Steal: A Bad Boy Romance by D.G. Whiskey Page A

through the glass doors, headed toward the exit and the
crisp evening air. Stirring from my spot, I timed my stride so that I reached
the doors a moment after the two men on the other side. They pushed the door
open, and I looked them in the eyes and nodded thanks as I entered behind them.
    One down.
    The
“con” in con man and con job stood for “confidence,” and there was a reason I
was one of the best in the business.
    I
straightened as tall as I could and then slumped down slightly, mimicking the
posture of a man in his late twenties on an errand. Schooling my features to
match, I strolled along the hall toward the lobby and the
elevators—overseen by the guard at the security desk.
    Coming
into the lobby, I gave the guard at the desk a friendly nod and a half-wave as
I walked to the elevators. I stood there for a second, looking around for floor
buttons that didn’t exist, scratching my head at the magnetic card readers
beside each elevator door.
    “Can
I help you?”
    I
turned to the guard. He had partially stood from his seat behind the desk,
realizing that I didn’t belong.
    “Oh,
hey there. Are there no buttons for these things?”
    He
stood fully. “Sir, this is a secure building. If you don’t have an access card,
then I will have to escort you off the premises.”
    I
walked over to the desk and widened my eyes. “Oh, no, I’m so sorry. I didn’t
know I couldn’t come in here.” I looked down at the man’s shirt and read his
name tag. “Rob, you’ve gotta cut me slack, here.
My girlfriend’s up there working late tonight and I thought I could score major
brownie points if I brought her dinner, you know what I mean?”
    The
guard hesitated. “What’s in the bag?”
    With
quick hands I unzipped a pocket on the duffel bag and pulled out a large foil
bundle. A wisp of steam curled out from the packaging. “Just a burrito. It’s
her favorite .”
    “Damn,
that smells good.” He eyed me. “Where does your girlfriend work?”
    “ARCANE,
on the fourth floor. I know my way there, I’ve just never walked in without her
and I forgot about the card readers.”
    Rob
scratched his jaw. “Okay, go ahead. She’ll have to let you into the offices. I
don’t have control over that. I’ll be watching you on the cameras to make sure
you end up where you’re supposed to.”
    I
smiled wide. “Oh, thank you so much, man. I really appreciate this. If I get
lucky tonight it’s thanks to you.”
    He
chuckled and waved me off. “Just go feed your girlfriend. Have a good one.”
    “You
too.”
    The
elevator opened for me, and I gave the guard one final wave before I slid
through the doors.
    Two down.
    The
final barrier should be the easiest. When the elevator stopped on the fourth
floor, I called Kat.
    “Hello?
James? Did you not get my text? I’m still at work, I don’t think I’ll be able
to get together tonight.”
    I
grinned. “I don’t know, it might be easier than you thought.”
    “What
do you mean?” I loved when I could make her voice sound like
that—suspicious and curious at the same time.
    “Just
come out to the front of your office.”
    “James.
What are you talking about?”
    Through
the large glass double doors that separated ARCANE’s offices from the hallway
on the fourth floor, Kat appeared from behind an office door. Her jaw dropped
as I waved to her.
    “What
are you doing here? Oh, my God, James!”
    Kat
hung up and ran to the door, cracking it open. She tried to ask a question, but
I interrupted with a sudden deep kiss. It caught her off guard, but within a
second she responded with equal passion. I cracked an eye open and gave a
thumbs up to the closest camera and the watching security guard. The kiss was
brief, but by the time we broke it off, we were each a little out of breath.
    “Surprise,”
I said. “Thought you could use food and a break.”
    Her
nose widened as she inhaled. “Is that what I think it is?”
    I
nodded. “Burritos. I don’t know about you, but