Thief of Mine (6 page)

“I see. They’re a coven of witches?” Stella didn’t really
see but sometimes it was easier to go with something than against.

“Yes, and as for you and I being a couple, I think we’d make
a great couple.” It was not beyond Kit’s imagining. Stella Rowallan was exactly
the type of woman he wanted for life.

Stella scoffed out loud at his words.

“You steal things for a living. Your judgment is screwed.”
They were entering the main foyer of the train station that led to the subway
and the train platforms. Stella would have been blind not to notice the people
who stared at her bare feet and barely covered backside. “What are you looking
at?” she snapped at one obvious tourist, who in turn dropped his eyes. “And
keep ‘em there,” Stella hissed in satisfaction. She heard Kit’s laughter. Yeah,
it was real funny for the thief. “You try walking around bare assed and keep a
sense of humor, lover boy.”

“Don’t scare the tourists, princess. Remember, Brisbane
thrives on tourism.” Kit had every intention of being bare assed with Stella as
soon as he got the idol back to his home.

“Just shut up.” Honest to God what more did she have to put
up with?

“Are you okay?” Kit knew Stella had been through a lot and
he was concerned for her. They have only just met but Kit knew time meant
nothing when you met the right person. He was a man who lived on his instincts
and his instinct about Stella was she was more than just a woman he met and had
sex with. He also knew he would freak Stella out if he mentioned that. But he
could not deny the feeling that being with her brought him. He felt a strange
sense of wholeness he had never felt with anyone else before.

“Do you care?” The look of soft concern in Kit’s eyes
momentarily threw her off balance. She almost believed he cared for her as more
than an acquaintance. But that of course was ridiculous. The only thing that
had between them was sexual chemistry and that could burn out mighty quickly.

“I do care.”

“I’m as fine as this situation allows.” Stella had the
strangest feeling that this thief of hers actually meant it. Or maybe she was
reading far too much into the soft chocolate brown eyes that held hers. Stella
knew they had to get back to the subject at hand. “Have you ever thought about
just giving the idol back to whomever you stole it from?” That seemed like it
would solve the whole people chasing them thing.

Kit headed hand and hand with Stella toward the lockers. He
could not care less what people thought of him or Stella. They were not
important and they were beneath Stella’s touch anyway.

“Camille stole it, and I stole it from her.”

“Great, semantics. I suppose if you steal from a thief it’s
not a theft then?” Stella knew she could have easily pulled her hand from Kit’s,
but it felt kind of nice and she was tired, and what did a little bit of
support from another human being hurt? Stella knew if she looked at it like
that she could justify holding his hand.

“Something like that.” Kit smiled at her words. Stella was
taking the whole thing about him being a thief in stride. Not a lot of people,
let alone women, could find that the slightest bit acceptable. Yet, Stella was
becoming more intrigued than horrified.

“And where did the witch woman get it from?”

“The Queensland Museum.” Kit explained about the relics that
had been collected in the desert outside the town of Beldarq. They had then
been sent on a cultural tour around the world, being loaned to countries like
Australia to put on display.

“Well. I suggest the most logical thing would be to take it
back to the museum then.” Did one knock on the main door and hand it back or
what? She wondered why she had not heard on the news that an ancient artifact
had been stolen from the Queensland Museum. It would have been a big deal to
the State and to the people of Beldarq. Surely it was newsworthy?

Kit instinctively knew Stella was not someone who broke the
law, although she might bend it to her own rules.

“It’s not that easy. There is already a fake idol in place
at the museum.” Kit felt Stella momentarily pause in her step at his words. “When
Camille took the original, the museum was embarrassed and had to replace it
with a fake. Essentially they wanted to stop questions until they could find
who took the original.”

“That’s why it wasn’t on the news.”

“Correct, only a few people know it was nicked and all those
people want it for their own reasons.” Kit looked around him warily, the fine
hairs on the back of his neck rose in warning. He moved them along quickly. “The
idol is on loan from Beldarq. And they cannot afford to add to the unrest on
the Middle East right now due to the global political situation.”

“I see…” Stella didn’t really, but this wasn’t her game
after all. She did, however, understand that pissing off any one in the Middle
East was not a smart thing to do at the moment.

“I had several buyers who had heard of the theft and wanted
the real idol. I managed to track down the most likely thief.” Kit had known
Camille for a very long time. He knew what she liked to acquire for her own.
And yes, he had seduced her, but Camille had been more than willing. They both
had known what was going on.

“So it is true it takes a thief to know a thief.”

“Exactly.”

It was not a normal conversation between two people who
barely knew each other but there it was—evidence that Stella wasn’t normal.

“So what’s with this idol that so many people want it?”

Kit felt the same tingling sensation on the back of his
neck. He was a man who lived on his wits. Something did not feel right. Kit
looked around him. He could not see anyone overly suspicious but he intuitively
knew they were being watched. It had to be Camille’s followers. Like everyone,
Kit had a long list of enemies but he knew of no one else that was pissed off
enough to follow him.

“The idol a fertility statue,” Kit explained as he hurried
Stella along to the lockers. “It’s supposed to make men extra virile and women
more fertile. It’s supposed to have some magical aphrodisiac qualities similar
to all those strange herbs and ground up animal horns that people pay money
for.”

“So this essentially all comes down to sex.” And sex sold
and people did dumb things for it. She was living proof of that, idol or no
idol.

“Sex and money and both make the world go round. Some people
would kill for this idol.” Kit felt Stella start to pull away from him.

“Well, this has been fascinating but if you would be kind
enough to lend me train fare, I’d like to go home.” It had been a long day and
she was sure the thief could handle the whole idol in the locker thing without
her.

Kit could not have Stella leaving now. It had something to
do with protecting her but more to do with the fact he could not allow Stella
Rowallan to walk out of his life. What Kit felt for her was strong and true,
and he needed to investigate what he was feeling further. It was just more than
the usual thrill of sex. She could not leave him now. Not when they had only
just met.

“I need you.”

Stella looked up at him in surprise. Kit sounded like he
meant it. But then he was a thief and
ergo
a liar, so what could she
believe?

“What for?” She had never had anyone needing her before. How
did she go about being needed?

“What if I return the idol?” He was surprised at the words
that came out of his mouth. Kit had up until a moment ago had every intention
of selling it.

Well, this was a surprise, thought Stella, her bullshit
detector on alert knowing there had to be more going on. A man who one moment
was out for profit and the next throwing it out the window. That did not
compute.

“What about the other two fakes?” Stella asked skeptically.

“I could give one to Camille to get her off my back.”

“Do you think she’s that dumb?” From what little she saw of
the redhead she didn’t strike Stella as the gullible tell me anything type and
I’ll believe it. Surely she would know if she were handed a fake.

“Damn!” Kit swore suddenly and pushed Stella into the nearby
automatic photo booth.

Chapter Four

“We’re being followed.” Kit quickly pulled the ugly grey
curtain across the door and looked at Stella. It was a cramped and crowded with
both of them standing, though Kit didn’t mind being crowded by Stella. She
could crowd him any time. He opened the curtain slightly and spotted a couple
of Camille’s people heading in the opposite direction to them. Kit knew they
just had to sit it for ten or so minutes until the coast for clear. Camille’s
people weren’t smart. They wouldn’t look for too long. They were the type of
people who needed a flashing neon sign saying “hiding place” or they would move
on. Kit counted on their stupidity. He sat down on the small bench that was set
back against the wall of the photo booth. He looked at the generic camera lens
before him. An idea came to mind. If they had to sit it out and wait then they
may as well have some fun. He smiled at Stella.

Stella felt suddenly nervous at that smile, which was insane
because he had seen her naked and he had been inside her body so it was not
like there were any surprises there. She had never felt like this with any
other lover. Lover? Was that was Kit was? Did a quick roll in the hay—or in
this case a blinding moment of hot sex on a garden table—make them lovers? What
was it about this blond man that threw her composure out the window? Why did
she want to do dumb and delicious things with him when he smiled at her like
that?

“I didn’t think these photo booths existed anymore.” The
ugly, antiquated boxes had once been a popular and convenient way of getting a
quick, cheap and usually ugly photo for purposes of identification. With the
advent of digital cameras Stella just assumed they had all disappeared. But as
Roma Street railway station was a major tourist transit area, it probably
seemed feasible to have one still in operation. It was also probably some sort
of quirky tourist thing. A lot of people had fond memories of squeezing friends
into one of these photo booths and taking silly photos. She and Simone had
certainly done so. Though being squeezed in with Kit was a completely different
feeling.

“So how long do you think we have to wait in here?” It was
hard to make polite conversation when she had no underwear on. And the man who
was sitting so close to her was aware of that. Plus she knew he was hoping to
take advantage of this fact.

“Sit down.” Kit tapped his hand on his thigh. He knew Stella
was nervous and he thought it was cute. “Take a seat. We may be here a while.”

Stella looked at him skeptically. Sit on the lap with that
huge, delicious cock? Was she that big a thrill seeker? And what could either
of them do about it in a photo booth anyway? It was hardly a private place to
even contemplate having sex in. Stella felt a little calmer after having this
thought.

“Who’s following us? One of Camille’s mob?” When in doubt,
shift the topic to safer ground was Stella’s motto.

“They seem to have the knack of being everywhere. I suggest
we sit here for fifteen minutes or so and then head to the lockers.” The sooner
Kit had the idol and Stella out of Roma Street the better.

“You honestly think they won’t look in here, lover boy?”

Stella had her hands on her hips again, looking all prissy,
and Kit wanted her more than ever. Was she aware that when she put her hands on
her hips the jacket rode up and he could see the soft skin of her inner thighs
and the curls on her pussy? Kit thought. But he wasn’t about to tell her that.
Why ruin the show?

“It was either here all the men’s toilets, and I know they
would look there.” He tapped his thighs again. “Sit down. Or are you scared, princess?”

“Of you? No.”
Of me and what I may do? Hell yes
.
Stella contemplated her options. Leave the photo booth and beg for train fare
home in her half naked state? That seemed not only embarrassing but also
possibly something she might get arrested for. Stay with Kit and sit calmly on
his lap and avoid having sex with him. It seemed doable to Stella. He could
hardly take her in a cramped photo booth where anyone could stick their head in
for a look. Though the possibility of that happening seemed strangely exciting
to Stella.

“Come on, princess, I’m not going to bite…unless you want me
to.” Kit saw Stella’s eyes narrow warily. “I will be a perfect gentleman and
only do what you want me to do.”

Stella would have liked to have said that made her feel so
much safer, but it didn’t. She had a feeling Kit could make her do all sorts of
things she never planned on.

“No funny stuff, right.”

“My word of honor.” Kit only planned on doing exciting
stuff.

Stella rolled her eyes at this. She was tired and her feet
hurt. Being able to sit down for a couple of minutes would be welcomed. She
took a deep breath and sat down on sideways on Kit’s lap. It seemed the safest
alternative.

“So what do we do now?” Even saying the words sounded dumb
when Kit was looking at her in an “I could be so good for you in an awfully
wicked way”. He was as yummy as cheesecake but without the calories. Now there
was a product worth marketing.

Just knowing Stella was all bare assed sitting on his lap
made his cock instantly jut up in excitement. There was no way Kit could let
this moment pass him by.

“I know what I want to do.” His hands encircled her waist as
his tongue slowly licked the sensitive flesh near Stella’s ear. He loved the
taste of this woman.

Stella moaned softly. She could feel the steel rod of his
erection poking into her bottom.

“I want to be inside you again, princess. Once was most
definitely not enough.” Kit blew against the wet flesh on her neck. The shiver
that ran though her body, told him all he needed to know.