Royal Hacker (White Hat Security Book 2), page 6
I needed to start working with people I trusted instead of coming up with my own plan. I would listen to Sam and Neal this time to help keep myself out of danger. Sam showed up in my office about an hour later. He let me know Brock would go with me to work tomorrow, and after seeing the photos and everything I saw online, I didn’t want to argue.
We spent the remaining part of the night on the couch, watching a Big Bang Theory marathon because my almighty Dom and savior had never seen it. There was no way I could date a guy who didn’t like the show, so we had to do a marathon to make sure he liked it.
Sam walked me to the door of my bedroom. Before walking in, he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me in for a kiss. The kiss was demanding. Immediately, I wrapped my arms around his neck. His hands ran down my back and rested on my ass. By the time Sam pulled back, I was breathless and wanting more.
He leaned down one more time and kissed me on the nose. “Good night, pixie.” Sam proceeded to turn around and walk toward the spare bedroom. I spent a few more minutes standing in my doorway, dumbfounded. How could he leave me wanting more and not give it to me?
Chapter Eight
Patty
I was disappointed when I got up and noticed Sam was gone. Brock was sitting at the kitchen counter. Lemon was lying under his feet. Lemon had left the bedroom early in the morning, but I couldn’t get my ass out of bed to find out what she needed.
“Where’s Sam?” I asked Brock, grabbing a box of Captain Crunch out of the cabinet.
“He went down to the police station. He’s meeting with Chief Haley. When you are ready, we will head over to White Hat Security. The staff thinks we will be working on the ransomware case together.”
“Don’t you think this is a little overkill? He’s not going to do anything to me while I’m at work.”
“If you saw half the things he’s done, you wouldn’t think it’s overkill. One of the women was taken when she went to the bathroom.”
“Fine, you win. Are all Doms this demanding? I feel like I’m back in Shialia, dealing with my father.”
I didn’t wait for Brock to reply. It wasn’t like he would change my mind. I grabbed my cereal and headed toward my room to get ready.
Surprisingly enough, the day flew by. Brock didn’t bother me at all. Bridget walking around the office and complaining about being nine months pregnant was more distracting than Brock.
The only part that annoyed me was that every time I went to the bathroom, he went and stood outside the door. Can’t a girl pee in private? Since he was annoying me, I thought it was time to annoy him back. I hacked into his computer and flipped his display so it was upside down. I added a password so he could not change the setting back. Once he agreed that I could go to the bathroom by myself, I gave him the password. It was time to go home. While working on shutting down my system, I heard the front door chime. The next thing I knew, Sam was coming into my office. My little girly inside got excited because I’d thought I wouldn’t see him until later that night.
I was so excited that I didn’t hold my tongue. “You came to get me? I didn’t think I would see you until tonight.” I tried everything in me not to act like a little schoolgirl, run up to him, and give him a big hug.
“I promised you a date last night, and because of what happened, we didn’t get it. So I thought we could go and have dinner and then go home.”
“Okay, let me grab my things. Thanks for being my babysitter for the day, Brock.”
Shaking his head, Brock laughed and walked out the door. I grabbed my things and followed Sam to his Ford F-150. While we were on our way to the restaurant, Sam informed me the individual they had in custody for the previous murders was paid a million dollars in Bitcoin to confess to the murders. All contact was done through email, and he never met the person asking for him to take the fall for the murders. When we proved he couldn’t be the killer and showed him the evidence, he broke and explained his daughter was sick and needed an expensive surgery. The man was willing to go to jail for life to save his daughter. I told Sam I would like to make sure she got the surgery.
Sam and his team had worked all day coming up with new leads, but everything they found led to another dead end. I had known Brock was working on the case with them all day from my office, and it had taken everything in me not to hack his computer and do a screen share so I could watch his screens. For once in my life, I was trying to let other people help and stay out of it. So Brock’s screens were safe—for the moment—and I was leaving the case in Sam’s hands.
I was so lost in thought about the women in the photos that I hadn’t realized Sam had turned the truck off. We were in the parking lot of my favorite restaurant. I didn’t know how he knew Roy’s was my favorite place to eat. They had a chocolate soufflé to die for. Typically, I would eat only half my filet so I would have room for the soufflé.
Once we sat down, I asked Sam about his family and what had made him join the military. He told me that it was a tradition in his family: his father and grandfather had joined the navy. When he decided to join, he chose the army. A few years in, he was able to get on the Delta Force team.
After twelve years in the military, he was done with the deployments and chose to open his own company, Blackwood.
“Do you have any siblings?”
“Yes, I have two younger brothers. They’re both in the army right now, and they both are trying to get on a Delta Force team.”
“Are they going to work for you when they get out?”
Sam couldn’t reply right away because the waitress brought our food. My filet was sizzling hot. I grabbed my knife and took a bite of the most succulent filet, not waiting for it to cool down. The butter sauce on top was so creamy, it made a moan come from the back of my throat. When I looked up to see why Sam had not answered my question, he was not looking at his mouthwatering butterfish, which was glazed with a honey sauce and sat on top of fried sushi rice. He was staring at me; his pupils were dilated with arousal.
It took Sam a couple more minutes to compose himself before answering my question. “If they want, they can. That will be their choice when they get out,” Sam finally replied. “I met your sister, but what are your brothers like?”
“I have three brothers, but they all work in the royal military. They all try coming a few times a year. I talk to each of them at least once a week. They are extremely protective of Jessica and me.”
“Why don’t you want to take over the crown?”
“I like sitting at a computer and working with technology. I don’t want to have to make decisions that will affect people’s lives.” Father had never officially denounced me from the throne. I think he secretly still wanted me to take over. I didn’t add out loud that if I had the right partner I would consider it. I loved Shialia—the people who lived there were amazing.
We spent the remaining time at the restaurant discussing the politics of my father’s country, what it took to export the gems, and the security we needed to protect the mines.
Once we got back to my apartment, Sam dragged me over to the couch and pulled me onto his lap. Lemon decided she needed to be involved in the conversation and jumped onto the sofa. She laid her head on my leg and shut her eyes.
“Do you want to talk about the research you did?”
“I think I need a bottle of wine for this conversation.” I’d never been a person to say, “Hey, let’s sit down and talk about sex or sex work.” I’d never discussed my sex life with anyone other than my sister.
I went to get up, but Sam tightened his hands around my waist. “You already had two glasses at dinner. You can have some wine after we talk. I want you sober for this.”
I understood where Sam was coming from, but I had a feeling by the time we were done, my face would match my ruby-red hair.
“In your research, what did you find you liked?” Sam asked in my ear.
“Well… I like the bondage stuff. That I thought was kinda cool. I really didn’t like the spankings the other day. Some of the toys looked interesting. Some of them looked scary as fuck.”
“The other night when I ran my hand through your pussy, you were wet. What do you think turned you on?” Sam asked while running his hand along my thigh.
“I’m trying to remember. I think it was your touch and when you caressed the burning on my ass,” I whispered.
“I enjoyed touching your lovely ass the other night. My tastes run more down the line of bondage than impact play. If you misbehave, I will have to punish you.”
The thought of Sam using bondage on me my made my clit begin to throb. I could also feel my panties beginning to get wet.
“I can feel your heart rate increasing. Do you like the thought of me binding your arms and legs? I would be in complete control over your pleasure.” Sam moved his hand up to the underside of my breast. I could feel the heat of his hand through my thin shirt.
“Yes,” I panted.
“Let me see your hands.”
Chapter Nine
Sam
Sleeping at Patty’s house and not touching her beyond a kiss for the past two weeks had been killing me. For the past few nights, she had been walking around in pink boy shorts that left nothing to the imagination. The other night, she came into the living room to watch TV with Lemon and me. When I looked up, she had on a thin, tight white shirt, without a bra. She was as frustrated as I was, but I wanted to take the relationship slow and allow us time to get to know each other. Patty had wormed her way into my heart, and I wanted our relationship to go somewhere. She was more than another notch on my bedpost.
We had no activity on Patty’s stalker, but we received a report that he’d contacted a new victim. Thinking about the new evidence, I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings. I never heard Brock walk in.
“Hey, boss, want to have lunch today? We could discuss the stalker case,” Brock asked from the chair across from my desk. Brock’s large size engulfed the chair.
“That’s fine. Patty is bringing me lunch today. I will have her and John stop to grab us both something to eat. Then we can all sit down and talk about the case,” I told Brock.
He threw some updated case files on my desk and went back to his computer lab.
Over the past couple weeks, I’d learned Patty had a love for anything chocolate. When Mia did an office order for snacks, I had her order a few bags of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups to keep in my desk for when I did something wrong. I think one of my favorite dates was when we stayed in and watched marathons of The Big Bang Theory, just the two of us nestled on the couch. Well, the three of us, because her sixty-pound basset hound didn’t realize she was too big to lie on the sofa.
The previous night, we talked about her father and how he used the money from gem mining to support all the local people. The country was well off, and in the past, Patty and Jessica were the target of kidnappers demanding money. The thought of Patty being on the radar of many kidnappers didn’t sit well with me. If Patty’s identity got out, she would be the target for more than just the Waterville Stalker.
In the back of my mind, I was glad she had decided not to take over the crown. When I met her father, I wanted to ask how that worked when someone decided not to take the crown. I didn’t think she could simply say, “No thank you,” and he would pick the next person. I had a feeling in the pit of my stomach that her father was merely letting her believe she was not taking it and that she really would be.
I knew it was early in our relationship, but I needed to think about these things before I fell more than I already had. I was contemplating if I would still be with her if she had to take the crown. But that wasn’t even a question: I would stay by her side.
The next few hours passed quickly. I was looking at the latest emails our victim in Austin had received when a knock brought my head up. Patty had changed her hair to a light blue. Her white sundress fit her curves and stopped right above her knees. The shoes had me shifting in my seat. Patty had on six-inch high heels that made her ass look plumper.
“Hey, pixie, is it already lunchtime?”
Patty walked over and sat on my lap. I didn’t even have to pull her over to me anymore; she automatically came and sat with me. It made my day to wrap my arms around her and smell her vanilla body wash—even though it was killing me not to bend her over the desk and take her hard and fast.
“What are you thinking about?” Patty asked while her cheeks turned red.
“I was thinking about the different wicked ways I could fuck you,” I whispered in her ear.
“Okay.”
I knew she was getting frustrated with me for holding off sex. I wanted it to be special and have her trust. I had a date in mind, and I was sticking to it, even if it killed her or me.
“No, my little pixie, not yet. The first time I have you, I want you spread out on my bed, so I can feast on you for hours.” All this talk and imagining her spread out was making my pants extremely tight.
“I feel like you will make me wait a year. At least I brought my second-favorite thing for dessert.”
“Did you bring extra Reese’s for Brock and me?”
“As if! I got you guys sandwiches. You should have learned by now, I don’t share Reese’s.”
While Patty and I were spreading the food out over the conference table, Brock walked in with his folder and sat down across the table from us so we could talk about the case.
“Hey, shortcakes, thanks for bringing food. How has John been working out the last few days?” Brock asked.
I’d needed Brock back at headquarters working on the case I had Mia looking into. So I’d put John on Patty during the day. She criticized how he didn’t know computer talk and grunted at everyone. She also grumbled that everyone was scared of him and no one would come talk to her. I laughed, and that made her madder.
“He scares everyone away,” Patty complained.
I saw Brock trying not to laugh. He’d told me Patty was a chatterbox at work. I assumed the bodyguards were putting a huge dent in her gossip at the office.
“Did you tell Patty about the changes?” Brock asked me.
“The stalker seems to have targeted another woman. This new person is out of state. I will have to go and investigate the case.” I could see the wheels turning in her head. I’d learned that when she played with her food, she wanted to ask something but wouldn’t.
I didn’t want to leave her, but if we found the guy, she would be safe. I was also worried the guy was sending me on a wild-goose chase and that he would target Patty while I was gone. The woman’s notes were exactly like everyone else’s. The media hadn’t received a copy yet, so we knew it wasn’t a copycat.
“Why do you have to go?” Patty asked, still playing with her food.
Seeing I needed some alone time with Patty to talk about the plan, Brock excused himself.
“Come sit with me. I like having you in my arms.”
Patty walked over, climbed into my lap, and rested her head on my shoulders.
“Tell me what is bothering you.”
It seemed like ten minutes before Patty said what was on her mind. “Are you taking this away case because you’re sick of me? I know I can be a little much.”
“No, it is killing me being around you every night in your cute PJs. I want to make sure the case is handled right so we can get this guy behind bars. I want to go out on a date without the thought of a stalker hanging over our heads. I want to stay at your house because we’re dating, not because some guy might kill you.”
“You mean chop my body up into unrecognizable parts.”
“Let’s not talk about the disgusting things the killer does. Once I get my hands on him, he might just disintegrate in a barrel of acid.” I wished I could get away with disposing of the body myself. The problem was the police were working the case with me, and making the body disappear might be a little hard.
“You have a barrel of acid here?” Leave it to Patty to get excited that we might be able to get rid of a body in this building.
“Here is what will happen. John will still go with you to work every day. At night, someone from my team will watch your building. Every night before you go to bed, we will FaceTime, and every morning when you get up, we will FaceTime.”
“You didn’t answer me about the acid. There are a few people I wouldn’t mind getting rid of, and if you have the means… Do you mind me using the acid while you’re gone? I will talk to Brock about reimbursement costs.”
I swear this woman will put me in an early grave. “No, we don’t have any acid here. No, you can’t kill anyone while I’m gone, especially your bodyguards.”
“Well, you took the fun out of my week. All I’ve heard is, ‘Patty, go to work. Patty, don’t kill anyone. Patty, make sure to let your bodyguards know when you go to the bathroom. Patty, stop messing with John’s phone.’”
I finally put my hand over her mouth so she would stop. I thought about grabbing the ball gag from my desk, but that would just make my dick hurt more. It would be a long week if I couldn’t see Patty.
“Are you done with your pity party?” I asked. She gave me the cutest death stare, which only made me chuckle and make her mad.
“When do you have to go? Are you going to come over tonight before you leave?”
I had to get to the crime scene as soon as possible, so once Patty left, I would jump on my plane and head to the crime scene. It was hard to leave her, especially since she still felt so good in my arms.
“No, I need to leave in the next half hour.”
“Does that mean you’re leaving your stuff at my house?”
I’d assumed it would be fine for me to leave my stuff there. But maybe she didn’t want to continue what we had.
