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“Since you obviously aren’t Nate Beaumont, who the hell are you?”
If he didn’t know who she was, he couldn’t have tracked her here. Unwillingly, Nicola turned her head so that they were face-to-face. Their bodies were pressed together intimately. As if they were lovers. She was no longer afraid of the man who’d pinned her to the ground in self-defense. She was very much aware of him—no longer as an enemy, but as a man.
“I’m not going to hurt you. I might even be able to help.”
“Nicki Carson. Nicola, actually.” She listened to her own voice with a sense of disbelief. She had intended to stay silent. But somehow the thought of having assistance—from this stranger—was just too tempting.
Dear Harlequin Intrigue Reader,
This month Harlequin Intrigue has an enthralling array of breathtaking romantic suspense to make the most of those last lingering days of summer.
The wait is finally over! The next crop of undercover agents who belong to the newest branch of the top secret Confidential organization are about to embark on an unbelievable adventure. Award-winning reader favorite Gayle Wilson will rivet you with the launch book of this brand-new ten-story continuity series. COLORADO CONFIDENTIAL will begin in Harlequin Intrigue, break out into a special release anthology and finish in Harlequin Historicals. In Rocky Mountain Maverick, an undeniably sexy undercover agent infiltrates a powerful senator’s ranch and falls under the influence of an intoxicating impostor. Be there from the very beginning!
The adrenaline rush continues in The Butler’s Daughter by Joyce Sullivan, with the first book in her new miniseries, THE COLLINGWOOD HEIRS. A beautiful guardian has been entrusted with the care of a toddler-sized heir, but now they are running for their lives and she must place their safety in an enigmatic protector’s tantalizing hands! Ann Voss Peterson heats things up with Incriminating Passion when a targeted “witness” to a murder manages to inflame the heart of a by-the-book assistant D.A.
Finally rounding out the month is Semiautomatic Marriage by veteran author Leona Karr. Will the race to track down a killer culminate in a real trip down the aisle for an undercover husband and wife?
So pick up all four of these pulse-pounding stories and end the summer with a bang!
Sincerely,
Denise O’Sullivan
Harlequin Intrigue, Senior Editor
Rocky Mountain Maverick
Gayle Wilson
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Five-time RITA® Award finalist and RITA® Award winner Gayle Wilson has written twenty-seven novels and two novellas for Harlequin/Silhouette. She has won more than forty awards and nominations for her work. Recent recognitions include a 2002 Daphne du Maurier Award for Romantic Suspense.
Gayle still lives in Alabama, where she was born, with her husband of thirty-three years. She loves to hear from readers. Write to her at P.O. Box 3277, Hueytown, AL 35023. Visit Gayle online at http://suspense.net/gayle-wilson.
The Confidential Code
I will protect my country and its citizens.
I will stand in the line of fire between innocents and criminals.
I will back up my fellow agents without questions.
I will trust my instincts.
And most of all…
I WILL KEEP MY MISSION AND MY IDENTITY STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Colleen Wellesley—Colleen’s first assignment as head of the newly organized Colorado Confidential is to find the kidnapped heir of the Langworthy empire. She soon discovers that the case she’s been given involves far more than a missing baby….
Nicola Carson—An intern in Senator Franklin Gettys’s Washington office, Nicki staged a disappearing act when she realized her life was in danger. Now, hiding in plain sight of her enemies, she tries to unravel the mystery behind why she became a target.
Michael Wellesley—Burned-out ex-CIA agent Michael Wellesley undertakes one last assignment as a favor for his sister and finds himself embroiled in a situation as perilous as any he’s ever faced.
Charlie Quarrels—Foreman of the mysterious Half Spur ranch. Is Quarrels an innocent dupe or the mastermind of a diabolical experiment?
Ralph Mapes—The old man knows more about what’s happening on the Half Spur than he should, but will he be willing to tell before it’s too late?
For Emily,
who is smart, independent, feisty
and a bit of a maverick.
One day you’ll make a great heroine
for your own hero—just not too soon, please!
Contents
Prologue
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
Epilogue
Prologue
It had happened several times in the past couple of weeks—an eerie, eyes-on-the-back-of-her-neck feeling. Often enough that whenever she was out in the city alone she had to resist the urge to keep glancing over her shoulder.
Nicola Carson couldn’t quite put her finger on when or why that nervousness had begun. All she knew was that at one time she hadn’t minded working late, even if the Senate Office Building was nearly deserted by the time she finished. Now she had to steel herself to face stepping out onto the nighttime streets of Washington, D.C.
And that’s ridiculous, she told herself, as she hurried down the steps, holding the collar of her coat closed against her throat with one gloved hand. There was a hint of snow in the December air, making her homesick for the crisp, cold air of the Colorado Rockies where she’d grown up.
Which is also ridiculous. She was living her dream, working as an intern in the office of one of the most powerful men in the capital, and all she could think about lately was a life she once couldn’t wait to leave behind.
Despite her pep talk, as she walked, heels clicking against the sidewalk with a quick, staccato rhythm, her uneasiness grew. Don’t look back. Don’t look back. She chanted the words in her mind, determined not to give