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up, if you
need to take off.”
    Holly turned to see Heather
standing in the doorway with her arms folded over her chest.
Obviously, she recognized Colin—probably because Holly had
mentioned him a time or ten during the past several
months.
    Heather disappeared into the
back room and emerged with Holly’s purse and coat.
    “ Thanks.” Holly took her
things and there was an awkward moment as Colin helped her into her
coat. He held the door for her and they stepped out into the bitter
chill.
    “ So.” Holly looked up and
down the street. It was only five, but already getting dark. She
shoved her hands in her pockets. “You were just… in
town?”
    “ Not really.” He set a brisk
pace beside her as they headed for the corner. Did he want to go to
a bar? A restaurant? She didn’t care—she was just happy to see him.
He’d been in contact since the day of Sheriff Slater’s arrest, but
it had all been very businesslike.
    This felt
different.
    “ So, you weren’t really in
town, you just…?” She looked up at him expectantly.
    “ I came to see you.” He
stopped walking, and warmth flooded her as he gazed down at her
with those dark brown eyes. “I wanted to give you
something.”
    He took her hand and folded
something into it. She looked down at her palm.
    “ A bullet?”
    “ The shell casing from the
bullet that missed you. Well, one of them, anyway.”
    She looked up at him,
puzzled.
    “ The sheriff took a plea.
He’s going to testify against Lopez in exchange for a lighter
sentence. Slater isn’t going to trial, so you won’t be asked to
testify.” He stepped closer and the look in his eyes made her heart
thump faster. “You’re no longer an official part of my case. It’s
not even mine anymore. I’ve been re-assigned.”
    “ So, you came here
to—”
    He leaned down and kissed
her. She felt a jolt of heat as his fingers combed into her hair
and she tasted his mouth for the first time. He was hot and strong
and—amazingly— as hungry for the kiss as she was. He had been
waiting, too. She could tell by the way he pulled her against him
and didn’t hold back. Holly didn’t, either. She melted right
against him and held on tight. He smelled even better than she
remembered and an entire winter’s worth of longing crackled to life
inside her. He’d come all the way here. For her. And the idea of that was almost
as intoxicating as his kiss.
    He pulled back and gazed
down at her. “I’ve wanted to do that for months.”
    She smiled. “You
have?”
    “ Ever since I watched you
stand in the middle of that road and take aim at that tire. It was
an amazing shot.”He took her hand. “You’re an amazing woman, you
know that?”
    Her smile turned into a
grin.
    “ So, if you’re not busy
tonight—”
    “ I am.” She stood on tiptoes
and kissed him. “I’m busy with you.”
     
    Keep reading for a sneak
peek of EXPOSED, Laura Griffin’s newest novel in
her  New York Times  bestselling Tracers series.

 
    From EXPOSED
    By Laura Griffin
    Maddie Callahan’s newest
clients seemed to have everything—youth, looks, money—which was
precisely why she doubted their marriage would work. But she kept
her opinions to herself as she snapped what she hoped was the final
shot of the day.
    “ That should do it for the
church backdrop. So, we’re all set?”
    “ What about the footbridge?”
The bride-to-be smiled up at her fiancé. “I can post it on the blog
with our engagement story.”
    “ Whatever you want,
babe.”
    Maddie stifled an eye roll
and turned to check out the park. It wasn’t overly crowded—just a
few people walking dogs—but their light was fading.
    “ I know it’s getting late.”
Hannah held her hands together like a prayer and looked at Maddie.
“But could we get something real quick?”
    “ We can if we hurry,” Maddie
said, collapsing her tripod and looping her camera strap around her
neck. She waited for a break in traffic and led Hannah and Devon
across Main