Chapter 3 #2
All of a sudden, a heavy weight hit her legs and she crashed to the ground.
The drone flew overhead, close enough to touch, then smashed into the concrete with a deafening crunch.
* * *
Ace’s heart was thumping hard as he kept Maggie pinned to the ground.
“You okay?” he asked.
“Ace?” She looked back over her shoulder, her voice breathless.
“Stay down.” He pushed to his feet, eyeing the crashed drone. The rotors were still spinning and he kicked it, then again until the rotors stopped.
When he’d arrived, he’d seen the drone chasing Maggie and almost lost his shit.
His only thought was to get her safe.
He moved back to her. She stood up, her hands shaking a little.
He scanned her. She looked okay. He took a second to eye her flat belly and his throat tightened. “Are you hurt?”
“No. I don’t—” She broke off and wavered on her feet.
Fucking hell . He scooped her up, holding her tight against his chest, and carried her toward the office. He saw her crusty mechanic striding over.
“What the hell happened with the new drone?” Gus barked.
“I don’t know,” she said.
Maggie leaned her head against Ace’s chest and his heart thumped. He loved the feel of her in his arms.
“The drone just went crazy. The screen flickered, and it was like it suddenly had a mind of its own.”
“I’ll pick up the parts,” Gus said, scowling.
Inside the dingy office, Ace set her down on the couch. He frowned. “It sounds like it got hacked.”
She sucked in a breath. “Hacked? Why would someone hack my drone?”
“Because they can.” Ace ran a hand up her leg.
She jerked. “Hey.”
“Just checking you’re okay.” He pressed the other hand to the back of her neck and stroked the long line of it. She shivered and her gaze dropped. She had long, inky eyelashes.
“I’m fine,” she said. “I just need to adjust to no coffee in the mornings.”
Ace slid his hand down her arm, then hesitated. He pressed a hand to her belly.
She sucked in a breath and her gaze locked with his.
Then she surged up. “I need—”
“No.” He grabbed her hand. “Maggie.”
“You can’t do this,” she whispered. “I—”
“I’m sorry. I was shocked when you told me. I was an asshole.”
She sat back against the couch. “A colossal asshole.”
“Yes.” Gently, he touched her belly again, spreading his fingers out. “I know you, and I know if you say it’s mine, then it is.”
“I haven’t been with anybody else.” She looked away.
“I haven’t either.” She’d been all he could think about.
Her head jerked and she made a sound of disbelief. “You were celibate while you were away in New York and New Orleans. Sure.”
He gripped her chin and forced her to look at him. “I was working. And trying to get in touch with you. Thinking about you.” He stroked her jaw. “Dreaming about you.”
Liquid-brown eyes met his.
“Stroking my cock while thinking about you.”
Her lips parted. “ Ace .”
“You snuck out of my damn bed, Maggie. I was pissed. Then you avoided me.”
She shifted. “I wanted to avoid the awkward, morning-after thing.”
“And I wanted to fuck you in my shower and feed you breakfast.” He cupped her cheek. “Can we start again? And discuss the situation?”
“It’s a baby, Ace, not a situation.”
He blew out a breath. A poor baby lumped with him for a father. “Right. Now, are you sure you’re okay?”
She nodded. “I’m fine.”
“Dinner. Tonight. My place.”
She shook her head. “No—”
“Yes.”
“ Ace .”
“Dinner. Tonight.”
She huffed out a breath. “Fine.”
“Good.” He felt a spurt of satisfaction. Because he needed it, he yanked her into his arms. She held herself stiffly, but he pressed his face to her hair and breathed her in. She always had a faint smell of jet fuel to her, but he liked it, especially mixed with that vanilla-berry scent of hers.
He ran a hand down her slim back.
“Right.” He reluctantly pulled back. “I’m going to take a look at your drone.”
She shot to her feet. “I want to see. I’ll have to claim it on warranty.”
He wanted her to rest, but the determined look on her face was one he knew all too well. There was no changing Magdalena Lopez’s mind when she was determined to do something.
Gus had collected the ruined drone and controller and left it sitting outside the office door.
Ace crouched and lifted the controller. He pulled the tablet free and connected it to his phone.
He ran a little program he’d created. He’d spent several years at the National Security Agency—as part of their top-secret Red Team of the most-skilled hackers—and had loved computers from the day his father had let him play on his laptop. They sang for him.
He saw data flash on the screen and growled. “Definitely hacked.”
Maggie blew out a breath and ran a hand through her hair. “I don’t understand. Why the hell would someone do this?”
“There are all kinds of hackers. Some do it for the thrill, others for less-benign reasons.”
“It must’ve been kids. And it got away from them.”
Ace rose. He could see she wanted to believe that, but he’d seen the drone. It had been aiming for Maggie.
“How close would they need to be?” she asked.
“My guess is close.”
She frowned, a groove on her brow. “There was a guy here—”
Now Ace frowned. “Guy? What guy?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. A tall guy by the fence. He was wearing jeans and a ball cap. He can’t have been involved.”
Ace scanned the now-empty fence line.
She shook her head. “It was just a stupid accident, Ace.”
“Have you got problems with anyone?”
“No.” She shook her head. “I try to make sure my customers are all happy. I pay my bills on time.”
“Okay.” He touched her again, and stroked her arm.
Her gaze met his and they stared at each other, and he felt the throb of connection. He wanted to kiss her.
She tugged away.
Tonight . He’d have her at his place and all to himself.
“Can I take this?” He held up the tablet.
“Yes, but I need it back.” She suddenly looked tired and rubbed her forehead. “And now I need to call the manufacturer and yell at them. My expensive drone is in bits and I want a new one.”
Ace smiled. “I’m pretty sure they’ll cave under the wrath of Magdalena Lopez.”
“Don’t call me Magdalena.” She shot him a disgruntled look.
He kissed her nose. “It’s a pretty name.”
“I know. It doesn’t suit me.”
“You’re pretty.” He lowered his voice. “Pretty breasts, pretty nipples, pretty pussy—”
She sucked in a breath and tried to smack him. “Ace!”
He caught her hand. “I’ll see you tonight, gatinha .”
She nodded.
Ace headed back to his car, and looked at the tablet in his hands. He’d run some tests back in his computer lab.
Maggie was his to protect.