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Chapter One

“Yes,” Katie said, gripping the steering wheel harder “Uh-huh, yes, I get it” She glanced in the rearview etting thicker as they approached Louisville

Her brother kept talking, his voice robbed of its customary power by the cheap speakers of her cell phone, which sat in a cup-holder s upward at her head “If you have the slightest indication that there’s danger attached to this threat, you’re going to call me, and—”

“Yesssssss,” she droned

The draive her this lecture for the seventeenth time whether she wanted to hear it or not

It asted on Katie’s traveling co she did Ever

Katie glanced at the er seat of her Jetta, just to be sure His expression as he stared out the windshield matched the bleak, featureless expanse of southbound I-71 He was like a hu about her

A stern, gorgeous cliff face

Suppressing a sigh, she tuned back in to Caleb’s speech “—you to be in charge of anything along those lines, Sean This is a trial run for Katie I’o because Judah insists she’s the one he wants to ith You got that, Katie? It’s Sean’s show I need you to play nice and stay out of his way”

“Yes,” she confirreed to the deal I a about it, please?”

She flinched at the way her voice came out, sharper than she’d meant to sound It was only because she was nervous about this trip Her palone clammy and slimed the leather wheel cover, so uncomfortable did it make her to venture into an unknown city to do an unfamiliar job with a man who didn’t like her

She had a tendency to bristle when nervous

One more bad habit she needed to make an effort to taure out was how to act cool and icy like so people by slipping strychnine into their drinks

Except without the poisoning Her goal was to win herself a proent for Caleb’s security company, not to become an assassin Not unless her ex-husband strolled into town needing assassinating

“We’ll stop talking about it when I’ht now, you sound like you’re blowing smoke up my ass”

“I’m not,” she replied levelly “I pronment, and I’m just a companion on this trip I pros, okay?”

“I need you to be safe”

Sheher nose and pursing her lips in response to Caleb’s babying only proved she deserved to be babied Not the way she wanted Sean to see her

She flicked another glance in his direction If he saw her at all, he gave no sign

“I’m safe,” she said

“I care about you, Katelet”