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      Anne and Karyn share a bond that I can write only because of my relationship with my sister. Thank you, Beth, for showing me what love, understanding and friendship are all about. Love ya!

      I want to thank Lynn Raye Harris and her husband, Mike, who assisted me with my military information. Any mistakes are solely my own.

       1

      SOMEONE WAS WATCHING HER. Again.

      The sensation was … familiar. Annemarie Sobel Prescott might not have experienced it for a while but the muscles at the back of her neck still bunched in memory.

      This was different though. The awareness of his gaze didn’t make her feel dirty and exposed. The man staring at her from across the crowded ballroom didn’t have dollar signs in his eyes and an intrusive camera lens trained on her every sin. Nope, Blake Mitchell had lust and appreciation in his eyes.

      She liked that infinitely better.

      From the moment she’d grown breasts the paparazzi had been her constant companion. Other kids inherited red hair or a talent for singing. She’d inherited the world’s interest in every aspect of her life. Her entire misspent youth had been caught on camera. Sex, drugs and mischief had been her hobbies—and she’d been damn good at all three. Headlines had been her specialty.

      Hotel Heiress Caught in Torrid Affair with Married Hollywood Heartthrob. At least until she’d walked away from it all.

      She glanced across the room at him again. She couldn’t help herself, the weight of his eyes on her was too much to ignore. He was in a dark corner, one shoulder tight against the wall, running his fingers languidly up and down the side of a tumbler full of ice and amber liquid. She could see the beads of condensation as he absently spread them against the glass.

      An image of those fingers stroking her skin instead flashed through her mind. Her body melted, a slow burning heat settling into the pit of her belly.

      He pushed away from the wall, taking two steps toward her. The coward in her wanted to bolt. The intensity she could see churning in his eyes scared and thrilled her at the same time.

      He took a step forward; she took a step back, right into yards of silk.

      “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”

      Her best friend, Karyn Mitchell … no, it was Karyn Faulkner now, grabbed her around the waist and crushed her against the flowing silk of her white wedding gown.

      Anne hugged her friend back, letting her eyes stray for just a second to gauge Blake’s progress. He’d stopped, probably brought up quick at the sight of his sister giving her a bear hug.

      A sigh of relief—and regret—escaped silently through her lips before she returned her focus to her friend. “You’re welcome, but I didn’t do anything.”

      Pulling back, Karyn eyed her. “Don’t you lie to me. I know just what it cost you to get this place.”

      Anne fought to keep a twist of distaste from forming on her lips. “So I called in a favor.” At least it hadn’t required that she actually speak to her mother, although she was certain the senior manager of the Darby, Mississippi, Prescott Hotel had wasted no time in telling the CEO about the last-minute accommodation. Anne probably should have warned the woman that the favor wouldn’t gain her any brownie points with her mother… . But then they might not have gotten the room.

      While she, Karyn and Chris lived in Birmingham, the rest of Karyn’s family was still in Mississippi. And Karyn had her heart set on getting married in her hometown of Darby, surrounded by family. Unfortunately, no venues had been available.

      Anne would do anything if it meant making Karyn happy, even call on the family name she’d abandoned.

      Chris slipped up beside them, curling his hand around Karyn’s waist. It was an absent gesture of familiarity that made envy bloom in the center of Anne’s chest.

      “Enjoy yourself! Dance. Drink. Be merry. Chris’s cousin seems nice.” Karyn’s eyebrows waggled up and down and a smile lit her face. She was so different now that she’d found Chris, more open.

      “Actually, I suggest you stay away from Adam.” Chris mimed a glass to his lips and shook his head before leaning down to whisper something in Karyn’s ear. She looked up at her new husband with love and devotion and placed a kiss to the underside of his jaw.

      Anne watched them walk away. Chris pulled Karyn into his arms. They could have been alone in the room crowded with laughing, chattering people. They only had eyes for each other.

      Loneliness mixed with the envy.

      She was happy for her friend. Honestly, she was. But at the same time she recognized things in her world would change. Had already changed.

      Once again, she was alone. She glanced away from the lovebirds, feeling as if she was invading their privacy. Her eyes unerringly found their way back to Blake.

      He moved from the dark shadows