Audrey nodded. Turning to Mia, she said, “Putting all personal crap aside, I don’t know that I want to give up my own business to work for you full time. I’ve spent years building my reputation and name. If I go dark for that long, I’d have to start over. I don’t know that you’re worth it.”
Although she spoke to Mia, her words hit him. “I can help with that,” he found himself saying. “I have an extensive network. People will hire you based on my word. And if they don’t, I’ll hire you myself.”
She turned her cautious gaze on him and flicked one eyebrow up.
“Is this agreeable to all of you?” Mia asked.
“I don’t know,” Audrey answered, still looking at him.
Her eyes told him she wanted to agree. But she was scared.
She rose from the couch and addressed Mia. “Can I think about it?”
“We need an answer within two days. If you’re out, we need to find someone to replace you.”
She couldn’t be replaced, he wanted to scream but knew it wouldn’t help.
Audrey shifted to pass him. He reached up and brushed his hand against hers, afraid to take hold, but needing the contact. She paused but didn’t move closer.
“I’ll walk you out.”
“I can find my way to the street,” she said quietly.
He followed her anyway. They walked out in silence while he searched for the right words.
Once they got to the sidewalk, he finally just asked. “Is there anything I can do to fix this?”
“I don’t know.” She sighed heavily. “Right now, I’m not even sure why I’m still so upset. We agreed to have a good time while we were together. Now I find out all the deception just covered up you doing something good. Like you couldn’t trust me with anything.”
“You feel betrayed. I understand that better than a lot of people. But know this—with you, I was always one hundred percent myself. I’ll respect whatever you decide. But I hope you come back to finish this job, in whatever capacity you want.”
“Thank you.”
Then she turned and walked away from him. In that moment, he swore to himself if he was ever lucky enough to get her back, he would never witness her leaving again.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Audrey tossed and turned all night with too many thoughts crowding her head. As much as she hated everything that had gone down with Jared and Mia, what they were doing was almost noble. How could she hate them for that?
And she couldn’t lie to herself about the thrill of the job. Her usual clients had her hacking into systems and shutting down sites with DDOS attacks. Sometimes they paid her to be nosy and get information hidden in the depths of someone’s search history.
But working with Nikki, taking an expensive piece of art from a total douchebag, was fun. The pay was excellent, but the work itself thrilled her.
Could she keep it up for the next couple of months and then walk away? The money would be enough to keep Gram in comfort for a long time. Beyond that, it wouldn’t be hard to rebuild her business, especially with Jared’s help. She pushed thoughts of him away. She didn’t want to rely on him. Even though he had a history of sending the occasional job her way.
Hell, if Gram was taken care of, maybe she could get a normal job. She barely remembered what that was like. Not having to struggle to pay bills and make sure Gram was cared for. It made Jared and Mia’s offer that much more tempting.
She gulped an energy drink to power through not having slept and hopped a bus to go see Gram. If Gram was having a good day, she could offer Audrey some advice. But even if she wasn’t lucid, Gram always made her feel better. As she walked into the facility, she remembered the bag of cash locked in her room. She was supposed to have gotten a money order. Damn. Now she had to decide if she wanted to try to dodge Mrs. Merriweather.
She signed in and made it to Gram’s room unnoticed. The new room was smaller than her old one but outfitted for medical needs if necessary. Audrey couldn’t bear to think about that. Instead, she focused on the plush couch and flat screen TV on the wall playing soap operas as always.
“Hey, Gram,” she said and waited to see what kind of day Gram was having.
“Audrey? What are you doing here?”
“I wanted to visit. Do I need to have more of a reason?” She moved the rest of the way into the room and kissed Gram on the cheek. “How do you like the new room?”
“It’s fine. I miss my old one. Better view,” Gram said, gesturing to the windows.
Audrey slid the curtain aside and looked out onto the parking lot. Gram had a point. In her old room she could see the park across the street. With a sigh, she said, “I’ll see if I can get you into a room on the other side of the building.”
Gram had little to look forward to on an average day. If looking out at the park was important to her, Audrey would try to make it happen. With her luck, a room like that would cost more, sealing her fate for accepting the job with Mia and Jared. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine. Tell me what’s happening with you. You’ve been busy.”
Audrey was surprised Gram had noticed. Most days, she couldn’t tell her what year it was, much less whether Audrey had been by to visit.
“I had a big job. It was time consuming and more complicated than we originally thought it would be.”
“Did it go well?”
“Yes, it did. We pulled it off.”
“And the man?”
“What man?”
Gram waved her hand. “There’s always a man.”
Audrey thought of Jared, his plea for her to come back. “He messed up.”
“They all do. How bad?”
Audrey sank onto the edge of the bed. “I’m not sure. At first, I thought really bad, but now...there were extenuating circumstances.”
“Pssh. No man needs to put his thing in other women. Don’t believe him.”
Audrey almost choked on her own spit hearing Gram talk about a guy’s dick. She cleared her throat. “Not like that, Gram. I thought he lied to me and he kind of did, but he had a good reason.”
Gram stared at the TV without saying anything for a moment. Audrey knew she was losing her again. Every visit was becoming more painful.
“No one needs a liar. They’ll ruin your life. I’ve been telling you that ever since you were old enough to walk.”
Not quite gone yet. That was her Gram.
“He apologized.”
“Do you believe him?”
Audrey thought for a minute, but the answer kept coming back the same. “Yeah, I do.”
“Can you forgive him?”
“I’m not sure.”
“You can’t have much without trust. If you don’t have that, get rid of him.”
Audrey’s heart hurt. She lay down beside Gram just to feel her warmth. Gram’s words rolled around in her head. On the job, she did trust Jared. But she couldn’t decide if that was because he deserved it or because he had as much at stake as she did. She hadn’t decided if she could trust him with her heart. And her heart was at risk every time they were together.
Gram patted her shoulder. “Look here.” She pointed to the screen. “This guy’s fooled around with every woman on the show. I don’t know why they don’t all gang up on him and chop his wiener off.”
A giggle bubbled up in Audrey. Gram was in rare form today. She would give anything to keep her like this a while longer.
Before the show ended, they both dozed off and when Audrey woke, it was near dark out. Her neck was stiff from the uncomfortable position. She stood and stretched. Although she loved being here with Gram, she had a decision to make.
She kissed Gram’s forehead, inhaling the scent of powder she used, and grabbed her bag. In the hall, Mrs. Merriweather spotted her.
“Ms. Abbott,” she called, waving her over.
“Hi, Mrs. Merriweather. I have the money for Gram’s care. I promise. I just haven’t gotten a money order yet.”
“Excuse me?”
“Isn’t that why you called me over?”
A look of confusion filled the woman’s face. “You have no idea, do you?”
“About?” A sinking feeling dropped in her stomach.
“I called you over to thank you and your benefactor. But now I see you were unaware of the donation.” Mrs. Merriweather folded her hands primly in front of her. “Your grandmother’s care is paid for. A sizable donation has been made to the facility in her name. You have nothing more to worry about.”
The words sank in and Audrey felt lightheaded. One deep breath in and out. Then another.
“Are you all right, Ms. Abbott?”
Audrey nodded. Another breath and then she forced out a thank-you. How dare he do this? She sped to the bus stop and wondered if the trip to Jared’s house was too long for her to plead diminished capacity when she killed him.
By the time she arrived at his house, she no longer cared if it would be considered premeditated murder. He continued to manipulate everything and she was done. His townhouse was one in a long row of townhouses, all looking the same. But she knew they were expensive. It reeked of gentrification. His was a neighborhood she’d never stepped foot in.
When she rang the bell, her anger flared again, this time at herself because she hadn’t considered if he wouldn’t be home. He might be at his office or at the apartment with Nikki. Even though Mia had given her a couple days to decide, Nikki had said she was on board for more jobs. They might be planning right now.
She wanted to kick herself.
Then his door swung open and she returned to wanting to kick him.
“Audrey?” His voice was filled with shock, as if he questioned whether she was actually in front of him.
Ignoring how good he looked in a pair of low-slung sweatpants and a well-worn T-shirt, she did nothing to keep the threatening tone in her voice at bay. “How dare you? This is your idea of respecting me and whatever I decide?”
He stood gaping at her.
“You have nothing to say?” she continued while waving her arms. She’d come for a fight. He should have his back up to fight her.
“What are you talking about?”
“My grandmother. The part of my life I kept from you. You just plowed in anyway. You had no right!” She was yelling now, but she didn’t care.
“Come in.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re causing a scene on my porch. I prefer my neighbors mind their own business.”
“Ha,” she huffed. “Interesting coming from you.”
“Come in so we can have a conversation. Please.”
It was the please that did it. The single word was a little strangled. His gentle voice shouldn’t have an effect on her, but it did. She stepped through the doorway against her better judgment because it put her within touching distance of this man. He was her Kryptonite. No—Superman avoided Kryptonite. She was a moth and he the flame that would consume her. Damn it. She shouldn’t have come here.
He quietly closed the door behind them.
She dug for her anger and held tight. “My grandmother is none of your business. When I left the apartment yesterday, I believed you when you said you would respect whatever decision I made. Now you go behind my back to pay for my grandmother’s care to guilt me into working for you.”
He blinked rapidly and shook his head. “I didn’t pay for your grandmother’s care to guilt you into anything.”
“Then why would you do that? It makes no sense. I never even told you about her.”
He stepped closer and reached for her but dropped his hand before making contact. “She’s obviously someone who’s important to you. I wish you’d told me about her. I paid for her care not because I wanted to guilt you into anything, but because I want you free from the financial burden.”
“Why?”
“Because I want you to choose to come back to us—to me—because you want to, not because you have to for the money.”
“Why does it matter?”
He scrubbed a hand over his face and gave her a look like she was lost. At the moment, she was.
“Because I care about you. I don’t want you to force yourself to work with me if you can’t get past the way things started with us. I want you to be happy. If you choose to walk away, I’ll learn to live with it. But know that everything I’ve done for the last week has been to show you I want you in my life. No ulterior motives.”
Her heart raced. She wanted to believe him, but her brain kicked in, reminding her of every lesson Gram had ever given her. Once a liar, always a liar. How could she trust him?
“I know you’re not there yet.” He reached out and this time, he did take her hand. “You’ve been too angry, struggling with feeling betrayed. I never meant to hurt you, but I couldn’t be disloyal to Mia. She’s my family and best friend. If you need more time to think, take it. My feelings aren’t going to change.”
His declarations floored her. What the hell was she supposed to do with that? She’d come here for a fight and he took the steam right out of her. Her throat burned and her eyes filled.
When he tugged her into his arms, she let him.
For a minute. I can let him hold me for a minute until my world straightens.
* * *
Holy shit. Audrey was in his arms. She wasn’t pulling away or fighting him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her to his chest. Of course he’d known she’d find out about his payment to the assisted living facility, but he hadn’t been prepared for her to misread the entire situation.
He normally managed people and situations better. But she had a way of flipping his world around.
“Just because I’m letting you hug me doesn’t mean you win. I still don’t trust you,” she mumbled against his chest.
At least she was being honest and not running away. That gave him the chance he’d been looking for. “I’d like to start over.”
She snorted. “That only works in movies.”
“We can try.” He stepped back, holding her at arm’s length. He flashed a smile. “Hi. I’m Jared Towers.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Towers? Isn’t that the guy who robbed a bunch of families of their life savings?”
She wasn’t pulling any punches.
“Unfortunately, that’s my father,” he answered with a nod. “However, my cousin and I have a plan to alleviate some of the havoc our fathers caused. I’d very much like you to join us in our mission.”
“Mission?”
“Yes. I happen to think you have the perfect skill set to help us.”
The corner of her mouth lifted. “That’s all you’re looking for? My skill set?”
He stepped into her space again. “If all I can have access to is your skills, I’ll settle for that. However, I want all of you.”
Emotions flashed in her eyes so quickly, he couldn’t decipher them all. He knew she had feelings for him. It didn’t matter that they’d never labeled their relationship. She cared. If she hadn’t, she never would’ve been so hurt by finding out his true identity. She would’ve reacted more like Nikki had.
Whether or not she would want to continue was completely up in the air and it was killing him. Why couldn’t she be like the girl in the movie who would jump into his arms?
Because then she wouldn’t be my Audrey.
“I have more thinking to do.”
He wanted it all, but if this was the best he would get from her, he’d try to be understanding. At least she wasn’t pissed off anymore.
“How much time do you think you’ll need?” he asked, holding her hand, desperate for any connection.
“Mia said I could have two days. I guess I have twent
y-four more hours.”
“That’s for the mission. There’s no clock on us.”
“Okay.” She pulled away. Not angrily. Not hurt. Maybe confused.
“Is there anything else I can do to sway your decision?”
“You’ve already done plenty.”
“I could get naked and remind you what you’d be missing.”
She laughed, which was what he’d been going for.
He slapped a hand over his heart. “Hurtful. To laugh at a man who offers to reveal his physical imperfections to you.”
Her smile was gentle. “Your physical imperfections are not the problem.”
“What about a kiss?”
“What about it?”
“Can I give you one?”
She held up a hand. “That’s definitely not a good idea.”
“What I’m hearing is that not only can you not resist my naked body, you also can’t resist my kisses.”
“Good to see your self-esteem is still intact. Kissing you would only complicate things. I have to figure out if I can live with the way things started between us. I know you think I’m overreacting about it because we all have secrets and we’re all criminals of some kind. But you’re right. I felt betrayed. Not because you didn’t tell me your name but because you wanted all of me even though you weren’t willing to do the same. Then when I figured out who you are, you still didn’t tell me everything. It took me leaving to get the truth.”
“But—”
“No more buts. I know you had reasons. And maybe they were even valid reasons. I don’t know if I can forget those feelings.”
He hefted a sigh. Just once, he’d like something in his personal life to go as smoothly as it did in his professional life. “I’m not asking you to forget.”
“Just get over it?”
“Understand. And forgive.” Stepping away from her, he asked, “Do you need a ride home?”
She shook her head. “I’ll be fine. Thanks.”
“Will I see you tomorrow? Or is this one of those if I-don’t-show-that’s-my-answer things?”
“Maybe I’ll just keep you guessing.”
Then she turned and left, leaving him feeling hopeful yet worried.
It Takes a Thief--A Heist Romance Page 23
