Chapter 11
Lacey
“What’s wrong?” I ask when Cameron disconnects the USB from Liam’s laptop and places it on the desktop beside him.
“The damn thing is locked up tighter than Fort Knox. I can’t bypass the encryption protocols without losing the data,” he says, shaking his head. “Liam’s a topnotch hacker but he may not be able to break in either. Not without a password. Any idea what Adrian could have used?”
My stomach plummets to my toes. I never anticipated trying to dredge up a password or deal with a dangerous enemy I didn’t make on my own.
“We were only friends for a couple of years. I gave him a makeover because he clearly needed an appearance intervention,” I say as the memory of the night I promised to help him out punches me behind the ribcage.
Now I wish I’d left well-enough alone. At least then he’d still be alive.
But I didn’t. “After I gave him tips and ways to dress for the job he wanted, not the one he currently held, he got that promotion at Stratford Industries. That’s how he was able to afford the condo he moved into later.
We only saw each other at Barringtons, and sometimes we went out for Happy Hour drinks, but that’s all. So how would I know his password?”
“He gave you the USB for a reason. You must know something.” Cameron tunnels his fingers through his short, cropped hair. “You hung out and watched movies together, ate pizza. Did he ever tell you anything personal or significant?”
I bite my lower lip, rack my brain for any small piece of info I can share that’ll trigger an idea for a possible password. But I’m coming up empty. “I’m sorry. We didn’t really talk about much, not even his work. Other than his CFO was a hardass.”
Cameron pushes away from the desk and stands.
“Hopefully Liam can hack into this damn thing after he gets home,” he says.
“It’s been a hell of a day. You’re exhausted.
Take a break, watch a movie or something.
Whatever is on that USB isn’t going to erase itself overnight. And we will figure it out.”
“You’re right. I’m only going to fry my brain if I keep pushing for an answer,” I say, then stand.
“I’ll get drinks. You want wine or beer?”
“Chardonnay please.”
“Coming right up.”
My gaze travels to his fine ass as he goes to the kitchen.
His faded jeans hug the curves of his impressive bottom like a lover.
Tingles travel through my entire system.
I sure didn’t need to see him walk away and I really didn’t need to imagine it naked.
Hell, I’ve seen his bare ass, and the memory still makes me wet, hot.
I crave him, but I know I can’t act on that impulse again. I shouldn’t.
But he’s good, nice. Honorable. A true protector. And someone I rely on for everything else. And that makes me want to rely on him for a whole lot more. But I’m a temporary diversion for him. And I deserve more, want more than sex too.
Sighing inwardly, I return to the living room and sink onto the couch while I listen to Cameron open cabinets and the fridge to fix our drinks. A half an hour later, we’re watching a rom-com because the last thing I need in my brain is an action-adventure thriller when I’m living one in real life.
I hear the garage door opening, announcing Liam’s arrival. He enters the house and aroma of takeout burgers fills the air. “Hey guys, hope you like Mickey D’s,” he calls from the kitchen.
Cameron pauses the movie. “Bring it out here and we’ll chow down while I catch you up on what we’ve found.”
“Sure thing.”
Liam enters the living area with Mickey D bags in one hand and a bottle of craft beer in his other.
“Beckett and Riley are on their way here tomorrow,” he says, setting the food down on the oversized coffee table.
“I’ve got a couple of other guys from our team in Virginia analyzing the parking garage’s surveillance video for clues about who might have targeted Lacey. ”
He hands us our burgers and fries asking, “What did you find out?”
Cameron fills him in while we eat our burgers and fries. Liam, also built like machine with tatted, muscular forearms and zero fat could turn any red-blooded woman’s head, or man’s. But he doesn’t make my tummy swirl with anticipation or my heart thump hard behind my chest whenever I look at him.
Not like Cameron does.
The pair of them are close. Like brothers more than just teammates working for an elite protection agency.
Though I have a family of my own, I’ve never felt that kind of bond with my sister.
I guess because we were both in super survival mode when we were moving around from one air force base to another.
Most of my friends did feel close to their siblings, but for some reason my sister and I didn’t.
And I often wonder why. Maybe I’ll get the chance to ask her after all this is over.
Liam finishes his burger and says, “I may not need the password to get around the encryption wall, but it’ll take a hell of a lot longer to crack in without one. I’ll give it a go anyway. Kinda like a challenge.”
During the last few days, I learned Liam isn’t just a highly trained operative for Select Protectors. He’s equally as wicked smart with a degree from MIT and serious computing abilities. How or why, he got recruited by Cameron’s off-the-grid agency remains a mystery to me.
“I really appreciate you doing this for me.”
He looks at me and shrugs like it’s no big deal. “Cameron’s family, which makes you family. We take care of our own. So, there’s no reason to thank me,” he says. “He’d do the same for me if someone I cared about needed help.”
I open my mouth, ready to say we’re not an item. But we’ve gotten close and there’s no denying the attraction humming between Cameron and me even if we’re not acting on it anymore.
But oh. How I totally want to act on it.
Instead, I gather the now empty food wrappers and stuff them into the paper bags.
“I’ll take care of cleaning this mess up while y’all take care of figuring out how to break into that USB,” I say, standing.
“In the meantime, maybe doing mindless work will shake something loose from my brain that’ll help you break into the damn thing. ”
“Sounds like a plan,” Cameron says. “I’ll update Beckett and the people at headquarters. If we come up with anything concrete, we’ll share that intel with Detective Reynolds.”
Cameron and Liam stand and make their way back to the home office.
Suddenly, the living room feels emptier than ever, and I feel lonelier than before.
I stare at the flat screen mounted on the wall over the fireplace where the rom-com movie is frozen.
The main characters are about to kiss, their head angled toward each other, mouths parted, eyes closed.
One click of a button and their lips will seal together with the promise of more, leading to a happily ever after.
One I want for myself. One I don’t believe I can have with Cameron. Hot tears prick behind my eyes, threatening to fall. I tamp them down. Life isn’t a movie and if it is, I’m not living in a rom-com.
Nope. I currently exist in an action suspense thriller and the only romance is the heat zinging between me and Cameron. Heat eventually burns out. I have to remember that.
Sighing, I head toward the kitchen, telling myself to be grateful that I’ve got a team of good people behind me who are moving heaven and earth to bring my friend’s murderer to justice.
That’ll have to be enough. Because when this is over, Cameron will be back on duty. And we’ll both be where we belong.
But I’ll be alone. And being alone totally sucks. Especially when I know what it’s like to be with him where a part of his world is weaving into the fabric of mine.