“Mine, too,” Dizzie added. “But I’m not going with the Solveigs. That I refuse to do.” She glared at Aleks when she said it.
“Can you keep the investors calm, Killian? Make sure none of them sell to the Solveig Consortium?” Portia asked.
“I’m on it,” he said.
Ash and the Jack weren’t as quick to align themselves with her.
“I prefer to keep my business separate from the corporations. I don’t need the scrutiny or trouble that comes with the multinationals,” the Jack said.
Portia nodded.” I understand.”
“That said, we’re already intertwined and there haven’t been any serious repercussions. Yet. I’ll provide what assistance I can when possible. For a price.”
Ash elbowed her and she sighed. “Fine, I’ll give you the friends and family discount, but that’s as low as I can go.”
Portia looked surprised. “Thank you.”
“Locating the Vyne lab will be our priority,” Ash said. “I’ll close the backdoors we talked about as soon as we’re done here. If you want others identified, you’ll need to find somebody else. Want me to put Mendez on it?”
Portia’s sigh was long-suffering. “If you think he’s up to it, then yes.”
“We don’t have a lot of options, you know.”
“Fine, do it.” She rolled her eyes.
“What about me?” Everyone’s gaze laser-focused on Aleks.
“Just don’t tell your employers.” Portia looked up at him, her eyes pleading.
“I won’t.” The words felt like a vow.
Chapter33
“Thanks for escorting me home,”Portia said as she and Aleks walked to her front door. She’d tried to get him to leave her at the building’s lobby, but he’d insisted on door-to-door service after they’d left Razor Jack’s. She hadn’t argued too hard—honestly, the thought of coming home late to find her father in her apartment again was too much.
“You’re welcome.” He studied the hallway. “How did he get access?”
Portia followed his gaze. There were only a few doors: her apartment and the one across the hall, the doors to the stairwells at the ends, and the dedicated elevator. “I don’t know.” That had been worrying her all night.
“Do you want me to come in and check your place?”
She hesitated. The apartment had been hers and Tommy’s. She’d never expected to bring another man here—even if that wasn’t why Aleks was here at the moment. But her home had felt so empty lately. And Aleks was so... comfortable.
“Yes, please,” she said quickly, before she could change her mind.
She entered her code and scanned her palm. When the door unlocked, Aleks gently pushed her behind him and entered. She’d left the lights on when she left, concerned about coming home to an intruder and a dark apartment.
“Stay here,” Aleks said.
On a good day, she would have argued, but tonight staying by the door, by the escape route, felt right.
Aleks moved silently through the apartment. To keep her worries at bay, she wondered what he thought about the place. There were remnants of her life with Tommy all through the apartment, but every day, her life without him encroached on those memories more and more.
He returned looking slightly more relaxed than when they’d arrived. “It’s clear,” he said. “Make sure to lock the deadbolt when I leave.”
She nodded. All of the sudden the thought of spending the night here, alone in her home, overwhelmed her. “Stay. Please.”
Shock widened Aleks’s eyes, followed quickly by heat.
