Hardwired For Ecstasy Read online

  “As long as we’re revealing things, I forgot to tell you something in my office earlier. I don’t think you’re fat at all.”

  “What?”

  “You mentioned high school and the torture you experienced. You’re not fat, and I happen to like intelligent women. You were hired because of your brains, and I wanted you to know I appreciate you for them.” His eyes filled with wicked humor. “And I appreciate your body as well.”

  Hot damn. Talk about throwing her off base. “Um, thank you.”

  Why am I here? Oh yeah. Bonnie.

  Emma dug in her bag and pulled out the pages from the Internet she’d printed, thrusting them at him. “I found these after I went home. I still have access to some of the databases I used at work.”

  He took them from her, read them over, nodding several times. Then he handed them back and settled against the sofa, crossing one ankle over the opposite knee. “What do you want to know, Emma?”

  “I want to know if you thought I was sent here to work by Bonnie or someone else. I want to know what really happened with Bonnie at HCS, and why you made me tell you that story.”

  He glanced toward his desk for a second. When he looked at her again, he seemed to be making up his mind about something. She wasn’t going to back down now. She had come here for answers, and she wasn’t leaving without them.

  “Atticus, I told you a lot of very personal things. And as it turns out, you didn’t need to know most of them. You already knew Leland and Bonnie were still married, didn’t you?”

  He had the grace to look guilty. “Yes.”

  “And yet you pushed me into humiliating myself.”

  “I never wanted you to do that. That wasn’t why I pushed to know the entire story.”

  “Whether you wanted me to or not isn’t the point, is it? It happened, no matter how noble your damn intentions were in dragging the details out of me. And now you’re flirting with me again.”

  He opened his mouth to say something, but she cut him off. “Don’t deny it. Telling me you don’t think I’m fat, and that you hired me for my brains but you appreciate my body as well. What the hell is that about? You owe me an explanation about what happened between the Weathermen and Bonnie at HCS, and why it’s so fucking important that you forced me to spill my guts about me and Leland, just to make sure I wasn’t here to spy on you or something.”

  She squared her shoulders, feeling braver now than she’d felt in a very long time. “And I’m not leaving until I get the answers I came for.”

  Chapter Six

  Emma watched the emotions cross his face, from anger to resignation, and resisted the urge to pump her fist in the air. He knew she was right. She saw it in his eyes.

  “Okay. First of all, I truly am sorry you were humiliated. I knew Bonnie and Leland were married, but I did not know you were dating him. When I found the performance reviews I thought you were involved with him somehow, but I had no details.”

  “And because he and Bonnie are still married, you assumed what? That they’d sent me here to get information?”

  “Something like that, yes.”

  “You realize now that’s not true, right?”

  “Yes. I know that’s not true.”

  “What happened at HCS?”

  He looked conflicted, but she didn’t care. The hell with his secrets. He’d exposed hers, so now she had a right to know his.

  “The situation with Bonnie is ongoing, so I can’t tell you everything. I wish I could, but we have to protect ourselves. This is a powder keg waiting to happen if we aren’t careful.”

  “So she did have a run-in with you.”

  “Not with me, personally, but with all of us, yes.”

  “Did she take it public?”

  He pointed toward the papers in her hand. “If she or Dave actually posted that on the message board, one of them did. But as far as talking to the media, if she or Dave do that, they’ll lose their positions at HCS.”

  “Who else could have posted it but one of them?”

  “I honestly don’t know. My guess is that the reporter from The Whole Truth posted it, pretending to be Bonnie and hoping to flush her or Dave out. We’ve all been the victims of tactics like that before.”

  “Reporters from that magazine post things on message boards, pretending to be one of the Weathermen?”

  “Yes. It happens all the time. That’s merely one of the tactics they use to try to trick us into responding with truthful information.”

  “How did the reporter get any part of this story in the first place? I mean the incident at HCS.”

  Atticus snorted. “I wish we knew that as well. Our guess is someone at HCS overheard something, found out a bit more of the truth from others, then called the magazine. The rest they simply made up. HCS doesn’t have a secret holding facility. There are only five hackers, and none of them are in custody.”

  “I know. You told me that before you grilled me about Leland, so I know that part is true. But why does Bonnie care what you all do with the hackers?”

  “Because she’s an asshole.”

  Emma wanted to laugh but held it in. She wasn’t done yet. There were still too many unanswered questions. “Okay, but why did her protests turn into a confrontation?”

  “She was upset that we wanted first crack at them. She thinks of us as amateurs, running around the Internet like a group of vigilantes, trying to usurp a government agency.”

  “Well, you are, when it comes right down to it.”

  He grinned, and Emma wished it didn’t render his features so damn sexy “You’re right. We are. This is personal with us.”

  “Why is it personal? What am I missing here?”

  He looked conflicted again, and she suddenly understood. This had nothing to do with Bonnie herself. It was about their companies. This affected them in ways she didn’t yet understand, and either Bonnie knew that and didn’t care, or they’d never told their contacts inside HCS the entire truth.

  “This isn’t about Bonnie, is it? I mean not really. Not at the core of the issue.”

  He closed his eyes for a second and sighed. When he opened them again, he uncrossed his legs and leaned forward, fixing her with a hard stare. “If I tell you, the information cannot leave this room.”

  “So you trust me again.”

  “For now, yes. But if I find out you betrayed me, or told anyone what I’m about to confide in you, there isn’t a city under this planet where you will be able to hide.”

  Her breathing grew rapid as she stared into his dark eyes. He meant it. He’d find her and ruin her.

  “Do we understand each other, Emma?”

  “Absolutely. I won’t breathe a word to anyone.”

  He gave her a droll look, and she didn’t have to ask why.

  “Atticus, give me a break. I never would have broken my promise to Leland if you hadn’t threatened to fire me.”

  “Okay. Fair call.” He searched her face for a few more seconds, and she waited. “Remember how I told you we’ve found four hackers and are sitting on them for now?”

  She nodded. “You said the rumors you’re holding them somewhere were close to the truth.”

  “They are, only we aren’t literally holding them. One of them still lives with his parents, both of whom happen to work at HCS. Another works for Barclay Hampton, one works for Grayson Jensen, and the fourth works for Oliver Fairchild.”

  She stared at him, unable to form a single question from all those racing through her mind. That was the last thing she’d expected to hear.

  “If we out one, we risk losing them all. It’s taken us seven years to get this far. If they go underground again, we’re afraid we’ll run out of time before we track them all down again.”

  “Because of the oxygen levels.”

  “Exactly. Letting them think we haven’t found them yet is our only chance of getting them all at once, in one place, where we can attempt to discover the secret behind stopping the program.”

/>   No wonder he had grilled her mercilessly.

  “Why didn’t you simply tell your contacts at HCS the truth?”

  “We told them about the oxygen levels. We didn’t tell them that three of the four we already found work for us, or that one of them lives with his parents, and that the couple work for them.”

  “Then why involve them at all?”

  “Because they found the same information we did from a satellite the hackers tried to use, and now they have a team looking for them. We want first crack at them, and we needed to know what they already knew.”

  “So your intention was to pool information?”

  “At first, yes. We thought we could join forces. Until we got there, and then Bonnie and Dave pushed back so hard. It wasn’t the first time they’d each reacted that way during past conversations we’ve had with the group, but we didn’t expect such opposition on this issue. Not when it affects everyone living underground. We’re the ones who have been searching this hard and long, not them.”

  “But it’s their jurisdiction, right?”

  “Technically, yes. But if they question them, they’ll all get lawyers and that will be the end of it. No one wins. No coding secrets, no back door way into the program that none of us have figured out yet, and no shutting it down. Game over.”

  She didn’t understand why someone working at HCS could be so pig-headed, then remembered the woman had been married to Leland for over twenty years. It all made perfect sense now. They were two peas in a pod and belonged together.

  “As you can see now, we have good reason to no longer trust Dave or Bonnie. Barclay cultivated his contacts years ago, before any of our searches picked up this kind of momentum. Had we known those two weren’t completely reliable, we never would have involved them to begin with. We’re all a bit paranoid about our companies right now.”

  “I can totally understand why. Atticus, I’m not a spy. I never met Bonnie before that day in Leland’s office. And he’s a useless human being. He lied to me and cheated on her.”

  His eyes blazed with intensity again. “But that’s exactly why I’m worried. She knows that now. She knows who you are. She’s been humiliated by her husband, and she’ll want revenge.”

  Emma knew that, but this was the first time she considered it from this point of view. She now worked for one of the Weathermen, and Bonnie had already had a run-in with them.

  “If she finds out you’re here, she might try to use you to get information. She could threaten you for it. She and Dave were very pissed off that we got what we wanted in the end. If they find out we know one of the hackers’ parents works there, we could find ourselves in hot water. We don’t even want them finding out that three of them still work for us. Can you imagine what would happen if that information went public?”

  Emma hugged herself as fear raced through her. “I hadn’t thought about it that way. What should I do?”

  “Your job. And keep me informed of any contact from either of them, or even any suspected contact. Like if you suddenly start getting calls again from numbers in Central.”

  Emma nodded, holding his gaze. What the hell had she landed in here? “I will. You have my word on that.”

  “Thank you, Emma. Again, I am sorry for what I put you through.”

  “I know you are. Thank you for acknowledging it, and for the apology.”

  His expression turned sheepish. “But I’m not sorry for flirting with you.”

  That was a temptation she was not strong enough to resist, especially now that she knew the truth behind his actions. It was close to midnight, and she was alone with her very hot boss in this beautiful apartment. She needed to go home and take a cold shower.

  She rose, and swore the briefest flash of disappointment crossed his features as he stood, too. “Do you want me to walk you home?”

  “No. I don’t live that far away. I’ll be fine.”

  “This isn’t Central, you know, where people are out all night and it’s brightly lit.”

  “I’m sure I’ll be okay.”

  “Text me when you get home.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yes. Please.”

  They stared at each other for long moments, and then Emma turned around and got the hell out of there before she did something really stupid, like kiss him. She swore she could feel his eyes on her ass as she walked.

  The elevators doors opened, and she stepped inside, meeting his gaze. “Text me, or I’ll call you every five minutes all night.”

  She didn’t answer him because her powers of speech seemed to have suddenly disappeared. The temptation to stay was very strong. She pushed the button for the lobby and didn’t let out the breath she was holding until the doors opened again.

  The night air might be fake, but it came with a coolness that she needed right now. She walked quickly, her mind on nothing but putting distance between her and Mr. Five O’Clock Shadow.

  She nearly got lost during the short walk home because her mind kept wandering to what it would feel like to kiss Atticus, or what his body looked like naked. By the time she was in her apartment again, he had called twice. The man was persistent. She’d give him that much.

  Emma knew she wouldn’t sleep at all unless she turned off her phone, but that would be childish. She texted him, saying she was home safe and sound, and needed to get some sleep if he expected her at work in the morning.

  “Thank you for letting me know. Good night. Sweet dreams.”

  Sweet dreams. Right. Sweet erotic dreams was more like it.

  That damn sexy grin of his and those intense dark eyes chased her down into a fitful sleep, and when she woke, she didn’t feel rested at all, but instead was horny as hell from dreaming about him all night. How she could be attracted to a man who had put her through hell and back the day before was beyond her. Had she learned nothing from her experience with Leland?

  But Atticus wasn’t married, and the situation was hardly the same. He’d had every right to suspect her, and to push her into telling him the whole story, given what he had found and the way she’d reacted during their first moments together.

  In the end, Atticus had done the right thing and not only apologized for making her tell him that story, but he’d shared enough with her to answer her questions. Now all she had to do was hope Bonnie and Leland both stayed in Central and minded their own damn business. If she never heard their names again that would be fine with her.

  Chapter Seven

  During the next two weeks, Emma worked diligently on her design, and almost every day she spent time with Atticus. The day after she’d gone over to his apartment to demand the truth, he moved their meetings from once a week to every other day, starting that Tuesday afternoon.

  He sat too close to her, smelled incredible every day, and stared at her legs when he thought she wasn’t watching. Emma was flattered. No doubt about it. But she was also wary because she’d been flattered by the attention Leland had shown her, too.

  On Thursday, he was looking over her shoulder as she showed him a complicated graphic she’d been trying to build, and he remarked how one part of it looked like a steak. She’d laughed and agreed with him.

  “I love a steak cooked the right way.” He’d given her a sideways glance. “How about you?”

  “As long as it’s pink inside, I’m good to go.”

  “Me, too! We should go out to eat and have steak. Steak and lobster.”

  “Lobsters are pretty rare.”

  “They’re very rare, but I know a place in town that has them.”

  “Must be expensive.”

  “Very, but I’d still love to take you.”

  She didn’t say anything. Eating in expensive restaurants was the last thing she wanted to do. It would remind her of the way Leland had showed off his wealth all the time. She never did learn how a police captain had so much money.

  “Okay,” he said. “No expensive restaurants. Got it.”

  She laughed softly, realizing
she’d never answered him. “To be honest, I’d prefer a picnic in the park downtown over a stuffy restaurant.”

  He raised his brows. “I think that’s the first time any woman has said that to me. Okay. Then instead I’ll grill us some perfect medium rare steaks, and we can eat them on the roof of the building where I live. There’s a mini park up there.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Of course there is.”

  The following day, on Friday of her first week, she was going over preliminary plans for the construction of a prototype with members of Atticus’s engineering team. He was supposed to be in the meeting, but he was late. When he came in, he apologized, saying he’d been stuck in a meeting with the other Weathermen.

  Once the meeting concluded, he asked Emma to wait a moment, and when everyone else had left the room, he asked her if she was a hockey fan.

  “I don’t know. I’ve never seen a game.”

  His eyes widened. “Are you kidding? The season starts again in a few weeks, and I have a loge at the arena. Would you like to go to a game with me?”

  Since it was something she’d never done, she imagined it would be fun, but didn’t want to commit. There were a hundred reasons why dating Atticus would be amazing, but she was still wary. She knew once they started, she’d be powerless under his spell. “Can I think about it and let you know?”

  Disappointment covered his face, but he tried to hide it by giving her a big smile. “Of course. We have plenty of time.”

  She searched the tabloids online every single day but found no evidence that Atticus was dating anyone. That was unusual. Was he going through a dry spell, or had they simply not caught him out with anyone lately?

  Emma watched the other women he came in contact with at work. Most of them flirted openly with him, but she saw nothing that led her to believe he was secretly dating any of them. He treated everyone the same. Polite, attentive, and just flirtatious enough that he didn’t cross any lines. Was he asking other women out, too? She needed to know, but if she started asking them, it would get back to him, and it was a juvenile thing to do, at any rate.