Chasing Her Heart

By J.L. Petersen

Wasn’t it enough that he crushed her heart, did he have to be her only hope also.

Shane was ready for a change from his demanding and dangerous job. Just as he finished his final assignment in Europe, he received a request from his best friend back home asking him to use his skills and chase down his wife’s flighty friend. Once he located her, he found himself attracted and feeling protective when troublesome incidents kept occurring around her.

Liz’s desire for love and fulfillment took her to Ireland to explore the land of her ancestors. Little did she know she’d walked right into a dangerous situation that could put her life in jeopardy. Now the sexy, arrogant Shane has inserted himself into her life. Confused and irritated by her attraction to him, she knew she could trust him to keep her safe. She just wished she could trust him with her heart.

• Language: English
• Publisher: 5 Prince Publishing
• Release date: Jan 2, 2017
• ISBN: 9781631121869

J.L. Petersen

J.L. Petersen is a lifelong reader of romance and mystery novels. She resides in Denver, Colorado, with her husband. Love in a Moment is the first installment of an intended trilogy.

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CHASING HER HEART

Mile High Romance Series #3

By J.L. Petersen

This is a fictional work. The names, characters, incidents, and locations are solely the concepts and products of the author’s imagination, or are used to create a fictitious story and should not be construed as real.

5 PRINCE PUBLISHING & BOOKS, LLC

PO Box 16507

Denver, CO 80216

www.5PrinceBooks.com

ISBN10: 1-63112-186-3

ISBN13: 978-1-63112-186-9

CHASING HER HEART. J.L. Petersen

Copyright J.L. Petersen 2016

Published by 5 Prince Publishing

Cover Credit: Ermisenda Alvarez

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations, reviews, and articles. For any other permission please contact 5 Prince Publishing and Books, LLC.

First Edition 2016

5 PRINCE PUBLISHING AND BOOKS, LLC.

Dedication

To Ginnie and Beth who encouraged me to start writing again and held my hand as I challenged myself. And, to my mom who always believed in me. Thank you.

Other Titles by

J.L. Petersen

LOVE IN A MOMENT

Mile High Romance Series #1

TAKING A CHANCE

Mile High Romance Series #2

CHASING HER HEART

Mile High Romance Series #3

By J.L. Petersen

Prologue

One week earlier…

Liz was blissfully laying on the masseuse’s table enjoying one of the best massages she’d ever had. Her other two friends, Baylee and Jenna, were in the room with her sharing the experience.

Jenna had set up this spa day for them. Her new sisters-in-law were preparing to launch their new day spa in another month and were on the lookout for guinea pigs to try their new services. And not being fools, they offered to be those guinea pigs.

Liz was only partially listening to what the others were saying. She let most of what was said slide right over her. But she tuned in when Jenna started to tease Baylee about a new man’s interest in her.

Soooo, Adam was asking Tucker about you, Jenna said calmly as she dropped the verbal bomb on her friend.

What? Baylee practically did a full push up as she reacted to the simple statement. What? she repeated when she settled back down. Why would he be asking about me? What did he want to know? What did Tucker tell him?

Geesh, you guys, this is supposed to be a relaxing experience, Liz chimed in. How am I supposed to relax with the two of you gabbing? She let out a long breath. As for you, Baylee, it’s obvious he is asking about you because he’s interested. I suspect he wanted to know how to get through the tough exterior you present to the world. You aren’t the easiest person to get to know. Especially for the male species.

Baylee turned her head to look at Liz, What do you mean tough exterior? Not the easiest person?

Rolling her eyes at Baylee, Liz frowned. Really, so when was the last time you opened up to a man? And I mean other than to have a date for an event?

Well, there was Larry.

Seriously? You saw Larry, what, three times, and one of those was his company’s new opening event that you did the landscaping for. And that was three months ago, Jenna added.

Baylee flipped her head back to look at Jenna.

Hey, I thought you had my back on this.

Baylee’s masseuse grasped her head between her hands, holding firmly to prevent Baylee from moving it again.

Your neck muscles are going to get all wound up again if you keep flip flopping your head like that. Now hold still!

I feel ganged up on. This isn’t finished, Liz. When we are done here, I’m going to want you to tell me what you meant.

The ladies met in the secluded outdoor courtyard after their spa services. Part of the package was a wine and cheese option for after services. It included plenty of water for hydration, but the wine and cheese seemed to be popular. Liz and her friends were wrapped up in warm oversized white robes and slippers while sampling the selection.

You know, this courtyard needs some vegetation, Baylee, the gardener of the group, said while spreading some brie on a cracker. I’ll talk to Paige about some options.

Popping a cube of cheese into her mouth, Liz watched as Baylee stared her down. Baylee knew she could make her nervous with that look. But today was going to be the exception. She returned Baylee’s look with an intense one of her own. She was glad to see the look of confusion come over Baylee.

Okay, something is crawling up your butt about me so give. What did I do and why am I such a hard person to know?

Liz knew she always tried to be tactful so as to avoid being hurtful. But for some reason, watching Baylee shut herself off to wonderful opportunities that kept presenting themselves to her while she, herself, was wide open to them and nothing ever happened, finally pissed her off.

Oh, I don’t know. Let me think, she said sarcastically. You’re upset that a nice, good looking guy takes an interest in you. You get all pissy when he innocently flirts with you. You act like a stubborn ass when people try to help you. And if it is a man trying to help you, then heaven help him.

Pausing to take a sip of wine she saw Baylee and Jenna sitting with their mouths practically wide open. Liz took immense satisfaction in the fact that she could shock them. She almost started to apologize for being so direct and somewhat hurtful, but knew that what she had just said, and was about to say, was actually the best gift she could give Baylee. Baylee had been living on the fringes of her life too long. It was now or possibly never for Baylee to let go of her fears. Liz’s own soft heart was paying a price to hurt Baylee like this. But ever since Baylee lost Charlie, her first love, it seemed she’d closed off a part of herself for fear of feeling that type of pain again. So, Liz decided to drive the stake in a little more.

Oh, sure you have gone out with guys and have had them take care of some of your female needs, but you never let them in. You’ve set this wall up around yourself and like some queen bee decide who you will let in and for what specific purpose. You know, this guy I want sex from, that guy I need for an escort. But you never open up all the way. You don’t make yourself vulnerable and trust a person to meet all your needs. You don’t trust a person to the point you’re willing to let them hurt you.

Liz watched as tears slipped down Baylee’s cheeks and realized there were tears falling from her own eyes. Liz reached across the table to lay her hands over Baylee’s only to have Baylee snap her hands back so she couldn’t touch her. Then she watched as the hurt turned to anger and prepared herself for a blast of Baylee’s temper.

Pushing back from the table and standing up, Baylee wiped the tears from her eyes. I’m amazed you’re even my friend if that is how you see me. Even I wouldn’t want to be friends with the person you described. But, hey, no worries. I won’t bother you with my problems, joys or headaches anymore. Oh, what the hell, I just won’t bother with you at all. Have a good life, Liz! And with that final strike Baylee left.

Liz watched, devastated, as Baylee entered the building. Slowly she turned to Jenna with tears still pouring down her cheeks.

Was I wrong? she asked Jenna.

Jenna, who was struck dumb by what had just happened and was crying herself at the aftermath, looked at Liz for a minute before replying. I don’t know, Liz. I believe you were right in your assessment but maybe wrong in your timing or choice of words. She’s been controlling her relationships to avoid hurting like she did when she lost Charlie, but you described someone who was very callous. And we both know she’s not callous, and has the biggest, most caring heart.

Liz still couldn’t help feeling Baylee needed this push. She knew Baylee would take what she was trying to say and work with the information. Baylee was very smart, but someone needed to crack the protective layer she had built so she could see what was inside. Right now, she needed time to recover from Liz’s strike. And, based on her parting comments, Liz knew she would have to give Baylee time and distance. Liz would give her both. Getting up, she nodded to acknowledge Jenna’s comments and went back into the building.

Chapter One

All she could see was a sea of grey nothingness from the window of the airplane. Sitting in the midst of the clouds, one might think they were in the heavens. But Liz Callahan felt as far away from the peace of that sacred place as she could get. Closing her eyes, where tears pooled, she tried to calm her racing thoughts. Try as she might, the last week flashed through her mind.

She was amazed at the decisions she had made, and how swiftly she’d had acted on them over the last few days. Usually, she was great on ideas but slow on execution. Her best friends, Jenna and Baylee, were really the ones that would take her ideas and run with them. Over the years there were some real flubs, but even those were full of great memories. They would be surprised and most likely mad at her for taking off without a word. But she couldn’t talk to them right now. There was too much going on inside her that all she felt like was running—and so she had.

Ever since that day at the spa, emotions Liz had tried to bury for a long time rose up in her. She wanted love, a home, a family and she struggled to find it. Baylee, on the other hand, had men falling at her feet and wanted nothing to do with them. So, she had challenged Baylee about pushing away the chance for love.

Unfortunately, Liz gave Baylee the impression that she thought she was a cold woman, resulting in a big fight. After Baylee unloaded on her, all she could think about was getting away. Finding something new in her life. Her old pattern of working as a second grade teacher, and randomly dating, had her feeling like she was on a hamster wheel and going nowhere.

Her mom was a little stunned when she told her what she was doing. Liz struggled at the thought of leaving her to cope by herself because, bless her heart, she was a bit of a space case. Her father abandoned them when she was ten and her mother had worked hard to support them on her single salary. Even so, Liz had to grow up fast. The practicalities of everyday living seemed to be beyond what her mother could handle, so it fell to Liz to make sure they had clean clothes, a clean house and food on the table. She felt her mom was in a good place now, but knew she would worry about her. As for her mom, in the end, she had just hugged Liz and told her to go have her adventure.

So, here she was, almost ready to land in Ireland with no plan in mind on how long she was going to stay or what she wanted to do. She just always loved the idea of seeing the place her ancestors hailed from, and now she was going to see if life there could provide her with whatever it was she was looking for. Opening her eyes, she turned her head to the left to look out the window again. Luckily, she’d gotten a window seat for the eleven-hour flight from Denver to the Shannon Airport in Ireland, but her seat neighbor was testing her patience. He’d banged into her so many times without even having the courtesy to apologize or make some inane remark about the close quarters. She’d tried once to make easy conversation, but he just stared at her then closed his eyes.

The captain came on the speaker announcing they were in their final approach. Liz watched as the clouds parted and she got her first look at Ireland. It was as green as she had heard. It also looked wet, but knowing the weather included many wet days this time of the year, she’d come prepared. Her seat neighbor once again banged up against her as he bent over to reach for his backpack. Surprised when this time he deigned to speak to her.

Glad the flight’s almost over. Where’re you headed?

Liz turned to look at her fellow passenger. Galway. You? Trying to be as abrupt as he was.

No place in particular. Came the response, and then he started to dig for something in his pack.

Rolling her eyes, she took another deep breath. Excitement, mixed with anxiety, rushed through her blood stream, as she watched the earth rise up to meet the plane.

Okay, here we go, she whispered to herself as the wheels touched the runway.

Once the plane was secured at the gate, Liz was relieved to be able to stand and start moving toward the exit. She grabbed her travel pack from under the seat, and when moving to the aisle, got her overnight case from the overhead. Securing her travel pack to the bag’s handle, she made her way up the concourse. Inside the main terminal, she paused to get her bearings. Thankfully, the signs in the airport were in English as well as Irish, making it easy to find the way to the baggage claim area. When she had gathered her bags and obtained her rental car she couldn’t decide if she was exhausted or revved up. Either way she was here in Ireland and ready to start her journey. Programming the address of the inn where she was staying into her phone’s GPS, she turned the ignition over and pulled away from the rental lot.

Liz pulled off the road into a little parking area that served as a place to view the scenery. Getting out of the little mini she’d rented, she expelled a deep breath. It was fifty miles from the Shannon Airport to Galway, but the first half hour of driving was an exercise in terror. Driving on the opposite side of a car and road took a lot of getting used to, resulting in her driving slower than the other traffic and getting honked at a lot.

Walking around the small lot to stretch her legs and relax her shoulders, she paused when she actually got a look at the countryside she’d been driving through. It was awe inspiring. The green hills of Ireland were, in truth, a fact. It only took a few minutes of gazing over the landscape to relax her. There was something about the moist green hills that spoke to the soul. Maybe, here, she could find the peace she was searching for. With a new sense of purpose, she got back into the car anxious to reach Galway and get settled in.

When Liz reached the outskirts of Galway, the tension seeped back into her shoulders. The traffic picked up, and trying to navigate the roundabouts to get to the correct street just about did her in. She thought they should have signs in the car rentals that said ‘American, please be patient’. Finally, she was positioned to exit the last roundabout to get on the street where the bed and breakfast was located. Locating the little parking