Page 125 of These White Lies

Her lips part, chest rising in short shallow breaths against me. I dip my head, just close enough to brush her lips. “I shouldn’t mess up your makeup.”

“I don’t care,” she insists immediately.

Fuck. My hips press forward, pinning her tighter to the wall.

I want her so badly, it’s almost unbearable.

My mouth hovers over hers, every ounce of me screaming to take what I want. To kiss her until she can’t breathe.Until she’s moaning my name, the world forgotten.

Her fingers slide up my chest, and grip my shirt encouraging me to give in.

I want to. God, I want to.

But I can’t. Not now.

I drop my hands from her hips and step back before I break completely. Dragging in air with a harsh inhale, I force myself to focus.

“They’re waiting for us downstairs.”

Her pupils are huge at the reminder of what is waiting for us tonight. The passion drains from her face along with some of its color. She doesn’t protest though, only nods and follows me down the stairs to the conference room.

“Let’s go over the plan one more time,” I tell the group gathered around the table. My voice is almost dispassionate as I go through a plan we’ve gone over a hundred times already. “Elizabeth, you enter with Ray as his plus one. The Lapidarists seem to like him.”

“Just more proof they’re evil assholes,” Sera sneers.

Elizabeth gives her a soft smile and says, “My job is to smile, drink champagne, and wait for an opportunity for Ray to introduce me to Anna.”

My muscles pull tighter. “Tell her you have the necklace but don’t understand why it’s so important, however you are happy to return it. Assure her you didn’t have a relationship with your ex—that you don’t know why he involved you. Convince her he was a selfish, cowardly asshole who left you a long time ago. Play it like you’re out of your depth.”

“Shouldn’t be too hard,” she mutters. “That part’s true.”

I look at her with concern, and she holds my gaze like she’s trying to convince me she’ll be okay.

It doesn’t work. If anything, it makes me want to tear this entire plan apart and take her upstairs.

Vincent cuts in, probably sensing I’m seconds away from blowing it all up. “Try to get Anna talking. Make her believe you want to give it back—that you’d prefer to arrange a discreet swap as soon as possible. Say the necklace is in safe hands, but you’re willing to return it.”

Elizabeth nods. “Got it. Play scared, but don’toverplayit.

I lean forward, elbows braced on my knees, voice low. “We have to assume they know everything about you. So just be yourself. Your normal, intelligent, no-nonsense self. Let her think you want out. That you want nothing to do with it.”

The silence that follows is suffocating. My chest aches with it. My ribs feel like they are being crushed under cement, pressing harder with each second.

“At least I’m not walking in blind,” she says finally. “You’ll be there… Vincent and Rhodes. Hell, even your dad might throw a punch if it comes to it.”

I don’t like the reminder that her safety involves trusting Ray. But she’s not wrong.

“You’ll have a tracker in your shoe and your phone.” I continue. “Your comms will be in your bra and the earrings I gave you have a camera. We’ll hear everything that they say, and we can communicate back, though it’s important you don’t speak to us unless absolutely necessary.”

“She’s not wearing a bra,” Sera chimes in when Elizabeth doesn’t speak.

Fuck me.

“Hmm,” Finn rubs at his jaw. “I have a pair of clip-on earrings that can double as camera and comms we could use,” Finn adds. “They don’t have as good a range, but since you won’t be leaving the building, they’ll work.”

“We won’t let anything happen to you.” Rhodes gives her a reassuring smile.

“I know.” Elizabeth smiles back at him, and I don’t like it. When I growl under my breath, Sera snickers at me not helping my mood.