Fool Me Forever (The Confidence Game 2)

A plot twist. Clever. “But there’s been a cost to me.”

He turned to face her, a wry smile. “What price, justice?”

She shoved his shoulder. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

“It should be our family motto. Instead, it’s ‘You can’t cheat an honest man.’ Sure, there’s a cost: time, energy, cash. But you’re not a Sherwood.”

“You mean it wouldn’t cost you?”

“We’d run a scam, have Cookie Jar seeing so many dollar signs he’s motivated to invest money to make more.”

It wasn’t an Oceans movie, but it felt doable. “This is not hypothetical, is it?”

“No. Like I said, this isn’t my area of expertise, and I can’t pull it off alone.”

Excel Boy had his professional limitations. “It’s a shame.”

“Yeah. Men like Cookie Jar get worse before they get undone by greed. If they ever do.”

She watched Halsey stare into his glass, a rueful expression on his face. “If, hypothetically, you had a partner in this scam, what would they do?” she asked.

“They’d be the one to lay on the charm, add the color, movement, and sound.” He looked up and caught her watching him. “Kind of like PowerPoint Girl.”

“Oh please.” She shoved his shoulder, making him grin. “No one uses PowerPoint anymore. And that’s not illegal.”

He picked up his glass. “It’s not entirely innocent, either.”

True. But it was also every occasion of hostessing she’d ever done for Dad.

Halsey sipped his whiskey. “They’d need to be desirable and always just out of reach. They’d dangle the keys to the kingdom, which for Cookie Jar is respect, acknowledgment, and making powerful friends. They’d lead him to me, and I’d take his money, show him up for the dangerous, egotistical fool he is. His political enemies would use his disgrace to take their country back.”

Now it sounded like all the Oceans movies slammed together in a marathon. “They’d be your accomplice.” That was what Fin had unknowingly been for Cal. “I couldn’t do that.”

“I w

ould never expect you to.”

And yet, he’d suggested it. “And you’re sure you couldn’t do this on your own.”

He shook his head. “Excel Boy has no razzle dazzle in his game.”

Halsey wasn’t a natural charmer, not one of those men who was all charisma and made you worry about the substance beneath the glamor. He was too buttoned up. From all appearances, he was credible. No one would know he was a con if you weren’t Lenny Bradshaw—and desirable, oh he was most definitely that. “You’re really sure you can’t put on an act?”

He turned on his stool. “I don’t think Cookie Jar would find me in any way alluring.”

She laughed. “Your accomplice needs to be a seductress?”

“It wouldn’t hurt. He’s between wives. He’s in the market for the admiration of a beautiful woman.”

“It’s good I don’t have a thing for cons.” She would’ve clapped her hand over her mouth, bitten her tongue to bring those words back. This particular con was still bleeding from having saved her from a mugging. “I’m not up for a game of seduction.” Words of warning.

“Lenny.” His gaze was on her in the mirror again. “There’s no game. You only need to smile to make a man interested.”

That should’ve come across as corny, but he delivered it with such earnest sincerity, it felt scarily real. She had no warning that her whole body would buzz.

Why did he have to be everything that was wrong for her?

She was the one who’d pushed this conversation; it was time to end it before she did something she regretted. She slipped down off her stool.