Reckless Hours: a Romantic Suspense novel (Heroes of Providence Book 3) Read Online Free PDF

lifted into a smile. “Then I’m your man. I’ve spent the last six months on the force in Providence.”
    “Just six months?”
    “No, actually, I spent two years on the police force right out of college. I spent twelve years in the United States Marine Corps, until a little less than a year ago. It felt right to go back to the force after that.”
    Why do I get the feeling I should run ? “A Marine, huh?”
    He smirked. “I assure you, you’re safe with me.”
    “So you say.”
    Tammie started across the parking lot toward the road in silence.
    So, the crazy man was really a cop from the streets of Providence. And a Marine, to boot. Go figure. Well, there was safety in numbers, and if the crazy guy tried anything, she’d be in a diner full of people. Her chances were certainly better there than out here on the street.
    Tamm ie glanced at him a few times out of the corner of her eye. He had to be more than ten years older than her twenty-seven years. Now that she had a little bit of distance, she could see that he was much taller than her, probably over six foot two. His demeanor had changed considerably. The angry man she’d seen in the middle of the road now seemed to have the manners of a gentleman. He put a protective hand out when, in her fatigue, she tried to step too quickly into the road and didn’t see the oncoming traffic, and then he opened the door to the diner for her. Her father had always said that you could tell the character of a man by how he treated a woman. A man who cared about the little things, would also work on the big things.
    “You’re dead on your feet, lady,” he said.
    He didn’t have to tell her that. She felt like roadkill, and probably looked like it, too.
    “Why don’t you have a seat while we wait for the coffee?”
    The man pulled out a chair from a table that still had wet streaks on it from being washed. He motioned to the waitress, asking for his usual, plus an extra coffee. The waitress gave him a quick smile, as if he were a regular.
    While she waited, Tammie rubbed her burning eyes. Fatigue was winning over her.
    “You look like you haven’t slept in days. Why are you so exhausted?” the man asked, lacing his fingers together.
    “I don’t sleep very well on planes, and I pulled an all-nighter from the West Coast.”
    He lifted an eyebrow. ‘West? What part?”
    “Oregon.”
    He nodded as the waitress set their coffees on the table with a small stainless steel pitcher of cream and a toasted bagel that smelled wonderful. Her stomach grumbled again. “I don’t even know your name,” she said.
    “Dylan Montgomery.”
    He slathered the bagel with cream cheese and placed half of it in front of her on a napkin.
    Glancing down at the bagel, she said, “You’re trying to butter me up with food, Dylan.”
    “Is it working?”
    She smirked. “Could be. I have a soft spot for bagels and cream cheese. The question is why you’re doing it.”
    His face showed genuine remorse. “I scared you back there. That was inexcusable and I’m sorry. I know better than to approach a woman like a Neanderthal, especially in anger. It was wrong of me.”
    “Why did you?”
    He took a bite of his food and swallowed, seemingly weighing his words. “I’m a little tired myself. Not that that’s an excuse for my behavior, just an explanation. You’re the last person I know who had any contact with my brother, Serena, and I’ve been trying to see—”
    “Serena?” She frowned. “Who’s Serena?”
    With the coffee cup at his lips, he said, “Serena Davco. That is your name, isn’t it?”
    “My name is Tammie Gardner.”
    Dylan paused a second, mid-bite, and then swallowed. ‘Tammie Gardner.”
    He didn’t seem convinced, and she didn’t care.
    “From Oregon?”
    “I grew up in Winchester.”
    He motioned toward the uneaten bagel in front of her. “You should eat.”
    As she played with the crisp corner of the toasted bagel, Dylan wiped his mouth with a napkin and