LAUREN (Silicon Valley Billionaires Book 1)

by Leigh James

  He wasn’t my enemy, but he certainly wasn’t taking no for an answer either.

  Of course, I hadn’t said no to him.

  I threw on some sweats and went back to the living room, arranging myself on his couch with my laptop while Gabe focused on his own work at the island. A fire roared in the fireplace, stars shined through the window and I fired up my computer, ignoring how comfortable I felt, ignoring the little voice in my head that asked, Wouldn’t it be great if every night were like this?

  That voice sounded suspiciously like a combination of Hannah’s and my mother’s.

  Wouldn’t it be great if Paragon wasn’t being hacked by one of the fastest-growing healthcare companies in China? I shot back.

  Sighing, I tuned out my inner voices and turned my attention to my Internet search. Li Na Zhao. I’d read about her before, but I went back over her biographical information. She was a forty-three-year-old Chinese national. She’d studied business at INSEAD in France, graduating at the top of her class. Her parents were deceased. She had formed Jiàn Innovations ten years ago as a startup. She was divorced, with no children, and lived in Shenzhen.

  I scrolled through pictures of her. She was very attractive, with long hair and a penchant for bright lipstick and dark, slim-fitting suits.

  I wondered if I could take her.

  I read more about Jiàn Innovations. It was a high-tech healthcare deliverable company. Over the past three years, they’d seemingly found their market, producing low-cost diagnostic apps that had become popular in China’s healthcare system. They were looking to expand aggressively into international markets, particularly the United States, because of our already high level of innovation in healthcare, along with the increasing costs associated with our aging population.

  Zhao was quoted in an article as saying Jiàn’s research and development team was her primary focus as CEO. She wanted to concentrate on innovation, and noted that the healthcare market needed an infusion of cheaper technology.

  Fuming, I read that from all accounts, Li Na Zhao was brilliant, capable of steering her company from near-obscurity to a very robust presence in the Chinese healthcare system. She shouldn’t need to steal from me. I wondered if Clive had really sold the stolen information to her. If he did, why? How had he met her? How had Paragon’s patch become a topic of conversation between them? Why would he risk everything he had to steal from me?

  Is this what’s really going on? My mind whirled with the possibilities. Clive had warned me that if I didn’t let him buy into Paragon, he would sell the stolen technology. It appeared that was exactly what he’d done, and his buyer was a heavy-hitter in the healthcare market. Now I had to deal with it. My rational, analytical mind said that it was finally time to call in the FBI, and have my legal team start creating a paper trail between Paragon, Clive and Jiàn Innovations.

  But my instinct—which had gotten me this far—told me that a proceeding in federal court was going to take years, which would end my dream of launching the patch and revolutionizing healthcare. Because in high tech, if you didn’t move fast, you were dead.

  If I chose to prosecute Clive Warren and Jiàn Innovations, I would be effectively eliminating myself from the game. Some other startup would produce technology similar to the patch, eventually. But they might make it expensive, chasing the profit.

  That was the opposite of what I wanted.

  I could probably, eventually, collect billions of dollars in damages and lost royalties from a lawsuit. But the money wasn’t important. Providing affordable medical testing to the masses was all I’d ever cared about. I wanted to change the world.

  If I was tied up in litigation for the next few years, the world was going to move on without me. I didn’t believe that was for the best. I believed making my technology available as soon as possible was for the best.

  Sighing, I picked up my phone and called my security manager, Eddie, at the lab. “Is Gabe’s tech guy there? Dave?”

  “Yes. We had him background checked. He’s clean. I took his fingerprints, and I also had him cavity searched.” He grunted. “I don’t think he liked that too much.”

  “Probably not,” I agreed. “You had to do it, though. I don’t want any third parties on the premises unless I directly clear them, okay?”

  “Got it.”

  “Thanks, Eddie. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  I closed my computer. I couldn’t read about Li Na or her company anymore. Becoming more anxious wasn’t going to help me have a clear head tomorrow. I got up and stretched, padding over to where Gabe was engrossed in his laptop. “I need to go to bed.”

  He scrubbed his hands across his face. “That sucks, because I just had a deal blow up. I have to do damage control.”

  I tried to hide my disappointment. Gabe had been spending plenty of time with me and dealing with Paragon. He had his own multibillion-dollar company to run. “Of course.” I kissed him on the cheek and headed toward the bedroom.

  “Lauren.”

  I stopped, turning to him. “What?”

  His eyes brightened. “It’s nice having you here.”

  “It is nice…especially with everything going on.”

  “Way to add the disclaimer.” He turned back to his screen with a grin. “I still know you like me.”

  I sighed as I headed into the bedroom. The thing was, I’d told him—only the day before—that I wanted to keep our relationship strictly business on the one hand, and strictly physical on the other. And there I was, climbing into his four-poster bed, an assortment of my belongings moved neatly into his house.

  If I remembered correctly, I’d additionally promised to be “his.”

  He also knew I liked him—a lot.

  I wasn’t doing a great job of avoiding emotional messiness.

  I closed my eyes against all of it, waiting for sleep to give me a reprieve.

  The reprieve was brief.

  Gabe nudged me. “Lauren.”

  “Tomorrow,” I wailed, rolling over. All I wanted to do was sleep. “I’ll have sex with you tomorrow.”

  “I’m looking forward to that, but that’s not why I’m waking you up. You need to see this.”

  I sat up immediately, sensing the urgency in his voice. Disoriented, I rubbed my eyes and squinted at him. “What’s the matter?”

  He pushed his laptop toward me. “I need to show you something.” He hit a button, and the screen came to life, showing pictures of us together. There were two of them—one of us leaving the restaurant the first night he took me to dinner, and one of us standing near his car. There were also dozens of other photographs of us individually, headshots and press photos.

  I scrolled through them all, not understanding, until I reached the bottom of the document. There was biographical information about me, the history of the formation of Paragon, as well as information about my board of directors. There was similar information about Gabe and Dynamica.

  I felt sick. “What is this?”

  “Dave and Leo just sent it to me. It’s a copy of a file they found on Clive’s computer—a file he sent to that executive assistant in Shenzhen.”

  I scrolled back through the photos. “What? Why?”

  Gabe’s eyes looked troubled and tired. “I’m not…completely sure. But Dave found the email that accompanied it.”

  I was immediately wide-awake. “What did it say?”

  “It said that we were under surveillance.”

  He opened the email from Clive, and I quickly read it. Subjects are under surveillance. Will update accordingly.

  The world wobbled around me. “Does that mean—”

  “I don’t know what it means,” Gabe interrupted. He put his arms around me and pulled me to him, holding me close as if to shield me from the information. “All I know is that this is more dangerous than I thought. And I’m glad you listened to me for once, and that you’re here.” He ran his hands down my hair as I shuddered against him.

  My mind whirled. We were in da
nger. Gabe. Me. Why would they have pictures of us? Nothing made sense, but I tried to sift through the new information in a blind panic.

  Gabe put his laptop on the nightstand, switched off the light, and pulled me down onto the bed. “I called my security manager and told him that I need extra guards—at your house too.” He pulled me close in the darkness. “I’m not taking any chances.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I’m sorry I woke you.” He kissed my hair. “Go back to sleep. I just wanted you to know as soon as I did. I didn’t want to keep it from you.”

  I leaned back against him as he wrapped his arms protectively around me.

  “I’m not going to let anyone hurt you, babe. I promise.”

  Gabe might be able to protect me, but who was going to protect him? “I don’t want this to be real. I want to wake up tomorrow and realize this was a dream.”

  “I would sign up for that.” He was quiet for a bit. “I don’t know what Clive’s gotten himself into. Whatever it is, he’s in deep. I’ve known him for years. He’s sometimes displayed questionable ethics, but I never saw anything that led me to believe he was capable of this.”

  “What is this?”

  He pulled me closer. “I’m not sure. But it seems like Clive’s agreed to sell more than just your technology to the highest bidder.”

  I shivered against him, and my mind continued to race as I waited for the dawn to come.

  I finally fell back into a fitful sleep. When I woke up, one thing was immediately clear to me. My relationship with Gabe had put him in danger, and that was unacceptable.

  Because I didn’t want to lose him.

  The thought was more bitter than sweet. The truth of it, the weight of it, hit me as I lay there with his arms wrapped around me. His breathing was even and shallow as he slept. Now that he was in danger, I knew how important he’d become to me. The realization that I’d made him vulnerable made me feel physically sick.

  I’d been the one to put Gabe in harm’s way, and I had to figure out a way to protect him. I had an idea about what to do, but he would certainly not approve.

  I clung to him for a minute longer then sighed, slipping out of his arms. I took a quick shower, dried my hair in record time, and pulled it up into a messy bun. I threw some clothes on, moving carefully so I wouldn’t wake Gabe. I wanted to let him sleep for at least a few hours.

  I also wanted to avoid him.

  I was in the kitchen assembling my bag when I heard him. “Where do you think you’re going?” Gabe asked. He came out in his boxer briefs, his eyes puffy.

  I tried not to stare at how cute he looked, all sleepy in his boxers, still warm from bed. “To Paragon. I have to meet with my security team.”

  “Were you going to leave without telling me?” He sounded sleepy but annoyed.

  I nodded. “Yes, but only because I didn’t want to wake you.”

  He shuffled over to me and pulled me into his arms.

  I melted against his body, wanting nothing more than to just stay there. But I couldn’t do that, not until the people who were threatening the things I cared about most were dealt with. I’d let Clive get away with too much for too long, and I knew that had been a mistake.

  Gabe rubbed my back, cradling me against him. “Please don’t do that—don’t leave without telling me. Not right now. Otherwise, I’ll be worried. Okay?”

  I nodded stiffly against him. “Okay.”

  “Promise me.”

  “I promise.”

  He pulled back and kissed my cheek. “I’ll call you from my office. I’m going to make some calls this morning, talk to a colleague I have in Shenzhen. Try to find out if he knows anything about Jiàn or its CEO. If you hear anything from Dave and Leo, call me immediately. Please.”

  I headed to the door. “Fine.”

  Gabe watched me, more alert now. “And Lauren, keep your security with you. I mean it. If I find out you were alone at all today, you’ll be working from home indefinitely. My home.”

  “Yes, sir.” I tried to sound as if I were joking, but my voice wobbled a little.

  “Are you okay?” Gabe’s eyes searched my face. “I know it was a shock to see those pictures.”

  I nodded jerkily. “I’m fine. I just want to get to the bottom of all this. That’s all.”

  “Okay.”

  Closing the door behind me, I realized he didn’t sound as though he meant it.

  Chapter 15

  I checked in with Leo and Dave as soon as I got to Paragon. Leo was slumped behind his desk, the dark circles under his eyes like purple bruises against his skin. He robotically scrolled through data on his computer, an enormous cup of coffee next to him. Dave sat on the couch, his laptop propped up on his bony knees. He jumped up when I came in and shook my hand. “You must be Lauren.”

  “Thank you so much for being here, Dave. Are you two doing okay?”

  “Now that I’m not being subjected to a cavity search, I am.” Dave laughed, a funny, guttural sound, and I immediately decided I liked him.

  I looked at him sympathetically. “Sorry about that. Security’s a top priority for us.”

  He shrugged. “S’okay. I get it.”

  Leo looked up. “Dave’s already taught me a couple of tricks. He’s a pro.”

  “Great. And thank you for your…find last night. The photographs.” I smiled at them tightly, wanting to skirt the underlying implications of those pictures and stay all business. “Are we able to access most of Warren Technology’s files now?”

  They both nodded.

  “Perfect. I need to see Clive Warren’s schedule for today. Please send it to me as soon as you can.”

  I turned to go, then hesitated. “Dave?”

  “Yes?” He looked at me expectantly.

  “Under no circumstances are you to tell anyone else what I’ve asked you to do. You work for me now.”

  I headed to security, where Eddie was watching the camera feeds. “I need to talk to you and Timmy.” I texted my poor personal security guard, who hadn’t taken a day off in weeks, and asked him to come up. When he got there, I took a deep breath. “You two have been with me for years. I trust you both.”

  They both instantly looked wary. I often thanked them, and I paid them very well, but the word “trust” probably sounded more touchy-feely than either of them were used to.

  “Okay…” Eddie said tentatively.

  “What’s wrong?” Timmy asked, cutting to the chase, his neck popping out over his dress shirt.

  “There’s a lot. You might want to take a seat.” Neither man moved, but I sat down on the couch, the enormity of the situation pressing on me. “Not only were we hacked, but the man who did it, Clive Warren, has sold the information he stole from Paragon to a Chinese biotech company. They also have personal information and photos of me and Gabriel Betts. Biographical information and pictures of us individually. And together. We have information that they’re following us.”

  I paused for a second, swallowing hard. “I’m concerned that there might be a…threat against us. A physical one.”

  “What about the police?” Eddie asked.

  I shook my head. “I can’t risk any other outsiders being involved right now. This is a vulnerable time for us. I might have Clive arrested eventually, but for now, he’s the only link I have to this Chinese company. And I can’t just have them arrested, unfortunately. Getting the Chinese government to cooperate could be difficult.”

  “So you’re just going to let Clive…go?” Eddie looked appropriately incredulous.

  “For now. He might be worth more to me out of jail than in at the moment.”

  “So what can we do?” Eddie asked. He was always to the point, which I admired.

  “I need increased security. I need two men assigned to Leo and Dave around the clock. I also need someone to watch out for my sister. I want our best guy for that. She needs protection when she’s here, when she’s out, and when she’s home.” Hannah wasn’t going to like tha
t, but I wasn’t going to give her a choice.

  “Mr. Betts has offered to send some of his security force too, so I’ll need you to coordinate with them.” I looked up at Timmy. “I’m going to be…staying at Mr. Betts’s house for now. You might want to rotate another guard in so you can sleep at your own house for once.”

  He shrugged. “I’m fine. My family’s used to it.”

  Timmy was ex-military. He’d been on multiple deployments before coming to work for me. As I understood it, his family was thrilled he’d taken an “office” job and was close to home. He’d told me the money he was making was more than he’d ever thought he’d earn, and after a year with me, I’d doubled his salary. You couldn’t buy loyalty, but you could reward people for it. I was lucky to have him at Paragon.

  “Okay. Good.” I nodded at him. “I need to meet with my sister and wrap up a few things, but then I’m going out. I need you to come with me. I’ll text you when it’s time.”

  “I’m going to assign extra men to you too, Ms. Taylor,” Eddie said. “That way, we’ll be able to ascertain if anyone’s following you.”

  “Thank you,” I said shakily, then took a deep breath. “There’s one other thing. Everything that I ask you to do, and anything that I tell you, has to remain strictly confidential. I don’t trust anyone right now, understand? The circle stays small. It stays you and me.”

  I stopped at Hannah’s office next. “Hi.” I tried to keep my voice even.

  My baby sister scowled at me. “What’s the matter? Why isn’t your skin glowing? Did you and Gabe have a fight? You look like hell.”

  I sighed, deflated by her onslaught. “No. We’re fine. I just didn’t sleep much.”

  She cocked her eyebrow. “For a fun reason?”

  I closed her door and sat down. “Unfortunately, no.” I had to walk a fine line with Hannah. I needed her to know there was a real danger, but I didn’t want to upset her too much. “Our tech people found some other documents last night. Some stuff that means we need to increase security.”