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СКАЧАТЬ style="font-size:15px;">      “All?”

      “Me and my three brothers. We all work for the company.”

      “What do you do? I mean, for a job?” she replied.

      “I design sailing yachts,” he said.

      Sofie laughed and nodded to Millie. “Well, we have a lot of sailing yachts here in the desert,” she said. “I really don’t think I have—”

      “Sofie,” Cameron said.

      She stopped talking and watched him warily. “Yes?”

      “I’m a smart guy. I’m pretty sure I can handle whatever you send my way. Why don’t you give me a chance? If it doesn’t work out, you can fire me.”

      “What’s your name?” she finally asked.

      He held out his hand. “Cameron Quinn. Most people call me Cam.”

      Reluctantly, she shook his hand. “Sofia Reyes,” she said softly. “Most people call me Sofie.”

      The moment he touched her, the sensation of her skin against his sent a flood of warmth racing through his veins. He didn’t want to let her hand go, but forced himself. “Now that we’ve met, you have to let me buy you lunch,” Cameron said. “You can tell me all about the virtues of Vulture Creek.”

      “That would be a very short lunch. More like a snack.”

      “Go ahead,” Millie urged. “Let the man buy you lunch.”

      He felt a small measure of satisfaction when she nodded in agreement. Though he hadn’t held out much hope of finding anything of interest in Vulture Creek when he stepped off the bus, his prospects were getting better with every minute that passed. Sofie Reyes. Even her name was sexy.

      SOFIE SIGHED SOFTLY as she took her first bite of Millie’s banana-cream pie. She’d been hanging around Vulture Creek for the past few weeks, and a slice of Millie’s homemade pie had become a daily ritual for her.

      “I think pie is just about the perfect food,” Sofie said, emphasizing her statement with her fork. “You can eat it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. And it’s good for a snack, too.”

      “I think you might be right,” Cameron replied, digging into the apple pie he’d ordered after his own meal.

      The conversation was easy between them, which Sofie found odd. She usually wasn’t very comfortable around charming men, especially men she didn’t know. Her instincts usually tended to have her second-guessing everything that was said, looking for ulterior motives and hidden meanings. It was the side effects of working as a private investigator, she knew. Everyone she met was guilty of something.

      But this man, this Cameron Quinn, should have set off all her alarms. His reasons for being in Vulture Creek were cloudy at best. His wardrobe was more suited to a man who drove an expensive European sports car than a guy who took the Greyhound. And yet she couldn’t help but be attracted.

      In truth, she did need help. It had become almost impossible to cover all her bases with the case she was working, especially when she had to provide round-the-clock surveillance. And as a woman, she was more conspicuous in a small town like Vulture Creek. For whatever reason, people noticed her and they remembered her.

      The sooner she wrapped up this case, the better, and if Cameron Quinn could help, who was she to refuse? She’d been chasing cheating husbands and deadbeat dads for almost six months, and it was wearing on her nerves. As soon as she was physically able, she’d be back on the job with the Albuquerque Police Department, back doing the job she was meant to do.

      Sofie drew a deep breath. It had been two years since the accident, two years of recovery that seemed to progress an inch at a time. As much as she didn’t want to face it, she knew the reality of her situation.

      She might not make it back. She might never be able to pass the physical again. All she’d be left with was a hip that ached in the cold and a limp that made her the object of either pity or curiosity. Though she might be considered attractive, she was still damaged.

      Most men never saw beyond the imperfection. Hell, she couldn’t get beyond it herself most days. But sitting here, talking to Cameron, she could almost forget the flaw. He had a way of looking at her that made her feel as if she was the most fascinating woman he’d ever set eyes upon. And Sofie hadn’t felt that way in a very long time. Not since the “incident.”

      Sofie came from a family of law-enforcement officers. Her father was a cop in Albuquerque, and each of her five brothers worked in criminal justice. So it was only natural that Sofie, the youngest in the family, had set her sights on the same career.

      She’d begun work with the Albuquerque P.D. the year she graduated from college, and it had been a dream job. She’d worked her way up through the ranks and was undercover in Narcotics by the time she was twenty-six. Her team was in the midst of a major trafficking case when she got caught in a turf war between two rival drug gangs.

      Sofie had known the dangers, but they’d been so close to making their case. She hadn’t listened to her instincts or her superiors, believing that she could handle whatever came her way. But a speeding car and a half-crazed driver put her safety in someone else’s hands. And the resulting crash had put her in intensive care for three months.

      “You want another piece of pie?”

      Sofie blinked, then glanced up from her empty plate. “What?”

      “Pie,” Cam said. “The way you were looking, I was thinking you might just eat the plate.” He turned and searched for Millie. “Can we get another slice of the banana-cream pie?”

      “No,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m fine.”

      “I’m not,” he said. “I’ll have a piece of that banana-cream pie, please.”

      He sent her a smile, and Sofie felt a shiver skitter through her. Was she just imagining it, or was there an attraction between them? Sofie felt it, but was it mutual, or was it merely wishful thinking on her part?

      Just because they’d indulged in a little casual flirting over lunch didn’t mean that he was ready to pull her into his arms and ravish her. Cameron seemed like the kind of guy who kept a pretty tight leash on his desires.

      Besides, if she decided against hiring him, he’d probably be on a bus out of Vulture Creek before she could find something else to like about him, rolling down the road like a tumbleweed in a dust storm.

      Millie wandered over with the coffeepot and another slice of pie. She filled their cups, then slipped the check onto the counter beside Cameron. He pulled out his wallet and handed her a credit card, then turned back to Sofie. She reached into her back pocket for money, but Cameron brushed her hand aside. “It’s on me,” he said.

      “That’s not necessary. I can—”

      “No, I want to.” He paused. “I was thinking maybe you might be able to help me find a place to stay here in town. Maybe show me around?”

      She wanted to say yes, to imagine that this day might go on a little longer. But she did have work to do. “Sure,” she said. “I have some time.” Work could СКАЧАТЬ