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“I’ll be right back,” he lied “You stay where you are and wait for et the notion she could follow him the way she used to and drive hiave in to whatever it was she wanted He s-willed than he was

Pausing at the entrance, he called out, “You know I love you, girl, don’t you?”

“Yes, I know I love you too, Uncle Morgan”

He started up the stairs then, but stopped when he heard the door open behind him He didn’t have to turn around to knoas there

“You’ll treat her well” It wasn’t a question but a statement of fact

“Yes, sir, I will”

“You don’t deserve her”

“I know I don’t, but I’ her anyway”

“You know, son, you remind me of someone, but I can’t think who it is” He shook his head in bewilderet on inside before she floods my hall with her tears If anyone could do it, she could”

At the sound of her uncle’s laughter, she glanced up and saw Brodick standing in the entrance, watching her She stood up then and took a step toward him

“You came back”

“I never left”

As though drawn by a net, they moved toward one another

“You were angry with me I saw it in your eyes”

“Yes, I was angry I didn’t know if I could keep you safe, and that scared the hell out of me”

He was close enough to take her into his arms, but he didn’t dare touch her yet because he knew that once he started kissing her, he wouldn’t stop, and he needed toher as in his heart seemed so easy to him now, and he couldn’t understand why he’d been such a fool Love didn’t weaken a thened him, made him feel invincible when he had a woman like Gillian at his side

“I thought you went home”

“How could I go home without you? I’ve searched my entire life for you I could never leave you Hoently caressed the side of her face “Don’t you understand? I love you, and I want to wake up with you besidefor the rest of land to be with you, then that’s what I’ll do”

Tears of joy brimmed in her eyes She was overwhels for her and the tender, romantic way he’d told her how he felt

She kneas difficult for hiruff exterior She realized then she knew him better than he knew himself It didn’t matter that he’d broken out in a cold sweat or that he looked quite ill now; he’d given her what she needed Aye, he’d said the words, and he couldn’t take them back

“Say it again,” she whispered

Gritting his teeth, he did as she asked “I’ll live in England”

She blinked “What?”

“Ah, love, don’t ain If it makes you happy, we’ll live here”

She knew he entleto make for her Lord, she needed to kiss him, but she decided to put him out of his misery first

“Will it land?”

Her poor, distraught husband was rapidly turning gray “If I’m with you, I’ll be happy”

She began to laugh “Then I’land I want to live with the Buchanans Take me home”

An Exciting Interview With Julie Garwood

Heartbreaker is a conte new for you What made you decide to make the transition from historical fiction to contemporary suspense?

The deciding factor is always the story The idea for this book ca a church service in London, and—I hesitate to adan to wander, as it so around at the incredible architecture surrounding ainst the wall That’s when a story began to take shape I’ve been letting it percolate ever since that day It’s a thriller and a mystery and a love story all at the same time, and while I love the historicals, this is a story that could be told only in a conte

Do you think that the type of characters you create, in a fundamental way, are the same in both the historical and the contemporary?

It’s ed all that es had the same basic concerns that we do now They wanted to find love; they cared and worried about their faed

Tell us a little about the characters froet your inspiration?

My characters are created from the initial scene that inspires the book Once I’ve visualized that particular scene, the people ill play a part in the story begin to come to life In Heartbreaker, the twowo for sorown up in Europe virtually alone, she is searching for the one place she feels she truly belongs She believes she’s found it in Holy Oaks, Iowa Nick, on the other hand, co fa, but as a result of his ith the FBI, he’s developed calluses on his heart and has learned to guard his feelings When danger brings theether, the lives they’ve chosen are turned upside down

The plot of Heartbreaker is very gritty and edgy How did you research the book?

I’ve been reading asand the crients, psychologists, and priests, and they’ve been very helpful and patient as I pester them with endless questions

Do you find the Internet to be useful in your research?

I still go to books for in-depth research, but the Internet givesfor a quick response to a detail question