About COLD HEARTED
Hunting
For A Killer...Who Doesn't Play By The Rules.
Detective
Erin Donovan expects life to quiet down after the arrest and conviction of a
serial rapist who terrified her university town last summer. Then two young
women are brutally slain and the murders bear all the hallmarks of the campus
rapist. Did Erin arrest an innocent man? Now her job is at stake and tensions
are high and just when it looks like things can't get worse, her department
gets the help it needs to solve the double homicide--in the form of a man Erin
has never been able to forget.
FBI
Agent Darsh Singh has no interest in reliving the past. Three years ago, his
feelings for Erin Donovan had him breaking all his rules about getting
involved. Now his only interest in the former NYPD detective is figuring out if
she screwed up a rape investigation and helped send an innocent man to prison.
But being forced to work together rekindles their old attraction, and as Darsh
and Erin fall for each other, the campus predator fixates on Erin. The race is
on to identify the ruthless killer before he makes Erin his final victim.
Available May 31! Read the first chapter and enter to win a giftcard below!
Chapter One Excerpt
He spotted her across the street, blonde
hair shining like polished gold in the sunlight, her lithe body tormenting
every Y-chromosome in a hundred yard radius. He pulled out his cell and took a
snapshot to immortalize the moment. He’d thought she said she was returning
later in the week. Obviously he’d been mistaken. He dialed her number and
watched her pull out her phone. He waited for the matching smile to form on her
lips, for her eyes to light up. Instead, she checked caller ID, grimaced, and
let the call go to voicemail.
Horror rushed through him as she
re-pocketed the phone and turned back to her companion. What the fuck? He killed the connection and collapsed to a nearby
bench, hidden from sight by a mass of tangled bushes.
He’d thought she loved him. That she wanted
to be with him…
God! He’d given her everything she needed,
laid it out like a feast on a platter with a fucking apple stuffed in its
mouth. She played you, dumbass.
Fury flayed his skin. Rage so hot and pure
that the blood coursing his body burned his bones. She thought she could
dismiss him? Like he was nothing? Like he hadn’t risked everything for her? His
hand strangled his phone as he imagined it squeezing her alabaster neck.
A noise brought him back to himself, and he
drew in a long breath.
A laugh.
A giggle.
His head jerked up. Students milled around.
They were relaxed and happy after winter break. The monster had been caught.
They were safe. Life could go back to normal.
Sheep.
How could they think they were safe when the person they were having
coffee with might be a predator dreaming about ripping into their soft, white
underbelly? Why were they so willing to swallow bullshit as long as it was
confidently labeled “truth”?
The system was broken. Bad guys walked free
every single day. Good guys rotted. Innocents died.
Idiots.
A cute freshman smiled shyly at him from
the bench opposite. He stretched his mouth into an answering curve that
revealed nothing of the shock and disappointment that still rippled through
him. Women liked him. So why the fuck did she think it was okay to ignore him?
A plan formed in his brain—a plan that
buzzed along his nerves with the blistering speed of electricity.
Should he do it?
It might mess up things, and he didn’t want
to go to prison, but it would certainly get her attention. His brain raced over
the possibilities. He knew how to do this. He knew how not to get caught. And
it might keep things interesting. Life had been pretty fucking boring lately
and, as he’d found out last year, there was nothing quite as satisfying as
revenge.
The student hiked her bag on her shoulder
and got up to leave. He eyed the flirty plaid skirt she wore over opaque black
tights and tall black boots, then jogged to catch up with her. Made a joke.
Made her blush.
It was almost too easy.
He laughed and realized he was enjoying
himself again. The excitement resurrected something inside him that was both
heady and familiar. Something that scared him enough to keep it tightly leashed
and under control. Something he’d denied himself for ten long months.
He reined in the thrill that fizzed through
his bloodstream. He needed to be careful. The memory of the disgraced former
quarterback reminded him he couldn’t afford to get cocky. No way in hell did he
intend to share the asshole’s shame and degradation. But he knew the system.
Knew the flaws. She was going to regret not taking that goddamned phone call
for the rest of her life.
* * *
Cassie Bressinger smoothed out the single
sheet of paper and read Drew’s small, cramped handwriting for the seventh time
that day.
Cass,
I was
trying to figure out something interesting to tell you, but after only a month
I’m already running out of material. I mean, there are only so many adjectives
I can invent to describe the three shades of gray that make up the decor
here—snot, Minnesota, and dead rabbit are my newest favorites. I probably
wouldn’t win any prizes in English class, but as I got kicked out I guess it
doesn’t matter.
Three
shades of gray—hmm, there might be a book in there somewhere…
Fifty
Shades this place is not. Not to say there isn’t plenty of banging going on
from the grunts and groans I hear at night. Someone somewhere is enjoying the
fuck out of somebody else.
I think it’s consensual…
An
ironic concern for a convicted rapist but, hey, who wants to be predictable?
Honestly,
Babe, I’m at the stage where protecting my own ass has become my #1 priority.
Luckily, I’m a big motherfucker and spent years on the gridiron, staring down people
desperate to drill me into the ground. I could do with my offensive line in
here though…
Crap.
I
didn’t mean to talk about this shit and I’m running out of writing paper so I
don’t want to start over. Plus, my fingers are getting cramps from holding a
pen. Yeah, me, former star athlete whose hands were supposed to be his golden
meal ticket. Getting cramps from writing a freaking letter! More irony J
Enough
about me. How are you? What’s happening with your courses this semester? You
said you were going to try and get into law school. Please don’t do that
because of me!!! The last thing I want is for you to be stuck in a stuffy
courtroom listening to god-awful testimony and watching people’s lives
disintegrate. Run away and join the circus. Take a year off and travel the
world.
Seriously.
And
make sure you write and tell me all about your adventures, okay? I’m living
vicariously. And if you want to have sex with other girls—that’s okay. Feel
free to write and tell me all about that, too. Kidding! Well…kind of kidding
and now kind of horny, which is a pain in the ass. Obviously the DA was right
to classify me as a dangerous sex fiend.
Fucker.
Okay,
gotta go. Time for me to go line up for sloppy mashed potatoes and sausages
that look like severed fingers… Ugh, okay, just grossed myself out.
Don’t
worry about me—I got this.
Love
you. Miss you.
Drew.
X
Someone knocked on the door and Cassie
jumped. Tanya Whitehouse sauntered in before Cassie had a chance to hide the
letter.
“That from Drew?” Tanya was wearing skinny
jeans, her favorite strappy black top, and sparkly earrings. Her lips glowed in
glittering magenta. Going out. Doing normal things like a normal person.
Cassie popped a shoulder and nodded.
“He okay?” asked Tanya.
“He’s incarcerated with rapists and
murderers for crimes he didn’t commit,” she bit out. “What do you think?”
Tanya placed her perfectly manicured hand
along Cassie’s forearm. “You know what I meant.”
Always patient. Always reasonable.
Cassie swallowed the anger. She wasn’t
patient, and she wasn’t reasonable. But Tanya was only trying to help. All her
friends had been nothing but supportive throughout this entire nightmare.
“He says he’s okay.” Cassie swallowed the
knotted lump of grief that had taken up residence in her throat and tried to
find her rationality. “I think he just says that to make me feel better.”
“You going to visit him?” Tanya asked
gently.
Cassie nodded. “I’m driving over with his
dad at the end of the month. Drew doesn’t want me to come, but I—”
“Maybe he’s right.”
Cassie sat up on the messy bed. She knew
where this was going. “Please don’t tell me I’m wasting my life. Drew is my life.”
Tanya grabbed Cassie’s hand and squeezed
hard enough to hurt. “I just don’t want you to be sad for the next thirty years.”
Her vision blurred, but they both pretended
Cassie wasn’t crying. Even she was sick of the incessant tears. “I won’t be.”
She was lying. “Anyway, he can still appeal.”
There was an awkward silence when Tanya
didn’t say anything. Cassie’s gaze shifted to the image on the front of a
magazine. Easier to look at some movie star complaining about her messed up
childhood than dealing with the sort of truth that dug holes in your soul.
“Hey,” Tanya said brightly, “there’s a
party over at Riddell Hall. Wanna come with?”
Cassie shook her head.
“Come on. It’ll be fun,” her friend urged.
Going to a party would remind her of all
the times she and Drew had hung out. She didn’t want to acknowledge the aching
void of his absence—especially not in public.
“I have an assignment due tomorrow. I
really need to finish it.” She crawled over to her bedside table in search of a
tissue.
Tanya lightly flicked the magazine,
mockingly. “Well, you better get on with it then.”
Cassie slumped back to the bed, ashamed of
how piteous she’d become. “I can’t face seeing people,” she admitted. “Not yet.
Maybe coming back to school was a mistake.”
“You did great. Take it slowly. You’ll get
there, and we’ll all be waiting for you on the other side of this.”
Cassie nodded. The problem was there was no
‘other side.’ Drew’s loss was like a rip in her chest that got bigger every
day. “The world thinks he’s a monster.”
Tanya wrapped her arms around Cassie in a
quick hug. “We love him. We know he’s a good guy and would never touch those
lying bitches.”
“I don’t know how this could have
happened.”
“You can’t lock yourself away forever,
Cass.”
But she wanted to.
She didn’t know why she’d come back this
term, but hanging around her parents’ house with nothing to do was worse.
Christmas had sucked balls. Now she needed to figure out a way to move on
without giving up on the man she loved.
She gripped her friend. “I love you, Tan.
I’m sorry I’m such a bitch.”
“I love you, too, baby.”
She forced herself to pull away and wiped
her eyes. “I really do have an assignment to finish.”
“Then get to it, slacker.” Tanya gave her
arm a noogie.
Cassie forced a smile. She’d blown off
cheerleading practice earlier today, and if she did it again, the coach would
throw her off the squad. She didn’t care, except it would screw with her
scholarship, and her parents weren’t wealthy. She couldn’t afford to get thrown
out of the program, and she needed a good GPA to have a hope of getting into
law school. But every time the football players ran onto the field in their
black and gold jerseys, it was like someone was pouring acid in her eyes.
Knowing everyone’s life went on while Drew sat locked up in a cell. Her throat
constricted. Some days it felt like the pain would consume her whole.
She stood and pushed her friend toward the
door. “Go. Have fun. Kiss some hot guys for me.”
“If I can find someone worthy enough, I
intend to do a lot more than kiss him. So don’t worry if I don’t come home
tonight. I’ll text you.” Tanya grinned. “Mandy’s studying in her room. Alicia
is still at the library but said she’d be back just after ten as per usual. She
might come to the party later, so if you change your mind…”
“Maybe,” Cassie lied. “You be careful out
there. Guard your drink,” she warned. Because if those women had been raped,
there was still a dangerous criminal on the loose, and no one knew it.
“I will, honey. Jillian’s going to be here
any minute to give me a ride.”
“Go. Have fun.”
Tanya turned and smiled at her sadly,
touching her arm. Cassie felt the punch of it near her heart. “You’ll get
through this, Cass. You don’t have to forget Drew, but you need to keep living
your life. He’d want you to do that.”
Cassie’s lip wobbled as she remembered what
he’d said in his letter. She crossed her arms over her chest as she watched her
friend jog down the stairs, grab her coat, and race out the front door. She had
to believe a miracle was going to happen and that Drew would be freed, but it
seemed futile. The judicial process was so slow it took months to even schedule
a court hearing. In the meantime Drew was forced to live amongst killers and
thieves. Getting raped in the showers wasn’t something anyone should have to
worry about. Who could live like that?
That bitch Donovan had a lot to answer for.
The blonde detective probably thought this was over.
It wasn’t. It would never be over.
Anger grounded her. Without it she’d be so
damn lost.
Across the hall, Mandy turned her music on
full blast. Cassie slipped on her noise-canceling headphones and stared at her
computer and thought about the paper she needed to finish. Instead she pulled
out a pen and notepad and started to write back to the man she loved, stopping
only once to wipe away the tears that insisted on falling.
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Today international bestselling author, Toni Anderson, writes dark, gritty
Romantic Suspense novels that have hit #1 in Barnes & Noble's Nook store,
the Top 10 in Amazon and Kobo stores, and the Top 50 in iBooks. Her novels have
won many awards. A former Marine Biologist from Britain, she inexplicably ended
up in the geographical center of North America, about as far from the ocean as
it is possible to get. She now lives in the Canadian prairies with her Irish
husband and two children and spends most of her time complaining about the
weather.
Toni has no explanation for
her oft-times dark imagination, and only hopes the romance makes up for it.
She's addicted to reading, dogs, tea, and chocolate.
If you want to know when
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