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

“No more of that for either of you,” he said, looking at her and Tripp. “I know you’re both good at what you do, but if you run into bad luck, and you know it could happen, we’ll be down one person. Understand?”


Fey and Tripp nodded. “I’ll be good,” Fey whispered, looking suitably chastened. “I promise.”


They finished eating then, after cleaning up and washing the dishes, Dirk told them what he had in mind.


“I found a house that’s for sale, not too far from here. It’s in a nice neighborhood with neighbors on both sides but there’s trees and a fence separating the houses.”


“We’re going to break in?” Tripp asked.


“We are. As I said last night, you need hands-on practice.”


“What kind of security?” Maverick asked.


“From the realtor’s pictures on their site, there’s an alarm box by the front door.”


“If it’s for sale, won’t there be a lockbox with the keys?”


Chapter 21