Chapter 2 #3
“Who?” Jian glances around, confused.
“The woman with the long dark hair,” I explain.
“Oh,” Jian smirks. “Not her. I have a few others in mind—”
Ignoring Jian’s rambling, I stride to the mystery woman and stand in her peripheral view, but I still can’t see her face.
“I don’t freelance. Talk to someone else.”
Her words are a clear dismissal, but I can’t move my feet.
The velvety cadence of her voice touches the dark recesses of my soul.
Positioning myself at a different angle, I get a better look at the woman with the siren song. As I move, she ceases her typing for the first time since I walked in and turns to face me.
Even with the horrible lighting, I’m blown away by the dark chocolate waves of hair around her face.
The rich almond hue of her skin perfectly complements the sepia of her mesmerizing irises.
The slender column of her neck has me wanting to run my lips up and down its length.
I notice the way her breasts strain against her scoop-neck shirt, making me wonder what they’d feel like in my hand.
Fuck…And now I have a semi.
I’m not thirteen and making out for the first time. I’m fifty years old, a grown ass man. I’ve been with plenty of women. But no one would know that if they were privy to what is going through my head right now.
The urge to drag her out of her chair and fuck her against the wall, audience be damned, is riding me hard.
My face remains expressionless, but I can’t say the same for her. She tries to hide it, but I notice every microexpression. She’s a mix of shocked and confused.
Who is this heartbreaker?
“Why not?” I finally respond.
Blinking her eyes, her mouth turns into a concerned frown. She points to me, then herself, giving me a visual with the little life lesson. “I don’t think you know how this works. I’m not for sale. I don’t have to explain myself.”
She’s adorable, too. Great. Now I’ll never get her out of my head.
I shrug a shoulder. “Everyone has a price.”
She lifts a single brow. “You can’t buy me.”
“Don’t be so sure about that, Heartbreaker.” The corner of my mouth curls into a half smile.
A light rouge spreads over her cheeks as she gapes at me, and a self-satisfied warmth settles in my chest, knowing that I affect her.
Annoyed hackers, likely the ones I repudiated, grumble behind me, not liking how loud I’m talking, but I don’t care.
She clears her throat. “You seem awfully cocky.”
“I like to think of myself as assertive,” I quip. “What’s your name?”
“What’s yours?” She returns.
“I’d like to know who I’m talking to.”
She gives me a tight smile. “That’s nice.” Her attitude makes me want to challenge her more, see how far I can push before she gives in.
I glance over my shoulder to find that Jian has left. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
Turning back to my sassy woman, I watch her head move side to side as she stares at me. She caves first, and it feels good. “Abaddon.”
I’d like her real name, but I’ll settle for this.
“Ghostline.”
A twinge of something that I swear looks like recognition glimmers in her eye.
She raises and lowers her shoulders with an exhale. “Well, like I said, I don’t freelance. Have a nice day.”
Abaddon swivels to face her monitor again, but I place my hand on the back of the chair, stopping her. “Why not? Is it because you don’t have what it takes?”
I’m baiting her. I know it. And I don’t feel the least bit guilty.
Her nostrils flare. “I’m good at what I do. That’s not it.”
Leaning down, I bring us face to face. “Then prove it.”
“I’m not twelve.” She rolls her eyes.
“Come work for me and I’ll make it worth your while,” I tempt her.
She scoffs and looks me up and down. “You have nothing I want.”
The fire in her sends all the blood in my body shooting straight for my cock. Usually, I don’t go for a woman with a mouth like this, but something makes me want to rile her up.
“Don’t be so sure about that, Heartbreaker.”
She narrows her eyes at the smirk I’m sporting. “You don’t even know if I can do it.”
“I’m sure there’s lots you can do for me,” I return with a wink. Her deadpan glare is humorous, but I allow some business to come back into the conversation. Pulling the little jump drive out of my pocket, I show it to her. “One task. If you can do it, I’ll pay you ten large.”
Her brows shoot up. “One hundred grand for a stupid little test? Hand it over.” Before I can give it to her, she snatches it away from me, plugging it into her computer. “What do you need?”
“It’s encrypted with a hardware fence and layered keys,” I explain. “Break in and decrypt the file. You have an hour.”
She doesn’t look at me as I direct her. Instead, she dives in, pulling some techniques I wouldn’t have applied to the situation, but she attacks the task with a fierceness that can only be described as sexy.
Not much later, someone brings me a chair. When I look, Jian is standing there and hands me a cup of tea. I nod in thanks, and she gives me a knowing smile.
Sitting down, I sip on the warm brew. I’m not sure what time it is, I didn’t set a timer like I implied I would, when Abaddon slumps back in her chair.
Her shoulders drop, but her voice is full of ire. “A freaking cookie recipe? Seriously?”
“What else did you expect it to be?” I set my cup of tea on her desk.
“But it’s not even an original recipe. It’s Nestle Tollhouse!”
“It’s a good recipe,” I argue.
“Whatever.” She shakes her head. “Where’s my hundred thousand?”
Reaching into my inside jacket pocket, I pull out the roll I stashed there earlier and hand it to her along with my business card. “Show up on Monday. If you complete the job, you’ll get five hundred.”
Her eyes almost pop out of her head, then she looks down at the little piece of paper. “RHL Solutions. Hunter Reed, CEO.”
“That’s me.” I tilt my head.
“Reed?” Her eyes widen.
“Yep. I’ll see you Monday.” I snag the jump drive and rise to my feet.
She stops me with a question. “What makes you think I’ll show up?”
Showing her my watch, I tap the glass. “You’re ambitious. You got me the recipe in half an hour.”
Turning on my heel, I walk away, leaving her gaping behind me, and I wear a sly smile on my face all the way to my car.
When I slide into the backseat, I direct Sterling to take me home, and I toss the little memory stick in the air and catch it.
While she was completing the test, a secondary hidden software program was copying all of her information. So when I get home, I’ll know everything I need to about my Heartbreaker.