I deserve better. It’s going to take time for me to believe that, but something tells me they’ll find a way to make sure I do. “Thank you. For caring. For everything.”
“You might not be thanking us when you see how often we change the sheets in the guest bedroom.” Dash makes a face that gets me giggling as we pull ourselves together to leave.
“We almost never have guests,” Arden points out. “What, are we supposed to change sheets that don’t get slept in?”
Meanwhile, I’m surprised they even have a guest room. I can hardly wait to see what their apartment looks like.
* * *
This,I didn’t expect.
It was one thing to pull into the adjoining garage of one of the many downtown skyscrapers after Dash and Arden took me to the motel to get my things. Not that it took long, I didn’t have much to gather, but they’re too protective to let me go on my own. I was already asking myself the entire way up to the apartment how much this must cost per month.
Stepping inside is a whole other story. “This is where you live?” I stop dead on the spot after taking three steps inside the apartment. My eyes don’t know where to look first: the enormous living room, the incredible views beyond the windows, or the gas fireplace that Ranger turned on for our arrival.
Beyond the living room, there’s a huge kitchen with appliances that look brand new. After all, they don’t cook, so I guess everything would look pretty shiny. Everything I see from where I’m standing looks like it was decorated professionally. I don’t know what I was expecting. A frat house?
Arden must read my shocked expression for what it is. “We might have unusual tastes when it comes to sex, but we like to live well.”
Meanwhile, Dash is taking a seat at a desk in the corner that looks more like a command center, with four monitors and a keyboard that flashes colored lights when he touches it. He said something about having work to do once we got here.
Who works like that, in the middle of the night? Who lives like this when I know none of them came from money, and they seem to be able to drop everything whenever they want?
“Okay.” I leave my duffel bag on the floor by my feet, put my hands on my hips, and glare at all three of them. “If we’re going to have a future, I need to know the truth right now. What do you all do to make money? I think I deserve a little honesty to start things off right.”
“I told you this would happen, too.” Ranger looks a little sheepish as he rubs a hand over the back of his neck before dragging his fingers through his dark hair. Not the body language of a person who’s feeling confident.
“She’s right. She deserves the truth.” But Dash isn’t in any hurry to give it to me, which doesn’t make me feel much better. Should we have talked about this before deciding to go ahead and try to build a relationship?
Arden finally fesses up. He goes to a bar built into the wall beside the fireplace and pours himself what looks like whiskey. “It’s time for the truth. You probably already figured out what Dash does.”
“He’s a hacker.” I shoot him a look, and he at least has the decency to offer an apologetic shrug. “I figured that one out on my own, yeah.”
“The three of us own a tech company,” he continues, turning back to me. “Sorry, did you want a drink?”
“No, thank you. A tech company. What’s so bad about that?”
“For one thing, it’s a front.” He takes a breath deep enough to make his chest swell. “Dash handles enough of the tech side of things to make it look legit.”
“What do you really do?”
“Ranger and I are in procurement and sales.”
Procurement and sales. Right away, it makes me laugh. “So you steal things and sell them, is that what you’re telling me?”
“What made you jump to that conclusion?” Ranger asks.
“The way you picked the lock at my motel like it was nothing, for starters.” I look from him to Arden, arching an eyebrow.
“To be fair, they might as well have used one of those old hook-and-eye latches,” Arden offers. “But yes. You’re right. That’s what we do.”
“Art and jewelry, for the most part,” Ranger informs me, though I haven’t asked. I’m still a little too overwhelmed.
“Is it a deal breaker?” Arden lifts the glass to his lips, but his eyes never leave me. “It’s okay if you say yes. We should’ve told you this before.”
“It’s not that we don’t trust you. We just have to be careful.” Dash swivels his chair around, watching me intently as I process this.
“Sure, of course, you do.”