Stolen Desire (The Lust List: Kaidan Stone #3) by Nova Raines, Mira Bailee Page A

I see two maids in black and white through the crack in the door. They push their cleaning cart into the room, chattering in Spanish the whole time.
    Don't close the door. Don't close the door.
    Good God, please don't close the door.
    I try to figure out what they're saying, but my Spanish is rudimentary at best.
    Baño . Bathroom. They're talking about cleaning the bathroom. I hope.
    I hold my breath as they move the cart over the wooden floor. I can't see. I'm totally blind.
    I hear water running. Then some laughter. Are they both in there? What if the door is open? They'll have a clear shot of me if I try to leave.
    But I have to risk it. Once they're done with the bathroom, they'll clean the bedroom. Then they'll see me for sure.
    I peer around the door slowly, just enough to glimpse the bathroom. The door's wide open, and I can see the women. One's cleaning the tub, one's working on the sink.
    But neither are looking my way.
    It's now or never.
    I step around the door and into the open. I back through the door slowly, trying not to create a sudden flash of movement for the maids to pick up on. My eyes are riveted on them.
    One step. Two steps. One of the maids turns, but she doesn't look at the doorway. Three steps. I'm out of sight.
    I whirl around in the empty hallway and take off my shoes. Then I tiptoe the hell out of there as fast as I can.
    When I reach the door to my room, I put my shoes back on and try to look natural as I walk right past Kaidan's room and head for the stairs.
    My guilt grows with each step, filling my chest up until I feel I might burst from the pain of it.
    When I reach the foyer, I stop in front of the door, unable to open it. How could I do this to Kaidan?
    He said he loved me. And now I'm betraying him, stealing from him in his own home. And even if I could bring myself to betray him like this, how the hell do I expect to actually get away with it?
    I haven't been thinking clearly since I saw that picture of my brother. If I do this, if I walk out the door, Kaidan will never forgive me. And if he finds out I stole the diamond, and he probably will, I could be sent to jail.
    But the thought of the betrayal he'll feel hurts me far worse than the idea of jail.
    I can't do it.
    I'm taking it back upstairs. I'll wait until the maids leave, and I'll sneak into the master bedroom again and put it back. Then I'll go to Kaidan, and I'll tell him everything.
    And with that decision, a huge weight lifts off my chest.
    I know I've made the right choice.
    I turn back to the stairs, and all my hope for fixing this dissipates.
    “Hayley?”
    Kaidan's fully dressed at the top of the stairs, his cell phone in his hand. And he's angry .
    He knows. He knows I stole it.
    He comes down the stairs, and as he gets closer, I see his expression fade to something more like anguish, or regret.
    I just stare at him wide-eyed, my hand gripping the banister tightly, just waiting for him to demand I return the diamond.
    A knock sounds at the door. Then the doorbell rings.
    The anguish on Kaidan's face deepens. Something is very, very wrong. What did he do ?
    Charles appears in the foyer from the main hallway. He nods at Kaidan, his face a mask, no emotions showing, and doesn't even look at me.
    My eyes are riveted to the door as Charles opens it and steps aside.
    There are cops at the door.
    And they're here for me .

Dots dance across my vision, and I realize I'm not breathing.
    Kaidan reaches the foyer and rests a hand on my shoulder. I stiffen and look up at him.
    “I didn't want it to go down like this,” he says, his voice rough. “You shouldn't be here.”
    “Kaidan, please, I—”
    “Shh.” He squeezes my shoulder.
    The cops step through the door, staring at us, and then I see their coats. FBI. They're FBI.
    Confusion mingles with my fear. The FBI?
    The first officer holds up his badge and looks straight at Kaidan. “Kaidan Stone. You're under arrest for embezzlement, money laundering, and