Undercover cop Dan Hudson is framed for blackmail and kicked off the NOPD force. Enraged about that, and the fact that his lover refuses to stand by him, Dan moves to Denver, where he becomes Dirk Steele. He finds a job working for the Powells, who are pawnbrokers ... and fences. When he proposes to them that he put together a team to steal on demand for the Powells’ less than legitimate clients, a deal is struck and the team is formed. The team consists of Maverick, a thief; Tripp, a street kid who shoplifts to survive; and Fey, another street kid who is an excellent pickpocket and petty thief. Now the question becomes, will the team succeed? And, equally important, will the attraction between Dirk, who has sworn off love, and Maverick -- whose credo is only down and dirty sex -- grow into something more? Or will they remain just 'friends with benefits'? Time will tell as the team takes on increasingly difficult jobs and a man from Dirk's past shows up who could possibly throw a monkey wrench into the works.

Wrong Side of the Law

After the three of them left, Dirk gathered up his gear while Maverick chatted with Mr. Powell. Dirk heard Powell ask, “How soon will you all be ready to go?”


“They need real hands-on training first,” Dirk replied.


Maverick nodded, although he looked surprised. “How are we going to manage that?”


“I’ll let you know tomorrow night, after I’ve done some scouting around.”


“So it’s going to be for real-real, not just finding an abandoned someplace to play around with?”


“Can’t learn by playing,” Dirk replied seriously. “We don’t want to end up in jail because one of them, of us, doesn’t know what we’re doing. We’re not going after TVs or laptops. This is the real thing if Mr. Powell lines up some good jobs for us.”


“Does it bother you that you’re on the wrong side of the law now?” Maverick asked.


Chapter 19