Table Of ContentWhen had Whitney MacNair ever done what he’d expected of
her?
A smile blossomed on Whitney’s lips. “I’ll help you.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“No!” Vincent’s breath seeped out on a weary sigh. She looked so vulnerable
and beautiful. So young and full of hope. He didn’t want that look changed by
the world he lived in.
Completely ignoring his decision, Whitney turned to retrace their steps back up
the mountain. “We lost them back there. That’s where we should start.”
“MacNair, get your rear back down here.” That cute, curvy little rear.
She continued to climb. “You need my help.”
Vincent clenched his jaw. Whitney was a danger to herself, completely oblivious
to just how dangerous and desperate a terrorist on the run could be. It was up to
Vincent to save her from herself.
But who would save him from her?
S A H
ECRET GENT EIRESS
J M
ULIE ILLER
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Julie Miller attributes her passion for writing romance to all those fairy tales she
read growing up, and to shyness. Encouragement from her family to write down
all those feelings she couldn’t express became a love for the written word. She
gets continued support from her fellow members of the Prairieland Romance
Writers, where she serves as the resident “grammar goddess.” This award-
winning author and teacher has published several paranormal romances. Inspired
by the likes of Agatha Christie and Encyclopedia Brown, Ms. Miller believes the
only thing better than a good mystery is a good romance.
Born and raised in Missouri, she now lives in Nebraska with her husband, son
and smiling guard dog, Maxie. Write to Julie at P.O. Box 5162, Grand Island,
NE 68802-5162.
Books by Julie Miller
HARLEQUIN INTRIGUE
*
588—ONE GOOD MAN
*
619—SUDDEN ENGAGEMENT
642—SECRET AGENT HEIRESS
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Whitney MacNair—Touched by scandal, shunned by her powerful political
family. Does this garrulous golden girl have what it takes to help Montana
Confidential through its darkest hour?
Vincent Romeo—NSA agent with one mission—keep Whitney safe. Does this
dark, brooding man of secrets hold the answer to her salvation?
Dimitri Chilton—The leader of the Black Order is alone and on the run.
Senator Ross Weston—He’s facing the biggest contest of his political career.
Margery Weston—How far will she go to support her husband?
Warren Burke—Weston’s campaign manager. How many dirty little secrets can
one man hide?
Alysia Two Crows—More than just a maid?
Brian MacNair—Whitney’s big brother has always taken care of her.
Daniel Austin—Will he have to choose between his family and Montana
Confidential?
Gerald MacNair Sr.—He has the power to make or break a campaign for the
presidency. But would he help his only daughter…?
I would like to thank my critique partner, Sherry A. Siwinski, for sharing her
expertise on horses and ranch life with me.
This book is for her horse, Silver, a cantankerous old character who lives with
pain every day. And it is for all the brave and loyal animals who touch our lives.
May they all live with peace and kindness.
Contents
Prologue
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
Prologue
“Jewel?” Whitney MacNair’s bay Appaloosa danced beneath her on the rocky
path. A sure sign of trouble. “Your grandpa did say the rattlesnakes would be in
hibernation now, didn’t he?”
She glanced up the steep rock wall to the autumn golds and greens of aspen
and lodgepole pine trees growing on the plateau above her. Sometimes a coyote
would come out of the woods and follow along, just to check the new scents of
horses and riders in his domain. The deceptive mix of light and shadow in the
trees played tricks on her vision. Maybe something moved up there. And maybe
she’d better keep her focus on the narrowing path.
The twelve-year-old girl on the sorrel gelding ahead of her turned in her
saddle and shoved her hat back on her honey-blond hair. “It’s too cold in
October, Whit. Gramps said that if there are any snakes left, they won’t come
out to heat themselves on the rocks until this afternoon.”
Whitney tugged at the neckline of her frost-blue cashmere sweater. It was
warm enough by her standards. She’d already shed the matching wool jacket and
tied it to the back of her bulky western saddle. She’d endured three months in
this godforsaken wilderness, and she still couldn’t get used to the rapid
fluctuations in temperature.
She didn’t really mind it so much today, though, she thought, letting a
satisfied smile curve her lips. Sure, the nearest thing that passed for a town was a
good fifty miles away in Livingston. And it was another hundred more beyond
that to reach anything she’d classify as civilization. But her boss, Daniel Austin,
had given her the sweetest compliment earlier today.
Nice job, Whit, he’d said.
It wasn’t so much the words, but the fact that he’d recognized her
contribution—however small—to the smooth running of Montana Confidential,
a covert branch of the federal Department of Public Safety. Under Daniel’s
direction, they’d set up a command center, beneath the guise of a working ranch,
to handle the threat of terrorists sneaking into the United States across the
unpopulated Montana–Canadian border.
The Black Order, as the terrorists called themselves, had attempted to
destroy a research facility, sabotage a public water system, even kill the
governor of Montana, trying to get a foothold of control in the U.S. But Montana
