CHAPTER 2

Ash was more pleased to see her standing there than he cared to admit. It made him even happier to see her holding his wallet – and he was prepared to bet his take from last night that it contained the same amount of money now as when she'd taken it. He opened the door wider to let her inside.

She took a good look around the Penthouse and whistled inwardly as she slipped the wallet back into her jacket pocket. She thought about her little flat in a far less salubrious part of London - if this was what running long cons got you she was definitely in the wrong game.

"Drink?"

She thought for a second. To booze or not to booze. For some reason the idea of watching Ash 'Three Socks' Morgan make her a cup of tea tickled her immensely, and she was always mindful of alcohol making her too relaxed and the danger of giving too much away. She knew that what happened next could change everything. She also knew, though, that tea wouldn't do much to prevent the nervous energy currently racing through her body from moving to her hands. On a totally superficial level she fancied the pants off him, but now the chance to get to know him, to get even a tiny insight into what went on in that brain was too good an opportunity to pass up.

"Thanks. What have you got?"

"Pretty much anything you fancy, apart from Absinthe."

She raised her eyebrows…

Ash grimaced and shook his head, "Absinthe… Sean… a balloon whisk… it all got very messy. I could tell you more but then I'd have to kill you."

She laughed, "OK, I'll chance a scotch on the rocks."

Drink in hand she followed him out onto the balcony and sat next to him on the bench facing the surrounding rooftops. It was a mild day for January and the weak winter sun was adding a benign glow to the sky. They sat and contemplated the London skyline. Although they didn't know it they were both thinking the same thing, marvelling at a view that neither would ever tire of, and very, very aware of the other's proximity. Finally she took the wallet back out of her pocket and held it out for him. Ash looked at the wallet and then at the girl as he took it from her hand.

"Sorry." She said. "I'm not in the habit of ripping off grifters."

"Why'd you bring it back?"

"Well…" she looked at him, "Your mate from last night was Michael Stone, right?"

Ash nodded.

"You two are pretty much legends – the grifters the rest of us only wish we could be..." She broke off laughing, embarrassed and slapped her palm to her forehead. "God, sorry. What a simpering twit."

"Don't mind me. Mention my legendary sex appeal and you can have another drink."

She fingered her whisky glass nervously and hoped her face wasn't as red as it felt. If only he knew…

"Seriously, if you were a footballer you'd be Ryan Giggs."

"A hairy bloke with no personality?"

"Ha! No… how can I put it… 'a master of technique and a role model for us lesser mortals'."

She let her intense embarrassment sit in the air before she decided to plow on.

"Being as you are who you are, I knew you'd find out who I was sooner rather than later. Returning it seemed like the sensible option. If I've learned one thing over the years it's that you should never, ever piss off a fellow grifter. You never know when it'll come back and bite you on the bum… or when you might need their help"

Ash noted the after-thought to the sentence but decided not to pursue it for now. "Well thank you."

"Besides, I don't suit concrete boots. Converse are much more my thing for daywear," she said, waving a foot airily in his direction.

Ash took on a look of mock indignation "We're not the bleedin' mafia you know."

"Really? I heard Mickey did time for attacking someone with a baseball bat?"

"Yeah, but that was a crime of passion. I don't like my wallet THAT much."

They both laughed.

Ash sneaked a glance. Her whole face had lit up as she laughed. His curiosity had been piqued and he wanted to know more about her, but something was holding him back. She was like a beautifully wrapped present underneath the Christmas tree. The promise of what was inside was almost the best thing about it. When you finally saw what it contained you could end up delighted, but there was always the danger of real disappointment.

"So was last night a one off? You ever do long cons?"

"Nah. I always think I'll start doing them when I grow up… it just doesn't seem to have happened yet."

"Delayed gratification, that's what the long con is all about. You don't get the immediate thrill of a pocket full of cash when you go home at the end of every day, but the buzz is so much better. It's about having the right people around you. That's Mickey's job, of course. That and working out the plan. I'm more of a grafter than a grifter."

She exploded with laughter and elbowed him playfully in the ribs "Oh spare me the false modesty! Everyone says Mickey wouldn't be half as good as he is if he didn't have you in his team. The con is an art form. I'm still working with chunky crayons and trying to keep inside the lines"

Ash laughed quietly to himself.

"What's so funny?"

"Someone I used to know used to say the same thing about long cons. You just remind me of her…"

"In a good way…?"

Ash looked at her and held her gaze "Yes, in a very good way…"

After a while they lapsed into companionable silence. She finished her drink and, happy that some ground work had been laid, decided to make her move. Standing up she laid a hand gently on his shoulder.

"Thanks for the drink. I'd better go. You know, things to do, people to avoid, piles of cash to bank."

As they got to the door she turned. She clearly had something on her mind.

"Did you know it was me who'd taken your wallet?"

Ash nodded.

"When did you realise?"

"Not until I tried to pay for a drink, but you'd left by then."

She tried to stop the smile from betraying her feelings but couldn't stop the pride from showing all over her face. Not only had she dipped Ash Morgan but he hadn't even realised.

"So, are you going to tell me your name then, or do I have to use my grifting super-powers to find it out?"

"Ash Morgan in tights and a cape? Blimey! Well, as tempting as that is… I'm Leigh," and she held out her hand.

He took her hand in his, "Well thank you for returning my wallet, Leigh."

Before she could think better of it she leaned forward and kissed him gently on the cheek. "Thanks for not using me to prop up a new concrete bridge."

As casually as she could, Leigh turned and walked down the corridor towards the lift. She even managed to keep her cool when she passed Mickey Bricks who did a double take. He walked towards the Penthouse where Ash was still standing in the doorway. Where had he seen her before, what was she doing coming out of the Penthouse and why did Ash look like he was going to keep Mickey in the dark?