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    Deadly Protection: An Ian & Merideth Investigation: The Girl in the River, #3
    Deadly Protection: An Ian & Merideth Investigation: The Girl in the River, #3
    Deadly Protection: An Ian & Merideth Investigation: The Girl in the River, #3
    Ebook123 pages1 hour

    Deadly Protection: An Ian & Merideth Investigation: The Girl in the River, #3

    By Reese Patton

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    About this ebook

    The love of a lifetime is about to Stop the Presses...

    Merideth Gardner survives her first few days with Ian and even manages to tolerate her new bodyguard, but Ian isn't the biggest danger she faces.

    One story. She tells herself and Ian she's only in it for the story. It doesn't matter if the words are true or not. Especially when the story she's digging into puts another woman in the path of danger.

    With each new answer, ten more questions sprout up in its place, further distracting Merdieth from facing her growing feelings for Ian.

    Will Merideth keep her feelings hidden from Ian? Or will she finally stop the press and give Ian the story of the century?

    Deadly Protection delivers a racy and suspenseful serial. Perfect for when you want a sassy story but don't have a lot of time. Read the third part of The Girl in the River while it's Hot!

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherVAB Sassy Crime Stories
    Release dateJan 14, 2018
    ISBN9781386342052
    Deadly Protection: An Ian & Merideth Investigation: The Girl in the River, #3

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      Book preview

      Deadly Protection - Reese Patton

      GITR03-Deadly-Protection-ebook.jpg

      Deadly Protection

      The Girl in the River Book 3

      BY REESE PATTON

      The Barnes Family

      The Rebound

      The Rescue - Coming Soon

      Immaculate Reception

      The One with all the Thanksgiving Turkeys - Coming Soon

      The One with All the Christmas Trees

      Copperwood

      Dirt

      Pick

      Honor - Coming Soon

      Ian & Merideth Investigations>

      The Girl in the River

      Deadly Proposal - Book One

      Deadly Services - Book Two

      Deadly Protection - Book Three

      Deadly Retreat - Book Four

      Deadly Confession - Book Five

      Stand Alone Novels

      Ties that Bind

      Visit www.ReesePattonBooks.com and sign up for Reese’s Newsletter to gain access to exclusive content, free stories, and much more!

      VoxAmoris Sassy Crime Stories

      Published by VoxAmoris Sassy Crime Stories an imprint of VoxAmoris Books

      This book is an original publication of VoxAmoris Books.

      Copyright © Reese Patton, 2017

      Original published as Girl in the River - Page Three

      VoxAmoris Books supports copyright. Thank you for buying an authorized edition of this book and for complying with copyright laws by not reproducing, scanning, or distributing any part of it in any form without permission. By purchasing this book, you are supporting writers and allowing Publisher Name to continue to publish books.

      For more information about Reese Patton, visit ReesePattonBooks.com.

      Identifiers: ISBN 9781948603058 (ebook) | ISBN 9781948603065 (paperback)

      Cover art: images depositphotos.com.

      Cover design by R Patton

      PUBLISHER’S NOTE

      This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

      In Journalism, there has always been a tension between getting it first and getting it right.

      Ellen Goodman

      Contents

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Chapter Eight

      Chapter Nine

      Chapter Ten

      Chapter Eleven

      Chapter Twelve

      Chapter Thirteen

      Chapter Fourteen

      Chapter Fifteen

      Chapter Sixteen

      Chapter Seventeen

      Deadly Retreat Preview

      One

      Merideth slipped out from beneath Ian’s arm and pulled on a pair of shorts and one of his shirts. She slipped out of the bedroom and walked down the hallway into the living room where she left her bag when she got home from work.

      She turned on a lamp and almost screamed when she found Stone sitting on the couch. Right next to her bag that held the piece of paper Stone gave her earlier in the day. She promised Stone she wouldn’t call the phone number without him being present.

      Shh. Stone looked around her shoulder as though he expected Ian to be right behind her.

      How long have you been sitting here in the dark? Merideth walked around the furniture and sat down on the other side of her bag.

      Don’t worry, I went back outside and enjoyed a cigar and a scotch. Stone didn’t need to confirm that he knew what happened after Ian closed the door to his office. Is he in a better mood?

      Merideth ignored his question and reached for her bag. But before she could dig out the piece of paper from the side pocket, Stone grabbed her wrist and held her hand in place.

      Come on, Stone. You’re sitting right here. I’m not doing this alone. Just like I promised. She looked up at her and tried to pull her hand away from him.

      I don’t get it. He wasn’t supposed to grow attached to you. Hell, he’s never grown attached to any of the women he’s spent time with, but we picked you because…

      Merideth felt her stomach drop as Wallace’s warning came rushing back to her. Ian’s grandfather had told her to find out why they picked her out of all the other women available, but she had pushed the words away. She looked up at Stone and read his expression with little effort. He knew he said too much.

      Why did you pick me, Stone?

      The why doesn’t matter now.

      Yes it does, Stone.

      No it doesn’t. I didn’t get it, his protectiveness over you, until I watched him with you during dinner. He let go of her wrist and leaned back on the couch, clasping his hands behind his neck. Jason tried to warn me when he showed up here tonight, but I ignored him.

      What aren’t you telling me, Stone. Hurt and anger warred with one another deep inside of her. 

      At first I thought he assigned me to you to protect him.

      Stone’s words confused her. She didn’t understand why Ian needed protection from her. I wouldn’t hurt him. I’m not like that.

      I know. I was the one who researched you.

      You researched me? Her voice raised in indignation. What the hell are you doing researching me?

      Shh. Stone rolled his eyes at her. Ian will come out here and I can promise you that neither of us will enjoy it.

      Fine. Stone wasn’t wrong and Merideth lowered the volume of her voice. Why did you research me?

      Because, we needed to get Ian’s grandfather off Ian’s back and we needed the perfect woman for it.

      The pieces fell into place. She still couldn’t see the entire picture, but it wasn’t hard to reason it out. I wasn’t called in to interview for the entertainment job, was I?

      Stone shook his head, no.

      I got the interview so Jason could run into me and bring me up to meet Ian?

      Stone nodded his head slowly. It wasn’t like we could just call you up and make the offer. We needed a reason to get you into the building.

      Merideth wasn’t ready to deal with the information. She knew she would have to eventually, just as Wallace warned her she would, but she didn’t want to just yet. Why would Ian need to be protected from me, Stone?

      Because we didn’t know the number, but we recognized the voice on your voicemail.

      Merideth slid back along the couch, moving as far away from Stone as she could. What do you mean?

      She’s works for an escort service.

      Ian’s used her before? Merideth heard the hurt in her voice, and held up her hand, stopping Stone from speaking. She didn’t want to know. Don’t tell me.

      It’s not like that. She’s the booker. She’s the one you call.

      The admission made her feel only a little better. Okay? I still don’t understand how I could hurt Ian.

      That’s my point, Merideth. Before dinner, I would have said he was just making sure nothing leaked out about our utilization of an escort service.

      And after dinner? Merideth grew tired of Stone dancing around the subject.

      Merideth, this isn’t about Ian protecting Ian, this is about Ian protecting you. I joked about him being upset if I had to kill you, but if I let anything happen to you, he would kill me. Stone leaned forward over his legs and looked down at his feet. "Merideth, we’ve never seen him as protective of any woman."

      So what does this mean? There was too much information for her to digest. Too many conflicting ideas.

      It means we need to take a different approach to your story.

      Stone. I am minutes from walking out of Ian’s apartment. The terms of the agreement be damned.

      Stone groaned and covered his face with his hands. As far as Ian’s concerned, you’re only looking at the social pages. Don’t let him know you’re reaching out for the girl.

      You don’t know her name?

      No, Merideth, it’s not like any of us are on a first name basis with her.

      But you recognized her voice.

      Ian did. Or at least he thought he did. That’s when he came and got me and I listened to it and confirmed his suspicions. Stone looked over at her. I thought he didn’t want you to know about her because he was worried you’d use it against him.

      Merideth looked down at her hands. She didn’t want to consider what Stone must have thought about her to think she’d do something like that. Unfortunately, she agreed to be Ian’s fake girlfriend for seven days, so of course he’d think the worst of her.

      Stone reached over her back and squeezed her shoulder. Merideth, he didn’t want you to find out about her because he didn’t want you to know about his association with escorts. He’s protecting you.

      You’re sure about that? She pulled away from his touch.

      Positive. When Jason asked you about the story, you didn’t see Ian’s reaction. Stone’s hand found her shoulder again. "He was scared you would tell Jason what you were researching. He didn’t relax

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