Closing my eyes, I slid farther into the bath, dunking my head under the water as I remembered the first time I met Lee.

“You got a boyfriend?” he asked, hands braced casually on the metal end of my shopping trolley. He had really intense eyes, and the way the muscles in his forearms flexed was a little bit mesmerising.

“That’s none of your business,” I replied, trying to focus on the shelved packages in front of me.

“You act like you’ve got a boyfriend, or are all cops this uptight?”

A small laugh escaped me. “Look, you’re barking up the wrong tree and I’ve got groceries to shop for, so could you please leave me to it?”

He leaned a fraction closer. “How long have you known Alexis? She never mentioned you while she and Stu were together.”

Cocking an eyebrow, I replied, “Hmm, I wonder why that is? People don’t generally mention the fact that they have friends in law enforcement to someone like you.”

I instantly regretted how judgmental I sounded, but it was the truth. Lee had “dodgy” stamped all over him, from the tattoos to the wiser-than-he-pretends-to-be gleam in his eye. I’d met blokes like him before, usually while I was working. They’d have your wallet and phone from your pocket before you ever realised you were a few hundred quid lighter.

The curve to his lips was at odds with the hardness that suddenly marked his expression. “Someone like me?”

“Look, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I don’t know you.”

“Yeah, you don’t.”

“And I don’t want to.”

He let go of the trolley and came around to stand before me, whispering, “Now, we both know that’s a lie.” I looked up at him from beneath my lashes, sucking in a breath at his proximity. He smelled like cigarettes and cologne, and I suddenly realised I was enjoying his closeness. Standing back, I shot him a hard stare that told him not to push his luck. He didn’t take the warning, and instead reached out to pull a strand of my hair between his fingers.

“I fucking love this hair. You’re gorgeous. Let me take you out.”

So, he was one of those men, the kind who had a thing for redheads. Before I had a chance to respond, I was saved by Alexis, who came up behind Lee and slapped him cheekily on the arse. God, I loved her. Sometimes it was great having a friend who knew exactly when you needed saving.

I rose out of the water, inhaling a deep breath, and tried to shake my thoughts of Lee. Thinking about a man I could never have was a waste of time. So, doing my best to clear my mind, I endeavoured to enjoy the rest of my bath, minus the inner ramblings.

Two

“Getting high off his own supply. Bloody typical,” my workmate Steve tutted as he recounted the story of a dealer he’d busted the day before.

I wasn’t too fond of Steve, mainly because he was fond enough of himself for the both of us, and his alpha-male braggadocio tended to rub me up the wrong way. It was a Saturday morning, and I was stationed with him, Tony, and another constable, Keira, outside Upton Park, where a football match was to take place between Arsenal and Spurs.

We were mostly there for crowd control, but also because of the old rivalry between the teams that meant there was a small chance of trouble after the game. Football hooliganism was a real pet peeve of mine. These people would fight to the point of seriously injuring one another, all in aid of some perceived feud between sides. It was ridiculous.

“It couldn’t have been very hard booking him, then, if he was high,” I said in an effort to take Steve down a peg or two. I got my argumentative side from my dad. It was a flaw, sure, but at least I could own up to it.

My workmate eyed me, bristling at my comment. “He was on cocaine, Karla. Have you ever met a cokehead right after he’s snorted a few lines? Fucking mental cases.”

“She’s met plenty,” Tony put in calmly, and I could tell he was trying to pre-emptively defuse any bickering between Steve and me, ever the father of the group. “We all have. Saturday nights on the beat are hardly a cakewalk.”

“True that,” said Keira past a yawn. She’d had a late shift last night, and I could tell she was exhausted. I’d wanted to let her take the morning off, but the stadium was at full capacity, so we needed all hands on deck.

We were stationed close to the entrance, where the Arsenal fans were queuing up, a sea of red and white jerseys. I was on autopilot, scanning the crowds for any signs of disruption, when I caught sight of a familiar face. It had been over two weeks since I’d paid a visit to his house, and I really shouldn’t have been feeling butterflies right then, but I couldn’t seem to prevent them.

Lee Cross and his brother Stu were walking toward the stadium. Both of them were the sort of men who demanded attention, so it wasn’t too much of a surprise that mine was drawn in their direction. Just behind them were their two other brothers, Liam and Trevor. Liam was the youngest, a baby-faced version of Lee. Trevor was the second youngest, and he was prettier than half the girls I knew. Stu, the one Alexis had dated, was the eldest, and he was handsome in a rough and rugged sort of way.

Before I could give it a second thought, my feet were on the move. I managed to bypass Lee and went straight for Trevor.

“Excuse me a moment, sir, but can I have a word?” I said, placing a hand out for him to stop. He paused mid-stride and eyed me closely, like he knew my face but couldn’t quite pin down where he’d seen me before. The moment he took in my uniform, though, his gaze widened with recognition. Still, he didn’t get spooked and instead flashed me a smile, standing back as Liam arched a brow at me.

“Of course, Constable, what can I do for ya?” said Trevor, his sparkly blue eyes dancing. Was this a game to him? Small hairs suddenly prickled at the back of my neck, like a spooky sixth sense. Glancing quickly behind me, I saw Lee standing mere feet away with Stu.

“Problem, Snap?”

I swallowed, my eyelids fluttering nervously. What the hell was wrong with me? I never got nervous like this when I was working. It was Lee. He had a weird effect on me. For some reason, I grew flushed at the same time my jaw tightened. His little nickname for me was really starting to get on my nerves. I ignored him and turned back to Trevor.

“Two weeks ago, on Friday the twenty-first, between five and five-thirty, can you remember your whereabouts?”

He scratched his jaw, like he actually had to think about it. I’d been in touch with the newsagents where the car he’d tried to steal was parked. I requested their surveillance tapes but, and I knew this wasn’t a coincidence, the camera was angled in such a way that it hadn’t caught him.

“It’s hard to remember such a specific time, you get me?” said Trevor right before Stu stepped up, a hostile slant to his mouth.

“You were with me, bruv, down at the garage, remember?”

“Oh, right, yeah. That’s where I was. At the garage.” Trevor nodded.

I looked between the two of them, still incredibly aware of Lee at my back. He had this way of making me feel entirely seen, like he sensed just how uncomfortable I was under his watch. The thought made me even more determined not to let his brothers away with their blatant lie. I should have known that one of them would give Trevor an alibi, though.

“Is there anyone else who can corroborate this? Any other workers at the garage?”

“Of course there are. The place is closed for the weekend, but you be sure to pop over on Monday, and we’ll get you speaking to some of the boys,” said Lee, coming to stand next to me. I sucked in a small breath and tried to remain in control, which was hard to do, considering I was surrounded by Cross brothers amid a crowd of football supporters. I finally allowed my eyes to meet Lee’s, and the way he was looking at me caused me to swallow thickly.