Injured in the line of duty,
His orders are simple:
Stay alive.
But when a frightened woman bursts into his life, Hugh and his K9 companion have no choice but to risk everything to keep her safe.
The sole witness to a horrific crime, Kaylee Ramay flees to the Colorado Rockies to start a new life. There she becomes Grace, a dog kennel employee desperately trying to avoid attention—especially from dangerously attractive K9 Officer Hugh Murdoch.
Because Hugh is tall, dark…and nothing but trouble.
Hugh is anxious to get back in the field after an act of heroism left him warming the bench. Until then, he and his K9 partner Lexi spend their hours teasing the town’s mysterious newcomer. But when their simmering attraction is nearly cut short by a sniper’s bullet, Hugh’s mystery woman must come clean about the secrets she keeps…
Or both of them will pay the price.
4 Stars
On The Chase is the second title in the Rocky Mountain K9 Unit series, although I believe it can be read as a standalone. I haven't read the previous title, but didn't feel lost reading this title. On The Chase is full of suspense, intrigue, action, drama and adventure. Although it's a slow burn romance, the pace of the story line is quite fast.
Hugh and Grace aka Kaylee are both intriguing and for the most part charismatic characters. I really liked Hugh's character, he's quite charming, and a joker with some interesting skills for a officer of the law to hold.
Whilst Grace is witty and strong, she also could be a tad annoying at times when she was bemoaning her situation and it felt a bit whingey.
I adored the fun and flirty banter between Hugh and Grace with his one liners, and her snarky, sassy comebacks. Hugh's distrust of Grace and her reticence to reveal much about herself leads to some interesting situations. Hugh's boredom whilst on medical leave, provides the perfect opportunity for him to basically stalk Grace, with action, adventure and humor filled results.
Overall On The Chase is a lovely story of friendship with equal parts heart and humor. Although it's low on heat, this title had me laughing out loud on more than one occasion and I was quite captivated by the story line and found it really entertaining.
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Grace
crossed her arms over her chest in an attempt to create a barrier
between them. It didn’t help; Hugh was still much too close for
comfort. She scrambled to catch the thread of their conversation.
“Well, stop being informed.”
Even
before he grinned, she knew that hadn’t made any sense.
“About
me. Stop informing yourself about me.” That was even worse.
Struggling to find her usual composure, Grace shifted back a step.
That gave him the advantage, but she couldn’t think with him so
near. Stupid Hugh with his stupid, muscly body was distracting her.
“Sorry,
Grace.” His grin took on a shark-like cast. “I’m not planning
on stopping. You’re a puzzle, and I don’t like things to
go…unsolved.”
The
last of her equanimity disappeared, evaporated with the knowledge
that he wasn’t going to quit investigating her. Beneath her anger
and the anxiety about what he’d discover, there was a hard kernel
of disappointment. She didn’t want to be interesting to Hugh
because she was some sort of unsolved puzzle. Despite herself, she
wanted him to be interested because she was fascinating to him.
A
tiny, dumb part of her wished that he was as attracted to her as she
was to him.
When
she realized she was just staring at him, thinking silly, useless
thoughts, Grace abruptly turned and walked—well, stomped—toward
her car. She was parked on the other side of the building, and she
cursed herself for not picking one of the front spots instead. If she
had, she’d already be inside, away from Hugh’s looming presence.
Having her car sitting exposed, for anyone to see if they drove past,
bothered her, though, so she tended to pick the most hidden spots she
could find. It didn’t matter that the car wasn’t registered to
her real name. Maybe she was being paranoid, but she just didn’t
want to take any chances. One screwup, and she would be dead.
She
turned the corner. Although she couldn’t hear footsteps behind her,
she knew he was there, and close. Shooting him a narrowed-eyed look
over her shoulder, she snapped, “Don’t you have something better
to do than follow me?”
“Not
really.” Although his words were light, the usual humor wasn’t
there. Instead, he met her gaze with an intensity that made her whip
her head around so she was facing forward again. Jokey Hugh was one
thing, but smoldering Hugh could be a serious problem.
“Grace.”
He caught her hand, bringing her to a halt. Although her feet stopped
moving, almost of their own accord, she kept her gaze focused on her
car. “Grace, look at me.”
She
couldn’t do it. If she looked at him, she wouldn’t be able to
think. It wasn’t good that the man who had the drive to discover
her secret made her incapable of rational thought. A tug at her hand
made her realize that she was stuck. Until she met his eyes, Hugh was
going to stay there.
I
can do this. She’d faced worse than Hugh over the
past two weeks.
Setting
her jaw, she turned around. Her gaze traveled up his solid chest,
over his serious face, and locked on to his gaze.
“Why
are you running away from me?” he asked, sounding completely
sincere. “You can trust me.”
Unable
to look away, she just pressed her lips together. She couldn’t
trust anyone. Martin Jovanovic’s reach was too extensive. She’d
made that mistake already, and it had left her hunted and crouching
by a dumpster.
“I
can help you.” He tugged her closer, and her traitor body gave in
to his pull. His head tipped down, and air from his words brushed her
cheek. Her breath left her in a shuddering rush as her eyes closed.
He felt so safe, so solid, so strong…
“What’s
your name?” he asked softly, directly in her ear. “Your real
name?”
With
a frustrated sound, she jerked her hand away. He was playing her,
using her attraction to him to get the information he wanted. “You
are such an ass!” She started to stomp away, but Hugh caught her
again, around the waist that time. He pulled her tightly against him,
her back pressing against his front.
“It
would make things a lot easier for both of us if you’d just tell me
the truth.” The rasp in his voice and the way his breath brushed
her ear distracted her, tempting her to sink into the heat and
strength of him—but then the meaning of his words hit her.
Clenching
her teeth to hold back a frustrated scream, she yanked out of his
grip and spun around. “I am not your puzzle to solve,” she
gritted out, poking him in the chest with each word. “I’m not one
of your suspects. You do not get to interrogate me.”
He
caught her jabbing finger in a firm but gentle grip. Their eyes met,
and his were hot and shockingly hungry. “You’re so beautiful when
you’re yelling at me.”
Her
mouth fell open, but she couldn’t say anything else. Was he serious
this time, or had that just been another way to distract her, to
disarm her? “Quit trying to butter me up. It’s not going to make
me tell you anything.”
“I
mean it.” His expression was completely earnest. There wasn’t a
hint of laughter to be seen.
She
stared at him, fury and anxiety and desire all swirling together in a
molten mixture that burned her from the inside. This man was going to
be the death of her. “You are so…”
“I’m
so…what?” His gaze dropped to her mouth. “Hot?” The lilt of
humor had returned to his voice.
“Arrrgh!”
She started to turn away, fully prepared to stomp to her car, after
which she would perhaps run him over several times, but his fingers
closed around her arm, tugging her back around. Grace opened her
mouth, ready to tell him off, but then her gaze collided with his.
All amusement had been erased from his expression. The heat, the
hunger burning in his eyes erased all thoughts of their latest
argument and lit an answering inferno inside her.
Then
his lips were on hers, and Grace was lost.
When she’s not writing, KATIE RUGGLE rides horses, shoots guns, and trains her three dogs. A police academy graduate, Katie readily admits she’s a forensics nerd. While she still misses her off-grid home in the Rocky Mountains, she now lives in a 150-year-old Minnesota farmhouse near her family.