Before Sunrise

Before Sunrise
Diana Palmer

Jeremiah Cortez thought he'd left the past behind him–especially the part of his past concerning Phoebe Keller. Once she had stirred his world-weary soul. Now, years later, seeing the blond beauty again sparks dormant desires. But he has to push his emotions aside–he has new ties that can't be broken. Phoebe thought her feelings for Cortez were buried as deep as the artifacts she studies in her museum.An expert in Native American culture, she has her doubts when an anthropologist claims to have discovered a Neanderthal skeleton on a nearby reservation. But before Phoebe can pursue the matter, the professor in question turns up dead–and the FBI sends Cortez to investigate.Now, as the two delve further into the murder, they find themselves entangled in a world of conspiracy, deception…and a love more powerful than anything they've ever known.

Praise for Diana Palmer

“Nobody does it better.”

—Award-winning author Linda Howard

“Palmer knows how to make the sparks fly…heartwarming.”

—Publishers Weekly on Renegade

“A compelling tale…[that packs] an emotional wallop.”

—Booklist on Renegade

“Sensual and suspenseful.…”

—Booklist on Lawless

“Diana Palmer is a mesmerizing storyteller who captures the essence of what a romance should be.”

—Affaire de Coeur

“Nobody tops Diana Palmer when it comes to delivering pure, undiluted romance. I love her stories.”

—New York Times bestselling author Jayne Ann Krentz

“The dialogue is charming, the characters likable and the sex sizzling.”

—Publishers Weekly on Once in Paris

“This story is a thrill a minute—one of Ms. Palmer’s best.”

—Rendezvous on Lord of the Desert

“Diana Palmer does a masterful job of stirring the reader’s emotions.”

—Lezlie Patterson, Reading Eagle, on Lawless

Diana Palmer

Before Sunrise

For Doris Hunter Samson

June 14, 1941–June 13, 2004

My friend

BEFORE SUNRISE

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 ONE

Knoxville, Tennessee, May 1994

THE CROWD WAS DENSE, but he stood out. He was taller than most of the other spectators and looked elegant in his expensive, tailored gray-vested suit. He had a lean, dark face, faintly scarred, with large, almond-shaped black eyes and short eyelashes. His mouth was wide and thin-lipped, his chin stubbornly jutted. His thick, jet-black hair was gathered into a neat ponytail that fell almost to his waist in back. Several other men in the stands wore their hair that way. But they were white. Cortez was Comanche. He had the background to wear the unconventional hairstyle. On him, it looked sensual and wild and even a little dangerous.

Another ponytailed man, a redhead with a receding hairline and thick glasses, grinned and gave him the victory sign. Cortez shrugged, unimpressed, and turned his attention toward the graduation ceremonies. He was here against his will and the last thing he felt like was being friendly. If he’d followed his instincts, he’d still be in Washington going over a backlog of federal cases he was due to prosecute in court.

The dean of the university was announcing the names of the graduates. He’d reached the Ks, and on the program, Phoebe Margaret Keller was the second name under that heading.

It was a beautiful spring day at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, so the commencement ceremony was being held outside. Phoebe was recognizable by the long platinum blond braid trailing the back of her dark gown as she accepted her diploma with one hand and shook hands with the dean with the other. She moved past the podium and switched her tassel to the other side of her cap. Cortez could see the grin from where he was standing.