Page 23 of The Diamond Thief

“No way. Jacob Holt pisses more money in the toilet than you can get on this job.”

I sit back in my chair. “Maybe I shouldn’t go,” I say. “I’ve been a little paranoid.”

“Marissa, what is going on? You have to tell me. You’re like a ghost.”

Should I tell her? If I’m going to do this job with her and Elliott, I need to let her know that something has happened between me and Jacob. I don’t have to say it all.

“All right,” I say.

She tilts her head at me. “I had a feeling you were hiding something.”

“Okay. I slept with Jacob Holt. It ended badly. I have to avoid him. Are you positive he’s not going on this job?”

Her jaw has fallen open. “My God! Jacob Holt! Girl, you have todish.”

I really didn’t want to do that, but she’ll need some details to buy in. She has to understand that it’s critical I not see Jacob.

“He knows me as Jade. And he was crazy. He took me on his balcony. Naked. Anybody could have seen.” I hope these dirty bits will be enough. I do not want to have to explain how I met him or what exactly happened to make me want to avoid him now. She’s not a part of my larger mission, although if I succeed, hopefully she will be one of the women who benefit.

She sits back and stares dreamily out at the rain beyond the edge of the overhang. “I can’t even imagine being inside Jacob Holt’s place. What was it like?”

“He had this crazy red living room that looked like a mass murderer designed it.”

She leans forward. “And why do you have to avoid him?”

I should’ve prepared an answer. I fumble for a moment, and then I say, “He didn’t like the way we…separated.”

“He wasn’t any good, was he?” she whispers. “I should’ve known. Those super hot rich guys are rarely awesome in bed. Slam, bam, fall at my feet, ma’am.” She taps her finger to her chin. “Do you think Elliott is going to suck in bed too?”

I should feel some shame for talking bad about Jacob that way, particularly since we were outrageously compatible. I can’t think too long about what we did without tingling from the need to feel it again. But it has to be this way.

“My guess is that you’re going to find out,” I say.

“Maybe! Do you think I have a shot at him?”

“Of course you do.”

Elena prattles on about hot guys and possibilities and melt-proof panties. She tells me that we’re meeting Elliott tomorrow to review the plan. She’s more worried about what to wear than the details of the job.

I think about that Fife tiara. At the palace it would have been an enormous job to steal. But on the road? So easy. An opportunity like this doesn’t come often.

But after this I will have to disappear. Maybe if some time passes, I can stop worrying about when the shoe will drop. Because I’m really in for it if Jacob Holt finds me before I’ve figured out what to do about his swords.