Series: A Salvation Society Novel
Publication date: February 7th, 2021
Synopsis:
Sometimes love happens when you're running for your life...
Carolina Borden isn't interested in being tied to a man. She's worked hard to build a life for herself, and her dream career as a fertility counsellor is all she needs.
Retired Delta Force Operator Duncan Kade just wants to start over somewhere he isn't a danger to anyone. But danger follows him... everywhere.
When faced with a deadly cartel, Carolina and Duncan must rely on each other to save themselves from the pasts they've each tried so hard to hide.
Falling in love wasn't part of their plan... it wasn't sanctioned.
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Excerpt
As soon as Duncan frees my hands, I tug at my blindfold. It was so tight that some of my hair rips out of my head as it comes off, but I don't care--I can see again. Not that it helps much. The only light in the room comes from around the door. The overwhelming urge to throw my arms around Duncan will have to wait. The cartel could be back anytime.
"Here, let me do yours." I grab Duncan's wrist to steady his hands as I line his knife up against the zip strip. I'm surprised how easily the knife cuts through the plastic--like butter. I laugh at the thought. Or maybe I laugh because of the situation. It's not like I've been kidnapped before. I'm not sure why. As a girl, I saw my father torture many people. It would have been easy for one of their family members to seek revenge and steal me away in the night.
Duncan pulls at the fabric covering his head. It seems to be secured somehow.
"Let me." At closer look, I see the fabric has been taped around Duncan's neck. Several times it seems. Heavy duty packing tape. "Don't move. I'm going to cut it," I tell him as I pull the fabric taut with my free hand and slice at it with my knife. It cut easily too, but it's so tight around Duncan's neck I worry I might slice him.
"Wait," he says. Oh, no. Did I already cut him? "Did you hear that?"
All I hear is my own breath and my heart thudding in my ears. "No, what?"
He shushes me, but just in case the men are back, I don't want to stop. I slice through the last bit of tape. The fabric goes slack and I pull it off him.
His neck is red where the fabric was pulled tight and I wonder if he could breathe okay with that thing on his head. With his back still to me, his hands fly up to his face, and he takes a deep breath, running his hands through his short hair. My heart beats a little faster as I imagine what that might have felt like. Oh, Duncan. It's all my fault, I want to tell him, but I don't.
Duncan turns and cups my face with his hands. For what seems like an eternity, we just stare into each other's eyes. It's like we're somewhere else. Not stuck here in the basement or whatever it is. even in this near dark, his eyes shine--a beautiful amber with gold flecks.
A door slams outside and Duncan drops his hands from my face and climbs to his feet. He offers me his hand and I stand too then hand him his knife.
Having my blindfold off doesn't help much. We appear to be completely underground. There are no windows, but thankfully, dim light filters in from around the door--enough I can make out stairs leading up to it.
Footsteps on gravel come from outside and Duncan rushes me over to the side of the stairs. He's closest to the bottom of the stairs and has one hand holding me against the dirt and wood wall. He appears to be listening. There's a creak and a bang then light floods the room. A man's shadow sprawls into the center of the cellar floor.
Michelle Cornish is a recovering CPA with a passion for stories. Writing mostly romance and women's fiction with strong female heroines, Michelle's books often include nods to her former life as a CPA. When Michelle's not writing, she's hanging out with her two boys and husband in the beautiful Okanagan Valley, BC, Canada.
