"Diablo's Heart?" I asked. "I have never heard of it."

"No one has," Jace said. "It's the Catholic Church's best-kept secret."

Jace smirked before taking another swig of his beer. He stretched his arm over the back of the couch. I was leaning forward, resting my elbows on my knees, and passing my beer bottle from hand to hand. A new jewel? Maybe this wouldn't be such a bad night after all.

"Tell me more," I said.

He loved tantalizing me with minimum details, and it drove me nuts.

"A cardinal in Italy accidentally mentioned Diablo's Heart," he said. "He said that it was the most valuable jewel to the Catholics. There are a bunch of theories about it, but people are thinking that it could be a Carbando."

A black diamond?

Those and emeralds were my favourite stones.

"What's with the creepy name?" I asked.

"It's supposedly cursed," he said. "Something about it being possessed by the souls people have sold to Satan. I didn't get a lot of details."

"Did you get any details?"

"I told you earlier that this jewel is a secret."

"If it is a secret then it will be worth nothing."

"The rumours are spreading fast. Everyone will know about this soon. We have to get it before everyone is searching for it. This is going to be our biggest payout yet."

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. It sure was tempting. We say every job will be our last, but we know that is never true.

"Where is it?" I asked.

Jace shrugged.

"How am I supposed to know?" he asked. "I just heard theories about this gem."

"Where are you getting these theories?" I asked. "Are they reliable?"

"I heard this all at The Cave."

I raised a brow before bringing the bottle to my lips. Jace pulled his loose tie over his head and tossed it on the couch.

"You actually went to that brothel?" I asked.

"Brothel?" Jace placed his hand on his chest. "It is an exclusive club for gentlemen."

I rolled my eyes.

"It's a place to go to have sex with prostitutes," I said.

"You say that like it is a bad thing," he said. "I had a great time with Topaz."

"Her name was Topaz?"

"Yeah, they're all named after jewels. It's perfect for us. You should really go."

"Not my scene. I don't need to pay a woman."

"So your date tonight didn't want you for your money?"

I gritted my teeth and tightened my hold on the bottle. It was a miracle that it did not shatter in my hand. What he was saying was true, but I hated to admit it.

"That is not the point," I snapped.

I took another swig of my beer. My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out to see Abby had responded to my text complaining about Mindy.

Abby: I thought she would be a good date for my wedding!

I rolled my eyes. This was going to turn into a pointless back-and-forth. I set the phone down on the table. Jace took his feet off the coffee table and snatched my phone. I reached out for it, but he contorted his body so that I could not reach it. I could see him going into the store to download apps.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I got this dating app the other day," he said. "It's called Flirtley."

"I don't need a dating app."

"Yes, you do. I have a great idea."

"What is that?"

Jace did not answer me. He tapped his thumb on the phone for a minute without saying another word. I finished my beer as I watched him. He had a wide smile as he passed the phone back.

"There is your generic profile," he said. "You won't look like you have stolen millions. Your sappy heart can finally have a girlfriend."

I scrolled through the profile. He used photos of me at my mother's house, baseball games, and the lake. None of them hinted at my wealth. I raised my brows when I looked at the job description.

"I'm in event planning?" I asked.

"Yes," Jace said. "Did you want me to write that you are a professional criminal? It wouldn't fit the look that I am going for."

I shook my head and I set the phone back down on the table.

"Forget girls," I said. "Tell me more about Diablo's Heart."

"I told you all that I know," he said. "There's a man that comes to The Cave on Saturdays. They call him The Phantom. I couldn't seem to find him tonight. Apparently, he was with a girl when I got there. He knows everything about this. I say we go together next Saturday."

"I have to go to that place?"

"Yes."

"Fine."

--

I laid in bed staring at the ceiling for what felt like hours. Sleep felt like it was so far away and unattainable. It was almost as if the scars on my back were throbbing. A haunting reminder that I could not forget.

I sighed and reached for the lamp on my nightstand. The room filled with a dim glow. I picked my phone up and pulled it off the charger. I would have to pass the time until either I'm tired enough to fall asleep or the sun rises.

I bit down on my lip when I saw a notification from that stupid app that Jace downloaded. It let me know that girls liked my profile. The fake profile that Jace decided to create.

I opened Flirtley to see a picture of a girl named Charlotte. She was blonde, a nurse, and a cat lover. She seemed wholesome enough. I liked the profile and we matched. I didn't bother messaging her as it was unlikely that she was also awake at three in the morning.

I swiped through profiles, liking and disliking various girls. I gained a couple of matches, but I did not bother to message any of them. All of the girls seemed the same. They were all in short tight dresses at nightclubs or had a glass of wine in their hands. A lot of girls had nothing but travel photos.

This was another one of Jace's dumb ideas.

I was going to turn my phone off when a profile caught my attention. The first picture was of a girl in a cafe. It was one of those places with overpriced coffee, fancy scones, and hanging plants on the wall. She had the mug in her hands and up to her lips. She was wearing an oversized knit sweater. Her large bright green eyes made my heart flutter. There was no way that those were her natural eyes and not contacts. No one had eyes like that.

I swiped to the next photo to see it was an action shot of her at a volleyball game. She had on a T-shirt, shorts, and knee pads. Her dark hair was up in a ponytail. Her green eyes stood out just like they did in the first photo. Her hands were in the air ready to hit the ball.

The next photo was of her at an art exhibit. It was a candid photo of her looking at a painting. Her head was cocked to the side as she was analyzing the art.

The last picture was of her at the beach in a sundress with her feet in the water and sandals in her hand. She had a wide smile. I was a little disappointed to see that she had a pair of sunglasses covering her eyes.

I looked at what was written in her profile.

Gracelynn, 25

*insert deep quote here*

I chuckled. Gracelynn seemed like the kind of girl I always wanted. She was the type of girl that I wanted to be set up with instead of Mindy. From her pictures, she seemed like the kind of woman that was down to Earth. Besides, I could probably stare in those eyes for hours. Interestingly, there was no information filled out for the job or school section. She had no other information on her profile other than the minimum profile.

I liked her profile and her pictures disappeared. We weren't a match. I swore out loud. I should have taken a screenshot or something of her photos. Or would that be creepy? I don't know the protocol for this kind of thing.

I tossed my phone on the nightstand. I stood and dragged my feet over to the couch and decided to watch a movie to distract myself. I forced myself to stay on the couch and not check my phone to see if I matched with Gracelynn.

I haven't even met this girl and she's already affecting me.

I don't like this.