Lauren Dane - Whiskey Sharp - Unraveled

Booklist Available from Lauren Dane and HQN Books The Best Kind of Trouble Broken Open Back to You Coming soon from Lauren Dane and HQN Books Whiskey Sharp: Jagged Whiskey Sharp: Torn Also available from Lauren Dane and Carina Press Second Chances Believe Diablo Lake series Diablo Lake: Moonstruck Diablo Lake: Protected Cascadia Wolves series Reluctant Mate Pack Enforcer Wolves’ Triad Wolf Unbound Alpha’s Challenge Bonded Pair Twice Bitten de La Vega Cats series Trinity Revelation Beneath the Skin Goddess with a Blade series Goddess with a Blade Blade to the Keep Blade on the Hunt At Blade’s Edge Cherchez Wolf Pack series Wolf’s Ascension Sworn to the Wolf And from Lauren Dane and Cosmo Red-Hot Reads from Harlequin Cake

Title Page Whiskey Sharp: Unraveled Lauren Dane www.millsandboon.co.uk

Copyright ISBN: 978-1-474-08231-0 WHISKEY SHARP: UNRAVELED © 2018 Lauren Dane 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

Praise Praise for New York Times bestselling author Lauren Dane “A romance that is utterly captivating, seductive and full of the kind of raw emotion and sensuality that has made this series such a winner.” —RT Book Reviews on Back to You (Top Pick) “Dane continues to evolve, and this strong, widely appealing, and memorable story will gain new readers while satisfying fans.” —Booklist on Broken Open “Most remarkable is the fierce power of Dane’s uniquely confident heroine, whose strength gives this story power... Dane’s mastery of her characters and their emotional complexity shines, making it a book fans will savor.” —RT Book Reviews on Broken Open (4 stars) “The perfect combination of sexy rock-star fantasy and emotionally tender romance.” —Kirkus Reviews on The Best Kind of Trouble “A fabulous start to a sexy new series, the Hurley Brothers series introduces us to rock star brothers who would tempt the most resistant of readers. Ms. Dane’s new book features a charming hero in hot pursuit, a strong, smart heroine and smokin’ hot love scenes. The Best Kind of Trouble is the best kind of reading.” —Dear Author “The Best Kind of Trouble is a great example of what Lauren Dane is known for—strong family ties and confident characters with an extra touch of sexiness for good measure!” —Fresh Fiction “A book that leaves you simmering for more from start to finish.” —Books of Love on The Best Kind of Trouble

Dedication This one is for my father. The most important thing I wrote in 2016 was my father’s obituary. His death came suddenly and unexpectedly, and months later, his absence hits me every day in some new way. I write about family and create family a lot because I truly value it. And I value it because my dad was the best. At every major moment in my entire life, he was there. He told everyone about his daughter and whatever thing I’d done that he was proud of. He was an excellent grandfather. My kids are so fortunate to have had him as their poppa. He was old-school. The oldest son of immigrants. Even into his seventies he called people Sir and Ma’am. He opened doors for people and gave up his seat. When I was eleven, he gave medical aid to a heatstroke victim in the parking lot of the LA County Fair. He was taciturn and could be gruff, but he was an absolute fool for babies and animals. He was my number one fan and my touchstone. When he paid attention to you, you knew he heard everything you said, though he would steal your food if you turned your back, and you never left your iced tea unmonitored if he was around. Sure, he had flaws, like all humans. But the fact that he wasn’t my biological father wasn’t one of them. He came into my life when I was just four and he was every bit my dad. I’ll miss him every single day, but damn, I’m so grateful I had him.

AUTHOR NOTE AUTHOR NOTE THERE IS NO actual Bootleggers’ Building. I took the history of the area and took a little literary license to create it for Whiskey Sharp to live in. Pioneer Square, the part of downtown Seattle I set the book in, is real though, as is the Underground Tour.

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

Extract

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

AUTHOR NOTE

THERE IS NO actual Bootleggers’ Building. I took the history of the area and took a little literary license to create it for Whiskey Sharp to live in. Pioneer Square, the part of downtown Seattle I set the book in, is real though, as is the Underground Tour.

CHAPTER ONE

Two years ago

THE OLD-FASHIONED RED, white and blue barber pole lazily spun inside a glass case just outside the front door to Whiskey Sharp. Jaunty, she thought. A good sign. Classic and simple.

The bell over the door jingled as she opened it and stepped inside, greeted by the scent of sandalwood and mint. Scissors snipped and clippers hummed and it felt very much like a place she’d like to stop and stay awhile.

A broad-shouldered gent with a vest and a crisp white button-down shirt came over. “Welcome to Whiskey Sharp. You in for a cut?”

“I’m actually looking for Alexsei Petrov.”

Broad Shoulders gave her a slow head-to-toe look. “He’s just finishing up. He’s booked today, so if you want him to do your cut, we can get you in tomorrow.”

“I don’t need a cut, thanks. I just need a few minutes of his time. Irena Orlova sent me.”

Broad Shoulders relaxed at the mention of Mrs. Orlova’s name. “Okay. Just hang out here for a bit. I’ll let him know you’re here.”