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  “I’m not looking for work.”

  As if on cue, everyone looked at him, at his threadbare flannel shirt, his obvious air of less than notable prosperity. “I’ve got work after Christmas,” he explained. “Due on the job Christmas Day, as a matter of fact. I’m just passing through, looking for a way to kill some time until the job comes up.”

  They seemed to swallow that. After all, it was nothing more than the truth. “Well, you’re welcome to spend your time in Angel Falls. Unless you’ve got family . . . ?”

  There was that question again. He didn’t know about Gabriel Falconi, but Emerson MacVey didn’t have a relative to call his own. “No family,” he said.

  “We have something in common then,” Carrie said, her face smooth and unlined, her voice casual. And yet he felt her pain, as sharply as he’d ever felt his own. “Orphans of the storm. Stay and spend Christmas with us, Gabriel. We’re a friendly town. We share what we have, no matter how little it is.”

  He wished he could tell her no. He wanted to get out of this warm, friendly community, away from the concern of strangers, the gentle prying. But Carrie Alexander was one-third of his ticket to heaven.

  Gertrude Hansen was seated on his other side. She put a gnarled hand on his, and her eyes behind the thick bottle-lens glasses blinked sincerely. “Stay with us, Gabriel,” she said, and he was suddenly, forcibly, reminded of Augusta.

  Ridiculous, of course. This stooped-over, gentle creature had nothing to do with the harridan of heaven. He tried to move his hand, but her grip was surprisingly strong. “Stay,” she said again, and her sweet, soft voice was joined by a chorus of others.

  “Stay,” Carrie said. “You’ve never experienced anything until you’ve experienced a real Scandinavian Christmas. We’re all of Norse descent around here—Swedes and Danes and Norwegians. We know how to celebrate Christmas.”

  “And you wouldn’t believe the food,” Mrs. Milsom leaned across the table to inform him.

  He’d cleared the mound of food on his plate, he, who seldom ate anything more filling than tapas. “You’ve convinced me,” he said, glancing toward Carrie.

  It hit him, harder than the windshield of his truck, harder than the blows of the paramedics as they’d labored over his chest, harder than anything he’d felt in his short, self-absorbed life. She smiled at him, her blue eyes filled with warmth and pleasure, and he was lost. The emotional pull was immediate and shocking, so intense that he felt mesmerized. It no longer mattered what his task was, what Augusta’s orders were, what his observer, whoever he was, would tell him to do. It no longer mattered about the two other people he was going to save.

  He had no intention of leaving Carrie Alexander’s side until he was forced to do so. Come hell or high water. And he doubted high water would have anything to do with it.

  Falling Angel

  * * *

  Next stop: Hell. Unless . . .

  He was a driven, heartless businessman, trampling anyone who got in his way, until one night when his grinchy-heart exploded. Now, he’s back on earth with a second chance...

  About the Author

  Anne Stuart has been writing since the Dawn of Time. She’s been published by every major publisher, and made the NYT, USA Today, and Publisher’s Weekly Bestseller lists. She’s won numerous awards, including four RITAs, as well as RWA’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and she’s known for her dark heroes, black humor and hot sex.

  Follow her on her website at Anne-Stuart.com social media at:

  Also by Anne Stuart

  THE FIRE SERIES

  Consumed by Fire

  Driven by Fire

  Wildfire

  * * *

  THE ICE SERIES

  Black Ice

  Cold as Ice

  Ice Blue

  Ice Storm

  Fire and Ice

  On Thin Ice

  * * *

  THE HOUSE OF ROHAN

  The Wicked House of Rohan

  Ruthless

  Reckless

  Breathless

  Shameless

  Heartless

  * * *

  TROUBLE AT THE HOUSE OF RUSSELL

  Never Kiss a Rake

  Never Trust a Pirate

  Never Marry a Viscount

  * * *

  DON’T LOOK BACK—THE MAGGIE BENNETT BOOKS

  Escape Out of Darkness

  Darkness before Dawn

  At the Edge of the Sun

  * * *

  HISTORICAL ROMANCES

  The Devil’s Waltz

  Hidden Honor

  Lady Fortune

  Prince of Magic

  Lord of Danger

  Prince of Swords

  To Love a Dark Lord

  Shadow Dance

  A Rose at Midnight

  The Houseparty

  The Demon Count Novels

  The Spinster and the Rake

  Lord Satan’s Bride

  Angels Wings

  Demonwood

  Cameron’s Landing

  Barrett’s Hill

  * * *

  WOMEN’S FICTION

  When the Stars Fall Down

  * * *

  ROMANTIC SUSPENSE

  Into the Fire

  The Widow

  Silver Falls

  Still Lake

  Shadows at Sunset

  Shadow Lover

  Ritual Sins

  Moonrise

  Nightfall

  Now You See Him

  Special Gifts

  Break the Night

  The Fall of Maggie Brown

  Winter’s Edge

  Hand in Glove

  Tangled Lies

  The Catspaw Collection

  Against the Wind

  * * *

  SUSPENSE

  Seen and Not Heard

  * * *

  ANNE STUART’S GREATEST HITS

  Cinderman

  The Soldier, the Nun and the Baby

  One More Valentine

  Blue Sage

  Night of the Phantom

  Falling Angel

  * * *

  CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

  The Right Man

  A Dark and Stormy Night

  Wild Thing

  Rafe's Revenge

  Heat Lightning

  Chasing Trouble -

  Lazarus Rising

  Rancho Diablo

  Crazy Like a Fox

  Glass Houses

  Cry for the Moon

  Partners in Crime

  Bewitching Hour

  Rocky Road

  Museum Piece

  Heart's Ease

  Chain of Love

  Against the Wind

  * * *

  COLLABORATIONS

  Dogs & Goddesses – with Jennifer Crusie and Lani Diane Rich

  The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes with Jennifer Crusie and Lani Diane Rich

  * * *

  NOVELLAS

  Blind Date from Hell

  Night and Day

  A Midnight Clear

  Burning Bright

  Dark Journey

  Date with the Devil

  * * *

  MANGA

  A Dark and Stormy Night

  Night