He'd had his eye on her for a while, ever since the day during Academy when she'd

helped new recruits like him learn the 10 codes and the 911 communications protocol.

He'd definitely liked the sound of her voice on the radio.

He'd liked her looks.

All the guys did. He liked the graceful way she moved,

like a long-stemmed lily in a gentle breeze. He had not hit on her. No, back then he was just a boot,

a fresh-faced rookie recruit looking to make the Greensboro Force.

Besides, he already had a girlfriend back in Durham.

Her name was Danita.

Well, that was then.

Now he was a veteran of the force, a guardian of the city,

and at 24, handsome as all get-out in his crisp blue

uniform. So it was that on a beautiful spring day in 2004, Jermere Stroud asked Shannon Crawley

for her phone number. It was the first step on the proverbial slippery slope,

the start of a series of lies and half-truths.

All of it, a long, sad tale Jermere would later tell many times.

About her years ago, we had a friendship and a sexual relationship.

I had a girlfriend we made him used to live.

Now here's the thing about undercover lovers.

Close friends, even family members, must be kept at a distance.

We were teasing her, saying, you know, what is he going to bring him to the house?

We're going to meet your boyfriend.

...