Sanders 01 - Silent Run (36 page)

Glancing across the room, he watched Jake and Sarah share their first dance on the back deck of the Woodlake Mountain Lodge. In the glow of candlelight and the backdrop of the purple-blue twilight sky, they looked exceedingly happy, as if the past year hadn't tested their love in every possible way. But they'd come through the bad times. From here on out, it would be nothing but smooth sailing -- at least Dylan hoped so. He smiled as Teresa brought Caitlyn to the dance floor. Jake's eighteen-month-old blond angel was the hit of the wedding, and as usual Caitlyn wanted to be part of the action. Jake swung his baby daughter into his arms, and the three of them danced together like the family they were.

Dylan tossed another shot down his throat, pushing back the ridiculous thought that he was jealous of their happiness. While he loved his brother, he did not yearn for marriage and a family of his own. Having grown up in a broken home, he didn't intend to repeat the experience. Although he hoped Jake and Sarah would make it, and that they would beat the odds of divorce.

A cool evening breeze blew through the open patio doors, drawing goose bumps down his arms. However, it wasn't the wind that put his nerves on edge; it was the woman who slid onto the bar stool next to his.

“Are you drinking to your brother's happiness or to the demise of yet another bachelor?” Catherine Hilliard asked.

He ordered another shot as he considered the woman next to him. Catherine had cleaned up pretty well since their first meeting. There were no paint spatters on her clothes today, and instead of bare feet, she had on a pair of very high heels. She wore a gorgeous, sexy black dress with a low-cut halter top that showed off her beautiful breasts. He loved the way the freckles danced across her chest. He had the sudden urge to see whether she had freckles all over her body.

He tugged on his tie, feeling tightness in his chest at the very bad ideas flooding through his brain. Catherine was an old friend of Sarah's and, as far as he was concerned, off-limits, not to mention the fact that she was a little on the crazy side. He was grateful for her help in getting Sarah and Jake back together, but he didn't intend to have any kind of personal relationship with her.

“Hello,” Catherine said pointedly. “You're staring."

“You're stunning,” he replied, unable to stop the words from crossing his lips.

She gave him a quick smile. “That's a good start to the conversation. The wedding was lovely, didn't you think? Jake and Sarah make a good match. I think they have a chance."

“A chance, huh? That's an enthusiastic endorsement,” he said dryly, hearing the same note of cynicism that echoed through his own head.

Catherine shrugged. “I haven't seen a lot of happy marriages in my time."

“Neither have I. So, how have you been? Painting a lot?"

“Every night. I even painted you."

He raised an eyebrow. “No kidding? Do I want to see it?"

Her smiled widened. “Maybe I'll show you sometime."

“I don't get down the coast much."

Catherine accepted a glass of champagne from the bartender. “I brought the painting with me. I wanted to work on it some more. I'm staying here at the lodge for a few days. The mountains are beautiful. The air is clear and fresh, and everywhere I look the view is dazzling. It's not the ocean, but the lake has a peacefulness about it, a depth and a secrecy that appeal to me."

Dylan didn't see the lake the way she did, but he had always enjoyed Tahoe. For years he and Jake had come here with friends or family members to escape the overbearing presence of their father, who luckily for them never left the city. Dylan wasn't surprised Jake had wanted to get married here. It was a good start to his new life, although Jake and Sarah wouldn't be staying in Tahoe long. They were taking a late-night flight to Hawaii, where they would spend the week with Caitlyn, as well as Teresa, who'd offered to babysit. Dylan thought having a baby and a babysitter along on a honeymoon would cramp his style, but neither Sarah nor Jake had wanted to be away from Caitlyn for even a day.

“What about you?” Catherine asked, interrupting his thoughts. “Are you staying past the weekend?"

“I leave in the morning."

“Are you sure?"

His gaze narrowed. “What does that mean?"

Her dark blue eyes grew mysterious. “Do you remember what I told you about the two women entering your life? It starts here."

“What starts here?” he began, and then quickly backtracked. “You know what? I don't want to know. I don't believe in your psychic visions. I'm sorry. That's just the way it is."

“I understand,” she said, raising her glass to her lips.

He didn't like the look in her eyes. He told himself to forget what she'd said. She was just trying to yank his chain.

Someone took the seat on the other side of him. A waft of familiar perfume made his head turn. The brunette gave him a big smile. Damn, he was in trouble.

Catherine leaned over and whispered in his ear, “Be careful, Dylan. She's one of them."

“Who's the other one?” he asked as she walked away. Catherine didn't reply. It didn't matter. He had a feeling he already knew the answer. But he was not going to let Catherine's words get him going. He'd just finished solving one mystery. He had no intention of starting another one.

The End

1. In Silent Run, Sarah wakes up in the hospital with no memories. She has to figure out who she is from clues that include her clothes, what's in her pocket, what she looks like, how the people around her treat her.

If you suddenly woke up with no memories, do you think you would be able to figure out your identity from the material clues in your life? What do you think would be the most important clue: How you're treated by others, or what you possess?

2. As Jake tries to help Sarah regain her memory, he begins to realize that he had no idea who she was, that he didn't ask questions, that they didn't fight, that their life was too perfect. He chose to accept the picture Sarah was portraying because he didn't want to dig deeper.
 
He liked the woman he had, so he pushed away any niggling doubts about her behavior.

Do you think this is common for most couples? Do we overlook what we don't want to see? Do we skip asking questions because we don't really want the answer?

3. Sarah chose to take Caitlyn and run from her husband, knowing that she was taking her child into danger. She had a good reason at the initial moment when she chose to run, because she had no one she could trust to keep Caitlyn safe. But what about later?

Was Sarah wrong to keep Caitlyn from her husband? Do you think she was acting selfishly? Or did Sarah's experience growing up without a mother justify her motivation for not wanting to give up her child?

4. Theresa keeps Caitlyn even though she realizes Sarah has amnesia. She made a promise to keep Caitlyn safe no matter what happened.

Do you think Theresa should have gone to the police after Sarah's accident? Or was she right to stay silent, protect Caitlyn, remain loyal to Sarah? How far should a friend go to keep a promise?

5. When Jake finally gets Caitlyn back, he can't imagine how he can spend one minute without her. Yet, Caitlyn needs her mother, too.
 
And despite everything, he loves Sarah, even though she has made some big mistakes. In the end, he takes Sarah back. He forgives her. And accepts her for who she is. And he realizes that he loves the woman she really is even more than the woman she was pretending to be.

Do you think Jake did the right thing? Would you have been able to forgive in the same situation?

I hope you all enjoyed SILENT RUN. If you would like to print out this Reader's Guide, please visit my
website
.

Sanders Brothers - Book Two

Excerpt @ Copyright 2011 - Barbara Freethy

All Rights Reserved

Prologue

Golden Gate Park, San Francisco

She was going to die. The terrifying thought made her stumble, her spiked heel catching in a crack in the pavement. She fell forward, breaking her fall with her hands. Tiny pebbles of cement burned into her palms and her knees. For a moment she was tempted to quit. She was so cold and so tired, but if she stopped now he'd catch her, and there would be no tomorrow, no second chance.

Forcing herself back to her feet, she pulled off her broken shoes and headed deeper into the park. The grass was wet beneath her feet, the midnight fingers of fog covering everything within reach with a damp mist. Her hair curled around her face as the wet spray mixed with the tears streaking down her cheeks.

She'd never been a crier, but this was too much. She'd never felt so alone or in such mortal danger.

Everywhere she turned, he followed. She couldn't seem to get away. How did he keep finding her?

Even now she could hear the footsteps behind her, the crack of twigs, the sound of a distant car. Was it him?

She probably should have stayed on the city streets, but she'd thought the tall trees and the thick bushes of the park would offer her protection, a place to hide. Now she realized how desolate the area was at night. There were no people, no businesses to run into. She was completely on her own.

She gasped and stopped abruptly as a shadowy figure came out of the undergrowth. Her heart thudded against her chest. The man walked toward her, one hand outstretched. His clothes were old and torn, and his face was covered with a heavy beard. He wore a baseball cap, and a backpack was slung over one shoulder. He was probably one of the homeless people who set up camp in the park at night. Or maybe not...

"Hey, baby, give me a kiss," he said in a drunken slur.

"Leave me alone." She put up a hand to ward him off, but he kept moving forward.

"I'm just being friendly. Come on now, sweetheart."

Turning, she ran as fast as she could in the other direction, hearing him call after her. She didn't know if he was following her or not, and she was too terrified to look, so she left the sidewalk and moved deeper into the park, looking for a little corner in which to hide. Her side was cramping and her feet were soaked. She desperately needed to find some sanctuary. Branches scraped her bare arms and face, but she kept going. It was so dark in the heavy brush that she could barely see a foot in front of her. Tall trees and fog had completely obliterated the moonlight.

Fortunately she had her hand out in front of her when she ran into a cement wall that rose several stories in the air. She must have hit the side of one of the park buildings. Pausing, she caught her breath and listened. She could hear nothing but her own ragged breathing. Maybe she was safe, at least for the moment.

Leaning back against the cold cement, she pondered her next move, but she didn't know what to do, how to escape. She was out of options.

How had she come to this? Running for her life and all alone? This was not how it was supposed to go. This was Dylan's fault. He'd put her in this situation, and dammit, where the hell was he?

But she couldn't count on him to rescue her. She had to find a way out on her own. She couldn't let things end like this. She'd fought for her life before, and she'd won. She would do it again.

Her heart stopped as a nearby branch snapped in two. A confident male whistle pierced the silent night. Whoever was coming didn't care if she heard him or not. The bushes in front of her slowly parted. Terror ran through her body. There was nowhere left to run.

Chapter One

Two days earlier - Lake Tahoe, Nevada

Dylan Sanders took a shot of Jack Daniels from the bartender, enjoying the burn as the liquor slid down his throat. After draining the glass, he immediately ordered another. He didn't like weddings and usually avoided them at all costs, but this one he hadn't been able to miss, because he was the best man. He was thankful that he'd finished his formal duties. He just had to get through the next hour before he could call it a night.

Glancing across the room, he watched his brother, Jake, and Jake's bride, Sarah, share their first dance on the back deck of the Woodlake Mountain Lodge. In the glow of candlelight and against the backdrop of the purple-blue twilight sky, they looked exceedingly happy, as if the past year hadn't tested their love in every possible way. But they'd come through the bad times. From here on out, it would be nothing but smooth sailing -- at least he hoped so. He smiled as one of Sarah's friends brought his niece, Caitlyn, to the dance floor. Jake's eighteen-month-old blond angel was the hit of the wedding, but as usual she wanted to be part of the action. Jake swung his baby daughter into his arms, and the three of them danced together like the family they were.

Dylan tossed another shot down his throat, pushing back the ridiculous thought that he was jealous of their happiness. While he loved his brother, he did not yearn for marriage and a family of his own. He'd grown up in a broken home, and he didn't intend to repeat the experience. Although he sincerely hoped Jake and Sarah would make it, that they would beat the odds of divorce and that they would never fall out of love the way his own parents had.

A cool evening breeze blew through the open patio doors, drawing goose bumps down his arms, but it wasn't the wind that had put his nerves on edge. It was the beautiful redhead who slid onto the bar stool next to him.

"Are you drinking to your brother's happiness or to the demise of yet another bachelor?" Catherine Hilliard asked.

Dylan set his glass on the bar. Catherine had cleaned up pretty well since their first meeting two months earlier, when she'd helped him find Sarah. There were no paint spatters on her clothes today, and she'd covered her bare feet in a pair of high heels. She wore a gorgeous, sexy black dress with a low-cut halter top that showed off her beautiful breasts. He loved the way the freckles danced across her chest. He had the sudden urge to see if she had freckles all over her body.