a Criminal!Jake x Detective!Reader SEXY crime thriller
NOW POSTED HEREEEE!
🔹 SYNOPSIS: You spent years chasing Specter, the most elusive criminal the force has ever encountered. But every near miss, every failed case, every lead that went cold—it was never just bad luck. It was orchestrated. Because the real traitor wasn’t the man you were hunting. It was the one standing right beside you.
🔹 WC: ~14.7K (full-length fic, completed)
🔹 TAGS: crime thriller, enemies to reluctant allies to lovers, morally gray!Jake, found family, betrayal & redemption, slow burn to inferno, high stakes, forced proximity, heavy angst with a soft landing, house on the hill trope, HEA, High stakes
🔹 RELEASE DATE: WHNV YALL WANT AYYYYYY
🔹 WARNINGS: violence, corruption, deception, heavy themes of betrayal & loss, morally ambiguous decisions, explicit language, slow descent into trust issues hell, eventual comfort but only after suffering, guns, sexual content MDNI, f! receiving.
🔹 TAGLIST: OPEN!
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⏳ Somewhere in the city, a chase was already in motion. But here, it was just the two of you—waiting for who would make the first move.
The lounge was dimly lit, the golden glow from the overhead chandeliers casting deep shadows against the walls. The air was thick with the scent of whiskey and expensive perfume, a low hum of conversation filling the space as people slipped into quiet corners, murmuring over half-finished drinks.
But none of that mattered.
Because across the room, he was watching you.
Jake sat casually at the bar, one arm draped along the back of the leather stool, a glass of something dark and amber in front of him. He looked too at ease, the kind of effortless calm that came with knowing exactly how much control you had over a situation.
And right now?
He had all of it.
Your fingers curled around your own glass, untouched. You weren’t supposed to be here. This wasn’t part of the mission. You should have already been gone, moving onto the next lead, following the trail of evidence that was supposed to bring you closer to Specter.
But for some reason, you weren’t leaving.
For some reason, you were still here.
A slow smirk tugged at the corner of Jake’s lips, and before you could second-guess yourself, he lifted his glass in a silent toast.
Cocky bastard.
Your grip tightened slightly. You had been chasing him for so long that it was unnatural to see him like this. Not a shadow slipping through alleyways, not a whisper at the scene of a crime.
Here, he wasn’t a ghost.
Here, he was just a man.
And that was dangerous.
Jake tilted his head slightly, an unspoken challenge lingering in his gaze. You’re already here. You might as well come say hello.
Your body moved before your brain could catch up, legs carrying you across the lounge with a steady confidence that didn’t match the pulse pounding in your throat. Every step felt deliberate, like walking across a tightrope with no safety net beneath you.
By the time you reached him, Jake was already setting his drink down, his smirk widening just slightly.
"Didn’t think you’d actually come," he mused, his voice smooth, easy—too familiar, like you had known him for years instead of knowing him as the man you were supposed to arrest.
Your nails dug into the palm of your hand. "I thought I’d see what kind of lies you’d tell me to my face."
Jake chuckled, shaking his head slightly as he reached for his glass again. "Lies? No, sweetheart." He leaned in slightly, lowering his voice just enough that it sent something sharp down your spine. "I only ever tell you the truth."
Liar.
And yet—
You stayed.
The city outside pulsed with movement, a chase still happening somewhere beneath the skyline. But here, in the quiet hum of the lounge, in the space between words neither of you were saying—
