Page 11 of The Honeymoon Hack

She nodded, already turning toward Ashley, who’d returned.

I made my way toward the kitchen, passing Scarlett, who gave me a side-hug as I went by.

The kitchen bustled with activity as catering staff moved in and out, preparing trays, delivering them to the dining room and living room where guests enjoyed them, returning for more when they were empty. There must have been forty guests.

Only one mattered.

Brie stood near the island, chatting with a server about the appetizers.

“Hey,” I said, reaching for a bacon-wrapped something.

“Hi,” Brie said, covering her mouth as she spoke around a mouthful of food. “Try the crab puffs. They’re amazing.”

The server nodded politely and continued her circuit with the food.

“Ashley changed our cover story.”That’s not what you wanted to talk about, Will.

“You’re going to do great, you know.” Brie was simply building me up for this, no doubt aware of how nervous I was. “All you need to do is pretend you’re a network specialist. Carry some cables around while Ashley does most of the snooping.”

“Easy for you to say. You’re going to stay home in your cushy little chair.”

“Damn straight! There’sno wayI could handle that pressure. Interfacing with strangers? Lie to them? Convince them I wasn’t hacking into their systems?” She rolled her eyes dramatically, then grabbed a napkin and a couple of morsels from the counter.

“I think I’m—” Another yawn. I was going to need a ride home at this rate.

Brie pivoted to lean against the island. “You didn’t get your nap, did you?”

“No time,” I said. “Too much to do.”

“Moving home is?—”

“Stressful.” I joined her against the island, so my arm touched hers. We had a perfect view through the crowd in the dining room and into the living room.

“A trip to the Bahamas is precisely the thing you need.” She nudged me with a hip.

“We’ll be underground.”

“Mostof the time.”

“True.” The Mnemis employee handbook mentioned a staff-exclusive island that was accessible from the data center’s residences. Since the nine-hour shifts were spent exclusively in artificial light, it was mandatory to spend time above ground to keep the staff healthy.

“So don’t forget your bathing suit.”

Several of us were flying to Grand Bahama on the company jet tomorrow afternoon. The day after that, Ashley and I would take a boat to Blue Haven Cay, Gideon Tremaine’s private resortisland. Team members posing as guests would fly in on charters. But staff? We went by sea.

“I haven’t unpacked from London yet.” A few boxes had come with me on the jet, but the rest of my things would be arriving tomorrow at the office—mostly equipment.

“You should have come home earlier.” She snagged another bite of something from a passing tray. “Do you need a hand packing?”

“No, but thank you.”

We stood in silence for a few minutes. She fidgeted with her napkin, folding it into smaller and smaller squares, while I fought the desire to find a bedroom and crash for the night.

You’re here to talk to her. Courage, Will.I finally blurted, “About my mum today?—”

“You warned me about it,” Brie interjected almost as quickly, her tone light but deliberate. “Hearing about it and seeing it are two very different things.”

“We’re good, right?” I asked, unable to ask the real question:Are you upset my mother knows we had sex?