Only with You
To Serve and Protect #3
By Kathryn Shay
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: August 8, 2017
A family of
heroes, all in dangerous jobs, all irrevocably tied to those they love. Read
about the Marino clan in this fast-paced, emotional new series, To Serve and
Protect, by NYT bestselling author Kathryn Shay.
Special Agent
Whitney Dwyer sees the world in black and white, much to the chagrin of her
beloved cousins, the Marino brothers. Her life is terrific: a supportive
family, a varied job with mega opportunities for advancement and a fantastic
friends-with-benefits lover. Beneath her tough exterior, though, lies a woman
who was scarred in deep and dark ways by the horror of an accident that killed
her parents. But Whitney’s life is knocked off its axis when she loses the man
she now realizes she loves. To complicate matters, that man, Special Agent Max
Blackwell, has made a decision he regrets immediately. Still, he and Whitney
cannot come together again until she deals with what plagues her and he
discovers what he truly wants out of life.
ONLY WITH YOU is
back-dropped by the bombing of a federal building, a case assigned to Whitney
and Max during their personal turmoil. The book also delves into the inner
workings of the Secret Service and the danger federal agents encounter every
day. Toss in a sizzling relationship and readers will find this story a
page-turner.
If you liked
ABOVE AND BEYOND, be sure to read the entire To Serve and Protect series: ABOVE
AND BEYOND, SAY YOU’LL STAY, ONLY WITH YOU, NO OTHER LOVE, and COME BACK TO ME.
“A wonderfully
written, emotional and extraordinary read and truly deserves a five-star
rating.” Affaire de Coeur
“Kathryn Shay’s
storytelling grabbed me on page one and her characters held me until the very
last word.” Barbara Bretton, USA Today bestselling author
“Each page is
pure seduction of the senses.” Genie Romex Reviews
New
Year’s Eve
Max
Blackwell answered the door right away. He must be anxious, too. Good thing,
because Whitney Dwyer was about to make the biggest move of her life.
“Hey,
Whitney. Come on in.”
Huh. He usually greeted her with a sexist term like doll or sweetie
or babe, which he’d initially used to needle her. But the terms had
become endearments over the years they’d been together. Yet…now that she got a
good look at him, he seemed tired. Lines around his mouth suggested maybe the
expression was more one of worry.
Thankfully, she could always be herself with him. Once inside, she faced him.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, I think so.”
“Good.” She threw herself into his arms. He smelled great, like the woods and
outdoors. She hugged him tight. In the past when she did that, he’d lift her
up, twirl her around and kiss her senseless. This time he only held on.
So she’d take matters into her own hands. She pulled his head down. But he
resisted. Instead of giving her one of his searing kisses, he grasped her arms
and stepped back. “Don’t, honey. We have to talk.”
Dread she’d known more times than she cared to acknowledge shot through her.
The feeling was exacerbated by how well she knew this man. “Something is
wrong.”
He held her hands in his. “No, not wrong. Different.”
She didn’t respond.
Still holding onto her, he led her out of the foyer and into the main living
space off to the right. She took a seat on one of his dark leather sofas.
Because he was acting strangely, she was glad he dropped down close to her.
Something made her wait for him to start.
He glanced over her shoulder for a minute before he looked at her. “Things have
changed for me, Whitney. I think this has been coming for a while.”
“Changed how? Professionally or personally?”
He cleared his throat. “Personally.”
Kernels of information formed in her brain. Past talks…
Does
this arrangement suit you, Whitney? Between you and me?
Yeah, sure. It’s the best. You?
Well, I’m ten years older than you are. Sometimes, I think about where I’ll end
up when we split.
I never think about us splitting.
Ah, so like you.
So don’t you think about it, either…
She gripped his fingers. “Tell me straight, Max.” The tremor in
her voice annoyed her, but she was scared now.
“Fair enough. I want to settle down and have kids.”
“Kids?” She never expected this. “You said that wasn’t in the cards for you.”
“I hadn’t even turned forty when we started working together. I wasn’t thinking
about growing older.”
Oh,
my God. “And now you are?”
“Yes.” His expression became incredibly sad, making her heart clutch in her
chest. “I’ve found someone else I think I can build a future with.”
“What?”
“I’ve met another woman.” His face reddened as if he knew he’d done something
wrong.
This couldn’t be, yet… “Angela Grimes.”
Dark brows rose. “How did you know?”
The expression on Angela’s face when she sat gazing up at Max in the classroom
that day at Rowley. How she answered his phone the night over Thanksgiving
break, when Max hadn’t come to the Marino Thanksgiving. And where had he gone
Christmas Eve when they’d all been invited to the White House party?
“Whitney,
I asked how you knew.”
“It
doesn’t matter.”
“I’m sorry. I should have been more careful.”
A horrible thought sliced through her. “H-have you slept with her?”
“No! You and I promised each other we’d be exclusive while we were together.”
“And now you want to end our relationship?”
“As it’s been, yes. I want more in my life.”
God, the irony of all this. She thought of the advice her cousin Connor had
given to her over Thanksgiving. To go to him. To tell him what she’d discovered
about her feelings for him. Unfortunately, Max had gotten an assignment with
the CIA out of town for the two weeks right before the next holiday, so she had
to wait. Then he’d gone away with his father after Christmas and hadn’t come
back until today. Apparently, she was too late.
She tried to erect the infamous Secret Service armor she used to protect
herself with. But instead, she was defenseless.
“Whit, we’ll still be friends.”
“You know that won’t happen.” She gripped his hand now. “We spend all our free
time together, in bed, going on vacation, to movies and concerts.”
“We’ll still see each other. I promise.”
Deep in
her heart Whitney knew that wouldn’t happen. “I don’t understand, Max. How
could you make this life-changing decision unilaterally? Without consulting
me?”
“I didn’t want to put you on the spot.”
“For what?”
“Committing to something you don’t want.” His words were harsh, as if he were
defending himself.
“I should have had a choice.”
Challenge always incited him. She could see the anger flare in his eyes. “All
right. Are you ready to get married and have a baby?”
She
rose and she crossed to the window. It had started snowing harder, and flakes
gathered on the window. She thought about his question. Was she ready? After a
long time, she turned to him and folded her arms over her chest. “No, Max, I’m
not ready to get married now, or ever have family. But I’ve had an epiphany
over the last month. I know one thing. I’m in love with you.”
“I love you, too, but that’s not enough.”
“I said I was in love with you. Romantically.”
He watched her. She hadn’t realized how her life could change in an instant.
When he stood, she stepped back.
“I’m sorry, babe, that’s not enough. I’m not sure it’s even true. Whenever
we’re apart for a while, you always miss me, want to be closer to me. I feel
the same. Marrying me and having my child is a whole different ballgame.” He
arched a brow. “One I don’t think you want to play in.” 
A New York Times
and USA Today bestselling author, Kathryn Shay has been a lifelong writer and
teacher. She has written dozens of self-published original romance titles,
including print books with the Berkley Publishing Group and Harlequin
Enterprises, and mainstream women’s fiction with Bold Strokes Books. She has
won five RT Book Reviews awards, four Golden Quills, four Holt Medallions, the
Bookseller’s Best Award, Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year, and several
“Starred Reviews.” Her novels have been serialized in Cosmopolitan Magazine and
featured in USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and People magazine. There are
over five million copies of her books in print, along with hundreds of
thousands downloaded online. Reviewers have called her work “emotional and
heart-wrenching.”
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