The Reckoning. Christie Ridgway

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      Praise for Christie Ridgway:

      “Ridgway’s smart, peppy style is reminiscent of Jennifer Crusie.”

      —Publishers Weekly on Wish You Were Here

      “Christie Ridgway is delightful…clever and charming.”

      —Bestselling author Rachel Gibson

      “Hot and sassy! Ridgway rocks!”

      —Bestselling author Susan Andersen

      “Taking a story from today’s headlines, Christie Ridgway’s creative skills add engaging characters, strong chemistry and the happily-ever-after ending.”

      —Romantic Times

      “Ms. Ridgway pens a pleasant tale full of strong sexual chemistry, good character development and an interesting premise.”

      —Romantic Times

      “Christie Ridgway’s spirited heroine, touches of humor and likable hero combine to create an animated romantic read.”

      —Romantic Times

      The Reckoning

      Christie Ridgway

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      Dear Reader,

      What I like about participating in a continuity series such as THE FORTUNES OF TEXAS: REUNION is that the experience always stretches me as a writer. Connecting with the other authors in the series broadens my imagination as we hash out details and share insights into our characters, making the world we develop feel even more real.

      As the lucky “anchor” author for this particular series, I’ve had the additional pleasure of learning about what has happened in the previous books and incorporating a little bit of eleven other happy endings into the one I’ve written for my characters, Emmett Jamison and Linda Faraday.

      Ah…Linda Faraday. Talk about broadening my horizons. She is a character who has touched my heart and brought me to an understanding and appreciation of people who have suffered a traumatic brain injury and then gone on to build new futures. She challenges Emmett’s notions of strength and weakness, as well. Emmett and I are both better people for letting Linda into our lives.

      I hope you enjoy this last installment of THE FORTUNES OF TEXAS: REUNION. It was written with great pleasure.

      To the other authors on THE FORTUNES OF TEXAS: REUNION loop who have made this project such fun.

      Contents

      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

      Bonus Features

      One

      Inside the rambling Texas ranch house were a profusion of flowers, tables groaning with food and two bars stocked with plenty of liquor. All the makings of one hell of a great party, Emmett Jamison thought from the shadowed corner where he stood. That is, if the guest of honor hadn’t been dead.

      “I can’t believe he’s gone,” he overheard a tiny, gray-haired lady by a punch bowl say to her companion. “I just can’t believe that Ryan Fortune is gone.”

      Emmett’s eyes closed. He wished he couldn’t believe it. But the older man had been diagnosed with a brain tumor several months before and despite his big, vital personality and all the family and friends who cared about him, just that morning Ryan Fortune’s ashes had been spread across the lands of his beloved Double Crown Ranch.

      The tragedy of it didn’t surprise Emmett. All hope and optimism had been swept out of him months ago. He expected no happy endings. He was becoming accustomed to funerals.

      “Trying out for the undertaker’s job?” a new voice murmured in his ear. “You’ve got the morose expression for it.”

      “I don’t take offense at your ugly mug,” he answered automatically, “so you shouldn’t take offense at my unsmiling one.”

      The “ugly” insult didn’t have much meat to it, though, not when the man who had come up beside him was his cousin, Collin Jamison, and not when all agreed that Collin was a slightly older version of Emmett himself. They were both six feet tall and had the solid build of men whose fitness and training kept them employed—and alive. They wore their dark hair in no-nonsense military cuts, and Collin’s hazel eyes were only a touch lighter than Emmett’s green ones.

      “You’re not offending me,” Collin replied. “You’re worrying me. You’ve got that let-me-escape-to-the-mountains look about you.”

      Emmett shoved his hands into the pockets of his dark trousers. He’d holed himself up in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico following his brother Christopher’s funeral last September and the tragic ending to one of his FBI cases. There, he’d tried deadening himself to that pain and all that had come before with cheap tequila and stubborn solitude. Neither had lasted long enough. When his father had brought the news that his other brother, Jason, who had been implicated in Chris’s murder, had escaped from jail, Emmett had sobered up and returned to Texas. “When Dad found me in New Mexico, he confiscated the keys to the cabin and threatened to burn the place down.” Though lack of keys wouldn’t stop anyone from getting into that shack. “I won’t be going back there.”

      “Good,” Collin said, then surveyed the crowded room. “I haven’t seen Uncle Blake and Aunt Darcy, but it’s wall-to-wall people. Are they here?”

      Emmett shook his head. “I’m the sole representative of our branch of the Jamisons. Mom and Dad didn’t feel comfortable attending, considering their son was the one who kidnapped Ryan’s widow just a couple of months back.” Jason’s kidnapping of Lily Fortune was what had brought his cousin Collin to Red Rock, Texas. Emmett had called him after the older woman’s recovery and his brother’s escape. Emmett had wanted Collin’s help in stopping Jason. That job wasn’t done.

      Collin seemed to read his mind. “We’re going to get him, Emmett.”

      “I’m going to get him,” Emmett corrected, though he and the authorities on the case were fresh out of leads and they all knew it. Though Lily had been recovered, Jason had taken off with the ransom money, killing an FBI agent in the process. There hadn’t been a sign of him since.

      “You have Lucy to focus on now, Collin. But come hell or high water, I’m not going to let my brother make a victim of anyone else.” Jason’s ugly criminal tally also included the death of his own girlfriend, Melissa, and that of a prison transport guard. Though a prison guard in on Jason’s plan— McGruder—had been arrested and would stand trial for his part in the escape, it wasn’t nearly enough justice. Emmett’s voice lowered. “If it’s the last thing I do, I’m going to make Jason pay for all the pain he’s caused.”

      “You’re going grim on me again, buddy,” Collin warned softly. “By all means, let’s get Jason safely behind bars, but not at the cost of your heart.”

      Emmett