by Diana Palmer
Part of Long, Tall Texans, book 30
First published 2007
Colby Lane thought his black ops days were behind him. The former CIA operative turned his back on mercenary work to become assistant security chief at Ritter Oil Corporation. But his carefully constructed new life crumbles when a drug trafficking operation pulls him back into danger. The case becomes personal when his ex-wife Sarina Carrington appears. Colby walked away from their marriage after just one day, leaving Sarina with wounds that never healed. Now she has a six-year-old daughter with dark eyes and no father in sight. As Colby works to bring down the drug trafficker, he must confront the possibility that Sarina knows more than she admits. The little girl's parentage becomes a haunting question that forces Colby to face the consequences of his past choices. In classic Diana Palmer fashion, this Long, Tall Texan must decide whether he can stop running from love and responsibility long enough to claim the family he never knew he wanted.
Genres: romance, suspense, mystery, crime, action, contemporary-romance
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, second-chance-romance
Setting: Ritter Oil Corporation
Period: present-day
352 pages · Mass Market Paperback · HQN Books
Content warnings: drug-use, violence