Chapter One

      The moment Fiona found the letter in the bottom of Chase’s sock drawer, she knew it was bad news. Fear squeezed the breath from her as her heart beat so hard against her rib cage that she thought she would pass out. Grabbing the bureau for support, she told herself it might not be what she thought it was.

      But the envelope was a pale lavender, and the handwriting was distinctly female. Worse, Chase had kept the letter a secret. Why else would it be hidden under his socks? He hadn’t wanted her to see it because it was from that other woman.

      Now she wished she hadn’t been snooping around. She’d let herself into his house with the extra key she’d had made. She’d felt him pulling away from her the past few weeks. Having been here so many times before, she was determined that this one wasn’t going to break her heart. Nor was she going to let another woman take him from her. That’s why she had to find out why he hadn’t called, why he wasn’t returning her messages, why he was avoiding her.

      They’d had fun the night they were together. She’d felt as if they had something special, although she knew the next morning that he was feeling guilty. He’d said he didn’t want to lead her on. He’d told her that there was some woman back home he was still in love with. He’d said their night together was a mistake. But he was wrong, and she was determined to convince him of it.

      What made it so hard was that Chase was a genuinely nice guy. You didn’t let a man like that get away. The other woman had. Fiona wasn’t going to make that mistake even though he’d been trying to push her away since that night. But he had no idea how determined she could be, determined enough for both of them that this wasn’t over by a long shot.

      It wasn’t the first time she’d let herself into his apartment when he was at work. The other time, he’d caught her and she’d had to make up some story about the building manager letting her in so she could look for her lost earring.

      She’d snooped around his house the first night they’d met—the same night she’d found his extra apartment key and had taken it to have her own key made in case she ever needed to come back when Chase wasn’t home.

      The letter hadn’t been in his sock drawer that time.

      That meant he’d received it since then. Hadn’t she known he was hiding something from her? Why else would he put this letter in a drawer instead of leaving it out along with the bills he’d casually dropped on the table by the front door?

      Because the letter was important to him, which meant that she had no choice but to read it.

      Her heart compressed into a hard knot as she carefully lifted out the envelope. The handwriting made her pulse begin to roar in her ears. The woman’s handwriting was very neat, very precise. She hated her immediately. The return address confirmed it. The letter was from the woman back in Montana that Chase had told her he was still in love with.

      Mary Cardwell Savage, the woman who’d broken Chase’s heart and one of the reasons that the cowboy had ended up in Arizona. Her friend Patty told her all about him. Chase worked for her husband, Rick. That’s how she and Chase had met, at a party at their house.

      What struck her now was the date on the postmark. Her vision blurred for a moment. Two weeks ago? Anger flared inside her again. That was right after their night together. About the same time that he’d gotten busy and didn’t have time, he said, to date or even talk. What had this woman said in her letter? Whatever it was, Fiona knew it was the cause of the problem with her and Chase.

      Her fingers trembled as she carefully opened the envelope flap and slipped out the folded sheet of pale lavender paper. The color alone made her sick to her stomach. She sniffed it, half expecting to smell the woman’s perfume.

      There was only a faint scent, just enough to be disturbing. She listened for a moment, afraid Chase might come home early and catch her again. He’d been angry the last time. He would be even more furious if he caught her reading the letter he’d obviously hidden from her.

      Unfolding the sheet of paper she tried to brace herself. She felt as if her entire future hung on what was inside this envelope.

      Her throat closed as she read the words, devouring them as quickly as her gaze could take them in. After only a few sentences, she let her gaze drop to the bottom line, her heart dropping with it: I’ll always love you, Mary.

      This was the woman Chase said he was still in love with. She’d broken up with him and now she wanted him back? Who did this Mary Savage of Big Sky, Montana, think she was? Fury churned inside Fiona as she quickly read all the way through the letter, the words breaking her heart and filling her with an all-consuming rage.

      Mary Savage had apparently pretended that she was only writing to Chase to let him know that some friend of his mother’s had dropped by with a package for him. If he confirmed his address, she’d be happy to send the package if he was interested.

      But after that, the letter had gotten personal. Fiona stared at the words, fury warring with heartbreaking pain. The package was clearly only a ruse for the rest of the letter, which was a sickening attempt to lure him back. This woman was still in love with Chase. It made her sick to read the words that were such an obvious effort to remind him of their love, first love, and all that included. This woman had history with Chase. She missed him and regretted the way they’d left things. The woman had even included her phone number. In case he’d forgotten it?

      Had Chase called her? The thought sent a wave of nausea through her, followed quickly by growing vehemence. She couldn’t believe this. This woman was not taking Chase away from her! She wouldn’t allow it. She and Chase had only gotten started, but Fiona knew that he was perfect for her and she for him. If anyone could help him get over this other woman, it was her. Chase was hers now. She would just have to make him see that.

      Fiona tried to calm herself. The worst thing she could do was to confront Chase and demand to know why he had kept this from her. She didn’t need him to remind her that they didn’t have “that kind” of relationship as he had the other times. Not to mention how strained things had been between them lately. She’d felt him pulling away and had called and stopped by at every opportunity, afraid she was losing him.

      And now she knew why. If the woman had been in Arizona, she would have gone to her house and—Deep breaths, she told herself. She had to calm down. She had to remember what had happened the last time. She’d almost ended up in jail.

      Taking deep breaths, she reminded herself that this woman was no threat. Mary Cardwell Savage wasn’t in Arizona. She lived in Montana, hundreds of miles away.

      But that argument did nothing to relieve her wrath or her growing apprehension. Chase hadn’t just kept the letter. He’d hidden it. His little secret. And worse, he was avoiding her, trying to give her the brush-off. She felt herself hyperventilating.

      She knew she had to