Beth Andrews - On Her Side

She’ll stop at nothing to see justice served

Attorney Nora Sullivan wants her mother’s killer behind bars. To do that, she needs the help of the primary suspect’s son—Griffin York. Too bad Griffin seems determined to avoid all involvement. Fortunately, Nora knows something about persuasion and sets out to convince him he’s needed. It’s not easy getting past his rebel facade, yet she sees glimpses of the considerate—and sexy—side he hides. Her efforts to sway him have an unexpected effect when every glimpse of the inner Griffin makes her want him more!

Regardless of the simmering attraction, what can the future hold for them? Their differences go beyond the murder case between them. Yet when Nora needs Griffin the most, he proves he just might be on her side.

“You thinking I’m some sort of hero?”

Griffin asked flatly. The sooner he disabused Nora of that notion, the better. “For all you know I was itching for a fight and got lucky enough to find one.”

“You were protecting me,” she insisted.

“You’ve been nothing but a pain in my ass since you walked into my garage, you know that?” Maybe his harsh words would change her mind, keep her away.

She walked closer to him, then stopped and laid the flat of her hand lightly on his chest.

“I’m sorry,” she said, as she rose onto her toes, “but I really feel like this is something I have to do.”

He looked at her, unable to see more than the flash of her eyes, feel her moving ever closer to him. He shook his head once, a quick, decisive no. A warning. A plea.

She ignored them all. “Brace yourself,” she said, her breath washing over him, “this might hurt.”

And she brushed her lips against the uninjured side of his mouth.

Dear Reader,

One of my favorite things about being a writer—other than working in my pajamas if I so choose—is getting inside my characters’ heads. I love developing their personalities, figuring out their wants and desires, their secrets and fears and, best of all, discovering what they need to grow to become their best selves.

Most of the time, I’m completely in charge of my stories. I have a very clear idea of who my characters are and how I want them to behave. Before I wrote even one page of the first book in The Truth about the Sullivans trilogy, I knew the Sullivan sisters. Layne is honest, controlled and responsible. Tori is independent, clever and charming. And baby sister Nora? Well, she was supposed to be a nice counterbalance to her confident sisters—smart, sweet and a bit shy. Someone who doesn’t look for confrontation, who weighs all her options before carefully making a decision.

You’ll notice I said supposed to be.

From the moment she stepped onto the page of Unraveling the Past, Nora let me know I had her all wrong. Oh, sure, she’s smart. Very. And while she’s warm and generous, I’m not sure I’d call her sweet. She also says exactly what’s on her mind and leaps into situations without considering the consequences.

Best of all, she keeps cynical Griffin York on his toes, never acting or reacting the way he thinks she will. He returns the favor by pushing her out of her comfort zone and challenging her to see herself as her own person instead of just one of the Sullivan girls.

I had a great time writing On Her Side and getting the chance to revisit the town of Mystic Point. I hope you enjoy the story!

I love to hear from my readers. Please visit my website,

www.bethandrews.net, or drop me a line at beth@bethandrews.net or P.O. Box 714, Bradford, PA 16701.

Happy reading!

Beth Andrews

On Her Side

Beth Andrews

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Romance Writers of America RITA® Award winner Beth Andrews has never purposely destroyed a car, rode on a Harley or started a barroom brawl. Thank goodness she gets to live vicariously through the characters in her books! Her goals for the year of walking three miles each day, and making every recipe in the dessert cookbook she got for Christmas, go together like diet Coke and a large order of French fries. Beth and her two teenage daughters outnumber…oops…live with her husband in Northwestern Pennsylvania. When not writing, walking or eating, Beth can be found texting her son at college. Learn more about Beth and her books by visiting her website, www.BethAndrews.net.

For Hannah

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Special thanks to Assistant Chief Mike Ward of the Bradford, PA, Police Department.

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

Excerpt

CHAPTER ONE

IT WAS THE RARE—and what her sisters would probably describe as blessed—day when Nora Sullivan was struck speechless. But try as she might, she couldn’t articulate any of the thoughts flying through her head. Not after the bombshell Layne had oh-so-casually just dropped.

Luckily her other sister, Tori, had no such problem. “What did you say?”

At the head of the table, Layne tightened the band around her long, dark ponytail. “I asked you to pass the Italian dressing.”

Tori shoved the bottle at her. “Before that.”

“You mean when I asked if you wanted a beer?” Layne soaked her salad with the dressing, releasing the scent of olive oil, vinegar and seasonings, then licked a drop off the side of her thumb. “Because there’s some in the fridge.”

“No, smartass. What did you say after that?”

“Oh. You mean that Ross and I are seeing each other?”

“Yeah,” Tori said, taking a big bite of her pizza before reaching for a paper napkin from the pile in front of her, “that’s what I thought you said.”

How could they both be so cavalier? Nora wondered as Layne dug into her salad. This wasn’t just huge, it was momentous. Shocking. And possibly the dumbest, most reckless thing Layne had ever done.

“Wait, wait. I think my head’s going to explode.” Nora pressed her palms against her temples in case her brain went boom! and splattered over their dinner. “You’re sleeping with your boss?”

That was so wrong on so many levels, and so unlike her usually cautious sister, Nora didn’t even know where to start. Though she was pretty sure Have you lost your freaking mind? was as good a place as any.

“Isn’t that against the law?” Tori asked as she got a beer out of the fridge and twisted it open.

“He’s my superior officer,” Layne said dryly, picking out a second slice of cheese pizza and setting it on her paper plate. “Not my brother. And there are currently no rules against departmental relationships.”

Nora speared a cherry tomato from her salad with her fork. “Well, gee, if there aren’t any written rules against it, we should all hook up with our bosses and damn the consequences.”

Tori dropped the cap from her beer into the trash can. “Considering my boss is a woman, and our father’s girlfriend, I guess I’m out.”

“This is serious.”

“Please. Cancer is serious. Kids going hungry is serious. This is sex between two single, consenting adults. What it should be is fun. Hot. And, if they’re doing it right, and often enough, exhausting.” She sipped her beer and sat back down, wiggled her eyebrows at Layne. “So, is it any of those?”

Nora deliberately set her fork down so she wouldn’t be tempted to stab Tori in the hand. Breathing deeply, she centered herself. “Look,” she said to Layne, “Chief Taylor seems very…capable—”

Tori snorted. “Just how every man dreams of being described in bed.”