Ten.
Carmelita knew it was stupid to give him a head start, she should just slap the cuffs on him right now.
Nine.
With all the charges he'd racked up by this point, not to mention the hell he'd put her through trying to catch him it was more than deserved.
Eight.
But she liked to think she was a woman of her word, and as much as she hated to admit it Sly saved her life, while risking his own no less.
Seven.
So the least she could do was give him an extra ten seconds, right?
Six.
But as the seconds ticked down Sly hadn't moved an inch, instead choosing to just stand there, that cocky grin still plastered on his face.
Five.
She knew he had to be planning something, Sly wasn't the type of crook to go down quietly, but he was running out of time.
Four.
His brown eyes continued to pierce her soul from behind his mask, and she hoped he wouldn't notice her face beginning to heat up.
Three.
That was probably his plan from the beginning, she thought. Get her so flustered that he could make his escape without issue.
Two.
She wasn't about to let that happen. She had him right where she wanted him, soon he'd be behind bars and she'd be looking at a promotion, "Commissioner Fox" had a nice ring to it.
One.
"Times up, Ringtail." The silence between them was finally broken as Carmelita pointed her shock pistol at Sly. "Now put your hands where I can see th-" Before she could finish she saw a flash of gray and felt a pair of lips pressed against her own. As much as she hated to admit it, it felt better than she could've ever imagined. Not that she had ever thought about it or anything, definitely not! Much to her disappointment though the kiss only lasted a brief second before Sly pulled away. Still in a daze, she reached her hand up to her mouth but was stopped by her own handcuffs, one end now hooked around her wrist and the other to the railing beside her.
Of course there was a catch.
There was always a catch with Sly Cooper.
She turned around just in time to see Sly wave from the passenger side window of the van before driving off, leaving a trail of smoke in its wake. After the van was out of sight, she reached into her pocket to grab the key for the handcuffs, only to find a familiar calling card instead. The sight of the Cooper insignia made her blood boil, but before she could do anything something fell out of the card into her hand, a bobby pin. Realizing why Sly had given it to her she began picking the lock on the handcuffs, as the events of the last few minutes replayed in her head.
"That thieving, conniving jerk!" She muttered to herself, "Figures a thief like him would even resort to stealing a kiss…"
Truth was, she wasn't just mad at Sly for all the flirting he did, she was also mad at herself for falling for it. She knew it probably meant nothing to Sly, he probably did this sort of thing with girls all over the world. For some reason that thought didn't make her feel any better though. In fact, it made her even angrier. God, she wasn't falling for Sly Cooper, was she? She thought about him, his suave voice, his chocolate brown eyes, and that stupid, handsome smirk he always had on his stupid, handsome face…
"Dammit..."
As much as she wanted to she couldn't deny it anymore, she had officially fallen for the thief she had spent the better part of the last three years chasing across the globe. She could only imagine what lame joke Sly would make about stealing her heart, and she couldn't help but roll her eyes at the thought. As she finally picked the lock and undid the handcuffs though, reality set in. She couldn't tell Sly how she felt, they were on opposite sides of the law, it wouldn't be professional, it wouldn't be right. She would have to hide her infatuation, though she had a feeling that Sly already knew how she felt. Even though she would have to keep her feelings to herself she could at least enjoy her occasional encounters with Sly, which she was now looking forward to more than ever.
'And maybe,' She thought to herself, 'I'll give him a head start more often.'
Author's Note: So recently I've become absolutely obsessed with the Sly Cooper games, and one of my absolute favorite moments is Carmelita giving Sly a "ten second head start" at the end of the first game. So obviously I had to write a quick story about what happens after that, and how she feels about it. As always thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!