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“This is why I work here, at DPG,” I add. “Gianni’s security is unmatched. It keeps these projects separate from my company. Protects my people. And my clients.”
She nods slowly, absorbing everything.
“I’m sorry I became so testy with you last night. I wasn’t prepared for your questions.” I run my palm down my face. “No one here has been able to relate to what I do except Gianni and Anthony. And even they wouldn’t appreciate the complexities like you probably can.”
A timid smile curls the corner of her mouth.
“I can’t share details,” I say. “Especially not with you.”
Her gaze drops to her hands, looking a bit defeated.
“I won’t put you in danger.” I lean forward without thinking. “This isn’t about your ability. I have no idea what you’re capable of. But if you’re as skilled as you say…”
Her eyes flick up to meet mine.
“I’d happily let you take over the phone forensics,” I admit. “It’s my least favorite thing to sort through. It’s monotonous. I waste too much time staring at all of the repetitive numbers, reading the same lines of code over and over.” Then I detach, and my mind wanders to things unrelated to my task. Places I need to keep locked shut. But again, this isn’t intel I’m prepared to share with her. Now or ever.
She laughs softly. A happy tinkle of understanding, which is like a salve to my tense soul. “I could lose hours fixated on that stuff,” she says. “It’s like my own version of Sudoku. Or a Rubik’s Cube. Everything connects if you stare long enough.”
Shaking my head, I let out a chuckle at our shared geek speak. “The dark web is that way for me. I get lost there. The chatter rooms start my gears turning. I become so caught up in it, the only things that give me pause are my bladder and my alarm clock.”
Cassidy flashes another beautiful grin in my direction. It brings a calm I can’t put into words.
“Please know, if there’s a way to see what you can do without compromising your safety, I’d seriously consider it,” I add with a half-smile. “You’d be saving me from the most mind-numbing part of my job.” I wink before I can stop myself.
She blushes, a warm pink staining her cheeks before her lashes lower. My mind immediately goes to places it shouldn’t. All the other ways I’d like to make her blush. One thing is crystal clear.
This may be more dangerous than anything we’re working on.
17
MAX
I’m here to hang with the guys. Nothing more. At least that’s the lie I keep repeating as my eyes track Cassidy’s reflection in every polished surface on the main floor.
She moves with an easy confidence now. Her tray is balanced on one hip, her breathtaking smile warm but professional. Her hair is causing my mouth to water, craving the taste of cotton candy whenever I look at her. If she were standing under studio lights instead of chandeliers, she’d pass for a young Hollywood action heroine.
I try to look away, focus on my friends. Catalog any new people or anything that seems out of place. But it’s useless. Nothing holds my attention.
Nothing but her.
The conversation from earlier loops in my mind like a corrupted file. The way her eyes widened at my revelation. The way she leaned closer the more I shared instead of backing away.
What the hell am I thinking? Bringing this beautiful stranger into my world. Nothing good can come from this. There’s no use kidding myself. This is more than simply wanting her.
Making her part of my twisted need for vigilante justice.
I take a drink, giving myself permission to watch her flutter around the club for a few seconds out of the corner of my eye. Have I become so lonely for female companionship that I want her sitting beside me with a laptop and a cup of coffee, allowing her to sift through phone data while I chase the bigger threats? I’ve clearly been watching too many of The X-Files reruns if I’m imagining we could be a modern day Mulder and Scully. Well, minus the paranormal shit. Hell, the dark web is scary enough without adding that.
And on top of that, I’ve apparently lost my mind. I basically handed a stranger the blueprint to my biggest secrets. Maybe not specifics, but enough that a smart, ambitious woman could start asking the right questions.
And there’s no doubt Cassidy is smart.
Hell, satisfying my carnal desires for this woman might be easier than working alongside her. This isn’t a hypothesis. I don’t need more data. There’d be no getting her out of my system with a one-night stand. So, instead, I’m apparently trying to torture myself, pulling her closer while keeping my needs in check.
Everything about this is dangerous. Because I’ve already seen what she’s done to my well-honed control. It’s hanging by a fucking thread.
She’s a witch, I tell you. A witch. It’s the only explanation. I was managing just fine until she, and that perfect lithe figure, big blue eyes, and pink hair, came along.
