Read an excerpt from Innocent Target by Katie Reus

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From USA Today bestselling author Katie Reus comes the next story in the explosive Redemption Harbor series where sparks fly and so do bullets…

He wasn’t supposed to fall for her…

She was a target. A contract that came across his desk by mistake. Axel was simply going to warn her that she was in danger and get out. Then he got a taste of her and fell hard. But they’re from two different worlds. Not only is she innocent, she’s out of his league. He should keep his distance, but he can’t. Not when someone wants her dead. Now he’s driven to protect her, to keep her safe.

What happens when she discovers who he really is?

Hadley moved to Redemption Harbor for vet school and to be closer to her new family. Now that her billionaire father knows about her existence, her life has changed drastically. She just never imagined that she might be targeted because of her family. And she definitely never imagined she would fall for the one man she should never want. A man who kills for a living. A man who’s obsessed with her. A man who will do anything to protect her from the danger lurking in the shadows.

Excerpt

Copyright © Katie Reus 2018

Hadley adjusted her backpack as she reached the edge of the dark parking lot where she’d parked her car. Normally this lot was fully lit up this time of night. The college was intense about security.

Frowning, she scanned the surrounding grassy areas, which were now covered in shadows from the giant oak trees. In the daytime, this place was gorgeous and teeming with life. Now it was creepy. Really wishing that Cindy, her classmate, had been in class tonight to walk with her like they normally did, she pulled out her cell phone instead. Using her phone’s flashlight app, she held it up as she hurried across the parking lot.

She could see the outline of a couple cars, including her own, but only because she knew where she’d parked it. Directly under one of the lights.

Which was currently out.

Maybe there had been a power outage on part of the campus? Seemed weird, since there hadn’t been a storm, but who knew. She was new to the college and living in South Carolina. Redemption Harbor had a great vet school, which was a huge part of why she was here. But she’d really wanted to get to know her new family. Applying for school here before she’d met her half-brother had been a risk, but she’d gone for it because of the stellar program. She’d grown up knowing who her father and half-brother were, but until a couple months ago they hadn’t even known she’d existed.

For so long she’d stayed away from them because of her mom’s lies. Now she knew and loved her father and half-brother. They were overprotective and could sometimes be overbearing, but she was learning how to create boundaries and make them stick. Because holy crap, those men were like big bulldogs who seemed to think she was made of spun glass. And her brother’s friends—male and female—were just as protective.

Picking up her pace, she hurried toward her red car. As a woman, she’d learned not to put herself in risky situations from a young age. It was like breathing; it was simply what you did. So right now she was pissed off on principle that all the lights in this parking lot were off and she didn’t have a friend to walk with.

And she was also kicking herself for not putting the pepper spray her brother had given her in her backpack. No excuse for that.

As she reached her car she pressed the key fob and slipped her backpack off. Just as she reached for the door handle, two rough hands grabbed her shoulders from behind and slammed her against the car.

Crying out, she threw a hand up to brace herself but the side of her head hit the top of her car. Pain ricocheted through her skull, jarring her.

Before she even had time to react or fight back, her attacker wrapped an arm around her throat.

Adrenaline jagged through her, sharp and cutting. No. Oh God, no! She couldn’t pass out. Then he could do whatever he wanted, even transport her from here, or kill her.

No!

Hadley reared back with an elbow and jabbed the guy in his stomach but he didn’t even react.

He didn’t say anything at all, which made it somehow worse. She felt as if she was dying. A thump sounded as she kicked out, accidentally slamming her foot into her car. More pain registered but she ignored it as she tried to stay awake.

Tears stung her eyes as she struggled and thrashed, even as he tightened his grip on her throat. Everything was getting fuzzy, and in the back of her mind she knew that she was going to pass out soon. She tried to scream but nothing would come out as he kept up the pressure on her windpipe.

Frantic, she lifted her legs and used her feet to shove off her car, propelling them backward. He stumbled once.

Abruptly his hold loosened and she fell to the concrete pavement. Her palms slammed against the ground even as she heard the male grunting.

Run. Hide. Now.

Turning and lifting her hands to shield herself from the attack she expected she…froze. They weren’t alone anymore. Thanks to muted moonlight she could make out two men fighting in the dark but they were both shadowy figures.

One had a mask and the other had a big beard.

What was happening? Fear snaked through her even as she told herself to run. It held her immobile, however, as she watched the bearded guy slam his fist into the other masked man’s face.

A crunching sound rent the air as bone broke.

The other man slumped and the one with the beard hauled the other guy up, tossing him over his shoulder as if he weighed nothing. Then he dumped him in the trunk of a nearby car.

The guy didn’t even look her way, just slammed the trunk shut, slid into the driver’s seat and took off without turning on the headlights.

Hadley shoved up, but stood there, shaking.

What…had just happened?

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About Katie Reus

Katie Reus is the New York Times, USA Today, and IndieReader bestselling author of the Red Stone Security series, the Moon Shifter series and the Deadly Ops series. She fell in love with romance at a young age thanks to books she pilfered from her mom’s stash. Years later she loves reading romance almost as much as she loves writing it.

However, she didn’t always know she wanted to be a writer. After changing majors many times, she finally graduated summa cum laude with a degree in psychology. Not long after that she discovered a new love. Writing. She now spends her days writing dark paranormal romance and sexy romantic suspense. Her book Avenger’s Heat recently won the Georgia RWA Maggie Award for Excellence in the fantasy/paranormal category.

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