Free Caught in the Act: Book Two: Independence Falls by Sara Jane Stone Page A

been having fun with her role. But then Liam had mentioned the L-word—the one that had no place in her plan.
    That one word had thrown her off course. She’d started asking the wrong questions. Instead of wondering if he was ready to fall in love, she should be pressing to find out why he was demanding a place in her life now, after all this time.
    She knew from experience that Liam always took charge, claiming what he wanted. That was part of who he was. He issued commands. But while his words haunted her fantasies, she knew they’d wreak havoc on her dreams for the future.
    Still, when he spoke of respecting her choices, her heart had surged as if it wanted to send hope rushing through her veins. It was as if the stupid organ wanted to hear him out, find out if things would be different this time. Not that words and promises could change the past.
    And if she wanted to keep her grandfather’s company from slipping away, she had to follow her plan. She couldn’t let her family down again. Her brothers accepted her choices, most of the time. But they had a limit. And when they found out she was involved with Liam again? She had a feeling that respect would go out the window in a heartbeat.
    She’d seen the looks her brothers had given Liam over the past seven years. Back when Georgia had come to stay with her, before her friend had worked out her problems with the man she planned to marry, Katie’s brothers—especially Chad—had been ready and willing to start a fight when Liam had come looking for his little sister.
    Liam came around to her side of the car. “Ready?”
    She walked past him. “Let’s check it out.”
    She stepped inside Big Buck’s, her eyes wide. This place looked nothing like the bar described on the review Web sites. The long wooden bar running along one side of the open space fit the pictures, but the similarities stopped there.
    “Looks like they removed the mechanical bull,” Liam said, standing close, his front practically touching her back. But glancing around, he didn’t have much choice. Big Buck’s was packed. People, mostly students from the nearby university, if she had to guess, covered every inch of space, their bodies moving to the bump-and-grind music.
    “They do have dancing,” he added, his lips brushing against her ear, sending a shiver down her spine. “But call me crazy, that doesn’t sound like country.”
    “It’s not.” The floor beneath her sandals vibrated as the speakers pumped out the kind of music that called for close-contact movement.
    “Do you still want to find a manager and ask if they allow dogs?” His hand wrapped around her middle, drawing her back as a pair of drunken girls wobbled past on their outrageously high heels.
    “This place is all wrong for Georgia’s bachelorette,” she said, turning her head and looking up at him in order to be heard as she mentally crossed “Country-Western bar with a mechanical bull” off the list.
    “Should we head out?” he asked.
    His powerful, imposing body acted like a cocoon, shielding her from the wild scene in the bar. The way he held her—possessive and protective—she should run for the door.
    “Katie?” he said. “It’s your call.”
    She rested her head against his shoulder, silently debating. Stay or go? His arm, wrapped around her center, held her tight. Her hands moved to his forearm, feeling the corded muscles.
    “We came all this way,” she said. “Let’s stay for a drink.”
    Liam released his hold, laced his fingers through hers, and stepped in front of her. Blazing a path to the bar, he kept her close behind him. Despite the press of bodies, she could smell his unique scent—a lingering hint of the forest mingled with a spicy men’s cologne that drew her in and made her want to stay pressed against him.
    Being here, in this bar, she felt as if she’d taken a step back in time. She’d visited places like this, dancing all night, while in college. At first, she’d been trying