Or was he? He’d certainly been hands-off with her lately. She might have been staying at his place, but some nights she barely saw him. He was at the pub or meeting with… whomever he met with. What did she really know about Gavin, anyway?
Ben rose and grabbed his messenger bag. “Chloe, you ready?”
Chloe nodded and made her way to the hallway, walking by Gavin and the woman, pointedly not looking at them as she passed. She leaned against the hall and pulled out her phone, pretending to check her email while still keeping an eye on the happy couple at the bar.
Chloe couldn’t look at them, so she watched their shoes.
The woman had pretty feet. Slender, pale, unmarred feet clad in elegant designer heels. They were nothing at all like the bruised and callused feet Chloe had. Dancers were hard on their feet. More than one of her instructors had had foot surgery before fifty.
Chloe walked around Gavin’s house barefoot. Did he mind? Had he noticed her hard, bruised little feet? Did he compare them to other, elegant feet he’d seen?
She shouldn’t care. It pissed her off that she did.
Chloe knew she was nothing like the sophisticated woman at the bar. She was herself. She’d only ever wanted to be herself.
She was Chloe Reardon, who ignored the jabs of all the girls who told her she didn’t have a “ballet body.” She was the one who forced her teachers to take notice. She’d defied her parents and crossed the country to make her dreams come true when no one believed in her. She was the pauper who worked three jobs so she could dance in brilliant shows that paid nothing. She was the woman who hadn’t cried, even faced with her worst nightmare of never dancing again.
She was the woman who’d walked away from Tom, refusing to be crushed. And she was the woman who was learning to fight back.
Chloe’s head came up, her chin lifted, and she examined the woman at the bar with new eyes.
Soft. She was soft. Chloe wouldn’t trade places with that woman for all Tenzin’s gold.
The woman turned and picked up her purse before she walked in Chloe’s direction, heading toward the bathrooms. Chloe caught Gavin’s eye, then she looked down at her phone again. It wouldn’t be good to draw attention. The woman brushed past Chloe, wafting sweet perfume.
Chloe kept an eye on the clock. It was likely they would leave after the woman finished in the restroom. Chloe heard a heavy step coming toward her. She looked up and met Gavin’s eyes a second before he backed her farther down the hall, gripped the back of her neck, and lifted her mouth to plunder.
Gavin’s kiss invaded her senses. His right hand gripped the nape of her neck and his left braced against the wall, caging her in as his tongue plunged into her mouth. She opened her lips instinctively, meeting his desire with her own. Her fists clutched the lapels of his jacket when he pressed her against the wall. His knee shoved between her thighs as he took her mouth and wiped every thought from her mind. His lips were firm, almost hard, and the hand at the back of her neck angled her mouth to his with an unyielding grip.
It was hard and hot and fast. The kiss only lasted seconds before he pulled away and whispered in her ear.
“Fuck me, but the look in your eyes just now.” His teeth sank into her earlobe and she gasped.
“Gavin—”
“One day soon, Chloe Reardon.” Just as quickly, he was gone.
Gavin left her standing with her mouth open and her blood running rampant as he moved to the end of the hall, straightening his cuffs and rubbing a thumb over his mouth. His tongue came out and flicked against his skin, as if he was tasting the last of their kiss.
The museum curator came out only seconds later, and Chloe saw the mask fall into place. Gavin was all charming smiles. He cocked his arm out, and the woman put her pretty little hand in the crook of his elbow. They walked out of the restaurant chatting, and Chloe followed them.
It was only seconds after they left the restaurant that Chloe saw the effect of Gavin’s amnis. They turned right and walked down 53rd Street. The curator leaned into his side. He put his arm around her, put his hand on the back of her neck. Chloe saw the thumb that had just brushed his lips press into the woman’s neck and knew that Gavin’s elemental energy was flooding her senses.
Ben fell into step beside her. “Stay close.”
They picked up the pace. No one stopped them when the woman walked to the glass double doors down the block and pulled out her keycard. She opened the door, and Gavin held it open for her to walk through. Then he nodded at Chloe and Ben. Ben put a hand on Chloe’s back and urged her forward. They slipped into the long hallway, staying close enough to Gavin and the woman to give the appearance that they were all together. The woman didn’t turn, not even when she opened the next door and Gavin let them in again.
Gavin paused and put a hand on Ben’s shoulder. “You have the uniforms?”
Ben nodded.
“Then you should be clear from here. I’ll be accompanying Dr. Walker up to the sixth floor to see the surrealist exhibit that she was so enthusiastic about. If I see you—”
“We’re invisible.” Ben slapped him on the shoulder. “Go.”
Gavin shot one last look at Chloe before he walked back to the woman and took her hand before she could regain her senses.
“You ready?” Ben asked.
Chloe nodded and they walked into the coat check. Ben handed her a staff uniform and one of the photo IDs he’d mocked up the night before.
“From what I saw upstairs, these are the right ones,” Ben said. “I have more in the bag if we need others. If they’re scanned, we’re in trouble, but they’ll be good enough for the eyeball test.”
“Got it.” Was she actually doing this? This was crazy! She was breaking into the Museum of Modern Art to… make sure no one stole a couple of paintings that belonged to the vampire they’d just stolen a different painting from a couple of nights before.
How did my life get so weird?
Chloe walked to the corner and turned her back, stripping off her clothes and putting on the uniform before she thought too much.
This was nuts and they were all going to jail.
Tenzin waited for the lights to dim before she tested the vent register over the air duct in the secluded hallway on the sixth floor. She’d spent the day crawling through the ventilation system of the museum. It was surprisingly enjoyable. She’d been able to eavesdrop on numerous conversations, had been privy to far more staff gossip than anticipated, and even scared a couple trying to have exhibitionist sex in the third-floor stairwell.
Honestly. Humans.
She really hadn’t considered lurking in museum ventilation systems as an interesting pastime prior to this job, but she decided to investigate the Metropolitan Museum next. That was far bigger than MoMA. She could probably spend days in there.
It had been silent for over an hour when she pushed open the register. She slipped out of the duct and dropped to the ground a moment before Ben rounded the corner.
“How did you—”
“This is the only register large enough for a person on the sixth floor that’s also in a hallway,” Ben said. “Here’s your uniform and ID. Chloe is already in the exhibit. They put her to work right away. Didn’t even bat an eye. You should blend in too.” He turned to face the wall.
“You’ve seen me naked before.”
“Tenzin, just change.”
She shrugged and pulled off her clothes, stowing her own stuff in the open duct. “Is Gavin here?”
“He chatted up the curator in the bar. That’s how we managed to get in. They’re wandering around too. Her name is Dr. Susan Walker. If anyone asks about you, just say Dr. Walker or Susan asked you to help.”
“Okay. Have you seen Emilie or René?”
“Not yet.”
“It’s possible they might do exactly what we did to grab Midnight Labyrinth.”
Ben asked, “Intercept the delivery? I thought about that.”
“Might be good for someone t
o stake out the loading area.”
“We don’t know if the shipment was set to go out tonight,” Ben said.
“It needs to go out tonight.” Tenzin tucked in the stiff white shirt and turned around. “I’m decent, you Puritan.”
Ben turned to face her. “We can’t wait. Whatever the schedule says, the Samson paintings go back to Rothman House tonight. If we run into trouble, we’ll need Gavin to use amnis on Dr. Walker.”
Tenzin nodded.
They walked out of the hallway and over to the special-exhibit gallery. The partitions had been taken away, and the lights were turned up while cases were being constructed and paintings and sculptures were being crated.
They were in the room adjacent to the Samson paintings when Tenzin heard her voice.
“I’m not sure what the problem is. These paintings were scheduled to go to the restoration room directly from the exhibit.”
Tenzin looked at Ben, and he’d heard the voice too. He really had exceptional ears for a human. His jaw clenched and his eyes were ice-cold.
“Not here,” Tenzin said quietly, picking up the pace.
“Okay,” a man’s voice said. “So what’s the problem?”
“The problem is… I have to check with, uh, Dr. Walker.” Chloe was valiantly bullshitting her way through an excuse.
“Dr. Walker is here tonight?” the man said. “What’s she doing here?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Emilie said. “I have a work order.”
“But…” Chloe scrambled. “I think there’s been a mistake. I mean… do they look like they need to be restored? Sure, they’re old, but they seem to be in pretty good shape, so I’m not sure why they’d need to be restored. We should check with a curator, don’t you think?”
Ben and Tenzin rounded the corner right as Chloe was running out of steam.
“Oh… Te—iffany!” Chloe said when she spotted them. “Tiffany, did you hear anything about the Samsons going to Restoration?”
“No.” Tenzin walked up and crossed her arms, immediately going on the offensive with Emilie, who visibly paled as Tenzin approached. “These aren’t in the museum’s permanent collection; it’s not our job to restore them. Who are you?”
Emilie was wearing a white coat and gloves. Her hair was piled up into a bun with pencils sticking out of it. Her ID said her name was Sarah Miller and she was with the art restoration department.
Despite the increased heart rate Tenzin could hear, the human played it cool. “My name is Sarah Miller, and I work in the restoration department. And you are?”
“My name is Shu Chen.”
Emilie’s eyes went wide. “I thought your friend called you Tiffany.”
“Yeah, that’s my nickname.” Tenzin said nothing else. Let Emilie be the one to call liar.
Flustered, Emilie held up her paperwork. “Be that as it may, I think you’ll find this work order specifies both Twilight Labyrinth and Dawn Labyrinth are slated to go to Restoration tonight.”
The French accent was gone and a British accent had taken its place. Americans were foolish about British accents. For some reason, they conferred authority. It was an odd quirk of American culture Tenzin had noticed in Los Angeles, but it held true in New York.
“No, they’re not,” Tenzin said. “I was talking with Dr. Walker earlier. She said they were being shipped back to the donor tonight. Immediately, in fact. They need to be delivered as soon as possible.”
“Oh really?” Emilie asked. “Do you have paperwork?”
There was little Tenzin could to do to expose Emilie without giving her own facade away. Chloe had covered for them surprisingly well but had melted back and was trying to avoid notice. Tenzin couldn’t get a read on Ben. He was behind her, probably seething silently.
The museum employee standing between them looked annoyed, confused, and impatient. He clearly had better things to do than referee an argument between a grunt and a nerd.
Before Tenzin could say another word, Ben jumped in. “I think it’s obvious we just need to talk to Dr. Walker about this.” He ignored all the women and spoke to the employee in a one-of-the-boys voice. “It’s so easy for wires to get crossed on this kind of stuff, am I right?”
The employee looked relieved. “Curators. They’re particular about how stuff gets organized, you know?”
“Exactly,” Ben said, nudging Tenzin aside. “Let’s get the okay from Dr. Walker before we do anything. Have her sign off on any changes, okay?” He turned to Emilie. “I’m pretty sure we’d piss of a lot of really important people if these paintings ended up in the wrong place.”
“That’s what I’m saying,” the man said. “I’m gonna go find her. See what she wants to do.”
The employee walked off, leaving Chloe, Tenzin, Ben, and Emilie standing next to the Samson paintings. Tenzin didn’t need to be a vampire to feel the energy in the room.
“Hi there, sweetheart,” Ben said in a low voice. “Did you miss me?”
27
“Don’t make this personal,” Emilie said, her British accent still in place. “It’s business, and you know it.”
“Was it business when you slept with me?”
“Are we bringing that up?” Emilie glanced at Chloe. “Well then, no. That was just a side benefit. Don’t tell me you’re complaining.”
“I don’t like it when people lie to me.”
Emilie glanced at Tenzin. “I don’t either.”
“Are you actually trying to—”
“Why are you bickering?” Tenzin broke in. “This is ridiculous. Girl, in a few minutes that man is going to come back with the curator, who is currently under our control. You have failed. Leave now.”
Ben tried not to smile. Leave it to Tenzin to cut to the chase.
Emilie smirked. “She may be under your man’s control, but she’s working for my boss.”
“Your boss?” Tenzin asked. She turned and looked around the room. “I don’t see anyone who…” She froze, and Ben turned to look.
At the end of the gallery, walking with a jaunty step, was René DuPont. He smiled at Tenzin as if he was seeing an old friend, ignored Ben, and continued his stroll. They were surrounded by oblivious humans, and he knew he was safe.
He hadn’t changed a whit since Ben had first met him in London. His hair was immaculate, and the suit he was wearing spoke of both success and style. René DuPont was an elegant predator and a more than decent thief. The fact that he annoyed the shit out of Ben and had a hard-on for Tenzin only made him that much more obnoxious.
“Mr. Vecchio.” He side-eyed Ben. “My lady.” He bowed toward Tenzin. “It will never be anything less than a pleasure to see you. You look… magnifique.”
“Thank you,” Tenzin said.
Ben said, “Why are you thanking him?”
“You told me I needed to work on being gracious when people compliment me.”
“Not with him.”
“Oh, such resentment!” René said. “I love it. Have I inconvenienced you, Benjamin?” He cocked his head and looked at Emilie. “Has she? I so wish I could have been there when you discovered that it was all a lie.” He turned to Tenzin. “Was his disappointment delicious?”
Tenzin narrowed her eyes. “You’re very strange.”
Ben had locked down his emotions so he didn’t strangle Emilie. René’s taunts hardly made it through. “Was it delicious to walk in here tonight and find out you’re not going to make off with the other two Labyrinth paintings?”
René pouted. “Well, I haven’t given up hope yet. And after all”—his pout turned to a sneer—“I stole the one that matters, didn’t I?” He turned his attention to Tenzin. “You must tell me why you are still toying with this one. He is so far beneath your notice, I cannot even comprehend it.”
“Was this what all the apple jokes were about?” Tenzin asked.
“Apple jokes?” Ben said.
“I’ll tell you later.”
Chloe tried to slip away, but Emilie shot a
hand out and stopped her. Chloe wrested her arm away and grabbed Emilie’s hand.
“I don’t think so, bitch,” Chloe said through gritted teeth. “How many fingers do you want me to break?” Emilie squeaked, and Chloe dropped her hand. “Try touching me again. Just try it.”
René tutted. “So much aggression. So much drama.” He shrugged as oblivious humans bustled around them. “This is all so unnecessary.”
Tenzin watched René, her head cocked to the side as if she were examining an interesting specimen under a microscope. “You like to hear yourself talk.”
Ben muttered, “Yeah, he does.”
“And you think you’re safe here because you’re surrounded by humans.”
René’s eye twinkled. “Aren’t I? You can’t fly away in the middle of the museum, can you?”
“No,” Tenzin said. She paused, then her right hand shot out and she punched René in the throat. Her left fist cut up and landed directly on René’s nose, spraying blood all over the pristine white gallery. “I can do that though.”
René fell to the ground, clutching his throat and nose while Emilie screamed.
As soon as Emilie screamed, Chloe turned and walked away. Shit. Shit. Shit. She was going to get arrested.
Tenzin had drawn the attention of the room, and every employee dropped what they were doing and rushed toward the Samson room. Everyone started shouting at once. Hubbub meant distraction, and distraction meant things could go missing.
Chloe ducked into a corner in the next gallery to catch her breath.
What would Ben do?
Remember, we’re not stealing anything. All we have to do is make sure Samson’s paintings get back to where they belong.
The curator with Gavin could tell the employees to put the Labyrinth paintings on a truck and get them delivered where they were supposed to be. Gavin had the curator under his amnis, which meant Chloe needed to find Gavin and find him fast.
She heard someone running after her. She spun and planted her feet with her fists raised.
“Chloe!” It was Ben. He had his arm around Emilie and a hand over her mouth.