Jennifer Bokal - Her Rocky Mountain Defender

A kiss. A betrayal. An escape?

A Rocky Mountain Justice page-turner

Searching for her missing sister leads Madelyn Thompkins straight into the path of danger...and Roman DeMarco. Wounded physically and emotionally, the undercover agent hardly needs this distraction. When the two collide with a Russian gang, they go on the run—and are drawn together. Their priorities don’t align, but when Madelyn falls victim to a murderous criminal, will Roman sacrifice everything to save her?

JENNIFER D. BOKAL is the author of the bestselling ancient-world historical romance The Gladiator’s Mistress and the second book in the Champions of Rome series, The Gladiator’s Temptation . Happily married to her own alpha male for twenty years, she enjoys writing stories that explore the wonders of love in many genres. Jen and her husband live in upstate New York with their three beautiful daughters, two aloof cats and two very spoiled dogs.

Also by Jennifer D. Bokal Contents Cover Back Cover Text About the Author Booklist Title Page Copyright Dedication Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Epilogue Extract About the Publisher

Her Rocky Mountain Defender

Her Rocky Mountain Hero

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk

Her Rocky Mountain Defender

Jennifer D. Bokal

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-474-07883-2

HER ROCKY MOUNTAIN DEFENDER

© 2018 Jennifer D. Bokal

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

As always, this book is dedicated to John.

Twenty years of marriage has taught me to hope, to laugh and, most important—to love.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text A kiss. A betrayal. An escape? A Rocky Mountain Justice page-turner Searching for her missing sister leads Madelyn Thompkins straight into the path of danger...and Roman DeMarco. Wounded physically and emotionally, the undercover agent hardly needs this distraction. When the two collide with a Russian gang, they go on the run—and are drawn together. Their priorities don’t align, but when Madelyn falls victim to a murderous criminal, will Roman sacrifice everything to save her?

About the Author JENNIFER D. BOKAL is the author of the bestselling ancient-world historical romance The Gladiator’s Mistress and the second book in the Champions of Rome series, The Gladiator’s Temptation . Happily married to her own alpha male for twenty years, she enjoys writing stories that explore the wonders of love in many genres. Jen and her husband live in upstate New York with their three beautiful daughters, two aloof cats and two very spoiled dogs.

Booklist Also by Jennifer D. Bokal Contents Cover Back Cover Text About the Author Booklist Title Page Copyright Dedication Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Epilogue Extract About the Publisher Her Rocky Mountain Defender Her Rocky Mountain Hero Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk

Title Page Her Rocky Mountain Defender Jennifer D. Bokal www.millsandboon.co.uk

Copyright ISBN: 978-1-474-07883-2 HER ROCKY MOUNTAIN DEFENDER © 2018 Jennifer D. Bokal 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

Dedication As always, this book is dedicated to John. Twenty years of marriage has taught me to hope, to laugh and, most important—to love.

Prologue Prologue Roman DeMarco sat at the table in the kitchen of a cramped studio apartment. Like an ever-present fog, the smell of overcooked eggs crept in from the hallway. In the distance, a baby’s wail pierced the still afternoon. He lifted his weary gaze to the window. The view was of the stained brick building next door. Roman had lived under an alias—Roman Black—paying rent and sleeping in this apartment for almost half of a year, yet this place wasn’t his home. Turning his gaze back to the table, Roman held up his latest creation. It was a powerful ELD, or electronic listening device. He hit the power button. A small rectangular screen glowed and filled with boxy script. It held two words: Signal Obtained. During his years as an intelligence officer with Delta Force, Roman had bugged many rooms. But this next target had proved to be uniquely difficult. As far as Roman was concerned, he loved the challenge. The targeted room—underground and made of concrete—was the first problem. Any signal coming from the room needed to be strong, and using an easily hidden, thumb-size ELD was impossible. It left Roman to fashion his own device. The bug might be larger than he wanted, but the battery should be powerful enough to last fourteen days. Or so he hoped. “Testing. Testing. One. Two. Three,” he said. He pressed a small button on the side. His words were replayed. “Testing. Testing. One. Two. Three.” He turned the device over and examined the back. Two powerful magnets lined each side of the ELD. He moved to his refrigerator and held out the black box. Like a live thing, the magnets pulled, and the ELD wiggled in his grasp. He let go and it sailed an inch from his hand, connecting with the appliance’s metal casing. He smiled to himself. If things went as planned, Roman was about to reclaim his former life. It couldn’t come a day too soon.