"Of course. How does Friday sound?"
"It sounds perfect. Pick me up at eight?" That would give me plenty of time to get in from work and change into something more suited to the gold digger Hubert would find attractive.
"I look forward to it, Trina."
Not wanting to end up kissed on the lips, I leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek. Not too hard that he'd get the impression I was up for more right now. Hopefully, I'd put that thought to bed in the restaurant but I just wanted to be sure.
He smiled in response and watched as I slotted my key into the lock and turned it. I hoped it was just some kind of weird protectiveness and not him waiting for me to invite him in. I repressed a shudder at the thought.
I slammed the door shut behind me, eager to shower and remove the smarmy feeling from my skin.
"Is he gone?" I whispered, noticing Carl looking through the curtains.
"Yes. How did it go?"
I sighed and collapsed onto the sofa, knocking my heels from my feet and almost groaning as they released. I normally wore flats from day to day, caging my feet in heels for hours at a time wasn't something I relished.
"Not terribly, but he didn't give me much to go on. We might have to make this one up on the fly."
Samuel walked into the room and handed me a glass of water. "Did he give you any indication of the kind of thing we could use?"
I shook my head. "Not really. It seems his interests along with the Earl's are diverse. The only thing that stood out is that they won't invest in anything they see as high risk. Anything internet based is out."
"That's good to know." Samuel tapped a finger against his chin, lost in thought. "Anything else?"
"They bought a Monet for the investment. But unless we can get our hands on one of those..."
"He bought what?" Carl turned around to face me, grabbing a bottle of beer from the coffee table and chugging a bit of it down.
"A Monet," I repeated.
"That one might be a little difficult to pull off," Samuel mused.
"Or maybe not," Dean said, walking into the room and sitting next to me on the sofa.
"What are you thinking?" Samuel asked, a thoughtful look crossing his face.
"It's going to be difficult to get Katie to convince him she's investing in real estate. But a painting...they could come across that by accident."
"I did say I loved Monet," I mused. "But doesn't that mean we need to get hold of a painting?"
"That won't be a problem." Carl started typing away on his phone. "Micheal owes me a favour."
"And you're going to cash it in to imitate a Monet." Dean nodded as if this was an everyday conversation for them. Maybe it was.
"Wait, you want to imitate a Monet?" My mouth falls open as the meaning of what he's saying kicked in.
"Unless you have a better idea." Carl shrugged.
"Not really." But I couldn't help wondering how we'd manage to make this happen without giving ourselves away.
Chapter 5
"Wow." I almost couldn't believe what I was seeing in front of me. I wasn't an expert when it came to art, but this definitely had me fooled for the real thing.
"It's perfect, Michael, you've made my girlfriend's day." Carl put his arm around me and squeezed me tightly. I knew it was all an act but I couldn't help but love the feeling of his body so close to mine.
"You don't mind that it's not the real thing?" Michael asked me. "Most people don't commission their own pieces." He flashed Carl a knowing look.
"Not at all, it's hard to tell it's not," I assured him.
"Why do you even want a fake?" He turned away and carried on painting, my answer clearly not affecting anything.
"Not a fake, an imitation. I have friends I want to impress." I beamed, knowing he could still see me from the corner of his eye.
"And they don't know enough about art to know you wouldn't be able to afford a real Monet?"
I laughed loudly. "They wouldn't even know what a Monet was if they were asked about it. That's more for me. I love his paintings and if I have to look at something, it should be something I like looking at." I just had to hope the lie was enough to convince him, we didn't want to tip Michael off that we were doing something so illegal with his work. Well, more illegal than his imitations were in the first place. Whether he liked it or not, what he was doing could also end up getting him into trouble.
"Makes sense to me. When do you need it by?"
"As soon as you can be finished," Carl responded. "You have meetings next week don't you, sweetie?"
"Huh...oh yes. Lots of meetings next week."
"I'm not a charity. Favour or not, that's going to cost you."
"Of course," Carl countered. "We never expected you to do this for free. The favour is just fitting us in."
"Hmph," Michael responded.
"We'll pay well." Carl pushed a briefcase in the artist's direction.
My heart pounded as nerves built. We hadn't set the rest of the plan in motion yet, but if Michael said no, we'd certainly be set back a little bit. My second date with Hubert was fast approaching and we needed to start steering him in the right direction. Getting in and out as quickly as we could, not let this drag out for weeks. That was a risk that would no doubt land us with a stint in jail each.
Michael unclicked the briefcase and looked inside. "I'll have it done by Monday."
"Thank you," Carl said.
"I can't wait to see it." That wasn't even a lie. I'd never seen a forgery before and a part of me was excited to discover what one was like.
"No doubt." Michael turned back to the painting he was working on. "Now if that's everything..."
"Yes. Thanks, Michael. Just let us know when you're done and we'll come pick it up." Carl smiled at the artist's back, but the gesture could be heard in his voice.
"See you then."
It took me a moment to realise that was a dismissal.
Carl took my hand and we walked out of the studio. I wouldn't say it out loud, but I liked the feel of our hands entwined together. It felt surprisingly right to be walking next to him. I didn't want to think about that too much about what was going on. We had to concentrate on the con and the long game. There was no way I could see this through while getting my feelings involved.
"Why didn't you tell him what we're really doing with the painting?" I asked as soon as we were in the car. The question had been plaguing me since we'd arrived but I thought it was better not to voice my question in front of Michael.
"He'd want more for it if he knew the plan." Carl chuckled at the thought.
"So he's not worried about being caught?"
"I doubt it. He's not the kind to ever sign one of his pieces and as far as I know, he never does one without a commission, only takes cash, and is very careful with his clientele."
"Seems risky." I leaned back in my car seat as Carl pulled out of the parking spot and headed back to the flat.
"It is. Someone was caught a while back for forgeries. He's out now and makes a living from official copies. I don't know how Michael feels about that, but it doesn't seem like the worst outcome of being caught."
"I suppose not, no."
"It's better than we're looking at if this goes wrong, Katie," he warned me.
"I know." The consequences of what we were doing weren't lost on me. Far from it. We were playing with our freedom with every law we broke. And there were plenty of them we were breaking. I wasn't entirely sure if a law existed against commissioning counterfeit paintings but there was bound to be one.
"Are you still okay with it?"
"I have no choice," I reminded him. "Or you'll tell the police all about my little adventure with Walter."
The two of us lapsed into silence after that. No doubt he was feeling a little guilty over how they'd gotten me on board now that he knew a little bit more about me.
"I'm sorry I did that."
I shrugged even though he wouldn't be able to properly see it. "You nee
ded to get me on board."
"You don't seem all that bothered by it," he prodded.
"I don't see the point of dwelling on the past. Besides, I'm having a lot of fun with you and the others."
"Ah, the thrill of the chase," he teased.
"Partly. But life was getting dull and this gives me something to focus on." The most worrying thing about that was that it wasn't even a lie. I had been bored and this was fun. And I knew what they said. High risks led to high rewards no matter what game was being played. I just happened to like this one.
"That must have been a very dull life to be swayed into conning."
"What can I say, life was getting that way."
"Hmm."
"How did you get into this?" I asked, not wanting the car to become completely silent as we made our way back to the flat.
"My Dad."
"Your Dad?" I couldn't hide the surprise in my voice. Of all the things I would have guessed, a family affair wouldn't have been the first idea that popped into my head. I doubted it would have made the list at all if I was honest.
"He was really into it. Instead of talking to me about cars or sport, he'd show me how to fake card tricks and do sleight of hand. At first, I thought it was just for fun, but when I was twelve, he used me in a con for the first time."
"Twelve? What kind of..."
"It was just to distract a mark. I didn't actually know what I was a part of until later in life. Technically, he's never actually admitted that's what it was either." Carl didn't look at me as he drove.
"So how do you..?"
"Because why else would he have me lie about my name and where my parents were? He used my sister too."
"You have a sister?" That surprised me, though I wasn't sure why. Maybe it was just because I hadn't imagined that any of them had lives outside the job we were doing. Maybe that was unfair of me. Then again, I doubted any of them had thought about what my life was outside of this. Or what I might be missing to go on dates with the mark. It didn't matter that I wasn't missing anything at all. I didn't have much of a social life. Nor did I particularly want one.
"Yes. Maria."
I didn't push him any further on that. I didn't want to turn him against me.
"What happened after that?"
Carl sighed, but I could see the small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. Now we weren't talking about his sister, he was back in more comfortable territory. "Dad used us in more and more of his cons. It wasn't until Maria was eighteen and decided she didn't want to do it anymore and left. Dad...well, he didn't take it well. Almost as if it was an insult to him. But we carried on."
He lapsed into silence again and I didn't press. He'd tell me the rest in a moment I was sure.
"Where is he now?" I asked when it appeared he wouldn't tell me what I wanted.
"He got caught. About three years ago. He didn't give up a single name of the other people that worked with him but they all went their separate ways regardless."
"Is that when you met the others?" It didn't seem like Carl had grown up with Dean and Samuel, but what did I know. They were conmen. For all I knew, they hadn't even given me their real names in the first place. I might not be getting my share of the profits from this scheme either.
"I knew Dean already. He's great with fake IDs and Dad was using him before he got caught. I was the one who got sent to pick things up."
"And so he just started doing jobs with you?" I pulled my eyebrows together, confusion crashing through me. It didn't quite make sense to me.
"He actually asked me. Someone stole money from his Mum and the police failed her. They tried, but they just couldn't find the evidence against the man, even though they knew without a doubt he'd done it."
"That's not really their fault," I murmured, feeling like I should at least try and sound like a reasonable law-abiding person. I realised the irony considering what I was now part of.
"Oh no, not at all. The police did everything they could, but it did Dean's Mum no good. So he did something about it. Isn't that exactly what you did with your mark too?"
I nodded. "He hurt my friend. Nothing would have stuck if it had gone to court."
"That's what motivates Dean too. It's why we'll never go after someone who hasn't done something wrong in the first place." Carl looked in his mirrors before turning left onto one of the streets leading to the flat. If I wanted to know more, then I needed to ask fast. I wasn't sure why I didn't want to ask all three of them about this at once, but something was stopping me.
"And you're happy just going with that?"
His answer could change everything for me. I didn't want him to be the kind of person who'd just con money out of anyone. Which was ridiculous, even I couldn't ignore that. But if I was going to keep on doing this, then I needed to be sure they were the kind of people I wanted to mix with.
"Yes. I'm not saying it's always been that way. Dad wasn't quite as discerning when it came to picking his marks. But since they put him away, we've done things this way," he assured me.
"An eye for an eye," I muttered.
"Something like that." He turned and gave me a weak smile.
"I like that," I whispered.
"We give some of the money to charities too. Anonymously. But we give away a decent amount of it."
"That's a nice thing to do." Hence why I'd done the same with Walter's money too. I didn't want to keep it on me, but I did want to do something with it.
"It's necessary. If we didn't do it, then the guilt of how we got the money in the first place would be too heavy."
I nodded. Understanding completely. I wanted to ask more, but didn't feel like it would get me anywhere. I didn't want him to think I was questioning them too much. That could lead me to being cast out when really, what I wanted was to be even more involved. This wasn't a short term con for me. I wanted this for good.
Chapter 6
"Better luck this time?" Dean asked as I flopped down onto the sofa.
"No. That man is an unpenetrable fortress."
I kicked off my shoes and leaned down to massage my toes. I wasn't used to wearing heels so much and they were taking their toll on my feet. I couldn't not wear them though. Hubert expected certain things and a highly polished exterior was just one of them.
"That's a pity. Did you mention the auction?" He sat down next to me, but left enough room for another person between us. I didn't examine the disappointment welling up inside me at the distance between us.
I nodded. "He seemed vaguely interested, but I'm not sure if he'll go for it or not."
"If he doesn't, we can find another way."
I grimaced. "I can't go on dating him without having sex forever," I pointed out.
Something flitted across his face that I didn't want to put a name to. There was very little doubt in mind that he didn't like what I'd just suggested. I wasn't the biggest fan myself and I certainly wouldn't be sleeping with any mark, present or future. That wasn't the way I wanted to get things done. And from everything I'd seen of the three men, I doubted they wanted it done this way either. They weren't the kind to cross certain lines. I just hoped I was right in my assessment.
"I know. But if you don't think you can hold out much longer, we can switch tactics and have you play someone else."
I chuffed. "You want me to pretend to be a different woman and date him all over again?" My eyes widened. That plan couldn't work...could it? I wasn't sure I had the acting skills but maybe the others would be able to teach me a couple of tricks on that front.
"Oh no, of course not. I only meant we'd move you to another part of the con. We'd probably try the run-in at the gym scenario."
"Remind me why you didn't go for that plan in the first place?" It would certainly have saved me several bad dates, which was always good as far as I was concerned.
"It's a lot riskier, and involves him seeing two of us. If we need something more elaborate later on, it involves more disguises and has a lot more risks. The dati
ng angle made a lot more sense for getting close to him quickly."
I nodded. That made at least a little bit of sense to me. And I should be grateful, if they hadn't thought the dating angle would work better, I wouldn't be a part of this and would be back working my boring job and suffering through the rest of my very boring life.
"Is there a reason you didn't get one of your girlfriends to do this role instead of me?" I didn't want to outright ask which of them were single, that would open a can of worms I wasn't sure I was ready for, so leading questions was my best option.
Dean chuckled. "We're all single, Katie. Why do you want to know?"
I shrugged and attempted to look like I didn't care either way about the answer. I pushed down the happy feeling inside from learning none of them had other women in their lives. "Just wondering why you'd ask a complete stranger to be part of this but not someone you knew, loved, and trusted.."
"You thought we'd risk someone we don't know's future rather than put girlfriends at risk?" He sounded a little insulted but that wasn't my fault.
"They might not know what you do, it's not up to me to judge any of that."
"I don't think any of us would do that."
"So you don't date? Or are you just upfront with all the women you take for dinner about how you make your money?" No matter what, I wouldn't admit just how interested I was in the answer. It would affect my own future dating life if I stayed in this game.
"None of us really date."
"You don't?" My eyebrows flew upwards. Three attractive men shouldn't have any problem finding women to warm their beds. It surprised me they weren't taking advantage of that. I certainly would in their position. Though there was a part of me that was secretly thrilled they didn't have a parade of women walking through their lives.
"None of us are into the casual dating thing. It wasn't how we were raised. And ever since the whole thing with Maria, we've had even less of a desire to."
"Carl's sister?" I perked up. How was she linked to them not dating? And where did it slot in with what we were doing now? I didn't even know why I got the feeling this was all about Maria, but I did.
Con With Me Page 3