Murphy's Law (The Bounty Hunter Series - Book 1) by Laurie LeClair Page A

dry, she took another small swallow of the ale. It didn’t help. Staring at the beads of condensation sliding down the frosty mug she still held, she clamped down on a fresh wave of fear. No, she couldn’t do this, not to him. He may have run Murphy’s Law in the past, or so she’d been told, but that didn’t mean she could use him and all his expertise to get what she needed and get her family out of trouble. She’d find another way. “Give me a minute while I use the can.” She nearly winced at the use of her sister’s language and eased out of her chair.
    For a brief moment, she met his hot, questioning stare. Something in her jolted. How could he make her warm all over with just one look? Was that why she wanted to protect him from this mess? Why did keeping him safe flash through her just now?
    Retreating to the hallway where the restrooms were, Echo searched for a way out. Had she been there before? Was there a back door out of this place? Time ticked away like a clock on a bomb.
    Heading to the unmarked door near the end of the corridor of doors, she heard the whisper of footsteps only a second before he cornered her in the wood-paneled hallway. She twisted around to face him.
     “Going somewhere?” He moved a step toward her. Echo backed up, hitting the wall.
    Murphy stood inches away, his broad shoulders blocking her escape. Easily, too easy in fact, he placed his hands on the wall behind her, trapping her. She should have guessed his next move. What the hell kind of self-defense instructor was she anyway?
    “Cat got your tongue, sweetheart?” he drawled. His woodsy, outdoor scent slammed into her senses.
    Two things happened at the same time: A wave of heat swept through her and she jerked her gaze to his burning stare. Sweetheart? Did he and her sister...?
    “Don’t get any ideas, Echo.”
    She sucked in a sharp breath. How did he know?
    “Yeah, that’s right. I know.” His silky voice, low and husky, made her toes curl in her boots. “I can spot you a mile away, beautiful— in the dark, in a crowd, in a damn war zone.”
    Beautiful? Why did that tug at the fringes of her thoughts? Had he called her that before? God, she wished she could remember.
    Shifting, he placed one of his hands on her throat. The light touch felt like electric currents skittering over her skin. His swift intake of breath gave him away. He’d felt it, too. With his thumb, he traced the line of her neck, moving along her jaw, and then to her bottom lip.
    Everything in her tingled. She should stop him. But she didn’t want to. Then another idea, a very dangerous idea, flittered to life. Sticking out her tongue slightly, she licked his flesh.
    He groaned. A waft of the beer he’d had drifted to her. On him it would most likely taste much better. Addictive even.
    “Let’s get outta here,” she whispered, still warring with herself over what she had to do.
    “My place?”
    “Your cabin. It’s private.” And exactly where she needed him to be in another hour.
    If she’d drawn a target on his back, it would not have been more glaringly obvious; she’d just set him up.

 
     
     

Chapter 2
     
     
    Murphy’s mind whirled with thoughts, some beating more so with each pulse as he settled behind the steering wheel of his old truck with her beside him on the bench seat. Why had she come to the bar disguised as her twin? Why did she need his help? Most of all, why the hell now, after two years of amnesia, did she come on to him?
    The engine purred as he headed out of town and to his mountain cabin tucked away in the hills. Private? His body ached with need. Until tonight, he’d kept it carefully under wraps.
    The farther away from the bar they drove, the more tension filled the air.
    “Second thoughts?” he murmured, sliding a glance her way. He made out her rigid shape in the dark.
    “Nope,” she said, her voice tight and small.
    “Liar.” He called her out and eased to the side of the dirt road. His hand was on