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The Detective And The D.A.
Leann Harris
District Attorney Kelly Whalen was investigating a case that led into the highest circles of Texas society, a murder that someone very important wanted to remain a mystery.And she was going to need help from the last person she wanted in her life - the ex-husband she'd never quite gotten out of her system . Tony Ashcroft still knew more about crime than any detective in Houston.Trouble was, he also knew how to get under Kelly's skin - and make her want him with the same breathless hunger she'd always felt for him. And working with him, day after day and night after night, was really turning out to be murder .
“You’re a dangerous man, Detective,” Kelly murmured.
Tony’s knees nearly buckled. Concentrate, he told himself. But all he wanted was to reach out and run his fingers over her cheek and down her neck. She had a little place there that, if he kissed it, would make her melt.
She leaned forward, and for an instant he thought she was going to kiss him. Suddenly she jerked back and turned away, color in her cheeks. “All right, Tony. Let’s see if we can turn up any evidence of murder.”
She was in her crusader mode, fiery and sincere. And it reached deep within him. He wanted to help, wanted to slay this dragon for her. “You got it, Kel.”
Her smile sent a jolt racing through him, making him want things that couldn’t be.
Oh, he was in trouble. And it had nothing to do with murder….
Dear Reader,
Once again we invite you to enjoy six of the most exciting romances around, starting with Ruth Langan’s His Father’s Son. This is the last of THE LASSITER LAW, her miniseries about a family with a tradition of law enforcement, and it’s a finale that will leave you looking forward to this bestselling author’s next novel. Meanwhile, enjoy Cameron Lassiter’s headlong tumble into love.
ROMANCING THE CROWN continues with Virgin Seduction, by award winner Kathleen Creighton. The missing prince is home at last—and just in time for the shotgun wedding between Cade Gallagher and Tamiri princess Leila Kamal. Carla Cassidy continues THE DELANEY HEIRS with Matthew’s story, in Out of Exile, while Pamela Dalton spins a tale of a couple who are Strategically Wed. Sharon Mignerey returns with an emotional tale of a hero who is Friend, Lover, Protector, and Leann Harris wraps up the month with a match between The Detective and the D.A.
You won’t want to miss a single one. And, of course, be sure to come back next month for more of the most exciting romances around—right here in Silhouette Intimate Moments.
Enjoy!
Leslie J. Wainger
Executive Senior Editor
The Detective and the D.A.
Leann Harris
LEANN HARRIS
When Leann Harris first met her husband in college, she never dreamed she would marry him. After all, he was getting a Ph.D. in the one science she’d managed to avoid—physics! So much for first impressions. They have been happily married for over thirty years. After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, Leann taught math and science to deaf high school students until the birth of her first child. It wasn’t until her youngest child started school that Leann decided to fulfill a lifelong dream and began writing. She presently lives in Plano, Texas, with her husband and two children.
I would like to thank
the following people for their help with this book:
Lt. Dave Davis for his ideas
on how to get a case kicked back.
Warren Spencer for his suggestions
on how police and the D.A.’s office interact.
Robert Hurst of Houston PD for his willingness to
answer all my questions. Any errors are strictly mine.
A dedication:
This is for you, Dad. I miss you.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Epilogue
Chapter 1
“You can’t go in there unannounced.”
Kelly Whalen heard her secretary yell from her desk in the next room.
“You gonna stop me?” The man’s tone held true menace.
An assistant D.A. for the city of Houston, Kelly recognized the voice of her ex-husband and wondered why he was here. And apparently unhappy. Very unhappy.
A moment later all six feet two inches of Detective Tony Ashcroft barreled into her office. He wore his let’s-frighten-the-socks-off-the suspect expression. “What the hell is going on here, Kelly?” he demanded.
Ash was still an incredibly handsome man with wide shoulders, dark brown hair, and green eyes that sparked with anger.
Teresa Myers, her poor secretary, rushed into the room behind Ash and came to a halt. “Sorry, Kelly. I tried to stop him, bu-but it was like trying to stop a herd of cattle from charging.” Teresa knew of what she spoke, having been raised on a cattle ranch in West Texas.
“Don’t worry about it, Teresa.” Kelly stood. She wanted to be at eye level with her ex—as much as she could—in a position of power instead of looking up at him like a servant. “When Ash makes up his mind, nothing short of calling in the marines could stop him.”
Teresa glared at the detective. “I don’t doubt it,” she mumbled as she walked out of the room.
Ash folded his arms over his chest. He didn’t look amused at the exchange between Kelly and Teresa. “Now that the show’s over, you want to explain yourself?”
It had been close to four years since she’d spoken to Ash. She’d seen him in passing at the courthouse and around city buildings, but they hadn’t spoken since they had cleaned up the property issues remaining after their divorce.
“You want to let me in on what it is you want explained?” Kelly shot back, irritated with his attitude.
“Why was I tapped to do the reinvestigation of the Carlson case since it was originally Ralph Lee’s?” he snarled.
“What?” She couldn’t believe her ears. “You’ve been assigned the case?” Kelly felt as if a bomb had just exploded in front of her, leaving her disorientated and disconnected to the world.
His eyes narrowed. “You didn’t know?” He sounded skeptical. “Didn’t request it?”
“No, I didn’t request it.” Did he think she was nuts? “And no, I didn’t know.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “I was called into my captain’s office this morning and told to c-o-o-p-erate with you on this case.”
Kelly hated when Ash got that tone in his voice.
“I’ve been pulled off my active cases, which didn’t make my partner happy, and told to report to you. So explain what’s going on.”
Taking a deep breath, she said, “Sit down, Ash, and quit glaring at me. I’m not a suspect that needs to be interrogated.”
“If only it were that easy,” he grumbled.
She had had enough. “Just sit down and stop acting like a hard case.”
“I’m the hard case, Kelly?” His brow arched. “If I recall, I wasn’t the only one.”
She didn’t want to open that can of worms. “This situation is as much a surprise to me as it is to you. I’ll call your captain and see what’s going on.”
He didn’t look as if he wanted to cooperate. He looked more like a man approaching a deadly situation, determined not to let down his guard. He moved to the chair in front of her desk and sat.
Kelly grabbed up the telephone and, with a vengeance, punched in the number of the captain over the detectives. After a couple of rings the captain answered.
“Captain Jenkins, this is Kelly Whalen of the D.A.’s office. Detective Tony Ashcroft is in my office. He says he’s been assigned to the Carlson case. What can you tell me about it?”
Captain Jenkins answered in a nonchalant manner. “Yes, I assigned him the case, Ms. Whalen. Is there a problem?”
Was there a problem? Of course there was a problem. “Could you explain your reasoning to me?”
“Detective Lee is in Amarillo testifying in a murder case, then scheduled for a vacation. Since your office needed someone immediately, I assigned the case to Ash.”
“What about Lee’s partner?”
“He’s retired.”
Well, wasn’t there another man in the entire department that they could assign this case to? Kelly wanted to yell into the phone, but obviously couldn’t say it with Ash glaring at her. “I see. Was there a particular reason you picked Detective Ashcroft?”
“Yes. Ash has just closed several high-profile cases and his caseload is light. And he’s very adept at handling the press and the public.”
Kelly knew when she was being jerked around.
“Also, Ms. Whalen, you’re going to need someone who can stand up to all the different bickering parties in this case. And the man that came to my mind and that of our department lawyer was Ash. Besides, we don’t want Carlson or his lawyer to complain that the Houston Police Department tried to railroad their client a second time. Do you have an objection to Detective Ashcroft?” he asked, innocence in his voice.
Jenkins knew exactly what the problem was. She wanted to ask him if he wanted to work with his ex-wife in the glare of the TV cameras and radio microphones. Their divorce had been messy. But she wasn’t going to let police go one up on her. This was a little game that the police and the D.A.’s office played. Unfortunately, both she and Ash were on the short end of this stick.
“I would’ve appreciated a heads-up on the situation, Captain.” She let her displeasure color her last word.
“Do you want another detective assigned to the case, Ms. Whalen?” he asked again.
“No. Detective Ashcroft will be fine.” As she hung up the phone, she gritted her teeth.
She studied her ex over the desk. She could just imagine the sparks that had flown in Jenkins’s office earlier in the day. “What did you do to make your captain mad at you?”
Ash clenched his jaw. From his reaction, she’d hit the nail on the head. “Why don’t you just fill me in on the case.”
Obviously, something had gone down to put him in the doghouse. And although it was a daunting thought to have to work with Ash, she couldn’t complain that Houston PD had sent her a bad officer. She may have personal problems with him, but he was a fine cop. And a fine specimen of manhood.
Shaking off the errant thought, she sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. “Last Friday the state supreme court threw out the Carlson case. Reversed and Rendered and the man is out of jail. Apparently, Carlson got a new lawyer and he discovered that one of the jurors knew the victim’s parents and was persuasive during the deliberations. Also, the lawyer pressed the issue that the cops had searched his apartment before they had a warrant. The clothing was tossed. I have to refile this case, and I need an investigator to flesh out some new leads.
“My boss is not happy with the court’s decision. Andrew Reed is crying foul and raving how his wife’s murderer was let out to walk the streets. Catherine’s parents, George and Nancy Procter, will probably have everyone on the social register in Houston howling by the day’s end and calling every official they know.” She mentioned the prominent couple to remind Ash of their problems. “I don’t doubt they’ll give interviews to every media outlet in the city.”
She handed him a copy of her file on the case, then stood and walked around the desk.
Ash opened it. “Ralph Lee was the lead detective?” Ash’s solemn tone set her nerves on edge. He looked up and studied her face. From the hard planes of his jaw and cheeks, she had no idea what he was thinking.
“He was, and I’m not happy with the man for doing that search before he got the warrant. He also left several dangling ends. Carlson claimed he was in the Reed house and stole her jewelry, but he didn’t murder her. I know I’m going to need another piece of solid evidence that I can give the jury to connect Carlson with the murder. I’m going to need more evidence now that I don’t have the clothing I can present to the jury.” She didn’t mention that there was something in the file that made her uneasy. Maybe once he’d looked at the file, he could identity it.
Ash placed the file on the desk, stood and met her eyes. The air between them became charged. The magnetic pull that was always there between her and Ash sprang to life, surprising and unnerving her. Her heart started to pound and her stomach dropped to her feet.
Why suddenly had the old chemistry that had burned so hotly between them flared to life now? She tried to ignore it, but it was like trying not to see the elephant in the room.
“When Lee finds out about me taking over his case, there’s going to be hell to pay.”
“Then Lee should take up the problem with your captain. He’s the one who screwed up.”
Stepping away, Ash mumbled a curse, then ran his hand through his brown hair. The thick waves flowed over his long fingers. She remembered doing the very same thing—running her hands through his hair. She knew how it felt, the richness, the thickness of his hair and what it usually led to.
