Her Fortune VIP

She’s starting over…

But her past catches up with her

After a baseless lawsuit throws her life into turmoil, single mom Rachel Evers needs a fresh start. And with a new job in beautiful Emerald Ridge, her life finally seems to be moving in the right direction—until she learns who her boss’s father is. 

Oakley Fortune can’t believe his luck in hiring such a consummate professional…even if he can’t ignore the more-than-strictly-business connection he has with Rachel and her adorable baby. But when Rachel discovers his father was the one behind the lawsuit, Oakley risks losing her for good. Can he convince her that he’s not a carbon copy of his father, and that Rachel is the true VIP? 

Book 1 of The Fortunes of Texas: Lone Star Windfall

Available July 28, 2026:

A SNEAK PEEK:

Chapter One

Rachel Evers needed this job. Not wanted, but needed. Not only was she at the end of the figurative rope, but she’d literally drained all of her savings. As her friend and sorority sister Jenny, owner of the Emerald Ridge Employment Agency, had said yesterday, “If you don’t land this, I’m not sure what else I can do. I had a glut of jobs when I told you to move here two months ago, and now everything has suddenly dried up.”

That pretty much summed up Rachel’s life. If bad times came in threes, not finding a job would be the final kiss of death. Not that she had much left to lose. Gone were the days of her cute bungalow in Dallas and her impressive, highly paid office manager job. Gone too, was the louse who’d skipped town the moment he’d learned she was pregnant, leaving her to be a single mother. Although in hindsight, maybe that was a good thing. She loved her nine-month-old daughter more than anything in the world. Allie was a blessing and a joy, and the thing that kept Rachel going when times looked bleak.

Even after her daughter had been the impetus for that ridiculous lawsuit…

Rachel sighed. The thing about thinking you’d hit rock bottom was you were often wrong and soon discovered there was much further to fall. Maybe bad times actually came in fours or even fives, especially as she’d been “asked to leave” once dealing with said lawsuit had caused her to have too many unexcused absences from work following her maternity leave. At age thirty-two, she’d expected to be applying for better positions and getting promoted, not starting over in the new-to-her town of Emerald Ridge, Texas, after being unemployed since last June. She picked some lint from her skirt. Whoever gave that sound financial advice to have at least three months of expenses saved in cash had been dead-on. She had one month before true desperation struck.

Rachel held out hope that this job was finally the break she needed. She had a good feeling about this opportunity Jenny had found—even if the interview was to have started fifteen minutes ago and the door between the waiting room and the main office remained closed. The desk where an administrative assistant should sit sat empty, the computer monitor black and silent. That would be her spot. Perhaps her boss would even let her put some plants on the windowsill…

Lint dispatched, Rachel smoothed the navy-blue pencil skirt that kept inching up her thighs every time her leg bounced. Catching the anxious quirk, she forced her foot still and shifted on the leather chair. Despite air conditioning working overtime to keep the mid-August morning heat at bay, Rachel tried not to sweat through the matching blazer. As much as she wanted to shed the jacket, she couldn’t take it off as it hid the slightly darker baby spit-up stain that lingered on her shoulder, despite her futile dabbing with one of those detergent pens.

Rachel ran a finger under her collar before studying a plain nail kept short in deference to constantly caring for her daughter. Well, that and the fact she couldn’t afford regular manicures. It seemed like just yesterday she was giving birth, but time had passed in the blink of an eye, and Allie would be celebrating her first birthday in three months. If Rachel got this job, maybe she could host a real party since she’d once again have steady income, and even more importantly, health insurance. Getting this job would mean she wouldn’t have to deliver restaurant and food orders every evening to make ends meet. 

Nerves clanging as another minute passed, she checked her phone for the hundredth time in ten minutes. There was nothing from Jenny that the interview had been canceled. Afraid to leave and worried she might look rumpled from the walk over from her apartment, she switched her phone to selfie mode and gave herself one last once-over. Thick straight brows she’d plucked this morning didn’t show any stragglers. Her lipstick hadn’t smudged, and when she straightened, her blue eyes seemed alert and confident rather than reflecting the constant worry and stress she usually saw.

The door cracked open. “Ms. Evers?”

Rachel rose, glad her stiff legs held her upright, as the most gorgeous man she’d ever seen filled the doorway. Complete with prominent cheekbones and a clean-shaven, defined jawline, he had those ruggedly masculine features that dreams were made of. 

Why did he have to look so damn good? Her pulse quickened as bright blue eyes a shade darker than her own met hers. He had that slightly wavy, short dark blond hair a woman’s fingers itched to touch. She wanted to run her fingers through the strands and push them away from his forehead. Rachel quivered with awareness. When he reached out his hand to shake hers, she swore her heart pounded and her womb clenched. She somehow ignored the jolt as desire spiked, returning his grip with a firm one of her own, while schooling her expression into neutral. One of her best traits was her professionalism.

“Ms. Evers, I’m Oakley Fros—Fortune. Welcome to Fortune Rodeo Corporation.”

“Thank you. It’s nice to meet you.” Relieved that her voice sounded steady, Rachel resisted the urge to desensitize her tingling fingers by rubbing them with her opposite hand.

“I apologize for the delay. I had a call that ran late. Hopefully you won’t hold that against me.”

Her body wanted to hold his against her. She gave herself a mental scolding and plastered on a reassuring smile. “No worries. Jenny told me you’re a busy man.” She ignored the way her libido leapt when he gave her an unintentional view of his impressive backside as he led the way into a large but sparsely decorated inner office. Jenny had told Rachel that the previous admin she’d sent to Oakley’s office to apply for the job had immediately fallen for him. Rachel could understand why. Oakley was the kind of man Rachel would seek out, if she didn’t pride herself on knowing how to check her reactions and remain professional. Then there was the fact she was almost broke…

Oakley paused, and despite being taller than the average woman, she had to glance upward. He topped her easily, even though she was wearing her sensible two-inch pumps. He gave a wide sweep of his arm. “Ignore the mess and lack of decor. I’ve been way too busy getting buried by paperwork and contracts to decorate.”

His polite half smile still had the power to suck the oxygen from the room. He motioned to one of the plush leather armchairs in front of his L-shaped, dark cherrywood desk. “Please take a seat. I’ll admit, having to hire a new administrative assistant is new to me. My previous one in Dallas was with me from when I started my company, but she didn’t want to relocate to Emerald Ridge, then the one I had when I arrived here…” He shook his head. “Anyway, it didn’t work out.”

“I’m rather new to town myself,” Rachel admitted as she took a seat and watched as Oakley folded himself into his leather office chair. “Then that makes the pair of us.”