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Chapter One

“Please I’ll pay any price I just—I don’t want to die” Julianna Patrice McNall-Smith clenched her hands into fists as she was led into Devlin Shade’s office at VJS Protection, Inc

The coh-end, supposedly very discrete If you had a problem, VJS was the solution They offered protection A twenty-four hour, seven-days-a-week bodyguard service, and with the way her life was falling straight to hell, she could sure use that service

“Why don’t you sit down?” Devlin said, his deep voice ru them inside the sanctuary of his office

She probably shouldn’t like his voice as much as she did She shouldn’t be so aware of hi

So why did he feel so right?

Julianna sat down and carefully crossed her legs in front of her She noticed that Devlin’s gaze dipped to her legs, and she tensed for a moment Stop it Keep your mask in place You can do this

He pulled his stare away and paced toward his desk He didn’t sit down, though Instead, he propped his hip against the edge of the desk and stared at her

“My lawyer told me to come to you,” Julianna said because she didn’t like the way silence stretched in that office “Sophie Sarantos said your firh was brittle “I don’t really care if you’re discrete or not I just need help” Because Julianna knew a killer was out there, and she didn’t particularly want to die

Not when I’ve just started living again

“I’m well acquainted with Sophie,” Devlin said

His voice was really quite dangerous So rus she had no business even considering right then Julianna straightened her shoulders Maybe he wasn’t jus he’d heard about her “I’m not a killer”

He just stared back at her His eyes were such a bright, brilliant blue Gorgeous eyes When she looked into his stare, Julianna felt a little bit lost—and she knew that could be a dangerous thing Devlin was tall, strong, with powerful, wide shoulders that stretched his suit jacket His thick, dark hair slid away from his forehead Devlin was a handsoed way His cheeks were sharp, his jaw cut and square, his nose was a little bit hawkish, but that just added to his rugged air And his lips…

I have no business noticing his lips

She shifted a bit in her seat and uncrossed her legs Then, nervously, she re-crossed theainst her skin

Devlin cleared his throat “Your case is going to be delayed You realize that, of course With the prosecuting ADA now dead—and with all the news that the guy was a straight-up psycho who’d been stalking your lawyer, hell, there’s no way you’ll be seeing the inside of a courtrooe’s cases are about to come under one hell of a scrutiny All those people that he sent to prison—they’ll be shouting injustice and de new trials Because of hiht now” He waited a beat “And that can only be good for you”

Her breath felt cold in her lungs “Good for me? Sophie isn’t just e tried to kill her! That is hardly good for me”

Devlin watched her with that unreadable stare of his

“You ood fora psychotic prick means I probably won’t see the inside of a jail” Sophie had actually told her the sa her case with particular fury, and now that the truth about hi a bit easier on her

“That’s exactly what I ed for you now”

She shot to her feet and nearly leapt toward hiuilty”