Page 17 of The Hacker (Dominion Hall #5)

ELIAS

V ivi’s scent clung to me. A ghost I didn’t want gone.

She was in the shower down the hall, water running behind the half-closed door of my suite’s bathroom, steam curling beneath it.

I sat at my desk, screens glowing, casting sharp shadows. Obsidian coiled in her corner, black eyes glinting like she knew my sins.

My fingers hovered over the keyboard, ready to dig into Jessa Lane. Vivi’s daredevil friend. But my mind was tangled in red curls, green eyes that burned through my walls.

My cock twitched, hard just thinking of her. For once, my head agreed, both screaming her name.

Jessa’s texts—urgent, cryptic, desperate—set my demon on edge. Vivi was meeting her tonight. I wasn’t letting her walk in blind.

I fired up a script, sharp and simple. Scraped public records, social media, anything on Jessa. Barista, Charleston native, no criminal record. Clean. Boring.

Except for her tie to Vivi. That made her anything but.

My thoughts drifted as the script ran. Vivi’s laugh, throaty and warm, echoed in my head. The way she’d teased me about chaining her to my bedpost.

Fuck, I wanted her done with her shower. Sprawled on my sheets, body soft, marked from last night. Her mouth on me, pussy clenching my cock, fire burning me alive.

But more, I wanted tomorrow with her. Her waking in my bed, curls tangled, voice filling this cold suite with life.

The thought hit like a fist. Raw. Unfamiliar. I didn’t plan tomorrows. Not for me. Work, sure—hacks, ops, Dominion Hall’s chess game. But me? I lived in the now. Code. Control.

Vivi was changing that. It scared the shit out of me.

The script pinged. Jessa’s digital footprint was sparse. Instagram posts of coffee art, blurry shots with Vivi, kayaking, laughing.

Nothing screamed danger. But the demon didn’t trust clean.

I dug deeper, cross-referencing her phone number. A burner app, active last week, linked to an encrypted handle. Not odd for Vivi’s circle, but it raised a flag.

I set a crawler to trace the handle. My fingers moved on autopilot. My mind was on her.

Vivi tonight, meeting Jessa. Her grin sharp, reckless, body moving like she owned the room. I wanted to be there. Watching. Shielding.

The ballet’s suspension notice— her whereabouts are to be supplied to the authorities —burned in my gut. A threat I hadn’t neutralized.

But Vivi wasn’t for caging. She’d burn through the bars, laugh in my face. I’d love every second.

My cock throbbed. Her lips on me last night—slow, deliberate, tasting herself—flooded my senses. I shifted, adjusting myself, trying to focus. Trying not to think of my mouth on her pussy, burying my face in her.

Jessa’s burner chat was a dead end. Encryption too tight to crack fast. I pulled her financials, skimming for red flags.

Venmo payments to Vivi for “tacos,” “gas.” Nothing suspicious. But my mind wasn’t on numbers.

It was on Vivi’s body. The way she’d ridden me, hips rolling, moans filling the room. I wanted her here, wanted to fuck her slow, feel her come apart, hear her whisper my name. What a drug.

I leaned back, scrubbing my face. Tomorrow. The word circled, foreign, like hope. Like growth.

I saw us in my bedroom, her barefoot, stealing my coffee, laugh cutting the silence. On a beach, her running into waves, me chasing, both alive in ways I hadn’t been.

Reckless. Stupid, maybe. Wanting a future in my world of shadows and secrets. But Vivi made it feel real. Reachable.

A knock snapped me out. “Yeah?” I called, voice rough, eyes on the screen.

Ryker stepped in, broad frame filling the doorway, dark hair mussed like he’d been sparring. “Seen Obsidian?” he asked. “She’s AWOL from her tank. Noah’s losing it.”

I glanced at Obsidian in the corner, coils gleaming, and smirked. “Spent the night with us. She’s fine.”

Ryker’s brow lifted, eyes flicking to the snake, then me. “I don’t want to know, do I?”

“Nope,” I said, tone light but final.

He snorted, shaking his head. “Fair enough.”

He paused at the door. “You good, brother?”

I met his eyes, that unspoken understanding there. My brothers knew when to push, when to back off. “Yeah,” I said, softer. “I’m good.”

He nodded, gone, leaving silence heavy with Vivi’s absence. That was the thing about my brothers—they knew when to let shit lie. Trusted I’d handle it.

And I would. For her.

I turned to the screen, pulling Jessa’s social media. Scrolled her connections. A guy, tagged last month, arm around her, smile too sharp.

I ran his profile, fingers fast. My mind was on Vivi. The way she’d looked this morning, eyes soft but fierce, promising she’d come back.

I wanted her here. Wanted to bury myself in her, forget the alerts, the threats, the world outside.

The guy’s profile was a bust. Tourist, passing through, no ties. I leaned back, frustrated, cock still hard, thoughts a mess of lust and longing.

Tomorrow again. Vivi in my bed, body pressed to mine, laugh filling the air. Driving through the Lowcountry, her feet on the dash, music blaring, no plans, just us.

A fantasy, but real. Something I could reach for. Growth. Or madness. With her, hard to tell.

The clock ticked closer to Vivi’s meeting. I checked my phone. No new alerts. But the suspension notice lingered, a blade I couldn’t dull.

I needed more on Jessa. Friend or threat? I pulled her work schedule, cross-referencing the coffee shop’s roster. Off at six.

My crawler pinged. A deleted X post from Jessa, night of the bridge stunt. Vague rant about “reckless friends.” Not damning, but enough to keep my demon edgy.

Vivi’s footsteps broke my focus. Bare feet on hardwood, emerging from the bathroom. My black T-shirt swallowed her frame, curls damp from a shower.

She looked like trouble. Like home. My cock stood at attention instantly.

“You’re staring, Cipher,” she said, grinning, voice a velvet blade.

“You’re making it hard not to,” I said, voice rough, standing to meet her.

She stepped close, hands sliding up my chest, scent wrapping around me. I kissed her, slow, deep, tasting her, needing her.

“You sure you don’t want me to come with you?” I asked, hands on her hips, anchoring her.

Her eyes were fierce. “I need to do this alone. Jessa’s my mess, not yours.”

I didn’t like it. Nodded anyway. “You’re coming back after,” I said, a demand, not a question.

Her grin widened, wicked, promising. “Oh, I’ll be back, Cipher. Don’t worry.” She leaned in, lips brushing my ear. “Keep the bed warm.”

The demon roared, wanting to drag her to the sheets, fuck her until she forgot Jessa, forgot the world. But she moved, grabbing her phone, slipping into jeans that hugged her ass like sin.

I watched, mind spinning with tomorrows. Her in my life, every night, a future I’d never dared want. New, this longing, this hope. A crack in my armor I didn’t want to seal.

I walked her through the house and out the front door. We waited at the gate until the cab arrived. Vivi turned, bag slung over her shoulder. “See you soon,” she said.

Before I could answer, she stepped close. Her hand slid down my pants, fingers wrapping my cock. Three slow, smooth strokes, grip firm, eyes locked on mine, green and blazing.

My breath caught. Body tensed. No words, no fucking words.

She smirked, pulled free, kissed the hand that’d just been on my cock and sauntered to the cab. The driver gawked, jaw dropping as she slid into the backseat.

She blew me a kiss. The cab pulled away. I stood there, hard as steel, mind a mess of lust and awe.

Vivienne Laveau was a storm. I was caught in it, willingly, hopelessly. For the first time, wanting more than the moment.

I turned back to my suite. Silence heavy. Obsidian’s eyes watching like she knew.

My screens glowed, Jessa’s data waiting. All I could think was Vivi—her touch, her laugh, her fire.

Tomorrow was coming. For once, I was ready to meet it.

Before I settled in, I scooped Obsidian and returned her to her enclosure. She slithered through the coiled warmth of her habitat, unbothered, content. I watched the lid lock into place—a soft click, like a secret sealed.