Page 31 of Dominic

God, he loved to see her smile, loved to see how lit up her eyes were. It made him realize how withdrawn she’d been. Not necessarily unhappy, just hidden.

“Let’s just say you’re going to have every hole plugged tonight; two synthetic and one with my cock. If you help catch the thieves, I’ll let you decide what goes where.”

The way heat tinged her cheeks and her little tongue darted out to lick her lips made him want to find the nearest private room and take her right then, criminals be damned.

“Deal. Otherwise I don’t trust you not to use that giant butt plug.”

He grinned. She didn’t even know about the cock gag he’d bought. She would soon.

Her fingers played with the hair at the back of his head as she looked over his shoulder trying to find the rest of the team. Dominic motioned to Lukas to come over, keeping a smile on his face for anyone who might be watching.

“You guys need some help with your PDA?” Lukas asked with a grin.

“Fuck you.” He clasped his free hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Keep smiling, just be aware that Cassandra thinks we’ve got a team casing us.”

Lukas his smile dropped for a split second before returning to his face. “What can I do?”

“They’re watching us, so we don’t want to spook them. Just let Roman know what’s going on.”

“Who is it?” Lukas asked.

Cassandra glanced at him for just a second over her shoulder before returning her gaze to the other side of the room. “Two of the waitstaff. The man standing over near the door of the kitchen is the lookout. The woman with the single champagne glass by the jewelry case will be doing some of the snatch and grab.”

Lukas nodded. “Looks like you were right. They’re going for the less expensive items.”

Cassandra gave a delicate shrug. “That’s because they’re in the display case that has no electronic alarms. They can just pick the locks, make the trade and get out. No need for any grandiose plan. They just need everyone’s attention to be directed somewhere else for a few seconds.”

“Which they will be when the cooking demonstrations start in just a few minutes,” Dominic said.

“Exactly.” Cassandra nodded against him.

Lukas left to get the information to Roman with as little fanfare as possible. Cassandra continued to study over Dominic’s shoulder, keeping her fingers threaded in his hair so it looked like they were just holding each other in an embrace. His hand dipped low on her back.

“The cooks are setting up. If they’re going to make their move, it’s going to be soon.”

She nodded. “Catching them in the act enough that they can be arrested is going to be tough. That’s what we petty thieves do, never quite commit enough for the big pay off, but also rarely look like we’re doing anything wrong if we get caught without the loot in hand.”

He rubbed a circle at the small of her back. “Honey, remember who you’re talking to. I don’t need them to be arrested in order to make sure they never attempt to steal from us again.”

She swallowed hard. “Will you… I mean, will they…”

“Depends on a lot of factors. Have they had run-ins with us before? Were they deliberately targeting us? They may not know that what they are attempting to steal belongs to the Rinaldi family.Believe it or not, people have targeted us as marks before not knowing exactly what they were getting into.”

Her cheeks burned. She knew he was talking about her. “Yeah, some people are idiots.”

He chuckled, pulling her closer. Less than a minute later she stiffened. “I think I’ve got them. Two women here as guests. Smart. Four man crew - three women and one guy. Women usually come across as less of a threat.”

Didn’t he know it.

“How do we catch them without letting them know we’re on to them?”

“Easiest way would be to use me. Use their own ‘women are less of a threat’ thinking against them. How much do you trust me?”

“About as far as I can throw you.”

She just chuckled. “Do you think you could throw me to that display case over there? I’ll distract them, you get the security team. Just go up and give Sarah a giant hug and kiss first.”

His hand slid to her waist and tightened. He pulled her back so he could look in her eyes. “Don’t do anything to make me regret this. If you run, I’m going to find you, no matter what. There’s nowhere you can hide from me.”

She smiled. “I’m not going to run. I want to have the choice.”

“What choice?”

“Of what’s going in what hole of mine later tonight.”

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