Page 67 of The Ring Thief
“Fair deal,” I say back, leaning over and pressing a quick kiss to the corner of her mouth. Resisting the urge to linger, I stand. “Be right back.”
I head into her kitchen, grabbing a bottle of water from her fridge and then into the bathroom for some pain relief. Back in the bedroom, she hasn’t moved an inch, her expression contemplative. I set the water and pills beside her on the bedside table.
“Here, baby. Drink some water before you go to sleep. I’ll lock the door on my way out. Sweet dreams.” I press one last kiss to her forehead.
“Night,” she whispers back. I pause at her bedroom door, looking back to see her pressing two fingers to the spot where my lips had touched her skin, and then I’m gone.
Not stopping until I’m safely tucked behind the wheel of my car, phone already in hand with Carter’s contact details pulled up, I call him. It rings twice before I hear a grumbled, “Do you know what fucking time it is?”
“Yes, I’m aware,” I respond dryly. “I’m also aware you weren’t asleep.”
Carter doesn’t reply, but the low feminine murmur in the background answers for him. “What do you want? I’m busy.”
“You still have that folder I asked you to hold on to?”
A pause before a sly, “Yeah,” comes through the line.
“Bring it to the Hi-Tech offices tomorrow. First thing.”
“You sure about this?”
“Yes. Her house of cards is coming down.”
CHAPTER 30
Declan
“These are nice digs.” Carter does another loop of the office, his nosy stare taking everything in. “Bigger than what you had at Nexus. You’re moving up in the world.” He leans against the massive walnut desk, and when I glare at him, he shoots me a smarmy smile.
“You know this isn’t my office.”
He trails his fingers against the smoothed edge of the desk, pausing in front of the silver frame perched on one side. I don’t follow his gaze. I know exactly what he’s looking at… Lily’s beaming smile, graduate cap on her head and black gown draped over a blue sundress. I didn’t know Lily back then, but sweetness shines out of her, even from a glossy photograph.
He taps his fingers near Grant’s nameplate. “Of course, of course.” He pauses intentionally. “So, uh…where is your office?”
“You’re an asshole,” I mutter, not quite able to hide a thread of amusement. Carter’s been taking great pleasure in my ‘fall from grace’, as he calls it, ignoring the fact that my resignation was my choice. A financial investment firm ruthlessly headhunted him as soon as the news broke that we’d both left Nexus, and that had only inflated his already swelling ego.
“You walked past my desk on your way in,” I say shortly.
He hums thoughtfully, eyes glinting. “I did? Are you sure? Was there even space out there for a desk?”
I tap the brown manila folder I’m holding against my thigh. “Well, thanks for this,” I say pointedly. “You can see yourself out now.”
“Mm, not yet. I’m savoring this moment. Taking a snapshot in my mind and cementing it in my memory, so I can break it out and treasure it in my low moments.” He puts his hands up in front of his face like he’s reading off of a sign, “Declan Masters, the Intern.” He grins, ignoring my scowl. “You didn’t even have to intern at Nexus, did you?”
“I did not,” I grit out, and his grin widens.
“See? I can’t just brush past this. How often do I really get to beat you at something? It’s never gonna happen again, so I’m just”—he inhales deeply through his nose, eyes closed and shoulders lifting—“taking it all in.” I don’t bother responding, but he doesn’t seem to need me to. “So, since you are now gainfully employed and no longer classed as a hobo, what’re your plans?” He pulls out Grant’s chair and sits down, getting comfortable. “How long is the intern gig lasting for? Because, man, it’s not a good look on you. What do you even do? Grab coffee? Grab his dry-cleaning?”
“I’m not a personal assistant,” I protest. “And I wasn’t a goddamn hobo. Have you been talking to Darcy?”
He shivers dramatically. “Absolutely not. Your sister terrifies me. And you kind of were a hobo. Unemployed.” He flicks up a finger. “Transient.” Another finger. “Homeless.” A third finger.
I stare back at him. “I was only one of those things.”
“Then why does my couch have an imprint of your ass? I know you slept there last night.”
“How would you know?” I counter. “It’s not like you were there.” I’m not admitting that after dropping Lily off, the last thing I wanted to do was go back to the condo that was supposed to have been our home. “Who were you with last night, anyway?”
