“That’s a good look on you, Eden.” Jax’s laughing voice came from the doorway and we both spun to face him. Eden’s face was bright red and she shrank down into the coat like a turtle trying to hide in its shell.
“I—um—spilled something on my shirt,” she stammered. Jax’s grin grew to epic proportions and I quickly pushed her behind me and scowled.
“What the fuck do you want, jackass?” I snarled.
“I just came to see if you wanted to grab some lunch,” he explained, leaning casually against the doorjamb. His eyes glittering with mischief, he gestured to something behind me. “Looks like you’ve already eaten.”
Eden shrieked, and I glanced back to see her scrambling to her discarded underwear. She snatched them up and shoved them in her pocket before turning blue death-rays on me. I shrugged unapologetically. With the exception of Jax turning up, I wasn’t the least bit sorry for what had just happened.
Turning back to Jax, I clenched my fists in anger. I didn’t like him seeing her panties or her freshly fucked look. It was my fault, though. Usually, if I took her at work, I did it in my office where it stayed private and I could easily clean her up afterwards.
But when she’d waltzed into the room in her short little skirt, and after I’d been pouring over all the shit for the case for hours...fuck, I just had to have her, right then. I was sure I was going to get my ass chewed out by Eden later.
“Watch it, Jax,” I warned. He lifted his hands as though surrendering, but his grin was still firmly affixed to his face as he backed out the door.
“Behave!” I heard Natalie admonish him.
“Um, Natalie?” Eden called.
Natalie poked her head in. “Sorry about him.”
“It’s fine. No, I was wondering if you have any extra clothes in your office.”
I could tell Natalie was fighting off her own smile, but she managed to contain it. “I’ll bring a couple shirts to Isaac’s office,” she agreed before leaving.
Eden marched right past me and I figured the best way to avoid a scene and placate her was to silently follow. When we reached my office, she plopped down onto the couch and folded her arms across her chest.
I moved to the couch and dropped down beside her before dragging her into my lap. Nuzzling my nose in the crook of her neck, I placed hot little kisses there and felt her tension melt away. I sincerely hoped that she never stopped being so affected by me.
“Thanks for bringing my lunch, Sunshine,” I said with a grin.
She sighed and smacked my arm lightly, but when I looked up, her eyes were dancing with amusement.
“You’re welcome. Now, let me tell you the other reason I stopped by.” She hopped off my lap, and I reluctantly let her go so she could get whatever she was looking for. She pulled a file from her bag and then came back over and handed it to me. I ignored it and grabbed her wrist, bringing her back down and settling her on my lap. Only then did I take the proffered folder and flip it open.
“I was looking through the hotel’s computer system and I found a backdoor somebody was able to use to get in. They weren’t bad, but pretty amateur because I was able to follow their bread crumbs to another IP address.” Eden rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Agent Taylor is almost as uptight about following the rules as you are. He wants to run it up the chain and get permission for me to dig deeper.”
I debated whether to share my new information with her, but ultimately decided she’d be safer if she wasn’t stumbling around in the dark. “The detective on the case dropped off a box of papers today. Apparently, they were the contents of a lock box they found stashed somewhere in Whitney’s apartment.”
Eden perked up and I again argued with myself about how much to tell her. The reality of the situation, though, was that I could really use her help. As long as she did it at a safe distance and only Agent Taylor and I knew she was involved, I was begrudgingly willing to let her give it.
“I found accounting sheets for SO&G. These records were also provided for us straight from the corporation. There were discrepancies between the two. And, considering how easy it was to procure them from SO&G, I don’t think they’re aware of the second set. There are several circled payments, all to the same corporation. If Agent Taylor gives you the go ahead, maybe you could dig into the company, see what you find?”
You would think I’d offered her the key to Atlantis, the way Eden lit up. She beamed at me and grabbed a pad of paper and a pen. Writing furiously, she asked me questions and took notes.
When Eden and I were married, she was still on probation and the FBI made it very clear that I was responsible for her. I’d had the small office next to mine cleared out for her so that she could be with me while I was at work. She still used it from time to time, but I was even more grateful for it after she decided to worm her way onto this case.
I grabbed the files she needed and walked her to her desk. Cupping her face in my hands, I looked into her eyes seriously. “Eden, under no circumstances are you to work on this case unless you are here or at the FBI building. Any traces will come back to these two places and not to you.”
She blinked a few times and I could practically see the cogs whirling in her mind. She was trying to come up with a noncommittal committal, using a little doublespeak to get around my command.
“Don’t try to lawyer me, Sunshine. I’m better at it. I want a clear agreement. No working on the case outside this office or the FBI.”
Her nose wrinkled adorably, and her mouth compressed into a straight line. Then she blew out her breath and her shoulders slumped. “Fine.”
“Sunshine,” I warned.
“I won’t work on the case unless I’m at Harvey Croix or the FBI. Scout’s honor.” She held up a peace sign.
“Fucking adorable,” I muttered with a half-smile, then sauntered back to my office before we had a repeat of our lunch hour.
Chapter 5
Eden
Sitting in the office next to Isaac’s while hacking into SO&G’s financial records was bizarre. When he’d come into my life, I’d been lost. Everyone assumed I was the spoiled, little rich girl with too much time on her hands who’d been facing felony charges. My parents loved me and encouraged me in most things, but once they found out about my “hacktivities,” they didn’t understand why I’d taken such risks with myself. They’d wanted to keep me in my safe bubble where they could protect me, but they had no idea how far I’d already stepped outside of it.
They never realized that I’d been hacking computer systems since I was eleven years old. My middle school advanced math class was so easy it was boring, and I spent all of my time on more fascinating things than my homework, earning myself a D. I hated the idea of my dad being disappointed in me and since it was too late to earn a better grade by turning in the work I’d skipped out on all semester long, I’d done the only thing I could think of to save myself. I hacked the school computer and changed my grade. I wasn’t greedy, though. I gave myself a B, which still earned me a lecture from my dad about how he knew I could do better than that. He expected a lot from his princess.
What he didn’t expect was for me to use my skill set in a way that technically made me a criminal. After discovering how simple it had been to get into the school’s system, I’d spent countless hours on my computer at home, constantly learning and improving. I even found my way onto the darknet, where I connected with others like me and they answered any questions I had or helped me navigate roadblocks I found myself running into. I was good too. Damn good. There weren’t many systems I couldn’t hack into. Firewalls and security software weren’t a problem for me. I had an innate talent for knowing how to break passwords, and with a few keystrokes here and there, I found myself wherever I wanted to be.
I never really intended to do anything other than poke around a little bit. My intent wasn’t malicious when I hacked into a system. I was just testing my abilities, seeing what I could do. After my parents kept me from going to college at
fourteen, forcing me to stay in high school, I was bored out of my mind and had way too much time on my hands. One day, I got curious about a pharmaceutical company that was in the news because they’d settled a lawsuit after several children died while taking one of their drugs. While in their system, I stumbled across some incriminating evidence which proved that they were at fault, but through a stupid loophole in the law, they were able to get away with it. If not for that, the company would have been ruined and the court would have substantially increased the amount of money those families would have been paid.
Even if I’d been able to find a way around the loophole, the case had already been settled. The families had signed an agreement and already received the paltry sum they’d been able to get from the company. Only it wasn’t enough. Not even close. So I made sure they got more. A lot more.
I was willing to admit it, there was an incredible rush from correcting an injustice. The next time I stumbled across another crooked company, I made sure they paid for their criminal acts since the authorities couldn’t seem to do it. I told myself I’d stop after each one, but there was always someone else who needed help.
I made the mistake of getting careless with a few “anonymous” tips to the FBI and accidentally left a ghost trace they were able to follow back to me. Then one day, along came the FBI, and Isaac with them—and I gave it all up.
It was easier than I’d thought it would be, too. I had Isaac, and the high I got from being with him was even better than I felt any time I wormed my way into a dirty corporation’s system. I still got to flex my hacking muscles from time to time when the FBI needed my skills for a particularly difficult case. All in all, I was an incredibly lucky woman... albeit one with too much time on her hands and dreams of babies spinning in my head.
As much as I’d never want to wish ill will on another person, Isaac taking this case was well-timed for me. I’d been drifting aimlessly the last couple months since the last time I’d been tapped to help the FBI. With the help of all the college credits I gained in high school and some earned through my work with the FBI, I was able to complete my four-year degree during the year Isaac and I were engaged. For the last year or so, I’d had almost nothing to do.
I didn’t mind so much because I’d hoped to be pregnant. I wanted to be able to enjoy every moment of building a family with Isaac, but until one of those damn tests turned up positive, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with myself. Helping my husband save an innocent man who’d lost the woman he loved, and possibly uncovering a corporate bad guy at the same time? That would definitely keep me busy while we kept on trying. And all the extra orgasms I was going to get while being in the office with Isaac would be an added perk—although, I could have done without Jax almost busting us in the conference room earlier. Talk about embarrassing.
Tamping down on my discomfort, I spent the afternoon focusing on the circled payments from the records Isaac had found in the lock box in Whitney’s apartment. Whoever was cooking SO&G’s books had done a bang-up job. There wasn’t anything to raise a red flag in the documents the company had provided Isaac. The only way to discover the shadow payments was from the inside—right where Whitney had been before she was killed.
“How’s it going?” Isaac’s deep voice startled me so much, I leapt from my chair. “Shit, Sunshine. You’re jumpier than usual, and that’s saying a lot for you.”
“Sorry,” I muttered. “I was just focused on what I was doing.”
“What exactly were you doing that you didn’t notice me coming into your office?” He slid his palms down my spine and pulled me close. “I’ve never been able to sneak up on you before, not when we are both always so in tune with each other. I’m not sure I like the idea of you being focused on something else to the extent that you don’t know I’m there.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Mr. Grumpy Pants,” I teased. “You’re the center of my universe, even when I’m distracted by the depths people will sink to because of greed.”
Gripping my shoulders, he bent me back a little so he could look down at me with gleaming eyes. “You found something, didn’t you?”
“I did,” I confirmed and sat back down in my chair, while he came around behind to look over my shoulder. “But I’m not sure what it means yet. All of the payments Whitney circled were recorded as payments for an oil industry expert hired to research and develop an environmental report. But, these particular payments didn’t go to the same place as all of the other ones recorded for this purpose. The business this money went to is a dummy corporation. Odd, sure, but I’m not sure why that would get her killed.”
I handed him some of the paperwork I’d been making notes on so he could follow along. “Then I dug deeper into the corporation. Whoever set it up is good, I had to go through like seven subsidiaries before I finally came to the parent corp. The names attached to it are bogus, but I managed to get their bank account numbers.” I gave him a meaningful look. “Numbered accounts in the Caymans.”
Isaac’s expression darkened and he scrubbed up and down his face in frustration. “Shit.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “But that’s not the weirdest thing. I decided to go back to the basics and contact the company who developed the report, see if they knew anything about the other payments. So I tracked down the name of the head of the research team and tried to get in touch with him—only he’s dead.”
“Dead?” he growled, his fingers returning to my arms, his grip tight.
“I know. The coincidence of it freaked me out a little, even though it was listed as an accident. Interestingly enough, considering the industry he worked in, he drove a smart car. It burst into flames while he was driving it because of a malfunction in the battery. There wasn’t any sign of foul play, though. So it could just be a case of crazy timing.”
He dragged me from my chair and into his office, plopped down on the couch and settled me on his lap with his arms wrapped tightly around me. “What did Agent Taylor say?”
“He’s going to dig into it further, make sure the detectives on the case didn’t miss anything.”
“If he’s looking into it more, it means he thinks there might be more to that guy’s death than an accident. Which means you’re off the case,” he rumbled.
“Isaac,” I wheedled. “I haven’t even been able to uncover who those numbered accounts belong to. It’s a shell corporation, with layers and layers of protection. That kind of set-up and ‘untraceable’ can only mean they’re up to no good.”
“Exactly. I told you, Eden,” he snapped. “At the first sign of danger, you’re out of this.”
“I’m perfectly safe,” I reassured him. “I haven’t done any of my hacking from home. Even if I was, I learned my lesson at eighteen and I’m smart enough to make sure I’m not leaving any traces of myself behind. There’s no risk of anyone tracing anything back to me.”
“Famous last words.”
“Hey!” I cried, punching him in the shoulder. “Are you implying that I’m dumb?”
“Of course not, Sunshine. You’re one of the smartest people I know.” I preened at the compliment. “But you can also be one of the most reckless,” he continued, making me deflate. “And it’s my job as the man who loves you to make sure you stay safe.”
“I’m not going to be careless. I promise.”
“Eden,” he sighed, burying his face in my shoulder, his arms tightening around me until I could barely breathe. “I don’t think I can do it.”
“I’ll stay glued to your side the whole time. I’ll ride into work with you. Stay in the office next to you. Keep Taylor in the loop on everything,” I offered. “But please, please please... let me help.”
“You have no idea how much I want to say no.”
“I get it. I really do. But you’re going to let me do it anyway?” I asked hopefully, bouncing on his lap a little.
“Yeah,” he exhaled. “For now at least, only because I can see how much it means to you. You’re practically glowing wi
th excitement lately, and I want to keep seeing you like this. Plus,” he sighed. “I don’t know anyone else who has a shot at getting into those Cayman accounts.”
“How about I give you a reason to glow, too?” I asked as I slid to my knees in front of him to show him exactly how much his trust meant to me—and then promptly raced into the bathroom to puke after I gagged on his cock.
Chapter 6
Isaac
“Shit!”
I dashed from my office to Eden’s, worried she was getting sick again. For the last three days she’d thrown up several times, and I was starting to suspect it was more than just a touch of the flu like she claimed. I’d been after her to go to the doctor, but she’d remained stubbornly convinced it would pass on its own. I was ready to pick her ass up and take her to the doctor kicking and screaming.
But, when I ran through her door, she was mean-mugging her computer and slamming her fingers onto the keys as though the harder she hit them, the more likely they were to do what she wanted.
“Sunshine?” I asked warily. I hated when Eden was upset. I absolutely couldn’t handle it when she cried and lately, she would burst into tears at the smallest things.
“I can’t do it,” she shouted and threw her hands into the air.
I made my way around her desk and lifted her from her chair. Taking her seat, I settled her on my lap and rubbed slow, soothing circles on her back. “I don’t believe there is anything you can’t do, Sunshine.” I kissed the top of her head. “Tell me what’s got you so upset.”
A tear slipped down her cheek and I wiped it away. “I can’t get into the stupid accounts!”
“The ones in the Caymans?” I clarified.
She nodded furiously and swiped at her cheeks.
“It’s okay, Sunshine,” I insisted softly. “We’ll figure something out.”
“Isaac...” Something in her tone put me on alert. That tone, she wanted something. Something I wasn’t going to like. “I meant, I can’t get into the accounts from here.”
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