Lorie OClare - Play Dirty (The Bounty Hunters)

Praise for Lorie OClares previous novels

The best book Ive read this year!

New York Times bestselling author Lora Leigh on Tall, Dark and Deadly

OClare [writes] page-turners filled with well-developed characters, and sparkling, sharp-witted dialogueand attraction so strong you can feel it!

Romantic Times BOOKreviews

Gripping.

A Romance Review

Ms. OClare has written a gritty, dangerous, and sexy story. The action starts on the first page and doesnt let up until the last. Tall, Dark and Deadly is a page-turner packed with sensuality and suspense. You wont want to miss this one.

Fallen Angel Reviews

Intriguing [and] highly stimulatinga fantastic blend of mystery and suspense.

All About Murder

The passion and steamy sensuality are great, as are the action and emotion.

Romance Reviews Today

St. Martins Paperbacks Titles by
LORIE OCLARE

Tall, Dark and Deadly

Long, Lean and Lethal

Strong, Sleek and Sinful

LORIE OCLARE

St. Martins Paperbacks

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously.

PLAY DIRTY

Copyright 2010 by Lorie OClare.

Excerpt from Get Lucky copyright 2010 by Lorie OClare.

All rights reserved.

For information address St. Martins Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

ISBN: 978-0-312-37215-6

Printed in the United States of America

St. Martins Paperbacks edition / October 2010

St. Martins Paperbacks are published by St. Martins Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

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To my three wonderful sons, who are more supportive of my writing than anyone. The sound of my fingernails tapping on the keys has lulled them to sleep as long as they can remember. And theyve told me they love the sound of it because it sounds like home. They are my best critics, even though none of them have read my books. But they read the blurbs because they want to know about the action. They are my best promotional team, and just all around three incredible young men. I love you Andy, Jonathan, and Luke.

To My Dear Readers,

There is always something dangerous hovering around the title bounty hunter. Over the years, our history has depicted them as treading the fine line between working for the law and working against it. Movies have presented bounty hunters as good people and bad people. We have examples like the Dog, who depict bounty hunting as a moving experience and a chance for the person being hunted to start anew. There are also movies which turn bounty hunting into an almost comical line of work.

Real bounty hunters vary from the type who work closely with the court system and chase those who dont show up for court dates, to the kind who work out of their homes, are licensed private investigators, and quite often have more than one line of work to make ends meet. Hollywood has glamorized a line of work that in reality is dangerous and requires an incredibly large amount of patience.

The few bounty hunters I visited with declined to have their names mentioned here. They shared their experiences, some of their stories being exciting and others rather boring. What I did notice was a similar type of personality in each of them, which helped me mold Greg, Marc, and Jakes personalities. These are men who arent shy. They are in good shape and have a solid conviction to find out what they need to know about you. Each man I spoke with never broke eye contact and had an insight that allowed them to know more about me than I offered while speaking with them. They are patient, quiet, and good listeners. Needless to say, it wasnt hard to mold incredible heroes after seeing how those who choose to be bounty hunters behave.

Greg King is a strong giant of a man. There isnt a woman around who can break his convictions. Except, of course, the one lady that Greg has loved since he was a boy. He has strong morals and doesnt break the law, but knows it well enough to use it to his advantage. Gregs passed those traits on to both of his sons.

I look forward to introducing you to the King family. These men are powerful, determined, incredibly tall and muscular. The Kings know they cant hide well in a crowd but also use their size and strength to their advantage in ways you can only imagine until youve read these books. What impressed me most about Greg King and his sons was their undying devotion to the women they fall in love with.

Youd think a man who is so powerful, physically on top of his act, willful and determined would demand a submissive woman. The Kings all believe that is the right type of lady for them. The fates have another life in store for them. Their women might not be as physically strong, but they are definitely strong of mind. Haley King is just that type of woman.

I know youll love Haley. I sure do. She is stubborn, determined, and knows how to control her man. So please, enter the world of bounty hunters with me, get to know the Kings, and I think youll find youve made good friends who will stay with you long after you finish reading this story.

Lorie OClare

Greg King loved not having to worry about getting a warrant. But if he shot to kill, he would face murder charges. He really did hate some of the laws on the books.

Keeping his Glock pointed to the ground, he hit the street, humidity causing his shirt to cling to him like a second skin. It wasnt even light out yet. It would be another scorcher, tolerable only if he nailed the fugitive theyd been tracking since 2:00 A.M. before the sun got too high in the sky.

And they said life would be boring once he retired from the LAPD.

Marc, you in place? he hissed into his Bluetooth.

Yup, Marc whispered in his ear, sounding somewhat winded. Stationary and ready for fireworks.

Jake, whats it like out front?

All quiet. Hes still in there. Jakes anxious tone sounded as if he was running high on adrenaline.

But then, werent they all? It had been one hell of a night.

Im going in, Greg informed his sons.

Marc and Jake both loved the kill, although technically no one died. Or they werent supposed to. Greg and his sons were only paid when they brought their prey in alive. A dead fugitive was no good to the bondsman whod hired them or, in this case, bondswoman.

Greg knew the craving to make the bust, bring down the fugitive, and slap on those cuffs ran strong enough in his blood that both of his boys would get high from the adventure just like he did.

What he did was dangerous and Greg would never live through one of his family dying because of his livelihood, but Marc and Jake insisted working at his side. Despite Gregs protests, both of his sons had proven to be quick studies and had overcome every obstacle Greg had thrown at them in an effort to make them choose another line of work. Today they were almost as good as him. Both his sons were built like him, well over six feet and incredibly muscular. Their appearance intimidated the not-so-hardened criminal, which always worked to a bounty hunters advantage.

Pulling all-nighters like this never got old. Dealing with the bureaucratic red tape that forced him to wait on judges signatures and stalling until he got the go-ahead from his senior officers had gotten old as hell. Those days were behind him now. Being a bounty hunter allowed him freedom to do exactly what he planned on doing right now, and would have killed to do for the past twenty years.