For Shay Appleton, falling in love at first sight was easy
... the first time she laid eyes on the dog that was
brought
into the animal shelter she was a goner. The dog was
brought in with a put down order stating he is vicious,
but
Shay didn't believe it. He was such a sweetie. The dog
would make the perfect watch dog for her and the solution
to her problem. How was she to know she was about to run
into an IRRESISTIBLE FORCE because of the dog?
Officer James Cannon is a tall, handsome, strong alpha
male
who happens to be the dog's partner. Bogart is a trained
police K-9 who was stolen out of his vehicle. At first he
is convinced that Shay had been the culprit but once he
gets closer he realizes there is more here than meets the
eye. What is the threat to this stubborn, independent
woman
and why is she so determined to keep her guard dog. When
he
realizes that the threat of her past is real, he is
willing
to risk his life, career and his dog to protect this
woman.
She might not have stolen his dog but she is guilty of
stealing his heart.
IRRESISTIBLE FORCE is a fast paced, action packed, no
nonsense romantic suspense story that will keep you
turning
the pages. Bogart and James are the perfect K-9 team and
the heroes that Shay desperately needed. Usually I prefer
the heroines of a book to be just a little tougher; to me
she came off as a tad ditzy but the chemistry between she
and James was explosive. The twists and turns that
included
vandalism, crank calls and threats of violence kept the
book moving to the explosive ending. My one problem with
IRRESISTIBLE FORCE and the characters is that Shay and
James had the
worst taste in ex's I have ever seen, and really couldn't
picture them with these people. That aside I truly enjoyed
this book and can't wait to see what author D.D. Ayres
brings us next.
When adrenaline runs high, so does the force of desire…
For Shay Appleton, it’s love at first sight when a
gorgeous
stray dog is brought into the animal shelter where she
works. She just knows he’ll make a terrific watch dog—and
with an abusive ex who won’t let go, she needs all the
protection she can get. But Shay never suspected that her
new pet is actually a trained police K-9 named Bogart—
until
Bogart’s even more gorgeous, human partner shows up on her
doorstep.
IRRESISTIBLE FORCE by D.D. Ayres
Officer James Cannon is one tall, strong alpha male who’s
convinced that Shay stole his dog. But once he gets closer
to the suspect, he realizes that this stubborn,
independent
woman not only needs a guard dog, she needs James as well.
It seems that someone from her past is stalking her, and
threatening her life. When danger meets desire, will James
risk his career and his best friend…to protect the woman
who’s stolen his heart?
Excerpt
CHAPTER ONE
Surveillance was simpler in the South in autumn. It was
hunting season in North Carolina. A man dressed in
camouflage and carrying a rifle in the woods didn’t rate a
second glance. The thick canopy of summer had yielded a
blanket of damp leaves that made soft whispery sounds
underfoot. Sparse branches improved viewing range, even in
the darkness. Forecasters had predicted that by dawn, the
frost would give way to the promise of an Indian summer day.
It was just the sort of weather James Cannon enjoyed on his
day off from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.
However, tonight he was on the job, alone in an unfamiliar
area, and closing in on what might be a desperate character.
James’s alertness level ratcheted up as he came to the edge
of the woods he had been passing through. The absence of
Bogart gnawed at his focus. They were always on duty
together, had been until a month ago. That’s because James’s
law enforcement partner had been kidnapped. The cabin in the
clearing just ahead was the purported location where he was
being held.
Ever since his partner had been taken, he’d spent a hellish
amount of time tracking down useless leads. He’d been
afraid, as the days stretched out, that Bogart was dead.
He jerked his thoughts back from that murky
water-under-the-bridge reality to the present. Now he had
his first good lead, and it had led him here.
He slowed as he reached the clearing. The cabin stood alone
and dark in the distance. He’d been told that the woman who
rented it lived alone. But he never relied on hearsay when
it counted. Two years in the military police plus four years
on the job made him cautious. He needed facts. He’d come
here, in the wee hours, to check things out for himself.
He eased down into a crouched position to survey the
terrain. Almost immediately, something at the edge of his
vision caught his eye. It was the absolute stillness of an
object amid the natural stirrings of a rural night. He
turned his head to discover he wasn’t the only one doing
surveillance on the property.
Fifteen feet away, a truck sat in the deep shadows at the
edge of the tree line on the unpaved track that ran through
the forest. Had James not been on foot, he and the driver
might have met in the woods.
James rose and moved in a little closer to try to get a
better look at the vehicle to determine if it was occupied.
It was. A man in dark clothing, unlike James’s hunting gear,
sat behind the wheel.
Something about the furtiveness of his actions, the way he
just sat with headlights and engine off, increased James’s
suspicion that something illegal was going on here. He
wondered if the driver was standing guard. Or, perhaps,
waiting for someone?
Even as he pondered his options, a light flared and drew his
attention back to the cabin.
A woman had stepped out of the cabin onto the porch. She
didn’t bother to turn on the porch light, nor did she carry
a flashlight. She was simply a slight figure in silhouette
for the instant she was backlit by the open doorway. Then a
dark furry animal shot past her out the door. The dog was
moving at full throttle, coming straight toward the woods,
and James.
One bark was all it took to confirm the identification.
James’s heart squeezed tight, and though he would have
denied it to his own mother, he had to blink away the threat
of a watery leak in his left eye.
It was Bogart! He was unharmed! He was in good voice.
Recovering his partner was going to be easier than he’d
thought possible.
James stood to call the dog to him but the sound was lost
when the truck’s engine suddenly roared to life. Headlights
caught Bogart in their full flare but the dog did not
hesitate. He was after the truck and his barking increased,
signaling that he had found his prey.
“Prince! No! Come here!” The plaintive cry of the woman
who’d been on the porch diverted James’s attention. She’d
left the porch and was running toward the woods. “Come,
Prince! Heel! Heel, boy!”
The dog paused uncertainly and turned to look back at the
woman just as she entered the circle of the truck’s
headlights. She was dressed in sweatpants and a hoodie but
her feet were bare.
“Heel! Heel, Prince!” Her voice was strained with emotion as
she bent down to scoop up something.
Even as the driver threw the truck into reverse and floored
the pedal, she stood up.
“Bastard!” She launched what must have been a rock or a
heavy piece of a tree limb at her Peeping Tom.
James couldn’t help but admire her strength and aim. The
missile bounced off the hood of the truck even as it blasted
backward.
“Heel! Heel, Prince!” She began running back toward the cabin.
This time Bogart didn’t hesitate, he sprang after her,
easily catching up and circling her with excited barks as
she made her way to the porch. The pair were through the
door in an instant, and then it was shut behind them with a
force that reverberated through the night.
“What the fuck?” James sat back on his haunches as the
sounds of the truck tearing back through the forest became
ever fainter, and let his thoughts sort themselves out.
First things first.
He’d seen Bogart! Knew he was okay. That was a huge relief.
But now he had other complications to deal with. Something
else was going on besides the dog-napping of his K-9
partner. Something he didn’t understand. But whatever the
something was, he meant to get to the bottom of it.
One thing was certain. Regardless of the events of the
night, the woman in the cabin was the prime suspect in the
abduction of his K-9.
He should report what he’d discovered to the sheriff of this
North Carolina county and ask for help. But after weeks of
searching, he wanted the pleasure of confronting the suspect
himself. That wasn’t exactly legal procedure. Any way he
factored it, he was way the hell out of his jurisdiction.
James slid a hand down his face. By nature he was a
by-the-book guy, professional, methodical, reasonable. But
something had snapped when Bogart went missing. The job of
finding him became a personal quest. And he was going to see
it through. So then, how best to confront the woman holding
his dog hostage?
Maybe the woman who had his dog had abducted him herself, or
maybe she had had help. No way to judge that from here.
He had learned long ago that “female” did not equal “easy to
best,” and certainly not “harmless.” Unlike the truck
driver, he wasn’t going to give her the chance to get the
better of him, or escape. He was going in full force and
with overwhelming strength, to teach her a lesson she
wouldn’t soon forget.
He was just going to wait for full light.
* * *
Shay Appleton jumped up when her dog, sprawled at her feet,
suddenly lifted his head to listen. “What is it, Prince?”
She stared into the shiny, alert gaze of her pet with an
intensity equal to his. “Do you hear something?”
Prince made a soft nasally sound but his tail did an
unperturbed thump on the floor.
Shay glanced at her front door. The bolts were still shoved
into place. Was that enough?
For eight heavy heartbeats she stared at the doorknob of her
rental cabin, burnished by years of use. It did not turn.
Shay exhaled audibly. Okay, so maybe nothing. Of course it
was nothing. Prince wasn’t behaving the way he had last
night when there had been a real problem.
Not until Prince lowered his head back to his paws did the
warmth of spilled coffee permeate Shay’s awareness the way
it had her jogging shorts.
“Oh damn!” She fumbled to right her mug and grabbed for
napkins to catch the steaming liquid dripping over the edge
of the kitchen table.
When she was done cleaning, she picked up her empty cup and
stared into its depths. She hadn’t had enough sleep. And now
she couldn’t even blame the caffeine she had yet to drink
for her nerves.
Hypervigilance. Her condition even had a name. Her doctor
assured her that this latest episode would pass. Many women
felt unnerved after a nasty breakup. Especially if the
ex-boyfriend continued to harass her with text messages and
middle-of-the-night phone calls. She was told to ignore the
calls and delete the messages unread. Within a few weeks
most men moved on.
Unfortunately, that prognosis hadn’t made her less anxious
for long. Though she had tossed away her disposable cell and
bought another so that Eric could not reach her, she could
not get rid of the feeling that she was being watched. Again
her doctor assured her that only hypervigilance plagued her
and it would subside with time.
That was a month ago.
Shay shook her head tightly. Not when it had become freakin’
obvious, after last night, that there was a very real reason
for it to continue!
Eric Coates wasn’t most men. He had not sent angry messages
or threats. He was more clever than that.
Eric had found her. Alone.
Who else would have been lurking in the woods watching this
place? How had he found her?
Did it matter? He was out there, waiting.
Eric didn’t know about the cabin. No one in her present life
knew about this place up on the state line. It had been her
refuge since age fourteen, the one safe place in the broken
world of her teenage years. That was a past she had run
from, and was still running from. Even now, she’d do almost
anything to protect herself from it.
Shay shook her head to dispel the band of fear threatening
to tighten into a headache. She was an idiot to have left
the city for an off-season cabin in the woods. She’d just
provided him with the perfect place—
“No.” She raised both hands as if she could physically chase
away the negative thoughts. “No!”
The shock of a wet nose poking her behind the knee jolted her.
She glanced down as Prince pushed his weight against her leg
and stared up at her in question, alert to every nuance of
her feelings. Her world righted.
She wasn’t alone. She had Prince.
Relief slid through her as she bent and scratched her new
pet behind the ears.
The fairy tales were right. There was a Prince Charming out
there for her. He’d arrived in her life the day after she
broke up with Eric.
And like in all fairy tales, he’d come into her life from an
unexpected place, the animal shelter, in an unexpected
guise, wearing a black mask with black ears, and sporting a
thick black and golden doggy pelt.
They’d bonded immediately. He was extraordinarily attuned to
her moods. While she didn’t always trust her own reactions
these days, she quickly came to trust Prince’s without
question. If he responded to sounds in the night, as he did
last night, then she knew it wasn’t just her anxiety. She
needed that assurance badly.
“Good boy.” She rubbed his back affectionately a couple of
times before straightening up. Prince was the best thing to
happen to her, maybe ever. As long as she had him she was safe.
She picked up her cup and moved to put it in the sink. She
hadn’t been able to force herself to return to bed after her
night visitor had been chased away. Instead, she’d curled up
beneath a throw on the sofa, where she could sleep with one
hand on Prince’s back as he lay on the rug beside her, and
hold her cell phone in the other in case she needed to call
for help. If the sheriff’s office would believe her. The
Raleigh police hadn’t.
The cup rattled hard against the porcelain sink, an
indication that the adrenaline-charged anxiety attack had
yet to recede. Shame splashed through her at the realization
that after all this time, her body could still betray her in
this way.
She should have recognized the signs sooner. From the
beginning of their year-long relationship she was often
uncomfortable in Eric’s presence. Yet, she’d never told
anyone about her uncertainties concerning him. Life had long
ago taught her to doubt herself. Besides, who would believe
her? Eric could be outrageously generous and so charming.
She was a lowly temp. She was lucky to have attracted the
attention of a man with money and good looks, who took her
on secret glamorous vacations.
Yet Eric could go from charming guy to complete asshole in
the time it took to knock back a few tequila shots.
Gradually, he became critical of her, avoided her friends,
seldom took her out in public after the first few weeks of
their relationship. She gave in more and more to his point
of view because it was easier than facing his stern
disapproval. But there was a deep well of resentment growing
inside her that she hadn’t realized was there until a few
weeks ago. Even she had a limit.
Rough sex, he’d called it.
Shay clamped her teeth over her lower lip to stop its trembling.
She couldn’t quite believe what was happening. Afterward,
she’d locked herself in his bathroom and called the police.
That brought the next shock.
Eric was so quick to confess that he’d gotten a little
carried away, and apologized so convincingly, she could tell
the police began to doubt her version of deliberate assault.
Still, they said they would take her in for testing and she
could file charges and take him to court.
Court. In her fury and outrage, she had forgotten. The last
thing she wanted was to go to court where her personal
history might be pulled up again for public view. No, her
life would be ruined all over again. Mortified, she had
recanted her story.
Shay shivered, recalling her feelings of helplessness and
outrage.
It was the sight of Eric’s smug expression, knowing he was
going to get away with what he’d done, that spurred her to
blurt out that their relationship was over, right there in
front of the two law enforcement officers who could not help
her.
Eric didn’t respond but she saw the cold fury in his
expression that no one else seemed to notice. There’d been a
promise in his last look, and it terrified her. She knew in
her bones that he was going to get even. When she let her
guard down. When she stopped worrying. When she was most
vulnerable.
Shay looked out the window above the sink at the morning
light reflecting off the silver surface of the lake. Its
serenity didn’t calm her this morning.
Since that night a month ago, she couldn’t shake the panicky
feelings of being followed and watched. Anxiety had her
running from her own shadow. Checking and rechecking the
locks. Glancing repeatedly over her shoulder until her
friends became concerned by her increasingly paranoid
behavior. One morning she couldn’t even force herself to
leave for work until Angie came and got her. Unable to
explain the cause of her panic attack, she watched Angie’s
sympathy turn into concern for her sanity. Two days ago, she
had fled Raleigh, seeking refuge in the one place where Eric
wouldn’t know to look for her.
Yet he had found her.
Shay closed her eyes and took a deep trembling breath.
She had known the drill from age fourteen. Self-control,
that was the answer, not meds, to conquer her attacks. Time
and self-awareness, those were the keys to control. She
mustn’t allow small things to get the better of her. She
needed to think, be reasonable, and logical. Consider that
she was jumping to conclusions.
She let out her breath as a quiver of apprehension rippled
over her skin. She resisted it, forcing herself instead to
make a mental list of other possible answers for the
presence of her night visitor.
She was so certain it was Eric. What if she was wrong? The
person in the truck outside her cabin could have been
anyone: a camper, a hunter, even a Peeping Tom. Besides,
Prince had scared whoever it was away. If he came again,
she’d call the sheriff’s office. Even if they didn’t believe
her, someone would show up.
Shay breathed in again, slower and steadier.
Today was Saturday. She’d have to go back to work on Monday.
She couldn’t afford to lose her position in a job market
that wasn’t exactly overflowing with prospects.
Get your act together, Shayla Lynn Appleton.
Shay exhaled, longer and easier this time. She could feel
her heart begin to slow. She was going to be fine. She just
needed to believe it. Or fake it until she could make it a
reality.
A sharp, high-pitched bark made her open her eyes.
Prince had come into the kitchen and was watching her from
the threshold.
As she walked over to him, his tail began wagging. Then his
head swung toward the front door, head cocked as if to listen.
Shay’s heart skipped as she followed his gaze. Then she
spied his leash hanging by the door. “Oh, you’re just trying
to remind me it’s time for our morning walk.”
Prince shot forward with a yelp of excitement.
“Good boy.”
It was clear that her pet was better trained than she was.
He was trying his best to show her what he needed, but she
still often misunderstood. Yet he’d acted without her
direction last night, knowing instinctively that she was
afraid of whatever was out there in the dark. She really did
need to get them both to the doggy-training class she’d
looked into, and soon. But not a fancy place like that
Harmonie Kennels in Virginia that Angie had suggested she call.
“He’s got the attitude of a professional canine. Maybe he’s,
like, a drug dog that’s been retired,” Angie had said after
meeting Prince.
Angie, her one real friend, was like that, always seeing the
extraordinary in the ordinary. Even so, Angie could be very
persuasive. She kept mentioning this kennel she’d read
about, supposedly the top place in the mid-Atlantic states.
So, after arriving at the lake, Shay had called just to find
out how much the training would cost.
The woman who answered had been much too nosy for Shay’s
liking, asking if her shelter dog had any distinguishing
markings or ID tag. That’s when it hit her that the woman
who had brought Prince to the shelter might not have been
entirely honest. If something was amiss, she might lose him.
So she had hung up quickly, sorry she’d made the call.
As Shay came up behind him, Prince began pawing at the door,
making little excited whimpering sounds.
“Fine, but you’ll have to slow your pace this time.” She
pulled back the dead bolts then reached for the doorknob
with one hand and his leash with the other. “Yesterday you
nearly— Oh!”
One moment she and Prince were alone. The next she was
staring into the gaze of one very stern-looking man in camo.
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