Legally Tender. Michele Dunaway

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      ACKNOWLEDGMENT

      All authors try to be as accurate as possible; nevertheless, in order to tell a story, fictional liberties are often taken. I’m certainly no exception in this regard. However, Title VII is real, and violations of this civil rights law are illegal in the United States, where workers have the right to a harassment- and discrimination-free workplace. For more information, please visit www.eeoc.gov, or call 1-800-669-4000.

      A special thank-you goes to Dwayne Swacker, Spanish teacher at Francis Howell High School, for his language expertise. Any errors in his work are mine.

      Dear Reader,

      There is no such thing as a normal life. But that’s not about to stop Christina Jones from searching for it. She’s not interested in the sexy volunteer firefighter who saves the day at her daughter’s elementary school, especially once she learns he’s the man whose day job involves the law firm where she’s just taken on a senior partnership. And Christina doesn’t need another “prince”—she’s already had that experience! As for Bruce Lancaster, firefighter/whiz lawyer, he’s about to discover that love comes in unexpected packages, and that to rescue his own heart, he may need to go above and beyond the call of duty.

      For my tenth book, I wanted to write about those firefighters who lay their hearts and lives on the line every day, especially the ones who volunteer for the job and serve rural communities like mine. Setting the story close to my cousins’ home gave me an excuse to visit again.

      I hope you enjoy reading about Christina and Bruce as much as I did writing them. They are very close to my heart. As always, feel free to e-mail me at [email protected], and be sure to look for Olivia Jacobsen’s story later this year. You’ll remember her as Shane’s sister from About Last Night….

      Enjoy the romance!

      Michele Dunaway

      Legally Tender

      Michele Dunaway

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

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      For the McMenamy family, who welcomed me as their own, especially John Michael and Lucy Kate. I am very proud of both of you and what you have done with your lives.

      And to the staff at Francis Howell High School. Thanks for letting me work with such great people.

      Books by Michele Dunaway

      HARLEQUIN AMERICAN ROMANCE

      848—A LITTLE OFFICE ROMANCE

      900—TAMING THE TABLOID HEIRESS

      921—THE SIMPLY SCANDALOUS PRINCESS

      931—CATCHING THE CORPORATE PLAYBOY

      963—SWEEPING THE BRIDE AWAY

      988—THE PLAYBOY’S PROTÉGÉE

      1008—ABOUT LAST NIGHT…

      1044—UNWRAPPING MR. WRIGHT

      1056—EMERGENCY ENGAGEMENT

      Contents

       Chapter One

       Chapter Two

       Chapter Three

       Chapter Four

       Chapter Five

       Chapter Six

       Chapter Seven

       Chapter Eight

       Chapter Nine

       Chapter Ten

       Chapter Eleven

       Chapter Twelve

       Chapter Thirteen

      Chapter One

      She had never felt so incompetent in her life. It was her fault the thick gray smoke billowed, the fire alarms blared and the fire trucks honked obnoxiously in the distance.

      This time it wasn’t because she’d burned the Thanks-giving turkey. No. This time she’d ruined Halloween.

      Her eyes watered as the acrid smoke traveled from the large gym into the elementary-school cafeteria. She could almost hear her ex-husband’s condescending voice over the clanging fire-alarm bells: “Christina Sanchez Jones, when will you learn to do something right?” And yet Christina had graduated with honors from prestigious Harvard Law School.

      “Mama? Are you crying?” a tiny voice asked as the harsh bells finally ceased.

      Christina blinked and glanced down at her eight-year-old daughter. Bella sported black cat whiskers. A beaded black headband complete with furry black-and-pink cat ears held her dark-blond hair away from her face. “We won’t have to cancel the Halloween party, will we, Mama? There wasn’t a fire. Only fake smoke.”

      “No,” Christina said, wiping the back of her left hand across her eyes. Through the cafeteria windows, Christina could see that a fire truck had pulled into the parking lot. “We are not canceling. We still have bobbing for apples and a craft left to do. We just won’t have the haunted house.”

      “That’s okay! I don’t care!” Bella shouted. She turned back to the other second-grade members of her Brownie troop. Like Bella, they were dressed in Halloween costumes. “The party’s still on!” she whooped.

      “Why don’t you all go eat your snacks,” Christina suggested as a group of firemen raced through the cafeteria into the gym. Their heavy boots thudded on the freshly buffed floor. “Mrs. Sims,” Christina called, “let’s do snack now. Does that sound good?”

      “Absolutely,” Mrs. Sims replied. Darla Sims was an unofficial troop leader, and within seconds, she had all the girls organized at a cafeteria table, eating pumpkin-shaped cookies and drinking witches’ brew—a concoction of orange juice, lime sherbet and white soda pop.

      Christina