All right, so the girl had some climbing skills. She was part-cat after all.
Smirking, I stayed in the shadows to watch. She landed on the balcony railing so lightly I couldn’t hear the impact and sprang toward the door there without hesitation. From the looks of it, she’d done this a million times. With a quick jiggle of the handle, she disappeared inside the house.
I eased into the yard. The house looked empty, no lights on, no vehicles in the driveway. An obvious explanation occurred to me—and was confirmed a moment later when I spotted a beefy guy lurking by a car on the other side of the cross-street in front of the house.
No one was home, but the place was under surveillance. Why had Mercy figured it was worth the risk of coming back here?
But she’d managed it without the heavies staked out in front noticing her. After about fifteen minutes, she reappeared and launched herself back onto the tree. I couldn’t see exactly how she made it down. Stepping back against the hedge next door, I let her hustle past me, a leaf she hadn’t noticed snagged in her dark hair. Then I stalked after her, a smile curling my lips in anticipation.
Probably looking for a busier spot where she could hail another cab, she set off at a brisk pace. After a couple of blocks, I figured we were far enough from the house to avoid the notice of what I assumed were Steel Knights sentries.
With several swift strides, I caught up to her, tucking my hand around her elbow as I reached her. “Well, fancy running into you here.”
She startled, slamming her hand against my chest before her gaze had found mine. Recognition lit there, followed by a mixture of wariness and irritation. Not exactly the response I’d want to provoke in her, but we could work on that.
“Fuck, you scared the living daylights out of me,” she hissed, jerking her arm out of my grasp. “What are you doing here?”
Still smiling, I stepped closer, forcing her back against the wooden fence of the nearest yard. I set one hand on either side of her, just an inch from her shoulders. Her eyes darted to the side, and I could see her calculating her chances of escape: very slim.
I hadn’t been quite this close to her before. Her scent hit my nose, like some kind of wildflowers that had caught on fire. Pretty and fierce at the same time. Perfect for the woman in front of me.
“I should be asking you that,” I said casually. “You came to the Nobles for help. Of course your movements are going to be monitored, especially when you leave the house in the middle of the night like some kind of thief.”
She scowled at me. “I had no idea that place had become my prison or that I wasn’t allowed to leave.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s a prison, but we have to take precautions. A lot of people would like a piece of the Nobles.” I cocked a brow at her. “Why on Earth would you come back to the Bend in the middle of the night when somebody is trying to assassinate you? Whatever brought you here must be nothing short of world-ending.”
“It’s none of your fucking business,” she spat out.
I leaned closer. “I think itismy business. You made it mine when you came to us for help.”
Mercy huffed in response, but I could see her pupils dilating. She shifted, visibly swallowing, her body just inches from mine. Was that a tiny tremor running through those delicious curves?
My grin widened. “Does the kitten like to be dominated?”
“Fuck you,” Mercy said, but she didn’t make any move to struggle. My hands slid down the fence, brushing the sides of her arms, and her breath caught just slightly. Ah ha. She might be pissed off about that, but she liked it too.
I resisted the urge to see how she’d react if I trailed my fingers over the mounds now straining against the thin fabric of her T-shirt. As much as I was enjoying the moment, I did have a job to do. “Now tell me, what are you doing here? Or do I need to haul you back to Wylder and let him ask the questions?”
At first she didn’t answer. My hands skimmed down to the level of her waist, and I gave into the impulse to splay my fingers over the sides of her full hips. She tipped toward me just a bit before reining her response in. Jesus Christ, this girl was built generously in all the right places.
“So, hauling it is?” I said, both teasing and serious.
“We don’t have to bring anyone else into this,” she bit out. “I was just stopping by my house—or at least, what was my house. I had something there I wasn’t willing to leave behind.”
“Didn’t we talk about this? You don’t need to stick your neck into harm’s way—just use that bastard’s engagement ring to get whatever money you need.”
She grimaced. “There are some things money can’t buy, you know.” She was quiet for a beat before she rummaged in her pocket and then held up something in her hand. I inspected it under the moonlight. It was a silver bracelet, too tiny to fit Mercy’s wrist and cheap-looking—the kind you’d give a kid. The wordsLittle Angelwere engraved into the plate clasped to the chain.
I blinked at her with genuine confusion. “You risked your life forthat?”
Mercy stuffed it back into her pocket with a scowl. “I don’t expect you to understand. My mother gave it to me. It’s all I have left of her.”
I stared at her for a few seconds, and she didn’t flinch away from my gaze. She was telling the truth. I took a step back, giving her a bit of space, a twinge of guilt running through my stomach.
I’d been playing around, trying to provoke her, when this whole expedition meant a hell of a lot more to her than I could have guessed. Now I felt like an ass.
Silence stretched between us. I groped for words and said the first thing that came to mind. “I do understand.”