Deep River Read online

  Emma Pearce is a true ranch woman, working long hours to help keep the family ranch thriving. Feisty, funny, and reliable, she’s the girl all the single young men want—after they’ve sewn their wild oats. Few know Emma has her heart set on one man. A man who may never grow up enough to walk away from his wild ways and settle down.

  When tragedy strikes, Quinn’s right where he doesn’t want to be—as temporary foreman of the Pearce ranch. Stepping in to fill Big Jim Pearce’s shoes isn’t easy. Neither is keeping his feelings for Emma hidden and his hands to himself. Honor-bound to do what is right, Quinn meets the challenge, losing Emma’s friendship in the process.

  Adding to Quinn’s worries, something sinister is working its way through the thriving town of Conviction. Unforeseen forces are at work. Debt builds, families lose their ranches, and newcomers threaten to divide not only the land, but the people—including the Pearce family.

  As events unfold, Quinn faces the difficult challenge of keeping his feelings for Emma hidden and his honor intact. Doing what he believes is right couldn’t feel more wrong.

  After all, what’s a man without honor?

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  http://www.shirleendavies.com/books.html

  Copyright © 2016 by Shirleen Davies

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  For permission requests, contact the publisher.

  Avalanche Ranch Press, LLC

  PO Box 12618

  Prescott, AZ 86304

  Deep River is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is wholly coincidental.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  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

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Books by Shirleen Davies