ENTANGLED PURSUITS (MEN OF ACTION Book 1)

by Brenda Jackson

  And Toni had no problem with that. She was a vibrant woman who enjoyed the opposite sex, even if she wasn’t looking for love. But she didn’t consider herself promiscuous, by any stretch. In fact, she was very selective when it came to her bed partners. One guy even accused her of being snobbish. She disagreed with him. She loved her body and wouldn’t share it with just anybody. But if she liked the guy, and she knew he was no threat to her mentally or physically, then she had no problem getting it on with him. She’d had one-night stands before and had no problem with having another.

  She wasn’t looking for a lasting relationship built on love and was the only woman she knew who didn’t even really believe in it. Her mother had given everything for love, and in the end, had lost it all. When the pain had gotten to be too much for Nicole Bellamy, she had ended her life.

  “Tell me some more about Antonia Oliver,” Drew said, breaking into her thoughts as they walked to the restaurant.

  She glanced up at him. “Sure. But when we get to the restaurant, I expect you to tell me all about you, also.”

  Did she see something flash in his eyes? Pain? Regret? Some kind of protective guard? She knew everyone had something in their past they’d rather not divulge, and she understood. Few people knew about her mother’s suicide. Only Joy knew...but they’d been friends for years before Toni had finally told her.

  “Of course,” he said.

  She figured she would get the watered-down version. It wasn’t that he would lie about anything; he just wouldn’t be as forthcoming. But that was okay. He had that right. And she had no intention of oversharing either.

  “My parents never married, and I was raised by my mom,” she said. “She died when I was in my junior year of high school. I went to live with my grandparents after her death.”

  “I’m so sorry. Was your mom ill?”

  Toni nodded. Mental health issues were definitely an illness. “Yes, she was ill. My grandparents were great, though. They helped me get over my loss by getting me involved in a lot of school activities.”

  “What made you interested in law enforcement?”

  She smiled. “My grandfather was a cop. He patrolled the same beat for over thirty-five years, and when he retired, the community got together and named one of the streets after him.”

  “He must have been some cop.”

  “He was. He kept a lot of the kids in the neighborhood from getting involved in gangs by setting up a police athletic league and becoming a mentor to a lot of guys.”

  “Every person needs a mentor. I had one, as well.”

  “You did?”

  “Yes. Sheppard Granger. He’s the reason I decided to go into law enforcement.”

  “Was Sheppard Granger a cop?”

  “No, he wasn’t a cop.” Then he intentionally changed the subject by pointing out a landmark to her. The detective in Toni recognized the ploy and wondered why he didn’t want to discuss Sheppard Granger any further. Was he trying to hide something from her? If so, he had that right. It’s not like they had to get all into each other’s business. They wouldn’t be having that sort of party. Chances are when they departed at the end of the week, they would neither be seeing each other again. Nor was there any reason for them to stay in touch.

  “We’re here.”

  He stopped in front of a restaurant and released her hand to open the door. She felt an immediate sense of loss.

  “I’M HOPING YOU’LL FIND something on the menu you like, Toni.”

  She looked over at him and smiled. “I’m sure I will, Drew.”

  At the sound of her voice, Andrew felt an arrow of liquid heat shoot straight to his groin. And it wasn’t the first time.

  Toni was hot. She wore her sexuality like a badge of honor, and didn’t have a problem flaunting any of her attributes. He figured the short dress she was wearing was meant to show off her legs; the cut of her dress at the top was meant to emphasize a pair of beautiful shoulders; and the reason she licked her lips was to draw attention to what a delicious pair they were. She was intentionally working him, and he didn’t mind because he intended to work her, also.

  “Are you okay?”

  He glanced over at her. There was no reason to tell her there was nothing wrong with him that a night spent in her bed, or his, wouldn’t cure. “I’m fine,” he said, hearing the hitch in his breath.

  The waiter came to take their order, first asking for their wine selections. He liked that she was knowledgeable about the different types of wines and hadn’t asked for his advice. He was a beer man, and only drank wine on occasion.

  After the waiter left, she glanced over at him. It seemed every time their gazes connected it stirred the sexual chemistry between them. It was overwhelming his senses. One look was all it took to send his libido into overdrive.

  “Tell me about you, Drew.”

  He didn’t say anything for a minute, wondering how much to tell her. She didn’t need to know about his troubled past, that at the age of ten, stealing had been his favorite pastime. He supposed it was to be expected. He’d had a no-good, worthless, lowlife for a father who’d thought it was beneath him to work. And his mother, bless her heart, had loved the bastard so much, she had worked two jobs to take care of them. It was his father who’d taught him to steal—mainly cigarettes when Drew’s mother refused to give the guy money to buy any. That was the one place Beatrice Logan would draw the line—she would buy her husband his booze, but not his cigarettes.

  As a teen, Andrew had been in and out of youth detention centers so often, their routines had become a way of life for him. It didn’t bother him—being at the centers beat living at home. He hated spending any time there. He hated his father for the way he was treating his mother, and he resented the way she would let him. After hearing about Toni’s grandfather, he couldn’t help wishing he’d had someone like him in his life while growing up. But he hadn’t.

  The crazy part of how things had turned out was that his juvenile-delinquent record had been what had landed him in the slammer for something he hadn’t done. He’d been accused of a robbery he hadn’t committed. It had taken nearly five years before he’d managed to get a new trial, where DNA evidence had been introduced that hadn’t been his, and he’d finally been exonerated.

  Although it sounded crazy, getting put in the slammer for those five years had been the best thing to ever happen to him. Because that had been where he’d met Sheppard. But Toni didn’t need to know any of that.

  “I was born in Memphis, got my Master’s in Criminal Justice from Hampton University, and then went to work for the police department in Alexandria.”

  There was no need to mention anything about not finishing high school and getting his GED in prison. She also didn’t need to know that after getting a degree from college, no law enforcement agency had wanted to hire him because of his past criminal record—even though he’d been exonerated.

  “I like what I do and work with a nice group of people,” he continued. “Although there are a few guys whose heads swell every once in a while, most of us get along. And we help on each other’s cases if we need to,” he said.

  “I wish it was that way everywhere,” Toni said. “In Miami, I am one of only three female detectives. I’ve had two partners, and both were male chauvinistic pigs. One even lost his job when he deliberately set me up for a fall. One that could have cost me my life.”

  “What the hell! Are you serious?”

  “Yes. That’s when everyone discovered I was Madison Bellamy’s granddaughter. Up until then, nobody knew. I’d deliberately kept my family connections under wraps, wanting to make it on my own.”

  “And now?”

  “Now I get treated better because they know of my grandfather’s legacy. But I don’t get any special treatment. I just want to be judged by what I can do, not on who I’m related to. When I return to Miami after this seminar, I’m supposed to get a new partner. I just hope it’ll be someone who is fair and who will respect me for wh
at I can do. Because, trust me...” She winked. “I can do a lot.”

  At that moment, the waiter arrived with their food, thank God. Because he suddenly couldn’t seem to catch his breath.

  • • •

  “Thanks for dinner, Drew.”

  “It was my pleasure. I hadn’t expected the live band. I thought that was a nice touch.”

  “I thought so, too.” What had been even nicer, Toni thought, was when he’d asked her to dance. A slow number. It felt good having her body plastered against his, feeling every delectable muscle in his tall, masculine form. And speaking of muscles…being held in his arms had made her muscles tighten as desire warmed her to the core.

  Drew had held her hand again on the walk back, as if he’d wanted to make sure all that sexual hunger he’d stirred to life inside of her all evening was alive and fully functioning the rest of the evening. If that had been his intent, it was working. He had her imagination running wild, wondering how it would feel to have those fingers buried in her hair while he ravaged her mouth, or how those same fingers would feel inching up her legs toward the center of her thighs, and…

  “We’re here,” he said, coming to a stop at the bank of elevators. Because certain elevators went to certain floors, there was no guarantee they would be riding the same elevator up.

  “What floor are you on?” she asked.

  “Thirty. What about you”

  “Twenty.”

  That meant they would need to catch different elevators. She licked her lips, then seeing how his gaze followed the movement, she made a decision. “Would you like to join me in a nightcap?”

  He looked over toward the hotel lounge. “Looks crowded in there.”

  “I wasn’t thinking about in there, Drew.”

  His eyes returned to hers. The intensity in them filled her every cell. “Then, where were you thinking, Toni?”

  Common sense was warning her not to get so caught up in this man. There was something about all those sensual vibes rolling off him that wasn’t normal. However, the sexual magnetism drawing her to him was too powerful, way too strong.

  “I was thinking about my hotel room. I happen to have a bottle of wine up there.”

  A smile tipped the edges of his mouth. “I would love to join you in your room for a glass of wine.” He then pushed the button for the elevator.

  Toni was glad when other people stepped on the elevator with them. There was no telling what she might have done had she and Drew been alone. After getting off the elevator on her floor, they walked silently down the spacious hallway holding hands. There was nothing left to be said. Once they were behind closed doors, there would be action and few words. Anticipating that this would be the way the night ended, she had tidied up her hotel room and turned back the covers on the bed.

  They came to a stop in front of her hotel room door. He released her hand and she took the passkey from her purse. Moments later, she opened the door and he followed her inside, closing the door behind them. And then he reached out and pulled her into his arms, lowering his head and claiming her mouth in the kiss she’d been waiting all night to get.

  Present Day

  “LET’S GO, DETECTIVE OLIVER.”

  Toni blinked, snapping out of her reminiscences of the past. While she’d been setting up her desk, she’d momentarily gotten caught up in the memories.

  She glanced up to see Drew standing in front of her desk, an intense look on his face. “Sorry. What did you say?”

  “I said, let’s go. Murder in Old Town,” he said in that curt tone that seemed to be his preferred voice with her.

  She quickly grabbed her jacket off the rack and followed him. Drew was walking fast, and she could barely keep up with his long strides. She’d discovered a long time ago that the only place she could keep up with him was in the bedroom, and even then, it had taken a whole lot of effort on her part.

  She followed him around various cubicles before reaching the door. Luckily, most people were getting out of their way, obviously knowing Drew would plow through them if they didn’t. He led her out into the lot where the pool of unmarked police cars was located. He immediately went to the driver’s side of a car, and she got in on the other. She had barely snapped her seatbelt in place when he took off, tearing out of the lot. “I intended to take you around to meet everyone, but that will have to come later,” he told her in a rushed voice.

  “That’s fine.”

  She recalled him saying, when they first met in San Diego, that everyone at his precinct got along. She wondered if that was still the case. There was always drama of some kind at her former precinct in Miami. The most recent blow-up had been about a senior officer who’d gotten two female officers pregnant. Their babies were due within days of each other. How he’d successfully managed to keep both women in the dark was a mystery.

  Drew steered the police cruiser through the streets, blue lights flashing, as they made their way to the crime scene—her first as a detective with the Alexandria Police Department. Her first as Andrew’s partner.

  His concentration appeared to be on the road in front of him. “What information do you have?” she asked.

  When he came to a stop at a traffic light, he looked over at her, his expression a little dazed, as if he was still surprised to see her in the seat beside him. When the traffic light changed, he turned his attention back to the road. “The 9-1-1 dispatcher said it was a woman, possibly in her late twenties or early thirties. Severe knife wounds. Not certain if self-inflicted. We won’t know all the specifics until the medical examiner arrives.”

  Toni absorbed his words, wondering how he handled this kind of thing. But when she glanced back over at Drew, his gaze was entirely focused on the road again. He was driven, purposeful...and oh, so hot. But this wasn’t the time. They had a job to do...even if he could still set her on fire with just a look.

  She suddenly felt even warmer but couldn’t remove her jacket without unbuckling her seatbelt. So she lowered the window, needing to feel the wind on her face. They were partners now—she had to get a grip. Sexual chemistry was a powerful force to reckon with, but it had to be put to rest. She was determined to prove herself to her new department. And to do that, she’d just have to figure out how to make sure Andrew Logan didn’t get under her skin...again.

  • • •

  Out of the corner of Andrew’s eye, he saw Toni’s dark, shoulder-length hair moving in the breeze coming in from her open window. He’d always loved her hair, especially seeing those tresses spread across her pillow as he straddled her.

  His hand tightened on the steering wheel. She was back in his city and he wasn’t sure how to deal with it. Although she’d never lived here, she had come to see him quite often. During their ten-month-long hot and heavy affair, they did a lot of traveling—he would visit her in Miami, or she would catch a flight and spend the weekend with him in Alexandria.

  And then sometimes, they’d meet at the halfway point in Savannah, where they’d check into a hotel and spend the entire weekend talking, eating, and making love. Occasionally, they would venture outside to walk on the beach, take a boat out on the ocean, drive through the botanical gardens or visit several of the museums or historical sites.

  He had loved spending time with her...until suddenly, she had ended things. No discussion. No dialogue. She’d just done it—kicked him to the damn curb. The only thing she’d told him was that their affair had run its course. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

  And now, she was back in his city, invading his space, and he had a feeling she was about to wreak havoc in his well-ordered life. It had taken him almost five years to get over her. Almost five damn years. He’d barely recovered from seeing her at Stonewall’s wedding, and now she was his damn partner? If this was a damn joke, he wasn’t laughing.

  He brought the cruiser to a stop. “We’re here, Detective Oliver.” Glancing over at her, he saw anger flash in her eyes. He didn’t have to ask why, but did so anyway. “
You got a problem, Detective?”

  “Evidently, you do, Drew. Any reason you can’t call me Toni?” she asked curtly, as she put her hair in a ponytail.

  He didn’t answer right away, looking away from her a second. “Less personal that way.”

  “And you’re afraid to get personal?”

  “Aren’t you?” he bit back.

  “No. What was between us ended years ago. Nearly five, to be exact. I’ve moved on and I’m sure you have, too. I’m here to do a job and not rekindle an old flame that’s nothing but ashes now. You’re acting like you haven’t gotten over me.”

  Her words didn’t just hit a nerve, they literally cut into his jugular. “That’s where you’re wrong, Toni. I have moved on. Trust me.”

  “Then, act like it.”

  She opened the car door and got out. He breathed in deeply, counting to ten as he stared out of the windshield and watched her approach the beat cop and flashed her badge.

  Andrew’s gaze stared at Toni. Was he really acting like he hadn’t gotten over her? Is that what she thought? If that was the case, then he’d prove just how wrong she was.

  Getting out of the car, he joined her. The beat cop turned upon his approach and gave him a wry smile. “Hey, Detective Logan. I was just telling your partner here that it looks pretty bad inside. The Medical Examiner and crime scene guys are on their way. Officers are already lifting prints and taking pictures.”

  Andrew nodded as he gazed at the front door and saw the numbers posted above it. He frowned. Why did those numbers ring a bell? At that moment, an eerie feeling washed over him. Why? He was certain he hadn’t been to this house before, so what was it?

  “I got several cops canvassing the area, knocking on doors, talking with neighbors to see if anyone noticed anyone coming or going. Seems like a pretty nice neighborhood,” the beat cop was saying.