Blurb:
Can two former lovers set aside their differences and work together to
bring a criminal to justice?
Five years ago, Sami Parker's life was changed forever when she was injured
in a bombing incident which left another young woman dead—a woman who happened
to be the fiancée of Sheriff Makeeta Robertson, Sami's former lover. Initially,
Sami was a suspect in the crime, but the sheriff was forced to release her due
to a lack of evidence. The town, convinced that she got away with murder,
turned against her.
At last an arrest has been made and the sheriff needs Sami's help to get a
conviction, but can she trust him? Although wary and cautious, she wants to see
this man brought to justice and wants to clear her own name once and for all.
But the awakening feelings she has for Makeeta bring yet another problem. Then
there's the secret she's kept for the last five years—one she may not be able
to keep any longer, and one that may change the outcome of the trial.
Excerpt
Sami got in her truck at about ten in the evening to head to Milne City to
get her mail. She pulled up in front of the post office, parking parallel to
the building, and walked inside to her mailbox. When she returned to her truck,
a sheriff cruiser pulled up beside her. She walked between the cruiser and her
truck and Makeeta got out of the cruiser.
"Sami, what are you doing out here this late at night?" he asked.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" she uttered sarcastically.
"Why do you get your mail so late?"
"To avoid people like you," she retorted curtly and continued to
her truck and opened the door. She fumbled with her mail and some dropped to
the ground. Makeeta bent over to pick it up at the same time she did. He
grabbed the mail first and handed it to her.
"I was going to call you next week. I need you to come down to the
sheriff's office and see if you can pick out the perpetrator in a lineup,"
Makeeta said. She climbed into her truck and he leaned slightly on her truck
door, preventing her from closing it.
"I already picked him out at the district attorney's office. You know
that—you were there."
"Yes, but for added security, if you can identify him in a lineup, that
would leave the jury with absolutely no doubt about the identity. We want to
seal the case up and close any gaps or loopholes that the defense might grab on
to."
Sami let out a sigh. "I don't know if I'm comfortable coming down to
the sheriff's office to do this. How do I know you won't arrest me?"
Makeeta looked at her questioningly. "Why would I do that?"
"Gee, I don't know, maybe because you think I helped create the damn
bomb that went off?"
"I thought we were past this, Sami. I cleared you of any suspicion of
involvement in the case."
"Yeah, well, what I don't understand is why if you didn't believe me
five years ago, you would believe me now," Sami said, holding her raw
emotion in check.
"I don't recall ever saying I didn't believe you, but I had an
investigation going on and I needed to rule everyone out." Makeeta's voice
hardened.
"You didn't rule me out…you brought me into the station the minute I
was released from the hospital. I had intense pain, needed my medication, and
you kept me there for hours. Did you conveniently forget about that?" Sami
asked, looking him up and down from her side vision. He still had a beautifully
proportioned body. He wore a blue jean shirt, with his badge pinned to his
pocket, and tight-fitting jeans. His face was ruggedly handsome, with
shoulder-length black hair. "You should have sent one of your deputies out
to talk to me two weeks ago, you should have known that I wouldn't be
interested in talking to you about anything." She wanted to get this
conversation over with so she could leave.
"I thought it would be easier for you if it was just you and me,"
he said quietly.
"After what you put me through, you thought it would be easier for me?
What planet did you come from?" she asked incredulously. "Besides,
you weren't alone, you brought the district attorney and another deputy with
you."
"Okay, maybe I made a bad judgment call there," he confessed.
"But I'm here now to ask you to come to the station and see if you can
identify the perpetrator."
"When do you want me to come down?"
"As soon as you can," he answered crisply.
"All right, may as well get it over with. I'll be there tomorrow at
ten, is that okay with you?" she asked sharply.
"Tomorrow at ten would be just fine." Makeeta smiled thinly at
her.
"Okay, now if you'll excuse me, I want to get out of here."
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Connie’s Bio: I was born and raised in Michigan. I
graduated from Pontiac Catholic HS in 1974 and went to work shortly thereafter
for the State of Michigan. I have been employed by the State of Michigan for
over 35 years. I have a BA in Business Administration and an MBA in Leadership
Studies from Baker College. I have written
so many papers for college, ‘how to’ procedural manuals, and casework manuals,
I decided I wanted to do something fun and enjoyable, so I started to write
romance stories about seven years ago and haven’t regretted it.
I met my happy ever after partner in 1994 when I answered his ad in a Christian
singles magazine and we've been together ever since. In January, 1995, I asked
him to marry me and we were married in April of 1995. We have no children, but
we do have a houseful of cats, indoor and outdoor kind.
In my spare time, I like to
read, and watch education shows such as Discovery, Discovery Science,
Investigative Discovery, National Geographic, HLN, and the History
Channel. I have a pad of paper next to
the remote control in the living room to take notes that I find beneficial when
I’m writing a suspense romance. I also like to travel out west. Hubby and I have property out in Montana
where we hope to build a log home on in the near future! You will find some of
my romance locations are in Big Sky Montana. In fact, my new release, Delayed
Justice, is situated in Montana.
I am a member of the Romance Writers of America and the Mid-Michigan Chapter of
Romance Writers of America.
