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Heart of the Raven
Susan Crosby
Heath Raven had secluded himself away from the world for years, but his self-imposed isolation had not stopped him from fathering a child. Desperate to locate the missing newborn, he hired private investigator Cassie Miranda, a smart, sultry woman who fueled his long-denied desires.Cassie tried to keep things between her and Heath strictly professional, but after she found his son she couldn't bear to leave their side. And soon they formed a unique family with a deeper connection neither had believed possible. Yet just as she was getting to the heart of the raven, a startling truth was revealed, one that could send Heath back to his cave…and cause Cassie a crushing heartbreak.
“The Next Time The Baby Wakes Up, You Can Hold Him. Even If I’m Up.”
“You figure we’re going to come to fists over him?” Cassie whispered, a smile in her voice as they both leaned over the crib.
She was barely a foot away. A sliver of light from the hall illuminated her face. He inched closer. Her gaze dropped to his mouth and lingered. He wanted to put his palms along her face, bring her close, touch his lips to hers. Slip his hands under her pajama top, feel her skin—
She straightened abruptly. “I don’t— I mean…”
He pulled back. “Right. Yes. Of course.” What the hell was he doing?
“I’ll see you later,” she said, then hurried off ahead of him.
When he went to bed a few minutes later, he noticed her bedroom light was still on. He stood outside her door for a few seconds in case she called out to him.
She didn’t, and he went into his increasingly lonely bedroom, wondering at all the changes in his life and what would come next. He was ready for the next adventure.
Dear Reader,
This May, Silhouette Desire’s sensational lineup starts with Nalini Singh’s Awaken the Senses. This DYNASTIES: THE ASHTONS title is a tale of sexual awakening starring one seductive Frenchman. (Can you say ooh-la-la?) Also for your enjoyment this month is the launch of Maureen Child’s trilogy. The THREE-WAY WAGER series focuses on the Reilly brothers, triplets who bet each other they can stay celibate for ninety days. But wait until brother number one is reunited with The Tempting Mrs. Reilly.
Susan Crosby’s BEHIND CLOSED DOORS series continues with Heart of the Raven, a gothic-toned story of a man whose self-imposed seclusion has cut him off from love…until a sultry woman, and a beautiful baby, open up his heart. Brenda Jackson is back this month with a new Westmoreland story, in Jared’s Counterfeit Fiancée, the tale of a fake engagement that leads to real passion. Don’t miss Cathleen Galitz’s Only Skin Deep, a delightful transformation story in which a shy girl finally falls into bed with the man she’s always dreamed about. And rounding out the month is Bedroom Secrets by Michelle Celmer, featuring a hero to die for.
Thanks for choosing Silhouette Desire, where we strive to bring you the best in smart, sensual romances. And in the months to come look for a new installment of our TEXAS CATTLEMAN’S CLUB continuity and a brand-new TANNERS OF TEXAS title from the incomparable Peggy Moreland.
Happy reading!
Melissa Jeglinski
Senior Editor
Silhouette Books
Heart of the Raven
Susan Crosby
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
SUSAN CROSBY
believes in the value of setting goals, but also in the magic of making wishes. A longtime reader of romance novels, Susan earned a B.A. in English while raising her sons. She lives in the central valley of California, the land of wine grapes, asparagus and almonds. Her checkered past includes jobs as a synchronized swimming instructor, personnel interviewer at a toy factory and trucking company manager, but her current occupation as a writer is her all-time favorite.
Susan enjoys writing about people who take a chance on love, sometimes against all odds. She loves warm, strong heroes; good-hearted, self-reliant heroines…and happy endings.
Susan loves to hear from readers. You can visit her at her Web site, www.susancrosby.com.
To Linda Pomeroy, a favorite fan and a great lady.
You’re MY star. And to Robin Burcell,
an extraordinary writer and critique partner. Never die!
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
One
Cassie Miranda shivered as she maneuvered her car up a steep, bumpy driveway on Wolfback Ridge. She hunched over the steering wheel to study her surroundings through the windshield. Downright eerie, she thought, slowing to a crawl. What happened to the blue sky and balmy weather that had followed her across the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito?
Until a minute ago the gorgeous September day would’ve had photographers racing around the city to take postcard-perfect pictures and businessmen ditching work for the Giants’ game. Then, without warning, gloom had blanketed the sky, as if a thundercloud hovered over just this piece of property. She glanced at her rearview mirror. Sure enough, still an azure sky behind her and a slice of San Francisco Bay.
The house came into view, a soaring glass-and-wood structure with a spectacular view of the San Francisco skyline and the world’s most famous bridge—if only the view hadn’t been blocked by the untended forest surrounding the property. She swore no ray of sunshine could penetrate the foliage. Her new client obviously required an abnormal amount of privacy.
She didn’t mind eccentric—to a point. If she’d wanted everyday-run-of-the-mill all the time, she wouldn’t have chosen to be a private investigator.
Cassie parked under a gnarly tree that looked to be a century old. A city girl all her life, she guessed it was an oak, but the only thing she knew about oaks was that acorns grew on them. She didn’t see any acorns.
She grabbed her briefcase and leather jacket from the passenger seat and climbed out of the car. It was quiet. Too quiet. As if birds were afraid to be there.
Cassie made a slow sweep of the terrain with her gaze as she slipped into her jacket. Chills tiptoed down her spine. Someone was watching her.
“It was a dark and stormy night,” she muttered, figuring if she spoke the hackneyed phrase aloud it would make her laugh. It didn’t.
She pulled her braid free of the jacket and let it fall against her spine. The lack of birdsong made her wonder if a wild animal was crouched nearby, watching her. Stalking her. That would scare the birds into silence, wouldn’t it? A wolf, perhaps? Is that why this place was named Wolfback Ridge—because wolves ran free?
She scanned the property again, admired the hand-carved sign that said Raven’s View, then lifted her gaze to the house. Tinted windows. Was it the client watching her? He even sounded gothic—Heath Raven. The name alone gave her an image of him. Dark and mysterious, maybe even disfigured. Tormented.
Cassie shook off her overactive imagination. One of her Los Angeles bosses had assigned her the case, a missing person. She’d called the client immediately and set up an appointment to see him, even though it was lunchtime. He’d sounded normal. A quick Internet search yielded the information that he was an architect, a highly acclaimed one. How bizarre could he be?
She walked toward the house, her boots crunching gravel along the rustic path leading to the building. The sky turned inky as the structure itself blocked the only remaining hope of sun creeping in.
Cassie trusted her instincts, and her instincts were screaming at her to turn tail and run, that the man who lived in this dreary setting was going to make her personal demons surface, ones she’d buried deep and long ago. But just then the big wooden door opened and a man stood framed in the doorway.
He wasn’t disfigured. Other than that, she’d nailed him. Dark brown hair overdue for a trim, angular features, clear green eyes, assessing and, yes, tormented. A too-thin body, but solid, too.
“Ms. Miranda?” he asked in that perfectly normal voice but without the slightest smile in his eyes.
“Yes. Good afternoon.” She passed him her business card, which identified her as Cassie Miranda of ARC Security & Investigations.
“I’m Heath Raven,” he said, taking a step back. “Please come in.”
He wore blue jeans and a red polo shirt, more normalcy.
Yet nothing seemed normal at all.
The house was as silent as a padded cell. The sleek furnishings of the living room they stepped into looked unused, as did the fireplace, which showed no signs of ever having been lit. The huge windows should’ve allowed light to flood in. Instead it was dim. Dismal. And sad—especially sad, as if the house was in mourning.
Cassie pulled a notebook and pen from her pocket as she sat on the sofa. He stood a distance away.
“Who’s missing, Mr. Raven?” she asked.
His jaw hardened. “My child. My child is missing.”
His words hit hard, a blow to the stomach. This wasn’t a case for her firm, but for the P.D. She closed her notebook. “What do the police say?”
He shook his head.
“I don’t understand. A child who disappears—”
“The woman who is carrying my child disappeared. She left a note. The police won’t get involved because she went voluntarily.”
Anger coated his words—at the woman or the police? Understandable, either way.
“May I see the note?” she asked.
He left the room, giving her a chance to catch her breath. If she’d known there was a child involved… No. She would’ve met with him regardless. She just wished she’d been prepared. Any case involving a child kept her up at night, drove her to exhaustion. She pushed harder for answers, demanded more of herself and everyone around her.
“Here,” he said, handing her a single sheet of pink stationery.
Dear Heath,
I need to figure things out. Don’t try to find me. I’ll be in touch later.
Eva
Not exactly a love letter, Cassie thought. “When did you receive this?”
“It came in the mail this morning.”
“Is she your wife?”
“No. We had a one-night stand over eight months ago. I offered to marry her, several times, but she said no. Several times.” He walked away from her.
“Why would she leave?”
He looked back sharply. “I didn’t abuse her, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“I’m gathering facts. That’s what I do.”
Impatience surfacing, he dragged his hands down his face. “Here’s the story,” he said. “I don’t get out much. Most of the time people come to me when I need something. Eva works as a clerk in my lawyer’s office, and she was assigned to bring me paperwork to read and sign. After almost a year of seeing her once a week or so, we slept together. Once. She got pregnant.”
“When is she due?”
“In three weeks.” He moved around the room again, not stopping to touch anything, just moving, pacing. Prowling.
“Are you sure the child is yours?”
He hesitated a fraction of a second. “I have no reason to believe otherwise.”
She measured his response and decided if he’d questioned the issue before, it was settled in his mind—or almost so. He’d be a fool not to have some doubt, based on what he’d told her. “Okay. Were there any clues that she was about to take off?”
He came to an abrupt halt. “None.” The harshly uttered word conveyed all of his brimming emotions. “She stops by every few days. She gives me an update from her latest doctor’s appointment, we talk a little, and that’s it. I’ve never done anything to make her run away. She agreed to shared custody as soon as the child was weaned. We have an amicable relationship.”
An amicable relationship? Cassie thought it was an odd description, implying they were not friends but merely acquaintances.
“Do you give her money?” she asked.
“Yes.”
She waited. He didn’t expand on his answer.
“I’m going to need more detail than that.”
