Heather Graham - Flawless

No one writes suspense like Heather Graham! Read this brand-new romantic thriller by one of today’s most popular authors…

There’s a pub in New York City that’s been in the Finnegan family for generations. Now Kieran and her three brothers own it. Kieran Finnegan is also, as it happens, a criminal psychologist—a fitting reaction, perhaps, to her less-than-lawful teenage past.

Meanwhile, New York’s Diamond District has been hit by a rash of thefts. No one’s been killed—until now. FBI agent Craig Frasier is brought in to investigate; he and Kieran meet at a jewelry store in the middle of a heist. She’s there to “unsteal” a flawless stone taken by her light-fingered youngest brother as an act of vengeance. Craig’s there to stop the gang.

But the police and FBI begin to wonder if there are two gangs of diamond thieves, the original and a copycat group of killers—who seem to think their scheme is as flawless as the stones they steal.

Thrown together by circumstance, drawn together by attraction, Kieran and Craig are both assigned to the case. But to Kieran’s horror, there’s more and more evidence that, somehow, the pub is involved. Because everyone goes to Finnegan’s…

www.mirabooks.co.uk

Dedicated to NYC—overcrowded, crazy,

wonderful, diverse,

filled with history, theater,

music, art, architecture

and wonders that can be seen nowhere else.

To the resiliency of

those who live and work

in this great American city.

And to Mr. Korbin Pozzessere,

whose parents,

Derek Pozzessere and Yevgeniya Yeretskaya,

somehow met and fell in love in this

massive sea of people!

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text No one writes suspense like Heather Graham! Read this brand-new romantic thriller by one of today’s most popular authors… There’s a pub in New York City that’s been in the Finnegan family for generations. Now Kieran and her three brothers own it. Kieran Finnegan is also, as it happens, a criminal psychologist—a fitting reaction, perhaps, to her less-than-lawful teenage past. Meanwhile, New York’s Diamond District has been hit by a rash of thefts. No one’s been killed—until now. FBI agent Craig Frasier is brought in to investigate; he and Kieran meet at a jewelry store in the middle of a heist. She’s there to “unsteal” a flawless stone taken by her light-fingered youngest brother as an act of vengeance. Craig’s there to stop the gang. But the police and FBI begin to wonder if there are two gangs of diamond thieves, the original and a copycat group of killers—who seem to think their scheme is as flawless as the stones they steal. Thrown together by circumstance, drawn together by attraction, Kieran and Craig are both assigned to the case. But to Kieran’s horror, there’s more and more evidence that, somehow, the pub is involved. Because everyone goes to Finnegan’s…

Title Page Flawless Heather Graham www.mirabooks.co.uk

Dedication Dedicated to NYC—overcrowded, crazy, wonderful, diverse, filled with history, theater, music, art, architecture and wonders that can be seen nowhere else. To the resiliency of those who live and work in this great American city. And to Mr. Korbin Pozzessere, whose parents, Derek Pozzessere and Yevgeniya Yeretskaya, somehow met and fell in love in this massive sea of people!

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

Extract

Copyright

CHAPTER ONE

“I’M OKAY. REALLY. But I have to tell you what I did. Well, he deserved it, of course,” Julie Benton said over the phone.

“What did you do?” Kieran Finnegan asked. So far, she’d only been half listening; Julie’s tale of woe had been going on for quite a while now.

Kieran wiped the bar, one eye on her task, the other on the patrons in the pub.

Thankfully, at the moment she could easily work and listen, despite the fact that the object of Julie’s venom—her almost ex, Gary Benton—was one of the few other people at Finnegan’s on Broadway, the family downtown pub, one of the oldest in the city.

Julie giggled. “He deserved it,” she repeated.

Kieran didn’t doubt that. She just wished she couldn’t see Gary as she was talking to Julie.

She never minded cleaning Finnegan’s since it was practically her family home. It was a beautiful old place with finely carved wood, a range of tables and booths, and this classic bar with its array of beer taps and collection of Irish whiskeys. Photographs of the pub through the years hung behind the bar. Beyond was a comfortable dining room, equally rich in wood decor and handsome carving.

They weren’t particularly busy at this off-hour of the day, between lunch and happy hour.

Bobby O’Leary was at one end of the bar; although he was an alcoholic long in recovery, Finnegan’s was the center of his social life. He was still one of their favorite customers.

She’d given Bobby his standard soda with lime, and he was reading the Times.

Two groups of business executives on extended lunch hours remained. Three were at one table, and four—including Gary—were at another. Finnegan’s wasn’t even officially open. They closed between 3:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., according to the sign on the front door, but their clientele consisted mainly of friends and regulars who knew they could come in and receive service with a smile. Both tables had paid their bills and were lingering over coffee. Kieran had served them all their final refills—managing not to spill any scalding coffee on Gary—before she’d started cleaning.

And before Julie had called. She refrained from mentioning to Julie that Gary was at the pub; frankly, she was stunned he’d come in at all. He wasn’t wanted here. But he was with Jimmy McManus—a longtime customer and entrepreneur who’d made a fortune in everything from magic mops to designer dog food and Wall Street trading. Jimmy was a great guy with a headful of white hair and a quick smile, taut and fit despite his fondness for a good Irish stout. They were joined by two men who seemed to be friends of Jimmy’s. Kieran hadn’t allowed herself to run over, grab Gary by the lapels and throw him out on the street. But until the coffee refill, she hadn’t gone near the table. Mary Kathleen, a recent recruit from the old country and the love of Kieran’s brother Declan’s life, had been working the floor. She’d waited on the table, but she’d left at three. Which meant Kieran had no choice except to take over.

The other two at Jimmy’s table were men Kieran had seen in the pub before but didn’t really know. One was dark and one was pale. They were friendly, polite and dressed in handsome business suits, like many of the pub’s clientele, who walked down from the Wall Street banks and firms where they worked.

They all looked richer than Gary Benton, that was for sure. Maybe he was trying to learn how to join their ranks.

Making a point of not looking toward the table, Kieran finished the last of her cleaning and the setup for happy hour while listening to Julie. Now that part wasn’t easy, and not only because Julie and Gary were in the middle of the sad dissolution of their marriage.