Page 33 of Control's Undoing

Upon returning to the hotel, Annie had called the Grand Master’s counselor who’d been identified as her point of contact, and given her a quick status update and informed her of their plans.If things went south, Annie was counting on the Trinity Masters to save her.

She rose from the couch in her suite when there was a knock at the door.She, Xavier, and Colum had each retired to their own rooms to rest and freshen up, agreeing to reconvene in her suite to order room service for dinner and hang out until it was late enough to return to the museum.

She tilted her head from one side to the other to work out the kinks, aware the fight she was about the pick would be a difficult one to win.

She smiled as Colum and Xavier entered together.Both men had changed their clothing.Xavier was in a pair of lightweight black slacks and a black T-shirt, Colum dressed in brown pants and an olive-green button down.They’d opted for darker clothing in preparation for tonight’s heist.

She sighed.

Yep, this was going to be a hard sell.

Annie gestured to the small sitting area, Xavier claiming the other half of the couch with her, while Colum took the chair.

“I was thinking,” Annie said without preamble.Better to get this out of the way.“I’m going to break into the museum alone.”

“What?”Colum asked in alarm.As Xavier said, “No.”

Their responses were exactly what she’d expected, especially given the fact she hadn’t exactly been forthcoming about some aspects of her past.“It would be much quicker if I went in on my own.There’s no reason for all three of us to go.I can simply break in, grab the skull, and get out before anyone even knows I was there.”

Xavier shook his head throughout her entire speech.“It’s too dangerous.If you think it’s smarter for one of us to go, it’ll be me.”

Annie narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms.“Why you?”If he hit her with some macho “because I’m a man” bullshit, he’d find out things she’d rather not explain.

“For the very reason you said before.The museum director knows your face, knows you’re interested.You and Colum can go out somewhere in public, somewhere with cameras that will prove you weren’t involved in the theft.”

Damn.Xavier made a valid point.The problem was, regardless of her need for an alibi, she was definitely the best choice to actually carry out the robbery.

Colum, bless him, jumped in while she tried to come up with a convincing argument to counter Xavier’s.“None of us is going alone.”He swallowed hard, voice full of emotion.“I can’t stay here knowing one of you is in danger.I just can’t.”

Annie’s heart stuttered for a moment, touched by his concern for them.“Colum,” she started, but his argument was harder to fight against than Xavier’s.

“No,” he said, in a firm—and fucking sexy—tone.

“It’s settled, then,” Xavier said.“We’re all going.”

Annie pursed her lips.Given the determined looks she was receiving from both men, she conceded.“Fine.”

It was hard to be grumpy about losing when Colum graced her with the sweetest smile she’d ever seen.“Good.”

“It’s still quite a few hours until midnight.Should we order something from room service?”she asked.Lunch had been a long time ago and she was starting to get hungry.

“I could eat,” Colum said, picking up the room service menu from the coffee table.Once they’d decided, she called down, ordering chicken paninis for Colum and Xavier and mushroom rigatoni for herself.Then she pulled the bottle of Chardonnay she’d bought at a wine shop in Dumbo out of the mini fridge.

“Wine?”she offered.

“Might take the edge off,” Colum said.

She opened her mouth to continue the argument, given his nervousness, but he shook his head.

She shot him a look that made him chuckle, then she poured each of them some wine, using the water glasses in the room.

Once again, Colum offered his usual “slainte” before tapping his glass against theirs.Annie watched as he brought the glass to his lips, taking a sip.She recalled his kiss from the previous night, her own lips tingling with the memory.When Colum looked up at her through hooded lids that told her he knew exactly where her thoughts had gone, her body responded, lust flashing hot between them.

Xavier cleared his throat, drawing their attention to him.She smirked, aware he was either jealous or annoyed at being ignored.Lifting her glass, she took a drink, then slowly slid her tongue over her lower lip, loving the way Xavier followed the movement.

She’d never considered drinking wine a particularly sensual thing, but every moment she spent with these two men was steeped in a sexual tension she’d never experienced.

Xavier patted the empty spot next to him on the couch, encouraging her to reclaim her seat.She returned, sitting closer to him than she’d been before, her knee resting against his thigh.Xavier expanded on the closeness, placing his arm along the back of the couch, his hand brushing her shoulder lightly.

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