Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
Novalee
A persistent buzzing on my nightstand pulls me out of sleep.
The scent of vanilla and spices fills my senses, and I realize I’m not alone. There’s a warm exhale against my ear, and I blink, disoriented, trying to piece it all together. Koen’s arms are wrapped snugly around my waist, his presence so close it feels like he’s a part of me.
I shift, trying to turn and get a look at him, but his hold tightens instinctively, his face nestled against the crook of my neck. I try again, and this time, he lets me move just enough to meet his sleeping face.
God, he’s handsome, especially from this close. His long lashes, which I’m admittedly envious of, rest softly against his cheeks.
“Koen,” I whisper, but then I remember that he won’t hear me. He took out his hearing aids before we went to sleep.
And that’s all we did. Sleep.
The buzzing persists, and I stroke his cheek, trying to wake him. He stirs, a soft rumpled noise escaping him as he leans into my touch, his lips twitching in what almost appears to be a contented smile. I smile, too, at how impossibly cute he is—how different from his usual sharpness and focus.
With a sigh, I reach for the still-buzzing phone on the nightstand and press it against his upper arm. His eyes flutter open, a frown forming as he blinks at me, then at the phone. He takes it from me, glances at the caller ID, then leans over and presses a kiss to my forehead before reaching for his hearing aids.
“Good morning, Little Thief,” he huskily murmurs as he slips the aids in.
“Morning,” I reply, my heart doing a little flip.
This feels so… soft.
Intimate.
He answers the phone and puts it on speaker, his brows slightly furrowing as he sits up more fully. “Ez.”
“For fuck’s sake, Koen!” Ezra almost growls, his voice clearly echoing down the line. “I called you like a thousand times!”
“What happened?” Koen straightens immediately, the sleepiness vanishing from his features, replaced by concern.
“She has Levi!” Ezra’s words send a chill through me, freezing my blood as Koen goes rigid beside me.
“What do you mean she has him ?”
“That little idiot went out to get the evidence himself. Sylus managed to track his movements. He left the mansion last night on his own and went to Harrington Heights, but that’s all we’ve got. We’ve checked the security feed around the hotel, but Sylus still can’t hack his way inside. Dove didn’t come out again, and he’s not answering his phone.” Ezra sounds desperate. “She fucking has him, Koen.”
The air in the room feels like it’s been sucked out, my heart pounding as panic rises. Levi. Levi is in her hands, and all I can think about is what she might do to him, the danger he’s in because of me.
Koen springs up, pulling on his discarded jeans in a rush, and I scramble to do the same, grabbing the clothes I wore yesterday and yanking them on in a frenzy.
“Get the fucking police involved, Ezra,” Koen growls out into the phone as he zips his jeans. “I don’t care if everything goes to shit. We need to get him out. She killed Oscar.” We’re already halfway out of the apartment when he finishes his sentence, Koen pulling on his shoes as we move.
“What do you think I was doing for the last hour while you weren’t picking up your damn phone?” Ezra sounds frustrated, and there’s a strained silence before he speaks again. “I have officers here, combing through the public areas of the hotel, but Veronica won’t let us into the back without a search warrant.”
“Fuck, if this shit goes public—” Koen starts, but Ezra cuts him off.
“I have the four guys here I trust. They’re looking under the guise of a missing person. No one knows it’s Dove,” Ezra adds. “Sylus is a few streets down, too, trying to get into the system from close to the hotel and keeping an eye on socials in case word gets out, but… fuck, Koen.”
He sounds desperate, and the fact that stone-cold Ezra sounds like that makes me nauseous.
“On our way.” Koen ends the call, and we rush down the stairs, moving faster than I’ve ever moved in my life. The whole world feels like it’s slipping out from under me.
We burst through the building’s front door, and when we reach the Bronco down the street, Koen jumps in, starting the engine with a roar while I scramble into the passenger seat.
He shoots me a look. “I’m sorry, but I can’t drive slow for you right now.”
“Are you kidding me? Fucking drive!” I snap, grabbing the seat belt with one hand and gripping my bracelet with the other. My pulse is pounding in my ears as I close my eyes, focusing on my breathing. The car jerks forward when Koen hits the gas hard, and I feel the pull of each turn, the force of every swerve, but none of it matters.
Levi is all that matters.
Getting him back.
When I finally open my eyes, Harrington Heights is coming into view, and Koen drives past the entrance. Ezra is standing there, his face twisted with barely contained rage, officers by his side, talking to Veronica. She’s standing at the entrance, her arms crossed, but her demeanor is composed like she knows she’s untouchable.
Koen’s fingers clench the steering wheel, despair radiating off him in waves. He’s losing it. He’s out of his mind with worry for Levi, and I don’t know how much longer he can take it.
I can’t take it either.
“Drive to the back,” I command, despite the fear clawing at my insides. “The back entry of the hotel.”
Koen shifts the car into gear, driving around the building. My heart races as we turn the corner. The area is quieter, hidden from view, and I lean forward, my eyes scanning for a way in.
The service entrance.
Koen’s hand is already on his seat belt, ready to jump out, when I notice a couple of hotel employees lingering in front of a door, smoking. My gaze shifts to Koen, whose face is too familiar, too well-known in this city.
“Stop.” I tug on his arm, keeping him in the car. “They’ll recognize you.”
He follows my line of sight before his jaw clenches, and I see the moment his composure shatters. “Fuck! I’m useless . I can’t even get him out without risking everything.”
Koen, always so composed, always holding everything together for everyone else, is now unraveling in front of me.
He’s scared. Scared for Levi, scared for all of us, scared of failing the people he loves.
Levi needs us, and right now, Koen can’t be the one to go after him. But me? I’m just another face. I’m just a little thief.
Glitter .
Leaning in to kiss Koen’s cheek, I whisper against his skin, “I’ll get him back for you.”
His eyes go wide, and his lips part as if he’s about to argue, but I’m already slipping out of the car and taking a deep breath as I make my way toward the employee entrance. Keeping my head down, I do my best to blend in, to look as if I belong.
Once I’m inside, I move cautiously, scanning my surroundings. People are milling about in a steady flow of movement while employees go about their business. I follow some of them, watching as they head into what appears to be a break room. Slipping inside, I move to the back, where rows of uniforms hang along the walls, laundry for the employees, it seems.
I grab one from a hanger, all red and black like the ones I’ve seen others wearing. It’s a little too big, but it will have to do.
As I pull off my jeans, I hear a small clatter as my matchbox hits the floor. I quickly snatch it up, shoving it into the pocket of the uniform pants before smoothing the fabric down. My heart pounds in my chest as I listen to the chatter of the employees nearby.
One of them, a guy pulling off his jacket, still in casual clothes, looks over at a friend with a grin. “So, how was the night shift? The ladies from housekeeping said something about a trespasser?”
“Same as every night, man.” The other one laughs, shaking his head. “Drunk tourists getting themselves into trouble. I guess they’ve got him sobering up down with security.”
Are they talking about…
“Why not hand him over to the cops?” The first guy frowns, tilting his head. “I saw police in the lobby when I came in. Maya said she heard it’s a celebrity, but they won’t tell us who.”
Fuck.
“Or it could be Ms. Harrington, who doesn’t want it getting out that her hotel guests are getting arrested.” The other shrugs.
“Makes sense,” the first guy mutters, nodding.
Now or never, Nova.
I take a breath and step forward, plastering on my best nervous smile.
Which isn’t difficult because I’m nervous as fuck.
“Hi. Um… could one of you help me, please?”
Both of the guys turn to look at me, their eyes sweeping over the ill-fitting uniform. The one who just arrived for his shift grins, turning toward me fully. “Hey there. You new here?”
“I am.” I nod, smiling back a little brighter. “First day. I’ve got my uniform and everything, but now they told me to go to security for a badge or something. Can you tell me where they are?”
“Security?” The second guy frowns. “That’s strange. I thought badges were handed out by HR?”
Fuck.
“Oh, okay, well they said I should…” I trail off, trying to look concerned.
“Nah.” The guy with the grin waves me off. “I had to go down there once when my badge wasn’t working with the security system in the back.” He points at the key card on his belt, and I clock the wedding band. Shit. Flirting will probably not work with him. “Maybe it’s that. Don’t worry about it.”
“Phew.” I take a step closer to him anyway, and his body language stays open. Men. But fuck it, I’ll take it. “This is all so confusing. Thank you for your help. Could you explain to me where I have to go?”
“Yeah, sure,” he says, gesturing toward the hallway. “Head down this hall, take the first left, and you’ll find a stairwell. Go all the way down to the lowest level. Got it? The security room’s on your right.”
I bite my lip, and his gaze drops to my mouth, his focus narrowing to exactly where I want it. In that instant, my fingers skim his belt with barely more than a whisper of contact. I find the cool edge of the key card, but the tiny resistance of the clip holds it in place.
“I think I’ve got it.” My thumb presses down just as I snap my fingers and point to the hallway. The sharp snap covers the subtle click of the card release. “First left, then the stairwell to the lowest level… and then on the right?”
“Yeah, exactly.” He nods, still distracted, his eyes taking a sweep down my body before they finally meet mine again. “Hey, maybe we could have lunch together later. I could show you around a bit. Make sure you don’t get lost.”
Ugh. Men indeed.
“That sounds nice. I’d love that,” I say, my smile never faltering. “Thanks again. See you later?”
He grins wider, his chest puffing slightly. “See you then.”
I wave to the other guy who’s still standing next to his buddy, eyeing him critically, then I walk away, slipping the key card into my pocket.
Who knows what we could use this for?
If I learned anything from all of this, it’s that I’ll never again pass up a random key card when I see one.