Page 99 of Nest of Thieves
Tori: Me too. TTYL.
Setting the phone on the bedside table, I lie back and stare at the ceiling. All my lies and half-truths are going to bite me in the ass someday. Will it cost me everything I love and care about? Will it cost me my first true chance at happiness? My stomach flutters with nerves. I start counting sheep, trying to relax, but all I can think about is the disappointed look on Tori’s face when she realizes I’m a criminal.
I can’t sleep. I get up and change into running clothes, making my way toward the gym, which is located across from the pool. Vette is in the middle of a set at the bench press. I get on the treadmill and start it, catching his gaze in the mirrors on the wall.
“You okay?” he asks over the Spanish rock music playing in the room.
“Yeah, I couldn’t sleep either.” I start with a fast walk and work into a jog.
Vette silently watches me, almost like he’s unsure of how to proceed now that I’m here. I stare ahead and avoid his gaze. Maybe if I zone out, he’ll go back to what he was doing. He finally lies back and starts his next set. The treadmill is so loud it covers the music, but Vette doesn’t seem to mind. I run a mile and a half, realizing I’ve slacked off this past week when my side twinges. My breathing is heavier than normal, but I still push through the distance without slowing down too much. I slow the machine and catch my breath before stopping it completely.
“Better?” Vette’s doing hammer curls now.
“A little.”
“Grab some weights.”
Weight training is the worst, but it’s better to be in shape for the line of work I’m in. I grab a bottle of water from the mini-fridge by the door and join him in front of the rack of weights. Picking up the fifteen-pound dumbbells, I step back and start in on hammer curls too. Vette arches one eyebrow but keeps working through his set.
“Are you going to tell me why you couldn’t sleep?” He puts his weights back and grabs a new pair before starting shoulder presses.
“Are you?”
“Good point,” he grunts. “Was it me?”
I put my dumbbells back and grab twenties. “Of course not,” I say, stepping back and joining him in shoulder presses. “Watch your form,” I tell him when I notice his back arching a little.
“Don’t tell me what to do,” he mutters, adjusting his stance and contracting his abs, anyway.
Biting back a grin, I roll my eyes and finish. We work like that for another twenty minutes before both of us yawn at the same time. Vette turns off the lights and nudges me with his elbow as we walk back to my room.
“Up for another shower?”
I side-eye him. “Are you horny again? You’re going to break my vagina.”
“I’m good right now, but soon, I’ll need another taste.”
I’m only a little disappointed. Truth be told, my body is still sore from him and Lark. He grabs my hand and leads me to the bathroom. He turns on the water and tests it with his hand before turning to look at me.
“Take those clothes off so I can help you clean that filthy body.”
We strip and get into the shower. Vette lets me rinse off first, his heated gaze raking over every inch of exposed skin. I tip my head back to rinse my hair, and he traces a finger over where he bit me.
“I like this on you.”
I hum and grin, leaning into the touch. Vette steps into the spray, and I shift so most of the water hits him. He grabs the soap and loofa, squirting a healthy stream onto the soft material and gently scrubbing it over my chest. I tuck my lips in and watch as he takes great care in making sure I’m all clean. His touch in the shower is so different from the rough way he took me earlier. I’m not sure what to do with the tender affection, but my heart clenches. Once he’s cleaned me off with the loofa, I step into the water and rinse the suds off. He shampoos and conditions my hair, combing the rich cream into my strands to keep them from getting tangled. I rinse again, closing my eyes as I tip my head back. His finger finds the little bruise he left behind on my neck, and once again, he purrs.
“Don’t get cocky,” I murmur with a heavy blink.
“Too late.” He shuts off the water, and we climb out and towel off. “Now I’m tired,” he says with a yawn.
“Me too.” I skip dressing and climb into the bed with wet hair. My pillow is still a little damp from the last time, but I don’t care. My mother would yell at me for sleeping like this, but she’s not here.
Vette pulls me against his body and holds me tight, kissing my shoulder. “We might be crazy, but we all know what we want when we see it.” His voice is quiet, and I sit with his words for a moment, trying to figure out exactly why he said that.
“You won’t change your mind?” I finally ask, braving my fear head-on. Fear that, once they know the real me, they’ll push me away, just like my mom did.
“No.”
