The last thing traveling nurse Evie Steele
expects to find aboard the RV housing her mobile health clinic is her brother’s
best friend. As always, Deke’s close proximity stirs her forbidden desires and
long-suppressed dreams. But his sudden reappearance in her life and curious
interest in her patients makes Evie wonder what he’s hiding.
…but now his secrets could destroy them both.
Special agent Deke Conrad is in big trouble.
Not only does he have a thing for his friend’s little sister, but what should be
a routine mission is turning into a tour of temptation and survival. He fooled
himself into thinking he could keep the beautiful and dynamic Evie in the dark
while he used the cover of her Med Mobile to track down a merciless wildlife
trafficker. But he didn't anticipate the lure of her scent or the warmth of her
smile…or the string of dead bodies littering their path.
When Evie winds up in his enemy’s crosshairs,
Deke must unleash every weapon in his arsenal to save her, including his heart.
But will he be too late?
July 31
Steele Ridge,
Western North Carolina
Deke pushed through
the door of Blues, Brews, and Books—or, as the locals liked to say, Triple B.
It was good to be back in Steele Ridge, which had formerly been named Canyon
Ridge. His family had moved here right before he entered the fourth grade and
stayed through his junior year before returning to their hometown of Rockton.
For him, Steele
Ridge would always be his true home. He’d made lifelong friends here, and it
was the place where he’d become a man.
His eyes took a
moment to adjust before settling on the lone figure stationed at the bar.
Zigzagging his way around islands of low and high tables, he slapped his
friend’s broad shoulder. “Hello, shit for brains.”
Rather than be
startled by such an abrupt greeting, Britt Steele angled his lumberjack body
around and held out his hand. “You’re late.” He shook Deke’s hand before
bellying up to the bar again. “Some of us have to return to work, you know.”
Deke slid onto the
barstool kiddie corner to his friend’s. “Can’t even work up an ounce of
sympathy.” He nodded to the bartender, Grady. “My last vacation was over a year
ago. I’m going to enjoy every second of the next fourteen days.”
Britt eyed the
sling cradling his arm. “What happened? Keyboard attack you?”
Deke did his
damnedest not to lie to those he cared about. As far as his friends and family
knew, he worked for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of External
Affairs, traveling all over the Southeast Region in search of his next story.
Or he could be found cooped up at the Asheville field office banging out
articles for the Service’s quarterly newsletter. All true—but not the whole
truth.
“You have no idea
how threatening the office environment can be.”
“And I hope I never
do. How are you healing?”
The dull, throbbing
pain in his shoulder served as a constant reminder of how quickly a mission
could go wrong, even with hours of careful planning. Matteo had gotten the
worst of it, though. SONR’s engineer had spent three days in the hospital after
the surgeon had dug the arrow out of his leg. The damned thing had gone so deep
that the tip had embedded in bone.
Clenching his jaw,
Deke flexed his fingers and lifted his elbow until the action caused an
involuntary wince. Better than yesterday, but he wouldn’t be playing basketball
anytime soon.
“Getting there.”
“What do you have
planned, besides lunch with a friend you’ve blown off for months?”
“Not a damn thing.”
“You’re going to
stare at your apartment walls for the next two weeks?”
“Maybe. If the mood
strikes.”
“Don’t see it. I’ve
never known you to be idle, in over twenty-five years.”
“I’m hoping to
sleep away the first two days.” Deke rubbed his tired eyes. “I’ll see where
things go from there.”
“Tough assignment?”
He chose his words
carefully. “They get more complicated every time.”
“Complicated how?
Don’t you just go into an area, interview people, take some pictures and then
write up an article?”
“I wish it were
that simple.”
“What can I get
you?” Grady asked.
“Surprise me.” He
glanced at Britt. “You order food yet?”
“Yeah. Hope you’re
in the mood for a burger.”
“Do you order for
Randi?”
“Not a chance,” a
new voice said.
Randi Shepherd
cuddled against Britt’s side and kissed him. Although she kept it short, Deke
could feel the power of their intimacy from two feet away. A pang of envy
clutched his chest, and he shifted his attention to Grady’s nimble hands. What
he wouldn’t give to have a woman love him as Randi loves Britt. It was a notion
that had filtered through his thoughts a lot lately.
“He knows better.”
Randi wrapped Deke in a warm hug. “Seems like forever since we saw you last.
You gonna hang around Steele Ridge for a while?”
“I’d planned to.
Mind if I rent the loft above the bar for a few days?”
“Of course. I’ll
have someone run up there to see if it’s habitable.”
“Thought you didn’t
have a plan,” Britt said.
“My plan is not to
have a plan.”
Randi laughed. “Let
me go check on your food.”
He watched his
friend’s gaze follow Randi from the room. “How’s domestic life treating you?”
“Bit of an
adjustment at first, but we’ve settled into a groove now.”
“A good one?”
“The best.”
“How’s the Center?”
Thanks to a hefty
investment from Britt’s younger brother, he was running a Wildlife Research
Center on the outskirts of town.
“I hired a botanist
to study the red wolves’ habitat and the surrounding conservation area.”
“Is that
trepidation or skepticism I hear in your voice?”
“Fear.” Britt
lifted a beer mug to his lips. “She’s my cousin.”
He searched his
memory for another conservationist in the Steele family. “Not Riley.”
“Ding, ding, ding.”
“The Kingston
menace?”
Britt smiled.
“What the hell were
you thinking? She used to plant shit bombs in our sleeping bags.”
“She just got back
from a research expedition in Costa Rica and needed a job. The Center needed a
botanist, so everyone’s happy.”
“Can’t wait to see
how long that lasts.”
A gust of air
signaled the arrival of a newcomer to Triple B. Even before Deke turned, a buzz
of awareness sprinted down his spine. Only one person had ever had that effect
on him.
The last person who
should.
Evie Steele.
Even though he’d
known her since she’d toddled around on chubby legs, he’d first noticed her
crystal blue eyes, silken black hair, and long, long legs right after she
turned sixteen. He’d come upon her sunbathing in a gut-socking white bikini.
The sight had stopped him cold. Then the heat had come. Scorching,
blood-searing heat.
When she’d glanced
at him over her bare shoulder and thrown out her sweet Evie smile, he could
only stare at the way the triangle of white material molded her firm ass. She’d
twisted around, and his attention had torn from her rounded bottom to
mouthwatering breasts that would fit his hand perfectly.
Somewhere between
fifteen and sixteen, his Squirt had…developed. And he’d stirred. For
her. Evie. The girl who, up to that point, had been like a sister to
him. Guilt had consumed him.
For years
afterwards, he’d done everything he could to avoid her.
Avoidance hadn’t
stopped his thoughts. His vivid dreams. His comparing every woman he looked at
to Evie’s perfection.
Evie Steele had
squirmed her way into every conscious thought and desire he possessed. No
amount of cursing, women, or distance had managed to shake her hold.
At one point, when
she’d cleared high school, he’d considered braving Britt’s big brother wrath
and asking her out. But she’d plunged into college and nursing school at the
same time he’d been invited to join a newly formed black ops unit with the
Service.
Now, four years
later, their journeys were still worlds apart. With a degree under her belt,
Evie would be starting a career. Whereas kids, family, and settling down had
begun visiting his thoughts, as of late.
Britt had found
soul-searing happiness with Randi. She smoothed his edges, cared for him in a
way no one else ever had. And he’d almost lost the love of his life to a
greed-driven trophy hunter.
The power of that
kind of love struck fear in Deke’s heart and warmed it, at the same time.
Problem was, he didn’t have a wife, fiancée, or even a girlfriend. Not one
viable candidate.
His gaze locked on
Evie’s across the bar, and the pressure on his chest intensified, became
crushing. Time had passed, and his lecherous guilt had faded. They were both
adults now. If not for the twelve years separating their ages, Evie might have
been the one.
But he could never
ask her to put her career on hold to be with him and start a family. What if
she did and then couldn’t stomach the demands of his career? She would’ve given
up so much, for what?
Heartbreak.
Resentment.
Anger.
Hate.
He swallowed back
his longing and returned to his beer, allowing the familiar mask to drop in
place.
Forcing away the
memory of last year’s stolen kiss.
* * *
Evie Steele spotted
her brother the moment she entered Triple B. Over two hundred pounds of muscle
and shaggy blond hair was hard to miss, even in this lunch crowd.
Her big brother
held her attention for about a half a second before her Deke radar blared.
There he was. Every
bit as tall as Britt, but with the sleek, muscled planes of a leopard rather
than the thick sturdiness of a tiger. Deke’s coloring was even darker, deeper.
As if he’d spent all the hours of his days outside. Curly ebony hair shaved
close at the sides and back and tamed at the top by a hint of hair product.
What she wouldn’t
do to see that beautiful mane grow wild, to run her fingers through his thick
curls. To feel their softness whisper against her bare breast. Evie shook off
the erotic fantasy before she made a fool of herself in front of the good
residents of Steele Ridge.
Instead, she braced
herself for their reunion. At the moment, she was quite unhappy with him. But
Deke Conrad could charm the cantankerous out of any farmer and he had every
woman in town holding their breath for one of his lopsided grins to float their
way.
Deke was a
dangerous man.
Especially to her.
She’d crushed on him since before she’d known what the word meant. Then her
young girl’s worship transformed into something deeper, hotter, more stirring
than a simple attraction. She ached to draw imaginary lines over his
broad, bare back, to trace her lips down the center of his glistening chest, to
inhale his musky, masculine scent as her tongue explored his most intimate
parts.
Gah!
She had to stop with the naked, entwined images.
The big lug refused
to see her as a beddable woman. Scratch that. He’d noticed. She’d caught him
looking at her behind a time or two. The most memorable moment, the time that
had given her the most hope, was when she’d been sitting in front of the
picture window in her mom’s front room.
At that time of the
day, silhouettes from inside the house reflected onto the glass, giving her
fair warning should any of her brothers try to sneak up from behind. But her
brothers hadn’t filled the picture window that day. Deke had.
He’d stopped by to
pick up Britt for some outing or other and spotted her reading. He hadn’t
announced his presence. He’d just stood there, watching her.
Even now, years
later, her flesh heated, her breasted tightened, her center dampened at the
memory. All for a guy who couldn’t get beyond the fact that she was his best
friend’s little sister.
Sometimes she’d
like to flick his ears. Knock the fog from his eyes. Last year, at the
groundbreaking ceremony for Britt’s wildlife research center, she’d thought
he’d set aside the ridiculous barrier he’d erected and decided to see where
their mutual attraction led. But the next morning, the scaredy-cat had
disappeared.
For eleven months,
eight days, and…never mind. It was a long frickin’ time.
His dark gaze honed
in on her across the bar. A spin top tore across her chest, then idled on her
stomach, burrowing deep. She slapped the damn thing away.
Who disappeared
after a first kiss? Caveman Conrad, that’s who. When he’d vanished without a
word of goodbye, he’d lost his chance with her. Not that he was rolling any
dice in that direction, but if he were, he’d hit snake eyes. Too many loved
ones had ditched her over the years. She wasn’t about to get tangled up with a
guy who couldn’t see past her last name to the woman she’d become.
At least that’s
what she told herself. One come hither-glance from those iridescent eyes, and
all her hard lines would go limp like a spaghetti noodle. No getting around it.
She was a hot mess when it came to her feelings for Deke Conrad. “Evie-girl,
what are you up to today?” asked a woman with a thick salt-and-pepper braid
resting over one shoulder.
“Here to pester my
brother before I set off for another MedTour. Speaking of which, how’s your
knee? Still painful when you bend it?”
“Nah. Those
exercises you gave me did the trick.”
“Happy to hear it.
Have a nice afternoon, Mrs. Grossman.”
As she wove her way
to the bar, several diners gave her quick waves, big smiles, and warm hellos.
She mustered a half-hearted acknowledgment. She didn’t stop to chat like normal.
She couldn’t. No words could get past her air-locked throat.
Deke was in her
midst.
Damn the man!
“Hey, Squirt,” Deke
said when she neared.
The nickname was
like a palm to the forehead. Blunt. Hard. Crushing.
She met his gaze.
Held it long enough to determine whether or not he remembered their kiss. Those
ice-blue eyes held the same warm friendship they always had. No longing. No
passion. No glimmer of hope. “Hey, Deke.”
Britt turned around
on his barstool, and she hugged him before sitting on his opposite side.
“What? No squeeze
for me?”
Somehow she
produced her most mischievous smile. “I don’t hug strangers.”
“Ouch. It hasn’t
been that long.”
“Guess that depends
on your perspective.”
Britt eyed the two
of them, big brother suspicion creasing the area between his brows.
Time for a subject
change.
“Thanks for the
lunch invite,” she said. “I’m glad we could get together before I head out.”
“Need anything?”
Britt asked.
“I’m good, thanks.”
She nudged her shoulder against his. “I have a job now, you know.”
“I know.”
She let the issue
alone. Britt would always look out for his younger brothers and sisters. No
matter their age or economic status. Heck, Jonah was a billionaire and Britt
still tried to buy his lunch.
“Taking a trip?”
Deke asked.
“Yep.”
He waited for her
to explain. She didn’t. She was that annoyed with him.
“Here you go.” Kris
McKay slid plates in front of Britt and Deke. “Can I get you boys anything
else?”
“Not in front of
the kid,” Deke said, winking at Kris.
“What in the world
are you talking about, Deke Conrad?” Kris asked, throwing a conspiratorial grin
her way. “Evie’s my age.”
Deke glanced
between Kris and Evie.
“That way lies
trouble, my friend,” Britt said, biting into his burger.
Evie raised a brow
in Deke’s direction, waiting.
He grabbed the
ketchup bottle and squirted a blob next to his steak-cut fries.
Noticing his sling,
pressure squeezed her chest. “What happened to your arm?”
“Hunting accident.”
He popped a ketchup-coated fry in his mouth. “I’ll be rid of it in a couple
weeks.”
“How’d it happen?”
“A second of
inattention.”
She wanted far more
detail, but his expression closed like an iron gate protecting the castle.
“Want something to
eat?” Britt asked, forcing her attention away from Deke’s injury.
“I’ve been thinking
about Randi’s bruschetta all the way here.”
“What about your
meal?”
“That will be my
meal.”
Smiling, Kris said,
“I’ll put your order in.”
Britt scooted his
plate over to her. “Have some fries.”
“Afraid I’ll waste
away?”
“No chance of
that.”
She smacked his
shoulder. “Rude.”
“Do you have a job
lined up now that you’re done with college?” Deke asked.
“I’m not done yet.”
He glanced a Britt.
“Didn’t you tell me she graduated?”
“She did. Evie’s
starting a Master’s degree.”
“Master’s.” Deke’s
flat tone drew her gaze. His expression remained neutral, but his eyes…his eyes
revealed…loss.
Her throat closed
at the small tell of his feelings. Why loss? Why wouldn’t he be happy for her?
Breaking eye
contact, he lifted his beer bottle to his lips. “Is that why you’re taking a
trip? A little me time before classes start up?”
“No me time.” She stared at the tray of quartered limes and
lemons. A strange hollowness filled the area where her heart used to be. Why
couldn’t she figure him out? Why did he persist in ignoring this thing between
them? Why did she let him?
The bartender set a
glass of ice water in front of her.
“Thanks, Grady.”
“MedTour,” Britt
said.
Evie sipped her
drink, wishing her brother would’ve let the subject drop.
“MedTour?”
“She’s going to
travel around the mountains in an RV, patching up patients who don’t have
health care or reliable transportation.”
“By yourself?”
“I’ll be working
under the direction of a Nurse Practitioner. Lisa Frye. She went to school with
you and Britt.”
“I remember her.
She’s an old friend.”
The softening
around Deke’s mouth and eyes lanced her insides. She reached for her water
again. “Then you’ve heard of her MedTours.”
“I knew she went to
different towns to offer up her services, but I didn’t realize it was so
structured. Definitely didn’t know about the RV.”
“One serving of
Randi’s bruschetta.” Kris set a rectangular dish in front of her. “Let me know
if you need anything else.”
“Thanks, this
should be more than enough.” Evie picked up a piece of toasted bread piled high
with tiny cubed tomatoes, herbs, onions, garlic, and balsamic vinegar. She bit
into the mound, and the mixture of flavors burst into her mouth. She closed her
eyes, chewing slowly, appreciatively. Enjoying something besides yogurt and
Ramen noodles, for a change.
“Good?”
She opened her eyes
to find Britt smiling down at her. She grinned back until she caught Deke
staring at her mouth. She licked her bottom lip, hoping like hell she didn’t
have basil stuck in her teeth.
His focus
intensified, burned, until his gaze lifted to hers.
Blink. And
the fire disappeared.
Deke cleared his
throat. “How does this MedTour thing work? Are people scheduling appointments?
Or do you make house calls?”
Evie released a
painful breath, wishing she could blink away emotion as easily as he. “Every
month the MedTour visits impoverished communities all over the Smokies.”
“Residents come to
expect you, then.”
“Yes, Lisa has set
up a regular route. Every once in a while she’ll veer off-course because of an
emergency or something. But the whole thing runs like clockwork. Takes two
weeks to complete the route, barring anything crazy coming up.”
“Two weeks on tour,
two weeks off?”
“Yep.”
“What towns are you
hitting?”
“I don’t recall the
entire schedule, but I know Haden’s Hollow, Niles, and Creede are on the list.”
“Creede?” His gaze
sharpened on her. “Isn’t that close to Bamford?”
“I have no idea.”
“Just to the north
of Bamford,” Britt interjected.
“When are you headed
out?” Deke asked.
“Three days from
now.”
Deke took several
bites of his burger, throwing them all into a thoughtful silence. Then he
asked, “Do you enjoy the work?”
She nodded. “After
four years of nursing school, I’m glad to finally put what I’ve learned into
practice. Everyone we treat is so grateful. It’s an amazing program.” She aimed
another mound of bruschetta toward her mouth. “This is only my second tour. I
live in fear I’ll screw something up and cause someone more harm than good.”
“If you treat
enough people, the odds are good that you’ll screw up something,” Britt said in
his most pragmatic voice. “The important part is what you do afterwards.”
“Are you trying to
terrify me?”
“No.” His eyebrows
pushed together. “All I’m saying is when you mess up don’t dwell on the
mistake. Figure out how to fix it and how not to do it again.”
Deke chuckled. “I
think your sister needs a peppier talk. Something like, ‘You’re doing great.
I’m proud of you.’”
“Of course I’m
proud of her. But no one’s perfect, especially not when starting a new job.
Mistakes happen.”
“It’s okay, Britt,”
she said. “I knew what you meant.” Britt didn’t waste words, nor was he one for
chitchat. For him to say as much as he had on the topic told her that he was as
nervous about this new adventure as she.
“I’m proud of her,
too,” Deke said.
Startled by Deke’s
quiet statement, Evie stared him.
“Many people talk.
They empathize with their neighbor about the poor in Appalachia, while enjoying
lattes at the local coffee shop. But they don’t act. The poor have no impact on
their daily lives, so their empathy wanes with the next weighty topic.” He
lopsided smile appeared, the one that always, always melted her heart. “You’re
a doer, Evie Steele. Always have been.”
Needles stung her
nose and the backs of her eyes. Words of thanks clogged her throat, refusing to
emerge for fear of their inadequacy.
He tossed his
napkin onto the bar and drew a twenty-dollar bill from his wallet. “Gotta go.”
“You just got
here,” Britt said.
“Just remembered I
need to follow up on something for work.”
“I thought you were
taking some time off.”
“I am. Or will be.”
He shook Britt’s hand and hesitated a second before nodding to her. “See y’all
later.”
“Hey,” Britt
called, angling around. “If you’re free this Sunday, give me a call. Found a
new fishing spot with bluegills the size of your hand.”
“Sounds like my
kind a hole.”
She followed Deke’s
departure until his dark head was no longer visible. A familiar ache of loss
filled in her chest.
“What was all that
about?” Britt asked.
“All what?”
“The tension
between the two of you was so thick I nearly suffocated.”
“So melodramatic.”
“I’m waiting.”
“We’ve always
teased each other.”
“Exactly. Tease.”
Britt rubbed a hand over his face and released a harsh breath. “Listen, I recognize
when a man—”
“There’s nothing
going on between us. All I did was call him out on staying away for so long.”
He regarded her for
several uncomfortable seconds, disbelief storming in his eyes. But he didn’t
press her. Simply dipped a fry into his ketchup and handed it to her.
Gratitude made her
smile. How could she tell her brother that the tension he sensed might have
been sexual on her side, but avoidance on Deke’s? One humiliation per day was
more than enough. Thank the sweet Lord she wouldn’t see Deke Conrad again
anytime soon.
USA Today bestselling author Tracey Devlyn wanted to be the next Dian Fossey and explore the wilds of Africa, but that was before she met chemistry and calculus and realized a business major, rather than a science degree, might be more up her alley. Tracey writes contemporary and historical romantic suspense, historical mysteries, and mainstream thrillers. An Illinois native, Tracey spends her evenings harassing her once-in-a-lifetime husband and her weekends torturing her characters. For more information on Tracey, including her Internet haunts, contest updates, and details on her upcoming novels, please visit her website. Want information about Tracey's new releases to be delivered to your email inbox? Consider signing up for her newsletter. Tracey can also be found at Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
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