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Chapter 27
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Taken by Surprise Chapter 28
Shea sat at the small table under the umbrella Cruz had asked the hands to set up for her. Texas heat could be devastating and he worried that she spent too much time in it."Use the trailer," he urged constantly. "That's what it's for, cara. Please."But now that she'd made the commitment she liked to eyeball everything personally.Cruz had loved her designs, not only for the new hacienda set high on a hill but for the remodel of the existing one as well as the small homes for the foreman and the married hands and a modern new bunkhouse for the others."You really meant it when you said you planned to spend a lot of money," she'd teased him when he'd signed the contracts. Exactly how rich are you?"His face had tightened and an unfamiliar expression had come over it. "Is it important to you?" he'd snapped."No, not at all." She'd shaken her head. "It was just a joke, Cruz. I don't give a damn how much you have. Okay?"His face had relaxed again. "Sorry, Shea. I just have a lot
Taken by Surprise Chapter 29
"She is lying," Safina said, placing a glass of iced tea in front of Shea.John Reston had called a halt to all work until they could get this mess straightened out. Lorena Castillo had waved a marriage license under their noses and everything had shut down. Shea had hightailed it for the hacienda in the golf cart, barely making it into the kitchen to give Safina a bare outline before she heard the Mercedes pull up in front.High heels tapped on the terra cotta tiles as Lorena Castillo made her way to the kitchen. The look she gave Shea was a mixture of disgust and hate."What are you doing in this house?""Getting ready to leave. Don't worry.""Please don't tell me you've been staying here," she spat. "I consider that an outrage."Shea counted to ten before she spoke. "I have a question for you. If you're really Cruz's wife, where have you been all this time? Not anywhere around where people could see you.""Where I've been is incidental. I'm back and you're out. Along with any
Taken by Surprise Chapter 30
Although she buried herself in as much work as possible, even pulling potential clients out of the call-back file, the days seemed to drag by. Saturday was the expected date of Cruz's return. Before she went to bed Friday night she turned off her cell phone, unplugged the land line and finished off a bottle of wine.When she awoke late Saturday morning, for a moment she thought the pounding she heard was in her head, a present from the empty wine bottle. But after stumbling into the bathroom and swallowing three aspirins with a glass of water, she realized the pounding not only continued but was accompanied by the furious ringing of her bell.Pulling on a robe and pushing her disheveled hair back from her face, she went to the door and hollered, "Whoever you are, go away. No one's home.""Open the damn door." Cruz's voice was loud and angry."Go away," she shouted again. "I have nothing to say to you.""Well, I have plenty to say Do you want me to stand out here and yell so all th
Taken by Surprise Chapter 31
Cruz ignored her and kept walking until they reached the cabin. Once inside he tossed her onto the bed, straddled her and captured her hands before she could hit him again."We are going to get all of this out," he told her, "so you might as well simmer down.""Go to hell," she spat."Tsk tsk. Such language from a lady. But I promise you, I'm not moving until I tell you the truth. The real truth.""Answer one question for me." Her anger was so hot she wondered she didn't incinerate herself."I'll answer all the questions you want," he agreed, "if you promise not to hit me.""Depends on your answers," she grumped. "Okay. Are you married to that witch?""Yes. And no."Shea tried to struggle up but Cruz had her effectively imprisoned."What the hell is that supposed to mean"He sighed heavily. "This is very embarrassing, cara. Ten years ago I was young and wild and horny. I was busy making money and living in the moment, tasting everything life had to offer. Lorena was the devil
Taken by Surprise Chapter 1
Part One: Taken by SurpriseHow was it possible my life can suck this much?Jessie Coford stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror and asked herself that question for perhaps the hundredth time. Had she pissed off the gods of fate? Was Mercury in retrograde? Had she fallen into an alternate universe? All in all, as far as she was concerned, life was a bitch. Today was just the culmination of a runaway train of bad luck.Six months ago, everything had seemed to be going her way. Her fifteen-year plan was on target to build her reputation and finally open her own place. She'd been saving and scrimping and putting money aside from the day she graduated from culinary school and got her first job. She even knew exactly what kind of place it would be-a trendy café with interesting but excellent food that people stood in line for.She was a talented chef employed in one of Houston's upscale restaurants, with a growing reputation and expecting a significant raise. And in a fantast
Taken by Surprise Chapter 2
Jack Ward pulled his official county SUV into a parking space at the Fort Mavis Sheriff's Office and turned off the ignition. He sat for a moment in the vehicle, staring out at nothing and just enjoying it. He was glad he'd made the choice to leave Houston. As big as the city was, he didn't think it was large enough for both him and Jessie. He found himself looking for her every time he went to some place they'd been together. Like a lovesick idiot, he'd even driven to the restaurant where she worked, sap that he was, and sat outside waiting to get a glimpse of her.It was so not like him and he was driving himself nuts. He had not been able to understand how she could just walk away from him the way she had. Away from what they had. He'd never felt like this about a woman before and he was pretty damn sure her feelings were the same. The more he thought abut it, the angrier he got. He forced himself to think of her as selfish and self-centered, because that made the break easier to b
Taken by Surprise Chapter 3
God, I hope this isn't a disaster.Jessie had been repeating that mantra ever since she'd left Houston-and civilization-behind that morning. This was hardly what she'd seen as her future, but she had no choice. None. Nada. Zip. Whatever she found in Fort Mavis, she had to make it work. She was out of options.Maybe when she saw the restaurant and the house, she thought, she could contact a local realtor and sell them. But who knew how long that would take and who on earth would even buy it? Besides, a relative had left it to her and relatives were scarce in her life. She wanted to know who this woman really was and why she'd left all this to her. And it gave her a place to reorganize her life.She checked her watch. She'd been on the road since seven that morning, stopping only for lunch and bathroom breaks. She'd been driving now for eight hours already and wondered if she'd ever get where she was going. The GPS told her she only had another six miles, but with nothing but ranchlan
Taken by Surprise Chapter 4
As they walked through the house, Jessie could not stop herself from running her fingers over the gleaming polished wood of the furniture, or the silky feeling curtains at some of the windows. The high tech kitchen amazed her the most."I believe she tested new recipes here," the attorney told her. "She purely loved cooking."When they'd finished the tour, Jessie turned to him, excitement wriggling through her. "Are you sure it's really mine?"He nodded, smiling at her. "Not a doubt. In fact, you could even stay here. We got a housekeeper in when we knew you were on the way. You can see the house is clean, linens are clean. Utilities are still in place, although you'll need to get them switched over to you.""Stay here? Really?""It's all yours and ready for you." He handed her a key ring. "House and restaurant. There're two sets on there.""I'll be sure to keep one in a safe place," she assured him.Fort Mavis was a far cry from Houston. In fact, they were worlds apart. But her
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