title: Chasing Perfect (Fool's Gold, Book 1)
author:  Susan Mallery 
description: For her first Fool's Gold romance, Mallery (<i>Hot on Her Heels</i>) eschews her tried-and-true formula of a passionate heroine and arrogant alpha male hero linked by a tumultuous past, setting up two wary strangers instead. The mayor of Fool's Gold, Calif., is determined to match-make between Charity Jones, a city planner hired to create jobs that will keep the town's men from moving away, and Josh Golden, a professional cyclist and reputed womanizer. Charity, a veteran of romantic disaster, is skeptical of Josh, who's always surrounded by cute female fans. Josh, traumatized by a teammate's death and no longer able to race, feels too broken to maintain a relationship. The book brims with quick-witted, good-natured characters, and though Charity and Josh occasionally verge on blandness, their romance grows poignantly and with chemistry to spare. <i>(May)</i> <br />Copyright  Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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  Praise for
  
  
  New York Times
  
  
  bestselling author Susan Mallery
  
  
  Also available from Susan Mallery and HQN Books
  
  Only His  
  Only Yours  
  Only Mine  
  Finding Perfect  
  Almost Perfect  
  Chasing Perfect  
  Hot on Her Heels  
  Straight from the Hip  
  Lip Service  
  Under Her Skin  
  Sweet Trouble  
  Sweet Spot  
  Sweet Talk  
  Accidentally Yours  
  Tempting  
  Sizzling  
  Irresistible  
  Delicious  
  Falling for Gracie  
  Someone Like You
  
  Watch for more Fool’s Gold books, coming soon!
  
  
  CHAPTER ONE
  
  ONLY
  
  
  IN
  
  
  FOOL’S
  
  
  GOLD would a Mercedes be brought to a stop by a goat. Rafe Stryker turned off
  the engine of the powerful sedan and climbed out. The goat in the middle of
  the road surveyed him with a confident gleam in her dark eyes. If he hadn’t
  known better, he would have sworn she was telling him this was her road and if
  anyone was going to back down in this battle of wills, it would be him.
  
  “Damn goats,” he muttered, looking around for whomever owned the 