17. Second Rule of Con
CHAPTER 17
Second Rule of Con
Nikki
“Nikki, this isn’t a game.” Henry pressed me against the bathroom door.
“I know that.” I pushed at him. “Lisa’s hearing is tomorrow, and she may or may not stay in that hell of hers for another fifteen years. This isn’t a game. It’s the rest of my sister’s life.”
Wincing, he cradled the nape of my neck and held me against his chest with his lips pressed against my temple. “I’m sorry. Do you really think this box has the answer we’ve been looking for?”
“Yes.” I nodded.
“What made you look for the key in Mom’s bathroom? Did you remember something?” Brow furrowed, he cocked his head, placing a finger under my chin.
“Not really. I just figured if she kept an emergency fund, maybe she also kept some kind of insurance policy there too.” I met his gaze, and my chest tightened. The pain in his eyes hurt me more than I’d thought possible. “If your uncle killed your dad, there’s a reason he didn’t come after you and your mom. Don’t you think?”
He nodded. “What’s your plan? I’m such an asshole. I should’ve asked that from the beginning. I just don’t want you to get hurt because of me.”
“I’m already knee-deep, Henry. And that has nothing to do with you. Okay. Maybe a little.” I gave him a weak smile. “Lisa’s life depends on it.”
He pressed his lips to mine, and my legs went weak. A quiet pang spread to my core. The way it did every time we touched.
“No more of that. I need to focus.” I pushed him away.
“That’s probably a good idea.” He let out a breath.
My watch beeped. It was time. “Okay. Mr. Paredes is leaving for lunch right now.”
“How do you know?”
“It was on his desk calendar. Lunch with the wife. We need to make sure his key is found before he comes back from his date. He can’t know we accessed Tessa’s box. Who knows who your uncle has in his pocket.”
“Wait. Don’t we need a badge to get in the vault?” he asked.
“Right.” I paced the length of the bathroom. “How about the security guard? Would he have access?”
“I doubt it.” He shook his head. “If you lifted a key off Mr. Paredes, why not his badge?”
“He didn’t have it on him.” I shrugged. I’d expected to have something to show Lisa tomorrow, something that would bring her a bit of hope. “We’ll have to come back some other day. We can’t do much without a badge.”
“Let’s just go back to his office. I’m sure he left it there.” He placed both hands on his hips, long fingers tapping the pocket of his jeans .
“I’m sure too. But we can’t go across a lobby full of employees and sneak into his office. Everyone would see us. No. We need to plan a proper heist.”
“Okay. But what about his key?” He relaxed his stance, rubbing his jaw.
“I’ll drop it somewhere where Bill can find it. We’ll come back with a better plan.”
I opened the bathroom door and went out. When I confirmed the hallway was empty, I did a quick, low whistle for Henry.
“I thought we’d have answers today.” The disappointment in his eyes was like a stake through the heart.
Then, as if this day couldn’t get any worse, Emma Kate Michaels turned the corner and headed toward us, or the bathroom. Emma Kate, the girl with three first names, the one who back in elementary school had decided she was going to marry Henry. Of course, the town agreed. There wasn’t a better match. She had money, and everyone adored her.
Her face lit up, and her cheeks flushed when she saw Henry. Yeah, she still had a thing for him. She wore a pantsuit, her chin up in a way that said she was someone in this place. Did she really work at the bank? Maybe she had access to the vault. We could still go home with answers today.
“Henry, you’re up.” I placed my hand on his ass and pushed him in front of me.
“What?” He turned to me.
“Stop her.”
“Why?”
“Second Rule of Con.”
Henry glared at me, deep furrows across his forehead.
“Improvise to save the con,” I said under my breath, standing next to him but not too close.
“As I live and breathe.” Emma Kate rushed the rest of the way to meet us, or to meet Henry. The red from her cheeks had spread down to her chest. “It’s really you, Henry.” She hugged him, rubbing his shoulder and bicep. “It’s Emma Kate.” She pointed at herself as her palms slightly pushed up her breasts.
I ignored the slow burn in my belly and turned my attention to Henry.
He pursed his lips. “Of course. How are you? Wow, it’s been?—”
“Ten years,” she said. “I heard you were back in town. I was wondering when I’d get to see you. I can’t believe I missed you the last time you were here.”
My gaze lingered on the shiny badge clipped to the pocket of her blazer. Come on, Henry. Had it really not clicked for him yet? Emma Kate was our way in.
“You work here?” He flashed her a grin.
“Yes.” Emma Kate jumped up a little, giving him a one-shoulder shrug. “I’m the assistant manager.”
“That’s impressive,” Henry said, but he didn’t move. He met my gaze for a beat, and it finally clicked for him. “Congratulations.” He extended his arms out and hugged her.
I stepped out of the way and let Emma Kate have her moment. She melted into his embrace, squeezing her legs together. Girl, you couldn’t know the half of it. An image of Henry nestled between my legs flashed in my mind. I bit the inside of my lip to stay focused on the task at hand .
“Thank you, Henry.” Her hands went up and down his abs before she snaked them around his waist.
Was she smelling him?
A little tighter, I mouthed.
Henry looked up, but he did as I asked.
I lifted her badge and stuffed it in the back of Henry’s pants.
“I’m Nikki Swift, by the way.” I gave Henry a meaningful look, and he let her go.
Emma Kate stumbled back a couple steps, adjusting her jacket before offering me her hand. “Oh. Nice to meet you.”
“Believe me. The pleasure is all mine,” I said.
Next to me, Henry shook his head once. We had what we needed. Emma Kate could go fantasize about Henry somewhere else.
“Please. Don’t let us keep you. I’m sure you’re busy. You know, with the big job and all.”
“Yes. I have back-to-back meetings.” She turned to Henry, maybe hoping he’d be impressed and hug her again. “It was really good seeing you, Henry. We should do coffee soon.”
“Same here,” he said. “Coffee sounds great.”
Emma Kate slowly turned to leave. I stared at her back as she strutted to the bathroom and the door closed behind her.
“We’re in.” I reached around Henry and grabbed Emma Kate’s badge.
“Let’s go.” He grabbed my hand
We rushed to the end of the hallway, past the bathrooms, until we reached the door labeled Authorized Personnel Only. I pressed the badge to the scanner, and the door clicked open.
“I can’t believe you made me pull that stunt.” He shut the door behind him and raked a hand through his hair.
“Oh, please, you loved it.”
He pulled me to him and nibbled behind my ear. “Do I hear a tinge of jealousy in your voice? I like it.” His tone was honey mixed with a promise of sex later.
“Not even close.” I smoothed out my dress and frowned at him.
He was mine. No matter what this town thought of me or Henry. He was mine. Emma Kate and her fancy job could go fry plantains. I set my purse on the steel table bolted to the floor in the middle of the vault and took out two pairs of latex gloves.
“Of course you brought gloves.” He took a pair from me and pulled them on.
“An old habit. Although I doubt Bill, the security guy, knows how to dust a room for fingerprints.” I took out both keys from inside my bra and gave him one. “The key has a two on it. I’m assuming that’s the box number.”
He nodded, staring at it. Hundreds of bronze boxes lined the walls of the room. His mom had slot number two. This had to be a family box, one the Cavaliers had bought a long time ago.
“Only one way to find out.” He put the master into the keyhole. I did the same and turned the latch when he nodded. The small door popped open. I stepped back and gestured for him to go ahead and look. I had no right—all this belonged to him. He took the metal box, placed it on the table, and flipped the cover open. Pursing his lips, he struck the counter with the palm of his hand.
“What’s in the box?” I stood paralyzed when he slid it across toward me. No, I hadn’t expected a scrapbook with detailed evidence of how Jonathan had killed Henry’s dad. But I was hoping for something, maybe the small bronze statue the killer had used to crack James Cavalier’s head open. Or something that would put that creep away for a long time, for stealing from Henry, for stealing my sister’s life, and mine.
Instead, we got more money, jewelry, and three manila envelopes. “We don’t have time for this.” I grabbed my purse and dumped all the contents into it.
“The huge purse matches your dress, huh?” Henry asked.
“It’s also helpful if you’re robbing a bank.” I winked. “Put that back, and let’s get out of here.”
He grabbed the box, stuffed it back in its slot, and yanked out the keys. “My heart is pounding in my head and not in a good way.” He forced a breath out. “How are you so calm?”
“I don’t know.” I flashed him a smile, swallowing the lump in my throat. If we got caught, his uncle would know we knew about him, and Lisa’s only chance of proving her innocence would be lost. We had everything to lose here but telling Henry that wouldn’t help matters. “Let’s go.”
I pushed the door open and peeked through the gap into an empty hallway. If I had nothing, at least I had this: luck. I walked out and pulled Henry with me. He exhaled, gripping my elbow as he raced down the corridor.
“Slow down. We have nothing to hide.” I freed my arm, and then I saw it. A small camera over the door to the vault. So much for luck.
“You’re right.” He adjusted his pace.
“Wait here.” Heart racing, I left his side and went to the bathroom.
We had a better chance of getting out of here without screwing up if Henry didn’t know there was footage of us going into the vault. Shit. How had I missed that? I closed the door behind me and leaned on it, gasping for air.
The pumping in my chest felt like firing cannons, full of warning and panic. In all the times I’d done jobs like this one, I never had anything to lose. Nothing of real value, like Henry’s life or Lisa’s freedom. I’d been on my own for so long I’d forgotten what it was like to worry about someone other than myself. I exhaled, took a deep breath, and exhaled again. I repeated the exercise until my nerves calmed down. This wasn’t the time to lose my shit.
I pressed a cold and clammy palm to my forehead. Calm down . Tomorrow I would call Dom. We could figure this out. This was a small bank in a small town. Their security couldn’t be all that fancy. That was totally a half-assed plan, but it would have to do. For now, getting Henry out of here was my only priority.
After I wiped my prints and sweat off Emma Kate’s badge, I dropped it near the trash can. As soon as she noticed it was gone, this would be the first place she’d check. Now we just had to get rid of the master key. I gave it a good wipe and then met Henry outside the door.
“Stop and chat with Bill again.”
Bill stood by the entrance, and our only exit. A big grin spread on his face when he saw Henry again. “I saw Mr. Paredes leave a while ago. I was wondering where you’d gotten off to.”
I dropped the key on my shoe and placed it at the edge of the rug near the door. When Bill turned to me, I placed my shaking hand on Henry’s back and pressed my breasts to his side. Bill, being the decent man that he was, turned his gaze back to Henry.
“Ladies’ room,” I said.
“We’ll see you later.” Henry shook Bill’s hand.
“Make sure you keep this one out of trouble,” Bill said to me.
“I’ll do my best.” I smiled, looking up at Henry from under my eyelashes.
Something sparked in his dark eyes. Was he mad at me? He took my hand, and we walked out of the building.
“We’re never doing that again.” His voice sounded strained.
He was definitely mad at me.
We climbed into my car, and I relaxed against the passenger seat. I wished I could tell him we’d never do that again. But the truth was, I’d do it a thousand times more if it meant getting my family back. Two streets over, he turned right and slammed on the brakes when we reached the hotel. He practically jumped out of the car, as if he couldn’t stand to be near me. I followed him inside and dropped my bag by the door on my way upstairs. If he was pissed, he’d just have to get over it.
He slammed the door behind us and flipped the deadbolt. I spun to face him. In two strides, he met me in the middle of the lobby, gripped my waist, and backed me toward the velvet sofa, where he pinned me with his body. I’d never seen him like this, the deep scowl on his forehead, wet eyes, and flushed cheeks.
This wasn’t anger. I’d seen him angry before. The day I talked his foreman into letting me inside the construction site, that had been anger. This was something else. I sighed and swallowed. Was there anything about him that didn’t turn me on? He surveyed my face as he touched his fingers to my lips, urging them to open for him.
“Nikki…you…” He covered my mouth with his lips, his tongue determined to taste all of me.
I kissed him back. Desire pooled between my legs when he pressed his erection against me. I wanted him. I reached behind me to undo the zipper, but he grabbed my wrists and turned me around.
“Leave it on,” he whispered on my temple, as he slipped his hand into the top of my dress, squeezing and tugging with urgency.
I turned into a puddle of want at his feet. He pushed my hair to the side, kissing my cheek and that soft spot behind my ear. His hot touch made my skin warm and tingly.
“Henry. Now.”
Using the back of the sofa for support, I leaned forward. He pulled my dress over my ass and let my panties fall to the floor. A warm glow ran through me as his hands left me to grab a condom from the back pocket of his jeans. He hadn’t been mad at me. He’d been worried. The idea of this man caring about what happened to me sent a warm rush through me. Henry loved me as much as I loved him.
His T-shirt fell to the floor next to me. I itched to touch him, but when I tried, his hands came back to me, kneading my hips before he entered me from behind. Everything else fell away. He wrapped his arms around me and thrust into me, hitting my G-spot straight on, making up for the fear I’d felt back at the bank, and for a moment erasing all the bad in our lives.
“Damn, Nikki. You feel so good,” he whispered against my cheek. His heart drummed against my back. Or was that my own heartbeat?
He slid his hand down, drawing wide circles around my core. His deft fingers caressed the inside of my thigh and below my navel. With every pass, he’d get close to my clit, the place where I needed him most. He unzipped the top of my dress, enough to free my breasts over the lace of my bra. He kneaded both mounds with urgency. But it did nothing to calm the mounting need between my legs. I gripped the back of the sofa and hung my head when his right hand snuck past my panty line again. His fingers separated my outer lips, and then he stopped.
“Henry, finish it.” I leaned on him.
He cupped my face and kissed the corner of my mouth. “Promise me you’ll never put yourself at risk like you did today. Not for me. Not for anyone.”
“What?”
“Promise me.” His index finger tapped my bud gently.
The ache intensified, so hard I wanted to scream. But instead, I squeezed my legs together. He moved his arm between my thighs and made me widen my stance.
“Promise me.” His teeth grazed my bare shoulder. Goose bumps flickered down my back with every kiss he planted on the side of my face. “Say it.”
“I promise. I need to come.” I moaned.
“I know you do. Just remember you promised.” He palmed me, while he soothed my nipples with his free hand and pumped fast into me, finally giving me what I needed.
I climaxed within a minute. The orgasm was as intense as the aching desire he made me feel. It shook me to my core and left me breathless, panting. Words spilled out of me. Whatever I said, Henry muttered in agreement, holding me tight as he found his own release.