Brothers in Blue: The Complete Trilogy: Brothers in Blue Boxed Set - Books 1-3
Brothers in Blue: Complete Trilogy
Max, Marc & Matt
Jeanne St. James
Copyright © 2018 by Jeanne St. James
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Editor: Molly Daniels
Cover Artist: Megan Parker of EmCat Designs
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Contents
Disclaimer
Books by Jeanne St. James
Brothers in Blue: Max
About Brothers in Blue: Max
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Brothers in Blue: Marc
About Brothers in Blue: Marc
Quote
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Brothers in Blue: Matt
About Brothers in Blue: Matt
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
If You Enjoyed This Book
DAMC
About Down & Dirty: Zak
Down & Dirty: Zak Sneak Peek
Also by Jeanne St. James
About the Author
Audio Books by Jeanne St. James
FREE Erotic Romance Sampler Book
Warning: This book contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language and may be considered offensive to some readers. This book is for sale to adults ONLY, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.
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Keep an eye on her website at http://www.jeannestjames.com/or sign up for her newsletter to learn about her upcoming releases: http://www.jeannestjames.com/newslettersignup
Books by Jeanne St. James
Made Maleen: A Modern Twist on a Fairy Tale
Damaged
Rip Cord: The Complete Trilogy
Brothers in Blue Series:
(Can be read as standalones)
Brothers in Blue: Max
Brothers in Blue: Marc
Brothers in Blue: Matt
Teddy: A Brothers in Blue Novelette
The Dare Ménage Series:
(Can be read as standalones)
Double Dare
Daring Proposal
Dare to Be Three
A Daring Desire
Dare to Surrender
The Obsessed Novellas:
(All the novellas in this series are standalones)
Forever Him
Only Him
Needing Him
Loving Her
Temping Him
Down & Dirty: Dirty Angels MC Series:
(Can be read as standalones)
Down & Dirty: Zak
Down & Dirty: Jag
Down & Dirty: Hawk
Down & Dirty: Diesel
Down & Dirty: Axel
Down & Dirty: Slade
Down & Dirty: Dawg
Down & Dirty: Dex
Down & Dirty: Linc
Down & Dirty: Crow
You can find information on all of Jeanne’s books here:
http://www.jeannestjames.com/
Brothers in Blue: Max
Brothers in Blue, Book 1
Meet the men of Manning Grove, three small-town cops and brothers, who meet the women who will change the rest of their lives. This is Max's story...
Big city party-girl Amanda Barber has been spoiled most of her life. But life for Amanda suddenly becomes a major challenge: adapting to small-town life, dealing with her special needs brother, and constantly butting heads with a frustrating local cop.
As a police officer and former Marine, "responsibility" is Max Bryson's middle name. Never having been in a serious relationship, he has no plans for one in the near future. He likes being his own man. And even if he were interested in a serious relationship, he certainly wouldn't choose someone so immature and irresponsible as Amanda. But no matter how hard he tries, he can't get sexy Amanda out of his head or his heart. Watching her mature in front of his eyes, his protectiveness towards her only strengthens.
Bossy and possessive aren't the only words Amanda uses to describe this frustrating cop. She can't deny just looking at the man makes her tremble. But she's done with having anyone control her and this man isn't going to be any different. Or is he?
Dedication
To my own personal man in uniform,
thank you for being the calm to my storm.
Chapter One
For forty-five minutes the little red rental sat in the parking lot. Amanda Barber remained frozen in the driver’s seat. She stared through the windshield at the brick building in front of her. The car’s engine was off, the keys still hanging in the ignition. It wouldn’t take much for her to reach out, turn them, and go back the way she had come.
She read the sign on the building one more time as if reading it would put off the inevitable. HOWELL’S ADULT DAY CARE.
It was getting dark; she couldn’t sit there anymore. She had promised her stepmother’s attorney that she would stick around for a couple weeks. Just a couple of weeks. Fourteen days. Half a month.
She had to stop being a wimp.
Okay, no more hesitation. She grabbed the keys and tossed them into her purse. She had to get this over with. She left the car and went into the building before she could change her mind.
As the door closed behind her with a click that sounded deafening to her own ears, Amanda glanced around. A few older people sat knitting, reading, and talking in small groups. A television droned in the background. A very elderly gentleman sat in a wheelchair in front of a large picture window, his head bobbing as he dozed off.
A woman, just a few years older than her, looked up and spotted Amanda. A frown creasing her forehead, the woman straightened from helping the young man who was sitting at a card table. Amanda wasn’t quite
sure what the young man needed help doing. It looked as though he’d been drawing. The woman leaned over and said something in his ear before approaching Amanda.
“Can I help you?”
“I guess so.”
A puzzled look crossed the woman’s face when Amanda didn’t continue.
The woman prodded, “Do you need information? Or a tour of our facility?”
“No.”
The woman squinted in confusion and tilted her head with an unspoken question. As she opened her mouth, Amanda interrupted her. “I’m here for Gregory Barber.”
She must have said it loud enough, as the young man at the table lifted his head from his project and turned toward them. He laughed loudly and brushed away the hair that fell into his eyes with the back of his bent wrist.
An O formed on the woman’s lips. “You must be Amanda.”
Amanda frowned. Of course the woman knew who she was. She bet all of Manning Grove had been waiting for her to show up.
“Yes, I’m here to pick up Greg.”
Amanda bit her lip as the young man rose from the table with a crooked smile. Next thing she knew he was running toward her, his arms flailing in the air. Amanda automatically stepped back. She really wanted to turn and run, but the young man’s arms wrapped around her, squeezing her until she couldn’t breathe.
The woman grabbed his arms, trying to peel him off. “Greg! Greg! Let her go.”
Greg rocked Amanda back and forth, pressing his head into her chest, squeezing her even tighter. She groaned in pain.
“Greg!”
“Donna, is this ’Manda? Is this ’Manda?” His booming voice vibrated against her chest.
“Greg, you are going to squeeze her to death.”
Greg reluctantly let her go and stepped back, the crooked smile on his face even larger. A bit of spit sprayed out of his mouth as he yelled, “My sister ’Manda!”
“Yes, Greg, your sister is here to pick you up.” Donna turned to Amanda. “As you can guess by now, I’m Donna. I manage this facility.” Concern crossed her face. “You look pale. Do you want to sit down?”
Amanda shook her head. “No.” She took a deep breath, rubbing her ribs, checking for damage. She pulled down her skirt and adjusted the sweater that was askew under her jacket. “No, I’m okay.”
“Are you taking Greg back to his mother’s house?”
“Yes.”
“Have you ever dealt with a special needs person before?”
Amanda looked at Greg, who stared back at her with the biggest grin on his face. “No.” Greg couldn’t stand still; he was fidgeting about and mumbling to himself.
Donna frowned. “Oh boy.”
Amanda didn’t want to hear that. Oh boy. What did that mean? She knew that she would be in over her head. But “Oh boy”?
Shit.
“Uh, is he ready to go?”
Donna looked at Greg. “Yes. He’s very excited to meet his sister, as you can see.” She returned her attention to Amanda and lifted her eyebrows. “This is for the first time, right?”
Amanda nodded. She didn’t know whether to be ashamed or afraid. Shame was quickly clouding her feeling of fear. She had no doubt that Donna knew the answer to that question before she had even asked it. Amanda was sure that the whole town knew the truth.
Double shit.
Donna grabbed her arm, pity in her eyes. “Look. I’ll give you my card. If you have any problems or questions, call me. Greg’s a good kid; he’s easy to work with, easy to please.”
Amanda looked at the person in question. He was no kid. Her half-brother was twenty-two years old. Twenty-two.
Old enough to drink, vote, join the army.
An adult that only acted like a child.
“Thanks. I might take you up on that offer.”
Donna smiled for the first time. “I’m sure you will. Here is a brochure on my facility and my card. Greg comes here three days a week. A bus will pick him up before eight a.m. on Mondays, Wednesday, and Fridays, except for holidays. A bus will drop him off after six p.m.”
Amanda’s head was spinning. “Okay.”
“Greg, are you ready to go now?”
“Yep. Yep. Yep. I’m ready to go.” Greg hopped on one foot, then the other, in his excitement. “We’s going now!” He ran up to Amanda again and held out his twisted hand.
Amanda reached out and grabbed it. His huge grin was irresistible. She gave him a weak smile back. “Ready, Bud?”
“Who’s Bud?”
Amanda looked at her brother. He might be only a half-brother, but he was still blood. He was family. Amanda relaxed her stiff muscles a bit and gave his hand a squeeze. “You are, Bud. You are going to be my new best bud.”
“Oh! Oh! Donna, I’m Bud! I’m a Bud!” Greg started to pull her toward the door.
“Oh wait, Ms. Barber!” Amanda’s head turned toward Donna as she was being tugged out through the entranceway. “Don’t forget Chaos.”
“What?” She grabbed the doorjamb to keep Greg from dragging her out the door and bouncing her over the pavement in his enthusiasm.
“Chaos,” she repeated as if that clarified everything.
Donna went to the back door and held it open. A black-and-white border collie bounded through the door and circled them, barking, just as out of control as Greg.
Chaos.
How appropriate.
Keys jingled and hinges squeaked as Amanda opened the front door of her new home.
New temporary home, she reminded herself.
Due to the long flight followed by the boring, long drive to this in-the-middle-of-nowhere town, she was exhausted. She needed to get a good night’s sleep so she could think clearly in the morning.
She glanced at her watch. Seven.
Neither Greg nor she had had dinner yet, and here she was, thinking about going to bed. Like an old maid. In Miami the nightlife hadn’t even begun yet.
Chaos brushed past her. The dog probably needed to be fed too.
“Greg, do you know how to feed Chaos?”
When there was no answer, Amanda turned to look at him. He was still standing near the car. He had been suspiciously calm and quiet as they drove into the neighborhood and up to the house. The excited “boy” was gone.
“Greg?”
“Is Mama in there?”
Even in the dark and him being so far away from her, the sadness and confusion was clearly recognizable on his face. But his question made the hairs on the back of her neck rise.
“No, Greg, your mama is gone. Come on. I need to make you some dinner.”
“Mama makes good food.”
Amanda sighed. She didn’t want to deal with this. He wasn’t her responsibility. She had never even met her brother before today. She knew he existed, but they’d lived in different worlds. Her world had never included her father, her stepmother, or her half-brother. Amanda’s mother Anne had made sure of that.
“Hey, Bud, I might not be the best cook. In fact, I’m probably one of the worst. But I can sure make a bowl of soup and a mean grilled cheese sandwich.”
His new nickname seemed to perk him up a bit. He reluctantly followed behind her into the house.
Amanda ran her hand along the wall, since the house was pitch-dark, looking for a light switch. Her fingers located one, and she flipped the lights on. The house was cute. And small. Everything seemed to have a place, and it was really neat. And despite the fact that her stepmother Dolores had died over a week ago, the house seemed relatively clean.
The living room to her right was comfortable looking with a big, soft couch and a few beautifully carved, old, but heavy wood tables. Antiques, probably. Most of the decorations on the wall were framed photos. She would look closer at them later. After she got some sleep.
One thing Amanda quickly noticed was that there was nothing delicate. No pottery or glass or even small knickknacks. Amanda could imagine why when she heard a crash. She rushed back toward the rear of the house.
&nb
sp; The large kitchen was modern with all updated stainless steel appliances and gorgeous granite countertops. A copper pot rack hung over an island, which was surrounded by dark wooden stools.
And in the center of that beautiful kitchen was Greg with a sheepish look on his face. “Sorry.”
He had dropped Chaos’s metal bowl, but the dog didn’t care. As fast as he could eat, the dog vacuumed up every last kibble wherever they had rolled.
“It’s okay, Bud. Now let’s find something for you to eat.”
After a few minutes of searching cabinets, she put together a quick dinner for Greg, and as he ate, she explored the house some more. Even though the house was small, like she first thought, it was comfy. It was a two story with three bedrooms and two bathrooms.