HACKING THE BILLIONAIRE: Part 3

by Jenny Devall

  “That’s never fun,” Justin said.

  He hugged her with one arm. Like a pal, not a girl he wanted to date. Odd, but she’d been getting mixed signals from him. Did he want her as a friend or a lover? She couldn’t tell.

  “Thanks.”

  “There’s a meeting today that you will probably be involved in. Just a progress report.”

  “I’ve given Janice my report.”

  “She wants to share it with the rest of us and have you there in case there are any questions.”

  Not the day she wanted to defend her report, but she wouldn’t have written anything else. She could stand by it, but she didn’t feel confident about much today. Damn Dirk. “Okay. Thanks for the heads up.”

  “Lunch today?”

  “I have a feeling I’m going to need it.”

  Justin stepped closer, brushing a hair out of her face. “It’ll be fine, Riley. You’re talented and driven. You’ve always been.”

  She smiled up at him. Nice to hear the words. “Thanks for the pep talk. I needed that.”

  “Anytime.”

  He kissed her forehead. A sweet, affectionate gesture that probably should have had her body humming, but didn’t. Justin’s touch didn’t ignite things in her body. It didn’t ignite things in her soul either.

  Sad.

  He was such a good guy. Sparks don’t happen overnight. Well, they had with Dirk. He’d touched her, and she might as well have exploded. She wasn’t looking for that level of passion. That could burn out.

  And it had. If she continued to stay away from him it would. And now that he was mad at her, his passion for her would fade. Everyone would be better off. Especially Riley.

  “You okay now?” Justin said.

  His smile made her smile. “I’ll be fine. I appreciate you listening.”

  “I’m a great listener, Riley. You can tell me just about anything,” he said.

  Was he trying to tell her something or was he just being a good guy? Did he want to know more about Dirk? Should she tell him this early on? Since Dirk wasn’t going to be a factor in her life anymore, she didn’t think that Justin needed to know the sordid details.

  At some point she’d talk about Dirk to Justin, but not now. Not when this was new and fresh and fun. No need to get too serious too soon. Why not let it all happen organically? Not on the whim of one of the parties involved.

  How refreshing to be on equal footing.

  She stood on her tiptoes and kissed Justin’s cheek. She didn’t know why, but she had a sudden urge. He took her into his arms, kissing the top of her head.

  “You really have developed into a fine woman, Riley. I’m glad I got to see you again.”

  She didn’t know what to say to that. Part of her wanted to confess about Dirk. She’d slept with the client. Had moved in with him. That wasn’t fine at all. That crossed a line. She didn’t feel too good about doing that.

  “Thank you, Justin, but we probably have to get inside soon.”

  He let go of her, an odd look on his face. He’d clearly wanted to say more, but didn’t. His gray eyes studied her as if unsure about something. She would have liked to reassure him, but he wasn’t revealing what the problem was.

  “Right. Work. Almost forgot about it,” he said finally.

  The look left his face and he became all business. If they could have gone for coffee right then and talked, Riley would have been happy. She wanted to connect with Justin. She wanted to make this into something. He’d be easier than Dirk. She wouldn’t have to guess with Justin. He wouldn’t control her. He wouldn’t challenger her either, but he’d probably love her as if she were the only woman on Earth.

  Unlike Dirk, who could have anyone he wanted in his bed. Except Riley at this point. The idea made her want to laugh.

  Riley and Justin walked inside like two people not sure what their relationship was. Riley certainly didn’t know.

  ***

  The confrontation with Riley had unsettled Dirk. He was a bear for the rest of the morning. Marcia finally came in and sat down at his desk.

  “Stop.”

  “What?” he said.

  “You are being a jerk to everyone. I don’t know what happened, but I did see Riley leave here today. Is that what has you in a snit?”

  A snit? He hadn’t thought he was that bad. Was he? “I’m a being a pain.”

  “Like a bear with a sore paw.”

  No one had ever likened him to bear. Not a cuddly teddy bear or a scary brown bear. He didn’t like either comparison.

  “Sorry.”

  “You should be. You need to apologize to everyone who saw you this morning,” she said. “So what happened?”

  He eyed the folder that Riley had left. He hadn’t opened it yet. He had a feeling that she’d been right. That Zeke had something to do with this. He didn’t want that. He’d contemplated looking at it all morning. He couldn’t bring himself to confirm his suspicions.

  What if his best friend had been the cause of all of this?

  He grabbed the folder. “Riley thinks Zeke is the cause of my leak.”

  “Zeke? She must be pretty sure to accuse your best friend.”

  “I know that. I didn’t think about that this morning. “

  “You yelled at her,” Marcia said.

  Not his finest moment. “I did. I wish I could take it all back.”

  “You do know that you are an ass?” she said.

  Yes, he knew that. He’d been feeling that since Riley left. “Yep.”

  “Did you look at what she wrote?”

  “No.”

  “Coward. You built this company. You’re going to let your best friend ruin it? That’s pathetic.”

  “Stop.” He rubbed a hand down his face. He’d been berating himself enough this morning. “I feel like shit, okay? I don’t need you to add to it.”

  “You should know that I’m not going to let you off easily, Dirk.”

  “Yeah, I know. You’re the only one who has ever stood up to me. Well, besides Riley.”

  “And you yelled at her when she brought you news that she knew you didn’t want to hear. Let me see.”

  She held out her hand. Dirk gave her the folder. The one he was too chicken to read. What if Riley was right? What if Zeke had been doing this all along?

  “The only part of this I don’t get, is why would someone beat him up if he was the person leaking information?”

  “Maybe he had an accomplice. Maybe he was going to come clean to Riley and whoever he is doing this with didn’t want him to.”

  “That does make sense. You have an evil mind.”

  “It’s all the mysteries I read.”

  “Remind me never to get on your bad side.”

  “I know where to hide the bodies.”

  Dirk laughed. He’d managed to be this successful without having to hide bodies. Metaphorically or physically.

  He watched Marcia as she read Riley’s report. A frown formed on her face. He’d better read it before she said anything. She finally dropped it on his desk.

  “Very thorough. You really should look at it. She has talent.”

  He knew many things about Riley’s talents. Some were in the workplace. Some were in his bedroom. He had to say he’d been missing her. Both places. She had a quick mind and could look at things differently than he did. He could bounce ideas off of her.

  And she was one hot lady with a smoking body. His dick missed her too.

  And he’d probably screwed this up well. She was probably in Justin’s bed right now. The idea pissed him off, but he had no one to blame but himself. He hadn’t shared anything with her.

  He picked up the folder. Marcia was right. The report was thorough and left no doubt in his mind that Zeke was responsible for this. Riley had suggested that he wasn’t working alone.

  She was good. Very good.

  He dropped the folder on his desk, rubbing the back of his neck. Rarely at a loss for action, didn’t he know what to do next.
Call Riley? Apologize? Call Zeke into his office. Fire him.

  “What are you going to do?” Marcia asked.

  “About Zeke?”

  “Or about Riley. You never told her, did you?”

  “Told her what?”

  “That you love her.”

  Marcia knew? Of course she did. “No, I didn’t. I’m not sure I realized it myself until recently.”

  “You are an ass. I’m not sure you can repair that.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

  “It will require you to be real. Not to use your money or charm. You’ll have to bare your soul to her. I don’t think that you are capable of that.”

  “Ouch, Marcia.”

  “I’m telling you the truth. The words alone won’t be enough. She has to see that you have this emotion. You may have to woo her.”

  “Too bad she’s seeing someone else already.”

  “And that’s an obstacle why?”

  Damn. “Because what if he can give her what I can’t?”

  “What can’t you give her?”

  “Forever. That white picket fence.”

  “Did you ever ask Riley if that’s what she wants?”

  He hadn’t. “We didn’t really talk about long term,” Dirk said.

  “Of course not. Maybe she doesn’t want a white picket fence. Maybe she just wants a man who can challenge her? You can’t assume that you know what she wants.”

  He’d been doing that. He’d assumed that she wanted a traditional life. He couldn’t do that. He wanted to be in Manhattan. He wanted to be childless. Had they ever even talked about kids?

  No. Damn.

  Marcia rose. “You have to fire Zeke, but you have to talk to Riley. See what she wants. Offer her your heart.”

  “What if she stomps on it?”

  She put her hands on her hips. “Is the big bad billionaire afraid of something? You’re fearless in the boardroom. Take the same ferocity and grow a set. Show her how you feel.”

  Marcia left, but Dirk didn’t feel as if she’d been giving him a pep talk. He felt even worse.

  Chapter Eight

  Riley’s phone rang while she was prepping dinner. Justin was on his way over. She was cooking him a meal. She didn’t know if she’d sleep with him tonight or not. She’d see how it all went.

  Riley didn’t recognize the number on her phone, so she didn’t answer it. The same number had been calling her every day, and she didn’t know who it belonged to. One of these times she’d have to answer it, but not when she was knee-deep in preparing a meal.

  For her new boyfriend. At least she thought he was her boyfriend. They spent a lot of time together if they weren’t that. She had doubts that it would go further, but she didn’t entertain them. Justin was a good man. Just what she needed.

  So he didn’t make her tingle when he kissed her. Tingling was overrated. Tingling led you to do stupid things. Instead, she felt a nice affection for Justin that would eventually lead to love. She was sure of it.

  Her feelings would grow for him, and that was better in the long term.

  Who was she trying to convince? Joan had asked her that when she talked about Justin.

  “Who am I trying to convince?”

  Riley shook off her doubts. Justin was a good man, and she should be delighted he was in her life. She chopped vegetables for a salad, shaving some cheese on at the last minute. She wasn’t nervous, but she wanted the meal to be perfect. She wanted this relationship to work and not be a rebound from Dirk.

  Her phone rang again. This time she was able to answer it. Same number. No one was on the line.

  “Robocall?”

  Too bad she had her number in the Do Not Call Directory. She shouldn’t be receiving calls like that. She disconnected, but the call had her freaked out a little. Damn that case with Dirk. She’d gone through a large portion of her life never thinking about danger.

  Now she saw it in every hang up and prank call.

  Her doorbell rang and she jumped. “Stop.”

  Justin had a bouquet of flowers for her. She accepted them with a smile.“Come in.”

  She found a vase, filled it with water, then put the flowers on her coffee table. She could see them from anywhere in her apartment but her bedroom. She smiled at them.

  Justin kissed her. “I thought they were beautiful. They reminded me of you.”

  That was pretty charming, especially for Justin. “Thank you.”

  “Anything I can help with?”

  She handed him the wine bottle and a cork. “You can open that.”

  “Sure.”

  He did it and then poured some into the two glasses on the counter. Riley checked her lasagna in the oven. “Almost done.”

  Justin touched her glass with his. “Cheers.”

  “Cheers,” she said.

  She sipped the burgundy liquid. She’d done okay. She remembered some of the things that Dirk had taught her. He’d been a good teacher besides being an example of what she didn’t want in life.

  Justin was what she wanted. Stable, normal, sweet. Maybe even a little boring.

  That’s okay. No one would shoot at her. No one would put her in the hospital because she was with Justin.

  “Smells good,” Justin said.

  “Nothing fancy. I’m just an okay cook.”

  “I’m sure it’ll be delicious.”

  He settled on a stool by the counter. Her phone rang again. That same number.

  “You okay?” Justin asked.

  He asked that a lot of her lately.

  “I’ve been getting these calls from that number. No one is there when I answer.”

  “Have you called it back to see who answered?”

  “Once, but no one picked up and there was no message on the voicemail.”

  “Odd. An ex stalking you?”

  Dirk wouldn’t stoop to that. No, he’d barge in the front door. He wouldn’t be stealthy. He’d be right up in her face. “Not likely.”

  “Not that guy who was here that day?”

  Should she come clean? Should she tell Justin about Dirk? “He’s not an ex.”

  Okay, that was a lie. He was an ex something. She just wasn’t sure how to classify their relationship.

  “Is he a friend?”

  “No. He isn’t in my life. I’m not sure what we were, but we aren’t anymore.”

  Justin’s smile was one thousand watts. “Good. I don’t want competition.”

  She pulled the lasagna out of the oven. “No competition.”

  “Glad to hear it.”

  That had been easy. Almost too easy. Did he want her enough to fight for her? Dirk would have laid his claim by now. What different men they were.

  She was with the right one. Her doorbell rang.

  “You want me to get it?”

  “Yes, please.”

  She pulled the salad out of the oven. Justin came back with a vase of flowers.

  “You’re a popular woman,” he said.

  There was no smile on his face as he set them on the counter. Who the hell had sent her flowers? She read the card. Dirk.

  “May I ask who they are from?”

  “That guy.”

  “I thought he was out of your life.”

  She frowned at the card. It read, “I’m sorry. Dirk.”

  She’d never expected an apology from him. Not in a million years. Guess he read her report and figured out that she might be right, though something nagged at her. It was almost too easy to pin it on Zeke. Too pat. Too tied up in a neat package.

  Made her think she was missing something.

  “I did, too.”

  “Is he stalking you?”

  “Not his style.”

  “Maybe you need to call the police.”

  “He’s harmless,” she said.

  She didn’t throw away the flowers. She probably should have. Justin might have believed her if she did. Instead she moved them out of her way.

  “Maybe you ne
ed to settle things with this guy,” Justin said.

  “They are settled.”

  He indicated the flowers. “Not to him.” He stood. “How about you call me when he is truly out of your life?”

  She only flinched a little when he slammed the door.

  Damn Dirk.

  ***

  Dirk stared out the window. This day might be the hardest he’d ever had. He’d sent Riley a bouquet of flowers to apologize. They should have been delivered by now. She hadn’t called.

  He might have to reach out to her.

  He’d been through her report several times. She’d covered it all, and Zeke was clearly guilty. The man was on his way here. He had to fire his best friend. He felt like a heel, and he was pissed.

  What had Zeke been thinking? Why? They’d been friends for so long, but why now? Why did he have to try to ruin Dirk?

  He couldn’t figure out any answers. His heart hurt. He wanted Riley. He wanted the culprit to be anyone but Zeke. Anyone but the guy he’d been friends with since college. What had made this man turn on him?

  The bitterness of the betrayal turned Dirk’s stomach sour. After this he wanted to see Riley. He had to see Riley. If he had any chance with her he had to apologize in person.

  She’d been right. Her proof was irrefutable.

  He’d let Marcia go home because he wasn’t worried that Zeke would do anything nuts. Zeke didn’t need to be humiliated. As mad as Dirk was with him, they were still friends. At this point.

  What happened in the future was up in the air. This was business, not personal. He fingered the folder with Riley’s report in it. He couldn’t wait to get this over with. He probably should have had someone from HR here, but oh well.

  Security was on alert. Just in case. He didn’t expect his old friend to do anything crazy, but no reason not to be safe. He heard a knock on his door, then Zeke came in. In fact, he strode in as if he owned the place.

  The man had no idea what was coming his way.

  “Hey, buddy. How’s it hanging?” Zeke said.

  Dirk turned his chair around. “Have a seat.”

  This was going to be very hard. He’d been through so much with this man. College. Various girlfriends. Zeke’s wedding. He’d been best man at it. His oldest child bore his name as a middle name. Their lives were as intertwined as two straight men’s could be.