Page 187 of Nobody Told Me Thrift Shops Sell Stolen Dragon Heirlooms

“You’re hurt,” I said.

“I’m not.”

“You’re shaking.”

“I just assaulted a man with an artifact. My nervous system has notes.”

I crossed to her before I could reconsider. “Quinn.”

“I’m okay.”

“You could have been killed.”

“You too.”

“It’s not the same.”

Her face changed. “It is to me.”

The words struck harder than the baton.

For one second, the room fell away: broken glass, smoke, groaning thieves, the faint whine of disabled security. All that remained was Quinn standing in front of me, alive, furious, terrified for me, and holding a priceless bust as if she might use it again if the situation called for it.

I wanted to touch her.

I didn’t know where I had the right.

Then she set the bust on the nearest table with great care, stepped into me, grabbed the front of my jacket, and kissed me.

There was no time to think.

There was no negotiation, no careful weighing of consequence. Only Quinn’s mouth on mine, her hands fisted in my lapels, her whole body trembling with adrenaline and relief.

I caught her face between my hands and kissed her back, the restraint I had carried for weeks breaking cleanly into certainty.

She made a small sound against my mouth, and I felt it everywhere.

I angled closer, one hand sliding to her back, the other still at her jaw. She tasted like fear and mint and the tea she had probably finished on the ride here. Her fingers tightened in my jacket, dragging me down as if she had been waiting for the same permission I had refused to give myself.

Behind us, something cracked.

We broke apart, reluctantly, and I could still taste her, still feel the heat of her on my lips.

The bust had rolled off the table and landed on the floor.

This time, it broke.

Quinn stared at it.

I stared at it.

One of the thieves groaned, “That was worth more than my life.”

Quinn, breathless, looked up at me. “For the record, I didn’t break it during the assault.”

“No,” I acknowledged, still holding her.

Her laugh broke out of her, then disappeared when Dimitris shouted again, closer this time, followed by the sound of running feet.