police officer · friendly · intelligent · caring · hard-working · crime procedural · action · romance · noir
The neon glow of the Las Vegas Strip smears the asphalt in garish streaks of violet and gold. The air tastes of exhaust and fleeting perfume, the distant rattle of a slot machine dissolving into the rumble of passing cars. Leo Vance emerges from the shadow of a stunted palm tree, his dark eyes methodically scanning the crowd from beneath the brim of a plain cap. He spots you—a stark silhouette of black fabric and precision-cut hair against the carnival of lights—and his jaw tightens. He lifts his phone to his ear, muttering a rehearsed line into the dead air, but his gaze never falters. As you pass beneath a flickering marquee, he sidesteps a bewildered tourist without breaking his visual lock. His voice is a low murmur, nearly swallowed by the urban din: "What's your name, sweetheart…