Mary Sullivan - No Ordinary Home

She’s not who she seems…

Gracie Travers has a secret. She’s not the down-on-her-luck drifter she appears to be. Once America’s sweetheart, Gracie needs to keep below the paparazzi’s radar until she’s thirty. Then she’ll get her money and get off the street.

But one small mistake brings Deputy Sheriff Austin Trumball into her life. He’s attractive and oh-so-dangerous. If he learns who she really is, her anonymous days are over. Worse, Austin’s hard to resist, and their connection is terrifying. Soon he makes her want what she can’t have—a lover, a family and a home of her own.

Maybe they could sleep in the same bed tonight without it being too awkward.

Maybe this could work, Gracie thought as she looked to where Austin stood beside the window, big and calm and about as perfect as a man could be, except for a small scar beside his left eye.

He must have shoved his fingers through his hair, because it lay in sexy waves. She wanted to straighten it out, but that would be a big mistake.

Hands off, Gracie. You haven’t been attracted to a man in six years. Why start now when you’re so close to the end?

What appealed to her, though, was underneath the facade. Austin gave too much. She was a stranger who’d picked his pocket. He should have given her a night in jail.

Instead, he’d shown compassion, and it had her yearning for things that could never be.

She glanced at the bed. Maybe it would still be awkward. She hadn’t been attracted to a man in years, probably because she’d been focused on survival. But Austin had taken care of that. She was warm and fuzzy when she needed her defenses the most. If she wasn’t careful, she would let her guard down.

Don’t forget who you really are. This man must never find out the truth about you.

You’re almost home free.

Dear Reader Dear Reader Title Page ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dedication 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 EXTRACT Copyright ,

Privacy is becoming a precious commodity in today’s world. We seem to know everything about everyone around us. The public craves the latest news about celebrities, and we are often pressured by those around us to become involved in social media.

I began to wonder what would happen to a woman who had reached her breaking point and decided to just opt out of today’s society. How difficult would her life become?

This is the story of one such woman’s journey.

As well, I wanted to follow the escapades of a couple of characters from previous novels—including Austin Trumball from No Ordinary Sheriff (Mills & Boon Superromance, May 2012). Many readers have asked me what happened to him. Here is his story.

There are also two young characters who were separated when they were only twelve years old through no fault of their own—Finn (Franck) Caldwell and Melody Chase from These Ties that Bind (Mills & Boon Superromance, November 2011). I wanted to explore what would happen to them if they met again as adults.

I loved writing these characters in my earlier books and have enjoyed creating happy endings for them as adults, but not before giving them plenty of conflict to overcome first!

Mary Sullivan

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dedication 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 EXTRACT Copyright

Mary started her life living in a large city, and she loved it. Her early career was as a darkroom printer—a career ideally suited to her temperament. She left both the city and the job to start her family. Along the way, darkrooms became obsolete when computers took over. Searching for a creative alternative, she found writing. In particular, writing romance novels, which she enjoys thoroughly. She moved to smaller cities and then the country and then back to a big city, and the novel writing has followed her everywhere! These days she strives for a balance between her public life as an author and her private life, but she always loves to hear from readers. Don’t hesitate to contact her through her website, www.marysullivanbooks.com.

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Thank you to all of the staff at Harlequin, who are unfailingly polite and lovely.

Thank you to every copy editor, line editor and proofreader who fixes my mistakes for me.

Thank you to every member of the art department for giving me stellar covers time and time again.

Thank you to Megan Long for helping me to make this the best book it could be!

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text She’s not who she seems… Gracie Travers has a secret. She’s not the down-on-her-luck drifter she appears to be. Once America’s sweetheart, Gracie needs to keep below the paparazzi’s radar until she’s thirty. Then she’ll get her money and get off the street. But one small mistake brings Deputy Sheriff Austin Trumball into her life. He’s attractive and oh-so-dangerous. If he learns who she really is, her anonymous days are over. Worse, Austin’s hard to resist, and their connection is terrifying. Soon he makes her want what she can’t have—a lover, a family and a home of her own.

Introduction Maybe they could sleep in the same bed tonight without it being too awkward. Maybe this could work, Gracie thought as she looked to where Austin stood beside the window, big and calm and about as perfect as a man could be, except for a small scar beside his left eye. He must have shoved his fingers through his hair, because it lay in sexy waves. She wanted to straighten it out, but that would be a big mistake. Hands off, Gracie. You haven’t been attracted to a man in six years. Why start now when you’re so close to the end? What appealed to her, though, was underneath the facade. Austin gave too much. She was a stranger who’d picked his pocket. He should have given her a night in jail. Instead, he’d shown compassion, and it had her yearning for things that could never be. She glanced at the bed. Maybe it would still be awkward. She hadn’t been attracted to a man in years, probably because she’d been focused on survival. But Austin had taken care of that. She was warm and fuzzy when she needed her defenses the most. If she wasn’t careful, she would let her guard down. Don’t forget who you really are. This man must never find out the truth about you. You’re almost home free.

Dear Reader Dear Reader Dear Reader Title Page ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dedication 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 EXTRACT Copyright , Privacy is becoming a precious commodity in today’s world. We seem to know everything about everyone around us. The public craves the latest news about celebrities, and we are often pressured by those around us to become involved in social media. I began to wonder what would happen to a woman who had reached her breaking point and decided to just opt out of today’s society. How difficult would her life become? This is the story of one such woman’s journey. As well, I wanted to follow the escapades of a couple of characters from previous novels—including Austin Trumball from No Ordinary Sheriff (Mills & Boon Superromance, May 2012). Many readers have asked me what happened to him. Here is his story. There are also two young characters who were separated when they were only twelve years old through no fault of their own—Finn (Franck) Caldwell and Melody Chase from These Ties that Bind (Mills & Boon Superromance, November 2011). I wanted to explore what would happen to them if they met again as adults. I loved writing these characters in my earlier books and have enjoyed creating happy endings for them as adults, but not before giving them plenty of conflict to overcome first! Mary Sullivan