by Leigh James
“Hold on a second—there’s something I want to show you.” I hustled to grab Clive’s letter from my desk.
Positioning me against him, Gabe took the letter and read it straight through, not saying a word.
After a minute, he put it down. He seemed calmer now. “I can’t believe he’s dead. And I can’t believe he called me a prick in his death note. And a thug. What an asshole.”
I gave him an exasperated look. “Sympathy really isn’t your strong suit, is it?”
He shrugged. “I feel sorry for him, but only because he was too stupid to see he was in over his head. He’s right—you are smarter than him. But everything else he said is just scary.”
The image of Clive, dead on the floor, came back to me again. “I’ve increased security—we have armed guards at all entrances. That’s why they gave you such a hard time. Also, all employees have to turn in their cell phones. Everyone’s required to submit to a mandatory search.”
Gabe nodded. “I’ll do the same at Dynamica, just to be safe.”
We sat in silence for a moment. I could feel his heart beating as I relished our closeness, so grateful to be back in his arms.
“I guess this is where I say I’m sorry for storming in here and throwing a temper tantrum.” He squeezed me closer. “I understand that you don’t want me to get hurt, but I don’t like being told what to do. Especially if you’re telling me to stay away from you.” He gave me a lopsided grin. “I suck at staying away from you, you know.”
“I know.” It came out muffled against his chest. “I forgive you—there isn’t exactly a manual for how to handle this situation.”
Gabe chuckled. “If there was, I’m sure you would’ve read it.”
I pulled back slightly. “While we’re at it, I suppose I should say sorry, too. I pushed you away, even though I didn’t want to. I push everybody away.”
Gabe played with my hair. “I don’t know about that, babe. I’m still right here. And I’m not going anywhere. That is…if you’ll still have me.”
“Oh, please. I love you so much, it’s undignified.” I threw my arms around his neck, kissing his cheek. Danger surrounded us and still, being back in his arms, my body lit up with joy, like I was a Christmas tree and somebody had finally turned my lights on.
Gabe laughed, not letting go of me either. “It’s not undignified. It might be primal, but it’s scientific. I guarantee that if someone monitored my brain regions when I saw you, they would probably say my nucleus accumbens—otherwise known as the brain’s pleasure center—goes into overdrive when you’re around.”
I laughed and kissed his cheek again. His new scruff was scratchy against my lips. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too.” He paused for a beat. “I’ll tell Stephanie I’m sorry I was so…curt on the phone earlier. I’ll give Eddie and Timmy my apologies, too.”
“Next time, be polite. They’ve got bigger problems than you to deal with right now.”
“I will. I promise.” He rubbed my back, then suddenly stopped. “But now you have to promise me something.”
“What?” I asked warily.
“I’ve hated being away from you.” His eyes glittered, never wavering from mine. “When this is over, move in with me.”
“You already moved me in with you.”
He took my hand in his and laced our fingers together. “I mean, for real. I want my address to be your address. I want my house to be your house. I want to know that even when we have a fight, you’re coming home to me. It’s called a commitment, Lauren.”
My breath caught in my throat.
“I know it’s soon, but I told you, I’m an early adopter.” He shrugged. “I know the goods when I see them.”
I kept silent for a moment, stunned. “But how can you be sure?”
“It’s just something I know. Like I know I’m breathing. Like I know my nucleus accumbens lights up when I see you. I believe in it, and I trust it. I have good instincts. They’ve delivered for me again and again. They don’t require my scrutiny.”
I considered his request. I was prepared for all the fears and questions in my head to start shouting their objections. But they didn’t. Instead, I felt peaceful inside, calm in a way I hadn’t felt in weeks.
“Okay,” I said.
He looked cautiously optimistic. “Okay as in…you recognize that my decision doesn’t require my scrutiny? Or okay as in…you’re agreeing to move in with me?”
I beamed at him. “Okay as in I’m agreeing to move in with you. It feels right. There isn’t any place I’d rather be. And let’s face it—you have the best wine and the best push-button fireplaces.”
“And as soon as you move in with me, I’ll really have the best view.” A huge grin spread over his face, the dimple emerging again beneath his scruff. He pulled me to him and kissed me again, making me stir with heat and desire. “I love you. Thank you for saying yes.”
“I love you too.”
I rejoiced that Gabe and I had taken care of our personal business, and that things were right between us again. But there were all sorts of things going on at the moment that were wrong, and those were the things I had to face next.
I pulled back and looked at him regretfully. “I really have to get back to work.”
“I know. I’ll stop being a distraction—but I had to see you.”
“I’m glad.” Then I looked at him miserably, hating that he was leaving. “I don’t know if it’s even safe for us to talk on the phone right now.”
Gabe nodded. “When we need to communicate, let’s use burner phones.”
“What’s a burner phone?”
“It’s a cheap phone that you just throw out. You can use it with a prepaid credit card so you can’t be traced. Have Eddie get you one—he’ll know what it is.”
“How will you know my number?”
“I’ll send you mine,” he said.
I wanted to ask how, but Gabe knew what he was doing. “Okay,” I said over a sudden lump in my throat. We weren’t going to see each other for longer than I cared to acknowledge, and we weren’t going to be able to really talk. “We got our final approvals, and I have to launch as soon as I can. I’m going into lockdown mode.”
Gabe gave me a resigned smile. “I understand. I won’t storm the castle again.”
I leaned against his side and closed my eyes, relaxing against his powerful form one last time. “I don’t want to say good-bye to you right now.”
“Me either.”
“There’s one more thing. Dave and Leo hacked into Jiàn Innovations and I got to review their progress—they’re still behind us in their development.” I paused for a beat, choosing my words carefully. “I’m going to have Dave and Leo blow their files up.”
Gabe looked at me sharply. “Because why?”
“Because…they messed with the wrong CEO.”
Gabe gave me one final squeeze and stood to go. “There’s a reason I love you.”
“I have my reasons for loving you too.” I gave him a quick good-bye kiss, wishing we had time for so much more. My heart twisted. I really didn’t know when I would see him again.
“Stay safe,” Gabe warned, his eyes dark. “I mean it, Lauren. Remember, you promised me. I intend to hold you to it. I have plans for you…partner.”
On my way to see Leo and Dave, I passed Hannah in the hall. Wes was close at her heels. “Where have you been?” she asked.
“In my office. With Gabe.”
My sister peered at my face. “With Gabe in a good way? Or in a way that’s going to make you grumpier than usual?”
I shot her a look. “A good way.”
“How good?” She arched an eyebrow, and Wes chuckled in the background.
“I didn’t ask for your input,” I snapped at him.
“Lauren,” Hannah said, her voice a warning tone.
I sighed and plastered a fake smile on. I would deal with my sister and her hunky bodyguard later. “Sorry, Wes. I’ll catch up
with you later, Hannah, okay? I have a patch to launch.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m the one who’s handling the publicity, remember? You’re not the only one who’s busy. But I still want all the Gabe details!” She winked before she turned on her heel and sashayed out of sight, Wes close behind.
I would give her details, but she was going to have to share some too.
I hustled into Leo’s office and was shocked to find it sparkling clean. There wasn’t a Vitá Water or empty Twix wrapper in sight. “What happened in here?” I asked.
“Housekeeping, aka Eddie,” Dave said, grinning. “So now we’re clean—really clean.”
“Great. Then I’ll speak freely. And actually sit down.” There was a chair behind me that wasn’t piled with junk, and I sank onto it. “I have an assignment for you two.”
Dave and Leo looked at me eagerly over their respective dark circles.
“I want you to start deleting the Jiàn Innovation files.”
“Which ones?” Leo asked.
“All of them,” I said. “I want you to start figuring out their backup systems. Map everything out. Be ready. I’ll tell you when.”
Chapter 27
The next few days passed in a blur. I buried myself in my work, pushing my sadness about Clive to one side and my fears about Li Na to the other. Our production, manufacturing, and distribution plans were rapidly coming together for our launch. Hannah had a comprehensive publicity agenda lined up. We were still shrouded in secrecy, but Paragon would soon be a name that would be recognized by the world as a leading innovator in the healthcare industry.
My legal team and Hannah had met with Agent Marks. He’d begun a preliminary investigation of Clive Warren’s hacking, but as Clive Warren was dead, the sense of urgency was lost. Mostly I felt like he’d come by to snoop around. Hannah had said he’d asked all sorts of questions—questions about the technology, Paragon’s history, and our status with the FDA—but that my very expensive lawyers had earned their keep and kept him satisfied.
I told Hannah to follow up with him. And to be extra friendly, just to keep him happy and out of my hair.
Eva continued to work beside me tirelessly. We’d completed the initial the mass-market production of the patch, had the packaging assembled, and would be ready to begin distribution in less than a week.
It was a miracle. Which, as my father used to say, was a concise term for when extremely hard work and dedication met with great timing.
I hadn’t seen or spoken to Gabe. We’d stopped texting entirely. It wasn’t safe, and I didn’t want to remind any of my enemies of our involvement. He hadn’t sent me the number for his replacement phone. If I knew Gabe, he was throwing himself into his work, readying his international contacts to begin distribution of the patch, and lying low. He probably had armed guards at work and at home. I couldn’t wait to finish the launch so I could be back in his arms again. I was lucky to be so busy. Otherwise, I would have gone crazy because I missed him so much.
Still, the atmosphere at Paragon was thrilling. Just as when I’d first started the company, I’d gotten into a comfortable, adrenaline-and-caffeine-infused routine with my work. I enjoyed the process of finally putting all of the pieces in place. It was hard work, but it was good work. Finally, I was on the cusp of being able to share my invention with the world. With all the craziness of the past few weeks, I’d almost lost sight of the fact that my invention was going to help millions of people. They would be able to afford sophisticated medical testing at a fraction of the price. I had no doubt that many lives would be saved because of the preventative measures patients would be able to take based on the patch’s results.
But lives had been lost too. Clive. Even though he wasn’t a good man, I still grieved for him. His murder was wrong. It was pointless.
I thought of him as I headed up to my office. I’d been sleeping on a cot in the lab, and my back had begun to hurt. I crawled onto one of my couches, wrapping my sweater around me. I immediately fell into a troubled sleep, dreaming of Clive’s face.
I woke up to my phone buzzing. I reached for it and squinted blearily at the screen. It was a text from a twelve-digit number I didn’t recognize.
I sat up straight and quickly rubbed my eyes. I needed to see clearly.
I have an offer for you, it read.
Who is this? I texted back.
Let’s not pretend, was all she wrote.
I blew out a deep breath and stared at my phone. My hands were shaking. We were just texting and already, Li Na was getting under my skin. Let’s not pretend, indeed.
I took a deep breath. What’s the offer? I texted back.
I will buy the majority stake in your company for a reasonable price.
Paragon is not for sale at any price, I texted back immediately. I wasn’t going to pretend otherwise.
Then let me buy the patch from you. Or partner with you here in China on a similar product.
I paused for a second. I wanted to fire back a quick No way in hell text, but I needed to proceed with caution. I’m not interested in option one. Need more details in order to consider option two.
I had no plans to partner with murdering, thieving criminals, but I didn’t need to tell her that right that second.
I’ll be in touch. But be prepared to say yes.
I shuddered. Hopefully she was going to just send me another text, not reach out and actually touch me. The clock read five a.m. I got up and hustled down to Leo’s office. A new plan was starting to take shape in my brain. I had to make sure he didn’t start deleting Jiàn Innovations’ files, even though I’d asked him to do just that.
I had another angle I just might be able to play.
“We can do it by the end of next week,” Eva said, tucking a curl behind her ear as she reviewed the most recent manufacturing reports. “It’s going to be a wide launch. Domestic and international. We don’t have to scale it back. We can go global from day one.”
“That’s amazing,” I said. “But I still want to hold off on the announcement for a little while longer.”
“Are you sure?” Eva asked. “That’s really pushing it. If we’re launching, we need to have the channels ready for us.”
I nodded at her. “I’m sure.” It wasn’t ideal, but I had to keep our tight timeframe under wraps as long as I possibly could. “Trust me. It’s for the greater good.” I looked at Eva’s face, which was pale and tired. Dark shadows bloomed under her eyes. “Speaking of the greater good, why don’t you go grab a nap? You’ve got to be exhausted.”
Normally Eva would object, but we’d been working nonstop. She smiled wanly at me. “Okay, boss,” she said through a yawn.
She shuffled off, and Finn, another one of my lab workers, came by. “Stephanie’s looking for you,” he said. “Something about mail.”
I hustled to find my assistant. She was at her desk, staring at her screen. Like Eva, she had dark circles and a bleary look to her face. I needed to launch the patch and give everyone a vacation, stat, before they all quit and ran screaming from the building. “You were looking for me?”
“A letter came in for you. From Gabe.”
She handed it to me, and I clutched it gratefully as I headed to my office. I pulled it out eagerly, but all that was written was a phone number. And an I love you, babe.
I pulled out my replacement phone to call him when a text came through on my main cell.
Have you decided? it asked. It was from the same foreign cell number.
She wasn’t wasting any time. You haven’t given me any terms, I wrote back.
The terms are commensurate with what you’d have with any trading partner in a foreign country. In China, we typically do a 60/40 percent of profits.
That was all she wanted after everything?
Sounds reasonable, I wrote back.
I also need your help with some of my technology.
I gritted my teeth. Of course that wasn’t all she wanted after everything.
; I’m sort of busy at the moment, I wrote.
I’ll be in touch again soon. You should make time for me. Otherwise, you’ll be certain to regret it.
I held my breath. I wanted to ask her what she meant, but I had a bad feeling that I already knew.
I sat there for a moment, holding a phone in each hand. On the one hand, I had Li Na, who I felt certain was not only the person on the other end of the line but also the person who was responsible for Clive’s death. On the other hand, I had Gabe. He was the first man I’d ever let into my life and the only person I’d ever trusted to be my equal.
I had the odd sensation the ground was shifting beneath my feet. I felt a little dizzy. It occurred to me that perhaps I’d been looking at the situation with Jiàn Innovations the wrong way.
I’d had a glimmer of an idea when Li Na had first texted me that morning. I’d thought that maybe I could play along with her; that perhaps I could draw out our negotiations so I could secure our position as first to market while I pretended to play nice with Jiàn Innovations on the side.
But she was texting me, asking me for an answer after only a few short hours. She wasn’t patient enough for drawn-out negotiations. Apparently, she was not inclined to let me get away with anything. But although she scared me to death, there had to be a way to defeat her.
It was my patch, dammit. I was the one who’d been locked in my lab for six years, perfecting the technology.
Li Na could bite me.
Maybe the way she was pressing me—being straightforward about what she wanted and the lengths she would go to get it—was a sign. A nudge. Maybe, it was actually the universe trying to protect me.
I’d been so busy playing defense that it hadn’t occurred to me I could actually play offense. Until now.
I took a deep breath as my idea became clearer. Then I picked up the burner phone and called Gabe. “I miss you,” was the first thing I said.
“I miss you too, babe. I’m going crazy.”
“Me too.” I sighed. “We need to meet. But before we do, I have to run something by you. And be prepared: you’re not going to like it.”