8/12/2019 Distant Obsession - Part 1 of the Cherokee valley series

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Just released

Distant Obsession(Part I Cherokee valley series)

By: M. W. Davis and Ciara Gold

(Buy locations available at Davisstories.com)

Can the past corrupt a womans future?

BLURBAfter years struggling to succeed as an artist, Lilah Randal accomplishes here dream, only to return from

her first sold out exhibition to find her husband and his mistress in bed, murdered. or a year she!s

persecuted by the cops and media, accused of "illing the #enator, her husband. $ith no proof, onlysuspicious, the police give up, but not the ne%s hounds, nor the discomforting phone calls or late night

attempted intrusions into her home. Reluctantly, Lilah stalls her career, assumes a different identify and

begins fresh hiding in a small to%n far a%ay from the attention of D&. 'er days are filled %ith ne% vigor

as the serenity of the &hero"ee alley surrounding $atauga La"e fed her creative muse under a fa"e alias,&armen. et her nights remain hollo%, li"e her marriage to the #enator, until she becomes obsessed by the

allure of a stranger that glides by her cabin in his sailboat. Both his male form and solemn expression

bleed into every painting, every midnight fantasy, until her ne% dream becomes reality. Lilah learns her

future %ill remain corrupted by the past until she solves the secret behind her husband!s murder andexplores her attraction to the mysterious sailor.

*+&*R-

-he shutter snapped three consecutive frames, capturing the subect in vivid detail/ shades, blac"s"intight trun"s, no shirt, no protective lotion to degrade his s%immer!s tan. -he body, a perfect sculpture

li"e that of 0ichelangelo!s David, captured her artist!s imagination and the desire to put on canvas the

magnificence of man.

Lilah 1ohnson stepped a%ay from her &annon *2# 3D digital camera and stared along Bears&ree" to the mouth entering the main leg of $atauga La"e. -he scenic vistas of Lunar &ove from the %all

of glass fed her muse the imagery that bled onto each canvas. -he painted morning s"ies, the moon beams

that flic"ered and marched to%ard the dam each night, and the blan"et of colored foliage touched a chorddeep %ithin. et %ith all the stimulus to her minds eye, the inheritance from her mother became a haven,

one that placed her on the fringes of society, but "ept her safe from papara44i.

-he strong scent of oil and turpentine saturated her small studio. 2n an easel facing the %indo%,

her ne%est painting sat half done. #he!d captured the rich glo%ing sunset in expressive detail. -he

composition lac"ed a focal point, a fault she planned to rectify after this evening!s photo session. #he puther eye to the vie%er and sighted on the private cove.

-o her left at the far end of the la"e, a vintage sailboat trimmed in tea" bobbed against its

moorings. 5ts captain, a stranger %ith admittedly stunning male features escaped from the ship!s cabin and

8/12/2019 Distant Obsession - Part 1 of the Cherokee valley series

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scratched his left buttoc"s, una%are he %as the center of someone!s attention. #he repositioned the camera

%ith its tripod and %aited. inally, the craft departed, angled right, and motored forty yards from herporch.

No, not yet.

-he day sailer advanced to%ard her loo"out post, proudly displaying its graceful lines. $ith themas" still furled, she had a clear vie% of the man at the helm, his bron4ed s"in gleaming %ith a fine sheen

of s%eat.

Lilah adusted her telescopic lenses and snapped t%o shots of his sculpted chest. 'e reached for adar" blue pull over shirt. #he grunted, %ishing the cool autumn bree4e hadn!t forced him to don thecovering. o%erful muscles strained %ith each rotation of the %ench as the main lifted %ith the halyard.

&lambering onto the bo%, he tugged on the ib halyard, and raised the second sail. 'e scurried for the

tiller and brought the boat off the %ind. -he sail billo%ed, filling %ith air, and the boat gently leaned toport. After setting course, he settled into place alongside the tiller, loo"ing for all the %orld li"e a man

%ith no %orries.

-he ripples dancing along the reflective surface of the cove spread %illingly and created a 6shaped %a"e that lic"ed the tight curves of the vessel!s belly. #he focused the lens, spotting the name of

the boat. -heJenny May. A %oman!s name. A girlfriend perhaps7'is %ife7A spurt of ealousy attac"ed

so s%iftly, she inhaled a sharp breath.

Why on earth woul I !e "ealous o# a $o%&lete stran'er#he!d never had such a reaction before %hile spying on the sailor, until no%.

But she "ne%. #he!d been painting this particular man since spotting him three %ee"s ago. And in

that time, her brushes had lovingly sculpted his form on one painting after another. 5n her creative mind,the man and boat had become one, an extension of the need she felt %ithin.

5solated for the past year %ith nothing but her paints and %or" at the library to "eep her company,

she!d become socially barren/ the nearest neighbor half a mile a%ay. -he lo% profile, her attempt tohorde this treasured privacy/ the voice in her conscious mind declared her self-entombeda positive

achievement. et in that secret garden, the castle %here her little girl still danced and sung happy

thoughts, the guardian of Lilah!s spirit %hispered, there)s %ore out there, the &ossi!ility o# love, &assion,

the &leasure only a %an)s tou$h $an !rin'.

#he blin"ed t%ice and drove the distant echo bac" inside the fortress, until she %as ready again.Better to maintain distance, an obsession %ith a complete stranger from far. Lonely, yes, but save.

-he hull s"immed the li8uid body beneath its %eight. A sharp starboard tac", and he vanishedbehind the foliage of elican oint, continuing on his ourney do%n the main branch of the la"e.

#he inserted the memory card from her camera into the computer and proected the recent replicas

of him and his s%eetheart, theJenny May, against the bac" %all. #he retrieved her palette, several

brushes, too" a deep breath, and returned to the only source of relief from her chaotically messy %orld.