Page 1026 of One More Kiss

“Let me go.” I wriggled, trying to free myself from his grip.

He hissed in a breath, and one of his hands started roaming down my waist and further south to trace the curve of my hips.

I froze. “Don’t.”

He immediately released me, and dammit, for a moment I missed his warmth and wanted him back. I turned to watch him over my shoulder.

He was backing away, hands up in the ‘I surrender’ gesture.

“See you soon, Liandra.” He swung around and sauntered back towards the street, just as headlights turned into the alley. The strobing red and blue lights atop the car added to the glare and made it hard to see what was going on. But I heard Jett’s voice as he said, “All clear.”

I invoked my shadow magic. No point letting myself get caught if Jett wasn’t giving me up. It made me wonder why. It didn’t make sense.

I patted my pocket, checking to make sure the gem, the key to the Midnight Gate, was still secure.

I couldn’t feel it, but I told myself not to panic. It had slipped to the crevice at the bottom of the seam, that was all.

But it hadn’t. It wasn’t there.

Which was when the reason for Jett’s wandering hands became clear. Damn it. He hadn’t been copping a feel. He’d been taking back my hard-earned treasure—the key to all my plans. And I only had five days before I was out of time.

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