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Trinity Street West #3
Leader of the Pack
SHE'D THOUGHT SHE WOULD NEVER SEE HIM AGAIN.
Wounded and backed into a corner, Ryan Buckhart sought a temporary escape from months of undercover police work. He could go to only one place... find safety in the arms of only one woman. He'd never stopped wanting, loving her -- but she was no longer his wife....
Lacey Buckhart remembered how Ryan's stubborn devotion to the job had cost them their marriage. This time, his need to bring down a vicious gang threatened their second chance at happiness. The lone wolf had left the pack for now... but was he truly home to stay?
Trinity Street West: Where danger lies around every corner -- and the biggest danger of all is falling in love.
Wounded and backed into a corner, Ryan Buckhart sought a temporary escape from months of undercover police work. He could go to only one place... find safety in the arms of only one woman. He'd never stopped wanting, loving her -- but she was no longer his wife....
Lacey Buckhart remembered how Ryan's stubborn devotion to the job had cost them their marriage. This time, his need to bring down a vicious gang threatened their second chance at happiness. The lone wolf had left the pack for now... but was he truly home to stay?
Trinity Street West: Where danger lies around every corner -- and the biggest danger of all is falling in love.
256 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 28, 1996
3 people are currently reading
73 people want to read
About the author
Justine Davis
252 books216 followersAuthor biographies are supposed to give you all those statistics, books written, awards won, etc. and I will, I promise...but first let me tell you about this ornery little tomboy (back then, the boys had all the fun...) who was always the one to make up the stories the neighborhood kids would "play". For those who came of age in the computer game era, this is something that was done usually in the backyard, by any number of summer-bored children, with props where appropriate. (Did you know a 55 gallon drum tied to a picnic bench makes a very cool horse?) It wasn't until much later that this tomboy realized two things: A) not everyone made up stories in their heads all the time, and B) in real life, the boys that had already had all the fun now seemed to always be winning.
But I digress. I was born on a farm down in Iowa....well, not quite, but close; Boone, Iowa is in the middle of farm country, but I arrived at a hospital. In a snow storm. Make that a blizzard. My sister tells me she knew my destiny when I was very young, because when I first saw the Disney classic Old Yeller, I was apparently so upset that I promptly went home and rewrote the story. In my version, the dog lived, of course. Should have been a clue.
Possibly in response to that blizzard I was born in, I've been a West Coaster since before I was a year old, and intend to stay that way. I have a history of staying. I started my first full time job right out of school (well, there was a very brief sojourn at a place where they made, among other things, burial vaults, but I prefer not to recall that one...) and stayed for twenty-one years. I've been married to the same wonderful guy for going on two decades now. We lived in our last house for seventeen years. (I won't even mention how many dumpsters we filled moving after that long....)
Readers seem as fascinated by my first career as they are with my writing. My time in law enforcement was many things, exciting, nerve wracking, and irritating, but most importantly never, ever boring. It was fascinating enough that I didn't think about writing seriously for several years. I kept a journal, and wrote long letters, collected quotes, mentally rewrote movies, and still made up those stories in my head, but never dreamed of actually writing for publication. I was having too much fun helping to catch bad guys, and being continually amazed at the situations people get themselves into. And eventually I walked away with a wealth of background and story ideas, and knowing some truly great people who work very hard to keep all of us safe. I'm proud to have been one of them, and I'm very aware that I have had the great good fortune of having had two jobs in my life that I love. Many people don't get even one.
But now that I'm in the delicious position of being able to make a living telling those stories in my head, I promise my readers two things: A) I'm staying--I'll keep writing as long as you keep reading, and B) in my stories, the girl--tomboy or not--always wins!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
And now, the official stats:
Justine Dare Davis sold her first book in 1989, and followed that up with the sale of nineteen novels in less than two years. Her first four books were published in 1991, and she saw all reach the finals for either the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award or the Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA Award. She has since won the RITA award four times, along with several Reviewer's Choice awards and three Career Achievement awards from Romantic Times. At the 1998 national conference, Justine was inducted into the RWA Hall of Fame, making her one of a very select group of just eight writers. She also had four titles on the Romantic Times "Top 200 of All Time" list. Her sales now total more than 45, and her books have appeared regularly on best seller lists, including the USA Today list. She has been featured in several local newspapers and nationwide by Associated Press, has appeared on CN
But I digress. I was born on a farm down in Iowa....well, not quite, but close; Boone, Iowa is in the middle of farm country, but I arrived at a hospital. In a snow storm. Make that a blizzard. My sister tells me she knew my destiny when I was very young, because when I first saw the Disney classic Old Yeller, I was apparently so upset that I promptly went home and rewrote the story. In my version, the dog lived, of course. Should have been a clue.
Possibly in response to that blizzard I was born in, I've been a West Coaster since before I was a year old, and intend to stay that way. I have a history of staying. I started my first full time job right out of school (well, there was a very brief sojourn at a place where they made, among other things, burial vaults, but I prefer not to recall that one...) and stayed for twenty-one years. I've been married to the same wonderful guy for going on two decades now. We lived in our last house for seventeen years. (I won't even mention how many dumpsters we filled moving after that long....)
Readers seem as fascinated by my first career as they are with my writing. My time in law enforcement was many things, exciting, nerve wracking, and irritating, but most importantly never, ever boring. It was fascinating enough that I didn't think about writing seriously for several years. I kept a journal, and wrote long letters, collected quotes, mentally rewrote movies, and still made up those stories in my head, but never dreamed of actually writing for publication. I was having too much fun helping to catch bad guys, and being continually amazed at the situations people get themselves into. And eventually I walked away with a wealth of background and story ideas, and knowing some truly great people who work very hard to keep all of us safe. I'm proud to have been one of them, and I'm very aware that I have had the great good fortune of having had two jobs in my life that I love. Many people don't get even one.
But now that I'm in the delicious position of being able to make a living telling those stories in my head, I promise my readers two things: A) I'm staying--I'll keep writing as long as you keep reading, and B) in my stories, the girl--tomboy or not--always wins!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
And now, the official stats:
Justine Dare Davis sold her first book in 1989, and followed that up with the sale of nineteen novels in less than two years. Her first four books were published in 1991, and she saw all reach the finals for either the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award or the Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA Award. She has since won the RITA award four times, along with several Reviewer's Choice awards and three Career Achievement awards from Romantic Times. At the 1998 national conference, Justine was inducted into the RWA Hall of Fame, making her one of a very select group of just eight writers. She also had four titles on the Romantic Times "Top 200 of All Time" list. Her sales now total more than 45, and her books have appeared regularly on best seller lists, including the USA Today list. She has been featured in several local newspapers and nationwide by Associated Press, has appeared on CN
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 6, 2011
Leader of the Pack is a re-union story and I loved it. It is about two people who loved each other and still do but due to some reasons couldn't stay together.
Lacey loved Ryan but his lone-wolf attitude was something that she slowly couldn't accept and his trying to keep her away from the job he loved also weighed on her. She was the only one Ryan trusted and when they lost their baby she just hurt too much and Ryan's behavior afterward made her feel that it didn't matter, so she filed for divorce and tried to forget him but didn't succeed.
Ryan never knew who his parents were and is Indian but has no roots. He fell hard for Lacey but his job means a lot to him. He's a cop-hero and even though he and Lacey have been divorced he still loves and checks up on her. He never felt he was good enough for her and felt he came between her parents. He never voiced his feelings, like when he lost their baby and as result their marriage failed as Lacey could no longer live with him, he tried to protect her from what he did on the job.
Ryan is amazing and the way he completely adores and loves Lacey, he understands her fears and her past even when she never said a word. Through-out this book I never doubted that they loved each and would work things through. They just needed to talk about his job and about things and see how far they had come. Lacey expected Ryan to understand certain things without voicing them and Ryan felt he had to be strong, seeing them both realize that feelings need to be talked about and how time had changes each other was a beautiful journey.
Ryan went under-cover with the "Pack" and now there is a clear power struggle, he came injured to Lacey's door-step after the events in Lovers Under Cover.
So, this dynamic plays out in the book, with Ryan needing to go back to keep the chaos that erupts under control. Ryan trusted only Lacey in his life and seeing him learn that it was okay to depend on other people and that he didn't need to do things alone was great. He's so protective about Lacey but Lacey makes him see that she can take care of herself and is tougher than she looks and the beautiful things he carved for Lacey, adorable.
I loved seeing these two work through their issues, their love for each other was so great. And don't you love a man that thinks a piece of paper can't stop his love?
Rating 4.5
PS: Lacey pushing him away makes me deduct .5 from the rating.
Lacey loved Ryan but his lone-wolf attitude was something that she slowly couldn't accept and his trying to keep her away from the job he loved also weighed on her. She was the only one Ryan trusted and when they lost their baby she just hurt too much and Ryan's behavior afterward made her feel that it didn't matter, so she filed for divorce and tried to forget him but didn't succeed.
Ryan never knew who his parents were and is Indian but has no roots. He fell hard for Lacey but his job means a lot to him. He's a cop-hero and even though he and Lacey have been divorced he still loves and checks up on her. He never felt he was good enough for her and felt he came between her parents. He never voiced his feelings, like when he lost their baby and as result their marriage failed as Lacey could no longer live with him, he tried to protect her from what he did on the job.
Ryan is amazing and the way he completely adores and loves Lacey, he understands her fears and her past even when she never said a word. Through-out this book I never doubted that they loved each and would work things through. They just needed to talk about his job and about things and see how far they had come. Lacey expected Ryan to understand certain things without voicing them and Ryan felt he had to be strong, seeing them both realize that feelings need to be talked about and how time had changes each other was a beautiful journey.
Ryan went under-cover with the "Pack" and now there is a clear power struggle, he came injured to Lacey's door-step after the events in Lovers Under Cover.
So, this dynamic plays out in the book, with Ryan needing to go back to keep the chaos that erupts under control. Ryan trusted only Lacey in his life and seeing him learn that it was okay to depend on other people and that he didn't need to do things alone was great. He's so protective about Lacey but Lacey makes him see that she can take care of herself and is tougher than she looks and the beautiful things he carved for Lacey, adorable.
I loved seeing these two work through their issues, their love for each other was so great. And don't you love a man that thinks a piece of paper can't stop his love?
Rating 4.5
PS: Lacey pushing him away makes me deduct .5 from the rating.
January 25, 2015
Another entry in my continuing plans to re-read and review the books laying around my house for days, weeks, months, years, or decades.
Justine Davis relishes the tortured hero, and Ryan Buckhart is one tortured hero. Introduced in a previous book as a bad guy member of a gang, he is revealed in this book to be an undercover cop. Abandoned as a baby, he knows nothing of his parents or family except he can tell that he is Native American. He trusts and confides in no one - not the woman he loves, not his best friend on the force. He has a dangerous lone wolf mentality that is going to get him killed if he doesn't wise up.
The book opens with him stumbling into the home of his ex-wife, bleeding from a bullet wound. Although they've been divorced for years, she still "heard the wolf howling," which tells her he has been hurt. She nurses him, they sleep together, they regret it, but it's obvious they still love each other. He doesn't check in, his superiors worry that he's gone rogue, she takes steps to warn him and save him.
The book has some ridiculous plot twists - really? you take the woman you love along with you to arrest a dangerous bad guy just because she asks? - but a sweet romance. He carves tiny wooden animals for her, which was my favorite part.
Justine Davis relishes the tortured hero, and Ryan Buckhart is one tortured hero. Introduced in a previous book as a bad guy member of a gang, he is revealed in this book to be an undercover cop. Abandoned as a baby, he knows nothing of his parents or family except he can tell that he is Native American. He trusts and confides in no one - not the woman he loves, not his best friend on the force. He has a dangerous lone wolf mentality that is going to get him killed if he doesn't wise up.
The book opens with him stumbling into the home of his ex-wife, bleeding from a bullet wound. Although they've been divorced for years, she still "heard the wolf howling," which tells her he has been hurt. She nurses him, they sleep together, they regret it, but it's obvious they still love each other. He doesn't check in, his superiors worry that he's gone rogue, she takes steps to warn him and save him.
The book has some ridiculous plot twists - really? you take the woman you love along with you to arrest a dangerous bad guy just because she asks? - but a sweet romance. He carves tiny wooden animals for her, which was my favorite part.
October 9, 2011
Another good story by JD. He's an undercover cop and she helps him, even if they were divorced.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews