His Deadly Past: A New York State Trooper Series Novella Read online

  His Deadly Past

  A New York State Trooper Series Novella

  Jen Talty Talty

  Contents

  His Deadly Past

  Book Description

  Praise for Jen Talty

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Epilogue

  Books by Jen Talty

  About the Author

  His Deadly Past

  A NY State Trooper Novella

  JEN TALTY

  USA Today Bestselling Author

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  His Deadly Lies

  New York State Troopers Series Novella, Book 8

  COPYRIGHT © 2018 by Jen Talty, updated 2019

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author or Cool Gus Publishing except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  Jupiter Press

  Publishing History

  Kindle Worlds 2018

  Book Description

  An Injured NY State Trooper. A Physical Therapist. A Destination Wedding. And one deadly lie.

  NY State Trooper, Jasper Miles has spent the last couple of months recovering from an injury and trying to charm the sexy physical therapist, Ashely Briggs, assigned to his case. While she’s attentive to the healing process, giving him the best care possible, she’s seems to be immune to his devilish good looks and charismatic wit. When he sees her at a buddies destination wedding, he makes it his mission to make Ashely his and Jasper never fails.

  Ashley Riggs has dedicated her life to helping the injured men and woman who protect and serve overcome their battle wounds so they can get back to their jobs. As a physical therapist, she never gets to close her patients. That is until NY State Trooper, Jasper Miles shows up at her best friend’s destination wedding. Unable to resist his charm, they spend a night she won’t soon forget…

  Until a dark secret from Jasper’s past surfaces putting not only her heart on the line, but her life as well.

  Praise for Jen Talty

  "I positively loved In Two Weeks, and highly recommend it. The writing is wonderful, the story is fantastic, and the characters will keep you coming back for more. I can't wait to get my hands on future installments of the NYS Troopers series." Long and Short Reviews

  "In Two Weeks hooks the reader from page one. This is a fast paced story where the development of the romance grabs you emotionally and the suspense keeps you sitting on the edge of your chair. Great characters, great writing, and a believable plot that can be a warning to all of us." Desiree Holt, USA Today Bestseller

  "Dark Water delivers an engaging portrait of wounded hearts as the memorable characters take you on a healing journey of love. A mysterious death brings danger and intrigue into the drama, while sultry passions brew into a believable plot that melts the reader's heart. Jen Talty pens an entertaining romance that grips the heart as the colorful and dangerous story unfolds into a chilling ending." Night Owl Reviews

  "This is not the typical love story, nor is it the typical mystery. The characters are well rounded and interesting." You Gotta Read Reviews

  "Deadly Secrets is the best of romance and suspense in one hot read!" NYT Bestselling Author Jennifer Probst

  "A charming setting and a steamy couple heat up the pages in an suspenseful story I couldn't put down!" NY Times and USA today Bestselling Author Donna Grant

  "Murder in Paradise Bay is a fast-paced romantic thriller with plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing until the end. You won't want to miss this one..." USA Today bestselling author Janice Maynard

  Prologue

  If she said no this time, New York State Trooper Jasper Miles would have to throw in the white towel.

  Crashing and burning when it came to women was not in Jasper’s wheelhouse. He wouldn’t necessarily consider himself a ladies’ man, but he’d never had trouble smooth-talking a woman into at least one drink.

  And perhaps a little after dinner cocktail in his place.

  Or hers.

  “How’s that feeling?” Ashley Riggs, Physical Therapist, and the sweetest woman he’d ever met, strolled into the exam room with a bag of ice and a towel. “You really pushed yourself these last few sessions.”

  He had no idea where her hair fell since she always wore it in a bun, but based on the size, he suspected her raven hair fell well past her shoulders.

  And he could tell her hair was soft and thick.

  Just like her eyelashes that blinked over her big eyes that were the color of warm, wet sand being soaked with the waves gently rolling over the shore.

  “It feels really good,” he said, rubbing his knee, stretching it in and out. “As if I never tore the ACL and had surgery.”

  “I’m impressed by how quickly you’ve healed.” She rolled her chair over to the table where he sat, her tender hands wrapping his knee with the cold ice.

  “I had a good therapist.”

  She smiled, lowering her lids, as if she were embarrassed. He didn’t think so, but it sent a hot shiver across his freezing leg. Something about Ashley was different than most women, besides the fact she’d said no to him every time he’d asked for her number. While he wouldn’t mind finding out what she was like between the sheets, he’d settle for a glass of wine and fine conversation.

  Her knowledge of the world constantly surprised him as he asked probing questions during their sessions, all in an effort to find a way to convince her he was a harmless police officer looking to buy a nice lady a drink for helping him through a trying time.

  “Well, I had a dedicated patient, which makes all the difference in the world. I can’t do the work for you.”

  Her smile made him want to explore monogamy, even though his past wouldn’t allow it.

  “I want to get back to work as soon as possible.” After surgery, when he’d first started physical therapy, he couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. The pain had been worse than when he’d first injured it when his parachute hadn’t deployed in time during a low altitude jump during his eight-year stint with the Army. He’d made the decision then to leave the military for a potentially less dangerous job.

  Well, working for the Special Operations Response Team (SORT) as well as a rescue swimmer (SCUBA) wasn’t really any less dangerous, but he got to stay in one place and he loved living in Lake George.

  “I’ve already signed the paperwork. It will be sent to your boss by Monday, but I’d read all my notes before making any decisions.”

  He’d read them, but not right now. He shifted the ice bag. This was now game on. They were in a room, alone. Not in the big space where he did his workouts amongst all the other patients trying to push past the pain and get back to where they were before tragedy struck them.

  “You know,” he said, in the suave-est of voices he could manage. “If you scribbled your John Hancock, then technically, I’m not your patient anymore, changing our relationship status.”

  “Sargent, I’m still not going to go out with you.” She rested her hands on her hips, her chair swiveling slightly left, then right. The corne
rs of her mouth turned upward into a half-smile.

  That gave him hope.

  “I bet I’m your last patient today.” He didn’t need to wager, he knew without a doubt that she had no more patients after him. He made sure he was the very last appointment on the books.

  She folded her arms across her chest. He tried not to look at the perfect round swells above her forearms, but it proved impossible. He was after all, a full-blooded American male. “Not only don’t I date my patients, but I make it a rule not to date military men—”

  “I’m ex-military.”

  “You didn’t let me finish.” She shook her head letting out a long breath. “I don’t date cops or fireman either.”

  He raised his hands. “So, what? You date doctors only?”

  “I don’t have a rule about them.”

  “All right. Then let’s just go have a drink. Call it a send-off celebration before I’m back with SORT on deployed on my next assignment.”

  She waggled her finger. “I’m only giving you the thumbs up for desk duty. You’re going to have to pass the physical for SORT and SCUBA. Even though you’re doing great, this leg isn’t what it used to be.”

  Deep down, he knew he might need to consider Jake Prichard’s offer and switch over to training new recruits. Jasper had watched both his boss at the station house and his boss for SCUBA begin to pull back, letting the younger men do the heavy lifting.

  Jasper wasn’t old, but he wasn’t a spring chicken anymore. His knee throbbed just thinking about it.

  “One drink. That’s all I’m asking. When you’re done, you can leave if you want. I won’t ask for a second, promise.”

  She opened her mouth, but he held up his hand, knowing exactly where her thoughts were headed. “Shots don’t count.”

  “Smart man, but still, no.”

  He did his best to frown, hoping she’d take pity on a man feeling dejected. “Are you really going to make me beg?”

  She laughed, tossing her head back, exposing her sweet, supple neck. All he could think about was kissing the spot right under her earlobe.

  “You don’t strike me as the type of man who begs for anything,” she said.

  “I don’t, but you’re with the exception.”

  “Wow, that’s a really good line. If I wasn’t seeing someone, I’d be falling for it for sure.” Her right eye twitched, and she glanced up and to the left, after blinking a few times, breaking off eye contact.

  Liar.

  He contemplated calling her out on it but thought better of it. It certainly wouldn’t get him his one drink.

  “I hope he knows what a lucky man he is.” Jasper unwrapped the ice from his frozen knee. “If he doesn’t get that, or you just feel like a nice glass of wine and good conversation before heading home, I’ll be at the Food Hut. I’m sure you know where it is.” He stood, holding out his hand, waiting, while her smile faded, and her gaze darted between his hand and face.

  “It’s been a real honor,” she said, pushing back her chair. “Thank you for your service.”

  He nodded, letting his hand linger until she jerked hers back.

  She was interested in the drink.

  Maybe more.

  “You take good care, Ashley.”

  He waltzed out of the room, not looking back.

  God, he hoped she joined him. But if she didn’t, at least his buddies wouldn’t know he’d crashed and burned.

  * * *

  Ashley bit down on her lower lip, cocking her head, watching the sexy NY State Trooper saunter through the exercise room. He wasn’t the first cop to hit on her.

  But he was the only one that made her consider, for a single second, that he might be worth a date.

  Or two.

  No.

  She cleaned up the room and tossed the dirty towels in the bin before making her way to the office to sign out for the night.

  Standing in front of the medical building, the humid New York summer air smacked her pores like large raindrops.

  Her eyes focused on the sign filled with green, coral, yellow, and blue wood planks hanging over a restaurant door with the words: Boardwalk.

  In her eight years working as a physical therapist at University Medical Group satellite office, she never once entered the bar and grill across the street, a known local hangout for all the troopers who worked up the road.

  Jingling her car keys, she hesitated at the driver’s side door of her small SUV.

  “What the hell,” she muttered. One drink with a handsome man who could carry on an intelligent conversation wouldn’t hurt. Although she’d keep up the ruse that she was in a relationship.

  She frowned, tossing her keys into her purse as she crossed the street. Meeting him certainly sent the wrong message, and she didn’t want to encourage him. That said, she had promised her dad she’d get out more and meet new people.

  Taking a deep breath, she pushed open the door. The bar wasn’t totally packed, but full enough. She raised up on tiptoe. Even at five foot nine, she couldn’t see over some of the crowd standing at the front bar. Maybe he was outside on the water. Nothing like an evening sipping on some wine watching the crystal blue waters of Lake George lap against the break wall.

  Not seeing him anywhere, she decided she should just leave.

  No sooner did she turn toward the door than she spied Jasper sitting at the far end of the outside bar, with a glass of red wine raised in one hand, the other pointing to an empty seat. His grin was one of triumph.

  She let out a puff of air and slowly made her way across through the side doors, not rushing. God forbid, he thought she was eager to have that drink.

  “Hello, Ashley.” He placed his hand on her upper arm, curling his fingers gently as he boldly leaned in and pressed his soft lips to her cheek. “I got you a nice Cab, since I remember you once told me it was your favorite blend.”

  “You already ordered it?” She slid up on the stool, taking the glass he offered.

  “I did.” He clanked his wine against hers with a wink.

  “Here’s to overly confident men,” she mused, remembering how her father told the story about snagging the most popular girl in his high school. Her dad always told her confidence was half the battle to being successful at anything.

  That and being smart.

  Her father was the smartest man she’d ever met.

  “Shall I be completely honest?” he asked, resting his arms on the bar, his biceps flexing, showing off a rescue swimmer tattoo.

  “By all means?”

  “Happy hour, two for one and it ended five minutes ago, so I figured I’d get two, save a few bucks if you didn’t show up.”

  Now she wasn’t sure if she should be insulted or not. “I like a frugal man,” she said, eyeing the outdoor tables. She grew up an Army brat, living near one base after the other while her A-Team Commander father led missions in undisclosed areas. It had been a tough life on her and her siblings. Her mother never once complained, and her parents had a great relationship.

  But they weren’t the norm.

  Either way, Ashely didn’t want to be with anyone who had a dangerous job. She’d watched her friends lose their fathers. Mother’s lose their sons and daughters. Everyone knew the risks, but she wasn’t willing to take it anymore.

  He leaned in, his arm brushing against hers in a nonchalant move. “I was hoping though.”

  “Of all my clients, you’ve been the hardest working and the least grumpy, so I wanted to thank you for that.”

  “I’m sure you see some pretty tough cases.”

  She nodded, remembering a few. Her job wasn’t just to help them heal their physical wounds, but the emotional wounds as well. “Truthfully, I don’t normally take injuries like yours. I specialize in major trauma. I usually spend months with my patients which is another reason I don’t ever date them, but my boss asked me to take yours.”

  “I asked specifically for you. I did what I could to make sure that happened.”

&nbs
p; She arched a brow. A slight flutter of her pulse hit her throat, wondering why he’d do that, because it sounded creepy stalkerish. “Why? How would you know me?”

  “You worked with a buddy of mine last year, Jace Cooper. He said he would have put a gun to his head in a heartbeat if it hadn’t been for you. He had nothing but great things to say and considering how bad his wounds were, I figured if you could do wonders with him, I’d be a cakewalk.”

  She pursed her lips. “You pulled strings to get me?” She remembered Jace. Nice young fireman who nearly died when he’d responded to a fifteen-car pile-up. He’d been the first at the scene and unfortunately, another vehicle coming from the other direction lost control and nearly ran the man over. He’d broken both hips, his pelvis, one of his legs, and two punctured lungs. It was a long recovery, but he was back at work, though a desk job, but he was walking tall.

  He shook his head. “No. I asked if it was possible. My sister works in the billing office for the hospital, and I believe she asked you. I’m sorry if that bothers you.”

  “Who is your sister?”

  “Maddy Lichner.”

  “Ah, yes, now I remember.” Ashley blew out a puff of air, relieved. Maddy had come to her before her brother’s surgery, wanting to know if Ashley would do her a personal favor. Since she’d had a break in her schedule, she said yes. She didn’t know Maddy, other than to say hello in passing, since their jobs never really crossed paths, but it had been nice to do an easier case for a change of pace.