To Have and to Heist(69)
“Why would I apologize?” Nikhil spat out. “I’ve done nothing wrong.”
I left them to what would inevitably turn into yet another fight, and stormed out of the house. I was frustrated and furious and had nowhere to go. My basement suite was basically uninhabitable because Rose had thrown a few buckets of water on the floor to make it look extra damaged for the insurance adjuster’s upcoming visit. Gage was at Chloe’s place and I didn’t want to disturb them. I couldn’t stay with relatives without becoming the subject of the gossip mill yet again, and in my current mood I wouldn’t be good company for any of my friends. I needed a couch to crash on and an outlet for my anger. Who could weather my storm?
* * *
◆ ◆ ◆
?I held it together until Jack opened his hotel room door.
Whack. My hands thudded against his chest, fingers curling into thick, hard muscle as I pushed him back. He was wearing pajama pants and nothing else. I could see every ripple of his six-pack abs, the deep lines of his V cuts, and the soft trail of hair leading from his navel below his waistband. Damn him for being so fine. “You knew who they were.”
To his credit, he didn’t even pretend not to understand. “Does it matter? It’s your only way to save Chloe.” He reached over and pushed the door closed behind me.
“I suspected Mr. Angelini wasn’t on the up-and-up,” I continued to rant. “Good guys don’t act as fences for stolen jewelry or show up at a charity ball with gold-toothed bodyguards and radiating evilness. But the Chicago Outfit? Seriously? No wonder they shot at us in the boat. And of course they have killer Bee drones and two layers of security at their house. They’re not worried about theft; they’re worried about other mobsters or the FBI showing up and taking them all out in a hail of bullets, just like they’re going to do to us.”
“That only happens in the movies,” he said.
“Movies are based on real life.”
“In real life, ponies aren’t pink and can’t fly,” he pointed out.
“You didn’t give us all the information.” I shoved him again, but he didn’t move. “No one would have signed up if they knew we were going to steal from the mob.”
“Then it’s a good thing they don’t know.”
“They will know,” I said. “Because I’m going to tell them. I won’t keep secrets and I won’t put anyone at risk. We could have been killed today. Bella is being forced into the marriage, and her psycho fiancé showed up at the bridal dress shop. Chloe and I attacked him, something we would never have done if we’d known he was in the Mafia.”
A smile spread across his face. “I would have loved to see that.”
“It’s not funny.” I slapped my hands against his bare chest, more for dramatic effect than anything else. Except when my bestie was being attacked by a mob boss’s son, I wasn’t the violent type. “We were in danger.”
“Mario’s not a made man. He’s a lightweight. And besides, it sounds like he was the one in danger.” He stroked my cheek, his gentle caress soothing my savage inner beast.
“I did get in a few pretty good kicks and punches . . .”
“I can imagine.” His hand circled my waist, pulling me roughly toward him.
My knees buckled. My mouth went dry. His eyes stayed on mine as he trailed a finger down my throat, sending a rush of white-hot heat through my veins. How could I go from fury to fire in the space of a heartbeat?
“Are you just saying nice things so I don’t cancel the heist? Because you need me to get the necklace?”
“I’m saying them because they’re true.” He nuzzled my neck, feathered kisses along my jaw.
I could feel the steady thud of his heart in his chest, the whisper of his breath on my skin, the soft slide of his knee between my legs as he drew me closer. I was tempted to just let myself go, to fall into those arms, drown in the warmth of his kisses. But Jack hadn’t been honest with me. He’d put my crew at risk. I wasn’t prepared to take this any further until he told me the truth about who he was, why he was really here, and what he knew about the Angelinis.
Drawing in a deep calming breath, I pulled away and walked over to the floor-to-ceiling windows, putting some distance between us. His suite was larger than the main floor of Rose’s house, the living area decorated in varying shades of beige and brown with dark wood furniture and nondescript decor.
“I can’t do this if there is no honesty between us,” I said. “I know you have some secret agenda. I should have asked that at the beginning but you . . . you bedazzled me with your charm.”
“What do you want to know?” He came up behind me as I took in the incredible skyline view and wrapped his arms loosely around my waist.
“What are you going to do with the necklace?”
“Exactly what I said.” He turned me away from the window to face him. “I plan to return it to its rightful owner. The reward is yours to keep. That in itself should be evidence of my goodwill. I didn’t mention the Mafia angle because it didn’t matter. You knew he was a bad guy. Bad guys do bad things.”
“Mafia guys do worse things.” I didn’t see any deception on his face. His gaze was clear and true.
“The risk doesn’t change. Neither does the reward.”