Laura Lee Guhrke

You’ve been telling me you can see the future, is that right?” Mick asked in a low, tight voice.

“Yes.”

He pulled the curtains closed at the carriage window, and Sophie’s heart began to pound hard against her breast.
What is he doing?
she thought wildly.

He moved even closer. His hip touched hers, and she jumped. She started to move away, but his arm came up around her shoulders to prevent it. He leaned closer still, until his lips brushed her ear. “You still insist you can read people’s thoughts?”

“Sometimes,” she whispered. “I said sometimes.”

He turned her toward him and tilted her head back. “Can you read my thoughts right now?” he murmured, his lips brushing against hers as he spoke.

“No.”

“Thank God,” he muttered, and kissed her.

PRAISE FOR LAURA LEE GUHRKE

THE CHARADE

“Guhrke’s cast of engaging characters, the well-researched historical background, and a fast-paced plot provide a perfect context for the clever repartee and romantic tension between Katie and Ethan.”

—Publishers Weekly

“Informative, thrilling, and spectacular.”

—Rendezvous

“An outstanding Revolutionary-era romance. The real historical personages and the colorful narrative truly bring this tumultuous time to life and will garner Ms. Guhrke a satisfied readership.”

—Romantic Times

“Fans of Revolutionary War romances will be left breathless by Laura Lee Guhrke’s fabulous tale. The exhilarating story line provides an incredible glimpse at Boston on the eve of the fighting. . . . Ms. Guhrke scores big-time with a novel that deserves a large audience. . . .”

—Affaire de Coeur

“Exciting . . . Laura Lee Guhrke triumphantly makes 1775 Boston seem vividly bustling with life and energy.”

—Under the Covers

BREATHLESS

“Breathless
is one of those books that you will want to read more than once.”

—CompuServe Romance Reviews

“Breathless
is a captivating, wonderful read. . . . One of Laura Lee Guhrke’s greatest strengths, aside from her excellent characterizations, is allowing the hero and heroine ample time for a true, deep love to develop. . . . The love scenes will also take your breath away.
Breathless
has ‘keeper’ written all over it!”

—Bookbug

“Readers who enjoy strongly written books about small towns will relish
Breathless
. The mystery adds an extra element of excitement.”

—All About Romance

“This is a particularly well-plotted story. All the loose ends that might dangle in less-well-written books are tied. . . . The character development is excellent. The characters, main and secondary, are multidimensional and believable. The dialogue is sharp and engaging and frequently funny. . . . Readers will fall in love with (Daniel and Lily) as they fall for each other.”

—The Romance Reader

Books by Laura Lee Guhrke

Breathless
The Charade
Not So Innocent

Published by POCKET BOOKS

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

An
Original
Publication of POCKET BOOKS

Copyright © 2002 by Laura Lee Guhrke

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address Pocket Books, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020

ISBN: 1-416-59829-4
ISBN: 978-1-416-59829-9
eISBN-13: 978-1-451-63469-3

First Sonnet Books printing December 2002

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

SONNET BOOKS and colophon are trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

For information regarding special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-800-456-6798 or [email protected]

Front cover illustration by Gregg Gulbronson

Printed in the U.S.A.

For Kristen,
who always asks me the
tough questions
.

Acknowledgments
 

I would like to say a very special thank you to two people who helped me with the research for this book: Paul Dew, Public Enquiries, New Scotland Yard, who answered all my questions, even, the stupid ones; and Ray Seal of the Metropolitan Police Historic Store for the really cool photographs. My heartfelt gratitude to both of you.

Not So Innocent

One
 

When he awoke on the morning of May 28, Mick Dunbar was not a happy man. Today was his birthday, his
thirty-sixth
birthday, and he had to face the bitter fact that he wasn’t so young anymore.

On this particular morning, he even felt old. His shoulder ached from that bullet wound ten years back, he seemed to have more gray in his dark hair than he’d had the night before, and shaving off his mustache didn’t make him look any younger. Mick knew it was going to be a long day.

The moment he arrived at Scotland Yard, he saw that the birthday jokes had already begun. His office was empty. His desk, his chairs, his case files were gone. Even the commendations he’d received in his career were no longer hanging on the wall.

“Thacker!” he shouted, watching as his sergeant
came running from the large room that served as the main office of the Criminal Investigation Department, “What happened here?”

The suspicious twitch of the sergeant’s huge red mustache told Mick that Thacker was in on the joke, “Chief Inspector DeWitt decided today was the perfect day to repaint your office.”

“I’ll bet he did,” Mick muttered. Even his own boss was not above a bit of chicanery. “So where’d he put me? The morgue?”

“No, sir. You’re on the ground floor. I’ll show you.”