The Rebel's Return

The Rebel's Return
BEVERLY BARTON

Maddie Delarue didn't know who was kissing her until Dylan Bridges–the rebel she once lusted after–whispered his name in her ear. Yet the magic of the moment was soon eclipsed when the body of Dylan's father was found floating in the pond.Accusing fingers pointed at Dylan, who had just returned to Mission Creek, but the former bad boy claimed to have mended his ways. And as far as he was concerned, clearing his name was easy compared to proving himself a gentleman of substance in Maddie's eyes.

CLUB TIMES

For Members’ Eyes Only

Murder-Mystery Gala Turns Deadly

Last night Maddie Delarue’s murder-mystery gala was filled with more drama than a soap opera when the body of Judge Carl Bridges was found floating in the club’s front pond! Sources say our very own members were questioned and then released by authorities, but before long, the most likely suspect emerged from the darkness—Dylan Bridges, bad-boy son of Judge Carl who had recently returned to Mission Creek to make amends with dear old dad. If the wealthy stockbroker truly believes an Armani suit can cover up the scoundrel that lies beneath, he’s been watching too many Dallas reruns. Word has it, though, that Maddie was quick to give Dylan an airtight alibi, claiming she was with him all night. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what those two were up to….

On a lighter note, all members will be happy to know that the investigation into the abandoned baby found on the links is making some headway, thanks to P.I. Ben Ashton and his team. And the Club Times has also learned that newlyweds Flynt and Josie Carson are about to expand their little family. Talk about some Texas two-stepping!

As always, members, make your best stop of the day right here at the Lone Star Country Club!

About the Author

BEVERLY BARTON

was delighted to take part in the LONE STAR COUNTRY CLUB continuity series and was especially pleased to write The Rebel’s Return because the bad boy/poor boy and good girl/rich girl theme is one of her favorites. She found it challenging to incorporate characters from other series books into her story and discovered that the residents of Mission Creek, Texas, were quite fascinating. Being able to include a murder mystery in the plot was an added bonus, and turning Dylan and Maddie into multifaceted people with personal histories that bound them together was gratifying indeed.

Award winning, USA TODAY bestselling author Beverly Barton is a very happy wife, mother and grandmother, a sixth-generation Alabamian and a proud American, with deep family roots in this country that go back over two centuries.

The Rebel’s Return

Beverly Barton

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

Welcome to the

Where Texas society reigns supreme—and appearances are everything.

A shocking murder rocks the town of Mission Creek….

Dylan Bridges: When this hard-hearted loner makes a stunning entrance at the LSCC’s murder-mystery gala, romance reignites with the woman of his dreams. But an evening of passion is not in the works when a grisly discovery is made and all fingers point to him as his own father’s murderer!

Maddie Delarue: This good-girl socialite can’t believe her eyes when the roguish rebel from her past strides into the LSCC and boldly sweeps her into his arms for the kiss of a lifetime. Can their newfound love withstand a devastating turn of events?

Mission Creek Musings: What is visibly bereft waitress Daisy Parker doing at Carl Bridges’s funeral? Could the real murderer still be at large? And is there any truth to the rumor that missing-in-action international playboy Luke Callaghan could be Baby Lena’s proud papa?

To Melanie Davis Austin, who grew up with my daughter as a cousin and as a dear friend.

Because of who you are and what you’ve meant to us, you will always have a special place in my heart.

Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Prologue

Dylan Bridges glared across the courtroom at his father and for one horrific moment felt nothing but hatred for the man. He had kept hoping, up to the very last minute, that his dad would do something—anything—to help him. But the high and mighty, all-important Judge Carl Bridges hadn’t lifted a hand—hell, hadn’t lifted his damn pinky finger—to help his only child.

Dylan felt like a fool for believing that his father would somehow find a way to stop the inevitable, that he’d pull strings, call in favors or at the very least speak in Dylan’s defense. But oh, no, not Carl Bridges, the by-the-book, high-principled, no-excuses lawyer, judge and absentee father. For the past four years, ever since Dylan’s mother died, Carl had had no use for him. Leda Bridges had been the buffer between father and son, keeping peace in the family. It seemed to Dylan that once his mother was gone, his father had stopped loving him, and had devoted all his time and attention to his job.

Well, you’ve had it now, Dylan told himself. You’re on your way to the Texas Reform Center for Boys. Two years! He wouldn’t be getting out until he turned eighteen. How the hell had this happened to him? He’d done a lot of stupid things in the past few years, even had some skirmishes with the law; but stealing a car had been a major screwup, even for him. A string of misdemeanors was one thing—auto theft was something else entirely.

“I’ve never been more disappointed by anyone in my entire life,” Carl Bridges had said. “Son, what were you thinking? You took that car for a joyride and dragged Jock Delarue’s daughter into this mess with you.”

Had that been the real problem, the fact that he’d dared to corrupt Mission Creek’s reigning princess, Maddie Delarue, whose old man had more money than God? If he had simply borrowed the car from the country club and hadn’t whisked Maddie off her feet and practically kidnapped her, would he still be in as much trouble? Probably not. Had his father decided it was easier to betray his son than to displease Jock Delarue? If Dylan knew one thing about his dad, it was the fact that he enjoyed being a golf buddy with the movers and shakers in Texas, especially men like Delarue, Archy Wainwright and Ford Carson.

So, why, of all the girls at Mission Creek High, had Dylan set his sights on Maddie? He’d known she was way out of his league. Was it because the fiery-haired cheerleader was the most popular girl in school? Was it because she represented the unobtainable? Or was it simply because every time he looked at her, he got hard? Whatever the reason, he had become obsessed with the one girl who wouldn’t give him the time of day. Other girls found the tough-guy, bad-boy image he’d cultivated intriguing. At sixteen, he was considered the hellion of Mission Creek, Texas—and the bane of his father’s existence.

He supposed he could lay all the blame on Maddie; after all, she was the reason he’d taken the sleek silver Porsche that day. Like a fool, he’d been damned and determined to impress her, to show off, to get her alone, even if only for a few minutes. The whole thing had started several months ago, the day he’d finally worked up enough courage to ask Maddie for a date. He had cornered her in the school parking lot that afternoon as she and several of her giggling fellow cheerleaders passed by.

He leaned casually against the hood of his old truck. Unlike a lot of the other guys whose fathers had given them new cars on their sixteenth birthdays, Dylan had been told that if wanted a vehicle, he’d have to work for it. His two part-time jobs—as a weekend valet at the country club and his summer and after-school job at the local hardware store downtown—had earned him just enough money to buy the beat-up, aqua-blue Chevy pickup.

“Hey, Red,” he called as she walked past him.

Maddie paused momentarily, shook her head just enough to toss about her long red hair, but didn’t turn or acknowledge his presence in any way. But her girlfriends turned and looked at him, all smiles and fluttering teenage silliness.