A Fraudulent Encounter — Valerie J. Clarizio

Widowed Police Chief, Daxon Mertz, suffers from an irreparable broken heart. Municipal Treasurer Natasha Kane is a divorcee who has sworn off men.Out of nowhere, love knocks, but can their relationship survive a financial fraud investigation?A drug investigation turned deadly for Daxon Mertz. Witnessing the murder of his wife and unborn child, he left his big city job to become the police chief of a small town. Closing his heart, he threw himself into his work, to forget all he'd lost. Divorcee, Natasha Kane lives with the small town gossips still whispering about her cheating ex-husband and the much younger woman he preferred. Building a wall around her heart to avoid further hurt and scandal, she fulfills her days as the finance director for the city and safeguarding taxpayers' money.When over a quarter of a million dollars goes missing from the city's treasury, Dax finds himself investigating Natasha, the person with access to the treasury and most recently, his heart. Feeling the hurt all over again at the betrayal of a man she loves, Natasha finds herself Dax's prime suspect. What will the gossip mills say now?How do they overcome suspicion, betrayal of the heart, and scandal?