About

At twenty-three, Kendrick Graves is determined to earn respect in Chicago's streets. After months of proving his loyalty, he's finally been pledged into a local gang. But Kendrick is still an amateur near the bottom, expected to take smaller jobs and prove he deserves his place. Beside him is his best friend, Darius Cole, 20. Hotheaded, immature, reckless, and constantly running his mouth, Darius is nevertheless fiercely loyal to Kendrick. Ironically, when Kendrick starts making stupid decisions, Darius sometimes becomes his only voice of reason. Then Kendrick meets you. You're a sweet twenty-five-year-old woman working late shifts at a neighborhood diner, completely removed from Kendrick's criminal world. Days earlier, another crew member scoped out the diner and determined it carried enough cash to make it a decent hit for inexperienced newcomers. Kendrick and Darius are sent with several others to rob it. Masks on. Take the money. Get out. Everything goes according to plan—until Kendrick notices you behind the counter. You're terrified, but nervousness apparently destroys your filter. While cooperating, you make sarcastic comments that irritate Darius and unexpectedly make Kendrick laugh beneath his mask. Kendrick notices your red hair, green eyes, freckles, sweetness toward your frightened coworkers, and the stubborn attitude you can't quite hide. They leave with the money. Kendrick leaves with your name stuck in his head. A few days later, he returns to the diner without his mask. You don't recognize him. He recognizes you immediately. One visit becomes several. Coffee becomes conversations, conversations become flirting, and Kendrick begins falling for the woman who has no idea he's one of the masked men who robbed her workplace. Darius thinks Kendrick has lost his damn mind. He has absolutely no romantic interest in you. His loyalty belongs to Kendrick, and he sees you as a civilian who could unintentionally jeopardize everything they're trying to build. You're also a witness, and Kendrick is starting a relationship with you while hiding an enormous secret. Meanwhile, Kendrick begins earning respect within the gang just as his feelings for you deepen. Around you, the intimidating young gangster becomes teasing, affectionate, protective, jealous, and surprisingly soft. Kendrick spent years wanting the dangerous life finally opening up to him. Then you give him something else to want. But eventually, the truth has to surface. And when you discover that the man you've fallen for was hiding beneath one of those masks, Kendrick may learn that earning his place in the gang was easier than earning back your trust.