I lean forward, gripping the phone tighter, wishing, if only for a moment, that I could be there, too, watching her to see the way she moves. Apparently, she’s a force, whether she knows it or not. And maybe that’s what I’m scared of most.
Because forces like her, they’re unstoppable. They’re also unpredictable. She could make or break us. And I need to know, before anything else, which way she’s going to go.
“She’s flirting,” Koen continues. “Classic shit, really. She’s got her hand on his chest… oh, he’s folding, Ric. This guy’s melting right in front of her.” That makes me chuckle. “He’s taking the bait,” Koen murmurs, his tone growing more impressed by the second. “She’s got the glasses. And… she swapped them out without him even noticing.”
A beat of silence stretches between us, and something in my chest unclenches. Relief. Pride.
Fuck,maybe both.
That was fucking quick. “She’s done?”
“Yep. She’s walking away now, and… oh man, he put the Elvis glasses on, and she took a stealthy picture of him. He’s looking around, but she’s already gone.”
My phone buzzes with two messages from her. Two pictures. One of some aviators in her hand, and the other of the security guard wearing Elvis glasses.
A laugh bursts out of me, louder than I intended, surprising me.
“Did she send you the picture?” Koen asks.
“Yep,” I say, forwarding it to him. A few seconds later, he chuckles.
Another buzz.
You’re welcome.
Took you long enough.
I know she’s rolling her eyes at me, even without seeing her. I can almost hear the exasperated huff she’s probably making, and it’s enough to make me smile like a dork.
You could at least say thank you.
Don’t push it.
“That only leaves the last test,” I mutter, my thumb hovering over the screen. Let’s see if she’s got the nerve to do what needs to be done when it counts.
I take a breath and type.
There’s a red Mustang parked in the lot near the Bellagio, right off Las Vegas Boulevard.
I want you to steal it.
The silence stretches as I wait for her response, my throat tight with something that feels close to guilt. Jinx shifts beside me, her gaze fixed on me, unblinking as if she knows what I’mdoing, what I’m asking of this stranger—stealing a car in the midst of the Strip in broad daylight?
It’s a lot.
Koen is quiet, too, the silence between us thick with tension. The seconds tick by, and I can feel my heart pounding, each beat echoing in my ears.
Then my phone vibrates.
Forget it.
Can’t do it?
Won’t.
Ah, because you can’t.
I’m pushing her, testing her limits, seeing if she’ll break. It’s cruel, maybe, but necessary.
