Keeping Her Close

Keeping Her Close
Carol Ross

Hired to protect her… …unable to resist her The job sounds simple: teach a businessman’s daughter how to stay safe. But former navy SEAL turned bodyguard Kyle Frasier has a personal motive, too. Harper Jansen is his late best friend’s fiancée. Loyalty demands he protect her, not that Harper looks in need of rescuing. In fact, it’s Kyle who needs help—balancing duty with his desire to build a life with the one woman he shouldn’t want…

Hired to protect her

…unable to resist her

The job sounds simple: teach a businessman’s daughter how to stay safe. But former navy SEAL turned bodyguard Kyle Frasier has a personal motive, too. Harper Jansen is his late best friend’s fiancée. Loyalty demands he protect her, not that Harper looks in need of rescuing. In fact, it’s Kyle who needs help—balancing duty with his desire to build a life with the one woman he shouldn’t want…

CAROL ROSS lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two dogs. She is a graduate of Washington State University. When not writing, or thinking about writing, she enjoys reading, running, hiking, skiing, traveling and making plans for the next adventure to subject her sometimes reluctant but always fun-loving family to. Carol can be contacted at carolrossauthor.com (http://carolrossauthor.com) and via Facebook at Facebook.com/carolrossauthor (http://Facebook.com/carolrossauthor); Twitter, @_carolross (https://twitter.com/_CarolRoss); and Instagram, @carolross__ (https://www.instagram.com/carolross__/).

Also By Carol Ross (#u496a3028-99e2-5614-9042-5decaba74d2b)

Summer at the Shore

Christmas at the Cove

Seasons of Alaska

In the Doctor’s Arms

Bachelor Remedy

A Heartwarming Thanksgiving

“Autumn at Jasper Lake”

A Family Like Hannah’s

If Not for a Bee

A Case for Forgiveness

Mountains Apart

Return of the Blackwell Brothers

The Rancher’s Twins

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk).

Keeping Her Close

Carol Ross

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

ISBN: 978-1-474-09896-0

KEEPING HER CLOSE

© 2019 Carol Ross

Published in Great Britain 2019

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

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“Kyle, you are so…good, honorable, kind.”

Like a jab to the chest, that was the wake-up

call he needed. He wished he was good, honorable and kind, or at least wasn’t carrying this secret around with him. Because he wanted to be all of those things for her—and he was beginning to believe they could be perfect together.

Cupping her face, he smoothed a thumb across her cheekbone. “I want you to know that I didn’t arrange all this because I expect anything from you.”

Harper gave him a contented smile that had him wanting to kiss her all over again. “I know. I believe you. And that’s huge for me. I, um…”

Forcing the words past the painful guilt building inside his chest, he said, “Harper, you can tell me anything. I hope you know that.”

“I think I do. I, um, I have…trust issues. The details of which I wish I could share with you. But I can’t. At least…not yet.”

Dear Reader (#u496a3028-99e2-5614-9042-5decaba74d2b),

I don’t know about you, but I think trust is one of the most vital yet elusive feelings in the entire playbook of human emotions. Trust is difficult to define, yet you know when it’s there. And it’s essential in order to have a genuine connection with someone. But once it’s lost, can you get it back again?