Page 82 of Hacking His Code

“I mean, I want to start now, but I could be called away at any moment.”

“It’s a nonissue. I have a mother too. Scarlet Primrose,” Gabriel says with a wink. “You may have heard of her.”

“Of course. If my mom ever gets the chance to find out I’m working with Scarlet Primrose’s son and have mettheErnestine Whitmore, she’d be floored.”

“So you’ve met Ernestine?” Gabriel asks with a wry look on his face.

Shit…

“I…saw her at brunch a week ago. She was at a crêpe place.”

“Well, if you see my mom around, try not to mention that. They were rivals back in the day.”

“Understood.”

“Whenever you’re ready, I have your project,” Remi says.

“And what’s that?”

“I need you to, by any means necessary, hack into a server and download the data on it for me.”

Why, oh, why does my first project have to sound illegal?

I exhale audibly. “Just point me to my workstation.”

Hunter

“They’ve already expandedinto an online app, and I’m one of their top influencers, or as they like to call them: Topless Influencers!” Sabrina holds out her phone displaying the centerfold she shot for the new magazine LaLa’s. “I could earn seven figures!”

I force a smile. “That’s wonderful.”

“And then maybe I’ll be taking you out for dinner.” She winks at me, grabbing the collar of my work shirt and pulling my lips to hers.

My brain tells my lips what to do, but for some reason, the message doesn’t come out right, and my lips strew against hers awkwardly.

“What is going on with you?” Sabrina giggles, pulling away and giving me a playful slap.

If she had done that the last time we had been together, I would have scooped her up into my arms, pressed her against the wall, and buried myself in her.

And that’s exactly what I went to her apartment to do.

So…why am I just standing here?

Sabrina stretches her arms upward, revealing a hint of her taunt, tanned belly.

I force my hands to the gentle curve of her hip, pulling her close to me.

“I’ve missed you,” she purrs, nipping at my chin playfully with her teeth.

My breath hitches in my throat. The last thing I want to do is make Sabrina feel bad, but I can’t stand being in the same space as her. It’s like I’m suffering some kind of allergic reaction.

She presses forward with her body. “Whaddaya say we take it on over to my bed…”

She snakes her hand into my pants, and at this point, I have to grab her by the wrist and pull her away.

Her face falls, her cheeks flushing pink.

“Sabrina, I’m—” My phone vibrates, and I breathe a sigh of relief.