Tangled Sheets, Tangled Lies

Tangled Sheets, Tangled Lies
Julie Hogan

Leaving behind her celebrity career, Lauren Simpson had settled in the small town of Valle Verde, California, to pursue simpler dreams as the kind of mother her adopted son, Jem, deserved.After her last heartbreak, Lauren didn't need another man complicating her life. At least, she didn't think so…. Posing as a handyman, Cole Travis had come to town in search of the son he'd never known - who just might be Jem Simpson.But the closer he grew to Lauren, the more troubled Cole's heart became. Could this secret father find a way to untangle the lies…and gain both his son and the love of a lifetime?

“Nothing Could Stop Me From Completing This Job, I Promise You,” Cole Said.

Lauren’s face creased into a sudden, brilliant smile. “Good. Thank you.” Then she rose fluidly from the chair and held out a hand.

Cole grinned and wrapped his big palm around her warm fingers. “Congratulations. You just hired the best pair of hands west of the Mississippi.”

“Prove it, Cole. Just prove it.”

His gaze roamed her face, from her famous green eyes down to her famous full lips. “Oh, I will,” he promised, and wondered how long he was going to be able to keep his secret from Lauren—or keep the best pair of hands west of the Mississippi off the most beautiful woman on the planet.

Dear Reader,

In honor of International Women’s Day, March 8, celebrate romance, love and the accomplishments of women all over the world by reading six passionate, powerful and provocative new titles from Silhouette Desire.

New York Times bestselling author Sharon Sala leads the Desire lineup with Amber by Night (#1495). A shy librarian uses her alter ego to win her lover’s heart in a sizzling love story by this beloved MIRA and Intimate Moments author. Next, a pretend affair turns to true passion when a Barone heroine takes on the competition, in Sleeping with Her Rival (#1496) by Sheri WhiteFeather, the third title of the compelling DYNASTIES: THE BARONES saga.

A single mom shares a heated kiss with a stranger on New Year’s Eve and soon after reencounters him at work, in Renegade Millionaire (1497) by Kristi Gold. Mail-Order Prince in Her Bed (#1498) by Kathryn Jensen features an Italian nobleman who teaches an American ingenue the language of love, while a city girl and a rancher get together with the help of her elderly aunt, in The Cowboy Claims His Lady (#1499) by Meagan McKinney, the latest MATCHED IN MONTANA title. And a contractor searching for his secret son finds love in the arms of the boy’s adoptive mother, in Tangled Sheets, Tangled Lies (#1500) by brand-new author Julie Hogan, debuting in the Desire line.

Delight in all six of these sexy Silhouette Desire titles this month…and every month.

Enjoy!

Joan Marlow Golan

Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire

Tangled Sheets, Tangled Lies

Julie Hogan

JULIE HOGAN

discovered romance novels at the age of ten and spent her youthful summers tearing through one book after another when she should have been doing chores at her parents’ northern San Diego county avocado orchard. Luckily, in spite of a checkered past that ranged from undercover department store security to “hotwalking” Thoroughbred horses at the Santa Anita racetrack, all that summer reading paid off. After ten years in the rat race, Julie gave up her career as an Internet marketing executive and, with her English degree from UCLA clutched in her fist, finally realized her dream of writing her own romance novels. Julie shares a quiet Southern California home with her true-to-life hero husband, Jud, who inspires both her writing and her life, and two bad-tempered cats who rule the neighborhood with an iron claw. In her writing, Julie loves bringing funny and engaging characters to life, then putting them through the wringer until they realize that love is the only true path to happiness. The only thing Julie enjoys more than reading and writing romances is hearing from readers who share her mania. You can write to her at julie@juliehogan.com.

This is for my parents, who, when I was an impressionable preteen, were far too indulgent and bought me far too many books with far too adult themes. If Jud and I turn out to be a fraction of the parents you are, I will consider us a smashing success. I love you both.

This is for my critique partners past and present. Laura Wright, Julie Ganis, Tami Goveia, Patty Chung—you will never again be able to say you haven’t made a huge difference in someone’s life. And to the new La-La Sisterhood: Beth, Corinne, Doris, Teresa and Chandra—thank you for taking me into your fold. You have put the light and laughter back into this caper for me.

This is for my mentor and steadfast coach, Barbara Ankrum. Your success speaks for itself, but you know I have to say it anyway: Your ability to give is extraordinary, your desire to enrich others is tireless and your talent for writing transcends the exceptional. I am beyond fortunate to be able to call you my friend.

And finally, this is for my husband, Jud, who believed in me, encouraged me, cajoled me, lovingly menaced me and supported me utterly in my journey to becoming a writer. You make me laugh when I don’t want to, let me cry when I should and are the most ardent, die-hard fan. You are the very air that I am privileged to breathe. I love you with my whole heart.

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

One

When Cole Travis first drove into the town of Valle Verde, he felt like he’d taken a step back in time.

There were no sidewalks flanking what appeared to be the main street, just well-traveled dirt paths with weeds and wildflowers growing as best they could in tufts alongside it. A group of young boys walked together, pushing each other and talking and laughing loud enough for Cole to hear them through the open window of his truck. A woman pushed a baby stroller with grocery bags piled in the bottom and a few men sat outside the hardware store.

It was quiet and peaceful and kind of pretty. And it made him feel like he was the only person within a hundred miles who had a problem.

He pulled up beside the gas pumps at an old-fashioned filling station, turned the key and waited for the groaning, wheezing pile of bolts and sheet metal that was posing as a truck to shudder and rattle to a stop. Cole had purchased the truck from one of his contractors just before leaving Seattle two weeks earlier and the man had laughingly called its idiosyncrasies “features.” One very special feature, he’d said, was that the truck didn’t stop until it felt like it.

Cole sighed. Because he intended to be flying home at the end of this journey, he’d wanted a vehicle he could junk when the time came. And he’d certainly gotten what he asked for in this jalopy.

Just then, another image out of the past appeared at Cole’s window. A gas station attendant. “Fill ’er up?” the young man asked.

“Sure.” Cole opened the door with a loud creak and stepped onto the clean pavement. “You know where I can get a local paper?”

The boy jerked his head toward the office. “You can take mine. I’m done with it. It’s on the desk.”

Cole took his time walking to the office. He’d been cramped up in the truck for most of the morning during the long drive from San Clemente to San Diego. Unfortunately, he hadn’t found what he was looking for in San Clemente, nor had he found it in Laguna Beach before that. But it didn’t really matter because regardless of how long it took or what he had to do, he was going to find his son, take him home and try as hard as he could to make up for all the time they’d lost.

As he gathered up the newspaper, he saw a map of Valle Verde thumbtacked to the wall. He pulled a piece of paper out of his back pocket and checked the address of the place he needed to go, located it on the map, then headed back to the truck.

After he paid for the gas, he pulled back out onto the main road. Well, at least now he knew where to find them. Only one small detail remained: how to approach them so they wouldn’t suspect his real motive, so they wouldn’t know that he might change their lives forever.

A small, neat park loomed up on the right side of the road and Cole pulled into it and turned off the truck, then reached into his bag and pulled out five thick file folders that represented his private investigator’s work. They felt heavy in his hands. He’d had five chances to find his child. Three remained.

As he opened the top folder, his gut churned with anger at his ex-wife. In fact, ever since he’d learned that Kelly had been pregnant with his son when she’d left him five years earlier, he’d been swinging wildly between feeling furious and hopeful, anxious and sad.