About the Book:

Kathryn is hired to socialize a criminal whose memory had been erased. But the better she gets to know him, the more she fights to strip away the lies she’d been told and get to the heart of the man. Even as the two of them grow to care deeply for each other, she knows that every move she makes only puts her in graver danger. Does the man who named himself Hunter have the skill and the cunning to save her life? And what if he has to sacrifice himself to do it?

Temporarily available for only 99 cents! Click on title below for direct Amazon buy link:                                                                                                Hunter (Decorah Security Series)

Read an Excerpt:

Acting out of character, Hunter has defended himself by decking a man before going off to take a shower. The staff are all afraid of what he will do next. Kathryn volunteers to bring him out.

She wanted to bolt from the room. But she remembered the face of the man on the road. She’d seen a bleakness behind his eyes that had wrenched at her heart. No wonder, when you considered the implications of Emerson and Winslow’s callous conversation.

Instead of running away, she crossed the tile floor on unsteady legs and dropped quickly onto one of the benches.

There was no noise from inside the shower room besides the steady dripping of water. And she could see nothing beyond the billowing steam.

“Hello?” she called.

No answer.

“Hello. It’s Kathryn Kelley. Do you remember me? We met while you were on your run. I’m in the locker room.”

She sat staring into the mist, wondering if he had heard. Or if he even remembered her, for that matter, she thought with a jolt. If they’d been feeding him mind-altering drugs, there was no telling what they’d done to him.

After several seconds she saw a form moving indistinctly in the vapor. A tall, man-shaped form. Moving closer. Moving slowly on feet that were silent as a cat. Then he stepped through the doorway and into the locker room, and she couldn’t hold back a gasp. A towel was draped across his shoulders. Otherwise, he was as naked as the day he was born.

She saw her own feeling of shock mirrored on his face as he came to an abrupt halt, staring at her with a mixture of recognition and astonishment. Well, he remembered her, all right. Apparently, their meeting had been as unique for him as it had been for her.

The disbelief vanished as he continued to regard her, standing comfortably with his feet several inches apart. He was tall and intimidating, towering over her where she huddled on the bench. Droplets of water clung to his skin. His dark hair was wet, making it look almost black.

“You were with McCourt,” he said, his features filling with a roiling mixture of emotions before he got control of them.

She struggled to keep her posture relaxed as she looked up at him. He had been compelling in running shorts and a tee shirt. Naked he reminded her of Michelangelo’s David. And he stood with the same unconscious nobility, as if nudity were the norm and she was overdressed in her beige skirt and jade silk blouse. His shoulders were broad, his hips lean, his stomach flat. And his sex was proportioned to inspire some very erotic fantasies.

But this was no time for fantasies or recklessness. One wrong move and she could be in serious trouble. The two of them were alone, and he could hurt her if he wanted, she reminded herself. The thought of rape leaped into her mind, to be dismissed at once. He wasn’t looking at her like a would-be rapist. In fact, he didn’t look as if he were trying to embarrass her or make a point about a woman invading the guys’ locker room. There was no smirk on his face—only an expression that had become carefully neutral.

My Review:

Kathryn Kelley is a psychologist who has just had a terrifying encounter with a psychopath.  She narrowly escaped death at the hands of the man she helped institutionalize three years ago.  However, he has not been captured, and Kathryn’s fear for her own safety causes her to hastily accept a job in a secure environment.  Kathryn doesn’t take the time she normally does to review her assignment, as she’s anxious to be enveloped in high security working as a consultant for the Department of Defense.

The man known only as John Doe is being trained and developed for one purpose only – to take out a high ranking enemy of the country.  He is put through rigorous physical training, and subjected to drugs and other therapies to ensure that he is completely obedient to the commands of his superiors.  John Doe has no memory of his life before waking up in the laboratory, and all he knows is physical exertion, beatings, cruelty, and loneliness.  His handlers feel that he needs to be “socialized” in order to fit in better when he’s sent on his assignment, and they’ve selected Kathryn as the person for the job.

Kathryn is appalled at the life John Doe leads.  He’s extremely intelligent, yet doesn’t know how to handle warmth and kindness, things that are totally foreign to him.  It doesn’t take long until he’s soaking up Kathryn’s care like a sponge.  Though they haven’t spent much time together, Kathryn and John, who has now been dubbed Hunter, fall into a cocoon of affection and desire.

Kathryn soon comes to realize exactly what has been going on in this high secret operation, and is horrified at Hunter’s past.  There is no doubt that Hunter will never survive his assignment, and it’s likely that Kathryn will not be allowed to leave the compound alive.  HUNTER is part of the Decorah Security series, but this book easily stands alone, as that is a very minor portion of the story.  Once I started reading, I did not want to put the book down.  I was so drawn to Hunter, and my heart broke for him and what he had endured.  The science is definitely creepy, especially when you consider that it’s probably not so farfetched at all.  There are some truly awful villains, and plenty of excitement to go along with a beautifully tender romance.  I recommend this book for fans of romantic suspense, who also enjoy a touch of the paranormal.    ~Rose