Chapter 38
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Once he got back downstairs, which took longer than it should have because IT was already getting a mass of calls by the time Emmett got up there, several of the new cyber security personnel were online, and the room was filled with the tapping of keys.
When he crept back into Roz’s office, the flashing red on the screens was gone, and she and Jonah were hard at work.
There was a new page up, a chat they seemed to be using to communicate, which made sense.
Something like that would ensure Jonah didn’t have to keep interrupting Roz to speak to her.
He didn't want to interrupt, but he had promised Ronan an update, so he silently moved closer, putting his hand on Jonah’s shoulder like he had before. Jonah glanced up, shooting him a quick smile, then turned back to the screen again.
“We managed to isolate them and lock them out. Now we have to close up all the holes they made getting in. It might take a bit…” He trailed off, looking up at Emmett again with an apologetic frown. Emmett smiled at him, his tail swishing lightly.
“I’m not going anywhere. We’ll talk after. Just do what you need to do.”
Jonah looked relieved. Emmett didn’t want to read too much into it, they hadn’t talked yet, but he couldn’t help but be hopeful. He’d said being away from Emmett sucked. That meant he didn’t want to end things, right?
Emmett ended up leaning against the wall by the door, acting as security while fielding calls from the rest of the security team.
Roz hadn’t just frozen the system in the main building’s research, she’d done it for every single research project they had.
Every division was locked out of everything from data to blueprints, and they couldn’t have access back until someone on the Cyber Security team cleared it and found no backdoors or access points.
Not that Emmett fully understood what they were looking for but it sounded complicated, and the way Jonah’s fingers moved on the keyboard made him think the process wasn’t a simple one.
Keeping Ronan informed was a little hard, since Emmett didn’t know much about tech.
They ended up calling in another pack member, one from the elite team who understood technical jargon and could report back more efficiently than Emmett could.
Emmett was fine with that. He was happy just being the muscle.
Jonah and Roz slumped at the same time, both letting out a heavy breath. Emmett straightened, ears perked.
“Done?”
Jonah nodded. “Hopefully. We patched all the holes and got what we could from the hackers. I’m not actually sure what happens next, but–”
Roz, who’d opened one eye to watch Jonah speak, sat up and stretched, cracking her knuckles.
“What happens next is I use my own servers to hack them back. I want to make sure they didn’t even save people’s lunch orders.
That’s a bit advanced for you, though.” She patted Jonah’s shoulder.
“You did good, newbie. You’re good under pressure. ”
Jonah looked a little nervous, fidgeting when he asked, “Good enough to apply for a permanent position? My contract is up soon and–”
Roz’s face screwed up, and she looked at him like he had three heads. “Uh, when exactly did I give you the impression that you’d be allowed to leave? I don’t train just anyone, Jonah. You’re staying even if I have to tie you to a chair and keep you hostage.”
There was nothing soft about Roz’s words, but Emmett could tell it meant a lot to Jonah. His eyes got a little misty, and he smiled brightly at her, nodding his head once. “I think you can skip that part. I’d be happy to stay.”
She stared at him suspiciously until she was sure he meant it, then waved him off.
“We’ll do paperwork and stuff tomorrow. Right now, I want to find out who was stupid enough to mess with my system and set them straight.
” She cackled, already rolling closer to her desk.
“They don’t know it yet, but they screwed with the wrong person. ”
Emmett and Jonah shared a look. He sure as hell didn’t want to be on the wrong side of that particular battle. Roz was still new to the company, so outsiders didn’t know she was in charge. He got the feeling after today, people would think twice before challenging her.
Jonah shut down his computer, tucking his chair in and turning to face Emmett.
He suddenly looked really nervous and uncertain, and he struggled to make eye contact.
Emmett knew it was probably better to head home first before they talked, but he didn’t think he’d last that long.
He grabbed Jonah’s wrist, pulling him out of Roz’s office and past the main security room, where people were packing up to head home.
He bypassed the elevators, pushing open the door to the stairs, then let out a disgruntled growl when he realized he wasn’t the only supe smart enough to take the stairs. They’d have no privacy here.
“Get on my back,” he demanded, squatting low enough for Jonah to climb on.
Jonah stared at him, bewildered. “What? Why?”
“Because you’re a puny human, and it’ll take you forever to get down the stairs without hurting yourself. Get on my back!”
Jonah’s glower was cute, but he eventually gave in, clambering onto Emmett’s back until his arms were wrapped around Emmett’s neck and his legs were around his hips.
“Sometimes, I really don’t like you–” The last word became a strangled squeak as Emmett took off down the stairs, dodging past other supes and leaping over the railing when he got close to the bottom.
He landed in a superhero pose, because he was awesome like that, and shot Jonah a smug grin when he slid off and stared at him incredulously.
“Told you I was faster.”
“Why you little–” Jonah jumped on him again, trying to rub his knuckles roughly through Emmett’s fur.
Emmett laughed, manhandling the smaller man until he was tossed over his shoulder.
He should’ve known Jonah wouldn’t just submit.
Instead, he reached down and tugged Emmett’s tail hard enough to make him jump.
He set Jonah down immediately, taking a few steps back until he was next to the door to exit the stairwell, hands raised to ward off the evil human.
“Can I call a preemptive mercy?” he asked with a laugh, eyeing the door and the steady flow of people passing on their way out. He’d need to time it right to escape.
Before he could make his move, Jonah lunged, but instead of tackling him again, he lifted onto his toes and kissed Emmett smack on the mouth.
Emmett was so surprised, he just stood there for a minute, long enough for Jonah to pull away again.
He made a disgruntled sound, reaching for him, but Jonah just laughed and shook his head.
“Come on, let’s find somewhere private. There are a few things I want to explain.”
That didn’t sound like Jonah was rejecting him, so Emmett tried not to panic as he took Jonah’s hand, slipping into the mass of exiting supes so they could get out of the building.
Jonah didn’t speak during their walk, but there was less tension in his shoulders, and he smelled like anticipation and hope, not anything Emmett would need to worry about.
They stopped when they noticed the long line of traffic trying to leave the parking lot. Jonah made a face.
“This is why I always waited a little while before leaving for the day.”
Snorting, Emmett tugged his hand, leading him past the parking garage and down the street to a park he’d found during his first week.
He’d thought he’d come around more often, but then he’d met Jonah and all his time was spent with his mate.
He probably should’ve clued in sooner about what Jonah meant to him.
He loved the outdoors, and the fact that he completely forgot about this place should have been a big neon sign that things were changing.
He found a bench near the pond and pulled them onto it, turning to face Jonah instead of the view. “First I wanted to say I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to react like that. Kyle totally deserved it, but I know you’re still new to supes and–”
Jonah put a hand up, his smile a little crooked when he said, “I don’t need an apology from you. Taron explained things to me.”
Cocking his head, Emmett asked, “He did? When?”
“Lunchtime,” Jonah replied with a one shoulder shrug. “He noticed I looked upset and took me to his old apartment for some privacy to talk. I… I guess I got so used to holding everything in at home, I forgot that some people in my life actually want to hear what I have to say.”
“I do!” Emmett agreed, putting his hand on Jonah’s knee.
They’d both twisted to face each other now and seemed to be inching closer despite the gravity of the conversation.
Like they couldn’t stand being apart for much longer.
“I care! If you’re ever upset or worried about something, I’d be happy to listen.
Even if it's about me. If I’m doing too much or scaring you, I want to know so I can fix it. I don’t want to hurt you.”
Biting his lip, Jonah frowned at his lap.
“I think on some level, I knew that. It’s just hard.
” He huffed a laugh, shrugging his shoulders, his tone self deprecating.
“I’m a work in progress, I guess. I’m trying not to hold that against myself.
Taron pointed out that a lot of things in my life changed in a matter of weeks. It makes sense that I’m overwhelmed.”
Emmett nodded enthusiastically. It did make sense, and while he was proud of how strong Jonah seemed to be, he was glad he was starting to see that he was allowed to have bad days.
Blowing out a breath, Jonah continued. “That’s not an excuse for running, though.
” He lifted his gaze, locking eyes with Emmett.
“I’m sorry I did. I was afraid I was causing a rift between you and your pack.
I didn’t want you to lose your family the same way I did.
I thought if I walked away, you’d get to keep what you had. ”
It took a minute for Emmett to figure out why he thought that.
Yes, the fight was bad, and if it had just been an argument between him and Kyle, he would’ve gotten into a lot of trouble, but it’d take a lot more than a fight for his pack to disown him.
Like murder. It’d have to be that bad for them to even consider it.
“Jonah… packs aren’t like that. We fight, but then we get over it. They weren’t ever going to kick me out.”
Jonah nodded like he understood, but Emmett didn’t miss the way his shoulders slumped with relief. “Taron told me that packs were the most close-knit families in the world. I’m glad. You deserve a family that loves you.”
Taking Jonah’s hands, he squeezed them gently. “So do you. If you’re open to it, I’d like that family to be mine. You’re my mate. You belong with me.”