Yuletide Fugitive Threat. Sandra Robbins

reasoned with herself. He’d moved on. She’d seen him on TV just a few weeks ago, giving an interview with his brother and sister about the Knight Fugitive Recovery Agency, the family’s bounty hunter business. He’d looked good—great, actually. The interviewer had said their agency had the best reputation for bringing in bail jumpers of any group in the city. But would Lucas help her?

      The lights of an all-night diner off the highway caught her attention, and she exited and pulled to a stop near the front entrance. Only three other cars sat in the parking lot at 3:00 a.m. Evidently someone else had trouble sleeping at night.

      She had a few hours before she could go see Lucas, and she needed to use that time to decide how she was going to persuade him to help a woman whom he had once said he would hate until the day he died. This diner offered the perfect place for her to sit and ponder how in the world she was ever going to convince Lucas to track down Tony Chapman and return him to custody.

      She took a deep breath, stepped from the car and walked toward the diner’s entrance.

      * * *

      Lucas Knight woke to a pounding at his front door. He sat up in bed, glanced at the bedside clock and groaned: 6:00 a.m. His brother, Adam, had said he’d be by early to pick him up for the trip they were taking to Nashville, but he hadn’t thought he meant this early.

      Muttering to himself, Lucas climbed out of bed and jerked on his jeans and the sweatshirt he’d draped across the bedroom chair before going to bed last night. If Adam thought he was going to hurry him into going before he’d had his coffee and showered, he wasn’t as smart as he thought he was.

      The pounding increased, and he stormed across the living room floor and jerked the front door open. “Adam, what do you mean...”

      His words died in his throat, and all he could do was stare in surprise at Mia Fletcher standing in front of him. He shook his head. No, Mia Lockhart. That had become her name after she’d walked out on him for the man her daddy had picked for her.

      He grabbed the side of the door and hung on so that he didn’t collapse right in front of her. What was she doing standing on his porch at six o’clock in the morning?

      His gaze swept her, and he swallowed the tiny glimmer of pleasure at seeing her. She was just as beautiful as ever. Even though she wore no makeup and her long blond hair was pulled up in a practical ponytail, she had that fresh-scrubbed look he’d always liked. What he didn’t like was the hint of fear in her blue eyes. She stared at him apprehensively, as if to say she had no idea how he would react at her sudden appearance.

      He wouldn’t allow himself to be glad to see her. Couldn’t allow it. It had taken too long to get over her, and he wasn’t about to revisit those old memories and the scars they had left deep inside of him. He should slam the door in her face and forget she’d ever come here. He started to do that, but she spoke before he could.

      “Lucas, please, I need to talk to you.”

      His hand tightened on the door. “We have nothing to talk about, Mia.”

      She glanced over her shoulder, as if checking to see who might be behind her, and turned back to face him. Tears stood in her eyes. “I’m in trouble, Lucas, and I have no one to turn to. Just give me five minutes of your time. After that, if you won’t help me, I’ll go away and never bother you again. Five minutes. That’s all I’m asking.”

      She shivered and clutched her jacket tighter around her. For the first time he noticed the chill in the air. The temperature had to be in the thirties, and she looked as if she was chilled to the bone. Against his better judgment, he stepped aside and nodded.

      “All right. Five minutes. I’ll give you that.”

      She brushed past him, and the scent of the fruity shampoo she’d always used filled his nostrils. The memory of that smell had kept him awake many nights when he was still a navy SEAL, but he’d never thought he’d experience it firsthand again.

      He closed the door behind them and turned the thermostat up before ushering her into the living room. “Have a seat.”

      She sank down on the sofa and rubbed her hands together before she offered him a weak smile. “It feels good in here. I must have stood on your porch for fifteen minutes trying to get up my nerve to knock. It was colder than I thought.”

      He pressed his lips together and didn’t say anything, but his gaze drifted down to her hands, which she was still rubbing together. No sign of a wedding ring.

      She shivered again, and he refocused his thoughts. A good host would offer her a cup of coffee, but he was in no mood to make this any easier. The quicker he could get Mia out of here, the better off he’d be.

      He took a deep breath. “Five minutes, you said. So, what has brought you to my door so early in the morning?” He paused for a moment and frowned. “Wait a minute. I haven’t seen or heard from you in seven years. How did you know where I live? I bought this house after I got out of the navy. You’ve never been here before.”

      Her cheeks flushed even more. “I was going to come to your office, but I decided I couldn’t wait that long to see you. I had to leave home quickly in the middle of the night, and I’ve spent the last three hours in an all-night diner. I used my phone to look up your address online.”

      For the first time he noticed her red-streaked eyes and the dark circles underneath on her skin. “Have you been up all night?”

      She nodded.

      Lucas sat down in a chair facing the sofa and placed his hands on his knees. “Okay. I can see you’re upset about something. So tell me about it.”

      Mia rubbed her hand across her eyes and sighed. “I hardly know where to start.” After a moment she took a deep breath. “Did you know that Kyle was murdered?”

      Lucas exhaled a deep breath. “Yes. It’s been covered enough by the local media. ‘Kyle Lockhart, respected antiques authority and honored young leader in the local arts community, found brutally murdered in an apparent burglary of his office at Shackleford’s Imports,’ I believe is how the newscasters on TV stated it.” He regretted his mocking words when he saw her eyes fill again. He swallowed and spoke in a gentler tone. “I’m sorry, Mia. You have my condolences.”

      She looked up at him, and he recoiled from the anger that lined her face. “I don’t need your pity, Lucas. Not now. I need help to find his killer. That’s what I want you to do.”

      He shook his head and stood up. “The paper said the police had arrested somebody. If it’s true that they have enough evidence for a conviction, then the case is closed. The killer will be found guilty, and you can move on, living the life of a rich widow.”

      “Rich widow? Is that what you think of me?” she screamed as she jumped to her feet. “I would love to get on with my life, but, unfortunately, I can’t. Tony Chapman, who was arrested for killing Kyle, was able to make bail, after which he ran. As far as the authorities are concerned, he’s disappeared. But he hasn’t. He’s terrorizing me and making my life miserable.”

      Her outburst stunned Lucas, and he frowned. “What do you mean he’s terrorizing you?”

      She sank back to the couch and closed her eyes for a moment. “A few days after Tony jumped bail, I began getting phone calls from him demanding to know where Kyle had hidden it. I told him I had no idea what he was talking about, but he didn’t believe me. The phone calls have gotten worse, and tonight he came to my house and attacked me. I only got away because I had a canister of pepper spray on my key ring.”

      Lucas stared at Mia and tried to process what she’d just told him. “Mia, I don’t know what to say.”

      She scooted to the edge of the sofa and stared at him, her eyes pleading with him for help. “I need help, Lucas. I want to hire you to find him. He’s a fugitive, and you’re a bounty hunter. If you can bring him in, then maybe I can put this whole crazy ordeal behind me.”

      Work for her?