The Maid's Daughter. Janice Maynard

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      For all my teacher buddies in the Sevier County School System—you know who you are! It was an honor and a pleasure to work beside you year after year.

      Thanks for your dedication in the trenches.:)

      One

      Wet yellow leaves clung to the rain-slick, winding road. Devlyn Wolff took the curves with confidence, his vintage Aston Martin hugging the pavement despite the windswept October day. Dusk had fallen. He switched on his headlights, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel in rhythm to the hard-rock oldie blasting from his Bose speakers.

      No matter how fast he drove, he couldn’t outrun his restlessness. He’d been on Wolff Mountain for a week, and already his father and his Uncle Vic were driving him batty. They had installed him as CEO of Wolff Enterprises two years ago, supposedly with their full trust at his back, but they loved playing Monday-morning quarterback.

      It was easier when Devlyn was in Atlanta, ensconced in his fancy-ass office. Then the two Wolff patriarchs could only harass him via email and the phone. But giving up control of the company had been hard for them, and Devlyn did his best to make them feel connected, hence his frequent trips home.

      His tires squealed as they spun slightly, seeking a connection with the rural highway. Devlyn knew these back roads intimately. He’d learned to drive here, had wrapped his first car around a tree not two miles up the road. For that reason alone, he eased off the gas.

      At that instant, the glare of oncoming headlights blinded him as a car rounded the upcoming curve uncomfortably close to his lane. Devlyn tensed, gripping the wheel and wrestling his vehicle into submission. The other car wasn’t so lucky.

      Devlyn cursed as the little navy Honda spun past him, its white-faced driver momentarily visible, before the small sedan slid off the road and smashed into a telephone pole. Devlyn eased to a halt on the narrow shoulder and bounded out of the car, his heart punching in his chest as he dialed 911. By the time he hung up and reached the car, the driver was already opening her door. Air bags had deployed in the crumpled vehicle. The woman staggered to her feet, wiping ineffectually at a trickle of blood on her cheek. Even in the waning light of day, he could see a reddish mark on her cheekbone.

      He grabbed for her as her knees gave out. “Steady,” he said. The ground was the closest surface, unfortunately. She went down gracefully, like butter melting on a hot day. His arm was around her, but the gravel slope beneath their feet was uneven. It was all he could do to keep both of them from sliding down the embankment.

      Crouching beside her, he pushed her hair from her face. “You okay?”

      Her teeth were chattering. “You nearly killed me.”

      “Me?” His brows shot up in sync with his temper. “Lady, you crossed the center line.”

      Her chin lifted slightly. “I’m a very safe driver.”

      Glancing over his shoulder, he cursed. “Not from where I’m standing.”

      She shivered hard, and he realized with chagrin that this wasn’t the place for such a conversation. “Your car is toast,” he said. “The nearest ambulance service is forty-five minutes away at least. It will save time if we meet them in the next valley. I’ll take you.”

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