Mr.Big Shot // Rio (Good Girls)

Chapter Seven: Part-Time Criminal

There are very few things that come easily to people in life. Crime is not one of those things, but Alexa assured Annie that it was just fate and a bit of common sense that drove them forward the next few weeks without suspicion.

But she could see the doubt in Beth's eyes, and the smug look of knowing Rio gave when he dropped a duffel bag into the back of Beth's SUV that first night.

"Don't you dare." She had leaned in, speaking low. The ajar trunk provided a sort of cover for her confrontation, the shadows of late evening already springing up in the mid-August haze around them. The scent of artificially-grown decorative flowers was cloying and she felt as if she was under a huge blanket, having to breathe deeply to keep from passing out.

His smirk grew. "Do what? He played dumb, earning a scowl from Alexa. He seemed unaffected by the undesirable weather, somehow looking comfortable in a black bomber jacket, zipped low enough to reveal a shirt of a similar hue underneath it.

"Tell them." She shoved the bag deeper in the trunk, removing the distraction Rio had been reaching for.

His eyebrows had raised in an innocent look as if the idea hadn't occurred to him. "Hm, worried about something?" He gave up the act, leaning against the side of the car, his beanie low on his forehead. "Don't you want your partners to know who they're working with?" He tilted his chin up, looking down at her with that mischievous glimmer in his dark eyes.

Alexa shook her head furiously, blurting out several reasons why that was a bad idea. Rio listened with mild interest for a moment before raising his hand to signal for her to quiet. She plowed on, slowing her words to admit something she'd been afraid of for years: "And they'll leave. We'll both face the consequences of that. You know I can't do this for you without them, so..." Her voice took on a pleading tone as her insides writhed in embarrassment. "Please don't, Rio. Don't."

He surveyed her, head tilted slightly against a sweltering breeze. "So this is your hill to die on, huh?"

Alexa nodded, curls threatening to fall from her bun. She made no attempt to stop them, simply looking at him with her dark brown eyes, face slightly flustered.

He smiled, snickering at her reddening face. He pushed her away by the shoulders just to lean down to her level, head cocked to the side. "I'll try my best, but who knows if my tongue will slip one of these days." He smirked by her ear and had already turned to walk down the driveway when Alexa reached out and had grabbed his arm, pulling him back.

"Don't you dare." Her grip tightened, nails digging crescent wrinkles into his bomber jacket.

Rio stared blankly at Alexa's hand tugging her sleeve. His lazy smile turned to a sneer as he twisted his arm and shoved Alexa back against the ajar trunk, his forearm against her chest. "Do that again and my tongue will slip, okay?"

Alexa chewed the inside of her cheek, giving a simmering glare as a response. Rio took that as an agreement, stepping back. She couldn't help but notice how quickly that terrifying look left his eyes and wished she could mimic his transition. She couldn't see his next move any more than she could see her own. In someone like Beth's eyes, he was just a void.

"What'cha lookin' at?" He was back under the overhang of the ajar trunk, and something about his lowered voice that was previously intimidating was now awfully close to Alexa's ear and breathing down her neck.

She swallowed, eyelashes fluttering slightly as she told him firmly, "Nothing at all."

Rio gave a quiet laugh, patting her shoulders and turning to leave, the shadows of approaching evening sharpening his features. He turned, waving to the porch where Annie, Ruby, and Beth were huddled and staring quite obviously at whatever had just transpired. The hood of the car had hidden most of it, but Alexa's bitter expression as she trudged back into the house was enough to tell them something had happened.