Killer Countdown. Amelia Autin

      

      A reporter helps a sexy senator evade a deadly assassin in this thrilling Man on a Mission tale

      TV reporter Carly Edwards has the scoop of a century! She’s discovered that Senator Shane Jones was diagnosed with a life-altering illness, but she can’t help but be drawn to his courage. So when Shane saves Carly’s life from a killer, she resolves to keep her story—and the irresistible politician—alive…

      A politician and a media personality are a recipe for romantic disaster. The last thing Shane wants is to endanger Carly. But how can he prevent her from getting close when the very air between them sizzles? As their lives are threatened, Shane realizes Carly’s the one woman he wants forever—if he can keep them both safe!

      Carly turned toward the closet as she was speaking, and that was when Shane saw the back of her dress.

      Or rather, what wasn’t there. And before he knew it, he’d spoken her name in a voice that couldn’t hide his desperate need.

      She froze for a second, then faced him. And the invitation in her eyes was unmistakable. “I’m not really hungry,” she whispered. “Except…” She caught her breath, then let it out, the faintest tremor running through her body. “For you, Shane,” she finished on a rush. “Except for you.”

      He closed his eyes, then opened them again. And suddenly Carly was in his arms, her lips locked onto his. A rushing sound filled his ears, and he realized it was his blood coursing through his veins as his heart pounded furiously. He let Carly go only long enough to fight out of his overcoat and jacket, dropping them unheeded on the floor. Then his arms closed around her again.

      Be sure to check out the previous volumes in the Man on a Mission miniseries!

      Man on a Mission: These heroes, working at home and overseas, will do anything for justice, honor…and love.

      * * *

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      Dear Reader,

      When I wrote Cody Walker’s Woman, I gave my heroine, Keira Jones, four brothers—all older, all former US Marines and all playing a role (good and bad) in shaping the woman she was.

      Then I wrote Alec’s Royal Assignment and Liam’s Witness Protection, the stories of two of Keira’s brothers. But even as I was writing Alec’s and Liam’s stories, in the back of my mind was Shane. The eldest. The toughest. The strongest influence on all his younger siblings.

      But Shane wasn’t easy to get to know—he eluded me for the longest time. It wasn’t until a personal family crisis that Shane became real to me, and I knew what could make a nearly invincible man vulnerable. Then I just had to write his story.

      After I understood Shane I realized I needed to find a tough-as-nails heroine to match him, but one with a tender, loving heart hidden beneath that tiger-shark exterior. Along came Carly Edwards, just in the nick of time. Carly wasn’t easy to get to know, either, because there’s nothing of Carly in me (I wish!). Once I accepted that, however, I suddenly knew who Carly was—a woman whose private pain once made the six-o’clock news…but never again.

      Shane and Carly fought the odds and won, and in doing so won my heart. Isn’t that what we all look for in a hero and heroine? Isn’t that why we read romance?

      I love hearing from my readers. Please email me at [email protected] and let me know what you think.

      Amelia Autin

      Killer Countdown

      Amelia Autin

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      Award-winning author AMELIA AUTIN is an inveterate reader who can’t bear to put a good book down…or part with it. She’s a longtime member of Romance Writers of America, and served three years as its treasurer. Amelia resides with her PhD engineer husband in quiet Vail, Arizona, where they can see the stars at night and have a “million-dollar view” of the Rincon Mountains from their backyard.

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      For the doctors, nurses, technicians, nursing assistants and everyone at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona, who exemplify what medicine can and should be for patients and their families. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. For my stepson, Chris Lam, who will soon be a doctor himself and is already a great diagnostician because he asks the right questions and listens to the answers. And for Vincent…always.

      Contents

       Cover

       Back Cover Text

       Introduction

       Dear Reader

       Title Page

       About the Author

       Dedication

      Prologue

      Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

       Chapter 5

       Chapter 6

       Chapter 7

       Chapter 8

       Chapter 9

       Chapter 10

       Chapter 11

       Chapter 12

       Chapter 13

Chapter 14

       Chapter 15

       Chapter 16

       Chapter 17

       Chapter 18

       Chapter 19

       Chapter 20

       Chapter