Angi Morgan - Ranger Guardian

A Texas Ranger’s daughter has been taken.

Getting her back is all that matters.

They’ve been estranged for months, so Texas Ranger Heath Murray is surprised to be partnered with his dedicated FBI agent wife, Kendall Barlow. It’s the case of Kendall’s career—a career that has divided their marriage, though not their attraction. When their young daughter is kidnapped as a pawn, they have only each other to turn to. Saving her together is their only option. The alternative is unthinkable.

Texas Brothers of Company B

ANGI MORGAN writes about Texans in Texas. A USA TODAY and Publishers Weekly bestselling author, her books have been finalists for several awards, including the Booksellers’ Best Award, RT Book Reviews Best Intrigue Series and the Daphne du Maurier. Angi and her husband live in North Texas. They foster Labradors and love to travel, snap pics and fix up their house. Hang out with her on Facebook at Angi Morgan Books. She loves to hear from fans at www.angimorganauthor.com.

Also by Angi Morgan

Ranger Protector

Ranger Defender

Bulletproof Badge

Shotgun Justice

Gunslinger

Hard Core Law

The Sheriff

The Cattleman

The Ranger

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk

Ranger Guardian

Angi Morgan

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-474-07909-9

RANGER GUARDIAN

© 2018 Angela Platt

Published in Great Britain 2018

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.

® and ™ are trademarks owned and used by the trademark owner and/or its licensee. Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries.

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Version: 2020-03-02

Before you start reading, why not sign up?

Thank you for downloading this Mills & Boon book. If you want to hear about exclusive discounts, special offers and competitions, sign up to our email newsletter today!

SIGN ME UP!

Or simply visit

signup.millsandboon.co.uk

Mills & Boon emails are completely free to receive and you can unsubscribe at any time via the link in any email we send you.

Thank you, Amanda! Thanks for the encouragement and the major kick in the behind—just the right amount of both. And a special thanks for being such a great person to model a character after!

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

About the Author

Booklist

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Prologue

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

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Extract

About the Publisher

Prologue

Eight Months Ago

Heath Murray rushed through the emergency room doors. Yes, he’d used the entrance for the ambulances. Yes, he’d parked his truck next to the building, practically on the sidewalk. And yes, he’d taken advantage of having the Texas Ranger badge he carried.

What did anyone expect? His three-year-old daughter was there. It was the only thing he knew for sure. The message from his wife had stated only what hospital they were heading to.

Life was good. Life was perfect. He couldn’t imagine life without his baby girl, Skylar Dawn, in it. He couldn’t imagine life without his wife, Kendall. Six years ago, if you’d asked him if his life would be full of anything except law enforcement, he would have answered no.

Now?

Life was full of pink frills and satin sun dresses. Along with brand new ponies—plastic and real. And all the disagreements about whether Skylar Dawn was old enough to own a pony. Yep, life was full, and he was blessed several times over.

He rushed to his mother-in-law, who stood up from a waiting room chair. Her eyes were red but not swollen. Her old-fashioned handkerchief was twisted and streaked from her mascara. She looked like she’d been pulled straight out of a church service, but Naomi Barlow looked like that every day. And she didn’t go to church.

“Where is she?”

“Kendall is with her. She’s going to be fine. It’s not a break that will require surgery.”

“What kind of an accident were they in?”

“Accident? Did you think they were in a car accident?” Kendall’s mom asked, then laughed.

What the hell? Why was she laughing?

“Where are they?”

“Oh, honey, you poor thing. Skylar Dawn just fell on the playground at day care. That’s all. She’ll be fine.” Naomi’s eyes darted toward a set of double doors. “Only one person can be in the room with her.”

He didn’t need her response. What he did need was for the attendant to open the doors from the other side.

“Excuse me.” He headed straight to the front desk and flipped his badge so the person at the window could see it. “I need to get through.”

“May I see your credentials?”

Heath shot his ID through the slot and managed to keep his toes from tapping the linoleum while he waited. “Thanks,” he added politely to the man whose turn he’d interrupted, then paced back to his mother-in-law and handed her his keys. “Give these to the green-faced Texas Ranger who comes inside in a minute. My partner, Slate Thompson will take my truck home.”

“Here you go, sir. I can buzz you through now.”

He heard the door lock open and hurried to pull on the handle, but it opened at a snail’s pace on its own. He rushed down the hall, glancing through the small windows. Then he heard her.