Samantha Fairchild is earning money to go to Harvard Law School by working at a fancy Boston restaurant. But one night she witnesses a high-profile murder in the wine cellar and is even more horrified to see the killer take the security camera, which she knows shows her image.

Sam contacts Vivi Angelino, a good friend and an ambitious reporter, hoping to learn what's going on in the case after the local cops prove less than helpful. Instead of finding Vivi in her apartment, however, Sam runs into Zach, Vivi's brother. The two of them had shared an all-too-brief, passion-filled three weeks before he had gone to the Middle East. She had heard nothing from him since. Now, scarred on the outside and probably within, he seems like a completely different man, but Sam has few options left. She reluctantly accepts his protection, hoping to keep things professional between them -- just a bodyguard and client -- despite the treacherous longing of her heart that he might still have feelings for her. But there's little time to talk about the past, or the future, with a killer on the loose and Sam as his next target. She and Zach must use all their energy and focus just to stay alive.

Few writers do romantic suspense as well as Roxanne St. Claire. The plot barrels along at a breakneck pace, pausing only for a few quiet moments and some hot sex that will leave readers as breathless as the action will. Zach's adopted family members all pitch in to help at some point and provide a wealth of entertaining and interesting characters, and the killer is seriously creepy. Sam, despite her fear, proves to be strong and resourceful, not a cowering victim, and Zach is a hero that any reader would want on her side in a bad situation. This is a rocket- powered start to what should be an exciting series.