Page 6 of Hide, Little Thief

There’s not enough oxygen for all of us. Every muscle in my body is strained, ready to fight, ready to run, ready to let them do whatever they want.

Their eyes roam my body as if I’m already naked, but I haven’t removed a single item of clothing. I will soon though. I have no doubt about that now. The air is thick with anticipation.

As if he read my mind, Reaper holds out his palm and says, “Take off your panties and give them to me.”

I keep my gaze fixed on him as I remove my black thong reluctantly, pushing it down my bare legs and handing the damp lace to him.

He slides it into his pocket as if it’s a prize. “Now go stand in front of the desk, both hands on top of it, back turned to us.”

“What?” I hesitate. My eyes shoot from Reaper to his masked friend, who hasn’t uttered another word, and back to him.

Why am I so attracted to this guy? Why am I doing everything he’s telling me against my better judgment? And why the hell does it turn me on?

“You heard me.” Reaper’s voice is a gruff warning, a reminder of who he truly is and what he’s capable of. He’s a Mafia enforcer. He’s seen the worst of the worst and done unspeakable things. “Don’t make me get over there and do it myself.”

I should be afraid of him. I am. But a sick and twisted part of me also feels drawn to him—because, somehow, it seems like he notices the real me. All the secrets I’ve been hiding. The dangerous and downright criminal things I did in the past. The dark, forbidden fantasies I’ve always kept to myself . . .

It seems as if he senses them, maybe even sees them all. And more.

There’s something about his darkness that mirrors my own. It feels familiar, intimate even, although that should scare the shit out of me.

But instead of trying to flee again, I follow his order.

My heart’s still beating like crazy, and a dangerous heat tightens my stomach as I place my palms on the countertop and stare down at it.

“Good girl.”

His approval sends a tingling sensation straight to my core.

“Now spread your legs for us.”

CHAPTER FOUR

My breath hitches in my throat, and I can feel my pulse everywhere now, but I widen my stance, leaning onto the desk as if I’m waiting for a police officer to frisk me.

Funny how it’s two criminal psychopaths wielding all the power right now.

Seconds tick by with me just standing there. Waiting. Holding my breath. Hoping for some kind of miracle.

A floorboard creaks, and my muscles tighten, readying themselves for whatever might come. My mind is creative enough to make up all kinds of scenarios, from scorchingly hot to devastatingly painful and outright murderous.

I’m fully aware I’m playing a dangerous game. I’ve seen others in this business rise and fall—sometimes even literally—to their deaths, for lesser reasons. The ways of London’s Mafia families are not new to me. For years, I’ve stayed clear of them.

Then I made the mistake of catching the attention of him.

Still staring at my hands on the countertop, I can’t see either of the men, but I can feel their eyes all over me. Then I hear both of them stalking closer.

I press my lips together, willing myself to not make a sound. I won’t give them the triumph of seeing my fear. Or any other emotion, for that matter.

A warm body presses itself against me from behind. I take a deep breath—and there it is. His damn scent. When pure ice meets burning wood and smells like sin, danger, and death, all rolled into one.

Reaper leans over me until his hardened cock is pressed against the seam of my barely clothed ass.

“You have something that doesn’t belong to you,” he says while trailing kisses down the side of my neck. “Remember those files you stole?”

I don’t even try to hide my smile. “Right now, I can’t even remember my own name.”

“I doubt that, Riven.”