The Next Move

The excitement of the heist was still in his bloodstream the next morning, but Thalia had already turned her attention to what came next. Dean found her in the lounge, hunched over her laptop, chain necklace glinting under the sunlight. She looked up when he entered, those sharp blue eyes narrowing as if she were contemplating trusting him—a bit more.

"We're going to Blackridge City," she said, closing the laptop with a soft click.

Dean raised a brow. "Business trip?"

"Something like that." Her tone was smooth, but there was a dangerous edge. "There's a private event—a lot of powerful people. One of them needs to disappear."

Dean leaned against the doorframe, keeping his face casual, though his heart raced. This was big. Bigger than a bank job.

"Just us?" he asked.

She smirked. "Just us."

There was something intimate about that—dangerous, tempting. He knew what this meant. Trust. Or at least, the illusion of it.

"We leave tomorrow. Pack light. Suit up. You're not 'Daniel Ross' from the streets this time. You're my partner."

Dean nodded, playing it cool. But inside, he felt the lines blurring again—between the mission, the cover, and the undeniable pull toward her.