Kate Hoffmann - The Mighty Quinns - Malcolm

Her guide to adventure…in and out of the bedroom

New Zealand wilderness guide Malcolm Quinn is stunned to learn that his father’s body—lost near the summit of Everest almost twenty years ago—has been found. The discovery stirs up painful memories for Mal, and brings eager reporters out in droves. He is ready to resist them all, until he meets the pretty little Yank who turns his blood to liquid lust….

Amy Engalls needs this story to make her career, but Mal refuses to be interviewed. Instead the gorgeous Quinn offers Amy the kind of adventure she’ll never forget. She accepts, realizing she may be jeopardizing her future for a short-term fantasy. By breaking the rules, will she lose everything…including her heart?

Praise for Kate Hoffmann’s Mighty Quinns

“Hoffmann does a wonderful job tying up the ends

of this saga with an open-ended conclusion.”

—RT Book Reviews on The Mighty Quinns: Dex

“Keep your fan handy! It was impossible for me

to put this steamy, sexy book down until the

last page was turned.”

—Fresh Fiction on The Mighty Quinns: Jack

“Strong, imperfect but lovable characters,

an interesting setting and great sensuality.”

—RT Book Reviews on The Mighty Quinns: Brody

“This is a fast read that is hard to tear the eyes from. Once I picked it up I couldn’t put it down.”

—Fresh Fiction on The Mighty Quinns: Dermot

“Sexy, heartwarming and romantic, this is a story to settle down with and enjoy—and then reread.”

—RT Book Reviews on The Mighty Quinns: Teague

“The only drawback to this story is that it’s far too short”!

—Fresh Fiction on The Mighty Quinns: Kellan

Dear Reader,

Welcome to another Mighty Quinn adventure! This time, we’re introducing you to another branch of the family—the New Zealand Quinns: Malcolm, twins Rogan and Ryan, and Dana.

Rugged New Zealand is the perfect playground for these Quinns. Together they run an adventure travel business, giving vacationers the time of their lives all over the world. Adventure is in the Quinns’ blood—their father is a legend in the climbing world, even years after his untimely death on an expedition. Malcolm, as the eldest, has taken responsibility for the business and for his siblings. So when his father’s body is discovered and reporters swarm the family, Mal is determined to protect his mother and siblings from going through that pain again.

Amy Engalls is equally determined to get an interview from Mal. She’s staked her career on this story, and she won’t leave New Zealand empty-handed. But Mal has no intention of letting Amy leave just yet. He promises her an adventure…and not just on the mountain. It’s not the story she came for, it’s not the experience she expected to have, but together, she and Mal may just find ecstasy…and love.

Enjoy the trip!

The Editors

The Mighty Quinns: Malcolm

Kate Hoffmann

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kate Hoffmann began writing for Mills & Boon in 1993. Since then, she’s published nearly eighty books, primarily in the Mills & Boon Temptation and Mills & Boon Blaze lines. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys music, theater and musical theater. She is active working with high school students in the performing arts. She lives in southeastern Wisconsin with her cat, Chloe.

Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Epilogue

Excerpt

Prologue

TENSION HUNG IN the air in the small house in Rotorua, setting everyone on edge. Ten-year-old Malcolm Quinn tried to keep his younger siblings occupied, seeing the growing worry in his mother’s expression. But the twins, seven-year-olds Rogan and Ryan, knew something was up. Only their little sister, Dana, was unaware that all was not right.

Their father, Maxwell Quinn, had left advance base camp with his climbing party and Sherpas earlier that day, ready to conquer Everest. It was his father’s sixth summit attempt and once complete, it would give him a perfect record.

Max Quinn and his partner, Roger Innis, had been guiding Everest expeditions for almost as long as Malcolm had been alive, first working for other expedition companies, and then for the past four seasons, working for themselves. Since founding Outbound Adventure, his father had rarely been home. But when he did walk through the front door, life was suddenly much brighter for the family. For in that moment, they all knew he was safe. They couldn’t say that today.

“What time is it?” Rogan asked.

Mal looked up. His gaze met his brother’s and Mal forced a smile. “Don’t worry. They’re probably just too busy to call. Or maybe they can’t get through. Satellite telephones can be dodgy.”

“But it’s getting late,” Ryan said. “It’s nearly midnight. That means it’s ten there. He should be back at camp by now, shouldn’t he?”

“I’m sure he is. But he has a lot of responsibilities.” Mal repeated the words that his mother had said to him just ten minutes before, hoping they calmed his brother’s concern more than they had his.

Ryan rubbed his eyes. “What if something bad happened?”

“Yeah,” Rogan said. “Maybe they’re afraid to call us.”

Mal crossed the room and pulled them both to their feet. “Go to bed. I’ll wake you when the call comes. I promise.”

To his great relief, they wandered off in the direction of their bedroom. Mal waited until the door shut behind them, then turned and hurried into the kitchen. Lydie Quinn sat at the kitchen table, Dana curled up in her arms, sound asleep. His mother was humming a tune that Mal didn’t recognize, repeating the same phrase over and over again.

Mal silently walked by her and put the teakettle on to boil. When he sat down across from her, she refused to look at him, her eyes fixed on a point above his head.

“Mum?”

Her gaze didn’t falter and the tune continued.

“Mum, would you like a cup of tea?”

Mal watched as tears welled up in his mother’s eyes. He rose to comfort her and as he did, the phone rang.

“Don’t answer it,” she said.

“But, I—”

“Don’t.” She shook her head, the tears now tumbling down her cheeks. He’d never seen his mother cry before and Mal wasn’t quite sure what to do. Dana stirred in her arms and Lydie grasped her daughter to her more tightly, rocking back and forth.

Mal quietly picked up the phone. “Hello?”

“Who is this?”

“Malcolm Quinn.”

“Malcolm, it’s Roger Innis. I need to speak with your mother.”

“No,” Malcolm said. “You can tell me.”

“Son, put your mother on the phone. It’s very important. This is no time for childish games.”

“She won’t speak with you,” Mal insisted. “She can’t. We know something is wrong. Just tell me and I’ll tell her.”

As he listened to his father’s partner explain the situation, Mal slowly began to realize that his life—and the lives of his mother and siblings—would never be the same.

1

IT WAS GOOD to be home.

Malcolm Quinn grabbed his duffel from the back of his battered Range Rover and hefted it over his shoulder with a groan. He’d left Greenland three days ago after leading a four-week expedition across the ice cap from east to west, following the Arctic Circle. After boarding a bush flight from Greenland to Iceland, he’d flown from Reykjavik to Copenhagen, then to Dubai, then to Sydney and finally landed in Auckland just that morning after two days in airports. The two-hour drive home to Raglan was the final leg of his trip, and now that he was home, he could finally relax.