Cowboy Edition EBook

by Maree, Kay

  “Disrespect me all you like,” Danica fumed, a finger jammed in Cecilia’s face, “but I will not stand by and watch you disrespect Walker as a man but certainly, not as the Sheriff.”

  “Damn Walker,” Eli grinned.

  “C’mon Baby.” I smirked grabbing her around the waist dragging her back.

  “No, Walker, I am so sick of this stupid bitch. I won’t put up with her crap anymore.” Danica fought my hold, wanting to get her hands back on Cecilia, no doubt to scratch her eyes out.

  “Baby as much as I love that you are defending my honour, I’ve got it from here.”

  “I want her arrested,” Cecilia seethed. “She assaulted me. You all saw it.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Sunny said, pulling her to her feet.

  “I didn’t see anything,” Eli shrugged.

  “This is bullshit everyone saw what she did! I’ll get you to stupid whore! Once I sort out this bullshit out, I’m coming for you!”

  “I don’t think so,” Danica barked, lunging for her again.

  “Come here, Little Sis.” Eli draped an arm over Danica’s shoulders, keeping her by his side. “Do your thing Bud.”

  “Behave,” I growled at Danica. I had enough to deal with, without having to arrest my girlfriend for kicking Cecilia’s dumbass.

  “Cecilia, I don’t like to repeat myself, but for you I will. Cecilia Bond, you are under arrest. Sunny is here to take you into custody.”

  “For… for what?” She asked, looking nervously at the piece of paper I pulled from my back pocket. “What’s that?”

  “This right here,” I held up the first piece of paper. “Is a warrant to search your room.”

  “Jesus Christ Walker, could you be any more cryptic? What were you looking for? Besides, you didn’t need a warrant to search me room, you could have just asked.” She batted her eyes at me in a way she thought was seductive. “What did you find?” She asked smugly. Knowing we wouldn’t find anything in her room.

  “In your room, here at the Rusty Wagon,” nothing I confirmed. “Well, nothing of significance except for this.” I held up another piece of paper sealed in an evidence bag. “This is a receipt. In your name for a storage facility two counties over.”

  “So? My room here isn’t that big, I need somewhere to store my belongings.”

  “Well, the receipt, helped me to get this.” I held up another piece of paper. “This is a warrant to search that storage unit. What we found there helped me get this.” I held up a fourth and final piece of paper. “This is the warrant for your arrest. Cecilia Bond, you are under arrest for fraud, embezzlement and unlawful surveillance just to name a few.”

  “Walker, what’s happening? I don’t understand.” Danica looked confused and a little hurt.

  “A side from guilting the girls into handing her half their wages, CeeCee here has her hand in everything. The fucked-up orders, the tills running short, the generator being out of fuel, even Billy’s fall down the stairs. It was all because of her.”

  “What…. What do you mean?” Danica asked.

  “She’s been gathering information from people in the town from you and Billy and selling it. It’s why Brian and Sarah left town. It had nothing to do with them wanting to move to the coast. It was because she was blackmailing them.”

  “For what?”

  “The number one reason all dumbasses do dumb shit – Money.” Cecilia had been spying on people, gathering information, handing it off to a third party. Her buyer. “Get her out of here.”

  Walker

  “Walker, was Eli wearing a deputy's badge?” Danica asked, watching the boys drag Cecilia out of the Rusty Wagon. Her foulmouthed protests echoing down Main Street.

  “Yep.”

  “So, he’s sticking around for a while then, huh?”

  “Yep.”

  Shellshocked, she let me guide her back to her office. She sat on the small couch, saying nothing. I poured us both a glass of whisky before joining her.

  “Walker, what happened?”

  “Here, drink this. I have a feeling you’re going to need it.” I handed her a glass; she drank as I explained.

  When Eli called to let me know he had back traced the surveillance feed. He found the storage unit. In the storage unit were stacks of external hard drives with thousands of hours of footage of some of the most influential people in town.

  “Boss, this is all evidence.” Sunny indicated to the mountains of equipment lying around the unit.

  “I know Bud. There are fucking hours of work here. We need everything catalogued and tagged.”

  “I know that Boss, but with what is in here and what we just saw on the live feed. We have to be careful. We can't have anyone crying miscarriage of justice because Eli was here. No offence, man. Trust me, I would much rather have you at my back than any other person I’ve worked with. With the expectation of this guy.” He slung his thumb over his shoulder at me. “Your military experience aside, you’re a civilian. If we want the charges for whatever we find to stick. Everything has to be done by the book.”

  “Shit, he’s right,” Eli said, backing out of the unit. “Just make sure you discuss everything loudly so I can hear.”

  “Eli, don’t be a dick. Come here,” I insisted.

  “No, Walker. I don’t want to be the reason the case is chucked out.”

  “I know and neither do I. Elijah Robert Booth, I here by deputise you into the Venom Ridge Sheriff's department. Sunny can you witness?”

  “Yes, Sheriff. Elijah Robert Booth, welcome to the team. You’ll be on weekends for the next six weeks,” Sunny smirked.

  “Seriously, Walker?” I nodded. “Don’t you have to perform some sort of ritual? Like dub me with a sword or something?”

  “You’re not being knighted, asshole.”

  Once the legal logistics were sorted, Sunny, Eli, and I watched until we found what we needed to get the arrest warrant. The more we watch, the more the charges stacked up. Even though the judge was one of her best clients even he couldn’t deny the warrant request once he saw the list of evidence. That he was featured in one of the clips didn’t hurt.

  The only thing we couldn’t figure out was how Charles Andrew was connected to it all. His name was featured in many conversations but there so far had been no solid evidence linking him to anything.

  That wouldn’t stop me from looking, though.

  “Walker, what do you mean she was responsible for Grandpa’s fall?” Danica asked, bringing things back to the matter at hand.

  “Baby, I’m so sorry. There wasn’t time to explain.”

  I’d left not long after I got the call from Eli. We’d spent all day and most of the night going through the evidence in the storage unit – we still aren’t done. We had just moved everything to the secure evidence lockup so we could all get some rest before processing the rest, when we got the call about the truck roll over.

  I didn’t want Danica to find out this way, but it was too late now.

  “Explain what?”

  “One of the charges Cecilia is up against is attempted murder.”

  “What?!”

  “She found out who you are, who your family is, and lost her mind. She knew she couldn’t get away with blackmailing or killing you, so she went after Billy.”

  “What? But why? Grandpa is a Bridge not a McCaffrey. He has money, yes, but not McCaffrey money. What the hell was she thinking?”

  “She wasn’t.”

  “But I don’t understand.” Danica gulped down the last of her whisky, handing me the glass, clearly needing more. “How was she supposed to get her hands on any money, even if she managed to kill him? Oh god, just saying that, I think I’m going to be sick.” She dropped her head into her hands.

  “She’d used her many oral talents to get some young idiot passing through town to sneak out to Billy’s place, loosening the porch steps. She figured if he fell and broke
his neck in a simple accident at home, no one would even consider murder.” I explained.

  “But how…. How did I not notice the steps? How didn’t you? Surly they would have squeaked when they were stepped on or, and Babe please don’t take this the wrong way, but with what you weigh how did you not fall through?”

  “You saying I’m chubby?” I asked playfully patting my stomach.

  “You know I’m not. You’re all muscle. Sexy, powerful muscle,” she breathed, kissing me. “You are not chubby but you’re not lite either. Your weight has been on top of me enough to know.” Heat flared in her eyes.

  “Keep looking at me like that Baby and it will be on you again.”

  “As much as I would love that, I think you need to finish your story.”

  She walked over to the small bar in her office refreshing both our classes as I continued.

  “Both of us miss the steps. There are only three small steps. I just step from the ground to the porch avoiding the steps and you normally park and go inside from the barn side again missing the steps. But Billy….”

  “Always use the steps,” she finished.

  “Once Billy had fallen and was killed, she planned on acting all inconsolable that her employer was killed. Then when it came to the reading of the will, she would be all shocked, confused but grateful that the sweet old man had left the bar to her.”

  “There is no way in hell Grandpa would do that.” She scoffed, handing me a whisky. “The Rusty Wagon has been in the family for generations. There is no way it would have gone to anyone non-family unless there was no family left.”

  “Both you and I know this. But again, she used her many talents to convince the court clerk to forge Billy’s will, making it look like he had updated it to include her.”

  “Did she really think that was going to work?”

  “Obviously, because she had done it before. Different counties, smaller amounts. Billy was the big score she had been waiting for.”

  “Little did she know the big money wasn’t with him.” Danica shook her head in disbelief, then her face changed as realisation hit her. “Cecilia is an idiot.”

  “Clearly.”

  “The one thing Grandpa allowed my parents to provide was their lawyer. He went over Grandpa’s affairs with a fine-tooth comb, correcting every potential misunderstanding, and plugged every loophole. It was airtight. Putting all that aside, the Rusty Wagon is mine. Grandpa signed it over to me months ago. How did she think she was going to get around that?”

  “I don’t know. I do know that for now, I’m don’t talking about her.” I placed the glass on the ground, pulling her onto my lap.

  Until I met Danica, I didn’t realise what I was missing. I didn’t realise how big of a hole I had in my life. Then she showed up, a vision in silk and lace under the shade of a paper parasol. With shinning green eyes, she captured me body and soul, and I knew I didn’t want to spend another day without her.

  Looking deep into her eyes, I saw my future, my life, my world.

  “I have something for you, Baby.” I dug into my pocket, handing her a key ring.

  “What’s this?”

  “Your own set of keys. This way you don’t have to wait for me or use the spare I keep at the station. This is the key to the house. This is the key to the barn. This is the key to my truck.”

  “What about this one?” She asked, her eyes glistening with unshed happy tears.

  “That is the key to my heart.” I took the little ornate key off the keyring, handing it to her along with a small wooden box. Fitting the key into the lock, she opened the box.

  “Marry me.”

  Books by Penny Blush

  Barber Shop Ink Series

  Barber Shop Ink Book 1: Always Blue in Memphis

  Barber Shop Ink Book 2: Between a Hedge and a hard place

  Barber Shop Ink Book 3: Riverworth

  Barber Shop Ink Book 4: Davan – Part 1

  Barber Shop Ink Book 5: Davan – Part 2

  Knights Fury

  Danger

  Standalone

  The Girl in the Tower

  About the Author

  My name is Penny Blush, I love all things book and book related. I’m hoping that the people who make the James Bond movies will call me to ask to use my name as the next Bond Girl *Fingers Crossed*

  When I’m not hoping for the Bond people to contact me, I can usually be found with my nose in a book. Getting lost in a story or thinking about stories I would like to write.

  I’m Australian, I love to sing, and Christmas is my favourite time of the year. I believe in magic, fairies, the power of the universe and that everything happens for a reason.

  Basically, I’m a crazy person, and I’m ok with that, at least my life is not boring!

  Links

  Author Page:

  https://www.facebook.com/PennyBlushAuthor

  Reader Group:

  www.facebook.com/groups/1068654519902946

  BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/penny-blush

  Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/17139863.Penny_Blush

  Instagram:

  www.instagram.com/pennyblushauthor

  Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com.au/pennyblush/

  Twitter: https://twitter.com/pennyblushbooks

  SWEET TEQUILA SUNSHINE

  Part One

  Copyright © 2020 by Kay Maree

  The right of Kay Maree to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her under the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000

  All rights reserved. This publication (or any part of it) may not be reproduced or transmitted, copied, stored, distributed or otherwise made available by any person or entity (including Google, Amazon or similar organisations), in any form (electronic, digital, optical or mechanical) or by any means (photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise) without prior written permission from the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

  To all my amazing readers,

  Never hide yourself away.

  Scars show the world that you became stronger than what tried to hurt you.

  Wear them with honour because you’ not only became a fighter…

  you became a Survivor!!!

  And that’s something to celebrate.

  Kay x

  “I’m not sure what you have gone through,” the girl, Lucy, says softly, standing next to my hospital bed. “But I believe you are stronger than this. You look like you’ve gone through hell, and if that’s the case then there’s only one way left to go and that is up. When you’re ready, I’ll be here to help you.” She gives my hand a little squeeze and without meaning to I flinch against the touch.

  “Sorry.” She breathes out and I really want to say it’s okay, but the words won’t come.

  “I'll let you rest now, but just know I’ll be here anytime you need me.” A soft, friendly smile graced her lips.

  “Thank you,” I murmur just as softly, giving her a small smile.

  “I’ll let the boys know you want to rest. I'm sure Jebson will come back in.” She turns to leave, my stomach doing somersaults at the thought of that handsome creature coming back in here.

  Heat travels through me when I picture the blue uniform he’s wearing pulled tight against the seams by his muscled body, and that crooked smile surrounded by dark facial hair, but those deep chocolate eyes, with a hint of caramel, seem to penetrate straight through me.

  It’s both unnerving and comforting at the same time, and I don’t know what to do with that right now.

  My head is pounding and my body aches all over.

  I really shouldn’t be thinking of the man that way, he saved me and brought me here, and in a sense, Lucy did as well.

  I know she didn’t mean to hit me with her car, especially after Constable Stone told me someone cut her brake lines,
but if that hadn’t happened, no one would have known I was even there.

  I’m definitely in no shape to be doing anything, let alone swooning after a man that was simply doing his job. It’s not like I’d know what to do anyways.

  I’m a 22-year-old woman who was sheltered away from the rest of the world my whole life. Sure, I used to watch romance movies and read the books my mother had, but to feel these feelings first hand is a completely different story that I’m definitely not prepared for.

  Resting my head back against my pillow, a deep breath escapes my parted lips along with a small moan before I can stop it, relishing in the feel of the softness.

  Tears prick the corners of my eyes as images assault my mind of a time when the plushness of a pillow and the feel of a warm soft blanket didn’t bring tears to my eyes; when my mum was still alive.

  It was just the two of us in our little log cabin on the outskirts of Wallumbilla. It wasn’t much, but it was enough for us.

  We either made everything, from clothes to food, or we had it delivered, and my mum home-schooled me. I never had any friends except my mum and I always thought that was enough.

  We lived a simple life. That was, until that night; a night that seems pulled straight from a horror movie.

  The weather was bad. Thunder cracked through the late evening sky, vibrating through the house, the wind howled and the rain pelted down against the roof.

  Mum had just called out to me to come sit down and have dinner, when there was a knock at the door.

  I was coming from my bedroom when I heard a scratchy voice with a sharp edge speak from the open doorway. Rain was pouring around him, creating the perfect eerie backdrop behind his thin frame. Those five words, not only sent violent chills racing through my veins, cooling my blood. but locked up my next breath as my world tilted and began to drip crimson red drops.

  “Nice to see you, Mother.”

  My world dipped, curved, and locked as, at that moment, my mother's warm blood painted the floor. The makings of a scream slipped past her lips, but as quickly as it came, it just as quickly turned into white noise.