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Reclaiming her life after a devastating riding accident, equestrian Emily Conners’ world shatters again when she discovers her friend and boss laying in a stall with a smashed skull. Now jobless and with a handsome cop underfoot investigating the case, she's torn between wanting the killer found and keeping her own secrets safe.Detective Justin Butler always gets his killer, but this victim has a stampede of enemies and few leads to go on. Stonewalled by the tight-knit equestrian world, he looks to Emily for help, but she’s strangely reluctant. Is she hiding something, or is she afraid of their growing attraction?As the search for the murderer heats up, their hearts become entangled and their lives at risk, forcing Emily and Justin to work together to find the killer before they strike again.
Read an Excerpt
Sitting around the rickety picnic table and talking over old times, she almost forgot for a moment why the detective—Justin, she reminded herself—was there. He sat there, loose limbed and relaxed, interested in their conversation while most non-riders soon got glassy-eyed with boredom. But he wasn’t just chatting, was he? She had to remind herself he was listening for information to help him catch a killer.
“What about you ladies?” he ventured. “Did any of you ever have any problems with Ms. Yates?”
After another fit of laughter, Erin howled, “Like we’d ever ride with Pam. Despite what everyone around here may think, we’re not crazy. Well, not that crazy at least.”
“Hunters are more our speed,” Samantha chimed in. Emily took in her very un-hunter-like, fringed pink half-chaps and raised her eyebrow. “Okay, we don’t fit in with that crowd either,” Samantha admitted. “Which is why we’re here with Ben.”
“Since Pamela had Ben blacklisted, he’s stuck with us ladies who hack.” The three shared another round of titters.
They may not have realized they’d supplied Ben with a motive to kill Pamela, but Emily did. “Hang on, rumors have blown that way out of proportion. Pamela wasn’t thrilled after Ben dissolved their partnership and took his clients to Middle Ranch, but—”
“Hah! ‘Wasn’t thrilled’ is putting it mildly,” Sandy interrupted. “First chance she got, she had him brought up on abuse charges.”
Samantha added her two cents. “They banned Ben from showing for three years, so naturally, his clients who were serious left him and found another trainer.”
“Funny, no one told me this before now.” Justin’s voice lost its light tone, and the heat of his glare rolled over Emily’s skin.
About the Author:
Marla White is a story analysis instructor at UCLA and writing coach who lives in Los Angeles. She graduated from the University of Kentucky (go Wildcats!), where she took her first horseback riding lesson. After dabbling in hunters, barrel racing, and weekly trail rides, she fell hopelessly in love with the sport of eventing. She conquered Novice level before taking a break to pursue novel writing but hopes to return to the saddle someday soon. Her first novel, “The Starlight Mint Surprise Murder,” was published in 2021 followed by the first two books in her Keeper Chronicles series. When she’s not writing, she’s out in the garden, hiking, or putting together impossibly difficult puzzles.
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