Page 75 of Wicked Rush

“Garrett knows you aren’t a spy,” Seth stated in anger.

“But she has top secret clearance and understands the research. And he thinks she stole it,” Lars countered.

“I didn’t steal it,” she protested. Dear God please let him believe me. Leaving him would be hard enough but if he didn’t trust her, she’d be devastated.

“I’m not saying you did, sweetheart. Honestly, even though you did try to break into my house, you weren’t very good at it.”

“I was just so stressed out. I didn’t want you to see me.” Braelynn exhaled. “I’m sorry, Lars. I’m sorry for all of it. You don’t know. I’ve never been accused of something like that before. Garrett and Dean…they wouldn’t believe me. My uncle, he never left me alone. It took me months before I had access to the room I needed, where they keep the data. The samples though…we still don’t know where they are. From what I can tell, my uncle doesn’t have them. My guess is that if they weren’t stored properly, they’d be compromised anyway.”

“But still, how did the data get stolen?” Lars scrubbed his hand over his beard.

“It’s not the first time there’s been an inside job,” Seth offered.

“It’s possible,” Lars agreed. “There was a guy who tried to infiltrate Emerson’s entire network with a virus. He was a mole.”

“I’ve thought about this over and over again. When we made the discovery, we were on a yacht. Maybe thirty plus staff onboard. Most of those people knew about the discovery. We were celebrating a new species. It wasn’t exactly a secret but we had no idea of the implications until maybe a couple of days afterwards. Maybe someone overheard Chase and me talking? My uncle…he’s not working alone.”

“Someone else obviously knows what your uncle is doing. He could have financial backing from a terrorist organization. Who knows? Or it could be as simple as one of the other large countries looking to steal secrets,” Seth speculated.

“It wouldn’t be the first time.” Lars shrugged. “Those guys in the helicopter, the ones who went after Garrett, they were never caught. Maybe it’s all connected.”

“That discovery…it was ours. Chase and I found it together. But the theory, how we could use it, not just use it but proving its use, that is my idea. And some of that isn’t anywhere but inside my head.” Braelynn bit her lip, terrified Lars had chosen to believe Garrett. The painful truth lay out there, and with the guilt lifted, she blinked away the tears on her lashes. “But now? Honestly, I don’t want anything to do with the data or Emerson Industries right now. I just want to be safe.”

“But if your uncle isn’t arrested, you’ll need to leave San Diego.” Lars shoved to his feet, clearly frustrated.

Braelynn jumped as he slammed his hands onto the granite countertop in frustration and grabbed a potholder. Lars swung open the oven, and retrieved the quiche, letting the pan drop on the counter, and slammed the door shut.

“This is what we are going to do,” he began, without looking at her. His disappointment in her crushed her spirit but her mind told her she deserved it. “I’m going to go through the documents and that chip. I don’t know how it works but I’ll call in a few favors with a few buddies in the NSA. My company works in data, and if Emerson Industries has clearances for it, I’m calling them on the carpet. I want to know how it works and how to read it so we can figure out how bad this shit is.”

Although Garrett had warned her that under no circumstances should she try to tamper with the chip, Braelynn remained silent and hoped Lars could pull strings and read it before Garrett arrived. Exposed to so many lies and accusations, she no longer knew who to trust. Braelynn’s eyes flashed to Lars, and her heart caught in her chest. His feral expression laced with both anger and desire, reminded her that this man had risked everything for her when no one else gave a shit. The only thing he’d ever asked for was the truth, and with it finally out in the open, there was nothing left to do.

“I’m sorry.” There was no apology that could make up for the lies.

“You should have told me.” Lars sliced into the quiche and then glanced to the steaks. “Fuck, I forgot these.”

“No worries. I’ll start up the grill.” Seth jumped up from the table and snatched the plate.

“Thanks.” Lars nodded

“I didn’t even know you very well. How was I supposed to trust you?” Braelynn asked.

“I get that maybe you didn’t know me in the beginning, but Brae, I’ve never given you a reason not to trust me. I have given you every opportunity. Everything that’s happened between us.” Lars dropped the knife onto the counter.

Braelynn cringed. “A weekend. You said that. That’s all it’s been.”

“It hasn’t been just a weekend. That’s the thing. It’s been months. That’s how long I’ve known you.” Lars crossed the room to open the sliding glass doors, and stared out into the glass solarium. “I was there for you in the hospital. I came to that event the other night specifically looking for you, for answers.”

“Aside from clearances, if I’d told you, I could have put you in even more danger,” she countered.

“I was already in danger. Those guys, your uncle’s pals? They probably knew exactly who I was after I took you to the hospital. Now granted, you kept me out of it by saying you didn’t know who I was, and they didn’t go after me again. That’s probably why Garrett didn’t want me near you at the party. He kept warning me off, but he still sent you to get that key after I told him I’d found it.” He flattened his palm against the doorjamb. “You lied to me. You both lied to me. At Altura. He was right there. How could you not say anything?”

“I told you…clearances.”

“You know what? It doesn’t matter.’ Lars raised his voice.

“They were threatening to put me in jail. Do you really think I had a choice? Because I’m telling you right now that I didn’t have one. Not only did Garrett accuse me of stealing, he’d brought in the Assistant District Attorney to pressure me into doing what they wanted. There’s no way I could have told you. I have no evidence to prove my innocence.” All Braelynn had ever wanted was to be a scientist, work with animals and plants in the ocean. Chase had offered it all to her on a silver platter, giving her a chance to expand her knowledge, work for a prestigious company.

“We made love right there at the club. In front of everyone. Jesus Christ.” He raked his hands through his hair.