A single wrong assumption can be costly…
I’m so excited for this new release! It’s been a long labor of love – the finale to the Passion series, set in a fictional center for sex studies and sexuality.
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EXCERPT
New York, New York 2014
Continuing where we left off last week: Detective Tom Walker has just met the subject of his investigation…
“I’m Rosanne Falcon. I’ve been wondering when you were going to introduce yourself.”
“What the…”
“Detective…I assume detective,” she said, tilting her chin.
He must’ve looked as rattled as he felt.
“You people always drive such non-descript cars that it’s obvious you’re a cop.” She scowled. “You seem pretty quiet. I assume you have some questions for me.”
Collecting himself, Tom flashed his badge. “Detective Thomas Walker, ma’am.” She didn’t sound like any call girl he’d encountered. Her tone was educated and assured. Not cocky like a bullshitter, just assured. That was annoying. His presence was supposed to unsettle her. It did most people. He towered over her by nearly a foot and could probably tuck her under his arm and carry her around the parking lot. “Did you have a pleasant morning?”
“Very,” she said, smiling demurely. “Thanks for asking. I hope you didn’t have to wait too long.”
“Not too long. You seem to be a lady with a clock in her head.”
Her smile didn’t fade.
He blinked. She didn’t look that different from many women her age. She sure didn’t look or behave like a hardened whore. Her cat-gray eyes were the most inquisitive he’d ever seen. There were at least a half dozen studs in her left ear lobe. While she wasn’t drably dressed, the jeans, faded tee, and sneakers were hardly the apparel of a woman setting out to attract customers. Although the words on her tee, I Can Make Your Day, did suggest bravado, they’d hardly convict her in court.
“Efficiency can be a virtue,” she quipped easily. “Aren’t you supposed to ask me how much I charge? Or are you just checking out the merchandise?”
He didn’t like her dry chuckle. She wasn’t stupid. She was playing with him, and he didn’t like being played with by anyone, especially by a young woman who made her living on her back. “So how much do you charge?” he rasped, knowing full well he was stepping into a trap.
“Not everything has a price tag on it, Detective.” Her eyes burned. “What I offer can’t be bought.”
“You really think I’m going to buy your story about not charging these truckers?”
“Ah, you’ve been talking with the Stevenses. They’re nice people.”
“Yeah, you three must be part of some sort of mutual admiration society. But I’m not buying it. Not for a second.”
She snickered and squeezed his arm. “Like I said, Detective, I’m not for sale. If you want me, you’ll have to earn it.”
“I didn’t say I wanted you,” Tom stammered, taking a step back.
“So be it,” Rosanne chided. “If you’re not going to arrest me, then I need to get going. The day is speeding by.”
“I’m going to get to the bottom of this,” Tom huffed. “I’ll be looking over your shoulder.”
She stared at him a long time as if assessing. “I thought you might prefer voyeurism. You have that look about you.”
BLURB
Now in her late twenties, Rosanne Falcon’s life has finally come together—a Ph.D., a prestigious research job, and two exquisite lovers, one of each gender, to complete the package. The intense bond she shares with Simone Stone was augmented rather than broken when Simone met and married Boyd Roberts, and the three have forged a fulfilling polyamory relationship. More would only be trouble.
Widowed by a tragic accident several years earlier, Detective Thomas Walker is nearing retirement after twenty years on the police force and ready to change careers. Fully convinced the hot redhead who meets truckers at the rest area he’s staked out is a prostitute, he sets out to build his case against her. He is dead wrong, but each layer he uncovers of what she really does for a living challenges long held assumptions. Can he overcome his deep-seated bias to make room for what’s possible?
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You definitely have me wondering about Tom. He’s obviously got some major issues in his history, or he wouldn’t be treating Rosanne this way.
You’ve really captured the character dynamics. And I suspect that Tom is in for some major, probably shocking , changes to his life.
Thanks, Lisabet – he has more than one wrong assumption to sort out 🙂
I like Roseanne’s sassy attitude. Tweeted.
Thanks – I love this heroine!