Page 55 of Magic or Madness

Finally, Oliver pulls into the adjacent parking lot, and I follow him into the shop where Lex and Max are waiting for me.

I fill them in on the camera in the office, but Max has a different idea.

“Generate a new code. I can’t figure out how to hack it, so it has to be you,” he says, bringing me to my desk.

There’s an alert on the screen, and if I type my password wrong, it’ll set off an alarm.

My hands are shaking, and I feel a thousand pounds of weight hanging over my head, but I came here to help, and that’s what I intend to do.

I sit down, pretending this is just another day at the office, and carefully type my credentials into the correct boxes as I hold my breath.

“It takes three minutes for it to change over to the new code,” I say, pointing at the screen where the six numbers begin to randomize.

“Anything else?” Max asks, clearly out of patience as he taps his fingers rapidly on my desk.

“It’ll turn green when you can enter.” I smile, and he leads me out back toward the loading dock.

“You’re a part of this job now. Focus on that, and not hanging out with your boyfriend,” he lectures harshly, and I keep my composure but my eyes want to roll so far back in my head they fall out.

“Yes, boss,” I say in a mocking tone, climbing into the truck with Ozzy.

“Bambi.” He lights up when I join him in the passenger seat, and the darkness cloaks over us as the interior lights fade to black.

“Fancy meeting you here.”

“You saved us, but you didn’t have to,” he says gently, and I trail my fingers along his arm, happy to be in his presence again.

It’s only been a few hours since he dropped me off, but when I’m not with him, hours feel like days.

“I’d do anything for you. Max, on the other hand, is a bit bossy,” I joke, but he doesn’t find it too funny, his body stiffening as soon as the words leave my lips.

“He’s always on a power trip. He wasn’t an asshole, was he?” He asks, that possessive fire entering his dark eyes, but I backtrack, ensuring he doesn’t try to kill anyone else on my behalf.

“Nothing I can’t handle.” I assure him, lacing my fingers into his and letting him refocus on the job.

I sit quietly in the front seat, listening as Ozzy asks for updates and barks out orders. They successfully open the doorto the storage room, with Journey and Oliver following the path Ozzy spells out until they reach the loading dock.

“Go with Oliver I’ll be back in a few hours,” he tells me, and I follow his direction so as to not step on anyone’s toes.

As much as I’d rather stay here with him, the job isn’t done, and I know how meticulous these guys are when it comes to planning. Me being here is already a blip in those plans, so I intend to disappear as quickly as I arrived.

“Be safe,my Greek God,” I whisper, leaning in and leaving him with a quick kiss on the cheek.

It kills me to walk away right now, knowing he’s finishing the last leg of the job by himself, but I have faith in what they planned, and that he can handle it.

I follow Oliver back to where we parked the van, and everyone is already waiting for us, eager to get away from the scene. Once we’re back at the dealership all I want to do is hide in bed until Ozzy gets back, but apparently, that’s not an option.

“Sorry, Fallon. It’s bad luck. We stay together until the job is finished, and you’re a part of it now,” Max orders, and I reluctantly find a seat on the couch.

I watch as they all scramble, changing their clothes and packing the gear away. They all unclip their weapons and place them on the coffee table, like a weird, threatening centerpiece.

Lex tosses me a phone, instructing that I order pizzas, and Oliver lightens the mood with a cooler full of beers.

Basically, I’m abrotonight, and as much as I want to hate this, it’s kind of fun. I’m learning the routines and rituals of a tight-knit crew, down to their superstitions and traditions.

“Ozzy hasn’t smiled this much since Masha, you know,” Oliver says randomly, inadvertently making me blush.

“I’ve never been happier,” I confess, only realizing how cheesy it sounds after the words leave my lips, and all the guys mock me.

---