HACKING THE BILLIONAIRE: Part 3 (4 page)

Riley knew when Justin left that night that he might not be back. She’d had a hard time explaining Dirk, but she didn’t really owe Justin anything. She wanted to, but they hadn’t reached that point.

Somehow she and Dirk hadn’t either.

So she sat in front of her computer, staring at the latest notification. She should delete it. She should forward it to the FBI agents. She certainly shouldn’t do anything about it. This wasn’t her case, but she stared at the e-mail anyway. The case was a loose end.

Dirk was even worse. Justin was being sweet. Dirk was being aggressive. He texted her once a day. He’d sent flowers to her at work. Justin hadn’t asked for an explanation. Thankfully.

Dirk wasn’t to the level of stalking but close. Riley knew she’d screwed up when she slept with him. She also hadn’t told him to stop contacting her. She should, but part of her liked the idea that two men were after her.

The two were so different. One sweet and normal. The other rich and a man who got what he wanted. And he clearly wanted Riley.

She sighed. Then she clicked on the e-mail. Her breath almost left her. This was the worst evidence she’d seen. And it pointed to Zeke. It was from his e-mail and had details of another client of Dirk’s.

She had to tell him, but she didn’t want to see him.

Her phone rang. She didn’t recognize the number. So she didn’t answer it. She looked back at her laptop screen, puzzling over what she’d seen. “I have to tell him.”

She couldn’t keep this to herself. She didn’t like that Zeke was the problem. Dirk wouldn’t like that Zeke was the problem. He’d agreed to give her information to throw her off of his trail.

Why? Why was Zeke doing this? Was he jealous of Dirk? They’d been friends for years according to Dirk. Did he harbor a grudge? None of this made sense.

Riley wanted a clear motive for Zeke’s behavior before she went to Dirk. She called Joan and invited her over.

Joan arrived minutes later. “I can’t stay long. I have another date with Kent.”

“You guys are really serious?” Riley said as she sat on her couch.

She remembered Dirk holding her and lettering her cry here. He’d been so sweet, and then she’d stomped on his heart. Didn’t seem to slow him down at all. He was still in pursuit of her. Despite Justin being in the picture.

“We are. I love him, Riley. He has so many of the things I want in a man,” Joan said.

Riley didn’t think she could list those things. “Maybe I need to figure out what I want. I’d never thought about it.”

“Then figure out which of those men has more of those items. Then you’d have to make a decision. I think you like being the center of two men’s attentions.”

Riley smiled. “I guess I do. I guess I shouldn’t string them along too long.”

“Has either asked for exclusivity?”

“No. Dirk never did.”

“What about Justin?”

“No, he’s been sweet and slow-moving. I wish I knew more about him.”

“Have you slept with Justin?” Joan said.

“No. We don’t seem to be rushing that way at all. I’m getting a little unnerved by it,” Riley said.

“Hm. Well, show me what you have so we can figure out what you should do about this problem.”

“Right.”

She showed Joan the notification e-mail. “You traced this back. There’s no way this is an account masquerading as Zeke’s account.”

“No, it isn’t. I’ve checked everything I could. This e-mail is pretty damning. I don’t know how anyone could be this stupid. Especially since Zeke knew I was investigating it.”

“Maybe he assumed that since he hadn’t been caught he wasn’t going to get caught.”

“I hadn’t thought of that. So you think I should tell Dirk? He’s going to be pissed that I was still working on it.”

“You weren’t. You just forgot to remove this bit of code. Not completely your fault.”

“How does Zeke know how to get around the firewall and send this e-mail?”

“How much do you know about Zeke?”

“He’s a lawyer that works for Dirk. They’ve been friends for years.”

“Maybe he had a background in coding. You can take almost anything undergrad before law school,” Joan pointed out.

“Let’s do a search.”

She did and found that Zeke had studied computer science undergrad. It was right on his Linked-In profile.

“I wonder why Dirk had never mentioned it. He must have known,” Riley said.

“There are way too many people as suspects in this case. My head would be spinning.”

Riley frowned. “Mine is, and it bothers me that I can’t pin one down. I turn a corner and I have evidence of someone else.”

“Maybe there is more than one person.”

“I can’t hop on the conspiracy bandwagon. I just can’t see how Dirk could have pissed off this many people.”

“Isn’t he pretty ruthless?”

She wasn’t sure she’d call Dirk ruthless. “Determined for sure. He sees something and goes for it. I don’t know if he’s stepped on anyone in the process.”

“One doesn’t always get to be successful without hurting a few people,” Joan said.

Riley shrugged. “I don’t know, but I guess I have to talk to him. He’s going to be glad to see me, but not glad why. Both because of the news and who it is about.”

“Guess you have to suck it up and go.”

Yes. To his office. Could that wait until Monday? She didn’t want to see him in his penthouse. He’d get the wrong idea. “That’s for Monday. I have a date tonight, and so do you.”

Joan smiled. “We need to double date sometime.”

Riley nodded, but she had no idea which man she’d bring to that date.

***

Dirk was surprised to see Riley in his office. She was clearly dressed for work, but he thought the skirt didn’t do her legs justice. The color of her blouse was all wrong for her also. He chose not to point that out.

She might never come back to see him. The flowers and texts must be working, though she didn’t look happy to see him.

“I’ve got news.”

He sat in his chair despite wishing he could take her in his arms. They could do it on the desk. The news could wait. He’d missed her.

Unless she was telling him she was marrying Justin or something stupid like that. He’d talk her out of it. Then they could do it on his desk. His dick twitched. Taking her here would be amazing.

She sat on the edge of her seat. Was she uncomfortable with what she had to say to him? His Spidey sense was tingling. He wasn’t going to be happy by the end of this conversation. He could already tell.

Bracing himself for bad news, he shifted in his chair. “Okay.”

“About the investigation.”

What was she still doing that for? “Didn’t we agree that you were done with this? We were going to let the cops deal with it?”

“We did, but I never removed my code to get notifications. I still knew when someone breached the firewall.”

He wasn’t sure what to be mad at first. He rubbed a hand down his face. She squirmed under his gaze and silence. “Why didn’t you remove the code? We agreed that this was too dangerous.”

“I know. I forgot about it. I’ve been a little busy lately. You know, living my life. I have a full time job.”

He didn’t like her snarky response. He knew all too well that she had another man in her life and that she hadn’t responded to Dirk’s advances.

“Then remove it as soon as possible.”

“Don’t you want to know what I’ve discovered?”

She held a folder in her hand. He held out his hand. “Give it to me.”

He dropped it on his desk.

“You aren’t going to look at it?” she said.

No, he wasn’t. He was mad at her. “Just leave the investigation alone. You’ve done all you can, and I want you safe. Not in danger.”

“That’s really not for you to worry about, and as I said, this was accidental.”

“I’ll look at it later,” he said.

“But it implicates Zeke.”

Zeke? “I thought you’d proved he wasn’t involved.”

“This evidence proves he is. I can’t doubt it anymore. I know he’s your friend, but, well, you’ll have to read what I found.”

“Zeke?” He dropped his hands onto his desk. “Zeke and I have been friends for about a decade. What motive would Zeke have for doing this?”

“I can’t figure out one, but he does have a background in computer science.”

“Which he probably hasn’t used in years.”

She was pissing him off. No matter what he felt about her, she couldn’t just accuse Zeke of something like this. Not without a ton of evidence.

“He could have brushed up on his skills,” she said.

He studied her. What was her game? Was she getting Zeke back for something?

“What do you have against Zeke? Personally I mean.”

If he hadn’t been watching her, he wouldn’t have seen the subtle shift of her eyes. She was hiding something. He leaned forward more.

“I have nothing against Zeke, but this shows he was involved. He may not be the only one. He may have an accomplice, but I’m pretty sure Zeke is involved in this.”

“Pretty sure? I’m supposed to go to my best friend when you’re pretty sure.”

She stood. “You can believe me or not, but it’s all in black and white.”

“This is all too much, Riley. Too much even for me to overlook. You can’t accuse Zeke unless you are very sure. Unless you know it.”

She shrugged. “Think what you want. Just read it.”

“Get out, Riley.”

“I’m happily leaving. You can have your company. You can have whatever you want. Just not me. I won’t stand here and have my integrity questioned.”

She left, and his heart went with her, but he was too angry to care. She’d insisted that Zeke couldn’t be involved. And now she thought he was. He was glad she was gone. Glad he didn’t have to see her.

Glad she hadn't responded to his romancing.

She was hiding something, and he couldn’t abide by this. Her accusing Zeke might just be a ploy to get him off of her back. Well, it worked. He wouldn’t be contacting her again. He wouldn’t send her flowers or anything.

This crossed the line. There was no way that Zeke was the leak. He couldn’t be. Dirk trusted Zeke with his life. Besides, what did Zeke have to gain? He’d lose his job if the company went under.

The whole situation puzzled Dirk. Zeke had no motive. Riley had more of a motive to piss him off. So he’d leave her alone. Well, she got her wish. He was done.

He wouldn’t bother her again. She wasn’t the woman he thought she was. Back to starlets and models. He rifled through his contacts on his phone. Who would be available on short notice?

Someone who might go for a roll in the hay and nothing more.

Ivana. She’d be up for it. He called her. The number was disconnected. How odd. He found another number to call. She didn’t answer, so he left a message. Then he tried a third number.

Sara answered. “Hello.”

“It’s Dirk.”

She hung up. Batting one thousand this morning. Damn. He’d need a good fuck after this day, and it had only just begun. What had Riley been thinking? Walking in here accusing Zeke? She must be desperate to get rid of Dirk. Well, she succeeded.

A half an hour later, he was even more frustrated. No one would answer his calls.

Riley rode the elevator down to her rental car. She wasn’t going to cry. This hurt more than leaving Dirk. He’d questioned her integrity. He’s questioned her abilities.

She needed to see Justin. That would help. He’d build her up instead of tearing her down.

The doors opened, and she took a deep breath before striding out of the elevator. She would not be cowed by this. She drove to work, her throat sore from trying not to cry. Not many things made her tear up.

She hated that Dirk had done this to her. She hated that she’d let him do this to her. Damn.

He’d gotten under her skin. She didn’t want that. She didn’t like that. She pulled into the lot at work and paused. She had to pull herself together. Going into work upset was never a good idea. Losing it in front of a man you were just beginning to date wasn’t classy either.

She contemplated calling in sick, but she wasn’t. Besides, she loved her job. She loved what she did. No reason to let Dirk take that away. She was good at what she did. People asked for her.

Finally having her emotions under control, she climbed out of her car. Justin was standing there. She’d never been so glad to see anyone.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, tough morning already.”

“You want to talk about it before we go in?”

How much could she say? She didn’t want to tell him that the man who had been in her apartment made her cry. Men only made women cry one way. That this was not the case now, she couldn’t explain. He wouldn’t be convinced. He’d think she had some emotion attached to Dirk.

She did, but Justin didn’t need to know that.

“The specifics aren’t important. I’m just upset because someone has questioned my abilities.”

“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.