Slowly, Aran pulls away, stroking my jaw. “You need to stop tempting me or I don’t know what I might do.”
I blink at him, my mouth hanging open.
“I am serious, Tien. I… This was never supposed to happen and now that it has, I don’t know how to navigate it. I told myself that I’d make things go back to how they were before, that you and I will return to being a bodyguard and his best friend’s son, but—”
“Nope,” I cut in, shushing him with a finger. “Nuh-uh. Not happening. No backsies. The only way is the way forward.” I step back and plant my hands on his chest, pushing him away. “And just like you are my way forward, I am yours too, so you better accept that.” I cross my arms and arch an eyebrow at him. “But luckily for you, I can be patient. Sort of. So, I’ll give you some time to get used to this, because I am nice like that.”
Shaking his head, Aran lets his mouth curve up into a smile. “You are impossible.”
I shoot him a grin as giddiness invades my chest.He didn’t deny anything or disagree or argue with me.“And hungry. I want pancakes.”
“Okay.”
“Okay?” I parrot back, baffled. “You won’t argue with me and try to convince me that I should have muesli and yogurt because it’s healthier?”
“Not today. I think you burned some extra calories.” He outright evil-smirks at me. “Now, go shower before you catch a cold.”
I’m gawking at where he was standing for a long minute after he leaves and starts clattering in the kitchen. I hear a groan and the noises pause, continuing shortly after. It didn’t sound like Aran… Frowning, I try to place it, just now remembering that Mong is in the other room.Mong who we kidnapped and knocked out so Aran could pose as him. Good job me for forgetting that tiny detail.
When no screaming or shouting follows, the budding anxiety in me subsides. Our poor victim must still be asleep. That’s good, very good. He didn’t hear me moaning like a porn star last night while Aran’s hand took me to heaven.
We got this.
But as I pad out of the room and under the shower, I do wonder one thing—should we wake Mong up and offer him some pancakes too? It’s been more than twelve hours, so he must be very hungry by now.
21
Aran
“Absolutelynot!”Isay,crossing my arms. “I am not getting Mong off the sedatives, Tien.”
“Okay, but what if he’s hungry? Or thirsty? You wouldn’t want to starve or dehydrate him to death, would you?” the little shit argues, chewing on a piece of pancake with blueberry preserve.
I rub my forehead, sighing. “A few days of sleeping won’t kill the man. Now, can we get back to the Lynxes’ party, please?”
Hex told me the gist of what happened last night. My hairs rose on a few occasions, but overall, his findings made it all undeniably worth it.
“I told you. I got the network’s SSID, but cracking the actual password will take a while. It changes periodically and I have to be careful. But if Eleanor can get Mrs. Lynx to hire me, then it’s only a matter of time until I have access to her information.”
He’s right. Once he has a point of access, nothing can stop him.
“You two are meeting for lunch today?”
“Yep. At one, which gives us plenty of time to make sure Mong is okay.”
I want to argue, I really do, but waking up the unfortunate waiter has its pros, too. I didn’t get to question him, for one. He might know things that can help us navigate this dangerous game easier. To be hired for the job, he must be exceptional in what he does and that includes attention to detail, ability to remember people, faces, preferences, names…
The challenging part will be explaining why he’s here tied to a couch and convincing him to talk. If worse comes to worse, I have my ways of extracting information, but I’d rather Hex didn’t witness those. It’s one thing to be aware of the stuff I’ve done, to know what his father and I had to do when we were in the Thai Army, but it’s an entirely different matter to see what I am capable of in person.
Then again, knowing this cute demon, he’ll probably cheer me on while I extract our victim’s nails one by one.
Sighing, I produce the sedative’s antidote from the hidden pouch of my backpack, then aim a stern scowl Hex’s way. “No untying him, Tien. We don’t know how he’ll react. It might get dangerous.”
Hands halting before they’ve managed to undo the improvised restraints around Mong’s wrists and ankles, he smiles sheepishly. “I didn’t consider that.”
He’s such an airhead sometimes. A bit too innocent for his own good, too. But it’s one of the things I love about him—no matter who you are, Hex will always give you a chance. Even if you are a scary, grumpy mess of a man who joined the army because his own father disowned him.
Hex’s dad was probably the only person who knew the whole story. He never once judged me about my sexuality like my family did. He didn’t laugh at me, nor did he defend what my own flesh and blood did. He took me under his wing during those first few nightmare months at the army, and he stuck with me, becoming the first ever person that I considered a true friend.
