The Cocky Thief (Stolen Hearts #1)(35)

Austin shrugged. “I don’t really have any family.”

“By circumstance or choice?” It was a personal question, but at this point Jennifer felt as if she could ask.

“Both. Daddy was a mean son of a bitch and my mom took off with all the money out of the mattress when I was still too much of a burden to take with her. As soon as I was old enough, I got the hell out of there too. Started picking pockets and never looked back.”

“A runaway picking pockets? I never thought you’d be a cliché.”

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me.”

True. And that distance was good. The distance was keeping her safe. “Going from picking pockets to big jewelry heists is a big deal. What changed?”

“Nothing changed. I was damn good at what I did and I never got caught.”

Jennifer snorted. “BS. Everyone gets caught.”

“Not me.”

“Not one shoplifting charge? One angry glance? Nothing? I can understand not getting arrested—you can always talk your way out of a charge—but, like I said, everyone gets caught at least once.”

“Not me,” he said again. “Why do you think I was so pissed when you got the Dragon Heart? I don’t fail. Ever.”

She rolled her eyes, but didn’t fight with him. If he wanted to protect his sterling reputation, she wouldn’t fight with him. He was the type who got jobs based off his reputation for being amazing. She got jobs by having no reputation at all. If no one knew her, no one could be coming after her. She never took jobs on commission. She did cons and heists for herself. Minimal risk and maximum profit.

“Here we are.” He turned onto a road that didn’t even look like a road. More like a slightly smoother patch of desert.

“How do you know this guy again?”

“I was paid to nab some blueprints for some new skyscraper in Dubai so a competing architect could make sure his building was better. Walked in on Weston while his mark was running. I tripped the mark and we each got our jobs done. Now he owes me a favor.”

Jennifer frowned. “He wouldn’t have just caught up with the guy on his own?”

“I’m sure he would’ve, but I like when guys like Weston owe me.”

“Favors don’t mean much when you’re the mark,” she pointed out.

“Avoiding being the mark is a different skill entirely.”

“And now you’re putting yourself right in the line of fire.” And she had no idea why.

“Well, I hear that Dragon Heart is worth a lot of money.”

“No one offered you a cut of it.”

“Your mother seems reasonable. I’m sure we can work out terms.”

She was sure he was right, but why would he agree to help without working out those terms in advance? No, he was working another angle. But one for her? It seemed too self-centered to think that she was the reason for this sudden bout of helpfulness, but nothing else seemed to make sense. Before she could allow herself to dwell on it too much, he stopped the car. But when she looked out the window, there was no house or anything besides the sporadic dry desert bushes and sand. “What are we doing?”

“We’re waiting. Get out of the car.” He took his own orders and got out while she looked around questioningly. He came around to her side and opened her door. “Sooner rather than later.”

“Why are we getting out? There’s no one here.”

He held out a hand to her. “Trust me, he knows we’re here. Now we just have to let him know we aren’t a threat and he’ll come to us.”

She took his hand and stepped out of the car. Even though it was the desert, the breeze kept the summer heat from being too much. The loose strands that had fallen from her ponytail whipped around her face and the open flannel shirt flew back. She squinted in the wind as she looked around for any sign of a camera or looking post, but from here it just looked deserted.

“What are we doing here? We don’t have time for this.”

“Just...trust me. Give it a few minutes.”

She tightened her lips and set her hands on her hips as she slowly turned in a circle, looking for any sign of life. Except when she got proof that they truly weren’t alone, it wasn’t what she wanted. It was a red dot that appeared on Austin’s t-shirt.

“How sure are you that this guy likes you?”

“Pretty sure. Why?”

“Because there’s a laser right over your heart.” She pointed to his chest.

He frowned as he craned his neck to look down. “Nah, that’s a good sign. If he was really mad, I’d be dead already.” Austin held up his hands and waved. “Hey, James! It’s me, Austin Miles. Remember Dubai?”

Three loud bangs echoed in the desert and Jennifer jumped away from the plumes of dust that erupted just a few inches from her. “I don’t think he remembers Dubai!” she shouted as she ran for the car.

Austin stayed firm. “Just give it a minute.”

“In a minute, you’re going to be missing a few pints of blood!”

“I got this! Come on, Weston. I get it, you’re in charge. We need to talk. I have a job for you.”

Jennifer covered her ears as she waited for another bang, but instead the only thing she heard was the high-pitched tones of a cell phone. Austin turned around as he looked for the source of the sound. She stood up and they each approached the ringing rock together.