Chapter 12
Dakota
The improvised dance awakens a desire in us that's been dormant for days from the painkillers. We walk with interlaced fingers to the bed and Anna starts undressing me with deliberate slowness. I feel the pain in my shoulder, but my want burns stronger than any physical discomfort.
“Are you sure?” she whispers, grazing the bandage with her fingertips. “I don't want to hurt you.”
I nod slowly and she kisses me. But our kisses tonight are different, softer, deeper, charged with a different meaning. Each caress on my naked body conveys much more than simple passion. There's something new, something that makes me tremble inside.
Anna guards each movement, making sure not to press my wound. The way she looks at me, with that mix of desire and tenderness, the way she touches me, like I'm something precious she fears breaking, makes my heart race.
“You're beautiful,” she whispers kissing my neck while hardening my nipples with her thumbs.
She rises, shedding her own clothes. She positions herself over me, opening my legs with care to rub her sex against mine, caressing me with her breasts in each movement, sending waves of pleasure through my entire body.
“I need you with me,” she sighs, stroking my hair.
She takes my right hand and slides it between her legs, and the moan that escapes her when she feels my fingers inside feels like the most beautiful sound in the universe. She moves her hips against my hand, closing her eyes, caressing her breasts, following a slow rhythm while dissolving into moans.
“Look at me!” she commands suddenly while leaning to find my sex.
We move together, dancing to the beat of music only we can hear, our gasps like a single instrument, while pleasure builds slowly inside me, like a wave forming in the distance.
“Dakota, I love you,” she confesses, closing her eyes again and pressing harder inside me.
And it's as if those words were the catalyst I needed. The orgasm hits me hard, making me arch my back while I scream her name.
“Don't stop!” she sighs between pants, letting her body fall onto mine.
I keep my fingers inside Anna while she reaches her climax. I hold her and, despite the pain in my shoulder, it's a perfect moment, almost magical. She smiles, kisses the tip of my nose and while I watch her face in the room's dimness, I realize I've completely fallen in love with this woman.
“Are you okay? I didn't hurt you, did I?” she asks with that smile that melts my heart while tracing circles around my areola.
“I'm fine,” I assure her. “Much better than fine.”
She leans to kiss me, but my phone's ring breaks the silence.
“Shit, don't answer it,” she murmurs against my lips.
“I have to. It could be important,” I apologize.
And as soon as I see it's from Marcus, I know it is. The message, however, freezes my blood.
Marcus: Urgent. New information. Confirmed internal source of leaks.
I sit up, trying not to show concern, but Anna's starting to know me too well.
“Tell me what's wrong,” she requests, sitting beside me and covering our naked bodies with the sheet.
“It's Marcus. They've found evidence that Dottie's the one leaking information to Olivia. Maybe to others,” I sigh.
“It can't be. I trust her completely,” she mutters, shaking her head in disbelief.
“It is, Anna. It's been checked multiple times. I'm sorry.”
“We've worked together since the beginning. It's impossible,” she insists. “Maybe someone hacked her phone and impersonated her. Could that be it?”
“I doubt it.”
“So what do we do?”
“For now, nothing. Tomorrow we'll talk to her. Let me handle it.”
Anna hides her face in her hands. The moments of romance and passion have vanished, replaced by harsh reality.
“I'll find out what she knows and how much information she's leaked, okay? We'll solve this,” I assure her, kissing her forehead.
***
The next day, as we ride the elevator to Anna's office, the tension hangs thick enough to slice. She tries to maintain her professional mask, that facade she wears when playing the cold, ruthless executive, but I see the strain in her eyes. Betrayal cuts deeper when it comes from someone you trust completely.
“I need to talk to you. In private,” I announce, stopping at Dottie's desk.
“I'm pretty busy right now, Dakota. You know how crazy these days have been,” she responds without looking away from her computer screen.
“That wasn't a suggestion.”
Dottie lifts her head slowly and the fear in her eyes speaks volumes.
“Let's go to my office,” Anna proposes in a voice so low it barely registers.
We sit, and the personal assistant's leg bounces like it has a mind of its own. Her eyes dart between us, her hands shaking while she fidgets with her blouse hem.
“How long have you been leaking information to Olivia?” I ask point-blank.
All color drains from her face. She turns pale, opens her mouth twice as if to speak, but no sound comes out.
“I'm waiting.”
“I… I have no idea what you're talking about, Dakota. What kind of information?”
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way. We have proof. Your choice, cooperate or explain it to the police.”
She looks at Anna as if seeking help, and her eyes fill with tears when she realizes none will come.
“I'm… I'm so sorry, Anna. Olivia forced me to do it,” she sobs, biting her lower lip.
“What do you mean, forced you?”
“She has things on me,” she mutters through her teeth.
“Things on you? You need to be way more specific if you don't want to spend some time in prison. Any idea what they do to people like you, Dottie?” I press, leaning toward her and raising my eyebrows.
“I had… I had a relationship with Thorne Bishop. It wasn't more than two months, I don't even know how Olivia found out. Thing is, she knows and says she has a recording showing us clearly in a hotel room where we stayed. If anyone finds out, I'll die. My husband, my kids… It would be horrible. I talked to Thorne, and he said Olivia contacted him too and is blackmailing him. You have to believe me, please, Anna,” she begs.
“What information did you pass along?”
“It started with small details like which events you'd attend, schedules, things like that. Then she started asking for other kinds of data.”
Anna slumps in her leather chair, massaging her temples.
“Did you provide her prototype information?” she murmurs.
“Just basic data,” she confesses. “She asked for more, but I barely have access to technical files, my work is mostly administrative. I swear, the files I sent won't help her much.”
“Pack your things and leave,” Anna mutters in a tired voice. “Human resources will give you your final payment.”
“Please, I need this job,” she pleads, unable to hold back tears.
“You should have thought of that before.”
“What will I tell my husband?”
“Tell him whatever you want. Staff cuts… anything, you're good at making up stories. Not my problem,” Anna concludes, pointing to the door with her index finger without even looking at her.
“Should I call the police?” she asks once we're alone, visibly crushed by what she just heard.
“I have a friend, the best hacker I know. Let me investigate first how far this goes. Then we decide. How's that sound?”
Anna nods slowly and tries to smile.
“Your enemy here seems to be Olivia and whoever's pulling her strings because I'm sure that woman's just a puppet. Dottie was another victim, and she's received her punishment,” I assure her while approaching her desk and placing a sealed envelope on it.
“What's this?” she asks, though her expression shows she already knows.
“My resignation letter. I can't keep being your bodyguard, Anna. Not after us. It's not professional.”
“No!” she growls, tearing the envelope to pieces without opening it. “If you quit, I won't hire anyone else. I want you. This goes beyond a job now. It's personal, and I know no one will protect me better than you.”
“I'll always protect you,” I whisper, taking her hand in mine. “Contract or not.”
“I know. That's why I can't let you go. Now, call that hacker friend of yours and fix this problem before I go crazy, please.”