Thirty-One
Nancy fixed on Barclay, who looked like he thought he was truly about to get laid. ‘I’m sorry. She gets jealous,’ she said apologetically.
‘That’s fine with me,’ he said. ‘Kinda hot, actually.’
‘It shouldn’t be. She stabbed the last guy who hit on me once,’ Nancy told him.
Barclay laughed. ‘No, she didn’t.’
Nancy shrugged. ‘Luckily, she’s rich. So, they paid him off. But he’ll have a limp for a while. Maybe the rest of his life.’
The smile dipped. ‘Stop it.’
‘God, the blood…’ Nancy said with a haunted look in her eye. She turned to him. ‘It was the way she didn’t even blink. She just…’ Nancy paused here to let the tension build. ‘She just did it. There was no emotion in her. Her eyes were so calm.’
Barclay’s smirk vanished entirely. ‘Wow, that’s, er… I think I see my friend.’
Nancy exhaled slowly, watching him retreat. As the echo of his hurried footsteps faded, her gaze drifted across the room and landed on Ari. There, amidst the crowd, Ari was watching her. And she did look angry. Not stabby, probably. Something else.
‘Why did you make me leave you with that idiot?’ Ari murmured, coming back to stand beside her as they both pretended to admire a floral centrepiece.
‘I didn’t want a scene,’ Nancy said. ‘And you were going to make one. I sorted it quietly.’
Ari caught her eye. ‘I just wanted him to understand that you’re mine,’ she said. She blinked. ‘My date. My pretend date.’
Nancy swallowed the absolute panic that filled her. ‘So. The key. Where do we find one?’
Ari was quick to shake off the moment. ‘Well, obviously Paris has a key, but she won’t have it on her. The cleaning staff have it, as we found out.’ Ari’s gaze flicked around the room, scanning the guests. ‘I saw the father of the bride talking about security measures earlier. We should split up. One of us can—’
‘No,’ Nancy said quickly, surprising herself. ‘We stay together.’
Ari smirked. ‘You just don’t trust me on my own.’
‘Exactly,’ Nancy shot back, ignoring the way Ari’s smirk made something tingle in her stomach again. She was going to have to have a word with her body later. It was acting like a tit. She was in the driver’s seat. She wouldn’t let herself steer off course.
All she had to do was steal a necklace during a lavish wedding without letting Ari get under her skin.
Piece of cake.