Page 78 of A Real Good Bad Thing

She took it and we shook, her lips quirking up with a little mischief. “So you admit I’m a good amateur detective then?”

“You damn well know you are,” I said, then after we reported the missing goods to the hotel staff—of course there was no security footage to help our case in this cheap hotel—we gathered her things and left the scene of the crime.

38

A TYPE OF GUY

Jake

I dropped her suitcase on the tiled floor. The fan circled lazily overhead, stirring the gauzy white curtains that hung by the sliding glass doors. Grabbing her hand, I pulled her to the open balcony. The sun was still high in the sky and my room had a stunning view of the endless blue water. I also had a clear view of how to resolve this turmoil still roiling in my chest.

On the one hand, I was grateful she’d come to my hotel. I was hellbent on keeping her out of harm’s way. On the other hand, I damn well wanted her to know the truth of who I was, once and for all. No more lies. No more doubts. If we were working together—and that sure seemed to be the plan—we had to be on the same side.

Time to talk to her about the harder stuff. If not, this would be Rosalinda and the Medici job all over again.

That conversation would start like this…

“Just look,” I said, gesturing to the vast sea.

She gazed toward the water. “It’s gorgeous.”

“It is. And I’m showing you to make a point.”

“Okay?” She parked her hands on the railing.

I turned to her and met her eyes, fueled by remnants of frustration or hurt, but also by this new, powerful desire for her to know me. “Yes. I’m showing you this because it’s beautiful. Because you love the water. Because you are an outdoor girl through and through. Because I know these things about you.” I took her hands and clasped them in mine, squeezing. “I know already that the water calms you. I know the sunshine is like some kind of magic to you. And I know you love your mother with a fierceness that can move mountains. You’re like this warrior princess who’d go to battle for her, and even though I’ve never met her, I can picture her. I imagine she is the gentlest, kindest person in the world who wouldn’t hurt a fly, and you fight for her. Not because she’s the kind of woman who won’t fight for herself, but rather because she chooses not to. Am I right?”

Ruby swallowed down obvious emotion as she answered, “Yes. You’re right.” Her voice was soft. A warm breeze blew by, stirring up the ends of her pretty blonde hair. The moment was becoming romantic, fast.

As the waves lapped the shore in the distance, and boaters skipped over the blue waters, I clasped her hands tighter. “But what do you know about me?”

She parted her lips but didn’t speak.

“Ruby,” I said, fixing her with a sharp gaze, and then asked again, needing to set her straight, desperate to avoid another on-the-job mistake. “What do you know about me?”

“That you like ice cream?” She said it like a question.

I smiled but only briefly. “That’s a good start. What else?”

“That you like sweet things,” she said, squinting as the sun shone brightly overhead.

“Keep going.”

“That you’re motivated by your family.”

“Good. And?”

“And you hate it when bastards get away with anything.”

I tapped my finger to my nose.Bingo.“Know what else?”

“What?”

A knot of discomfort clogged my throat. But I pushed past it, speaking plainly, honestly. “I once dated a woman who nearly cost me a job. She tried to steal the artifact we’d teamed up to find.” The memory of how foolish I’d felt when Rosalinda stole it from under my nose haunted me. “I’d trusted her. I’d thought she cared about me. She’d only cared about the prize.”

Ruby’s eyes swam with sympathy. “I don’t even want the prize for me,” she said, raising her chin, meeting my gaze. “I’m after Eli to do right by my mom. To do what’s fair.”

“But it seemed this morning that you were playing me.” My tone turned rougher. “That when you saw me at the café, you were all sexy-snuggly because you thought I’d run. And outside the gallery, you were pretending to get cozy when you put your hands in my shorts, but you were only searching for stones even after I told you there weren’t any.”

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