Beth Andrews - Not Without Her Family

“You’re attracted to me.”

Was he that easy to read? Jack kept his face expressionless. “Amazing.”

“What?”

“That ego of yours. How’d you ever get something that big through the doorway?”

“It’s not ego.” Kelsey’s green eyes met his. “I felt it – the pull between us. Are you going to tell me you didn’t?”

Jack swallowed. Yes, he felt it. He didn’t deny he was attracted to her. But just because he felt it didn’t mean he had to act on it. He controlled his body and his heart, not the other way around.

Damn, but Kelsey was sexy. And tempting. And a distraction his instincts told him he couldn’t afford.

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Not Without Her Family by Beth Andrews

By

MILLS & BOON®

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Award-winning author Beth Andrewsis living her dream, writing romance novels while looking after her real-life hero and their three children. A self-professed small-town girl, Beth still lives in the Pennsylvania town where she grew up. She has been honoured by her kids as The Only Mum in Town Who Makes Her Children Do Chores and The Meanest Mum in the World – as if there’s something wrong with counting down the remaining days of summer vacation until school starts again. For more information about Beth or her upcoming books, please visit her website at www.bethandrews.net.

For my Critique Partners, who so generously gave their time, encouragement and unending faith.

For my kids, who proudly told people I was a writer way before I ever did.

For Andy, who shows me every day that real-life happy endings are possible.

I’d like to thank Officer Harsen for his valuable input. Any mistakes I’ve made are my own.

I’d also like to thank Victoria Curran for helping to make this book the best it could be.

“MA’AM, I NEED YOU TO MOVE away from the counter and keep your hands where I can see them.”

Damn. That didn’t sound good.

Standing in a dim patch of light a foot away from the horse shoe-shaped bar, Kelsey Reagan slowly turned toward the deep, commanding voice.

As she did, her gaze slid over the tall man walking into the empty room. A blue T-shirt clung to his broad shoulders and he wore snug, dark blue jeans. Military-short black hair, granite features and icy-blue eyes completed the picture. All in all, a completely hum-worthy package.

She rolled her eyes. God, she really needed to get a grip. One look at a pretty face and she totally lost focus. She wasn’t here to enjoy the scenery—as nice as it was. She was here to see Dillon.

Besides, gorgeous or not, this guy was so not her type. Even though he wore normal clothes instead of some godawful uniform, Kelsey instinctively knew what he was. The authority in his voice, the way he seemed to size her up within seconds of looking at her, and his rigid, ready-for-anything posture told her he was a cop through and through.

Mostly it was the confident, I’m legally entitled to carry a gun and, yes, I will shoot you if you piss me off, tilt of his chin that gave him away.

“I’m with the Serenity Springs Police Department,” the cop said in a grave tone as he fished something out of his back pocket.

Kelsey sighed. She’d done it again. Wrong place. Wrong time. Her official, unofficial motto.

She should have it tattooed on her ass.

Except this was the right place. The Summit Bar of Serenity Springs, New York. As for the time…well…considering how long she’d waited to see Dillon again, and how desperate she was to make amends with him, it was the right time. It had to be.

She waved her hand at the shiny silver shield the cop held up for her inspection. “You can put the tin star away. I already pegged you as a cop.”

He pocketed his badge, his gaze intense as he studied her. “Ma’am,” he said evenly, “this establishment is closed.”

She rolled her eyes again at him calling her ma’am. At twenty-seven, she was a good eight years away from official membership in the Ma’am Club.

“Okay, I realize this…” She trailed off as she took in the scarred tables and chairs, walls discolored from years of cigarette smoke and the ancient linoleum floor. Establishment? Who was he kidding? This place was a dump, pure and simple. “I know this…bar is closed, but I figured there must be someone here.”

“What, exactly, led you to that conclusion?”

“Because when I knocked, the door practically swung open.”

He raised one dark eyebrow. She pursed her lips. Shoot. Looked like she was digging herself deeper and deeper into a hole.

She should’ve waited outside for Dillon instead of letting herself into the bar, especially once she realized the place was empty. But she’d been so excited to finally see him again—and afraid he’d take off if he spotted her in the parking lot.

Probably not the smartest move. Then again, she wasn’t exactly noted for her decision-making skills.

She ran the tip of her tongue over her dry lips and saw the cop follow the movement. Noticed a small, but real, flare of awareness.

She narrowed her eyes. Seemed to be a spark of life beneath this guy’s steely exterior after all. Maybe she could still wriggle her way out of this mess.

She hated to brag, but she was a damn good wriggler.

And while she’d done her best to avoid any contact with the police in the past ten years, wriggling with this particular cop wouldn’t be too much of a hardship.

She attempted a smile. “Look, Officer—”

“Actually it’s chief. Chief Jack Martin.”

Her grin slid away. Of course he was the chief. Because no way could she be lucky enough to get busted by a lowly traffic cop or something.

She tried again. “ Chief Martin, my name is Kelsey Reagan and I don’t know what you think—”

“What I think,” he interrupted smoothly, “is that you’re trespassing on this property. You could be looking at breaking-and-entering charges.”

Her stomach fell to rest somewhere in the vicinity of her big toe.

“Hey, whoa, back up the paddy wagon there, Sheriff. This is all a big misunderstanding.” She worked to keep her voice light and steady and prayed she projected the right combination of honesty and innocence. Sort of like a Girl Scout. They were all about honesty and innocence, right? Which probably explained why she’d never been one. “I didn’t break in here. Not really.”

“How do you not really break in to a place?”

“Like I said, the door wasn’t locked and—”

“Do you always walk into a building simply because the door’s not locked?”

She fought her growing irritation. “What I’m saying is that I’d hoped someone was here so I knocked, several times, and when no one answered—”

“You let yourself in,” he finished for her. “Despite the Closed sign on the door.”