Terri Reed - Strictly Confidential

The quintessential playboy, or so the rumors went. Hero in disguise or con man with an agenda?

Colleen would give the charming Italian the benefit of the doubt, since Alessandro had protected Holly and Jake when they’d needed it.

But if Alessandro Donato was up to no good, she’d nail his hide to the wall all over the front page of the Colorado Springs Sentinel, regardless of how attractive she found him.

FAITH AT THE CROSSROADS: Can faith and love sustain two families against a diabolical enemy?

A TIME TO PROTECT–Lois Richer (LIS#13)

THE DANGER WITHIN–Valerie Hansen (LIS#15)

THROUGH THE FIRE–Sharon Mignerey (LIS#17)

IN THE ENEMY’S SIGHTS–Marta Perry (LIS#19)

STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL–Terri Reed (LIS#21)

HEARTS ON THE LINE–Margaret Daley (LIS#23)

grew up in a small town nestled in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. To entertain herself, she created stories in her head. And when she put those stories to paper, her teachers in grade school, high school and college encouraged her imagination. Living in Italy as an exchange student whetted her appetite for travel, and modeling in New York, Chicago and San Francisco gave her a love for the big city, as well. She has also coached gymnastics and taught in a preschool. She enjoys walks on the beach, hikes in the mountains and exploring cities. From a young age she attended church, but it wasn’t until her thirties that she really understood the meaning of a faith-filled life. Now living in Portland, Oregon, with her college-sweetheart husband, two wonderful children, a rambunctious Australian shepherd and a fat guinea pig, she feels blessed to be able to share her stories and her faith with the world. She loves to hear from readers at P.O. Box 19555, Portland, OR, 97280.

Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to

Terri Reed for her contribution to the

FAITH AT THE CROSSROADS miniseries.

Thank you to Diane Dietz and Steeple Hill for this opportunity to work on this series. I had such fun working with and learning from the other authors.

Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you.

— James 4:8

Alessandro Donato —Tall, dark and handsome, he showed up wherever there was trouble. Was Alessandro working for the European Union, as he claimed, or for the bad guys reviving the drug trade in Colorado Springs?

Colleen Montgomery —Her reporter’s nose smelled a story brewing…and Alessandro was her prime target. But would her curiosity get her killed?

Dahlia Sainsbury —The museum curator wanted Colleen out of the picture—because she wanted Alessandro for herself or was there a more devious motive?

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

EPILOGUE

DEAR READER

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

“T his is strictly confidential. Off the record. Mum’s the word.”

Colleen Montgomery paused in the act of pulling out a navy business suit from her closet to arch a brow at her sister-in-law, Holly.

Holly flipped back her long dark-brown hair, which she’d curled and wore loose rather than in her traditional ponytail. “I’m serious. You can’t tell anyone what I’m about to tell you.”

Grimacing, Colleen stared. “That’s like asking me not to breathe.”

Holly rolled her brown eyes. “And you’re not wearing that suit. You’re wearing the dress I brought you.”

Rehanging the suit, Colleen gestured with her hands. “Hello. I’m an investigative reporter. My life is about telling everyone what I see and hear.”

“Promise me, okay?” Holly shifted on the bed where she’d sat as soon as she’d entered Colleen’s bedroom. She was wearing a pretty lilac party dress that flattered her even with her bulging tummy, and she’d come in on the pretext of bringing a dress for Colleen to wear to the museum gala. Now, however, Colleen suspected her sister-in-law had another agenda, one that brought worry to her pretty brown eyes and marred the normally smooth skin between her brunette eyebrows.

“Is this about my brother?” Colleen moved to her vanity to brush her blond hair. “’Cause if it is, I’m not sure I want to hear it.”

Holly twisted her diamond wedding ring. “It is about him and me.”

Colleen held up a hand and met Holly’s gaze through the mirror’s reflection. “I can already tell this is going to be more information than I want to hear about my big brother. Unless he’s dragged you back into the FBI with him, in which case I’ll go clobber him on the head. Considering you’re carrying my niece or nephew, the FBI is not a good place for you.”

Holly grinned and patted her burgeoning belly. “No, of course not.” She lifted the sheath dress off the bed. “Here, put this on while I explain.”

Eyeing the little black shift with trepidation, Colleen said, “You really think I should wear that?”

“Yes. For once dress like a woman.”

Colleen pulled a face. “Cute.”

Holly laughed. “You know what I mean. All you wear are pants and button-down blouses. Time to move out of your comfort zone.”

Colleen took the dress. It wasn’t exactly something that could be worn while chasing down a story, not if you still hoped to be taken seriously. Of course, tonight she hardly expected to find anything of interest worth reporting. She moved into the bathroom to dress. “Fine. Start talking.”

“Do you remember when Victor Convy kidnapped me?”

Colleen scoffed as she changed out of the jeans and cotton T-shirt she’d put on after showering earlier. “Hard to forget a thing like that.”

“Right. Well, something happened that I never told anyone about.”

Anticipation of a story fluttered in Colleen’s belly. Her parents often joked that she’d greeted the world with a notepad and pen in hand. “Okay.”

“Remember how Jake had said he couldn’t remember if he’d shot Convy or not because of his concussion?”

Stepping into the dress, Colleen made a noise of affirmation. The fear of losing her brother still gnawed at her like a dog with a bone. But that came with love. She had no choice but to love her brothers and now their wives, but thought thankfully that she didn’t have time for a romantic love. She didn’t want to carry around that kind of fear.

“He didn’t,” Holly said.

Colleen’s heart picked up speed at the juicy tidbit of information. She stepped out of the bathroom, holding the dress to her chest. “ You did?”

“No.” Holly lowered her voice and a conspiratorial light entered her eyes. “Alessandro Donato did.”

“What?!” The dress dropped to the floor and pooled around Colleen’s ankles. She quickly pulled it back up and slipped her arms through the holes.

Holly eagerly nodded. “I’m telling you, he came out of the trees dressed all in black like some superhero, shot Convy, and made certain Jake was alive before untying me. Then he disappeared as stealthily as he came when he heard the sirens coming.”

Colleen blinked, unsure how to process Holly’s tale. “So you’re saying that Alessandro Donato rescued you and my brother from Convy?”