Sunday, November 2, 2014

Witness Protection - Barb Han (HI #1537 - Dec 2014)

Series: Campbells of Creek Bend (Book 1)

How far will U.S. Marshal Nick Campbell go to protect his innocent witness?

US marshal Nick Campbell's life is a lie. But when a devastating explosion nearly kills Sadie Brooks, the one woman who can put away a murderer, only the truth will keep her alive. Revealing his secrets connects Nick to Sadie in ways he never expected…and unleashes an attraction he can't ignore.

Minute by minute, they race closer to justice but sink deeper into the crosshairs of a deadly criminal ring. To protect his witness, Nick has to gain her trust. But once he tastes the temptation of Sadie, he's torn between breaking every boundary for a life with her…or breaking her heart and letting her go.

Good book. Nick has been undercover watching over Sadie as she is in her second new identity and home since testifying against a murderer. He is on the scene when an attempt is made on her life and whisks her away. Sadie has had too many bad things happen to her to trust Nick just because he pulled her from the burning building, so Nick ends up telling her just who and what he is. Now their challenge is to keep Sadie alive until the bad guy is captured and back in jail.

I liked Nick. He has the determination to keep Sadie safe, and the quick wits to handle the challenges that come their way. He's always been able to keep an emotional distance from people other than his family, since the loss of the woman he loved years before. But there's something about Sadie that has started to get under his skin, even when he was in his undercover guise. Now that they are thrown together, he's finding her strength and resilience nearly irresistible, and the physical attraction is about to put him over the edge. He knows it's a bad idea - she'll end up with a new life when this is over and he won't see her again, breaking both their hearts, or he'll have to find a way around the rules.

Sadie is pretty disillusioned about her chances of staying alive. This isn't the first time she's had to uproot her life. She lost her family early in life and had yearned for a stable and normal life. She almost had it, and then her life fell apart. Because of the danger she's in she hasn't really been able to make any kind a emotional connections in the past two years. When Nick rescues her from the explosion and attackers, she's not sure at first whether he's one of the good guys or not. She had noticed him as a customer at the bakery where she worked, but that man is far different than the one she's with now. She soon realizes that she can trust him with her safety, but she's not willing to give up all control to him. I loved seeing her stand up to him and insist on being involved all the way. She's not very happy about her attraction to him at first, because even though he's keeping her safe, she doesn't really trust her judgement of men. That changes as she gets to know him and she starts dreaming of the impossible.

The suspense and action were good. Nick was doing everything he could to keep Sadie safe, but it seemed like the bad guys were always just a step behind them. It became obvious that there was someone on the inside giving the bad guys help, but the question was who? I loved seeing Nick and Sadie trying to track it all down while attempting to stay alive. The final confrontation is intense, and kept me turning the pages as fast as I could read. The conclusion was pretty sweet and I look forward to seeing more of the Campbell family.

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