When she finally emerges into the quiet car park, unease clings to her like a second skin. She scans the darkness, sharp and wary, as if she can feel eyes on her, mine. Her steps are quick, purposeful, but fear threads through them all the same.
She keeps looking back. Around. Searching for something she can’t see.
Her hand rises to her sternum, fingers pressing briefly as her face tightens. A flicker of discomfort. Or doubt. Then she drops her hand again, lips pressing together, silently chastising herself.
Interesting.
My little heaven reaches her car and slips inside with practiced urgency. The doors lock immediately. The sound echoes louder than it should. Only then does she exhale, shoulders sagging as if she’s been holding herself together by sheer will.
I release my own breath at the same time. I hadn’t realized I was holding it.
Her engine turns over and she pulls away, taillights disappearing into the night. My hands are clenched around my steering wheel, grip unforgiving, knuckles bleached white.
I will not follow her.
I don’t move until the sound of her car is completely gone. When silence settles again, my grip loosens and I take another long drag, eyes sweeping the shadows out of habit.
That’s when I see it.
One of the security cameras catches the light, new. Subtle. Not one of ours.
I narrow my gaze.
Someone else is watching her too.
When the last ember dies, I drop the cigarette out the window. The engine hums to life and I pull away, swallowed by the night.
My thoughts refuse to settle. They scatter, collide, nothing holds long enough to make sense. Control slips, thread by thread, until inevitably they circle back to her.
Her mouth against mine.
The way her body softened, surrendered, as if it recognized something in me before her mind could object. How easily she fit in my arms. How hard it was to leave.
How badly I wanted more.
The memories replay without mercy, her legs locked around me, her hands gripping as if letting go was unthinkable, the heat of her presence seared into my skin. Every detail is etched too clearly, branded where discipline should be.
My jaw tightens. My dick starting to get hard.
No.
I force the thought away, clamp down hard before it can drag me somewhere I won’t allow myself to go. Want is a weakness. Indulgence is a mistake.
Business. Focus.
The file surfaces in my mind like a lifeline. Keys’ message from earlier replays, he has the location.
Good.
It’s time to put the plan into motion.
I take the long way to the warehouse, letting the city stretch around me, the extra minutes a necessary indulgence. Time to think. Time to lock everything back into place. Desire had already been caged once tonight, I refuse to let it rattle the bars again.
By the time I arrive, Keys is already set up, exactly where I expect him to be. Screens glow in the dim light, maps and data spread like an open wound across the table.
“Have you even left?” I ask as I step up beside him, peering over his shoulder.
“Nope.” He doesn’t look at me, teeth worrying the drawstring of his hoodie. “Not a fan of unnecessary movement.” A pause. “Just sent you and Jaxon the bank name, location, and the easiest access point.”
