Chapter 28
Chapter Twenty-Eight
ELENA
Finn unlocked the door and held it open for her.
Elena hesitated a moment before entering.
This suddenly all felt more real. She was going to be alone with Finn tonight.
In his apartment. After she gathered herself, Elena stepped inside and took in the familiar space.
Somehow, all of his plants were still alive and thriving, even though they had been working more than ever lately.
"We can set up here," Finn said, gesturing to the coffee table. "More space to spread out than at my desk."
Elena set her bag down, took a seat, and pulled out her laptop.
“Need something to drink?” Finn asked from the kitchen.
“Please. Water?” Elena responded.
Finn returned with a glass of water. Elena didn’t realize how thirsty she had been until she took a drink. Apparently, she had been so lost in her work today that she had neglected basic human necessities.
Finn was setting up his materials as well, when Elena noticed his hand tugging at his collar. "I’m going to change into something more comfortable," he said, as he undid buttons on his shirt.
Elena glanced up from her screen. "Go ahead."
Finn disappeared into his bedroom, and Elena tried very hard to focus on the financial reports she was supposed to be opening. And to not focus on the fact that Finn was taking off his shirt in the next room. Unfortunately, thoughts of Finn’s body were beating out financial documents.
A couple of minutes later, Finn came back out. He was wearing joggers and a plain gray t-shirt that fit him perfectly.
Elena’s heart skipped a beat. It wasn’t a revealing outfit by any means, but it was just so different from how he usually dressed at work.
She had been accustomed to seeing him in button-down shirts, dress pants, the professional uniform of a research assistant.
This was different. And somehow the simple outfit change reinforced the fact that Finn wasn’t just her research assistant anymore.
The t-shirt was fitted enough to show his shoulders, his chest, the way he moved.
She could see the definition in his forearms as he sat down beside her, and she had to force herself to focus on her screen.
Financial documents, Elena.
“Better?” she managed.
“Much.” Finn booted up his laptop, then glanced at her. “You want something more comfortable? I’ve got sweats, t-shirts, whatever you need. Probably fit a little loose though.”
Elena looked down at her work clothes. Slacks and a blouse that felt fine this morning but now felt restrictive. She was going to be here for a while. Might as well be comfortable. “That would be great actually.”
Finn got up and returned a moment later with a pair of grey sweatpants and a soft navy t-shirt. “Give these a try. Bathroom’s down the hall.”
Elena took the clothes and headed to the bathroom.
The t-shirt was clean but carried a faint scent that was uniquely Finn.
She pulled off her work clothes and slipped into his.
The sweatpants were too long, and she had to tie them at the waist. The t-shirt hung loose on her frame.
Nothing fit even remotely well, but somehow it was comfortable. Just what she needed.
When she returned to the living room, Finn looked up and something warm crossed his face. “Better?” he asked, echoing her earlier question.
“Much.”
Elena sat back on the couch. They were close now, close enough to feel the heat radiating from him. When she got all settled in again, she noticed their thighs were touching. She could have moved, but didn’t.
She forced herself to focus on her screen. They had work to do.
Elena pulled up Bridgepoint’s annual financial report from the previous year.
Since they were a publicly traded company, these reports were available to anyone with an internet connection.
The report loaded on her screen, and the first thing that popped up was a summary of their financial performance for the year.
One number that immediately jumped out at Elena was Bridgepoint’s net profit figure for the year.
$1.2 Billion. In profit.
Elena felt the heat rise in her chest. This was the same company that told her they had to reduce her timeline by six months due to ‘budgetary constraints’.
Six months that would have cost what—a couple million?
Probably less? That was a rounding error to a company pulling in this kind of money every year.
She scrolled further down the report, analyzing the departmental breakdowns, the operational expenses, the revenue sources.
Elena wasn’t a financial expert, but everything she saw pointed to a company in excellent financial health.
There was no crisis. No budgetary emergency that would justify the deadline pressure they’d been under.
So why had David claimed there was? She opened the 2022 annual report. Same story. Massive profit.
2018, same thing. The company was consistently printing money every year.
“Oh, shit.”
Elena looked up to find Finn staring at his screen. His expression was somewhere between shock and anger.
“What?” she asked.
“The previous trials.” Finn turned his laptop toward her. “They were all fast-tracked too. Every single one.”
Elena leaned closer to see. Finn had the project timelines pulled up for all the recent trials. One after another, they all showed compressed deadlines that were signed off by David Turner.
“And look at the justification,” Finn said, pointing. “Same language every time. ‘Due to budgetary constraints, the research timeline will be accelerated.’”
“What years were those?”
Finn scrolled through the files. “2017, 2019, 2021, and then us.”
Elena’s mind was racing. She had just looked at the annual reports for those years. “Wait. What year was that first one?”
“2017. Why?”
Elena opened up the 2017 financial report and scrolled down to the departmental breakdown. She found the small section dedicated to the research division.
Annual budget: $7.2 million. Actual expenses: $5.1 million.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she breathed.
“What?”
Elena turned her screen toward him. “Research came in under budget that year. By over two million dollars.”
Finn’s eyes widened. “But they said—”
“Budgetary constraints. I know.” Elena was already pulling up the 2019 report. “Let me check the others.”
2019: Research under budget. 2021: Research under budget.
As the realization set in, Elena felt her blood boil. “Every single time David accelerated a timeline, the research division came in under budget. The research teams weren’t spending too much money, Finn. They weren’t even spending the money that had been allocated to them.”
“So the budgetary constraints—”
“Were complete bullshit. David lied about everything.”
Finn ran his hand through his hair. “But why? Why reduce the budget for the research division? Its expenses are a tiny slice of the entire company’s.”
That was a good question. What would have motivated David to do this?
Elena thought back to her dinner with him.
He always found a way to bring the conversation back to the money.
Elena opened up one of the financial reports again.
She scrolled until she found what she was looking for: executive compensation.
Her breath caught in her throat.
“What?” Finn asked.
“David Turner received a $10 million bonus in 2017.”
Finn went still. “How much?”
"$10 million.” Elena pulled up the other reports. “$11.2 million in 2019. $13 million in 2021.”
They both went quiet for a bit as they processed.
“Every year the research was fast-tracked,” Finn said slowly. “David got a massive bonus.”
“It’s not a coincidence.”
“No. It can’t be.”
Adrenaline flooded through her. They were right. David was sabotaging research while he received massive payouts every year.
Finn leaned back against the couch. “We got him, Elena.”
She nodded, but something didn’t feel right. “We’re close. There’s a pattern here we can prove. But we’re missing something.”
“The why.”
Elena nodded. “Why would David benefit from the research division coming in under budget every year? How is his compensation tied to the research budget specifically?” She shook her head. “There’s a piece we haven’t found yet.”
Finn straightened. “We still have a week. We’ll keep digging until have the full picture.”
“Exactly. But we’re right about him. I know we are.”
Finn smiled and stood up, already heading to the kitchen. “I think we’ve earned a beer.”
Probably a bad idea. Add it to the list of bad ideas today. “Agreed.”
Finn returned with two beer bottles and handed her one. The cold beer tasted great after a long day.
“Okay, so I was thinking—” Elena started. “We should start mapping out the presentation. Maybe create a timeline—”
“Nope,” Finn interrupted. “No more work talk tonight.”
She opened her mouth to argue.
“Elena.” He looked at her with gentle amusement. “We’ve been working all day. We found what we were looking for, and we know what we need to do this week. Now, we’re officially clocked out.”
He was right. Sometimes she found it difficult to switch off. “What do we talk about instead?”
“Literally anything else,” Finn said with a smile.
They sat in silence for a moment. Then Elena’s stomach growled.
Finn laughed. “When was the last time we ate?”
“Lunch?” Elena checked her phone. “Yeah, like seven hours ago.”
He stood. “I should probably feed you.”
Elena followed Finn to the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and scanned the contents. He started pulling items—chicken, broccoli, bell pepper, sauce. Then he pulled some seasoning from his pantry.
“Do you have a recipe?” Elena asked.
Finn shook his head. “I’m just going to make a stir fry. It’s my go-to when I don’t know what to make. I just pull whatever I have in the fridge.” He turned on the stove and drizzled oil onto the pan. “I’ve gotten pretty good at it.” He started cutting the chicken into strips.
“Can I help?” she asked.
“You can keep me company.”