she tried to recall where the circuit breaker panel was.
“Hold it right there.”
Fear, primal and burning, stole her breath and shot through her blood with a dizzying jolt. For a fleeting, hysterical instant, her thought was that this was the wrong reaction for a government agent to have. Never mind that she wasn’t a full-fledged agent yet. She should be deadly calm, ready to act and react.
Belatedly, though no more than a second could have passed, Penny whirled around, simultaneously shutting off the pitifully weak beam of the flashlight so as not to make herself a target. Her eyes not yet adjusted to the inky blackness, she crouched and reached for the gun in her purse. But before she could even register that her pocketbook wasn’t hanging at her side, a shoulder slammed into her midsection and she went down hard, her hip jarring against the unyielding hardwood floor.
Finesse gave way to sheer terror and self-preservation as she squirmed and kicked and jabbed. “You son of a—”
“Wait! Hold it…”
“Not a chance, buddy.” She arched beneath her assailant. Unable to get good enough leverage to throw a decent punch, she started to bring her knee up.
“Hold on, wildcat…damn it…Penny, it’s me.”
He didn’t have to identify who “me” was.
Memories flashed.
That voice. A voice she hadn’t heard in sixteen years.
The voice of the only man she’d ever truly loved—or thought she’d loved—a man who’d made a fool out of her and broke her heart, a man who’d proved what her grandmother had spent nearly a lifetime drumming into Penny’s head. That men were no good and not to be trusted with your heart.
Joe Colter.
Flat on her back, Penny hesitated in her wild struggle and it was distraction enough for Joe to get the upper hand. He manacled her wrists in one of his hands and jerked her arms above her head. With his free hand, he shined a flashlight in her eyes.
Penny was alternately stunned, confused and spitting mad. She bucked against him. “Damn it, get the hell off me.”
From the flashlight’s beam, she saw him grin. It wasn’t fair that one man could be so handsome. Deep creases bracketed his mouth and fanned out beside his eyes.
“Not a chance.” The repeat of her words seemed deliberate.
She went slack, her chest heaving with every breath she took, a combination of exertion, fear and much, much more. The weight of his body was beginning to arouse rather than restrain.
“Darby’s welcoming committee, I presume?” she finally asked, annoyed by the breathy hitch in her voice.
His grin kicked up another notch. “Something like that. Although we’re usually more mannerly.”
“I should hope so. You’ll chase away the tourists.” She took a steadying breath. “It’s been a long time, Joe.”
“So you do recognize me.”
She stiffened imperceptibly, then deliberately made herself relax. The last time they’d been together, they’d been in a very similar position. With him on top. And soon after that, she’d knocked the hell out of him with a right punch and walked out of his life.
“I recognize you. What are you doing skulking around my grandmother’s house?”
“Protecting and serving.”
“Good way to get yourself shot.”
“Likewise—though I might point out that I’m still armed and you appear to be, uh, at a disadvantage, if you don’t mind my saying so.”
“Right now, I’m too tired to mind much. But I’ll assure you, I’m only at a disadvantage because I’m allowing it.”
His palm smoothed over her shoulder and down her arm, gently squeezing her biceps. She knew what he was feeling and resisted the urge to flex those muscles. Sleekly feminine, there was still power beneath that flesh. And the touch of Joe’s hand was making it difficult to breathe.
“You’re not gonna hit me if I let go, are you?”
Her lips curved. “Take a chance.” When he released her wrists, her palm came up to rest on his chest, her fingers tracing the badge pinned there. “A lawman. I wouldn’t have pictured it.”
Joe rolled off her and reached for his hat that had been knocked off in the struggle. “Mmm, and you a secret agent. I wouldn’t have pictured it.”
“Who told you I was a secret agent?” She accepted the hand he held out and let him help her up.
“Your grandmother liked to brag. I’m sorry about her death, by the way.”
“Thank you. I’m sorry I wasn’t here for the funeral.” Standing, she let go of his hand and rubbed at her hip, knowing she’d have a bruise. “I was out of town and by the time Kelly tracked me down, the funeral was over.” Kelly Robertson had been Penny’s high school friend and source of sporadic hometown information over the years.
Kelly had neglected to tell her that Joe Colter was still in town.
The last she’d heard, Joe had married and moved away. After gleaning that bit of information, Penny hadn’t asked about him again.
It had hurt too much.
“Yeah. That’s what she said.” His tone was deep and gentle with compassion.
“You talked to Kelly about me?”
“Sure. Darby’s still a small town.”
Penny told herself she wouldn’t cringe. Living in this small town—this gossipy small town—had caused the single most excruciating embarrassment in her life.
The moment when she’d realized that everyone but her knew that Joe Colter, the most popular jock in school, had seduced brainy Penny Archer on a bet.
And by God, she wasn’t going to get caught up in all the old insecurities. It had been sixteen years. In the beginning, she’d convinced herself she hated him. She had to admit now that she didn’t. The feelings were just as strong as they’d been the day after graduation.
And that scared her. Because it made her vulnerable. She hadn’t thought of herself as vulnerable in a very long time.
“You okay?”
She clenched her fist and snapped her attention back to Joe. Or what she could see of him. “I’m fine. I’d be better with some light. Mind if I borrow your flashlight to find the breaker box?”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Suit yourself. I think the panel’s on the service porch. Careful of the glass.”
She heard his boots scuff against the floor as he moved back through the kitchen, then heard the crunch of glass and the
