Steal the Light (Thieves) (22 page)

I should have felt more anxious than I did. By the day after tomorrow, I would know my fate. I would either have the Light of Alhorra and turn it over to Halfer, or I would turn myself over to Halfer. Either way, at least the horrible waiting would be over. But I couldn’t muster up a sense of anticipation the way I normally could when a job was coming to fruition.

All I could see when I closed my eyes was that place Halfer had taken me to.

“Well, hopefully you’re back in your place soon.” Sarah moved back, allowing me to enter.

The Gilmore suite was one of the best suites in the hotel. It consisted of two bedrooms, a large sitting area, a spectacular Roman bath, and a glorious view of the city. I walked over to the windows that spanned the entire living room. Light filled the room and I suddenly realized why they chose this particular suite. It hadn’t been confirmed that we were dealing directly with the Fae, but now I was pretty sure.

The Light of Alhorra was a faery object. It made sense that a Fae would own it. I had, long ago, decided to discount the whole story about Halfer’s friend losing the object. Halfer didn’t have any friends. So if the Smith party was a faery group, then this was probably the perfect room for them. If you could pretend the glass wasn’t there, the entire room became a well-appointed aviary. It looked over a large park. On the other side of the building, the views were of other downtown buildings. The lights would be spectacular, but to a faery the lights were just one more manmade atrocity. The Regal suite that Dev had booked was larger, but the windows were much smaller.

“That’s pretty.” Sarah started the vacuum cleaner, making sure to pick up the small piles of dust that the camera holes had made.

“That’s not the only thing that’s pretty,” a low husky voice said in my ear.

“Ear pieces are working.” I mouthed to Sarah, pointing to my ear. She gave me a thumbs up.

This was something like a dress rehearsal. During the heist, we would keep in contact through small Bluetooth devices.

“You look mighty fine in that maid’s uniform.” I could hear the friendly leer in Dev’s voice. “Though I have to admit I prefer the French version.”

I wrinkled my nose at the extremely small camera. I knew where it was placed, but I had trouble seeing it. Daniel did an excellent job. Everything was set. Tomorrow night, Sarah and Dev would work the technical side of things from above while Daniel, Neil and I handled the actual heist.

“You know,” Dev was saying in my ear, “in the movies, maids always wear sexy heels. What’s up with the sneakers?”

I rolled my eyes at the camera. “That’s porn, Dev,” I said as articulately as I could.

“Is that what they call it?” His chuckle gave me warm chill bumps.

Dev’s presence was a definite distraction and one I probably didn’t need. I explained several times that as long as we were working together, I planned to keep my hands off him. He hadn’t given up. I suppose if I was honest with myself, I knew that keeping Dev at arm’s length had nothing to do with workplace ethics and everything to do with Daniel. The truth was I lit up a little when Dev walked in the room. It was simple to be around Dev and his easy, sexy smile.

When Daniel walked in a room, he brought the heavy burden of our past with him. Dev was like the first sunny morning after days of pounding rain. If Daniel hadn’t been around, I would have leapt in with both feet. I would have jumped straight into Dev’s bed.

Lately, the only time I felt like smiling at all was when I thought of Dev.

The vacuum stopped. Sarah looked at me with one hand on her hip. “You should just do him and get it over with.”

“What?” I pulled the comm link out of my ear and switched it off. This wasn’t a conversation I wanted to share with Dev.

She laughed and pulled hers out as well. “Girl, it’s all over your face. You have that ‘gimme, gimme’ look that women get when they want a guy who doesn’t want them. The only thing wrong with that scenario is he wants you bad. I don’t see the problem.”

I stared at her.

She held her hands up in defeat. “Okay. I see the problem. I don’t understand the problem. I realize that the two of you were engaged, but in the whole time I’ve known you, he’s brought you nothing but heartache. Seriously, it’s sad, Z. Daniel skulks in the room and you try to talk to him and he tries to avoid you, and then when you’re not looking he watches you like a hawk watches a fluffy little rabbit. I don’t get the attraction.”

“You didn’t know him before.”

“Well, I know him now, and I know he isn’t making you happy.”

“And you think Dev can make me happy?” I’d been wondering the same thing for days now.

“I think Dev can give you an orgasm, and that’s what counts.” Sarah gave me a practical smile. “Unfortunately, you’re one of those girls who is madly in love with the first guy you had sex with.”

“Why is that unfortunate?”

Sarah grinned wryly. “Because you haven’t learned that sex can just be fun. You seem to think it has to be all passion and emotion and commitment. The truth is it can just be a good time. Last night I had a good time with Joe, and this morning I can’t remember his name.”

“You said his name was Joe.”

“I call them all Joe. It’s easier that way. The point is I had a good time. He had a good time. I didn’t have to brood over his undead status, and he didn’t care that he wouldn’t ever see me in the daylight. I realize that you’re never going to be so casual, but Dev could be a happy medium.”

“Well, it’s nice to see you finally forgave the poor man.” It had taken a while for Sarah to forget her first meeting with our faery prince.

“He walked through my garden and, OMG, you would not believe the herbs I have now. Every witch in my coven is jealous. I just hope my sister gets to see it.” Sarah flushed a little, but pressed on. “I know you don’t want to hurt Daniel, but you can’t spend the rest of your life like this. There’s a man upstairs whose grandpa was a fertility god. If you don’t want him, please let me have a go.”

I frowned at the thought, and Sarah pounced.

“Aha, jealousy rears its ugly head. If the thought of me sleeping with him puts that look on your face, then you better get busy yourself.” She looked around the room and sighed. “I think we’re done here. Where should we plant the bugs?”

I pulled out a handful of helpful little listening devices, and Sarah and I played hide the bugs.

An hour later, we changed and clocked out. Sarah and I made our way up to the suite. Dev let us in, a smile on his face. It had been a long day and an even longer night before it, so I grabbed a bottle of water and headed straight for the big, fluffy bed in the master bedroom. I threw myself on the middle of the bed and sighed in contentment as I sank slightly into the mattress. Daniel was right about his bed, though it wasn’t just undead backs it played hell on.

The red light of the digital clock read five minutes to four. The “Smith” party would be arriving soon, and I would spend the night on surveillance. Daniel and I would watch the marks and decide how to handle the job. We would argue and collaborate and compromise until we had the most efficient plan we could come up with. We would not discuss the fact that he wanted to kill himself rather than live the way he was living. We would not discuss anything but the job at hand.

I opened my eyes when I felt the bed shift. Dev sat on the edge looking down at me with a lazy half-smile that made my heart beat a little faster. His dark hair was mussed as though he’d just run his hand through it to get it out of his face. For the first time since I met him, he wasn’t clean shaven. It was terrifically sexy on him. I reached up and let my fingers play across that roughness.

“I can shave if you want.” His eyes slid away from mine.

“No, I like it. It’s sexy.” I let my thumb rub against his cheek. I loved touching him. It made me feel connected, grounding me here.

Emerald green eyes fastened on mine, that slow, sexy smile crossing his face. “Then I’ll grow a beard if you like. I usually shave twice a day. I forgot today. I was busy setting up the computers.”

“Why do you shave twice a day?”

Dev looked at me seriously. “They don’t have facial hair, the Fae that is. My family and their people, they don’t have any body hair. When I hit puberty, it was just the exclamation point that shouted I wasn’t a full Fae.”

“Well, I think it’s incredibly sexy.” I sat up. He looked so sad that I impulsively kissed his rough cheek.

His expression changed in an instant from melancholy to distinctly wolf-like. I found myself on my back with Dev pinning me down gently, his chest against mine. His weight was a delicious anchor. “That Sarah is a smart girl, but she got a few things wrong.”

I felt myself flush. “You couldn’t hear us! I unplugged the ear pieces. How did you listen in?”

“Did I fail to mention I can read lips? Well, I can, and she’s right, you should definitely sleep with me.” He laughed as he lowered his lips to mine in a sweet, quick kiss. Far too quick for my tastes. “But she’s wrong about it just being a good time. I’m serious about this relationship.”

I wanted to believe him. I so wanted to believe him. “I don’t think we’ve known each other long enough to have a relationship.”

“Call it what you want. I’m not your good-time guy. I’m just your guy.” He kissed me again, this time lingering over my mouth and making me tremble. His tongue foraged deeply in my mouth, rubbing against mine in a way that went straight to my pink parts. His hand stroked my curves under the pants I was wearing. He came up for air and pressed his forehead against mine. “We need each other, Zoey. You’ll see that. I’m not like that vampire. I won’t try to keep you in a cage. I know the supernatural world. I can show you amazing things. I want to show you the world, not keep it from you.”

“He’s just afraid I’ll get hurt.” I was uncomfortable talking about Daniel with Dev.

“He’s afraid he’ll lose control. Don’t get me wrong, Zoey. As vampires go, Daniel is all right. But he is a vampire, and they’re all the same. He wants to dominate everything around him. His instinct is to kill or control. He’s protected you by telling the Council you’re his companion. It’s a good thing. No other vampires will bother you, but if I thought he was trying to make you a real companion, I would stake him myself.”

I pushed away from him and scrambled to sit up. “How can you say that?”

Dev sat back, his eyes wary. “I can say it because I know more about that world than you do. I deal with a lot of vamps at my clubs. There’s a reason he’s kept you apart from that world. Some part of Daniel has managed to cling to his old life in a way I’ve never seen in a vampire. He remembers that he loved you once, and he wants to protect you.”

“What’s so bad about being a companion?” For so long I wanted nothing more than to be that for Daniel. It seemed like such a nice thing to be.

Dev looked at me like I was a naïve child. “Zoey, a companion isn’t like the vampire’s wife. She’s the vampire’s possession. She’s required to obey her master. Legally a vampire can kill another vampire for even touching his companion in a sexual way. The Council would sanction the killing. They tend to kill anyone who tries to take their companions. Then there’s the fact that the companion can legally be executed if she strays.”

“Daniel would never do that.” It seemed there was a lot I didn’t know.

“Yes, he would,” Dev said with a sympathetic surety. “He knows he would and that’s why he’s stayed away. The bond between vampire and companion is twisted, and Daniel doesn’t want that for you. He wants to see you safe. He knows how dangerous the Council can be to a woman like you.”

“What does that mean?”

“You’re special, Zoey. I don’t completely understand it. Albert picked up on it.” He frowned a little. “But Daniel is trying to be reasonable. I actually admire him for it. He knows something you don’t. The Daniel you knew died long ago. This is just an echo, and before too long, it will be gone and all that will be left is vampire.”

“He wants to meet the dawn.” It was the first time I mentioned it to anyone, and the minute it was out of my mouth, I wished I hadn’t said it. It felt like a betrayal to talk to Dev about this.

“They’ll never let him.” He didn’t seem surprised at what Daniel wanted to do. He just seemed certain that no one would allow him to do it.

“The Council? But the Council helps vampires who don’t want to live.”

Dev nodded and proceeded with caution. The way he was handling me made me wary that worse revelations were sure to come. “It’s true that the Council helps old men meet the dawn, but I assure you they’ll do whatever it takes to ensure that Daniel Donovan continues to walk the night. He really hasn’t told you anything, has he? Daniel is important to the Council. He’s practically royalty.”

I stared at him. It wasn’t true. What he said went against everything I knew about the vampire world. Age was prized over youth. The young were merely tolerated. “Why is he important? He’s so young that he doesn’t have any power. Only very old vampires have real power.”

I watched as Dev decided what he wanted to say next. “The day after I met you, I asked Albert to work up profiles on your whole team. Don’t get pissed off. You would do the same thing if you had my resources.”

I frowned but let him continue because he was right. I would totally have hired a PI to dig into his background if I had the time and the money. As it was, I had only the resources to Google him and take a look at his Facebook page. “What did you find out?”

“I found out a lot of things. I found out that Neil lived on the streets for five years before your father took an interest in him and introduced him to you. Sarah has some unsavory connections. Her mother was heavily into black magic before she died. You’re a talented thief who secretly reads romance novels.”

I threw a pillow at him. “How the hell did you find that out?”

“I didn’t need a Pl for that. I snooped. You leave them on the window sill in your bathroom because you read while you soak in that tiny tub of yours. I have a gorgeous antique claw foot tub at my place, by the way. There is more than enough room for two.”