A real smile nearly broke through Aaron’s carefully neutral expression, drawn out by the thief’s conspiratorial eyes. Surprising, given the circumstances, but there was just something about her. Something that, despite not knowing anything about her except her occupation (which triggered alarm bells in even Aaron’s own notoriously terrible judgment of character), piqued his curiosity. Made him want to know more.
She was… alluring, this thief. In a way that felt strangely familiar, though he couldn’t figure out why. But it was also a little hopeless, thinking that he would before they went their separate ways. After this brief encounter, he doubted he’d ever see her again. She would always be an unanswered question from a time he’d just as soon forget.
Or so he thought.
Before he could respond, an uninvited arm slipped through his, freezing him in place. He hated when Harper did this, especially in front of other people. Like she owned him or something. That wasn’t too far from the mark, but it still made him uncomfortable – and, this time, a little confused. Why was she staking her claim now, when they were almost done? Was it just because he’d expressed too much interest in the thief? That hardly made sense. It was just a question, after all, and an innocent one at that.
He was so preoccupied with the dual puzzle of trying to understand Harper while simultaneously searching for a way to pull himself away from her that wouldn’t play into her games that he almost missed the answer as she laid it out right in front of him. He heard the words, but for a moment they didn’t register. Ms. Kyle. Litter box.
And then, very suddenly, they did.
He sucked in a sharp breath, his only visible reaction. Not for the first time, he was grateful that he was the reserved twin and not the reactive one like Nora; that was probably the only thing that saved his skin. His mind raced and his pulse spiked, but otherwise he kept his face blank, passively watching the spat unfold before him, doing nothing to draw their notice.
Selina. She was Selina.
Bruce’s Selina.
It all made sense now, as difficult as it was to wrap his head around. The thief’s behavior as much as Harper’s – and the whole reason why Harper had sent him in here alone in the first place. Well above his handler’s head and therefore out of sight, he narrowed his eyes at her, just for a split second, judging her anew. This had been a test, but not the kind he thought it was. All this, arranged just for him.
He set his mouth in a firm line and took a step forward, slightly in front of Harper. “Maybe another time?” His voice was colder now, flatter, but as much as he wanted to look away, he couldn’t keep his eyes from going back to the thief. “I think we’ve all got what we want.”