Fire We Make (Jackson and Liane Book 1) by Vera Roberts

One
    Normal, sane, and clean women do not fall in love with pimps.
    It’s an unspoken rule that every girl is born with. There was nothing cool about what Jackson was doing, despite what the rappers and pop culture loved people to believe that pimping wasn’t easy. Women were being taking advantage of and a man was responsible for their full well being. A ho was only as good as her last trick. If she came up short, there was going to be hell to pay.
    Those were pimps.
    Then there was Jackson, in a class by himself.
    Six o’clock seemed just so far away and yet, it seemed like it was within the next hour. Liane Chang breathed out a sigh of nervousness as she thought about her upcoming visit to Jackson. Her sorta, kinda, but not really boyfriend. Boyfriend? Hmm…she wasn’t sure if that was an accurate description of their relationship and she used that term loosely.
    It had been years since they had physically seen each other but they kept in contact, maybe against all better judgment of them both. While it wasn’t a wise move on his part to stay in contact with her, it sure was just plain, good old-fashioned stupidity to keep in contact with him. She limited it to a once in a while affair and only let him know the important things such as phone number change or address move.
    Even that, Liane surmised, she was doing too much.
    He didn’t mistreat his girls and no longer resorted to brute force to prove a point. All of girls boasted of paid college tuition bills; shiny, expensive cars, and fancy jewelry and clothes. They all resided in mansions on the outskirts of Vegas, in the middle of the desert, where prostitution was legal and law enforcement kept a distant eye.
    Jackson himself lived in a very nice home next one of the brothel and made sure his business and personal life were much separated from each other. Liane didn’t ask Jackson if he had entertained any of the girls at his private home but she already knew he did. Jackson and celibacy simply did not mix.
    Liane bit the inside of her cheek and swallowed a large gulp of ice water to chill her growing jealousy. Why did she care that he slept with other women? She had plenty of dates within the past couple of years and at one point, she considered one man to be her boyfriend. Of course, long-term relationships never seemed to work out with her since she was focused more on her career.
    Her career. That’s what she kept telling herself. She was single because of her devotion to the force. She was sure if she wanted to settle down and get married, she would’ve done so already. She was still young enough for that dream to become a reality. She knew the expectations of her – to find a nice guy, with great values, and raise a family. It was what she wanted and Liane knew, it would probably happen sooner than later.
    No matter how much she wanted it to happen, she knew it could not happen with Jackson. And a part of him probably didn’t want that to happen, neither.
    That was the intention behind the trip to see him. To finally cut off all ties. She was no longer going to be a part of his world and be another notch on his belt. She was going to be someone’s wife and mother one day, Jackson just didn’t fit into those plans, and they both knew it.
    She just hoped he wouldn’t be too pissed at her for wasting his time. After all, it was Jackson flying her out to Vegas. He was also going to pick her up. She was going to stay at his home. He wouldn’t let Liane spend a single dime while she was with him.
    “It is so nice and sunny out and you’re looking like you just sucked on the most sour lemon in the world.” Enzo De Laurentiis greeted his best friend at the restaurant.
    Liane looked up and smiled at Enzo. Despite the different paths they went down, they always remained close. “Hey stranger!” She got up and gave him a hug. “How are you?”
    “Always busy,” He sat across from her and took a sip of ice water. “Got a few projects in the pipeline.