| |
Hubert rested his hand on my back and it was all I could do not to pull away. The longer I spent with him, the more convinced I was becoming that he was just a little bit of a creep. I wasn't sure the word no would mean anything to him if we got in the wrong position. I didn't even know how I'd end up in that place though. I doubted the others would let things progress that far.
"You were saying about an auction?" he prompted.
"Yes. I heard there was one next weekend. I've never been to one and was hoping..." I trailed off, just like we'd practised. Our hope was that Hubert took the bait and offered to take me to it. Then all we needed to do was to work out how to get our fake painting as one of the lots. And get him to buy it. That was going to be one of the trickiest parts. The jitters over whether or not this would work increased by the day. Not that I mentioned it to the others. I didn't want them to think I wanted out of this or was going to end up compromising all the work we'd done so far.
"That might not be a bad idea. I've been meaning to go to one for a while and I'm sure there'll be people I need to catch up with there."
I didn't miss the leer he gave me. I was certain the people he wanted to catch up with were just men like him who he wanted to show me off to. Part of me was touched at him thinking I was attractive enough to boast about. The rest of me was just a little disgusted to have it confirmed that a world of creepy men like that existed. I supposed it was good news for us in this line of business, I should make sure I didn't show too many of them my face just in case they came across me again. I didn't want to risk the success of a future job.
"That would be wonderful." I clapped my hands together before leaning in to give him a kiss on the cheek. As little as I liked pandering to Hubert, he was part of my job and I needed to do it. More than just my feelings were at stake here.
"Do you have the details?"
I shook my head. "Not on me, but I can send them to you later?" I lied. We had a good idea where we wanted to hold the auction, but we needed to make sure they'd accept our painting before we got Hubert there. If we didn't, we'd have to stage something. We wanted to avoid that option if we could, it was safer to get the painting sold by a real auction house, it would leave us less liable when Hubert and the Earl discovered the painting was a fake. If they ever did. I kind of hoped they wouldn't and it would be hung up for all to see.
"That sounds perfect. You have such good ideas, Trina." He pulled me close to him and pressed his lips to my cheek. I tried not to think about the amount of saliva he left there. Dry kisses certainly weren't something he was capable of.
"I'm excited, I don't know what to expect." Faking enthusiasm was easier than I expected. Probably because I was excited, just not for the same thing Hubert was. Once money had changed hands at the end of the auction, we'd almost be in the clear. I'd just have one more date to go on with the man and we'd be done. And even then, that date wasn't necessary. We were just using it as a way of moving suspicion away from me.
"You'll have an amazing time. Auction houses are full of unexpected treasures." His eyes lit up with greed as he picked up his drink from the bar.
"What are the best things you've found at one?" I placed a hand on his leg, hating every moment of it. I wished we could have avoided an intimate setting like this. It was easier to fake interest without physical contact when there was a table between us. It was safe to say I'd be taking the hottest shower I could when I got back to the flat.
"That's a difficult one. We've found a few good investments. Some statues, one piece of artwork..."
My heart skipped a beat at discovering he was willing to buy art at these things. It was one of the first indications that we were trying to pull off the right plan.
"We managed to more than quadruple our investment on one of them. They're definitely worth going to. You should go with your money at the ready for these auctions."
"I'll keep that in mind." Maybe mentioning it had been a mistake. Hubert now seemed completely besotted with the idea and wouldn't stop talking about his various finds from the auction house. I kind of understood. It was the same thrill I was loving about doing a con. It was a chase and almost not getting what you wanted...I could see this auction becoming very dangerous for me on a lot of levels.