B.J. Daniels - Outlaw's Honor

She never expected this Cahill to be her hero—or the only man she’d need

It’s hard to forget a beautiful woman who picks your pocket the first time you meet. Darby Cahill recognizes Mariah Ayres the moment she walks into his bar looking for a job. He shouldn’t hire her...or crave more after one impulsive kiss. But what starts as curiosity about her motives turns to concern when he senses how much danger she’s in.

Mariah has been running ever since she left her fiancé at the altar. Now she’s playing the part of the perfect employee, terrified that her past will catch up with her. But Darby has already seen through her act. He’s the kind of guy who saves people. And even if Mariah’s given him no reason to trust her, he’s determined to protect her—and he’ll risk his life to do it...

Praise for New York Times bestselling author B.J. Daniels

“Crossing multiple genres, Daniels successfully combines Western romance, suspense and political intrigue with ease.”

—RT Book Reviews on Hard Rain

“The heartwarming romance gets wrapped up here, but the book ends with a cliffhanger that is sure to have fans anxious for the next title in the series.”

—Library Journal on Lucky Shot

“Forget slow-simmering romance: the multiple story lines weaving in and out of Big Timber, Montana, mean the second Montana Hamiltons contemporary...is always at a rolling boil.”

—Publishers Weekly on Lone Rider

“[The Montana Hamiltons] should definitely be on the must read list... A great introduction for new readers to this amazing author.”

—Fresh Fiction on Wild Horses

“Truly amazing crime story for every amateur sleuth.”

—Fresh Fiction on Mercy

“Daniels is truly an expert at Western romantic suspense.”

—RT Book Reviews on Atonement

“Will keep readers on the edge of their chairs from beginning to end.”

—Booklist on Forsaken

“Action-packed and chock-full of suspense.”

—Under the Covers on Redemption

“Fans of Western romantic suspense will relish Daniels’ tale of clandestine love played out in a small town on the Great Plains.”

—Booklist on Unforgiven

Outlaw’s Honor

B.J Daniels

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text She never expected this Cahill to be her hero—or the only man she’d need It’s hard to forget a beautiful woman who picks your pocket the first time you meet. Darby Cahill recognizes Mariah Ayres the moment she walks into his bar looking for a job. He shouldn’t hire her...or crave more after one impulsive kiss. But what starts as curiosity about her motives turns to concern when he senses how much danger she’s in. Mariah has been running ever since she left her fiancé at the altar. Now she’s playing the part of the perfect employee, terrified that her past will catch up with her. But Darby has already seen through her act. He’s the kind of guy who saves people. And even if Mariah’s given him no reason to trust her, he’s determined to protect her—and he’ll risk his life to do it...

Praise Praise for New York Times bestselling author B.J. Daniels “Crossing multiple genres, Daniels successfully combines Western romance, suspense and political intrigue with ease.” —RT Book Reviews on Hard Rain “The heartwarming romance gets wrapped up here, but the book ends with a cliffhanger that is sure to have fans anxious for the next title in the series.” —Library Journal on Lucky Shot “Forget slow-simmering romance: the multiple story lines weaving in and out of Big Timber, Montana, mean the second Montana Hamiltons contemporary...is always at a rolling boil.” —Publishers Weekly on Lone Rider “[The Montana Hamiltons] should definitely be on the must read list... A great introduction for new readers to this amazing author.” —Fresh Fiction on Wild Horses “Truly amazing crime story for every amateur sleuth.” —Fresh Fiction on Mercy “Daniels is truly an expert at Western romantic suspense.” —RT Book Reviews on Atonement “Will keep readers on the edge of their chairs from beginning to end.” —Booklist on Forsaken “Action-packed and chock-full of suspense.” —Under the Covers on Redemption “Fans of Western romantic suspense will relish Daniels’ tale of clandestine love played out in a small town on the Great Plains.” —Booklist on Unforgiven

Title Page Outlaw’s Honor B.J Daniels www.millsandboon.co.uk

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

Copyright

CHAPTER ONE

DARBY CAHILL ADJUSTED his Stetson as he moved toward the bandstand. The streets of Gilt Edge, Montana, were filled with revelers who’d come to celebrate the yearly chokecherry harvest on this beautiful day. The main street had been blocked off for all the events. People had come from miles around for the celebration of a cherry that was so tart it made your mouth pucker.

As he climbed the steps, Darby figured it just proved that people would celebrate anything. Normally, his twin sister, Lillie, attended, but this year she was determined that he should do more of their promotion at these events.

“I hate it as much as you do,” she’d assured him. “But believe me. You’ll get more attention up there on the stage than me. Just say a few words, throw T-shirts into the crowd, have some fry bread and come home. You can do this.” Clearly, she knew his weakness for fry bread as well as his dislike of being the center of attention.

The T-shirts were from the Stagecoach Saloon, the bar and café the two of them owned and operated outside of town. Since it had opened, the bar had helped sponsor the Chokecherry Festival each year.

He heard his name being announced and sighed as he made his way up the rest of the steps to the microphone to deafening applause. He tipped his hat to the crowd, swallowed the lump in his throat and said, “It’s an honor to be here and be part of such a wonderful celebration.”

“Are you taking part in the pit-spitting competition?” someone yelled from the crowd, and others joined in. Along with being bitter, chokecherries were mostly pit.

“I’m going to leave that to the professionals,” he said, reaching for the box of T-shirts, wanting this over with as quickly as possible. He didn’t like being in the spotlight any longer than he had to. Also he hoped that once he started throwing the shirts, everyone would forget about the pit-spitting contest later.