8. Archer
ARCHER
FIVE YEARS AGO
I was stuck at this miserable trial, and I couldn’t focus. Well , at least not on the things I should be focused on.
All I could think about was Ace —the gorgeous redhead with mesmerizing hazel eyes who had taken over all the free time my brain had today.
Most of my thoughts were recapping last night’s torrid affair.
She was not only gorgeous with her silky soft, wavy red hair and mesmerizing curves, but also the way her body responded to me last night.
Every time I touched her, her body lit up for me.
I really, really hadn’t want to leave her this morning, but this trial was too important.
Last night, when my roommate Manny Madeira and I had gone out to take our old police academy buddy Nick Jones out for a night on the town, I hadn’t planned to hook up with anyone.
We’d planned to show Nick a good time while he was visiting—go out to eat, hit up a bar, and maybe play a few games or slots and head back, just the three of us.
The bars were expensive on the Strip , but it was a good place to go because it was mostly tourists.
That meant no one would recognize you or even remember you the next day.
Everything had changed, however, when I’d seen the beautiful woman at the roulette table. I hadn’t been able to take my eyes off her. My body had been drawn to her like a magnet, and I’d chosen not to fight it.
Manny and Nick had been ever the good friends, playing wingmen and helping entertain her friends so I could talk with her and get to know her.
It had been a shit day leading up to that night out with my friends, so she’d definitely been a sight for sore eyes.
Manny and I had been in the courtroom all day, giving testimony on a local mafia family member— Joey Pagano , to be exact.
Joey’s father, Enzo , and older brother, Matteo , were the heads of the Pagano Family syndicate.
Joey seemed to be the family fuckup who kept bringing attention and trouble to some of their business ventures they would rather keep hidden.
Alas , he was family, so they just kept bailing him out or bribing people to let him out.
The problem this time was that Manny and I had been on duty when Joey had fucked up.
We’d caught him on our body cameras handing over an envelope with a large sum of money in it and then shooting the man point-blank afterward.
There was no way he was getting out of it this time.
There were rumors that the Pagano Family had someone on the payroll inside the police department. Knowing this, Manny had slipped a copy to a news reporter in case the evidence accidentally disappeared.
The problem was that the news reporter hadn’t waited until Manny gave the all clear.
Instead , they chose to broadcast the video right away.
It landed Manny and me in a little bit of hot water with the brass at work, but our boss was a good guy, and when we explained what we had originally planned, he hadn’t reprimanded us too hard.
Technically, any news outlet is allowed to view our body cam footage through what is known as an FOIA — Freedom of Information Act —request, but often we can delay that request, send only a little and redact the rest, or come up with some other kind of passive-aggressive response if we need to buy ourselves more time to do an internal review.
In this case, Manny and I —and our boss agreed—didn’t want to give the video a chance to disappear .
Manny was on the stand now, and then we would break for lunch. When court was back in session, it would likely be my turn to take the stand.
But instead of focusing on how Manny was doing and the questions that were being asked—because I would likely be asked the same—all I thought about was the gorgeous redhead.
I’d given Anna the nickname “ Ace ” to be funny, but I found it suited her well.
Even though she gave me her real name while we drank at the bar, I preferred Ace since it was reminded me of how we met.
I didn’t know her well, but she had spunk, was very sharp, and I imagined that if I let her, she would get under my skin in the best way possible.
I wasn’t a stranger to one-night stands. In fact, in my line of work, sometimes that was easier. Divorce rates were exceptionally high in law enforcement, so serious relationships just did not appeal to me.
This one-night stand was different, though. Mostly because I wanted it to be more than one night. It was like once my body knew what she was like, it wanted her even more.
I wanted to text her, but I also wanted to be careful that I didn’t come across as just wanting a booty call. I also didn’t want to come across as desperate on my end.
I knew there was a chance she might be leaving in a few weeks, but there was also a chance she could get a job here in Vegas . I found myself secretly rooting for that idea. I wasn’t usually this locked on to one woman, but Ace was something different.
I decided the pleasure of her company meant more to me than appearing desperate, so I shot her a text during our lunch break.
Archer:
I have no idea what time we will get out of this courtroom, but I’d love to see you again if you’re free tonight.
Ace:
Who is this again? ;)
Archer:
The best sexual partner you’ve ever had ;)
Ace:
Mike?
Seriously? Was she messing with me? She had to be, but before I could put much more thought into it a new text popped up.
Ace:
Just kidding! Hi Archer :)
Ace:
What did you have in mind?
Archer:
I have a lot of things in mind, but it’s more gentlemanly for me to tell you I’d take you out for dinner and conversation
Ace:
My roommates and I have plans to see the show at the new hotel on the Strip , but we’ll likely head out for drinks after that if you want to meet up
Archer:
That sounds great. Text me when you’re done with your show. Enjoy it!
This day couldn’t go by fast enough. I felt like a teenage boy about to go on a date with the prettiest girl in school. As embarrassing as that thought was, I’d still rather have that thought than anything from this trial stuck in my head.
* * *
Manny had had a hard time testifying today. The defendant’s lawyer had tried to rip his testimony apart. The prosecutor team had done their job as well, but Manny still wasn’t feeling great about it.
“Assholes like this guy get off way too easy every time,” Manny told me, but I knew it too.
In the end, I never got the chance to testify, because his testimony and cross-examination took more than five hours.
After the judge called for a recess until the following day, Manny wanted to drown himself in a drink.
I found myself wanting to drown myself in the most beautiful woman I had ever met, but she was still out with her friends.
I opted to take Manny out for his drink and commiserate with him, hoping that Ace would show up at some point and I could let her beauty cheer me up.
Knowing it would be my turn to testify tomorrow, I didn’t want to get drunk, so I sat with Manny at the bar and slowly worked my way through one beer while we chatted about anything but the trial.
“My brother is thinking about joining the force with me,” Manny said.
Manny was my age, but I’d heard he had an older brother who went the military route like my cousin had. “ The one in the military?”
“Yeah,” Manny confirmed. “ His name’s Hector . He’s still got another year left before he can bail, but I think he’s trying to weigh his options.”
“You mention anything to Captain Kerrigan ?” I asked him. “ You know he’d help fast-track him if you want him to, since he’s family.”
“Once I know what Hector wants to do, I’ll reach out.”
I nodded back, understanding where he was coming from. We sat there in comfortable silence for a few moments, just enjoying our drinks.
“You ever think about gettin’ out?” he asked me.
“Out of law enforcement, you mean?”
“Yeah,” he sighed, staring at the label on his beer bottle as though it held all the answers to the world on it. “ Most days I love my job, but then there are days like today where I don’t think I’m cut out for it.”
“Man, we all get days like that,” I told him honestly. “ But yes, I’ve thought about getting out sometimes.”
I told him about how my cousin, who was also overseas, was tossing around the idea of a private security company when he got done with his current tour. His dad—my uncle—had been a bounty hunter and knew a lot of the ins and outs of a career like that.
“I know several guys who’ve switched to private investigations work, and I’ve considered it too,” Manny added. “ You remember Tareek , who worked the traffic beat on the Strip for several years?”
I nodded, remembering the man, though I didn’t know him that well.
“He went into PI work and offered me a spot if I wanted it. Just feels weird, though, ‘cause I always wanted to be a cop.”
I knew that feeling. “ Same . A cop is all I ever wanted to be growing up—to fight for justice and against everything my father ever stood for.”
“Your dad’s a politician in Utah , right?”
“He was,” I confirmed. “ He retired last year after a scandal involving his mistress.”
She wasn’t his mistress anymore. Once my mom died, he moved that woman into his house practically as soon as my mom’s body was cold. She’d been his public girlfriend for at least three years now, but she would always be his mistress to me. It’s also when I stopped talking to my father.
“Aww, hell. I’m sorry, man.”
“Don’t be,” I told him. “ I haven’t talked to my dad since right after graduation at the academy when he asked me to start helping him cover up bribes and anything else that might come up.”
Manny cursed next to me just as my phone buzzed with an incoming text.
Ace:
Hey, I’m so sorry. My roommate got super sick at the show, and we ended up coming straight home. If you give me a few minutes to help my other roommate get her settled, I can take a cab to meet you somewhere.