In the fatal heat of the Sahara Desert, Alan Waring extracts a smart card from a laptop computer held in the hands of a baked corpse. This is his assignment. This is what he does best. The information this card holds changes the rest of his life. What was once just a job turns into a life-altering experience that brings him in touch with his inner spirit and a woman who reaches into his very soul. When she accidentally walks off with his bag and the precious data it contains, Alan must pursue this vulnerable woman into the dangerous clutches of the Algerian enemy to save his career and to protect the passion of his heart.

Mari Forster has always dreamed of visiting Morocco. Grieving over the death of her father, she visits a dilapidated home once owned by her grandfather. In the decayed, neglected courtyard of this abandoned residence, she encounters Alan. She doesn’t anticipate meeting the man who will bring vigor and joy back into her life. Nor does she realize her chance interlude is with an undercover agent.

Alan senses Mari’s loneliness and cannot focus on his assigned task. Under the scorching sun on treacherous arid terrain, he discovers that Mari fills a void inside that the thrill-seeking part of his character has never acknowledged. He must be her hero . . . or they both will die.

A man does not run among thorns for no reason.

Either he is chasing a snake, or a snake is chasing him.

How can you trust your heart, when it calls your enemy, "lover"?

In a crisis moment of her life, Jenny Waring did something exceptional.

Now the authorities want to know how and why she killed three armed men.

Kier McAllister's job is to break Jenny Waring. He's asking a lot of questions, and he isn't asking nicely. But it's his job to find out why she could take out the bad guys like a seasoned agent.

McAllister's thinks he's in control. The balance of power is shifting, however. It isn't his job to care about how he achieves his goal. Yet Jenny's accusing eyes are starting to hold for him, and that isn't good at all. Not when the people he works for aren't about to leave her alone.

She started out being his job. Will she wind up being his redemption?

Available June 2008 from Medallion Press