Page 78 of Hacking His Code

Gabriel cocks a brow. “May I ask what is so funny?”

“Well, that was a lie. As of late, I’ve taken to kidnapping, though it was entirely accidental.”

“You accidentally kidnapped someone?”

“There was a woman helping me find my aunt. When I hired her, I had a team of mercs go in to get her and bring her to me.”

“Now that’s a skeleton…”

“They dragged her into my family’s estate with handcuffs and a bag over her head.”

“That must have made for an awkward work environment.”

“Once things settled, we worked well together. I let my mother think she was my girlfriend and she just about fell in love with her.”

“You know, our mothers are a lot alike. Mine was over the moon when I introduced her to Remi.”

“I’m such an asshole. My mother has been campaigning for me to settle down and provide her with grandkids for the last three years, and I led her to believe I’d found the one. It broke her heart when my fake relationship ran its course.”

“Ironically, I too was in a fake relationship, but I did a direct transition to Remi, so there was no broken heart. Just a lot of confusion.”

“Don’t tell my mom that,” I say, pointing an authoritative finger at him. “The last thing I need is comparisons.”

“What my mother wouldn’t give to rub it in your mother’s face.”

“What the hell happened between them?” I sit back in my chair and run my fingers through my hair. “They literally have a legendary rivalry, but why?”

“After the movie Belles of Boston, they were constantly compared to one another, and it more or less led to a turf war,” Gabriel says.

I chuckle. “My mother in a turf war?”

“Scarlet Primrose versus Ernestine Whitmore. Their legendary catfights landed more tabloid covers than almost anything in modern times. Both went on to marry tech giants, have dashingly handsome sons, and eventually leave Hollywood.”

“Sons who have both engaged in fake relationships and workplace romances.”

His mouth upticks into a smile. “So you and that girl—”

“Shut it!” I snap, casting him an aggressive glare.

“You know, with all the attention given to our mothers, it’s easy to forget that our fathers were far bigger rivals,” Gabriel says. “Though they competed for contracts.”

“Let’s not become them.”

“Deal.” Gabriel looks down at the file I gave him, thumbing through the papers. “I can continue to work on your case if you could provide me with copies—”

“Do you think I’m a fucking idiot?” I snap.

Gabriel’s expression doesn’t change. “We all have our secrets.”

“And apparently you’d like to be privy to mine.”

“I have a half brother that tried to sell out Icor Tech to a Chinese corporation two years ago.”

My brow shoots upward in surprise.

“Family shit is never pleasant, and boy does it stink. You had nothing to do with whatever it was your aunt was into, or still is into, though something tells me it’s not her who’s been in contact with you.”

I soften my gaze, just shy of looking warm. Despite the fact that he’s a corporate enemy, Gabriel has been helpful, and I don’t think he’s looking to make personal enemies out of me.