Anna J. - A Dad For Charlie

Doesn’t she know she can trust him with anything?

To Butterfly Harbor deputy sheriff Fletcher Bradley, Paige Cooper is a mystery he’s dying to solve. Ever since the single mother and her equally irresistible young daughter showed up, life in his California town has changed for the better. Fletch isn’t sure what Paige is running from; he only knows she’s keeping some pretty serious secrets. Yet here she is, already a vital part of the community and working with him to crack a series of recent break-ins. Paige has to trust someone sometime. Why not Fletch? Doesn’t she know that she belongs here—with him?

“You really are a nice guy, aren’t you?”

Before she could stop herself, Paige walked across the yard and grabbed hold of his arms; solid, muscular arms that tensed at her touch. Looking up at Fletch, memorizing every inch of his handsome face, from that slight twitch as he fought a grin to the amused glint in his sea green eyes, she stopped thinking.

Without breathing, without worrying, Paige stretched up on her toes and very softly, very carefully, pressed her lips to his.

What she’d thought was an expression of gratitude shifted in the blink of an eye, in the flex of his fingers. She held on to him even as his hands moved and settled lightly on her hips. He didn’t take; he didn’t demand. He let her lead wherever she wanted to take them.

Until she realized she couldn’t go where she wanted.

Dear Reader,

Welcome back to Butterfly Harbor. I’ve been looking forward to writing Paige and Charlie Cooper’s story since they first walked into the Butterfly Diner back in book one (The Bad Boy of Butterfly Harbor). They were both a surprise, characters I never expected to exist. When they stepped onto the page they did so with a wink, a smile and most definitely some secrets. Above all, they arrived searching for what so many of us want: a place to call home. But Charlie wants a bit more than that. She wants a dad, and this determined eight-year-old has her sights set on Deputy Fletcher Bradley.

Whenever I begin a story, I’m usually pretty certain whose story it is: the heroine, or in this case, Paige, a woman doing her best to protect her only child from the mistakes she’s made. Or maybe it’s the hero, Fletcher, who struggles with being thought of as a hero, especially when his own failure as a young man changed his family’s future forever. There’s usually a leaning one way or the other. But as I wrote, I realized this was the first story where a third person was equally important: a little girl desperate for the same family stability her best friend has. She wants—she needs—someone other than her mother to count on, to love her.

I’m a firm believer in family, and not just the kind we’re connected to by blood. My friends are my family, and they’re who I think of whenever I come back to Butterfly Harbor. I love that we can choose our tribe, that we can thrive in communities we might not have been born into but that we find along the way. Taking that one unexpected turn (or in Paige’s case, a highway turnoff) can give you all you’ve ever wanted—and needed—in life. I hope you enjoy Paige and Fletcher (and Charlie’s) journey to their happily-ever-after.

Anna J.

A Dad for Charlie

Anna J. Stewart

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Bestselling author ANNA J. STEWART can’t remember a time she wasn’t making up stories or imaginary friends. Raised in San Francisco, she quickly found her calling as a romance writer when she discovered the used bookstore in her neighborhood had an entire wall dedicated to the genre. Her favorites? Harlequins, of course. A generous owner had her refilling her bag of books every Saturday morning, and soon her pen met paper and she never looked back (much to the detriment of her high school education). Anna currently lives in Northern California, where she continues to write up a storm, binge watches her favorite TV shows and movies and spends as much time as she can with her family and friends…and her cat, Snickers, who, let’s face it, rules the house.

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For all the Charlie Coopers

May you find your forever dad.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

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

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

EPILOGUE

Extract

Copyright

CHAPTER ONE

“WHAT DO YOU think that’s all about?”

From where he sipped his beer, Deputy Bradley Fletcher pulled his attention from the besotted bride and groom and followed his fellow deputy’s curious gaze across the expansive—and newly landscaped—roundabout of the Flutterby Inn.

Every nerve ending in his body fired against the cool Pacific breeze coming in off the ocean beyond the nearby cliffs. Over the din of conversation and the ever-so-faint tunes of a four-piece string quartet emanating from inside the landmark hotel, the nerve-racking sound of waves crashing against the rocks echoed in his ears. He shifted position, his knuckles going white around the bottle. How, after over fifteen years of living in the oceanside town of Butterfly Harbor, could the sound of the ocean still fill him with dread?

As he caught sight of Gil Hamilton chatting it up with a neighboring town sheriff, the anxiety and unease slipped to the back of his mind.

If there was one talent Fletch had honed in his thirty-one years it was his ability to know when someone—especially a suspicious someone—was up to something.

And there were few people in Butterfly Harbor more suspicious than their very own mayor.

“Excellent question.” Grateful for something to concentrate on other than his personal demons, Fletch straightened and tugged down the edge of his rented tuxedo jacket.

“Heard Mr. Mayor is getting a little anxious about the upcoming election,” Ozzy said in his own lowered voice. “With more than a year out, I don’t think Gil expected Luke to declare his intention to run for sheriff again quite this soon.”

“Gil isn’t a fan of anyone he can’t manipulate and control.” One of the reasons Luke Saxon had earned Fletch’s respect within his first few hours on the job had been the way he’d stood up to their former classmate turned boss. The onetime Chicago Bomb Squad officer didn’t take anything from anyone; not even the mayor who had reluctantly appointed him over his personal choice of the man he was currently speaking to. “Gil might put on a good show, but he hates the fact Luke’s approval ratings are higher than his. Even in a town this small.”

“You think Gil wants to talk Sean into running? You think Gil’s coming after Luke?”

“He wouldn’t be his father’s son if he didn’t.” Far across the manicured grounds of the iconic landmark hotel, Sheriff Sean Brodie gave the mayor a toothy grin. His chuckle carried across the breeze of the perfect late summer day and rankled the last nerve Fletch managed to hold on to. “Timing can’t be a coincidence,” Fletch said. “Not with Luke heading out of town on his honeymoon. I recognize an ambush when I see it.”