And then Maddy felt…
Maddy reached for the stack of cards with sudden, desperate purpose. ‘Right,’ she said, too brightly. ‘My turn.’
Hannah lit up. ‘Yes! That’s the spirit.’
Maddy didn’t hesitate. She pulled a card and flipped it over, already bracing herself. Her eyes scanned the words. Then stopped. Then, reluctantly, read them again.
‘What’s it say?’ Hannah demanded.
“Steal something from the person to your right without them realising. You have one minute,” Maddy read aloud.
Mary made a sound of pure delight. ‘Ooh.’
Maddy turned her head, slowly, to look at Eva. Eva raised an eyebrow, entirely unbothered. ‘Well,’ she said, taking a calm sip of her drink.
‘You have one minute,’ Hannah sing-songed.
This was fine. Maddy could do this. She would just take something small.
Eva set her glass down, watching Maddy with quiet amusement. ‘Go on,’ she said softly. ‘I’m intrigued.’
Maddy’s stomach flipped. She leaned cautiously into Eva’s space. Close enough to notice details she absolutely did not need to notice. Her fresh scent. The way a loose strand of dark hair curved near her neck.
Maddy reached for the safest option. Eva’s napkin. She lifted the napkin, holding it up like proof of innocence. ‘There. Done.’
‘That’s it?’ Mary said, deeply disappointed. ‘You had a full minute!’
‘It’s a perfectly valid theft,’ Maddy said defensively.
Eva tilted her head. ‘Except that I did realise you were doing it.’
Maddy narrowed her eyes slightly. ‘Are you saying it doesn’t count?’
‘That’s your call,’ Eva said, arching an eyebrow.
The bead of sweat was back. Or maybe it had never left.
Maddy hesitated. Then, some mad instinct took over. And Maddy, for once in her life, didn’t fight it. ‘Actually,’ she said, lowering the napkin slightly, as if reconsidering. ‘You’re right. This is a bit uninspired.’
Maddy leaned in again, closer this time. Close enough that it could still be explained away as part of the game.
‘Hold this,’ Maddy said, and without waiting for permission, she pressed the stolen napkin lightly into Eva’s hand.
Eva blinked, caught off guard for the first time. It was all Maddy needed. Because while Eva’s attention flicked down—just for a second—Maddy’s other hand moved.
Her fingers slipped just inside the edge of Eva’s jeans pocket. She felt it. A small, smooth shape. Maddy withdrew her hand just as neatly, curling her fingers around the prize as she leaned back into her own space, pulse thundering in her ears.
Eva’s gaze snapped back from the napkin to her pocket and then up at Maddy.
Maddy held it for a beat. Then she opened her palm. A lipstick.
There was a collective gasp around the table. ‘Oh my god,’ Hannah breathed.
Mary looked delighted. ‘That’s apropercrime, that is.’
Maddy barely heard them. She was watching Eva.
Eva glanced at the lipstick, then back at Maddy. She looked delighted.
