Chapter 28
Twenty-Eight
Ava
Wylan and the Otto_Bot screen leave, but Dagen lingers in the kitchen, his eyes on me. I busy myself with cleaning up the dishes from last night’s spaghetti.
“We should discuss the program marketing,” he says. “I’d like to pay you a finder’s fee and hire you to work on the integration of it into my security systems. It’s a permanent job opportunity.”
I drop the plate I’d been scrubbing and turn to him. “But what about my job with Goliath?”
“I’ll pay you triple your salary once the marketing plan is finished. That’s in addition to the offer for the finder’s fee itself.”
I blink. “Do you just throw money at solutions all the time?”
“Yes,” he answers honestly. “Is it working?”
I laugh. “If I work for you, you’ll still be my boss.”
“And?”
“It’s fairly unprofessional for my boss to be looking at me the way you’re looking at me right now,” I point out.
He smirks. “So, it’s unprofessional of me to kiss you?”
“Incredibly unprofessional,” I nod as he stops in front of me. He reaches up and touches my bottom lip with his thumb. “Is this protecting your investments, too?”
“Maybe,” he breaths as he leans down. “If you’re in love with me, you won’t go anywhere.”
I snort. “And what makes you think I’ll fall in love with you, Dagen Fox?”
“Call it a hunch,” he teases.
“A hunch,” I muse, leaning into him.
“A hunch,” he repeats. “Exactly.”
A loud crunch breaks through the air and we jerk and turn toward the sound, both of us taking in the assassin leaning against the doorjamb eating a bag of chips as loudly as possible.
“Sorry to interrupt you two lovebirds, but I forgot my chips. And then you two were so enthralled I just had to watch for a minute.” His eyes flick between us. “You two going to fuck? Can I watch?”
I flush. “No. That would be unprofessional,” I say.
Dagen doesn’t say anything, but he does tilt his head toward Wylan, studying him.
“Well, I think one of the three of us should be with you at all times,” Wylan says, grinning. “In case the bastard shows up or you need someone to make out with.”
“I can’t be alone at all?” I ask, narrowing my eyes.
“What’s the matter, Ava?” Wylan purrs. “Worried you’ll be unprofessional with someone else?”
I narrow my eyes further, annoyed, and cross my arms. “What’s it matter to you?”
He laughs and shrugs, popping another chip in his mouth. “Just a note, you could make out with me and it’s not unprofessional. I’m an assassin. Rules don’t apply to me.”
I snort. “Yeah, okay.”
“I’m being serious,” he grins. “Not like any one of us hasn’t thought about it. Just because the billionaire made the first move doesn’t mean the rest of us aren’t also intrigued.”
“Stop messing with me,” I say, rolling my eyes and reaching for the plate again.
He walks inside the room, strolls up to me, and pops a chip against my lips. I open my mouth, and he pushes it inside, letting his finger touch my tongue. And what the fuck? Why is that so hot?
“I’m many things, love,” he purrs, “but I’m not a liar.” He glances over at Dagen, his eyes going cold. “Can I talk with you outside, mate?”
And then he strolls away, and legit steals my chips. So, I guess he is at least a thief, even if he’s not a liar.