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

“Smells good,” Maverick commented when he came into the kitchen. “Did you make enough for two?”


“Yep. You did warn me you were coming over.”


Maverick nodded, taking a seat at the kitchen table. “What happened on the job?”


Dirk filled him in, ending by saying, “It was my own stupidity. I managed to get the combination right and open the safe, but in my hurry to get out of there, I didn’t check for any secondary security on the safe.”


“And damned near got yourself arrested. You of all people should know better.”


“I should. I do. But I didn’t get caught. We managed to get away.”


“Dirk…” Maverick looked at him very gravely. “What would happen to you if you didget caught?”


Dirk smiled wryly. “Given my background, they’d throw the book at me and then I’d get to spend a few years in jail trying to avoid all the felons who hate cops.”


“Figured that’s what you’d say. Maybe it’s time for you to back away and just plan our jobs and let the rest of us handle them.”


Chapter 37