{"product_id":"nauti-angel-isbn-9780399583858","title":"Nauti Angel","description":"\u003cb\u003eAn explosive secret and red-hot passion propel #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author Lora Leigh’s Nauti series to its thrilling conclusion.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAngel Calloway is no saint. But when the rough and reckless mercenary shows up in Somerset, she makes a lasting impression on the young Mackay girls, especially Bliss. Their mother Chaya, on the other hand, plans on keeping a suspicious eye on Angel. As the wife of the notorious Natches Mackay, she can tell when her family is being played.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFormer Army investigator Reece “Duke” Duquaine can’t help but be curious about the mysterious and sexy new woman in town, and he’s determined to uncover Angel’s secrets. And though his desire for her threatens to consume him, when Duke has the truth about Angel in his sights, he’ll have to take his shot…\u003cb\u003ePraise for Lora Leigh and her novels\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Leigh draws readers into her stories and takes them on a sensual roller coaster.”—Love Romances \u0026amp; More\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Will have you glued to the edge of your seat.”—Fallen Angel Reviews\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Bursting with passion and drama…Enthralls and excites from beginning to end.”—Romance Reviews Today\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A scorcher with sex scenes that blister the pages.”—A Romance Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A perfect blend of sexual tension and suspense.”—Sensual Romance Reviews\u003cb\u003eLora Leigh\u003c\/b\u003e is the #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of the Nauti Boys series, the Nauti Girls series, and the Breed novels.One\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Somerset, Kentucky\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Twenty years later\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Angel. Angel, you're here!\" Bliss Mackay jumped up from the large      towel she was lying on and ran to the young woman making her way      along the grassy bank from the marina store.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She carried a pizza box and a cooler full of drinks toward Bliss      and the teenagers. Beyond Angel, through the large glass window of      the store, Bliss could see her parents, Chaya and Natches,      watching. And Bliss could see the frown on her mother's face and      the confusion on her father's.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Behind her, her cousins Annie, Laken, and Erin stood up from their      own towels, all of them hurrying to meet the young woman at the      wooden picnic table beneath the shade of a large dogwood tree.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"I have arrived,\" Angel agreed, the smile that lit up her face      much different than the one she always gave the adults.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e It wasn't the pizza that caused Bliss and her cousins to greet      Angel so enthusiastically, though. It was Angel herself. She liked      to talk about girly stuff, even though she wasn't the least bit      girly. But she could talk about fixing cars and motorcycles and      show the girls how to protect themselves and fend off the      sometimes too-excited boys that decided they wanted more than just      a kiss.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She knew cool stuff. Like what a desert wind felt like, or the      scent of a jungle and how the smell of the different blooms would      only tease and make a person want to smell it more. She had been      places and seen things Bliss only dreamed of going and seeing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e As Angel placed the food and drinks on the table and turned to      them, Bliss threw her arms around her in a tight hug, knowing the      pizza must mean Angel would be leaving, if not today then the next      morning. And she couldn't help but hold on tighter for a moment as      she made herself hold back all the things she wanted to say.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"I'm going to miss you so much,\" Angel whispered a second before      she pulled back. She hugged the other girls and said the same      thing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Even though she said the same thing to her cousins, Bliss knew      Angel meant the words more for her than the others. She knew it      and couldn't say anything because she was never certain why. It      was just a truth that was there, like she and Angel were best      friends all their lives, despite their eight-year age difference.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"I'm starting to hate pizza,\" the youngest girl, Erin, sighed as      they all sat at the table. \"It always means you're going to      leave.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Yeah, we hate it when you leave, Angel,\" Annie, older than Bliss      by a few weeks, agreed as she glanced away for a moment.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"It won't be for long,\" Angel promised, but Bliss saw the sadness      in her eyes. \"I'll be back.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e That didn't mean they'd get to see her. Bliss had overheard her      mother telling her father how she didn't trust Angel. She thought      Angel was hiding too many secrets.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She might be, Bliss thought at the time, but her mom didn't have      to know everything about everyone. Sometimes people liked to keep      their secrets.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss was silent as she ate a slice of the pizza and sipped at the      iced tea Angel had brought.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Angel, you should talk to Dad and get hired on with the police,\"      Erin stated as they finished their pizza. \"I heard Sam Bryce      telling Dad he should ask you about it.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss saw Angel's surprise before she gave a roll of her eyes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Sam probably just wants to flirt with her.\" Annie giggled. \"She      told Aunt Zoey that Angel was hot.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Good God,\" Angel muttered, frowning a little as she brushed back      the front of her hair in the same way Bliss often saw her mom do      when she was really nervous. \"That woman scares even me.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss laughed at the comment. Sam was really attractive, and Bliss      had overheard several of Aunt Zoey's friends talking about how      \"tempting\" she could be.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss had overheard another conversation, too. One where her mom      had told Erin's dad, the chief of police, that someone needed to      find out what Angel was hiding.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e There was no way Uncle Alex would hire Angel, even if she wanted      to work there.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"I'd get arrested if I tried to work with Sam Bryce,\" Angel      assured them all. \"I'd end up shooting her just because she can be      so irritating.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e It was a friendly threat, but one that assured Bliss that Angel      had no intentions of working on the police force.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Sam's fun,\" Laken assured her. \"She told Dad to suck her dick the      other day and made him blush all the way to the roots of his hair.      Mom was laughing so hard I thought she was going to bust a gut or      something.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e They were all laughing then. They had all heard the comment,      watched Uncle Dawg rub at the back of his neck, mutter something      about damned smart-assed women, then stalk away. Even Bliss's mom      and dad had laughed at it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The conversation flowed around the table until several girls from      school drew her cousins' attention and they excused themselves to      go talk to them. Bliss stayed, staring down at the pizza she      hadn't finished and wishing it didn't hurt so bad to tell Angel      good-bye.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Everything okay, Bliss?\" Angel asked her, her voice softer and      echoing with something Bliss just didn't understand.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"You're going to go fight again,\" Bliss muttered, shooting Angel      an accusing look. \"That's what you do, isn't it? You get paid to      fight other people's wars.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Angel looked confused, hurt. \"I didn't lie to you, Bliss. I get      paid to rescue people. Sometimes those people are caught in other      people's wars, but it's not the war I'm fighting.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss clenched her teeth for a moment, feeling angry, sad, and fed      up with how angry her mother always stayed with Angel.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Why don't you just tell my mom whatever it is she wants to know      so she'll stop being so worried about us being friends?\" she      demanded. \"I don't make friends easy, Angel. I don't want to lose      one.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e That was her fear. That one day, Angel just wouldn't come back      because Bliss's mom would forbid it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Surprise flashed in Angel's eyes, the blue contacts she wore      giving her gaze an oddly shattered appearance. Her mom was right;      Angel hid too much of herself and who she was, even for Bliss's      comfort.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Telling your momma my secrets wouldn't do anything to help the      situation, Bliss.\" Angel looked away and brushed back the front of      her hair again, even though it hadn't yet fallen around her eyes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Breathing out hard Angel drew the knife from the sheath at her      belt and began cutting up the empty pizza box so it would fit      easily in the mouth of the trash can.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e It was the knife that silenced Bliss's protests.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e All she could do was stare at it, her entire world centering on      that knife. The bone handle, weathered with age and the many hands      it had passed through. Silver capped the bone, untarnished and      gleaming from the constant handling and careful polishing. It was      the blade that had her heart racing in her chest, had her wanting      to scream, to deny, to demand explanations.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Because as Angel paused, holding the knife against the cardboard,      the inscription on the blade jumped out and seared her brain:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Godspeed\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e It was right there, a little darker in the grooves, easy to read,      impossible to deny.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"My momma told me once that sometimes it was her job to worry and      my job to let her do it.\" The words beat Bliss's brain when Angel      uttered them.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Sometimes, it's just my job to worry, Bliss, and your job to let      me do it.\" Her mother's lips curved with a hint of sadness. \"And      every day I just pray that if I worry enough, I won't lose you,      like I lost Beth. . . .\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Oh God.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e A cold chill swept over her, almost causing her to shudder. It was      even worse than the one she'd felt the other day when she'd seen      her friend Bran getting yelled at by someone in another language,      so angrily.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Angel was still talking. The knife was moving, but she couldn't      take her eyes off it. Because she'd seen it before in pictures.      She'd heard about it, been told the history of it, and she was      certain it was the same knife her mother had given to her first      daughter, Beth, before her mother had to leave Beth to go to Iraq      so long ago.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The way Angel brushed her hair back when she was nervous . . .      Bliss remembered the tears that fell from her mom's eyes when she      told her about how Beth did that so much that she'd bought bows to      pin back her hair.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The way Angel sometimes moved when an unfamiliar sound caught her      attention . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The same way Bliss's mom moved when the same thing happened . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Angel always wore contacts, kept her hair colored. She was always      angry whenever Mom would ask her about her parents. . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The scars Angel had on the back of one hand, so fine they were      almost invisible. When Bliss asked about them, Angel told her      she'd gotten them when she was three and her father and sister had      been killed. . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Oh God, she didn't know what to do, didn't know what to say.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e How was she supposed to keep this to herself?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Bliss, are you okay?\" Angel asked, pulling the knife back,      pushing it into the sheath at her belt. \"You aren't saying      anything.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Concern filled Angel's voice.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss could only shake her head. \"You're my best friend,\" she      whispered. \"You should talk to Mom. . . .\" She was screaming      inside, so scared she was wrong, so certain she was right.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"We don't have anything to talk about, Bliss,\" Angel said then,      but Bliss saw all the pain, and even anger, that filled her gaze.      \"My secrets aren't her business. But they don't endanger you. I'd      never allow that.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Bliss!\" The sound of her mom's voice had Bliss jerking around to      see her mother bearing down on them, her expression holding that      \"all business\" look she could get. \"Your father needs your help.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss jumped to her feet and ran to her mother. She knew her mom,      knew how she could get, how protective she was. She caught up with      her before she could step to the grass, where Angel would hear      what was said even if Bliss whispered.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Mom.\" She stopped in front of her mother, seeing it now, how much      Angel looked like her mother. The contacts and hair color fooled      people. They stared at her eyes, not her face, Bliss realized. \"If      you really, really love me, Mom, you won't be mean to her. Please,      Mom. Please. Not this time.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Her mother stared down at her then, her expression softening even      as her lips thinned.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Your dad needs help in the store, Bliss, before Uncle Rowdy and      Aunt Kelly get here.\" Her voice lowered. \"Tell your friend      good-bye now and we'll both go help him.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e A reprieve. It was just a reprieve and Bliss knew it, but it might      give her time to figure this out, time to keep her mother from      making a horrible mistake.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Turning, she saw Angel had risen, and she was staring back at      Bliss's mother with that same determined expression, but in      Angel's eyes Bliss saw the need and the anger. And she had no idea      what to do.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Moving back to the picnic table and drawing Angel's attention once      again, she saw the pain, the hope, and the fears that filled her      eyes now more clearly than she ever had before.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Don't leave,\" Bliss demanded, certain that if Angel left then      she'd lose her nerve for sure.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"I'll be back, Bliss.\" She glanced over her shoulder, her      expression flickering with regret.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss knew Angel wouldn't be back soon, though, and there was no      way to hold her there.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"I love you, Angel,\" she said, knowing now why she loved the other      woman, but the shock, the fear that lit Angel's eyes broke her      heart. \"You're my best friend. Always. And I love you.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She threw her arms around Angel in a tight, fierce hug. She      couldn't let her leave without telling her. Not now. Not now that      she knew.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Angel returned the hug and in it, Bliss was terribly afraid she      felt good-bye. If Angel left, she might never come back. . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Trudging back to her mother, Bliss avoided her eyes, but she      couldn't avoid the truth. The truth that somehow, for some reason,      someone had told her mother a terrible lie. The lie that her first      daughter was dead. Because Beth Dane wasn't dead, she was Angel.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Two\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Parking the motorcycle in front of the marina less than      twenty-four hours later, Angel forced herself to dismount slowly      and wait as her foster brothers, Tracker and Chance, did the same.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e It was nearly impossible when panic was searing her insides. The      news that Bliss had nearly been abducted had shaken her to her      core. Another hour and she would have been on the plane heading      for Rio, away from the teenager. Away from her sister.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss could have been taken, dead before Angel could get back to      her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Releasing her helmet and pulling it off, she looked around,      matching the appearance of mild concern exhibited by her foster      brothers, holding back her fear. It was the greatest test of her      patience and training as she pushed back the instinctive need to      run, to race, to hurry, and to make certain Bliss and her mother      were safe.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Tracker led the way to the marina's store, then to the office      where the Mackay family had gathered. Angel stepped inside, her      gaze locking on Natches and Chaya Mackay where they stood across      the room with their daughter, Bliss.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Anger and suspicion immediately flared in Chaya's already-hard      expression and cold brown eyes as her husband merely stared back      curiously, though his emerald gaze was flat.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Merciless. A Marine sniper's eyes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Angel!\" a voice shrieked, still filled with adrenaline. The      teenager that called out to her drew her gaze from the couple. It      was Rowdy's daughter, Annie, who saw her first and announced her      presence. \"I thought you were leaving.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Bliss swung away from her parents at Annie's cry, her emerald      green eyes widening with relief as she followed Annie and rushed      to her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"We were on our way to the plane when I heard the report that      Bliss was in trouble, so I thought I'd come check on you first.\"      As she spoke, Annie, Laken, Bliss, and Erin were throwing their      arms around her in one of those group hugs they'd perfected and      Angel so enjoyed.","brand":"Berkley","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46300544336101,"sku":"NP9780399583858","price":22.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780399583858.jpg?v=1767733588","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/nauti-angel-isbn-9780399583858","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}