THE WORDSMITH

  EMERSON PASS HISTORICALS, BOOK SEVEN

  TESS THOMPSON

  PRAISE FOR TESS THOMPSON

  "I frequently found myself getting lost in the characters and forgetting that I was reading a book." - Camille Di Maio, Bestselling author of The Memory of Us.

  "Highly recommended." - Christine Nolfi, Award winning author of The Sweet Lake Series.

  "I loved this book!" - Karen McQuestion, Bestselling author of Hello Love and Good Man, Dalton.

  Traded: Brody and Kara:

  "I loved the sweetness of Tess Thompson's writing - the camaraderie and long-lasting friendships make you want to move to Cliffside and become one of the gang! Rated Hallmark for romance!" - Stephanie Little BookPage

  "This story was well written. You felt what the characters were going through. It's one of those "I got to know what happens next" books. So intriguing you won't want to put it down." - Lena Loves Books

  "This story has so much going on, but it intertwines within itself. You get second chance, lost loves, and new love. I could not put this book down! I am excited to start this series and have love for this little Bayside town that I am now fond off!" - Crystal's Book World

  "This is a small town romance story at its best and I look forward to the next book in the series." - Gillek2, Vine Voice

  "This is one of those books that make you love to be a reader and fan of the author." -Pamela Lunder, Vine Voice

  Blue Midnight:

  "This is a beautiful book with an unexpected twist that takes the story from romance to mystery and back again. I've already started the 2nd book in the series!" - Mama O

  "This beautiful book captured my attention and never let it go. I did not want it to end and so very much look forward to reading the next book." - Pris Shartle

  "I enjoyed this new book cover to cover. I read it on my long flight home from Ireland and it helped the time fly by, I wish it had been longer so my whole flight could have been lost to this lovely novel about second chances and finding the truth. Written with wisdom and humor this novel shares the raw emotions a new divorce can leave behind." - J. Sorenson

  "Tess Thompson is definitely one of my auto-buy authors! I love her writing style. Her characters are so real to life that you just can't put the book down once you start! Blue Midnight makes you believe in second chances. It makes you believe that everyone deserves an HEA. I loved the twists and turns in this book, the mystery and suspense, the family dynamics and the restoration of trust and security." - Angela MacIntyre

  "Tess writes books with real characters in them, characters with flaws and baggage and gives them a second chance. (Real people, some remind me of myself and my girlfriends.) Then she cleverly and thoroughly develops those characters and makes you feel deeply for them. Characters are complex and multi-faceted, and the plot seems to unfold naturally, and never feels contrived." - K. Lescinsky

  Caramel and Magnolias:

  "Nobody writes characters like Tess Thompson. It's like she looks into our lives and creates her characters based on our best friends, our lovers, and our neighbors. Caramel and Magnolias, and the authors debut novel Riversong, have some of the best characters I've ever had a chance to fall in love with. I don't like leaving spoilers in reviews so just trust me, Nicholas Sparks has nothing on Tess Thompson, her writing flows so smoothly you can't help but to want to read on!" - T. M. Frazier

  "I love Tess Thompson's books because I love good writing. Her prose is clean and tight, which are increasingly rare qualities, and manages to evoke a full range of emotions with both subtlety and power. Her fiction goes well beyond art imitating life. Thompson's characters are alive and fully-realized, the action is believable, and the story unfolds with the right balance of tension and exuberance. CARAMEL AND MAGNOLIAS is a pleasure to read." - Tsuruoka

  "The author has an incredible way of painting an image with her words. Her storytelling is beautiful, and leaves you wanting more! I love that the story is about friendship (2 best friends) and love. The characters are richly drawn and I found myself rooting for them from the very beginning. I think you will, too!" - Fogvision

  "I got swept off my feet, my heartstrings were pulled, I held my breath, and tightened my muscles in suspense. Tess paints stunning scenery with her words and draws you in to the lives of her characters."- T. Bean

  Duet For Three Hands:

  “Tears trickled down the side of my face when I reached the end of this road. Not because the story left me feeling sad or disappointed, no. Rather, because I already missed them. My friends. Though it isn't goodbye, but see you later. And so I will sit impatiently waiting, with desperate eagerness to hear where life has taken you, what burdens have you downtrodden, and what triumphs warm your heart. And in the meantime, I will go out and live, keeping your lessons and friendship and love close, the light to guide me through any darkness. And to the author I say thank you. My heart, my soul -all of me - needed these words, these friends, this love. I am forever changed by the beauty of your talent.” - Lisa M.Gott

  “I am a great fan of Tess Thompson's books and this new one definitely shows her branching out with an engaging enjoyable historical drama/love story. She is a true pro in the way she weaves her storyline, develops true to life characters that you love! The background and setting is so picturesque and visible just from her words. Each book shows her expanding, growing and excelling in her art. Yet another one not to miss. Buy it you won't be disappointed. The ONLY disappointment is when it ends!!!” - Sparky's Last

  “There are some definite villains in this book. Ohhhh, how I loved to hate them. But I have to give Thompson credit because they never came off as caricatures or one dimensional. They all felt authentic to me and (sadly) I could easily picture them. I loved to love some and loved to hate others.” - The Baking Bookworm

  “I stayed up the entire night reading Duet For Three Hands and unbeknownst to myself, I fell asleep in the middle of reading the book. I literally woke up the next morning with Tyler the Kindle beside me (thankfully, still safe and intact) with no ounce of battery left. I shouldn't have worried about deadlines because, guess what? Duet For Three Hands was the epitome of unputdownable.” - The Bookish Owl

  Miller’s Secret

  “From the very first page, I was captivated by this wonderful tale. The cast of characters amazing - very fleshed out and multi-dimensional. The descriptions were perfect - just enough to make you feel like you were transported back to the 20's and 40's.... This book was the perfect escape, filled with so many twists and turns I was on the edge of my seat for the entire read.” - Hilary Grossman

  “The sad story of a freezing-cold orphan looking out the window at his rich benefactors on Christmas Eve started me off with Horatio-Alger expectations for this book. But I quickly got pulled into a completely different world--the complex five-character braid that the plot weaves. The three men and two women characters are so alive I felt I could walk up and start talking to any one of them, and I'd love to have lunch with Henry. Then the plot quickly turned sinister enough to keep me turning the pages.

  Class is set against class, poor and rich struggle for happiness and security, yet it is love all but one of them are hungry for. ......Where does love come from? What do you do about it? The story kept me going, and gave me hope. For a little bonus, there are Thompson's delightful observations, like: "You'd never know we could make something this good out of the milk from an animal who eats hats." A really good read!” - Kay in Seattle

  “She paints vivid word pictures such that I could smell the ocean and hear the doves. Then there are the stories within a story that twist and turn until they all come together in the end. I really had a hard time putting it down. Five stars aren't enough!” - M.R. Williams

  ALSO BY TESS THOMPSON

  CLIFFSIDE BAY

  Traded: Brody and Kara

  Deleted: Jackson and Maggie

  Jaded: Zane and Honor

  Marred: Kyle and Violet

  Tainted: Lance and Mary

  Cliffside Bay Christmas, The Season of Cats and Babies (Cliffside Bay Novella to be read after Tainted)

  Missed: Rafael and Lisa

  Cliffside Bay Christmas Wedding (Cliffside Bay Novella to be read after Missed)

  Healed: Stone and Pepper

  Chateau Wedding (Cliffside Bay Novella to be read after Healed)

  Scarred: Trey and Autumn

  Jilted: Nico and Sophie

  Kissed (Cliffside Bay Novella to be read after Jilted)

  Departed: David and Sara

  Cliffside Bay Bundle , Books 1,2,3

  BLUE MOUNTAIN SERIES

  Blue Mountain Bundle, Books 1,2,3

  Blue Midnight

  Blue Moon

  Blue Ink

  Blue String

  EMERSON PASS

  The School Mistress of Emerson Pass

  The Sugar Queen of Emerson Pass

  RIVER VALLEY

  Riversong

  Riverbend

  Riverstar

  Riversnow

  Riverstorm

  Tommy's Wish

  River Valley Bundle, Books 1-4

  LEGLEY BAY

  Caramel and Magnolias

  Tea and Primroses

  STANDALONES

  The Santa Trial

  Duet for Three Hands

  Miller's Secret

  Copyright © 2022 by Tess Thompson


>   All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  CONTENTS

  1. Addie

  2. James

  3. James

  4. Addie

  5. James

  6. Addie

  7. James

  8. Addie

  9. James

  10. Addie

  11. James

  12. Addie

  13. James

  14. Addie

  15. James

  16. Addie

  17. James

  18. Addie

  19. James

  20. Addie

  21. James

  22. Addie

  23. James

  24. Addie

  Also by Tess Thompson

  About the Author

  For my editor and friend, Erin Crum, who fixes all my commas and other errors I won’t mention, as well as provides encouragement, patience and flexibility to this absentminded and harried author. May we one day meet in a cafe in Paris to celebrate our long partnership!

  1

  ADDIE

  The air smelled of love that afternoon in the June of 1934, a combination of wild roses and pine needles. I was a fanciful young woman, prone to daydreaming, but today it was as if all my senses were on high alert. Under the shade of the awning, my sister Fiona and I waited for James West’s train to arrive from New York City for his annual summer visit to our little mountain town in Colorado. James. James West. He was my secret and most likely unrequited love. I’d been only a child when he’d first come to Emerson Pass. Now I was grown and ever hopeful that this would be the summer he noticed me.

  Noticed me. What did that mean, really? Would he suddenly see me as a woman instead of his best friend’s younger sister? My stomach fluttered as if the bees that currently jumped from flower to flower were alive within me.

  Around me, people waited on the train platform, most of whom I recognized, chatting or merely standing in silence. Were any of them as anxious as I to see the train pull into the station? Did anyone else have a secret, as I did? If so, were they secrets of the heart, as mine was?

  Emerson Pass was still a small town, although it had grown by thousands before the depression hit the country. We’d stagnated since then but still considered ourselves lucky. Other parts of America were suffering much more than the people in our small community. We looked after one another here. No one went hungry in Emerson Pass, my father often said. “Even if I have to feed them myself.”

  “It’s terribly hot, isn’t it?” Fiona asked, breaking into my thoughts. “I’m rather done with the heat, and the summer’s barely begun.”

  I glanced at her, surprised. She was not one to complain. Her cheeks were pink from the summer heat, and tendrils of her hair escaped their careful arrangement and curled at the nape of her damp neck. Dark smudges under her eyes told me she hadn’t been getting enough sleep. None of this took from her beauty. In fact, she appeared as she always had, despite her challenging work demands. She remained petite and slight, with dark hair and fair skin. Her tiny waist gave no hint that she’d carried twins just four years previous. It was only the fine lines around her mouth that had deepened. Only slightly, mind you, considering she was raising four boys while keeping up with her musical career. Two sets of twins, no less.

  She’d surprised us all when she gave birth to twin boys four years ago. She somehow juggled her two sets of twins with grace and what seemed like ease. I knew it wasn’t always as idyllic as she made it seem. She’d been my age—only twenty—when six years ago, she and Li had adopted eight-year-old boys they’d found living on the streets of Paris. My parents had worried she was too young to have a sudden family, but they needn’t have fretted. Fiona was born wise beyond her years and with the heart of a saint. At least that’s how she seemed to me.

  “Are you feeling all right?” I asked her now, suddenly worried.

  “I’m fine. Tired.” She covered a yawn with her fist. “We’ve been up late composing, and the little boys wake with the rooster and never seem to run out of energy.” She and her husband, Li, had fallen in with the motion picture people out west and now composed musical scores. It was too exciting.

  “It’s been a long week and I’ve been looking forward to seeing James, but all I want is a nap.” Fiona tilted her head to rest against my shoulder for a moment. I was four inches taller and had white-blond hair and light blue eyes. Anywhere but here in town, no one would have known we were sisters. In Emerson Pass, however, the Barnes family was somewhat infamous. Our father had built the town from his own will and desire to create a thriving community for his children. He’d succeeded. Now that he was older, he’d slowed down quite a bit, handing over a lot of his business to my brothers and brother-in-law.

  “I can look after James for you,” I said. “Entertain him today, I mean.”

  “He’ll like that very much. He’s very fond of you. Also, I may have mentioned to him about your manuscript. He offered to take a look at it for you.”

  I gulped, nervous just thinking about someone as esteemed as James looking at my work. “We’ll see.”

  “I think I may be having another baby,” Fiona said casually, as if it were an afterthought. “Hopefully only one this time.”

  “Really? Fiona, are you sure?” Another baby? Before she knew it, she’d have seven kids like our parents.

  “I’m not entirely sure, so I’m keeping it to myself for now.”

  “Except for me?” I smiled, pleased. She and my sister Cymbeline were close confidants. I was flattered to have been told such news first.

  “I do hope dear James is doing well,” Fiona said. “His last letter hinted at trouble. Perhaps with his work?”

  “I hope not.”

  “It may be only a matter of exhaustion,” Fiona said. “We’ll put him back together before sending him back to the chaos of the city.”

  He’d been away an entire year this time. Between editing projects, he came “home” to Emerson Pass to rest and recuperate. He had several famous authors he worked with and he’d confessed to me the summer before that they’d temporarily robbed him of his health and spirit. I had asked why and he’d said they were difficult in various ways. One was a drunk, and James had to cajole him to finish projects. I couldn’t even imagine it, but I knew James would not exaggerate.

  We were here for him, regardless. Whenever he needed to be buoyed or pampered, we were here like the cushions in our sofas, soft, reliable, and comforting.

  The first time I ever laid eyes on him I thought I might faint dead away. I’m not exaggerating, either. My legs had actually wobbled. I made a mental note at the time to use it in one of my future novels, this feeling of being utterly smitten with a man. I’d never have thought it possible. I had always been more of the studious, quiet type, happy with my books and my paper and pen.