Finding Kimber
Canyon Junction:
Hearts in Love Series #2
A Double Dutch Ranch Series Spin Off Novel
Mary J. McCoy-Dressel
COPYRIGHT
All Rights Reserved. This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, scanned, distributed, stored in, or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, either now known or in the future, is forbidden without the express written permission of the author, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes.
DISCLAIMER: The reader should regularly consult a physician in matters relating to his or her health, or a veterinarian for animal health, particularly with respect to any symptoms or accidents that may require diagnosis or medical attention.
First Digital Edition, November 2017 United States of America
Finding Kimber © 2017 by Mary J. Dressel
Publisher: Teel Blue Books
Cover Design: DusktilDawn Designs
Formatting: LK E-Book Formatting Service
Edited By: Ally Robertson
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidences either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Table of Contents
Books by this Author
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Other Books by Mary J. McCoy-Dressel
Acknowledgement
About the Author
Books by this Author
Double Dutch Ranch Series:
Love at First Sight
Cowboy Boss and his Destiny
Tristan’s Destiny, Bonus Bk #1.5
Heartbreak’s Reward
Of the Cowboy’s Own Accord
Lassoing the Last Dance
Canyon Junction:
Hearts in Love Series
Whispers of Forever
Finding Kimber
Bull Rider Series
Howdy, Ma’am
Hey, Cowboy
Christmas at Love House
Dedication
This book is dedicated to Christopher.
You’ve always been there to offer love, support, and understanding.
For this, I thank you. Love, Mom.
Blurb
Zachary (Zach) Bryson arrives in Arizona with hopes of leaving the ghosts from his past behind. Hired by a stranger to run a ranch, he meets the owner—a secretive woman with no ranching experience. He’s seen her before, but she wasn’t a redhead with green eyes. In their first encounter, she swept him off his feet without their exchanging a word. Why did she change her appearance? What secrets lay behind those heart-stopping eyes? Seeing this job as a challenge, he sticks around to tackle this hottie head-on.
Kimber Sinclair is forced to flee her lush Oregon county for a small town in Arizona with sand, saguaros, and dusty cowboys. She settles in to live a lie—to discover the person behind her new identity while she mourns the death of Tressa Garnett—her given name at birth. However, keeping a distance from her ruggedly handsome, broad-shouldered, wise-cracking ranch foreman, isn’t easy. She struggles daily to hide her secret from Zach who demands answers. By telling him the truth, his life could also be in danger.
If trouble finds her, will she choose fight or flight? Can Zach set aside his own issues, or will his nightmares prevent him from doing what he was unknowingly hired to do?
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Chapter 1
Regardless of her determination not to cry, tears trailed down Tressa Garnett’s cheeks. Greg Stone, the prosecuting attorney, continued to badger her on the witness stand. Wasn’t he on her side? Her ordeal played over like a documentary film. She had become Sam’s lover. Yes, she worked on and off with him for three years. She hesitated at the next question.
“Ms. Garnett, you must answer.”
She glanced at the judge who nodded and swept his hand through the air for her to get on with her answer.
Greg asked again, “And is it correct you oversaw the money exchange between Mr. Cavalli and Samuel Allen?”
“Yes.” Her gaze flicked to Sam. His glare gave threats his voice hadn’t. The smirk on his face matched the one he wore when he shoved the pistol into her hand after he shot and killed Pino Cavalli. From this day forward her life would change forever. She might as well walk out of the courtroom and grab a shovel if things didn’t go to plan. To plan? Her disappearance was the plan.
Tressa peered at the salt-and-pepper-haired man sitting two rows from the back of the courtroom. Her godfather, Jerry Waterford, had become her lifeline. Could her heart take the agony of losing her family when she disappeared without a trace with a new name and identity? She choked back tears. Jerry gave a subtle nod.
Now, the tissues in her hand matched her torn emotions. Her life hung in a balance somewhere in the middle of living and dying.
Greg tapped on the railing around the witness stand. His eyes softened. “And were you in the warehouse when Mr. Cavalli was shot?”
A bullet to Pino’s head had taken his life instantly. Her gaze moved to the two men behind Sam. If she said yes, would they be the ones to hunt her down?
“Ms. Garnett, I must remind you that you’re under oath and need to answer the question. Were you in the warehouse—”
“I heard you. Yes.” If Greg Stone said those words one more time, she might claw his eyes out. He picked up a handgun in a clear evidence bag. Yesterday he seemed like a friendly middle-aged man, and her way out of this hellish situation, but today while bullying her on the stand, he reminded her of an ogre.
His gaze settled upon her. “Your fingerprints are on this weapon along with Mr. Allen’s. Tell us how your fingerprints got on this weapon.”
She pointed at Sam. “Him. He stuck the revolver into my hand after he shot Mr. Cavalli.” She took a deep breath and slowly released air through barely parted lips as the defense attorney protested. “Let the record show Ms. Garnett pointed to Samuel Allen.” Greg paced across the room and back to the witness stand.
Tressa breathed deeply. She wanted to pass out and when she came to, she’d learn it’d all been a dream. She focused on the prosecuting attorney, afraid if she glanced at Sam his glare might somehow cause her to explode.
“Who shot Mr. Cavalli?” asked Greg Stone.
God, can this be over? Sam had told Pino’s men he gave the money to her accomplice, further blaming the extortion on her. Now she had two enemies. She had no damn accomplice. All she did was learn the truth. Without hesitation or remorse, she pointed to Sam. “Mr. Allen.” The two men behind him both shifted in their seats, and Sam looked over his shoulder.
The courtroom broke out into an uproar
while the judge beat the gavel at least ten times, or maybe it was three. She covered her ears to ward off the noise. Tressa lowered her eyes to her lap while tears left stains on her navy-blue silk blouse.
“Thank you, Ms. Garnett.”
Her gaze settled on Melinda Richards who sat next to her godfather. She left the courtroom.
The judge pounded the gavel one more time. “Are there any other questions?” He directed his gaze to the defense attorney who gave no rebuttal, nor did he cross-examine her. The judge gave her permission to return to her seat. Upon sitting, her mom leaned over her dad to pat her hand.
***
After court, Jerry and two sheriff’s deputies swept Tressa out of the courtroom to a conference room to wait for the crowd to diminish. Soon after, Jerry and Melinda took her and her family back to the suite at a V.I.P. hotel on the outskirts of town. He didn’t want her to return to the courtroom for the verdict, so he demanded they leave the courthouse.
Tressa paced while wringing her hands. “Jerry, I have to be there.”
“I don’t advise it. Tressa, you must cooperate. For this plan to work, you have to trust me.”
“I know. Waiting to see where my life is headed is damn hard.” The prosecutor hadn’t expected the jury to take long. Her mom sat on one side, her dad on the other. Her younger sister, Charlotte, sat across from her. “You did the right thing, sis.”
Memories flooded her mind. Sam had wined and dined her, fed her fancy meals, took her on trips until the last weekend together. She had no way of knowing that he knew she’d only gone along with him to uncover more information. She had agreed to the weekend away, but she’d ended up with the ultimate betrayal against her.
“Afterward, you go straight to Aunt Rosemary’s in Canada until everything blows over.” Susan, her mother wrapped her arms around her. “Dear Rosemary will love having you visit.”
Blows over? Tressa’s heart broke over the plan she had insisted on as part of her deal to testify. Sam’s men would never let betrayal blow over.
Tressa peered lovingly into the faces of the two most important women in her life. “I love you, Mom, Charlotte.” She held their hands tight. “Dad.” Her eyes misted when her dad patted her on the back. Oh, Dad, what have I done?
“Tressa, be strong. This’ll be over soon.” Charlotte squeezed her hand in a caring sisterly fashion.
Tressa left them and sauntered to the window as if she had strength to go on. How much would she miss her old life? More than she could imagine. She’d miss the nice clothes, bags, and fancy shoes. Her days of gourmet meals ended when a man died. A reasonable paycheck vanished. Most of all, and more than anything on this planet, she’d miss and mourn the loss of her family.
Sunset eerily loomed over the city. The entire landscape shone golden in a glow reflecting off shiny car bumpers on the road below. She entwined her fingers at her midriff so no one saw them tremble. Dryness in her throat compared to a wool blanket. Of all days in Oregon, today it should’ve rained.
She turned and stood in a slump instead of straight and tall. Blonde hair fell across her face and hid the red streaks sure to be in her eyes. “What if the jury doesn’t believe me?”
“They will." Her dad took her hand and reached for Charlotte’s. In turn, they clasped hands to say a prayer for her.
Afterward, she moved back to the hotel window. Passing clouds led to a twilight sky. They floated about as fast as her life in hiding these past months. Of course, she’d never forget this day or the reason. Albeit, she appeared to be weak now, but her strength demanded her to tell the truth.
As much as she didn’t want to envision the happenings of that awful night, though difficult as it was, she did. The image of Pino’s dead body on the floor, his blood spattered on her arms and legs, lingered behind her eyes. At times, she still felt the wet of his blood on her skin.
***
One hour led to another, and yet another. The next morning, Jerry turned on the TV to await news. She gazed at her mother, father, and only sibling. Her sister who looked the opposite of her with her dark hair and tanned skin, was younger by four years and had always looked up to her. She’d be devastated from this day forward. Tressa moved a lock of sable hair away from her sister’s pretty face, now reminded of how much she’d miss Charlotte when her godfather took her out to a dark-windowed SUV.
Then the phone call came in from Greg Stone saying the verdict was about to be read. Everyone stood motionless in front of the TV. Jerry sauntered toward Tressa and grasped her shoulders. “You understand, don’t you?”
Tressa gave a curt nod. Her emotions stood frozen. She understood nothing about this day.
Her father wrapped his arm around her waist as the news reporter announced, “Guilty verdicts on all counts.”
Jerry Waterford remained close to show support to both her and her family. He clasped her arm to escort her to the other side of the room out of earshot. “This is a brave thing you’re doing, Tressa. Ready?”
If only the trembling inside her body remained inside, but now it showed on her exterior. She glanced at her family. No, I can’t do this now. I can’t. It would’ve been okay if her body sank between the fibers in the carpet. But now it was too late for anything.
Jerry spoke low, “Be afraid of nothing. You can count on me.”
Her father came over to hold her. “Tressa, darling, you’ll go right to Canada from here. We’ll come to visit when this dies down. Everything will be okay.”
None of them understood. Be strong. Now. Tressa glanced to the rest of her family. “Dad—” She peered at Jerry. Tears filled her eyes for many reasons.
Jerry stood tall and confident. “Daniel. Susan, please come and sit down. We have something to tell you.”
Tressa stood beside him. Of course, the biggest part of her deal was not to go to prison for murder, but Greg Stone had wanted Samuel Allen off the streets. Pino wasn’t the first man he’d killed, but without solid witnesses to those crimes, none of the charges ever stuck.
Jerry spoke softly to her dad. “I’ll take care of your daughter.” He took a seat across from her family. She planted herself on the arm of the couch beside Jerry. Everything moved in slow motion. Tressa observed the genuine smile on her mom’s face, as she said, “Tressa can come back home when they forget all this happened.”
How naïve. Men like Sam never forgot. The walls closed in and squeezed the breath out of her. This was the hardest thing she’d ever have to do in her life. “Mom. Dad, Charlotte? I’m not going to Canada to see Aunt Rosemary.”
“What do you mean?” asked her mom.
Jerry went into his spiel as gasps could be heard from her family. She’d disappear, change her identity, her looks, begin a new life…and they couldn’t know where she went.
Tressa discovered strength she didn’t know she had. “Please, you have to accept this—”
“Listen, folks. I love you all like family, and I would never do anything to hurt you, though I know this will hurt for a long time. You have to trust me on this.” Jerry held up his hand when her dad tried to speak. “This is the only way we can guarantee Tressa’s safety. And yours. She has to disappear.”
Tressa took a seat between her parents and clung to their hands as Jerry explained the next step—her death. “It’s the only way you and Tressa will ever be safe. Those two men sitting behind Sam weren’t there to support him. Sure, he’ll be in prison, but—”
“I understand.” A tear slipped from her dad’s eye. He glanced at her mom who cried openly. “Jerry’s right, Susan. He’s done this kind of thing all his life. We both know he’s right.” Charlotte held her head in her hands, crying uncontrollably until her dad sat beside her.
“I don’t want you to disappear, Tressa.” Charlotte swiped at the tears on her cheeks, but they kept coming.
“Charlotte, I’ll miss you all terribly. Please know I’ll be okay, and a day won’t go by that I won’t be thinking about you. But I’ll be alive, and you w
on’t have to worry. Dad, tell her.”
Daniel put his arms around Charlotte and she sobbed against his shoulder. “Don’t forget me, Tressa.”
“Never, Charlotte. Any of you.”
“I’ll give you some time alone.” Jerry left.
She took a deep breath. “Mom. Dad? The original plan was for you all to think I died, but I couldn’t allow that. It’s better this way, and no, it won’t be easy for any of us, but if I stayed…” She splayed her hand over her chest, needing to take a breath. “If I stayed, I couldn’t live with the fact that any one of you could be killed at random. Sam is a bad man, Dad, and he…” She lowered her head and breathed in and out again. “Sam said he’d kill me, my family, if I didn’t take the blame for him.”
“We understand, but we don’t like it—”
“NO, I don’t understand.” Her mom rose from the couch but dropped back down. “Heaven help us all. How can I understand when I’ll never see my daughter again?” She sobbed.
Daniel reached for his wife’s hand and continued, speaking dryly, “Later, when you’re settled maybe we can talk? Let us know how you are?”
“Yes.” Though Jerry advised against it, she’d find a way. “But not soon. Maybe a year…or longer. You put me in Jerry’s hands the day you made him my godfather. You trusted him then, please trust him now. I do.” Tressa stood, feigning strength. “But we have to get through one more horrible ordeal—my death in the form of an exploding and burning car. You’ll have to witness my death to make it believable. Can you?”
“Is there no other choice?” Her dad embraced her. “I know there isn’t. Thank you for insisting on letting us know the truth. Otherwise, we couldn’t have gone on without you, my dear.”
Finding Kimber (Canyon Junction; Hearts In Love Book 2) Page 1
