Chapter Two

 

 

“Do I need to buy you a box of condoms?” Big Tag asked as Hutch closed the door behind him.

Unfortunately, they weren’t alone in Tag’s big corner office or he would have given the boss his happy middle finger. It looked like they were having a lunch party with Charlotte, Alex, and Eve all sitting around with takeout containers on Ian’s sofas.

Like the security team version of the Big Bang Theory. He would bet Noelle liked that show as much as he did.

Their babies would be smart and beautiful.

Nope. They would be nonexistent because Noelle would barely look at him now. He’d felt her pull away and close in on herself, but he rather thought it wasn’t in the obvious way. She wasn’t protecting herself from the Big Bad Wolf. She was trying to figure out a way to take him down. She wasn’t some wilting flower who would cry because a guy challenged her. No. She would retreat and rethink her battle plans.

He could offer her several scenarios that would have him on his back, but he was smart enough to keep quiet about that. “I don’t think that’s happening any time soon. I don’t know if you noticed but the woman doesn’t like me.”

He’d dug a huge hole, and he wasn’t sure he could climb out of it. He’d lost it in that conference room. He’d lost it by taking control in a way he almost never did. Except at Sanctum. He was careful around women because he’d seen how poorly it could go. He’d watched his father abuse woman after woman. He’d taken many a beating because he couldn’t sit by.

But something about Noelle LaVigne brought out the beast in him.

“She might not like you, but she’s aware of you, and sometimes that’s just as telling as instant attraction.” Charlotte put down her lunch. “I thought the two of you would get along. I didn’t think you’d nearly set the conference room on fire.”

“So this was a setup.” He knew it. At least he could still trust his instincts. “And it was definitely me and not Kyle.”

“Oh, she would not be good with Kyle. Kyle needs someone…well, Kyle needs to spend some time with Kai before he thinks about a relationship.” Eve closed her takeout container. “He’s hiding a lot of pain, and it’s going to come out in some not healthy way if he doesn’t deal with it. But that’s not a professional opinion. I haven’t had a session with him. It’s merely observation.”

They were all worried about Kyle, and now Hutch would be spending days, maybe weeks, undercover with the man. Noelle would be with Kyle, too. “Do you think he’s a danger to others?”

“If she thought that, he wouldn’t be working here,” Big Tag said with a frown. “He’s had a couple of sessions with Kai. Everyone has to in order to work here, but he turned down continuing on when it was suggested he should. I’ll be honest. If he wasn’t family I probably would have passed. He’s good at his job, but I’m worried. Something happened to him during his time in the military. I can’t figure it out, and my buddies who are still active tell me there’s nothing in the records that make them think he’s hiding something. That tells me one thing.”

Kyle had been Special Forces. Unless a mission had been classified it should all be out in the open. Or… “How long did he work for the Agency?”

Alex sighed and sat back. “We don’t know, and honestly, it’s only a suspicion at this point. Sean thinks so, but we pretty much cut ties with anyone who would help us figure it out.”

McKay-Taggart had cut ties with the Agency years before, and only recently they’d reupped that firm rejection after a CIA operative used Big Tag’s teenaged daughter to spy on them all. Big Tag had not been amused.

“We did that for good reasons.” Charlotte put a hand on her husband’s thigh, a sure sign of her support for his decision. “The Agency has changed. We don’t have anyone there we can truly trust, and to open the relationship back up means putting ourselves on their radar.”

The Taggarts wanted some peace after years of dealing with the spy shit. They wanted to raise their unruly brood and enjoy their lives. He couldn’t blame them, but Kyle was family, and now Hutch realized he’d been set up in more ways than one. “You want me to figure out what’s going on with Kyle.”

Big Tag shrugged. “I want you to guide him through his first major case, and if you happen to find out what those fuckers did to make him wake up screaming in the middle of the night, then I’ll consider it a plus. His mother is worried about him. I am, too. We all told Grace we thought the military would be good for him. I think we might have been wrong about that.”

Big Tag was capable of carrying the world on his shoulders. “I’ll find out what I can. In the meantime, I heard Eve talked to Noelle this morning. I’d like to know what your thoughts are.”

A smile broke over Eve’s face. “I think she’s lovely. She’s been through a lot and she wasn’t broken by it. She loves her family and her work. I would be cautious about underestimating her. She’s intensely intelligent and far tougher than she looks.”

“She’s used to people underestimating her.” She looked soft and sweet and vulnerable. “She’ll find it annoying, and she’ll also use it if she has to.”

“Very astute. I concur with that opinion,” Eve said with an encouraging smile. “You’re attracted to her.”

He shrugged. There was no point in denying that. “Yeah, but again, made an ass of myself. I’m not sure she’ll give me another shot, but that’s honestly for the best. I know Charlotte thinks the world should be all paired off, but I don’t know that I would be good for anyone.”

“Says the man who made sure he gets to live in her apartment and play her boyfriend for the next few weeks,” Alex pointed out.

He’d been running on pure instinct, and that instinct told him he should stick close to Noelle. “She’s not happy about that either. I’ll have to watch her or she’ll try to find a way to put me on the sidelines.”

“Don’t forget that this isn’t merely about attraction.” Charlotte toyed with the water bottle in her free hand. “She’s in trouble. She’s downplaying her original fears. It’s like that sometimes, especially with intelligent people who’ve been taught to trust data instead of their guts. There’s a reason she called her father. She was scared. Now she’s got some time and distance and she’s questioning those original instincts.”

“I think it’s worse than dismissing her fears.” He’d seen her pale when he’d leveled his accusations against her. He’d made a direct hit. “She’s playing detective.”

“Her father was a damn good one,” Big Tag pointed out. “Don’t underestimate Armie LaVigne. If he thinks she’s in danger and you’re not taking care of her, he’ll show up here and he’ll take control.”

Yes, that was a big part of what he had to overcome with her. He’d insulted her father, though he hadn’t meant to. He’d been a dumbass playing to stereotypes. “I’ll keep him as updated as I can without breaking Noelle’s confidence. Armie might have called in favors with you, but Noelle is my client.”

Big Tag nodded slightly, an unmistakable sign of approval. “Keep me up to date on everything relevant. Charlie’s got some worries about this one.”

Charlotte’s lips turned down. “I don’t like her boss. I’ve read up on Jessica Layne and she worries me. And it’s not because she’s a woman in tech. I get any female CEO is going to have to be tough.”

“It’s the crazy eyes,” Big Tag offered. “She’s somewhat hot and all, and she plays that up as much as she can. But it’s all in the eyes. There’s pure bugout crazy in those baby blues.”

“I think you should be careful,” Eve agreed. “And so should Noelle. I believe Jessica Layne is a narcissist, and potentially a malignant one. I’ve read her interviews and watched her publicity spots. She’s as interested in her own image as she is in the science she backs or the money she makes. If you come into contact with her, do not challenge her view of reality.”

“So don’t call her on her shit.” He’d known people like that. Of course they didn’t usually have the same money and power someone like Layne did. “Or she’ll sue me.”

“The lawsuits are a way to break her victims,” Alex explained. “You know she had a partner in the beginning. Another woman who insiders believe was probably the brains of Genedyne. At some point, Jessica decided to cut her out. Not only did she bury the woman in lawsuits, but she sent her social media followers after her. Oh, she said everything in public that she should have, but there’s evidence she was manipulating things behind the scenes. Her partner was crushed on many sides and eventually took what the police called an accidental overdose of sleeping pills. Then Layne cried prettily on camera and made it all about her and how she’d had to survive a relationship with a person with mental illness.”

Eve sighed. “She looks like a model, and she’ll be good at putting the people around her at ease. She’ll be charming right up to the moment she decides to devour you whole.”

Alex stood and held a hand out to Eve. “Good luck, Hutch. I think you’re going to need it. And keep us updated on Kyle. Also, try to remember that just because your past taught you how a bad relationship works, your present has a whole lot of good ones in them. I would hate for you to miss out because you’re still worried there’s a piece of your father in there.”

He shook his head. “It’s not that.”

Eve started to lead her husband out. “Sure it’s not. Come on, babe. I’ve got to go through about a thousand employee reviews before we can leave. The kids all have afterschool activities that include dinner of some kind, and we’re not on carpool this week. We’re picking up some Top and watching TV that includes actual human beings instead of cartoon characters this evening.”

They were still talking about drinking wine and watching TV as the door closed behind them.

“Ah, that’s the dream. All the kids out of the house for the evening,” Big Tag said. “All my monsters are grounded after the whole ‘let’s play spies’ thing. Do you know that kids get grumpy when they’re not allowed to do anything but chores?”

Charlotte’s head dropped to Big Tag’s shoulder. “So grumpy. And Hutch, I really thought the two of you would get along. What I saw today makes me think I made a mistake. I’m sorry. I won’t try to do it again.”

“But you were right. We’re definitely attracted to each other.” He knew it was perverse, but he felt the need to argue with her.

“But there wasn’t a lot of peace there,” Charlotte mused. “It’s good for sparks to fly, but that was more like war than ‘hey, I just met my future spouse.’”

“When I met my Charlie and our eyes locked across the crowded dungeon, I knew,” Big Tag said.

She snorted, but her lips were turned up. “That’s why he promptly invited me to join him for a threesome.”

He chuckled. “Foursome, baby. Give me credit.”

She smiled at her husband, their faces close together. “I promptly got rid of all the other subs and started a fight that ended in butt plugs flying. All for your amusement. But I did know I wanted you in that moment. I knew, somehow, that you would complete me.” She turned back to Hutch, and a sad expression came over her face. “That’s why I’m sorry I set you up with her. I saw two people who should have had a lot in common, and I couldn’t help myself. I was definitely meddling, and it didn’t work. I won’t try again. I promise.”

Again, it was perverse, but he didn’t like the sound of that. “I think if I were in a different place in my life, we would probably suit each other very well.”

“I think she might have too strong a personality,” Charlotte admitted. “I did underestimate that.”

He wasn’t sure how that was a problem. “She obviously needs a guy as strong as she is.”

Charlotte nodded. “Yeah. I can see that, too.”

“You are such a bitch,” Ian said softly, though he was smiling in that way that told Hutch he wasn’t getting their inside joke.

“She was attracted to me, too, you know.” He’d caught Noelle staring at him, and it hadn’t been with distaste. He’d actually been surprised because most women would have watched Kyle, but she’d seemed oddly unaffected by him. And she’d definitely sparked when he’d started talking about helium. He was a science junkie. If she wanted to throw down over some future tech, he could be right there with her.

Except she was a sweet lady from small-town Louisiana who had probably never once been tied up and had her tits clamped. She’d never cried prettily while her Dom fucked her ass with a plug.

“I don’t know.” Charlotte sounded uncertain. “She seemed annoyed. But it’s okay because you don’t want a relationship. Maybe you should be the brother.”

“No.” He wasn’t going to let her play around with Kyle. He could be dangerous, and honestly, he and Noelle made more sense. “We’re the more believable couple, and I need access to the systems. She’s right. The company works on a closed system. I could hack them, but they have far better security than Noelle has on her laptop. Although, honestly, she’s got pretty good security, which makes me think this is an inside job. I can’t get into her lab as her boyfriend’s brother.”

“You could get a job there.” Tag seemed more interested in his wife’s earlobe than the discussion at hand. “I’ll fire you right now. I’m a team player, man.”

He’d been through this so many times. Ten years he’d been here, and he’d seen way too many times Tag decided to turn his office into a playroom.

God, wouldn’t that be something? Having a woman to share all of that with. Having one soul in the world who meshed with his. Someone he could tease and have discussions with. Someone who would help him figure shit out.

He was getting tired of figuring shit out on his own. Or rather not figuring anything out and letting life flow by him, bouncing from one good time to another until they all felt hollow and meaningless. Maybe it was the fact that he’d bought a house from a man who for years had been a whole lot like him, a man who’d finally gotten his life together and moved into a future with the woman he loved and their kiddo.

God, did he want kids? No. He wasn’t father material. His dad had been awful. But then he knew what not to do, and wasn’t that part of the battle? Didn’t he know exactly what he’d needed from his parents? He wasn’t a bad guy. He constantly checked himself because he knew there was darkness in him.

“Do you think he’s going to stand there and watch?” Charlotte’s question brought him out of his thoughts.

“I think he’s thinking, and I also think I don’t care,” Big Tag replied. “Hutch, I took the kids to church on Sunday and let my wife have a morning all to herself. She’s about to pay me back with a midday blow job.”

Hutch sighed. “I don’t suppose the fact that I need guidance changes your mind.”

Big Tag shook his head, a decisive no. “Church. Kids. I missed the first quarter of the Cowboys game. No. Also, I can give you good advice while I’m getting a hummer.”

“He really does think better mid-sex,” Charlotte added as she gracefully slid to the floor and found a submissive position.

“I think I’ll go and make sure my client hasn’t run.” He’d told her to wait at his desk and he’d escort her to her office, pick up a key to her place, and then get them all moved in together while she worked.

“You sure you want to do this? Because I can still fire you and you can go the employee route,” Tag offered as his hand went to stroke down his wife’s head.

So Noelle could ignore him entirely. “I think I’ve got a handle on it. I’ll call in with an update.”

He practically ran out the door because those two weren’t waiting. He almost bounced off Geneva Rycroft, Big Tag’s long-time assistant. She was a lovely woman with dark hair and a ready smile. Another woman who’d been through hell and found her happiness on the other side in the form of a husband and two kiddos she adored. She was carrying a stack of files.

Hutch shook his head. “You should wait a while. Big Tag had to go to church.”

Her eyes widened and she set the files down and picked up a single laminated sheet of paper that she often hung on her boss’s door. It had one word on it. NOPE.

Genny had once told him she’d made the sign because Big Tag and Charlotte never locked the door. They liked the danger, they often said.

He often thought Genny had saved them many an HR complaint.

“Cool,” she said. “I’ll set this up and go take a coffee break. Maybe I’ll go see what the bodyguards are up to.”

She had a sparkle in her eyes because her husband worked in that unit.

Everyone was getting lucky today.

Except him. He would likely be sleeping on a couch tonight.

Genny had two muffins on her desk. Noelle’s lemon muffins. She’d taken them to feed to Tag when he got snacky this afternoon. She did that a lot.

Well Big Tag could survive on one. Hutch grabbed one of the muffins and prayed it wasn’t as good as it smelled.

He savored that tart and sweet piece of heaven.

He was in so much trouble.

 

* * * *

 

Noelle sat in a chair in Hutch’s office and wondered about the man. The name plate outside simply said Hutch, Head of Cybersecurity. Not his whole name. Just Hutch. The office was surprisingly spartan given the fact that the man had worked here for a decade. That was what had thrown her off. Was he older than he looked? She thought he was likely in his early thirties. How had he gone from the military to college to head of a team for one of the world’s premiere security firms in a little more than a decade?

The math did not add up.

She looked at one of the three framed pictures he had in his office. This one wasn’t actually a picture. It was his degree from the University of Texas at Dallas proclaiming Greg Hutchins was a graduate with a Master of Science in Computer Sciences.

“He did that without an undergrad, you know,” a feminine voice said. “That’s why it’s his only framed degree.”

She turned and there was a young woman standing in the doorway. She was the quintessential geek girl in her miniskirt, black T, and combat boots, her purple hair in a high ponytail. There was a familiar laptop in the woman’s hands.

“How do you get a master’s without an undergrad?” She shouldn’t have asked, but she was pretty much fascinated with Hutch. Much to her own chagrin.

“You score so high on the GRE that they can’t not take you,” she said, walking into the office. She held out a hand. “I’m Mae Beatrice Vaughn, but everyone calls me MaeBe. And yes, I cringe when I say that sentence too. How that song is still popular I have no idea. I blame all the covers. Anyway, I’m working my way through the same program right now, though I do have an undergrad. I don’t have Hutch’s real-world experience, though. You must be the chemist. Nice system, though totally infected. Sorry about that.”

She handed her the laptop she’d bought for herself when she’d gotten the job at Genedyne. “I didn’t notice anything was wrong except that a file that I hadn’t touched in a long time was showing up in my recents.”

“Yeah, it’s funny what can trip a hacker up.” MaeBe leaned against Hutch’s desk. “You open the files you’re currently using by going to the recently opened folder?”

It was a habit. “Of course. What do you do?”

“I know where all my files are. I pull them up. I organize my own system,” she replied. “If you didn’t use the recents folder, you likely wouldn’t have noticed anything at all. Unless you typically check the dates on your files, which I would bet you don’t.”

“No. I’m more worried about what’s in the file than when I last used it,” she admitted. “I don’t think about security very much, but I noticed that file and thought it was weird. And there was a break-in at my building. The woman in the apartment underneath me got broken into, and the only thing they took was her laptop.”

“Why would that make you worry?” MaeBe asked. “I mean besides the obvious that you don’t want to get your stuff stolen.”

She’d put this in the file. It was one of the things that truly worried her dad. “Because when I first hired on, I mistakenly put the wrong floor number on my HR paperwork. 515 instead of 615. I’d just moved from a building in Austin where I lived on the fifth floor and it was ingrained in my brain. I’ve fixed it but…”

“So someone could have mistaken that apartment for yours,” MaeBe surmised. “Yeah. That doesn’t feel coincidental.”

“So now I’ve got a file I need to worry about. There was research on that one. I can see why a corporate spy would want to read it.”

MaeBe waved a hand. “Oh, honey, it was all your files. Like every single one. I’m almost certain they duped the whole thing then went back through and fixed the metadata, but they forgot one. It was kind of a sloppy job. I’ve got a few thoughts on who it could be.”

There was a brief knock on the door and then Kyle was walking in. He was all confidence and swagger as he looked Noelle’s way. “Good. I was afraid after Hutch’s performance that you would have run. He should be back in a few minutes and then we’ll get you to work.”

“Hutch performed?” MaeBe asked.

And then Kyle wasn’t so confident. His eyes flared and then softened. “Hey. I didn’t know you were in here. Uhm, everything okay this morning?”

MaeBe gave him a smile. “Yes. I’m good, and thank you for walking me to my car last night.” She nodded Noelle’s way. “I had a date go bad and he works in the building. He seems to think if he bugs me enough, I’ll go out with him again. Big Tag has a bodyguard walk down with me. Kyle got the job last night, and lawyer dude did not show. I think after Jamal stood over the guy and told him if he ever saw him near me again, he would be the one who needed an attorney, he got the message. Jamal has a foot on him and way more muscle.”

“I still think we should keep it up for a while,” Kyle replied, his voice softer than before. “And you have my number. I’ll be on a job for a week or two, but I still want a call if he bugs you again.”

“Sure. It will teach me to date lawyers. My dad always warned me,” MaeBe said with a grin that lit up her face. “I’m sticking to geeks from now on. If a guy can’t speak computer or doesn’t own a bunch of board games, this shop is closed. How about you, Noelle? You’re a science girl. Do you date other scientists?”

Noelle was fairly certain MaeBe didn’t notice the way Kyle’s face had flushed slightly.

He liked the woman but he didn’t think he was her type.

“I don’t date much, but I think opposites can attract. I wouldn’t want someone who was too like me, you know.” Which was why she should stay away from Hutch. Why had he not gotten an undergrad degree? Why didn’t he carry himself the way the other military guys did? “It’s good to have someone in your life who can bring a different perspective. As long as that person is willing to listen to you as well. It’s hard when you meet someone set in their ways and their views.”

“Hutch called her a hick,” Kyle said with a shrug.

MaeBe’s eyes went wide. “What? Hutch wouldn’t say that.” She turned to Noelle. “I don’t know what you heard, but Hutch is like the best. He’s a great boss, and he’s one of the nicest men I’ve ever met. Super laid back.”

“He threatened Tag,” Kyle continued.

MaeBe turned his way. “What? Dude, I need the lowdown on this meeting. What did Tag do? Did they fight over those awesome muffins? Did you try one or are you watching your carbs?”

“Watch my carbs?” Kyle frowned. “I don’t have to watch my carbs. And Noelle brought them in.”

“My Aunt Lisa knows Mr. Taggart from way back and told me the best way to soften him up was to offer him something lemony,” Noelle replied. “I like to bake. I got it from my mom. I like to think that all those times we spent in the kitchen together were my first experiments. I’m glad you liked them. And I wasn’t that offended by what Hutch said. It’s not like I’ve never heard it before. I’m from small-town Southern Louisiana. I’ve been called a hick many times.”

“I never used that word.” Hutch was in the doorway, frowning her way. “And I’ve apologized. I know what it’s like to be stereotyped, so I shouldn’t have done it. Now, MaeBe, do you have our credentials?”

MaeBe stood up taller. “All done, boss. Anyone looks and you are from Papillon, Louisiana, by way of Dallas. You and your brother Kyle were born here in Texas. You moved to Louisiana when your dad took a job at a place called Beaumont Oil. I can’t change your accents so you can’t be born there. You met your girlfriend in high school. The rest of the story you two need to work out, but let me know if I can get you anything. You’ll find you have a credit card, library privileges at the Papillon Parish Library, and a grocery store discount card. I also Photoshopped some pics of you and your bro there. And I hacked the high school archives, so there’s some sweet pics of you and Noelle at senior prom.”

What? This was all moving fast. “How did you do that? I didn’t even know there was an archive.”

MaeBe gave her a grin and brushed her electric pink nails over her shirt. “I’m just that good.”

Hutch moved to his desk. “MaeBe is taking over some of our deep-cover logistics. She’s good at making sure anyone who tries to do a trace on one of us sees what we want them to see. She’s got a creative mind.”

“She’s thorough is what she is,” Kyle corrected.

“And creative.” MaeBe smiled and walked toward the door. “I take all compliments, thank you. I left packets on your desks. Let me know if you need anything else. I live two blocks from Noelle’s building. Noelle, if they cuddle together on the couch, get me pics. Hey, boss? Where’s my treat?”

Hutch chuckled and his hand disappeared inside a…was that a Star Wars cookie jar on his desk? It didn’t contain cookies. He pulled out a small packet. “Mixed berry Skittles.”

He tossed it and MaeBe reached up to catch the candy. “Thanks, boss. I love these. Y’all be good.”

She practically bounced out of the room.

Were they really staying at her place? She hadn’t woken up this morning thinking she would have two houseguests, much less two men she didn’t know. Surely this wasn’t what her dad had planned. “MaeBe seems competent. Are you sure…”

“She’s not a field agent.” Hutch sank down behind his desk. “She’s only been with the company for the last year, and she’s strictly behind a desk for now. She doesn’t have the right training.”

“And you do?” Kyle’s brows had risen.

Hutch stared back at him. “I did a year in the Army.”

Kyle snorted at that thought. “You did the bare minimum.”

“And then I did time with a CIA team,” Hutch said evenly.

“You sat behind a computer,” Kyle challenged.

Hutch was quiet for a moment, and then the room felt charged with his words. “Do you honestly believe I can’t do undercover? Because I promise you, I’ve done some of the toughest undercover work anyone has ever been through, and I knew how bad it would be when I went in. I did it for your family.”

There was a subtext between the two men that she didn’t understand. Oh, but she was curious. It was very much like what had gone on between Hutch and Taggart in the conference room.

Kyle sobered. “I know, man. I’m sorry. I’m giving you shit when I shouldn’t. I’m not used to seeing you off balance, and I’m being an asshole.” Kyle turned Noelle’s way. “I have no problem with this man watching my back. He’ll take care of you.”

“I don’t need taking care of.” She hated those words. It was silly because she took care of the people around her, but it always made her think of that time after the accident when she couldn’t walk, couldn’t make herself try. When she’d been nothing more than some wounded thing to take care of.

“I’ll watch your back, Noelle,” Hutch said, his voice soothing. “You might not need taking care of, but we can all use a team around us. I’ve learned that over the years. You don’t have to do this alone. You pick experts and you listen to them. I’m your tech guy. Kyle’s the one who throws his ass in front of you when the bullets fly. It’s okay. I’ll be behind you, so Kyle will die first no matter what.”

Kyle finally smiled. “Yeah, I get that a lot. You ready? We can get her to work and then we can pick up our stuff. Did you drive?”

Hutch sighed. “I forgot to charge my car. My battery’s probably toast. I took the train.”

“I did, too. The train runs right by my building. I don’t drive much.” She didn’t have to because DART took her most of the places she needed to go. She could drive. She just wasn’t comfortable doing it. “I don’t need an escort. Surely I’ll be fine on public transportation.”

Both men stared at her. She knew that stare. She’d been around overly protective males many times before.

“You know I only have one guest room, and it’s got a daybed in it.” She wasn’t giving up her perfectly comfy bed. She leaned on her cane because her right leg was starting to ache a bit. “And I’ve got a class I’m attending on Thursday, and I’m not canceling it. If you insist on staying close to me, you should understand that I’m not going to change my whole life because the two of you take your jobs too seriously.”

“Hopefully by Thursday we’ll know more.” Hutch closed up his laptop. “We should get going. Kyle, looks like you’re driving.”

“Uh, I don’t actually own a car right now,” Kyle explained. “I gave mine up because I didn’t want to have to store it. I haven’t replaced it since I came home. I got a ride in with Jamal.”

“So we’re three Gen Zs with a single car between us at the moment and only two beds.” Hutch sighed. “Yeah, we’re not telling Tag that.”

“Agreed.” Kyle shook his head. “I have no idea how my stepdad survived growing up with him. You want to rock-paper-scissors for the bed?”

“Is the bed in front of the door? Where the bodyguard should be?” Hutch was a wily one.

Kyle growled a little. “Fine. I need a sleeping bag.” He brightened slightly. “Hey, MaeBe’s got a car. She can drive us. I’ll go ask her.”

“He definitely has a thing for her.” She was aware she was now alone with Hutch. In his office that she’d been exploring before he’d walked back in. At that time it had seemed pretty big. Now it was way too intimate.

“Really?” Hutch stared at the door like he’d never thought about it. “He’s definitely not her usual. Her usual is all piercings and tats and shouldn’t we look up his arrest record. Kyle’s a little all-American for her. Your muffins are fantastic.”

It took a moment for her to realize he was talking about baked goods and not some body part. What would her muffins be? Boobs? She probably had a muffin top, but she wasn’t wearing jeans, so he shouldn’t be able to see that. It was the way he said it. Low and sexy, like he was thinking of something that brought him great pleasure. Yep. He was talking about the muffins she’d brought. “Thanks. I’ve been perfecting the recipe. I like to bake. But I don’t cook a lot. I usually pick up a sandwich on my way home. I’ve got some frozen dinners.”

“Aren’t you in luck then because I’m a halfway decent cook. I learned young.”

“Did your mom teach you?”

“No, my mom died, and my dad wasn’t big on doing things he considered feminine tasks. I learned to cook, or I didn’t eat.” He sat back, his chair moving with him. “I’m not a brilliant chef, but I have some skills. I’ll stop by the grocery store before Kyle and I head to your place. Anything you don’t eat?”

He slipped that tragedy in like it didn’t matter, like it was nothing more than a factoid on a report. She wasn’t sure what to say so she simply answered his question. “I eat pretty much anything.” She felt horrifically awkward. Moments before she’d been angry with him, and now she wanted to ask about his childhood. It was better to focus on the job. “Do you really think this is necessary?”

“Can you honestly tell me you weren’t going to investigate the accident in the lab?”

“I don’t like to ask for help.” She didn’t like to feel small. She’d felt it much of her life, had learned exactly how fragile it all was at a young age. She’d also learned that the minute she asked for help was the minute everyone around her started thinking she needed it all the time.

“I can understand that. I need you to understand that despite my earlier impression, I don’t tend to underestimate people. I don’t judge a book by its cover, though the cover might be awfully pretty.”

He’d obviously decided to go the charming route. It wouldn’t work on her. “Sure. The first thing anyone notices about me is that I’m pretty.”

“Well, if I’d noticed the cane first, I wouldn’t have made an ass of myself,” he pointed out. “So you need to understand that you probably manipulate a lot of men with those eyes of yours, but it won’t work on me.”

Outrage sparked through her and then she caught a ghost of a smile on his lips and realized the jerk was fucking with her.

No one fucked with her. Not like teasing. No one in her world treated her with anything but the utmost respect. Except Madison. God. Was that why she wanted to investigate? Because Madison had at least respected her enough to play rough. Madison was the kind of woman who would have ignored her utterly if she hadn’t felt threatened.

This man already zeroed in on a weakness Noelle herself hadn’t realized she had.

“I’ll remember that.” She wasn’t going to give in to the need to spar with him.

The grin disappeared. “I know you’re independent and that’s important to you, but someone absolutely is spying on you through your computer. I found some sophisticated software that was uploaded five days ago. What else happened that day?”

A chill crept across her skin. “Madison died. All right. I can make connections when they’re that obvious. So I’m supposed to tell my coworkers we’re high school sweethearts who reconnected and now we’re together again?”

“How close are you to your coworkers? Have you talked a lot about your past?”

She could lie and tell him this plan of his would never work. She should have told him she already had a boyfriend, but she’d lost that chance. And yet she found herself leveling with him. “I’ve got a couple of people I have lunch with at work. Sometimes we go to happy hour. I’ve spoken very little about my past. I find coming from a small town puts me in a box with a lot of people in my industry. I talk about my time in Austin. I talk about the awards I’ve won and the papers I’ve written.”

“So they don’t know much about your life,” Hutch mused. “I promise I can handle this. I can handle your friends and make them believe I’ve cared about you for a long time. I can make them comfortable, and I’ll make you comfortable, too. I’m sorry we started off the way we did.”

Something about the words put her on guard. “I’m not looking for a boyfriend.”

Hutch shrugged. “And I’m not looking for a relationship either, so we’re good.”

“But you’re flirting with me. I don’t like it.” It threw her off. No one in her life flirted with her. She got asked out from time to time, but the men who asked her always seemed serious. Hutch was different.

“It’s a part of who I am,” Hutch conceded. “I’ll try to not do it outside of our cover. I’m sorry. I think flirting is a coping mechanism. I spent a lot of years surviving by making people like me. I did some time in foster care and on the streets as a teen. I’m only telling you because you should get to know me. I’m not trying to get sympathy.”

“Yes, you are.”

The slight grin was back on his face. “Is it working?”

“Is it true?”

The smile faded again. “Oh, yes. I don’t lie about my childhood. My scars are all on the inside, but they’re there, and they affect every part of me. I’ll lay it on the line. I’m a man who’s been in therapy for a decade. I go almost every Thursday. My therapist is on vacation right now, but I have an appointment next week. Unless it’s dangerous for me to leave you, I’ll make that appointment.”

“You don’t have to justify your therapy. It’s good and healthy, and I’m happy it works for you. I’ve done some myself. After the car accident. I still struggle to drive. Anyway, your healthy attitude toward therapy is okay with me.” More than okay. He’d been vulnerable in the last couple of minutes, and she had a hard time shutting him out. They would be working together for a little while. “Do you want to start over? Like pretend the whole morning didn’t happen?”

He stood, his eyes warm as he held out a hand. “I’m Hutch. It’s nice to meet you, Noelle.”

She took his hand, and she could have sworn she felt freaking sparks. Warm and true. He enveloped her hand and she had to remember to breathe. “It’s nice to meet you, too.”

“Hey, MaeBe says yes. She can take us. I call shotgun.” Kyle was smiling and looking way less broody than he had before. And younger.

She felt younger standing there looking at Hutch like he was the lead singer in a boy band. She forced herself to take her hand back. “We should go then. I’m late.”

She would focus on work and not the man waiting for her at the end of the day.

He wouldn’t be there for long. That was the truth she had to remember.