Page 129 of The Thief

I gave the leather-bound book a cursory glance. “That’s real sweet. I’ll read it to Bear in the car.”

Bear dabbed calamine over the bite on the back of my neck. “We need to head out.”

We said our goodbyes and got in the SUV. Catcher darted ahead of us and gave us an escort down the long drive. Every so often, he’d look back and bark.

“How does he know we’re leaving?”

Bear stroked his beard. “He’s a smart wolf.”

When we finally reached the swing gate, Bear got out to open it. Catcher trotted in circles anxiously until Bear knelt and stroked his face. After Bear stood and said something to him, Catcher flew back down the drive toward the house. I watched him running in the side-view mirror until he was out of sight.

Bear got in and slammed the door. “You ready? You’ve been edgy all morning.”

I stared nervously at the dirt road. “Sometimes it feels like he might show up out of nowhere.”

“Who? Argento? I already told you he’s gone.”

“I know. But I didn’t see it, so it’s still in the back of my mind.”

The rumbling engine was the only sound.

Bear tapped his finger on the steering wheel. “When I got there that night, he seemed out of it. Did you drug him?”

This was the first time we’d talked about it since then. Both of us just wanted to move on.

“Wild Rabbit,” I admitted. “I wasn’t sure what effect it would have on him, but it bought me a few seconds.”

“That was smart. It weakened his mind, and he made a lot of mistakes.” Bear held my hand. “You can sleep at night knowing he’ll never come back.”

“Should I feel bad about that?”

“He wielded his power recklessly and gave us no other choice. We’re not cold-blooded killers.”

I crossed my ankles. “Once I give this diamond back, I’ll feel better about things.”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to put it on your finger?”

I laughed at the thought. “When we get to Cognito, we can’t go out together. Okay?”

Bear twisted to face me, his thick eyebrows pressed together disapprovingly. “Why not?”

“I didn’t want to say anything back there, but someone might recognize me. Like one of my old clients. I’d lay down and die if that happened.”

He squeezed my knee. “You got it.”

“I’ll just stay in the hotel room while you check out the restaurants.”

“Nope. After we finish this diamond business, we’ll drive to New York City. It’s only a few hours away. There are plenty of restaurants there to check out.”

I smiled and ran my fingers through the silver patch of hair on his left temple. “I like this. It makes you look distinguished.”

He kissed the palm of my hand. “Now I look closer to your age.”

“Oh, is that so?” I pinched his thigh and laughed. “Then you better get going, old wolf.”

Bear turned onto the road and parked so he could close the gate.

“I got it,” I said, already halfway out.

---