Tempted atlantas finest.., p.1
Tempted (Atlanta's Finest Series Book 7), page 1
TEMPTED
by
Sharon C. Cooper
Copyright © 2021 Sharon C. Cooper
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For permission, contact the author at www.sharoncooper.net
ISBN: 978-1-946172-29-7
Disclaimer
This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Dear Reader,
I’m so excited for you to read TEMPTED, the next book in the Atlanta’s Finest series. It took me a while to decide who would make the perfect match for Detective Ashton Chambers. It wasn’t until I wrote SHOW ME, my contribution to the Irresistible Husband series that I did in collaboration with authors Delaney Diamond and Sheryl Lister, that I knew who Ashton’s love interest would be. Dani Eubanks. She is Cole’s sister (the hero in SHOW ME), and she’s a sassy Atlanta bar owner who doesn’t take crap from anyone. Unfortunately, her mouth and her attitude occasionally get her into trouble. Good thing Ashton is right there to come to her rescue whenever needed.
You first met Ashton in VINDICATED, when he and Lazarus Dimas were detectives with Atlanta PD. Since then, Ashton has shown up in every Atlanta’s Finest story, and not only is he a police detective, but he’s also a security specialist with Supreme Security. I liked Ashton immediately and knew I’d have to come up with a special story for him and his love interest. Well, here it is!
Enjoy!
Sharon
Blurb
Temptation has a way of complicating things…
Detective Ashton Chambers is ready to quit the police force, but he won’t until he puts the man responsible for his sister’s murder behind bars. No easy task. In fact, the mission is proving to be almost impossible. Though his day job stresses him out, his social life has taken a turn for the better, thanks to a sassy bar owner, Dani Eubanks.
After two broken engagements, Dani is not looking for a happily-ever-after. She tried. Twice. Failed. Twice. Won’t try again. She can’t rely on her judgment, and no way will she allow her heart to get crushed a third time. But Ashton is irresistible, and when a dangerous turn of events puts her in the crosshairs of an international gun trafficker, he’s the only one she trusts with her life…and her heart.
Chapter One
“Okay, let’s go over this again,” Detective Ashton Chambers said to the group of police officers, including some from Atlanta PD’s gang unit. They were standing in a dark, musty three-story abandoned building, staring down at a blueprint that was stretched out over three empty oil drums. It might’ve been a chilly night in January, but the anticipation of storming a warehouse where a major gun deal was going down fueled them to the point of barely noticing the chill in the air.
Holding a large flashlight above their heads, Ashton pointed to several entry spots. “Remember, the four teams need to be here, here, here, and here. We’ll move in on my command.”
The teams had reviewed the drawing enough to have memorized every detail. This briefing was just a matter of formality in hopes that they’d thought of any and everything that could possibly go wrong. Having received the intel about the gun deal less than a week ago, they’d had to act fast, only having days to plan.
They couldn’t make any mistakes.
They couldn’t afford to.
Too much was at stake.
“The DeLevese crew currently have people at all entry points,” Ashton said, referring to one of the largest and most dangerous gangs that had started in Washington DC, but expanded to Georgia years ago. “Lucky for us, there’s only one person at each door. Problem is, there won’t be much coverage as we get close to the warehouse’s parking lot and they’ll have guys just inside the entrance. The minute we storm the place, all hell is going to break loose,” he said, emphasizing the last part.
There was a reason why this gang had exploded in size so quickly in the city. The leaders were smart, calculating, and organized, never leaving anything to chance.
“Based on our intel, the buyers will be arriving at ten, but the DeLevese crew is already preparing on site. We’re not sure how the deal will go down, but I have an undercover currently inside. We also have two snipers already in position on top of the warehouse in addition to the one across the parking lot. Any questions?” Ashton asked, glancing around at the teams.
Everyone shook their heads.
They all had hidden ear comms in case anything changed mid-operation, which would probably happen, considering who they were dealing with.
“One more thing,” Santino Lopez, who was with the gang intelligence unit, said, “Our main goal is to stop this deal and find out who the supplier is. Even if the DeLevese crew has been expanding, no way could they get these types of weapons, in these quantities, on their own. They’re working with a major supplier—someone who’s been trafficking guns for a while. That’s who we want. We need a name. Meaning, we want to take as many of these guys in as possible for questioning. Of course, they won’t go down without a fight, but I want all of you to make it home tonight. So be smart out there.”
Ashton slipped into his Kevlar vest and double-checked his weapons as Santino gave a few more instructions. An anxious energy simmered inside of Ashton. Yes, he wanted to keep as many guns off the streets as possible. And yes, he wanted to find the bastard who was supplying the weapons. But more than anything, though, he wanted Lennox “Nox” Howard off the streets and behind bars.
Over the last seven years, Nox had moved up from street soldier to area leader of the DeLevese gang. He was now considered one of the most dangerous and influential men in the crew. And according to Ashton’s intel, Nox’s territory was expanding quickly and not just in area or size, but also when it came to product. In addition to drugs, the group had recently started dipping into arms dealing.
That wasn’t the only reason Ashton wanted to destroy the gang leader and his operation. No, his hate for Nox went deep. It had everything to do with the man’s involvement in Ashton’s sister’s death. Joelle had been killed two years ago, and tonight, Ashton wanted some justice.
Which was why everything needed to go perfectly with this operation.
He had been with the Atlanta Police Department for almost eighteen years—longer than he’d planned. When Joelle was killed and the man responsible—directly or indirectly—wasn’t charged, Ashton had vowed to get justice before he left the force. Lennox’s bullet might not have killed her, but he had everything to do with her death as far as Ashton was concerned.
If only there’d been enough evidence to tie him to the crime. There had been eyewitness testimony of his involvement, but Nox had gotten to the witnesses and forced them to recant their initial statement. Even though the prosecutor had been able to put a few gang members behind bars before closing the case, that hadn’t been good enough for Ashton.
They had to get Lennox tonight.
If not, Ashton might not get another opportunity. He had recently decided that whether he got the asshole or not, he planned to resign and leave the police force. The racial tension, horrible police/community relations, and shady politics within the police force had him ready to turn in his badge.
It was time.
For the last few years, he’d been working part-time for Supreme Security. It was an organization made up of men and women with law enforcement and military backgrounds. They were known as Atlanta’s Finest and provided personal security to some of the wealthiest people in the country.
Ashton loved the work and had already been offered a full-time position. Leaving the force to work with this agency was a no-brainer—more money, better hours and no bullshit politics to deal with.
More importantly, the job was safer.
The past year in law enforcement had been rough on so many levels, especially when it came to dealing with the public. He understood their distrust, and no matter how much he spewed that all police officers weren’t bad, all people saw was the uniform and badge. It was time for him to move on.
“Okay, that’s all I have,” Santino said and glanced at Ashton. “Ready to head out?”
Ashton looked at his watch. They had just enough time to get to the warehouse and get in position. He nodded.
“Let’s do this.”
*
Pulse pounding loud in his ears, Ashton didn’t take his attention off the entrance that he and his team would infiltrate. Except for a few lamp posts illuminating the graveled parking lot, for the most part, everything was dark, which was to their advantage. Lucky for him, the gang member covering the door Ashton was responsible for had just finished smoking a cigarette. He was now leaning against the building as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
This group had gotten away with so much dirt over the years they probably thought they were untouchable. Tonight, they’d learn that wasn’t the case.
They were going down, one way or another.
A cold breeze kissed his cheek, and it seemed the night was getting chillier by the hour, but it felt perfect. The adrenaline pumping through Ashton’s body made him hot enough to start a fire by just rubbing his palms together. It was always like this whenever he participated in an operation of this magn
He tapped the hidden comm that was in his ear. “Remember, no one moves until I get word that money and weapons have exchanged hands. We need this deal to play out,” Ashton whispered into his comm. They had to get this right—not only to get the name of the gun supplier but also to keep more guns from landing on the streets. In addition to that, they had to make sure any charges filed against those involved stuck when this was all over.
No mistakes. We can’t make any mistakes.
The undercover cop they had inside the warehouse, Troy, had infiltrated the DeLevese crew eight months ago. But it wasn’t until recently that he had finally been able to get intel about the next gun deal. According to him, Nox kept information close to the vest. However, with the recent arrest of at least eight of his most trusted foot soldiers, he was short on manpower for the deal going down tonight. That had been just the break that Troy needed to get up close and personal with the leader. He had gained his trust, which in turn gave Ashton the break he needed, too.
Now, knowing that Nox was present on the property was an additional bonus.
Ashton’s heart rate accelerated as anxiety hummed inside of him. He tried to remind himself that this assignment was much bigger than taking down the gang leader, that they were trying to keep guns off the streets. Still, he had a one-track agenda: take Nox down.
“AC, done,” Troy whispered into Ashton’s earpiece, using his initials.
Yes. That was the signal that the trade was complete.
“Move in!” Ashton ground out and took off in a sprint toward the entrance his team was to cover. “Go! Go! Go!”
Breathing hard, he skirted around potholes in the parking lot and kicked up gravel with his booted feet. Team two was picking up speed, moving in from his right. Ashton lifted his left hand and gave the signal for his guys to fan out. They only had minutes before the buyer started loading their vehicles and leaving, but first, the teams had to move fast to get the jump on everyone involved.
As planned, Ashton snuck up on the gang member at the first entrance. Slim build, five-ten, hundred and seventy pounds, he quickly determined, before deciding on how to take him down—quietly. He slowed, easing up on the guy, then struck.
Ashton slapped his gloved hand over the man’s mouth and dragged him backward, fighting against the way the bastard struggled to get his footing. Stronger than Ashton initially thought, the guy yelled into Ashton’s hand while swinging his arms back, trying to hit him.
“Your ass is under arrest. Stop fighting me,” Ashton snarled between gritted teeth, only loud enough for the perp to hear.
When the man was unsuccessful in hitting Ashton with his fists, he jammed his elbow back, catching him in the side. Ashton hissed but didn’t let go. Instead, he kept backpedaling until the guy stumbled, causing them both to hit the ground hard.
“Five-O! Five-O, y’all! Get out! Get out!” someone yelled from inside of the warehouse.
Shit. Shit. Shit. Lookouts had spotted the officers too soon.
Gang members scurried from the warehouse, like roaches running from Raid, and Ashton’s anger spiked. While he wrestled with the guy on the ground, his pulse pounded in his ears, concerned that Nox might get away. They had to nail him tonight. Ashton wanted to see him in handcuffs.
The only reason he hadn’t assigned himself to be the one to grab Nox was because Ashton didn’t trust himself. There was no telling what he would do to the gang leader if he ever got his hands on the son of a bitch.
“Get off me, man! Get off me!” The guy Ashton had taken down jerked left and right, then swung at him but missed when Ashton slipped to the side.
“Stop. Moving!” Ashton ground out, hyperaware of the chaos breaking out around him. Officers screamed police, stop, hands in the air, while gang members dispersed, running in every direction trying to get away. Police sirens pierced the air, letting him know that Santino had notified their backup to move in.
“Let me go!” the perp on the ground yelled.
He kept moving and swinging as they grappled. Getting an opening, Ashton slammed his fist into the man’s jaw, stunning him long enough for Ashton to whip out his gun and point it in the bastard’s face. “Give me a reason,” he growled, trying to rein in the rage pulsing through his body.
The guy cursed under his breath and reluctantly stretched his arms out to the side with his palms up.
“Turn onto your stomach and link your fingers behind your head. Now!”
He rolled over, and Ashton spotted a pearl-handled pistol sticking out of the back waistband of the guy’s jeans.
“And you’re carrying?” Ashton said, disgusted, as he snatched the weapon and eased it into his own waistband.
With his gun still trained on the bastard, Ashton planted his knee in the center of the man’s back, then whipped out a plastic restraint from his back pocket.
“Come on, dude. I didn’t do nothin’!”
“Shut yo’ ass up.” Ashton set his gun down and quickly restrained the guy.
“Ow, man! It’s too tight!”
“Tell me we have eyes on Nox,” Ashton yelled into his comms. “Tell me! Do we have eyes on Nox?”
“Negative,” someone responded, followed by others with the same news.
Rage nipped at every nerve in Ashton’s body. How the hell did the guy get away? There were cops everywhere and…nothing? They had nothing? Seasoned cops were on this operation, and no one was able to snatch up Nox?
They were better than that.
Shit!
“Get your ass up,” he yelled, taking his annoyance out on the perp and yanking him up off of the ground.
“Man, I didn’t do nothin’. You got nothin’ on me!”
“That’s what your stupid ass thinks? Seriously?” Ashton jerked him toward one of the police vans that had pulled up a short while ago and parked about twenty yards away. “How about aiding and abetting? Accessory to a crime? Carrying a concealed weapon? Gun trafficking? Resisting arrest? Hell, I’m sure I can come up with a few more charges. Now bring your ass on.”
Frustration clawed through Ashton as he trudged across the parking lot. They’d apprehended a minimum of thirty guys, and not one of them was Nox. The lucky bastard slipped through their fingers again, but one day… One day he was going to pay, and Ashton just hoped he was there to witness it.
Chapter Two
Dani Eubanks set three beers on the mahogany bar in front of a few of her handsome regulars. They occupied the stools in the middle of the bar, which was their usual spot whenever they dropped by Double Trouble. The same tired conversation spilled from their mouths: all the good women are taken.
She put her hands on her hips as she glanced at each one of them. “You guys are idiots.”
Brows furrowed, they all stared at her, their handsome faces scrunched in frustration.
“Dang, Dani. Why we gotta be idiots?” one of them said. He was the tallest of the three but just as gorgeous as the other two. She loved tall, dark chocolate men, and this particular one was some serious eye candy. Not that she would tell him that, though. Considering the number of women who hit on him whenever he was in the building, no doubt his ego was as big as the state of Georgia.
“You fellas better run before she goes off on one of her tangents,” Dani’s brother, Cole Eubanks, said. Sitting at the end of the bar, he shook his head. “The last time she called me and my two buddies idiots, it was right before she preceded to tell us why we’ll never get married. I’m pretty sure—” he pointed at the three men, “—you guys are about to get the same speech. Sit there if you want to, but…”
Almost simultaneously, they stood with their drinks, grumbling, and hurried across the bar to an empty booth.
“Dang, Cole, you really know how to clear a room,” Dani said dryly. “They need to hear the same speech I gave to you and your boys.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, and next, you’ll be saying that it’s because of you that I’m married.” He waved her off as he sipped his beer.
