Free Dealing with the Devil by Marina Black Page A

waterboard her. “Hey, I don’t like it either, sweetheart.”
    Lucy wanted to be angry but when Gabe stepped out in his suit, she forgot to be. She smiled appreciatively as he went from rugged biker to sharp-dressed hunk. Her heart fluttered in her chest at how badly she wanted him right now. “You clean up nice…”
    “I’ll look forward to getting dirty again later,” Archie chuckled, closing the distance between them. He pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. “Now, come on. We need to get you something to wear that’ll blow everyone’s mind. The Black Jacks won’t be expecting us to walk through the door of their hideout in our Sunday best.”
    “Sure, that makes sense.” Lucy genuinely wished they could get dirty again
now
. She decided to keep that musing to herself as they headed downstairs to grab directions to the nearest shopping plaza. According to the shrill-voiced clerk who’d checked them in yesterday there was a plaza on South Virginia Street, just a little ways down from the casinos.
    To avoid detection and keep their cover intact, Archie got them a cab. The less people knew of their whereabouts, the safer they’d be. He gazed over at her as they headed down the bustling Reno streets. “I want to make sure you call me Gabriel whenever we’re in public…”
    Lucy’s expression changed to one of surprise. “You
hate
it when I call you by your full name!”
    “I knew it! I
knew
you used my name to punish me,” Archie scoffed. He shook his head in annoyance. “Even our enemies call me Archie. There are very few people who know my actual name and that works out to our advantage. You call me by my real name and nobody will be any the wiser.” He narrowed his eyes. “A slip up could make us targets.”
    “You don’t need to worry. I never liked your stupid nickname anyway,” Lucy sighed heavily. “Gabriel is a beautiful name. It means strength and wisdom. It’s perfect for you.”
    Archie always thought she called him Gabe just to annoy him; knowing there was more to the story felt like a punch to his gut. Staring out the opposite window, he tried to ignore the warmth creeping into his veins again. It was becoming clearer by the hour that Archie wasn’t purging Lucy from his system; he was losing his heart and soul to her.
    * * *
    The Summit was a giant, glimmering, open-air shopping center that was crawling with people. The cab dropped Lucy and Gabe off at the taxi stand. He quickly paid and waded through the crush of bodies toward a boutique. Lucy felt her stomach begin to churn. “This place looks fancy…” Archie ignored Lucy and pushed open the door to the shop.
    A small bell chimed, alerting the staff that customers had arrived. A moment later, a tall, slim woman dressed like she just stepped off a plane from Paris had floated over to greet them. “
Bonjour
,” Her voice was thick with a French accent that Lucy instinctively knew was the real deal. This woman exuded class from every pore. “What can I assist you with today?”
    “My wife needs a whole new wardrobe.” Archie tugged Monster’s credit card out of his wallet and handed it to her. “Whatever she needs, we’ll take it.”
    Lucy had to bite back a chuckle as the woman’s face lit up. She was going to make a lot of money off them today. The associate grabbed the tape measure that was draped across her shoulders and quickly sized Lucy up. Once she’d been measured from every angle, the saleswoman rushed off and Lucy shook her head. “Monster is really going to regret prospecting me, huh?”
    “Oh, I think he already does,” Archie smirked. Lucy frowned at him. “Can you at least try and enjoy this? You’ve been wearing Danny’s hand me downs for years.” He peered at her. “You used to love wearing dresses, especially in the summer.”
    Lucy pushed down the feelings that threatened to rise to the surface again. “My
mother
loved those pretty dresses, skirts, heels, and accessories. But me? I’m just as