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"Better luck this time?" Dean asked as I flopped down onto the sofa.
"No. That man is an unpenetrable fortress."
I kicked off my shoes and leaned down to massage my toes. I wasn't used to wearing heels so much and they were taking their toll on my feet. I couldn't not wear them though. Hubert expected certain things and a highly polished exterior was just one of them.
"That's a pity. Did you mention the auction?" He sat down next to me, but left enough room for another person between us. I didn't examine the disappointment welling up inside me at the distance between us.
I nodded. "He seemed vaguely interested, but I'm not sure if he'll go for it or not."
"If he doesn't, we can find another way."
I grimaced. "I can't go on dating him without having sex forever," I pointed out.
Something flitted across his face that I didn't want to put a name to. There was very little doubt in mind that he didn't like what I'd just suggested. I wasn't the biggest fan myself and I certainly wouldn't be sleeping with any mark, present or future. That wasn't the way I wanted to get things done. And from everything I'd seen of the three men, I doubted they wanted it done this way either. They weren't the kind to cross certain lines. I just hoped I was right in my assessment.
"I know. But if you don't think you can hold out much longer, we can switch tactics and have you play someone else."
I chuffed. "You want me to pretend to be a different woman and date him all over again?" My eyes widened. That plan couldn't work...could it? I wasn't sure I had the acting skills but maybe the others would be able to teach me a couple of tricks on that front.
"Oh no, of course not. I only meant we'd move you to another part of the con. We'd probably try the run-in at the gym scenario."
"Remind me why you didn't go for that plan in the first place?" It would certainly have saved me several bad dates, which was always good as far as I was concerned.
"It's a lot riskier, and involves him seeing two of us. If we need something more elaborate later on, it involves more disguises and has a lot more risks. The dating angle made a lot more sense for getting close to him quickly."
I nodded. That made at least a little bit of sense to me. And I should be grateful, if they hadn't thought the dating angle would work better, I wouldn't be a part of this and would be back working my boring job and suffering through the rest of my very boring life.
"Is there a reason you didn't get one of your girlfriends to do this role instead of me?" I didn't want to outright ask which of them were single, that would open a can of worms I wasn't sure I was ready for, so leading questions was my best option.
Dean chuckled. "We're all single, Katie. Why do you want to know?"
I shrugged and attempted to look like I didn't care either way about the answer. I pushed down the happy feeling inside from learning none of them had other women in their lives. "Just wondering why you'd ask a complete stranger to be part of this but not someone you knew, loved, and trusted.."
"You thought we'd risk someone we don't know's future rather than put girlfriends at risk?" He sounded a little insulted but that wasn't my fault.
"They might not know what you do, it's not up to me to judge any of that."
"I don't think any of us would do that."
"So you don't date? Or are you just upfront with all the women you take for dinner about how you make your money?" No matter what, I wouldn't admit just how interested I was in the answer. It would affect my own future dating life if I stayed in this game.
"None of us really date."
"You don't?" My eyebrows flew upwards. Three attractive men shouldn't have any problem finding women to warm their beds. It surprised me they weren't taking advantage of that. I certainly would in their position. Though there was a part of me that was secretly thrilled they didn't have a parade of women walking through their lives.
"None of us are into the casual dating thing. It wasn't how we were raised. And ever since the whole thing with Maria, we've had even less of a desire to."
"Carl's sister?" I perked up. How was she linked to them not dating? And where did it slot in with what we were doing now? I didn't even know why I got the feeling this was all about Maria, but I did.
"He told you about her?"
"He mentioned her. He said she gave up hustling long ago."
"And a lot of good it did her," Dean muttered before glancing over his shoulder as if looking for Carl. The other man wasn't here, so I didn't really understand why he did that. "You'll find out at some point, so I don't see any problem with telling you."
I shuffled closer to him, our legs brushing together and sending sparks of excitement through me.
"My lips are sealed if they need to be." I tried to avoid the flirtatious note that filled my voice but failed miserably. I hoped Dean didn't notice.
"I'm sure they are. Maria is the reason we're doing this job."
"What?" My eyes widened again. That wasn't what I thought he was going to say and just left me with more questions than answers. "What happened?"
"She got work as one of the servants in the esteemed Earl's employ," Dean sneered.
"And he took advantage of that," I guessed.
"More than a little. He led her on. She has a baby now."
I gasped. No wonder the three of them were so determined to bring the Earl down a peg or two. If I hadn't been on board already, I would be now. That was a gross abuse of his power and my heart went out to poor Maria. I couldn't understand how people could be so thoughtless towards others.
"I take it she'll be getting the money you normally give to charity?" I asked, partly to discover whether or not Carl had been telling the truth about that. It wasn't that I didn't trust him, just that I wanted to be sure about a couple of things, especially as I was risking my freedom to help them.
"Of course not, that will go to an actual charity, as normal. The three of us will be giving Maria our cuts."
"You will?" My mouth fell open as I absorbed that. It was such a selfless thing to do.
"Of course. I've only met her a few times but it means a lot to Carl and he's one of my best friends."
"And where does Samuel fit in?"
Dean chuckled to himself more than to me. "He had a crush on Maria a few years back. It was actually how Carl met him. They worked together and he'd follow her around like a lost puppy. There was something truly adorable about it."
"And yet he started working with the two of you?" That didn't make sense. If Maria had left the conning game because she didn't like it, why would Samuel have come into it despite that?
"That was after she got a boyfriend. He started working with us because he's good with computers. We needed someone with experience and Carl approached him. Potentially so he didn't stand a chance with Maria, but I have no proof of that."
"Is he still interested in her?" I asked, already concerned that would be the case.
"Do I detect a hint of jealousy, Katie?"
Panic filled me. Was it that obvious how I was feeling about the three of them? Not that I was completely sure how I felt myself. I was attracted to them, there was no denying that, but something more? Only time would tell on that front.
"Sorry, I was only joking, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."
"It's not that," I responded. "It's just...I haven't known the three of you long and it kind of feels wrong to choose one of you to date."
"You don't have to make any decisions now." He shrugged. "Or ever for that matter. We're not going to be insulted if you're nothing more than our friend."
I smiled at him, surprisngly reassured by what he said. "Thank you. I would like us to be friends. Now and after."
"You want to stay friends with us after?" His eyebrows raised so high, I worried they'd reach his hairline.
"I want to con with you after," I whispered. It was the first time I'd admitted it out loud but I was going to go with it.
"You do?" His eyes lit up and his arm nudged against mine, sending yet more electricity through me. There was no doubt there was something between us, even if I wasn't ready to act on it yet.
"Yes. This has been the most fun I've had in years," I answered honestly. It was true even with the harder moments we'd experienced. Those challenges just made us have to think and plan more than we'd have had to otherwise. There was nothing wrong with that.
"I'm glad to hear that. The others will be too." He rested his hand over mine and squeezed. "We were worried making you date Hubert would have put you off."
I laughed. "Not at all. Don't get me wrong, it's not the best job I could imagine, but it's part of the job and it's something only I can do."
"And it makes you feel like part of the team," he observed.
"Exactly." I nodded away, glad he'd understood what I was really trying to say. "Now we'd better make a plan about what to do next before the others arrive." It wouldn't do to not have a plan of action. The success would only be assured if we reacted to the various changes as they happened.
We just had to hope we reacted quickly enough. If not, we risked far more than failure.