Steal the Day (Thieves #2)(110)

I held a hand out to him. “Dev, please just come here and kiss me.”

“I don’t think that’s such a great idea, Zoey,” Dev admitted, finally getting to what I’d been afraid of since he walked in the room with bleak eyes. “Look, I’ll find your muscle, Dan. I think we can assume Halfer will be back. She needs you a hell of a lot more than she needs me. You can protect her. I can’t. I’m going to stay here in Vegas for a while. The two of you should stay at Ether when you get back to Dallas. It’s better protected than either of your places, and she’ll be more comfortable. The staff knows how to keep an eye out for her. I think you should go with two bodyguards, at least, when you’re not with her. Weres are best.”

“What do you mean you’re staying here?” I forced myself to sit up.

Dev ignored me, preferring to speak to Daniel. “I’ll put every investigator I know on tracking down Halfer. You’ll get daily updates. If you need anything from me, just call.”

“Why are you leaving me?” I hated the way my voice caught. “Is it because I got you killed?”

“No, Z,” Daniel corrected with a frown. “He thinks he got you killed, and he’s being a self-sacrificing idiot. He blames himself for the fight we had before I stalked off. He thinks if he hadn’t come between us in the first place, we wouldn’t have had that fight and I wouldn’t have left you. What he’s not counting on is the fact that we fought before he came around, and if he leaves, we’ll still fight. It’s our nature. Dev, she still would have let Neil go even if you hadn’t been here. I still would have stormed out, and then she wouldn’t have had those twenty seconds.”

“I still think it’s best if I took myself out of the equation,” Dev said softly.

“Can we not make any decisions tonight?” Daniel sounded as tired as the rest of us. “I don’t want to fight anymore. Look, if all the shit at the ball made you want to pull out, then fine. Stay here in Vegas, and Z and I will manage on our own. I won’t blame you. This probably won’t be the last time someone tries to rip your guts out if you stay around us. But if you’re doing this because you think I won’t protect her if you’re here, then get the f*ck over it, man. Don’t break her heart like that. Just get in the tub and help me keep her warm, and we can make decisions when we get home.”

Dev looked torn, and I held my breath. I knew this was a moment between the men, and I would only confuse things. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. It’ll be dawn soon. I hoped the magic would last longer than one night, but I can feel myself getting tired already. I don’t want her cold because I’m too stubborn to share.”

He still hesitated, and I knew it was my turn to sway him. “If you don’t get in this tub with me, Devinshea Quinn, I won’t tell you the story of how I met Lucifer Morningstar.”

Dev’s eyes went wide, and I felt Daniel tense beside me. “Seriously?”

“Get in the tub and find out,” I dared him.

His jeans hit the floor, and he was in my arms as I told my tale.

Later, just before dawn, Daniel carried me out to the big bed. He laid me down in the center and crawled in beside me. Dev was on the other side, wrapping his arms around my waist and tangling our legs together.

When Daniel died with the dawn, I was still warm and happy.





Chapter Twenty-Seven





“Will Felicity and Oliver be all right?” I looked at Sarah and Felix who sat across the table from me.

We were sitting together enjoying a glass of wine after a perfectly delightful meal. Felix was certainly making good on his promise to try the whole eating thing. He’d had a full three course meal and sampled what Sarah and I ordered. The good news for Sarah was Felix had also tried the gym and found it satisfying.

“Another of my kind will be assigned to assist them.” Felix’s hand brushed his wife’s. His left hand was sporting a gold band that matched Sarah’s. “It will be difficult, but they’ll find their balance. It’s not the first time this has happened. It won’t be the last.”

It had been difficult for me to find my balance since we’d returned from Nevada. The four days since Daniel, Dev, and I boarded the plane without Neil had been trying, to say the least. Daniel and Dev had explained to me that they wanted time to think about how best to handle our situation. I couldn’t exactly argue with them. I was the one who screwed everything up, and it still weighed heavily on me.

I was living at Ether as Dev had discussed, but he wasn’t staying with me. He slept in his office, and Daniel stayed at his apartment during the day. I spent my nights in the grotto or in the club. When I left the confines of Ether, it was with at least one of my two new bodyguards. Zack, the bartender from Descent, had offered his services and already made his oath to Daniel. Dev was right about the cash and power. Zack was constantly excited about the new strength he had gained in taking the vampire blood. Lee was Zack’s brother. He had yet to make an oath, but Zack was working on him.

“Still no movement on the love front?” Sarah asked, looking at me sympathetically. She had been my go-to girl for whining about how much I’d screwed up my love life. Even though she and Felix were deeply involved in their honeymoon period, she took time out to listen to me cry.