Confessions

A Total-E-Bound Publication

www.total-e-bound.com

Confessions

ISBN #978-0-85715-818-5

©Copyright Carol Lynne 2011

Cover Art by April Martinez ©Copyright November 2011

Edited by Claire Siemaszkiewicz

Total-E-Bound Publishing

This is a work of fiction. Al characters, places and

events are from the author’s imagination and should not be

confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or

dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

Al rights reserved. No part of this publication may be

reproduced in any material form, whether by printing,

photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written

permission of the publisher, Total-E-Bound Publishing.

Applications should be addressed in the first instance,

in writing, to Total-E-Bound Publishing. Unauthorised or

restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in

civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

The author and il ustrator have asserted their respective

rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988

(as amended) to be identified as the author of this book

and il ustrator of the artwork.

Published in 2011 by Total-E-Bound Publishing, Think

Tank, Ruston Way, Lincoln, LN6 7FL, United Kingdom.

Warning: This book contains sexual y explicit content

which is only suitable for mature readers. This story has a

heat rating of Total-e-sizzling and a sexometer of 2.

Cattle Valley

CONFESSIONS

Carol Lynne

Book twenty five in the Cattle Valley Series

Government contracted mercenary, James ‘Priest’ Evans,

slides back into town after a mission gone very wrong.

Haunted by his latest kil , Priest’s job is weighing heavily on

his mind for the first time in memory. In Cattle Val ey to heal

and re-evaluate his life, Priest didn’t expect love but that’s

exactly where’s he’s headed.

After a devastating and very public breakup, Luke

Hatcher has given up on love. He’s more than happy to

enjoy hot and heavy sex, but that’s as far as he’s wil ing to

go. When he runs into Priest, Luke believes their mutual

lack of trust is perfect for a short-term holiday affair.

Their steamy affair takes an unexpected turn when

Priest makes a bedroom confession that wil forever

change the way he views life and love. Wil the confession

bring them closer together, or wil it send Luke packing?

I’d like to take a moment to thank al the authors,

readers and publishers who attended the GayRomLit

Retreat in New Orleans. I’ve been to quite a few romance

conferences, and never have I felt more at peace than I did

in New Orleans. Not once did I have to justify my love for

this genre. The hours upon hours of work required to put the

Retreat together was incredibly worth it. I left New Orleans

with a ful tank, something I’d been struggling with the last

year or so. Bless you al who attended the weekend, and

thank you for giving me back my belief that most people are

inherently good.

Trademarks Acknowledgement

The author acknowledges the trademarked status and

trademark owners of the fol owing wordmarks mentioned in

this work of fiction:

Velcro: Velcro Industries

Jeep: Chrysler Group LLC

Chevy: General Motors

Smith & Wesson: Smith and Wesson Corp.

Google: Google, Inc.

Harley Davidson: H-D Michigan

The Game of Life: Hasbro, Inc.

Walmart Supercenter: Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Field and Stream: Field & Stream Licences Company

Chrysler 3000: Chrysler Group LLC

Luke Hatcher’s hands shook as he tightened the

laces on his running shoes. When he tied the bow, his gaze

went to the bloody uniform shirt wadded into a bal beside

the front door. He’d worked hundreds of car accidents but

none of them had been as horrific as the one hours earlier.

He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands in the

hope that he could erase the images. When that didn’t

work, Luke did what he’d always done when thoughts of

spil ed blood fil ed his mind.

Throwing open the front door, Luke took off at a brisk

pace. Despite the predawn hour and having gone without

sleep after a long shift, he yearned for the mental release

only running provided. His normal stretching routine didn’t

seem as important as the heart-pounding adrenaline he’d

learned to use to replace the memories.

Clad only in a thin pair of jogging shorts, the cold

October night felt good against Luke’s bare skin as his feet

hit the pavement. As he started his usual circuit around the

streets of Cattle Val ey, the mutilated body of the teenage

girl resurfaced in the forefront of his mind.

It didn’t take a psychiatrist to tel him why the girl’s

death had affected him more than al the others he’d

witnessed in his line of work. Suddenly the girl’s face

morphed into the image of his mother. Luke shook his

head, trying to rid himself of the disturbing memory before

he lost what little food he’d eaten in the last twenty-four

hours.

Although the temperature was below freezing, sweat

poured from Luke’s head and chest as he continued his

five-point-six mile circuit around the older part of Cattle

Val ey. He preferred to bypass the new subdivisions that

had begun to pop up on the outskirts. Although the homes

were each unique and wel -constructed, they just didn’t hold

the appeal the matured-treed neighbourhoods of the older

section of town.

There was one house in particular that always

welcomed him. As he neared the home at the end of the

dark lane, Luke slowed to a stop like he did most days. He

bent over and rested his hands on his knees as he tried to

control his laboured breathing.

Luke stared at the structure, which was in a state of

disrepair. The pil ars on the front corners of the porch made

the sagging roof appear to frown. If it was possible for a

house to have a soul, he had no doubt the home at 226

Cherry Street would have been crying.

Luke had gone to City Hal to enquire as to who now

owned the house, but received little information in return.

The abandoned home belonged to no one Luke had ever

heard of. The only information he got out of Carol was that

the original owner was in a nursing home in Tulsa,

Oklahoma and the taxes were paid yearly in cash by her

estate. It was a pity the home had been al owed to fal into

such disrepair.

It was hard for Luke to imagine he was looking at the

same house that his mom had kept spotless with a

profusion of colourful flowers decorating the front porch and

walk. Of course he could have an idealised version of what

it had once been, since before he’d been forced to move

after the death of his mother.

When the porch light next door turned on, Luke knew it

was time to go. He stretched his arms over his head before

heading back down the street the way he’d come. The daily

period of rest in front of the abandoned house always

served to settle Luke’s demons.

“Better than therapy,” Luke said as he continued down

the street at a brisk pace.

By the time he reached the al ey behind the shops

downtown, the fal sky was starting to brighten. Luke tilted

his head back to smel the aromatic scent of cinnamon rol s

that always permeated the morning air. God bless Kyle and

his need to bake before the sun rose.

Lost in the smel s wafting from the bakery, Luke

wasn’t paying attention to the road in front of him. When his

right foot landed in an unexpected hole in the gravel path,

Luke’s knee hyper-extended, pitching him forward. He fel

to the ground with a howl of pain as the sharp rocks dug

into his hands and forearms. “Fuck!”

Luke rol ed onto his back for a few moments before

sitting up. One look at his knee had Luke shaking his head.

The swel ing had already begun. He supported the

underside of his knee and slowly attempted to straighten

his leg. It was painful, but he doubted he’d done serious