Page 29

Leonard

T rish, sitting next to Benjamin across the desk, looks at me. Their deep frowns reveal their concerns about what Roxanne and I discovered.

“So, this is why you’re delaying the acquisition,” Benjamin correctly assumes.

I nod in response. “I need to learn more about the situation. We still don’t know what information is being stolen or how they are handling it.”

“This explains the rumors circulating about this operation. We kept everything confidential under a non-disclosure agreement, and yet someone still found out.”

I considered that and reached the same conclusion: there’s no way someone would risk being sued for breach of contract, especially when this acquisition benefits both parties.

“What do you want to do about it?” Benjamin asks.

I take a deep breath. “Roxanne and I are working to find out who did this, and then we will decide how to proceed with what we discover.”

He nods. “The FBI will probably be involved.”

The weight in my chest doubles. That seems like the best course of action.

Someone is stealing confidential industry secrets; otherwise, they wouldn’t have breached the system.

This means there will be an investigation and legal actions—something I don’t want to deal with, but it seems inevitable at this point.

“I can’t think of a scenario where we can avoid this,” I confirm.

“What a mess,” Trish murmurs, shaking her head.

“Tell me about it,” I reply, rubbing a hand over my face.

“Why don’t you ask Oliver for help with this? He knows the company better than anyone else,” she suggests.

I glance at Benjamin and notice an expression on his face that I can’t quite place. Is it anger? Worry? I’m not sure.

I turn back to Trish. “He’s not in the right state of mind to help with this. He’s made it clear that he doesn’t want to get involved and thinks I should just leave the problem alone since they’re not stealing money,” I explain, simplifying a situation that’s much more complex.

She scoffs in disbelief. “What the heck? If this isn’t more important than money, then what is? Is he all right? I understand he has personal reasons to be upset, but that doesn’t mean he can just turn his back on the company,” she states matter-of-factly.

I know she has a point. The sensible thing would be to put him on paid leave until he sorts out his issues, but I don’t want him to feel excluded from the company he founded.

Any other person in my position would have fired him on the spot, but I can’t bring myself to do that, even if it goes against the company’s best interests.

“Can you trust this Roxanne?” Benjamin asks.

They are unaware of my personal involvement with her, and I’m unsure if I should tell them.

Ultimately, my lack of judgment could jeopardize this company.

Right now, I trust her completely, but I understand their doubts, especially if they find out I have crossed that line and my feelings are involved.

I decide to remain neutral. “I have no doubts about her.”

“Are you thinking with your brain or your little brother down there?” Trish asks, a smug smile on her face.

I raise an eyebrow, silently questioning her. I never told her about my attraction to Roxanne. We don’t share everything about our personal life.

“Come on, everyone in this office knows there’s something going on between you two. They’re even placing bets on when you’ll go public with your relationship,” she chuckles.

Well, I didn’t anticipate that. I thought we were maintaining a professional facade around here.

I turn toward Benjamin, and this time, he is silently asking a question. I let out a sigh.

“My personal involvement has nothing to do with my trust in Roxanne. I hired her because she’s an excellent hacker and one of the few people in this world capable of tracking down who is behind this.” The confidence in my voice is unmistakable.

“Good, I trust your judgment,” he replies firmly, not leaving any trace of doubt about his opinion on the matter.

I breathe a sigh of relief. I don’t want to jeopardize my relationship with him because of my personal life. I glance over at Trish and find her smiling.

“I just wanted confirmation about it. I would never question your decisions. I know the integrity you bring to everything you do, so I have no doubt that you’re not messing around this time, either.

To be honest, I’m relieved you found someone.

I was growing increasingly concerned about your lack of a personal life.

It’s not healthy to live and breathe work. ”

“Is there anyone who isn’t concerned about my personal life—or lack of it?” I ask in disbelief. I never imagined my relationship status would matter to anyone, but it turns out it’s a big deal for them.

“Leonard, you’re a good guy,” she says, fixing me with a steady gaze. “But you have zero self-control when it comes to this job. We’re all worried you’ll work yourself into an early grave before you even hit forty-five.”

I scoff, a half-smile tugging at my lips as I shake my head in disbelief. “Are you already planning my funeral?”

She smiles back, softly but firmly. “We care about you, Leonard. We’re just worried.”

For a second, I’m at a loss. No words seem big enough to hold the gratitude I feel. All I can do is smile back, letting the warmth of her concern sink in.

I meet Raphael at the Hunting Club. We are sipping whiskey in one of the private rooms where members can converse without being overheard.

It feels strange to see him again, especially after he showed up at my door a couple of weeks ago and found out about Roxanne and me.

Honestly, he took the news better than I expected, and I’m grateful for that.

“Do you still have contact with the FBI?” I ask him right off the bat. I’m not in the mood for lengthy discussions.

He frowns and studies me for a moment. I begin to worry that I made a mistake coming to him for this, but finally, he responds, “Yes, I still have my contacts. Is something wrong?” His tone is concerned.

I shake my head. “Yes and no. You remember the issue I’m dealing with regarding Roxanne, right? We’ve discovered that someone is not stealing money but pieces of information.” I get straight to the point.

“Shit,” he murmurs, baffled.

“Yeah, we still need to determine exactly what happened and who was involved. Once we have that information, we have to take legal action. There’s a chance this situation is so big the FBI could get involved. You know we work with government agencies too, so I can’t just pretend nothing happened.”

He nods gravely. “I know it’s the right thing to do, but I’m worried about Roxanne. I don’t want the FBI interfering in her life. How did it all escalate?”

This is the same concern I have. She has done things in the past that were borderline legal, as well as some that were outright illegal. I don’t want to put her in a difficult position.

“I haven’t told her yet; I wanted to discuss it with you first. That’s why I came to you.

I want to keep things quiet and controlled for her sake.

I wouldn’t want the wrong person asking the wrong questions and drawing attention to her instead of the actual problem.

That’s a risk I don’t want to take,” I admit.

A small smile appears on his face. “You’re in love with her, aren’t you?”

I shrug. I’ve asked myself the same question a million times. As much as we’re keeping things casual, I feel like I’m fully invested in her. I hope we’re on the same page about that. Maybe this is a conversation we need to have sooner rather than later.

“I don’t know if I’m in love, but I care about her, and I don’t want to hurt her in any way.”

He nods, and his expression turns serious again. “I’ll start asking the people I trust to help us, but you need to find that evidence quickly. It better be rock-solid because once they start digging, they won’t stop,” he warns.

I nod, feeling a weight settle heavily on my chest. This is it. This is the moment when my entire life—everything I’ve worked for—could crumble into a million pieces, and I’m not sure I can handle that.