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Obsession & Eyewitness: Obsession / Eyewitness
Carol Ericson
THESE HEROES WILL STOP AT NOTHING TO PROTECT THE WOMEN THEY LOVE! OBSESSION FBI Agent Colin Roarke vows to protect former crush Michelle Girard from the "Reunion Killer." Staying one step ahead is Colin's specialty, but as his frustration intensifies, so do the complications of long-buried feelings. When Michelle is kidnapped, clues lead Colin to an abandoned mansion where dark secrets are concealed–and dangerous desires hidden.EYEWITNESS Four years in an Afghan prison couldn't erase beautiful Devon Reese from Kieran Roarke's damaged memory. So when they meet on a beach back in Coral Cove and she begs for help, he doesn't hesitate. Especially when he learns Devon's little boy–a son he hadn't known existed–witnessed a murder. Kieran is desperate to keep his new family safe. He lost them once–he won't lose them again.
Two reader-favorite Guardians of Coral Cove stories.
Obsession
FBI Agent Colin Roarke vows to protect former crush Michelle Girard from the “Reunion Killer.” Staying one step ahead is Colin’s specialty, but as his frustration intensifies, so do the complications of long-buried feelings. When Michelle is kidnapped, clues lead Colin to an abandoned mansion where dark secrets are concealed—and dangerous desires hidden.
Eyewitness
Four years in an Afghan prison couldn’t erase beautiful Devon Reese from Kieran Roarke’s damaged memory. So when they meet on a beach back in Coral Cove and she begs for help, he doesn’t hesitate. Especially when he learns Devon’s little boy—a son he hadn’t known existed—witnessed a murder. Kieran is desperate to keep his new family safe. He lost them once—he won’t lose them again.
Praise for author Carol Ericson
“Small towns hold the best secrets, and Ericson slowly unravels each one until the final climax.”
—RT Reviews on Obsession
“Elise Duran…is my favorite type of heroine—strong yet vulnerable… I highly recommend this for fans of mystery and intrigue.”
—HarlequinJunkie.com (http://HarlequinJunkie.com) on The Bridge
“A fantastic read from first page to last. Be sure to take in The Stranger and I, Carol Ericson’s debut Harlequin Intrigue, and keep a look out for more. Carol Ericson will quickly become a favorite…”
—CataRomance.com (http://CataRomance.com)
“From the first page, Ericson’s story will grab readers and cannon them through the adventure, tears and terrors of a homecoming that doesn’t go as planned.”
—RT Reviews on Eyewitness
CAROL ERICSON
lives with her husband and two sons in Southern California, home of state-of-the-art cosmetic surgery, wild freeway chases, palm trees bending in the Santa Ana winds and a million amazing stories. These stories, along with hordes of sexy men and feisty women, clamor for release from Carol’s head. It makes for some interesting headaches until she sets them free to fulfill their destinies and her readers’ fantasies. To find out more about Carol and her current books, visit her website, carolericson.com (http://carolericson.com), “where romance flirts with danger.”
Books by Carol Ericson
Harlequin Intrigue
Run, Hide
Conceal, Protect
Trap, Secure
Catch, Release
The Bridge
The District
The Wharf
The Hill
Under Fire
Visit the Author Profile page at Harlequin.com (http://www.harlequin.com/) for more titles.
Obsession & Eyewitness
Carol Ericson
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
OBSESSION (#u0b35371a-3461-53fc-b2a5-2dda29948d15)
EYEWITNESS (#litres_trial_promo)
Obsession
Carol Ericson
For my dad,
who loved the central coast of California.
CONTENTS
Chapter One (#ue4008ef3-ebae-5788-bf9f-d9297b228861)
Chapter Two (#u337685d9-ce71-5e7c-b40c-6d72446a3a32)
Chapter Three (#u4ab58bdf-a1e1-56cc-85d9-fe68d2cbaa0f)
Chapter Four (#ub9adfca6-dba1-5f4f-98ab-22f5b74addad)
Chapter Five (#u9607cd71-c714-556d-b6af-79427ba3848d)
Chapter Six (#u280af488-522d-5ad5-be22-0b93eef9999b)
Chapter Seven (#ubf09961e-03f5-51d6-b0e5-4a98c6b0891d)
Chapter Eight (#u27984b8c-d88b-5ee5-a4ad-9a468ccf2213)
Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ONE
NO, I DO not need a lifetime supply of Viagra. Michelle Girard snorted as she deleted the unopened email, sending it to the black hole of cyberspace. Maybe Alec Wright, the computer teacher at school, could suggest a better spam filter, one that didn’t allow this garbage to slip through to her inbox.
As her cursor hovered over the next message, a breath of apprehension puffed against the nape of her neck and her hand trembled. The words in the subject line punched her in the gut. Like mother, like daughter?
Different unknown sender from last month, same message. And just like last month, she deleted the email without opening it or reading it and then cleared her delete folder. She didn’t know if the message contained more content than the insidious question, and she didn’t want to find out.
She jumped at the sharp rap on her front door and slammed her laptop shut, as if that could banish the disturbing email from her mind. She dropped the math quizzes she had to grade on top of the computer and crept to the door. Twitching back the curtain on the window, she blew out a deep breath and waved at Amanda, her best friend.
Amanda banged on the door and yelled, “Don’t just stand there gawking. Let me in, already.”
Michelle swung open the door, and Amanda charged across the threshold, gripping her upper arms, a sweater draped around her shoulders. She gave an exaggerated shiver. “This June gloom sucks.”
Michelle peered outside at the once-sunny day now shrouded in a slow-moving fog rolling in from the beach. June days in the little coastal town of Coral Cove usually started out overcast and ended that way.
She snapped the door shut and turned to survey her friend. “What are you doing here, and why are you all dressed up?”
“This old thing?” Amanda glanced down at her shimmering summer dress and plucked at the floral skirt as her sweater slipped to the floor.
“Since you usually work at home in sweats and a T-shirt, there must be some special occasion.” Michelle crossed her arms, waiting for news of Amanda’s next harebrained scheme. She adored her friend, but she was as flighty as a butterfly in a gust of wind.
“You have to point that out, don’t you?” She adjusted the bodice of her dress and spread her arms out, pausing theatrically. “Colin Roarke is back in town.”
Michelle raised one brow. “Colin Roarke?”
“Oh, please. Even you with your bookish ways and band of nerds must’ve heard of the Roarke brothers in high school.” She tousled her blond-streaked hair and took a twirl around the room. “Colin was four years ahead of us and Kieran was six years ahead.”
“Of course I’ve heard of them.” Michelle dipped to scoop up Amanda’s sweater from the floor, her hair sweeping across her suddenly flushed cheeks. She hadn’t given Colin Roarke much thought since she’d had a mad, useless, crazy crush on him in high school.
“I know they both got football scholarships to college. The family lived down the road from here.” Michelle tilted her head. “Didn’t the parents retire to Hawaii or something? The dad made a killing in the dot-com industry and pulled out before it all went bust.”
Amanda’s mouth hung open. “Who cares about their parents? Colin is back in town, and he’s hotter and hunkier than ever, or so I’ve heard. I haven’t had a peek at him yet, but we’re about to remedy that.”
“You’re going to check out Colin Roarke?” Michelle laughed. Amanda and her husband had separated exactly two months ago, and she spent all her time trying to make him jealous.
“And you’re coming with me, so I don’t look too obvious.”
Michelle smirked. “Yeah, wouldn’t want to look too obvious. Where is this rare specimen of hunky manhood and what’s he doing back in town? We’re the ones with the ten-year reunion this summer.”
Amanda formed a pout with her lipsticked mouth. “Too bad Colin wasn’t in our class. Maybe I could’ve snagged him instead of that loser Ryan.”
Michelle clicked her tongue feeling like a schoolmarm. “Ryan is not a loser. He’s a good cop and he loves you.”
“He cheated on me.”
“Not exactly. He sent some inappropriate emails to a woman in another state.” Michelle’s gaze darted to her closed-up laptop. Those inappropriate emails seemed to be contagious.
Amanda brushed her hands together. “Whatever. Are you coming with me or not? Colin’s at Burgers and Brews, but we’ll miss him if you dawdle.”
“Early dinner?” Michelle dropped Amanda’s sweater across the arm of a chair and checked her watch.
She really had to get those quizzes graded so she could enjoy the rest of her weekend, but she welcomed Amanda’s interruption. That email, the second in two months, had spooked her, and she didn’t relish the thought of hunkering down in her beach cottage alone as the fog pressed in on her.
“Sure. That’s a good excuse.” Amanda grabbed Michelle’s purse from the table by the window and tossed it to her.
A short drive later in Amanda’s Mercedes, they rolled into the center of town. Michelle rubbed a circle in the condensation on the window and peered outside. “You can actually see more than ten feet in front of you here, but that’s not going to last long. The fog’s on its way.”
“And I’m on my way to meet Colin.” Amanda threw her car into Park and cut the engine.
Michelle struggled into her sweater as she climbed from the car. “You never did tell me what he’s doing back in town. Visiting old friends?”
“That’s what he’s doing at Bryan’s restaurant.” Hunching forward, Amanda dabbed at her lipstick in the side mirror. “He was good friends with Bryan Sotelo, but I think he’s here on a case.”
“A case?” Michelle hugged the sweater around her body against the cool, moist air seeping into her skin. From the town grapevine, she’d heard that Colin had become an FBI agent after returning from Afghanistan to a hero’s welcome. There had been some tragedy over there involving his older brother.
“Something about Tiffany Gunderson’s accident.”
Michelle wrinkled her nose. “The FBI doesn’t investigate accidents. She fell down an elevator shaft and broke her neck. It didn’t even happen here in Coral Cove. Do they suspect foul play?”
“How am I supposed to know that? You sound exactly like my husband.” Amanda grabbed Michelle’s arm. “Let’s go before Colin leaves.”
“Hi, Ms. Girard.”
Michelle turned toward the two voices, the greeting spoken in unison. Four of her students lounged on the bench outside the local pizza place. The two girls waved, their long, skinny legs encased in short shorts and furry boots. The two boys perched on the arms of the bench, their hoods pulled up over their heads, matching teenaged smirks on their faces.
Michelle’s heart lurched for a moment before she waved and pasted on a smile. “Enjoy your weekend.”
Could one of her students be behind the annoying emails? They probably wouldn’t know her history, but their parents might. She hadn’t thought of reporting the emails to the police, but a third one might constitute harassment.
Amanda sighed. “Sorry. I forgot it was dollar night at Vinnie’s, and some of your snot-nosed students would be hanging around. Just didn’t think they’d be here this early.”
“Sydney and Maddie are nice girls. I don’t mind running into my students as long as I’m not doing something stupid.”
“You never do anything stupid, Michelle. Remember dollar nights at Vinnie’s? We just used it as an excuse to hook up with guys in the back parking lot.” Amanda clapped a hand over her mouth.
