Erin Richards

Adventure into the darkness . . . and let the sparks fly!

 
  • Romance
  • Young Adult
  • Fantasy
chasing shadows

TEMPTING MIDNIGHT

Psychic Justice Book 5


Get your psychic on! Don’t miss the explosive finale to the Psychic Justice series.


Her greatest love belongs in her past. Good thing she’s over him...right?

Seven years ago, Detective Eva Midnight broke her own heart and left her boyfriend behind. She feared a relationship with a psychic who sensed her every emotion was doomed. Now returning to California, Eva knows she must right her wrongs, considering every time she looks at their son Connor—the son Liam doesn’t know about—reminds her of what she threw away. When Connor’s kidnapped by her ex-husband, head of the mafia, fate throws her second chance in her path.

 
He doesn’t believe in second chances…until she returns.

Even though Eva has haunted his dreams, Liam McAllister can’t refuse the Psychic Guild assignment to find her psychic son. Screw reconciliation when she blindsides him with the truth about Connor. Now Liam will do anything to save his son from deadly mafia plans. But every moment with Eva is sheer temptation. Will Eva and Liam get a chance to explore the undeniable passion between them, or face the fears that drove them apart? Because nobody fights the mafia and lives.


Excerpt

The property and evidence warehouse door clicked shut behind her, a soul-crushing sound. Eva Midnight slid flat against the wall, assessing her silent surroundings. Hidden from view, she’d waited outside the door for the last person to leave the warehouse. Half the police department knew the surveillance cameras at the door entrance hadn’t worked all day. Faulty wiring or convenient sabotage? The frigid, climate-controlled warehouse doused the warmth of her self-loathing. Eva pocketed the lost key card that belonged to an evidence tech. She’d scored it when it appeared in her mailbox in an unidentified envelope. Identification not needed.

She was dead meat if anyone ID’d her.

Flipping Neal and his lunatic mafia family. How in hell will I ever slither out from under their thumb? Once upon a time, Eva and Neal had a happy marriage in Florida, separate from the Estenson clan who ruined lives. Black sheep, Neal, was now the crowned prince in San Jose, California. He’ll ruin me, and I’ll be unable to stop the mafia prince of darkness.

After staring directly into the dead camera aimed at her for a few seconds, Eva rushed to the property section. May as well look like she belonged there, just in case. She had no plans to steal or tamper with evidence, only to retrieve an item confiscated in a raid at an Estenson nightclub last week. Some dumbass family member had hidden a flash drive of Estenson family business regarding a drug cartel in a decorative table statue. The police had no clue what they held in its coffers. Like who’d put that crap on a computer or a thumb drive anyway?

Would the evidence be enough to take the family down? She contemplated the idea, flung it off. If she tried using it, it promised to bring the wrath of Khan down upon her. Neal would take her son away forever as he’d threatened multiple times, his way of keeping her in line and doing his dirty work. No one in their right mind fought a powerful lawyer, especially not one in the Estenson family. Definitely, no fighting the mafia.

Luck tailed her when Neal had reluctantly granted her a divorce. But they’d forever be linked by her son and she forever connected to a mafia family. How would they wreck her son? Tears sprang to her eyes, and she swiped them off.

“Why did I ever think he was a good man once upon a flipping time?” Because I was an idiot, blinded by his confidence and power as an up-and-coming lawyer. Who knew it would all turn out so bad? Who knew she’d become a cop and a thief for an organized crime family?

Following the shelf numbers, Eva located the bin containing the nightclub evidence. Gloves still on, she sorted through the seized evidence until she found the small Buddha piggy bank, already tagged, logged, and barcoded. She pulled the rubber stopper from the statue’s bottom and used her penknife to slice through the tape securing the bubble-wrapped flash drive inside. She crammed the flash drive in her pocket, stuffed the stopper back in, and shoved the statue and bin into place.

The second she spun around, the door opened, a definite squeak foretelling the end of her life as a homicide detective. Heart pulsing in her ears, she dove between aisles and tiptoed toward the rear of the warehouse. Sweat popped onto the nape of her neck. She had a difficult time stabilizing her breathing and feared the intruder heard her sucking in air.

“Eva Midnight,” a familiar man called out in a singsong voice. “I know you’re here.”

Oh, son of a boss.

“Come on, Eva. It’s just you and me.”

Footsteps approached her behind a rack of stolen bicycles. Footsteps she’d grown used to in the six months she’d worked for the senior homicide detective. Hosed ten ways to Sunday, she complied and met him in the center aisle.

The handsome detective hit all her awareness buttons, causing a frisson of embers to explode in her middle. But she didn’t date cops, especially not engaged cops. Especially not anyone or her ex-husband, Neal, would go apeshit. Divorce or not, his hold was ironclad, to her utter dismay. Again, mafia bondage.

“Alex.”

“What are you up to?” Detective Alex MacKenzie’s smooth, deep voice skittered down her spine and set off a new round of fire in places that had no right to flare up. “How’d you get in?”

Geez, did she need to get laid or what? “Rico’s badge. How did you know I was here?”

“Saw your car and got nervous. You have no business here.” Alex quirked an eyebrow. “Hit the road.” He turned to lead the way out.

“Nothing will come up missing, if you’re worried.” She walked the green mile behind him in quick steps, trying to keep up with his long-legged stride. “How did you get in here?”

“You don’t need to know. Your actions today jeopardized both of us.”

He held the door open for her, scanned the hallway, and they slipped through in single file. The door shut, and a few pebbles slid off Eva’s shoulders, but not the whole mountain. It may never fully crumble.

“Meet me in my office,” he ordered.

“Oh. I thought maybe you wanted to fire and strip me bare right here.” Her sarcasm refused to be caged. It covered up her fear and mortification, mostly her bewilderment. Could she trust her superior with the story of a lifetime? Maybe he could help. No way, no how. Best not to involve him. Connor stayed safer.

He held out his hand. “Give me the badge.” She dug it out of her jacket pocket and handed it to him. “You better be in my office, ready to download the goods.” He leaned close and spoke low. “I won’t entertain this BS on my team.”

“Am I still on your team?” Or should I just report to Internal Affairs?

He sauntered toward the exit doors. “Remains to be seen.” He disappeared around the bend.

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