Kat Martin - Against the Edge

A child he’s never met.

A danger he’s never known.

That he’s a father is news former navy SEAL Ben Slocum was not expecting. But once the initial shock wears off for the confirmed bachelor, he takes in the rest of what social worker Claire Chastain tells him: that his son is missing, abducted by a man who wants revenge against Claire and Sam’s dead mother. And that Ben is now the child’s only hope.

As Ben and Claire band together to track the two down, their concern for Sam draws them closer, each fighting feelings there’s no time to explore. Because when their search takes them too close to Sam’s abductor and his cohorts, the danger hits home’the son he’s desperate to save, the woman he’s desperate to love…. Ben’s got one chance to take back what’s his, and in one gunshot he could lose it all.

Selected praise for The Raines of Wind Canyon

Against the Wind

“This is definitely a page-turner full of compassion

and love shared by two unlikely souls. This is a ‘don’t miss’ read.… Kat Martin is a very gifted writer who takes you

from the beginning to the end in total suspense.”

’Fresh Fiction

Against the Fire

“After reading the first book about the Raine brothers,

I knew Kat Martin would have to do something pretty amazing

to make her second book as much of a joy to read.

As soon as I opened the book, I realized that she has succeeded.…

I simply loved this book. I didn’t want to put it down.”

’Suspense Romance Writers

Against the Law

“4 ½ quills! Ms. Martin has struck the motherlode.…

Against the Law is by far the most powerfully intense

romantic suspense with its charismatic characters,

[and] a story line that defies gravity.”

’Romantic Crush Junkies

Against the Storm

“Fans of Martin’s Raines of Wind Canyon trilogy are going to

love meeting more of this testosterone-and-honor-laden family.”

’RT Book Reviews

Against the Night

“Against the Night is not like anything else I’ve read.… I love a

good suspense story and this one packs one heck of a wallop.”

’Long and Short Reviews

Against the Sun

“[Martin] dishes up romantic suspense, sizzling sex

and international intrigue in healthy doses, and fans

are going to be the winners. Readers better set aside a block of time to finish this unputdownable tale of adventure and romance.”

’RT Book Reviews, Top Pick!

Against the Edge

Kat Martin

www.mirabooks.co.uk

To my sister, Patti Johnson, and my brother Michael Kelly.

Miss you guys!

Contents

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

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chapter Thirty-Five

Epilogue

Author’s Note

One

Houston, Texas

His head was pounding. Too much Jack Daniel’s last night. When Ben Slocum pulled his big black SUV into the driveway in front of his garage, the only thing on his mind was getting a couple hours of sleep.

Reaching up to hit the garage door opener on his visor, he spotted a silver Buick with Hertz rental plates parked in front of the house. His gaze swung to the porch, where a woman in a conservative yellow business suit stood rapping on his door.

Ben groaned. Last night two of his best friends, Alex Justice and Sabrina Eckhart, had gotten married. Alex, one of his fellow private investigators at Atlas Security, had fallen hard for the pretty redhead. Ben had never seen a guy look happier about getting hitched.

Their early-October wedding had turned into good news for Ben, who’d gotten lucky with a slinky little blonde from Dallas he had met at the reception. He’d spent the night in her bed at the Marriott, and neither of them had gotten much sleep.

Still dressed in his black tuxedo, Ben glanced at the porch, shoved the Denali into Park and turned off the engine, cracked open the door and slid out from behind the wheel. His pants were wrinkled, his white pleated shirt haphazardly buttoned and opened halfway down the front. His black bow tie hung loose around his collar.

Company this morning was the last thing he wanted.

He took a long look at the woman whose attention was now fixed on him as he crossed the front lawn. She was tall and slender, with dark brown hair clipped back at the nape of her neck, and a very pretty face. High cheekbones, a heart-shaped face and full lips. Too bad they were currently thinned in a disapproving line.

He wondered what she was selling. Whatever it was, he wasn’t buying. He just wanted to hit the sheets.

Ben strode up on the porch. “’Fraid nobody’s home,” he said, hoping she would just go away. He wasn’t in the mood for another female, no matter how good she looked.

“I can see that,” she said. “I’m looking for Benjamin Slocum. I presume that’s you?”

He lifted a black eyebrow. “And you would be?”

“My name is Claire Chastain. I need to speak to you, Mr. Slocum, on a matter of extreme importance.”

“I’ll be in my office this afternoon. Why don’t you stop by...say three o’clock? We can talk about anything you like.”

“This can’t wait.”

Of course not. She was a woman. Everything was a matter of critical meltdown. “Is this business or personal?”

“Personal.”

He let his gaze drift over her, taking in the soft curves. Slender and elegant, but there was plenty of female wrapped up in the pretty package.

“Do we know each other, Ms. Chastain?” As in, have we spent the night together? Maybe I drank too much and don’t recall?

But he hadn’t done much of that since he’d left the SEALs. Since then he had behaved himself. Well, more or less.

“No, we’ve never met. Please, Mr. Slocum. This is important, and I would rather not discuss it out on your front porch.”

Irritation filtered through him. “Angel, this had better be good.” Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his house key, stuck it in the lock and opened the door. He went in and turned off the alarm, stepping back to allow Claire Chastain into his living room.

Ben closed the door. “Look, lady, I just got home from a wedding and I need a shower. There’s a coffeemaker on the counter in the kitchen. Coffee’s in the cupboard overhead. If you want to have a sensible conversation, I suggest you make us a pot.”

The woman’s dark eyebrows shot up.

“And don’t be afraid to actually put some coffee in the pot.”

Her mouth dropped open. Ben chuckled to himself as he turned and headed for the bedroom.

* * *

Of all the nerve! Everything she had heard about Ben Slocum appeared to be exactly correct. The man was arrogant and overbearing, downright rude. In his rumpled tuxedo and smelling of sex and perfume, it didn’t take much imagination to know he had spent the night in a woman’s bed.

He was a navy SEAL, she reminded herself. That had to count for something. They had a reputation for being tough, brave and honorable. Still, from the information she had, he had been out of the military for the past five years, a medical discharge at twenty-eight after a combat wound in some godawful jungle in the Philippines.