Page 11 of Shadow Dance

“I travel light.” I run my fingers over the keys in my pocket. “Most of my stuff is in storage down south.”

He nods, stepping away from the French doors. “Speaking of down south, I need to go to San Diego today. You good with sticking around, starting now?”

“That’s what we agreed on,” I say, looking around. The house is still quiet. “When will I meet your girl?”

“When she wakes up.” He shrugs, yawning. “Which should be soon. I told her you were coming today, so she’s expecting you.”

Callum shows me the rest of the property, letting me know I can park wherever I want as long as I don’t block the garage. He gives me the key codes to the gate, front door, and guest house, the latter of which I’ll be changing as soon as possible, then points out the security cameras at the front and back doors. Even with the most cursory of glances, I can tell they’ll be easy to override.

“Can you monitor these from your phone?” I ask.

Callum nods. “There’s one at the front gate, too. In fact, go ahead and download the app. I’ll give you the log-in so you can keep an eye on things when I’m gone.”

He disappears into his bedroom, leaving me on my own. I’m at the kitchen counter, downloading the security app, when voices outside prick my ears. I reach for my gun right as the front door opens and two guys walk in, one tall and skinny, the other built like a linebacker. My hand falls to my side. Callum’s friends. They were at the club last night.

Mac’s all right, but Griffin’s got the personality of a brick wall. They smoke out by the pool until Callum emerges from his bedroom with wet hair and a flushed face. He’s in yet another designer hoodie and matching sweats, all white, with spotless white Jordans on his feet. Flashy gold chain, flashy gold watch.

“There’s coffee if you need it,” he says, pointing to the machine on the counter. “And plenty of food in the fridge. Make yourself at home.”

I’ll just wait until I can hit up the grocery store myself, but I nod. “Thanks.”

“Any vices I should know about?” he asks, the playfulness in his voice immediately setting me on edge.

“A little weed, a little beer,” I reply. “That a problem?”

“Nah. You ever need something a little harder, just let me know.” He plucks a small baggie of white powder from his pocket, watching me carefully. “You won’t find shit this pure anywhere else.”

Guess Cedro was right—Callum really does like to play in the snow. But I don’t, and even if I did, the people I work for don’t like us messing with the hard stuff. It’s too easy to lose control. “I’m good. Thanks, though.”

Shrugging, he repockets the baggie and grabs his keys. “I’ll be back tonight, late. Maybe tomorrow.”

I nod, looking past him to the girl who’s just walked into the kitchen. You’d think a guy like Cal would be with a plastic girl with perfect everything, but that’s not what Maeve is. Slender and tall, she’s wearing leggings, a t-shirt, and a loose cardigan that comes to her knees. Her pale skin seems to be makeup-free, and her dark hair is pulled into a long ponytail that hangs over one shoulder. Our eyes meet for just a second—hers are possibly the greenest I’ve ever seen—and then she’s pulling a coffee mug from the cabinet. “You must be my new keeper,” she says.

“Maeve, Jaime.” Callum sniffs, checking his phone. “Jaime, Maeve.”

“Nice to meet you,” I say.

“Same,” she says blandly, pouring herself a cup of coffee. “When’s my car going to be ready, Callum?”

He sighs loudly, like this is a conversation they’ve had many times before. “The part it needs still hasn’t come in?—”

“So, take it somewhere else. I’m tired of waiting. I don’t need a driver when I can just drive myself.” Maeve glances at me. “No offense.”

She’s pretty enough to be a distraction. Not an ideal situation if we’re going to be working in close quarters, but I’ve dealt with worse.

“None taken,” I say.

“I don’t want you out there on your own.” Cal sounds bored as he drops his phone into his pocket. It’s obvious this is an argument they’ve had many times before. “There’s too much weird shit going on. I feel better knowing someone’s watching your back.”

“I hardly go any?—"

“Listen, I gotta run,” he interrupts, lightly smacking her ass as he leans in to kiss her.

Stiffening, she turns her face so that he gets her cheek. I expect him to be embarrassed or annoyed at her blatant disrespect, but he just gives me a cocky grin. “Play nice. Call me if you need me.”

Chapter 4

Maeve

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