“No, I’ve got time now.” He waved me in and I closed the door before lowering into one of the leather seats in front of his desk.
His eyebrows lifted as he grinned. “This seems serious.”
“It is, but not in a bad way. At least, I don’t think so.”
“Okay.” He steepled his fingers. “Go for it.”
Inhaling a deep breath, I straightened my shoulders. “As we discovered over a week ago, you’ve been the victim of some pretty nasty cyber-attacks by a skilled Russian hacker who works for Oskar.”
He nodded, his expression grim.
“In my experience, the only way to combat a skilled hacker is with another skilled hacker.”
His lips curved slightly. “All right. What do you suggest?”
“As you know, I was going to apply for a tech job in the city for some huge company that required all sorts of background checks for me and those I love. That obviously isn’t going to work since I’m very much in love with your cousin, who isn’t the best candidate for having someone dig into his profile.”
“Agreed.”
“And honestly?” I sat back and gazed out the window. “I don’t want that life when I really think about it.” Returning my gaze to his, I shrugged. “I like it here, with you, Mom and Nick. I don’t really want to leave.”
“You’re welcome to stay as long as you want. We love having you here.”
I arched a brow. “I’m glad to hear you say that, because it’s very in line with my proposal.”
“What proposal is that?”
Leaning forward, I lifted my chin. “You’re going to hire me as your official Director of Digital Security. Your organization’s digital profile is extremely vulnerable, and I’m going to ensure we secure it properly and bring it into the modern age.”
Michael’s eyebrows lifted. “Is that so?”
“Yes,” I said with a nod. “You’re going to pay me two hundred thousand dollars a year to start, which is less than I would earn at Meta or Google,” I said, lifting a finger, “but I’m going to give you a family discount.”
Michael chuckled. “How about two hundred and fifty thousand a year? I don’t want to undervalue you.”
“That’s acceptable,” I said, flashing a cheeky grin. “I’m fine working in your study, although maybe down the road you can renovate it to make it bigger? It’s only got one window, and I like fresh air in the spring.”
“Your mom is all over me to renovate the gym, so I guess I can tack on the study too,” he said, his eyes sparkling with admiration.
“Perfect. I’ll start right away, and I’ll need unlimited resources. I’ll create detailed invoices and ledgers so you’ll have documentation that what I’m purchasing is necessary.”
“Katia will thank you for that,” he said with a nod. “What else?”
Sighing, I lifted my hands. “I don’t know. You’re being very agreeable, and I was ready for a fight.”
Chuckling, he leaned forward and rested his forearms on his desk. “Why would I fight you on this? You’re right. I need to modernize my organization if it has any chance of a future. I’ll warn you that I’m a fair boss, but I ask a lot. I might need you to help me at offsite locations like the docks or the clubs, and if I ask, I’ll need you to agree without question. In my line of work, I can’t have employees who question me. It’s probably not fair, and I’d most likely fail every human resource quality test imaginable, but luckily, we don’t have HR in the mafia.”
I pursed my lips as I contemplated. “I’m okay following orders that might...skirt traditional legality,” I said, searching for the right words, “but I’m not okay doing work that will lead to someone’s harm or death. I know the lines are blurry in our world, but I hope you can understand that’s a red line I’m unwilling to cross.”
Michael looked to the ceiling as he pondered. “Okay, I believe I can honor that request. As you said, things get murky in my business, but opposed to what some might think, I don’t enjoy killing or hurting people, Alexis. When I have to take those actions, it’s because all other options have failed.”
“I understand that, and I believe you.”
He nodded. “But I’ll do my best to ensure you don’t cross any lines you’re not comfortable with. That’s a solemn promise that I’ll do my best to keep.”
“Fair enough, and I accept your promise.”
He gave a short nod. “Good. What else?”
