"Are you alone?"
He frowned, confused. "What the hell?" he whispered, so as not to wake Jane, still sleeping peacefully. "She already knows."
"Not about this," Liam said, and the tightness in his voice had Dallas sliding out from under the covers and walking across the cabana to the curtain.
"Tell me."
"We've made progress on decrypting the hard drive we took from Ortega's property."
"You have a lead."
"Yeah," Liam said. "No confirmation yet--so keep that in mind. Maybe it's nothing at all, but..."
"Just spill it."
"Colin," Liam said. "He's all over Ortega's files."
Dallas clutched the phone tighter, not wanting to ask the question--not even wanting to consider the possibility--but knowing that he had to. "Are you saying he's involved with the kidnapping?"
"Hell, Dallas, I don't know," Liam said, sounding completely ripped apart. "Colin's been wrapped up in all sorts of bad shit since we were kids. Maybe he was into smuggling with Ortega. Or maybe they just had a standing poker night."
"Or maybe he's right in the thick of it," Dallas said, shutting his eyes and thinking of the man he'd come to think of as a friend. The man who was Jane's birth father.
"I hope to hell not. But we have to consider it. We have to look harder. Go deeper."
"I know." Dallas sighed, his heart raw. "Fuck."
"You can't tell her," Liam said. "Not yet. At the very least, not until we're sure."
"No," Dallas agreed, closing his eyes against this truth. This secret. "I can't tell her a goddamn thing."
acknowledgments
Writing a book is a solitary business. Sure, an author can call up a friend to bounce an idea or ask a spouse to read over a paragraph. He or she can trade pages, brainstorm with other authors, or participate in writing sprints. And, yes, s/he can pop over to social media for the necessary water cooler moments. Ultimately, though, writing a book is about sitting in a chair with fingers on a keyboard, getting lost in an imaginary world, hanging out with imaginary people, and trying to convince those sometimes obstinate made-up folks to let you spill their souls onto the page.
Contrary to the writing side, the publishing part of getting a book to readers is not solitary at all. And I'm so grateful for the wonderful group of folks that I work with to get my books out into the world. Amazing and talented folks such as Shauna Summers, Gina Wachtel, Sarah Murphy, Matt Schwartz, Jess Bonet, Alex Coumbis, Kelly Chian, Scott Shannon, and Sue Grimshaw, not to mention the copy editors, proofreaders, sales and marketing folks, the brilliant team in the art department, and everyone else at Bantam. And, of course, the amazing people I work with outside of my publisher, including my agent Kevan Lyon, KP and Dani at Inkslinger, the Kenner Krew, my fabulous assistant Melissa, and my husband and partner, Don. Hugs, kisses, and chocolate chip cookies to you all!
By J. Kenner
THE STARK TRILOGY
Release Me Claim Me Complete Me
STARK EVER AFTER NOVELLAS
Take Me Have Me Play My Game Seduce Me Unwrap Me Deepest Kiss
STARK INTERNATIONAL NOVELS
Say My Name On My Knees Under My Skin
THE DIRTIEST TRILOGY
Dirtiest Secret Hottest Mess
MOST WANTED SERIES
Wanted