Page 49 of The Duplicity of Thieves

“Stalk you?” I shout in shock. The people around us look over. For the second time today, I’m making a scene.

“It’s alright. I’m flattered. Really.” His dark blue eyes are filled with amusement. There’s no denying my attraction to him, but I’m going to deny it anyway.

“You’re the stalker. You’re infatuated with me,” I hiss, quieter than before.

“I thought that was evident.”

“Can’t you bother someone else?”

“I told you. I like bothering you.” He flashes a quick smile, showing his white teeth. I feel like a dark sun has shined on me.

I sip the coffee, and of course it is also divine, much like everything this man manages to do. I don’t hate it, but I want to. While my brain is trying to revolt against his charm, my body wants him.

“I saw your sister the other day.” He leans back in the chair, his hand staying gripped around the bottom of his cup. If only it was around my neck.

I realize what he just said. He saw Vivian the other day.

“How?” I squeak, trying to keep my eyes up.

He focuses on the world outside of the front windows. “I went looking for you.”

“Of course. How did she know I was at the museum?” I don’t mean to say it, but the words just spill out. I didn’t tell anyone about the ticket, and she’s not usually the type to read my mail. She believes in privacy.

“She didn’t,” he says slowly, his eyes finding me again. “She refused to give you up. Gave me quite the talking to.”

I can picture it. Aedon standing there trying to smooth talk my sister. She would have had her arms crossed, lips pursed, and her smooth curls flaring around her head like Medusa. She would have kindly let him down. Inside she must have been dying.

“What did she say?”

“To summarize? To find you myself. I couldn’t believe my luck when I saw you walk into the exhibit.”

“So you really weren’t following me?” There is a little bit of disappointment, and it definitively seeps into my voice. He gives a slight shake of the head to tell me no. Out of nowhere, rain starts to splatter against the windows lining the front of the coffee shop.

“You know I tried to find you,” he says out of the blue.

“I know. You said you ambushed my sister.”

“No,” he says softly. “After the first time.” He looks a little ashamed to admit it.

“Really?” I’m astounded.

“I wouldn’t lie. I went to that pub many times over the years hoping to see you. Like you said, I’d never been rejected before.”

“You came to the same pub for years because I let you finger me in an alley and then left?”

“Something like that.” There’s something that’s changed in his demeanor; it’s made him softer. “I asked about you a few times, but no one knew what I was talking about. If I had realized you lived in the capital, I would have been looking elsewhere.”

“I moved here after we met.” It’s hard to say it. He can see it, and he, surprisingly, doesn’t pry. “I didn’t want to be found.”

I don’t know why I’m telling him anything. This man is a stranger, no matter how much attraction I feel. He’s Hades’ lackey. It would be stupid to submit to his charm, especially right now.

“I’ll say,” he chuckles. A smile creeps up at the corner of my lips, which coaxes out that boyish grin I like.

“I’m starting to think it’s more than infatuation.” I find myself flirting with him, and it feels good. I flirt with Stafford and others, but it’s not genuine. It’s more of a habit or a means to get laid. This feels different. Always flirting with danger.

“Borderlining obsession,” he says.

The atmosphere around us sizzles. A crack of lightning erupts. The sound of it brings forward the memory of the world cracking beneath my feet that awful night. It causes me to jump, and I knock over the coffee. The lid flies off and the delicious hazelnut splashes across the table, drenching Aedon’s white collared shirt. I’m flustered, just staring in disbelief at what I’ve done. I want to run. His grin grows and he starts laughing wholeheartedly. I can’t help but start laughing at him laughing at me, and the memory slips away.

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