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RESCUED BY THE RANGER
RESCUED BY THE RANGER
Dixie Lee Brown
Releasing on Sept 8th, 2015
Avon Impulse
The only thing Rachel Maguire wants is to send this smart-mouthed, muscled military man packing. She knows Garrett has his own reasons for staying, so when he offers Rachel a deal—two days to prove his worth or he leaves—she reluctantly agrees. Despite wanting to loathe him, Rachel finds herself drawn to his quiet confidence…and the way he fills out a t-shirt.
But when Rachel receives a phone call from the past, everything changes. The stalker who destroyed her life ten years ago is closing in once more. Refusing to put anyone else in harm's way, Rachel hits the road hoping to lure danger away from those she loves. But Garrett won't leave this sexy spitfire to face her stalker alone. He'll do anything to protect her. Even if it means risking his life—and his heart.
“Sorry,
bud. Needed you with me on this one.” He rested his hand on the
dog’s shoulder just above the ragged scar where a bullet had torn
through muscle and tissue. Cowboy had recovered surprisingly well,
but the wound had ended the career of the best military dog Garrett
had ever been teamed with.
Cowboy’s
big, brown, soulful eyes studied his for a moment before a barely
audible woof
broke
the silence.
Garrett
chuckled and patted the dog’s furry side. “Good boy. That’s
right—use your indoor voice. You’ll need to be on your best
behavior while we’re here. Shouldn’t be long, though. I can’t
imagine there’d be anything to keep us here beyond the end of the
day.”
Why
had
he
come anyway?
Aunt
Peg’s letter. His temper flared remembering the confrontation
between him and his father after Garrett had stumbled upon the
year-old letter in his dad’s desk drawer.
“Looking
for something, son?” There’d been wariness in his father’s
voice.
Garrett
had dragged his gaze from the envelope in his hand to study the
senator. “I misplaced Shay’s telephone number. I thought I might
find it in here.” The call to his sister momentarily forgotten,
he’d held the letter up so his father could see.
The
senator had looked away, his expression shuttering over. “I meant
to give that to you, but both you and Luke were out of the country
when it arrived and, frankly, it’s not something you should worry
about. You need to concentrate on getting well,” his father had
said, but the way his gaze bounced around the room instead of meeting
Garrett’s told a different story.
“Dad,
I’ve been in the States for six months. Two months at the VA
hospital and four months recuperating right here in this house.
Luke’s been here a week. What were you waiting for?” Garrett had
held the letter out in front of him. “ ‘Garrett and Luke
Harding.’ ” He’d read the first line of the address out loud
and then jerked the letter away as his father made a grab. “Peg
Williams. That’s Aunt Peg, isn’t it? Did it cross your mind at
all that Luke and I might be interested in what our mother’s sister
had to say?”
“Your
mother passed away a year ago. Peg invited you to the reading of the
will. Hell, your mother didn’t have time for you while she was
alive. Why would
you
be interested now? Hate me for it if you want—I took it upon myself
to keep the letter from you. I didn’t think it was important
twenty-nine years after she walked out on you boys.” Anger had
hardened his father’s expression.
Garrett
had sucked in a breath as the words pelted him, reopening a wound
he’d thought long closed. After all, they hadn’t heard from the
woman their father had said was a drug addict in nearly thirty years.
Now she’d apparently left them something in her will—as though
she’d have anything they’d want. Wasn’t that just the icing on
the cake?
Garrett
had straightened his six-foot-one frame until the muscles surrounding
the six-month-old wound in his back protested sharply. “You had no
right to make that call.”
“I
had every right. I wasn’t going to let that woman hurt you again.”
Steel-gray
eyes, so like his own, had stared back at Garrett. “Are you sure
that’s the reason, Dad? Or could it have had anything to do with
keeping the senator’s
ex-wife off the front page of the newspaper?” Silence had stretched
for at least thirty seconds, during which Garrett had had ample time
to regret his words.
His
father, ever the diplomat, had smiled faintly. “Let’s table this
discussion until cooler heads prevail, shall we? You have your
letter, and I have a meeting I’m going to be late for.” He’d
grabbed several folders from his desk and hastened from the room.
DIXIE LEE BROWN lives and writes in Central Oregon, inspired by what she believes is the most gorgeous scenery anywhere. She resides with two dogs and a cat, who make sure she never takes herself too seriously. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, movies, and trips to the beach.
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