“That’s truly amazing, Jian.”
She motions for me to follow her. “Let me introduce you to a few people who can help you with your littleproblem.”
As she leads me across the cramped room, I get a glimpse at a few screens, taking note of all the different projects each individual is working on. But it’s the woman in the corner that catches my eye. Her hands are flying across her keyboard, but I can’t get a look at what she’s working on. Whatever it is, she’s determined.
We stop next to a young man, intent on finishing the line of code he’s writing. His unruly dark hair and pale skin make me think he spends way too much time down here. “This is Slicer. Slicer, this is Ghostline.”
Her use of my old hacker name almost makes me feel homesick. I sound ancient when I say that those were simpler times, but they were. There’s no denying that.
Slicer’s mouth pops open as he reaches for my hand. “Ghostline?TheGhostline? It’s an honor to meet you, sir. Oh my God. I can’t believe you’re standing here in front of me.” His handshake is frantic, and I have to peel my hand away.
“Nice to meet you. Are you writing a decryption cipher?” I point to his screen.
“Yeah.” Slicer sighs. “But I’m having trouble with the output. It keeps corrupting halfway through. I know I’m missing something in the key exchange, but I’m struggling to figure out what.”
Doing a quick scan of his monitor, I’m able to poke a few holes in the code. If I can do that with a glance, this guy isn’t who I’m looking for.
“Thanks for your time. Good luck with that.”
I motion to Jian, who understands immediately what I’m trying to say. She introduces me to a few more people, but none of them are at the level I need.
My attention keeps going to the woman in the corner. I can only see a sliver of her face, her wild obsidian waves hiding her identity. Most of the people in here have looked up at one time or another, eyeing me. But she doesn’t. Either she doesn’t give a shit or she’s just that oblivious.
After my subtle rejection of the last person, I nod to the woman of intrigue. “What about her?”
“Who?” Jian glances around, confused.
“The woman with the long dark hair,” I explain.
“Oh,” Jian smirks. “Not her. I have a few others in mind?—”
Ignoring Jian’s rambling, I stride to the mystery woman and stand in her peripheral view, but I still can’t see her face.
“I don’t freelance. Talk to someone else.”
Her words are a clear dismissal, but I can’t move my feet.
The velvety cadence of her voice touches the dark recesses of my soul.
Positioning myself at a different angle, I get a better look at the woman with the siren song. As I move, she ceases her typing for the first time since I walked in and turns to face me.
Even with the horrible lighting, I’m blown away by the dark chocolate waves of hair around her face. The rich almond hue of her skin perfectly complements the sepia of her mesmerizing irises. The slender column of her neck has me wanting to run my lips up and down its length. I notice the way her breasts strain against her scoop-neck shirt, making me wonder what they’d feel like in my hand.
Fuck…And now I have a semi.
I’m not thirteen and making out for the first time. I’m fifty years old, a grown ass man. I’ve been with plenty of women. But no one would know that if they were privy to what is going through my head right now.
The urge to drag her out of her chair and fuck her against the wall, audience be damned, is riding me hard.
My face remains expressionless, but I can’t say the same for her. She tries to hide it, but I notice every microexpression. She’s a mix of shocked and confused.
Who is this heartbreaker?
“Why not?” I finally respond.
Blinking her eyes, her mouth turns into a concerned frown. She points to me, then herself, giving me a visual with the little life lesson. “I don’t think you know how this works. I’m not for sale. I don’t have to explain myself.”
She’s adorable, too. Great. Now I’ll never get her out of my head.
