The Arizona Lawman

“The document is genuine, Tessa. I’ve already read the will in its entirety and talked at length with the deceased man’s attorney. He assures me his client had full control of his faculties at the time he made out this bequest.” Jett placed a steadying hand on her shoulder. “In short, a man by the name of Ray Maddox has willed you a sizable piece of property in southern Arizona. Along with a very tidy amount of money, which is already waiting for you in a bank account with your name. Congratulations, Tessa.”

Her hands began to tremble violently, causing the document to fall unheeded to her lap.

“That can’t be!” She stared wildly up at Jett then swung her gaze over to Orin. “I don’t know anyone in Arizona! This has to be some crazy mistaken identity!”

Orin held up a hand to calm her escalating doubts. “According to the attorney in Prescott, your identity has been verified several times over. He’s assured Jett that you are the correct beneficiary.”

“So the next step we need to discuss is what you want to do with this windfall,” Jett continued while directing a meaningful glance at Orin. “If it were me, Tessa, I’d want to take a look at the property before I made the decision.”

“Yes, but Tessa isn’t you,” Orin retorted. “She hardly needs to go traipsing off to Arizona to look at a piece of land she doesn’t need. Her home is here on the Silver Horn with us. It won’t be difficult to locate a trustworthy real-estate agent to handle all the details of selling it.”

Frowning, Jett walked over to his father-in-law’s desk. “Orin, I understand that Tessa is like your daughter but—”

“Like a daughter! Hell, as far as I’m concerned, she is my daughter! And as such—”

“You want her to have every opportunity to be happy. She’s been willed a small fortune by someone who obviously cared a great deal for her. It would hardly be in her benefit to get hasty and dump the property before making an effort to see the place.”

Orin rose from his chair and began to pace around the large, plush study. “It’s not like I’m a pauper, Jett,” he argued. “I can give Tessa whatever she needs. And, frankly, she’s too young and inexperienced to go off to Arizona alone!”

The idea of Orin as a pauper was just as laughable as Tessa being an heiress. Orin and his father, Bart, owned the Silver Horn Ranch, one of the largest, most profitable spreads in the whole state of Nevada. The family possessed holdings in gold and silver mines, oil and gas companies, along with other lucrative stocks. To say that Orin could supply her with whatever she needed was very true, but she would never accept wealthy gifts from him, or anyone in the Calhoun family. She was a Parker and possessed her own brand of pride.

“Tessa is twenty-four years old. She’s just acquired a college degree,” Jett reminded him. “She’s certainly capable of making a trip to Arizona. And making decisions about her own future.”

The arguing between the two men pushed Tessa to her feet. “Orin, you’ve given me a home here on the Silver Horn for the past eleven years. As much as I love you, Jett is right. I’m not about to make a hasty decision about something so—life-changing. Anyway, right now I... I’m so shaken I can hardly think! But I can tell you one thing. If a person cared enough about me to leave me a small fortune, then I’m going to make the effort to travel to Arizona. To see the place and find the reason behind this.”

Jett gave her a thumbs-up. “Atta girl, Tessa. Now you’re talking.”

Orin stopped his pacing to glare at the both of them. “Go ahead, encourage her,” he goaded Jett. “For all we know there could be something sinister behind this whole thing.”

Jett rolled his eyes. “Orin, the man has passed away. And, according to Mr. Maddox’s attorney, he had no family to speak of. On top of that, he was a decorated sheriff of the area. I hardly read sinister in the will.”

Relenting somewhat, Orin walked over to where Tessa stood near his desk. “Tessa, are you sure your mother never talked about this man before?”

If Monica Parker had still been living, she might’ve been able to explain this sudden and unexplainable inheritance. But her mother’s life had ended eleven years ago in a traffic accident.

Tessa’s mind spun crazily as she tried to recall, to make any sort of connection to Ray Maddox. “I never heard Mom say that name. Or mention she was acquainted with anyone in Arizona. This man...he must have known me—somehow. I won’t rest until I find the connection.”

Orin’s stern expression softened to a wry smile. “I imagine I’d feel the same way. It’s just that I’ve always had you close and under my wing.” Lifting her hand, he patted the back of it. “And I guess a part of me is afraid you won’t come back. That you’ll find something down there in Arizona we can’t give you.”

Her heart full of mixed emotions, she gave the big rancher a reassuring hug. “You’ve already given me so much, Orin. There’s nothing else I need.”

His smile turned knowing as he stroked the top of her head. “Oh, yes, Tessa, darlin’. There are plenty more things you need. Like a good man to love. Children to raise. A home to keep.”

“Stop it.” She sniffed. “You’re going to make me cry all over your white shirt.”

He squeezed her tight. “Damn the white shirt,” he said gruffly. “I have plenty of them. I just have one of you.”

“I won’t be gone forever, Orin. Just long enough to find out why Ray Maddox wanted to give me his home and money.”

Chapter One (#u9d88c8ed-2cca-5710-9ea2-1013ae305042)

The hot May sun was slipping behind a ridge of jagged mountains as Tessa steered her white Ford truck off the road and stared up at the sign arched over a wide cattle guard. Bar X Ranch.

This was it. Her ranch. Her property.

Even though she was seeing it with her own eyes, she was still struggling to wrap her mind around the idea that it all belonged to her. It seemed impossible that a bank in Prescott had an account in her name holding an amount of money that would take a person like her years and years to earn. Everything about the situation was still all so confusing and incredible.

Fighting back a wave of emotional tears, Tessa put the truck into motion and drove through the entrance of the ranch.

A half mile later, after she’d driven through a spectacular view of rock formations and fields of Joshua trees, she parked the truck in front of a rambling house painted pale green and trimmed with a darker shade of green. The structure was shaded by several ancient cottonwoods, while a huge bougainvillea covered in vivid purple blooms sheltered one side of a small porch. Nearby, beneath a set of paned windows, bushes of red and white roses grew thick and climbed along the dark green shutters.

She’d not expected to find anything so beautiful or charming. For a moment, after she’d climbed from the truck, all she could do was stand and stare and wonder about the people who’d lived behind those walls.

The sound of an approaching vehicle pulled Tessa out of her swirling thoughts. She turned to see a beige SUV with emergency lights on the top and a sheriff’s emblem painted on the side. Now what? Had someone reported her as trespassing?

Curious, she stood watching as a man stepped out on the driver’s side. He was dressed in blue jeans and boots, with a black cowboy hat and a khaki shirt. The long sleeves were decorated with official-looking emblems, while a badge was pinned to the front left pocket. Even from a distance, she could tell he was young but older than her. His tall, muscular body appeared to be in perfect condition and his quick steps were rapidly closing the space of ground between them.

“Hello,” she said once he was within earshot. “Can I help you?”

He came to a stop a few steps in front of her and, with the back of his forearm, pushed the brim of his cowboy hat back off his forehead.

“I’m Joseph Hollister. Deputy Sheriff of Yavapai County,” he said to identify himself. “I saw your vehicle turn into the entrance of this property. Since your truck is carrying Nevada plates, I figured you might not be aware this ranch is currently unoccupied.”

Was he naturally a suspicious man, she wondered, or was he simply a very dedicated lawman? Either way, he was definitely something to look at. His thick, coffee-colored hair was just long enough to curl around his ears, while his deeply tanned complexion told her he spent long hours in the Arizona sun. He had a square jaw, the type that looked as though it could take several punches and never flinch. However, all this was just a gorgeous backdrop to his eyes. Even from a distance, she could see the brown orbs were full of golden flecks, a color that reminded her of dark, potent whiskey.

“I’m Tessa Parker,” she told him. “And, yes, I’m from Nevada. Between Carson City and Reno, to be exact. And, yes, I know the ranch house is currently vacant.”

His razor-sharp gaze slid over her as though he was sizing up her honesty.

Tessa tried not to bristle. After all, the man didn’t know the first thing about her. And he was a deputy sheriff.

“The Bar X is obviously a long distance from Carson City. So what brings you all the way down here, Ms. Parker?”

She straightened her shoulders. “I’m here to see my new property. Is that some sort of crime?”

Tessa didn’t know why the tart question had popped out of her. It wasn’t like her to be testy with anyone. Particularly a law official. But the suspicious look in his eyes was setting her on edge.

“No. No crime at all. If it is your property. Do you have your identification with you?”

If a flying saucer suddenly landed next to them, the situation wouldn’t be any more bizarre, Tessa thought.

“I have more than my identification,” she crisply informed him. “I have all sorts of legal papers with me—if you’d care to see them.”

“That isn’t necessary,” he said. “Your driver’s license will be sufficient.”

Turning back to the truck, Tessa fished the plastic-coated card from her purse and handed it to him. As she watched him scan the information, she noticed his hands were big and brown, the backs lightly sprinkled with dark hair. There was no sign of a wedding band on his left hand. But that didn’t surprise Tessa at all. He didn’t have the softer attitude that most married men possessed.

He suddenly glanced up at her and Tessa’s breath caught as his brown eyes looked directly into hers.