Page 3 of Prettiest Little Thief
“Focus, Roe,” Frankie whispered.
Right, focus. I had a job to do. Maybe we could come back and admire the hotel when we weren’t about to commit a felony.
We stopped just before exiting through the glass front doors. The valet had a podium with numerous keys on hooks. One of the valet employees was currently standing at said podium.
“I need you to distract him,” I said.
“On it.” Frankie didn’t hesitate to push through the door and bombard the man. He spoke loudly, pretending he recognized the gentleman from somewhere, pulling him away from his stand.
Right before I intended to make a b-line for the keys, my attention was snagged by the most beautiful car I had ever seen as it pulled to a stop in front of the hotel. My eyes widened as soon as I saw the gunmetal gray McLaren 720S. All sharp edges and sex on wheels. Even though I was straying from our plan, that was it—the car I was going to steal tonight.
Originally, I was supposed to take a couple of keys from the hooks and find my best choice by going to the parking structure.But this… this was the motherlode. There was no way I could pass up the chance to take the gorgeous machine for a drive.
Pushing through the doors, I marched toward the McLaren with my best smile on my face just as a beast of a man stepped out of the car. He towered over me, and my gaze ran up the length of his body. From his shiny black dress shoes all the way up to the top of his head. How did he fit in there? He had to be over six feet tall. A perfectly tailored black suit clung to his muscled body, his sandy blond hair was perfectly coiffed, and piercing blue eyes bore into me.
My steps faltered for a moment, and I held in the gasp that desperately wanted to escape my lips. He was adaddy. Not a beefcake daddy like Raf, because he had less bulky muscles. But a daddy, nonetheless.
“Good evening, sir. Valet?” I asked, surprised my voice didn’t crack. Of course, he wanted his fancy pants car parked in the valet. I would too.
“Obviously,” he replied gruffly. His deep voice grated against my skin and sent a shiver down my spine. He dropped the keys into my open palm, and the giddiness inside me blossomed. It was so hard to hide it, and if I wasn’t in clear view of so many people, I’d be doing my happy dance.
Chill, Roe. You haven’t even left the hotel yet.
The man stalked off without another word, and I jumped into the car. My feet couldn’t even touch the pedals with how far back the seat was positioned. I adjusted the seat so I could comfortably fit and started the engine immediately. It purred. Freaking purred!
I rolled down the windows to cool the interior of the overheated car, the owner's intoxicating scent lingering. Mister gorgeous rich guy had the heater on full blast. If there was time, I would’ve rubbed my bare skin across the flawless black and redleather seats. And while I wanted nothing more than to look at all the specs of this batmobile, I needed to get my butt moving before the valet employee realized what I was doing.
“Hey!” I heard someone yell. My head snapped toward the voice, and my eyes widened as the man Frankie was distracting realized what I was doing. Frankie pushed the man back and bolted in my direction, pulling the door open and hopping in. He barely had the chance to close the door before I threw the car into drive and slammed my foot down on the accelerator. My body jolted back at the power of the beast taking off as we tore out of the hotel parking lot, tires squealing as the car accelerated within seconds.
“What the hell, Roe? You were supposed to steal the keys, not a car in plain sight,” Frankie berated me.
“Do you think you could possibly pass up the opportunity to take this beauty for a spin? Think about how much Raf would pay for this.” Instead of taking a straight shot to the chop shop, I zigzagged my way through the city, hoping that if the cops had been called, they wouldn’t be able to track my position.
“Do you think Raf is really going to go for a high-profile vehicle that probably can be traced?” My elation dissipated at the realization that I’d screwed us royally. My impulsive decision could cost us everything.
“You’re right. I messed up.” I leaned my head back against the headrest.
Red and blue lights lit up my rearview mirror, and the cruiser chirped behind me. “Damnit, Roe. It’s the cops.” My stomach dropped.
“I’ll lose them.” Or try to. Because either way, we were getting arrested tonight.
I gunned it and used the bike lane to bypass everyone on the road. Cutting left through an intersection, the tires screeched as they slid across the midnight asphalt. I managed to put some distance between the police car and us, but I could still see the lights flashing and hear the sirens wailing. I spun the wheel and took a sharp right, almost losing traction.
“Go, go, go,” Frankie yelled as he glanced behind us.
“I’m trying not to kill us, Frankie.” But I sped up anyway, listening to his pleading.
The engine roared as we gained speed. As soon as I got to the interstate, I could really let loose.
Another cop car appeared out of nowhere, trying to block my escape, and I jerked the steering wheel, avoiding hitting him only by a few inches.
“We only have about a half mile left before we hit the freeway.” Frankie pulled his seatbelt and strapped himself in.
“You’re just now putting your seatbelt on?” I shrieked.
“You had me mind fucked. I didn’t think about it until we almost hit that cop.”
I dug my fingernails into the leather of the steering wheel and stepped on the gas. There was no one in front of us. This could be our chance.
