Authors: Patricia; Potter

Catch a Shadow (37 page)

The government had finally learned, too, that it had been Williamson who'd been leaking CIA secrets during the past six years, a leak now effectively plugged.

And, as Ben had indicated, Jake had been in a great bargaining position. In an agreement with the government, his rank had been restored, and he was given an honorable discharge. He'd also been given all his back pay as well as an additional settlement. No official apology, but then Jake had never expected one.

They were moving to Denver next week. Jake and Cole and Mac were pooling their resources and talents to start a personal protection agency. They would provide protection for businessmen and public figures throughout the world. A fitting business for men like these. But she'd decided not to join the business. There was a demand for paramedics, and she realized in the past weeks how much she'd missed it, how much satisfaction it gave her.

She looked around the duplex. She would be leaving it forever this weekend. She'd sold it to Sam. He would rent out her side and use the income to repay her. He'd already found a tenant: the singer with the throaty voice. She wondered whether Sam and the singer would soon join the two sides. Part of her would miss it. It had been her refuge for many years.

But now she had another one.

As if he knew what she was thinking, he put his arms around her. “We'll come back often.”

A knock on the door. They parted, and she went to the door.

Robin stood there with a smug look on her face. “Cut it out, you two. You have tonight and the rest of your lives. And believe me, it only gets better.”

“I'm not sure how it could get better,” Jake said with a leer.

“Ummmm,” Robin said. “You two are dangerous.”

Jake put an arm around Kirke's shoulder. “Come on, laggard, we have friends waiting.”

She looked at him. For a loner, it was a miraculous statement.

He winked at her.

It was annoying how he read her mind. Beautifully annoying.

Merlin saw her pick up her purse. “Bye-bye Merlin?”

“Oh no,” she said. “Merlin's going, too. Everyone wants to meet such a wonderful guard bird.”

Jake chuckled. It was a very fine sound.

He took her hand and brought it to his mouth and nuzzled it. “If anyone had told me a year ago I would be taking a parrot to my wedding reception, I would say they were nuts. Or something worse.”

“But you make such a good stepfather,” she said, standing on her toes to kiss him. His dry humor was showing now, and she loved it. In fact, she was filled with such joy that she wanted to dance around the room. She would have to wait a few more moments for that.

“Stepfather to a parrot,” he muttered.

And, she hoped, soon to be a father. But that had to wait, too. He still had scars that had to heal.

He lifted Merlin's cage with one hand and took her hand with the other. “Let's go celebrate our miracle,” he said.

“Or two or three of them.”

“You always have to get the last word.”

“Oh yes,” she agreed, her hand tightening around his.

Forever.

About the Author

Patricia Potter is a
USA Today
âbestselling author of more than fifty romantic novels. A seven-time RITA Award finalist and three-time Maggie Award winner, she was named Storyteller of the Year by
Romantic Times
and received the magazine's Career Achievement Award for Western Romance. Potter is a past board member and president of Romance Writers of America. Prior to becoming a fiction author, she was a reporter for the
Atlanta Journal
and the president of a public relations firm in Atlanta. She lives in Memphis, Tennessee.

All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Cover design by Mimi Bark

ISBN: 978-1-5040-0407-7

This edition published in 2015 by Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.

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