.  My body was willing to react without the go ahead from my brain and controlling the twitch in my trigger finger wasn’t going to be easy; it didn’t like being disturbed in the middle of the night.

excerpt from chapter 2.

Why was my arm moving all by itself?  My arm shook gently and words tumbled into my sleepy brain.  “Hey, you asleep?”

I knew the voice and wanted very much to open my eyes.  They were reluctant to follow instructions.  I pried one eye open.

“Hi.”  Mac smiled.  “How do you feel?”  He gently pushed my hair back off my forehead.

“Better.”  Both eyes open and semi-alert are usually good things.

He frowned a little and inspected my forehead closely.

“Good.”  He leaned down and kissed my head.  “This looks quite nasty.”

“It feels funny,” I replied, moving my eyebrows up and down.  The local doctor had glued the cut, holding the edges together with butterfly closures.  The skin felt tight and when I moved my brow, it stung.

“I expect it would,” he said, “Do you need anything?”

I need to stop attracting freaks.  I need better judgment.  I need to embrace a new life as a hermit because it might be safer that way.  I need coffee.  I need you to smile at me and make everything okay.

I chewed my bottom lip.  “Coffee?”

“Is that a question or an answer?”

“I need coffee.”

“You wanna get up and have this coffee?”

I tried a nod.  It worked.  My head didn’t explode.  I took that as a good sign.  Getting out of bed proved to be a little more difficult.  My body decided it didn’t want to get up yet.

Excerpt from chapter 3.

“You don’t look happy,” I commented calmly.  Truth is, it took a trained eye to discern Caine’s moods.  He didn’t give anything away, and he sure as hell never looked happy.

“Ellie, Holly,” he said with a nod.  “You must be Mac.”  He stepped forward, extended his hand, and introduced himself.  “SAC Caine Grafton.”

They shook briefly.

“Pleased to meet you,” Mac replied.

“You’d be the only one,” Caine said curtly, then glared in my direction.  “We need to talk.”

He terrified most people by what appeared to be open hostility, and yet I found it difficult to keep a smirk off my face.

“Okay if we use your kitchen?”  I looked at Holly.  She nodded.  I flashed a quick smile at Mac.  “Back in a bit.”

“He comes too,” Caine growled.  Sometimes his teddy bear impersonation was so accurate I wanted to bend and straighten him to make him growl some more.  Today, he seemed less growly old teddy bear like and more annoyed.

Mac and I sat at the kitchen table in silence waiting for Caine to say something.  Eventually he said, “He’s out on bail.”

I tried not to frown because it hurt.

“Conditions?”  My heart was pounding.  I didn’t want this nutcase out on bail.

“He is not allowed within one mile of your home, or within 150 yards of your person.”

“You think he’ll adhere to that?”  Mac asked.

“No.”

Words fell from my mouth, “Fuc’n Jesus, damnit!”  It made no sense.  “How the hell did he make bail after firing on police and a fed?”

Caine snarled nastily, “There were extenuating circumstances, according to his lawyer.”

“And the District Attorney just rolled over and let him walk?”  Did I somehow click my heels together and end up in another country?