Page 26 of The Housebreaker's Assistant
Greer sent him the flattest look Penny had ever seen. He made it hard for Penny to keep silent instead of laughing.
“In, letters, out,” Greer said. “I’m not the best housebreaker in England because I dawdle about, taking tea and reading their books.”
“Tea and books,” Penny sighed with pretend longing. “That’s the life.”
Greer growled at him again, and Penny’s cock jumped.
It probably wasn’t an ideal state for him to accomplish an important housebreak, so he took a breath and steadied himself, then nodded to Greer.
Greer nodded back, then went to work on the lock.
It truly was amazing, the speed with which he was able to puzzle through it and open the door. Thankfully, because it was Mayfair the door’s hinges were well-oiled, and they hardly made a sound as Greer pulled it open.
As soon as they stepped into the unfamiliar kitchen, Penny sobered. He’d never been in a nob’s house before. He wasn’t prepared for the warmth of the kitchen or the delicious scents that seemed to permeate the air. Everything was so clean and well-kept that he felt a sudden pull to do exactly what he’d joked about and just sit and enjoy it for a while.
Greer had a better head on his shoulders. He gestured silently for Penny to follow him through the nearly pitch-black hall, feeling his way along until they came to a staircase.
The darkness suddenly felt stifling to Penny as they made their way up, one careful step at a time. The stairs creakedslightly, but moving slowly helped to bury the sound in the other cracks and creaks the house seemed to make on its own as it breathed through the night. Being nearly blind in an unfamiliar place had the hair on Penny’s neck standing up, though.
When they reached the top of the stairs, stepping out into a hallway, Greer reached into his pocket, took out his vesta case, and struck a match. That tiny flame illuminated far more than Penny would have expected it to. Greer searched up and down the hall, then nodded to one end, gesturing for Penny to follow him.
It was his first housebreak, and the thing that struck Penny more than anything was how slowly the whole thing unfolded. Greer knew how to walk in a way that barely made a sound. Penny imitated him as best he could, but he worried he was being too clumsy. It unnerved him to move through someone else’s space with its unfamiliar sounds and scents, especially since they had only the light of the occasional match Greer lit to guide him.
When they found Pennington’s study, Greer located a candle and lit that. It was such a tiny light, but Penny found immense relief in it. “What now?” he whispered as Greer looked around the room.
“Look for a correspondence box,” Greer whispered back.
Penny nodded and stepped deeper into the room. The walls were lined with more books than he’d ever seen together in one place. He glanced at the titles, wishing once again that he had more time to look, and perhaps even to read something. Reading was his favorite luxury, and it had been too long since he’d been able to indulge in it.
They weren’t there for books, though. Penny forced himself to circle around to the center of the room, where there was a long, leather couch with tables at each end. Those tables held various boxes and a crystal container that looked to be full ofcigars. With a grin, he lifted the lid and helped himself to a handful of those cigars, stuffing them into his pocket.
He couldn’t help but to treat himself to a gold-handled letter-opener as well, not to mention a small, silver bowl and an enameled brooch that had been inexplicably left on one of the tables.
“What are you doing?” Greer hissed from the desk, where he’d opened one of the top drawers.
“Enjoying myself,” Penny whispered back.
Greer rolled his eyes as he took a handful of letters out of the desk drawer.
They seemed to be precisely what they’d been commissioned to find, so Penny abandoned the rest of the room to walk over to Greer’s side.
“Are those the ones?” he whispered as Greer held his candle close to the lot.
Greer didn’t answer. He looked over the letters, checking addresses and opening a few to see who they were from and what they contained. Penny couldn’t read much from where he stood, but the letters seemed primarily to be about business transactions.
“These are the ones,” Greer whispered, stuffing the letters into a concealed pocket inside his black coat.
The letters weren’t the only thing Greer helped himself to. As he stepped away from the desk, Penny noticed another crystal dish, this one containing chocolates. Greer made a happy sound and opened the dish to plunder it, eating one chocolate right away and wrapping the rest in a handkerchief before tucking them in his pocket as well.
“You and your chocolate,” Penny laughed.
“We all have our vices,” Greer said in a low voice, grinning and leaning closer to Penny.
“That we do,” Penny said, blood rushing again.
They were close. Close enough that Penny could grab the front of Greer’s coat and pull him closer. Close enough to bring his mouth crashing against Greer’s chocolate-tasting one.
Greer made a sound of surprise and grasped Penny’s arms. His first movement was to push Penny away, but as soon as he did, he changed his mind and yanked Penny flush against him again, slanting his mouth over Penny’s.
