Page 4 of Fire in Stone

“It’s a good thing, you know. You don’t need that shitty office job, anyway.” He slid the coffee mug my way.

Clearly, he was steering the conversation to whatever it was he wished me to do for him in exchange for two hundred thousand dollars.

I took a long drink of coffee, my first one that day. It tasted divine, even with cream. I closed my eyes, savoring every drop.

“It was just a job,” I said, putting the mug down. “I’ll get another one.”

He lifted an eyebrow in a skeptical expression.

“Might not be that easy. There isn’t that much work nowadays.”

He was right, which made irritation flare in me. Even the warm weight of the food in my belly didn’t soothe it.

“What do you know about the job market?” I snapped. “You never worked a day in your life.”

“I’m a businessman,” he said, as smoothly as ever. “I need to know things like that, even if I don’t work for others.”

Fighting the irritation, I silently finished my breakfast. The fuller my belly got, the more I wondered why I’d ever agreed to meet with this man. Nothing good had ever come from my being with him. Chris’s way of life had always been crime and violence, and he’d dragged me into it headfirst.

“I shouldn’t have come.” I put my fork onto the now empty plate. “Thanks for breakfast, though. I really appreciate it.”

He quickly placed his hand on top of mine again. “Aw, don’t leave yet. I’ve missed you—”

“Don’t.” I jerked my head with a huff, having no patience for the softness in his voice or the playful squeeze of his hand.

Only he wouldn’t listen. He never did. His fingers tightened around my hand.

“You know I never wanted it to end between us, Amber. I’d take you back in a heartbeat. To me, you’ll always be my baby girl.”

The sound of his old nickname for me was grinding on my nerves.

“Stop it. Chris. We’re done. I’m not coming back, and you know it.”

He let go of my hand and leaned back against the squeaky pleather of the booth seat. The look in his pale eyes hardened.

“Fine. Keep playing your emancipation game for a bit longer if you wish,” he said, as if indulging a child in their tantrum.

An unpleasant feeling scraped inside me. I thought I’d been strong by leaving Chris, but he obviously believed he hadallowedme to stray for a while. He sounded confident he could stop my “game” at any time.

“All I need from you right now is to do this one job for me,” he said.

I shook my head, running my hand through the shoulder-length hair on my right.

“I—”

He raised a finger, not letting me finish.

“It’s easy money, Amber. The job is perfect for you.” He took my hand from the table again, playing with my fingers. “There is magic in these little hands of yours. It’s a shame to have a talent like that go to waste.”

Flattery would get him nowhere. But curiosity got the best of me. I wasn’t interested in the job, but there was no harm in asking about it, was there?

“What do you need to have done?” I kept my tone of voice neutral.

His features relaxed, as if I’d agreed already.

“I want you to get something for me. In and out. Like I said. Easy-peasy.”

I took my hand from him. “And what do you want me to steal?”

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