Page 170 of Dark Love

“It seems we both know things that we shouldn’t.”

“Impossible.” Max shakes his head and walks over to the bar. “It’s impossible. No one knows about this. Even the people building it only know their small section. They don’t know what it is or what it’s even called. How do you?”

There’s no way I’m telling him. Max will try to steal Shock. “It doesn’t matter how I know.”

“You’re wrong there. It matters. I have a leak that needs to be fixed before the company loses billions.”

Interesting that Max didn’t say he’d lose billions. “You don’t have a leak.”

“In order for you to say that, you’d have to have a hacker… an impossibly good hacker.”

Max stares at me like he’s going to pry the truth out of me. “That’s what I need. I’ll return it when I’m done.”

“That’s it? You’ll return it when you’re done. Do you really think I’m just going to hand it over to you because you asked?”

“Yes.”

“Why?” Talon asks. “Why do you need it?”

“There’s a highly sophisticated human trafficking ring operating in Urbium.”

Max and Talon look at each other, communicating something silently.

“For how long?” Talon asks.

“Years. Probably a decade or more.” The fact that I didn’t see a single sign is enough that they’re a force to be reckoned with.

“You aren’t thinking they stayed small to avoid detection.”

Talon turns his gaze to me, but he isn’t really seeing me. The Vincenti Family keeps a tight rein on the area around their neighborhood, but they also take note of what’s happening all around Urbium. If there’s one thing they hate in theworld, it’s people that exploit women and children. They don’t tolerate it at all. Their body count is mainly made up of people who crossed those lines.

“No.”

“Max, give him the tech.”

“I can’t. There’s only one prototype. He could send his hacker over to me.”

Not happening. “No.”

“He wants to use it. He comes to my facility.”

If I was just worried about Max stealing my hacker, it would be one thing. “My guy doesn’t handle change well. It took him six months to settle into his current living arrangements.” And stop calling Payne every thirty minutes for some strange noise. I turn my gaze to Max. “You know how hackers are. They’re squirrely.”

“Do you two need to go a few more rounds before you settle down?” Talon has that long suffering voice like we’re irritating him.

“What needs to happen is your son needs to stop proposing to my woman.”

“Max?” Talon turns to his son.

“I was a joke… mostly. You tasted her brownies.”

Dahlia made him brownies, too. My hands clench into fists. She hasn’t made me any brownies. We’re having another discussion before bed tonight. There will be no more baking for other men. She’ll go to Sweet Dreams Bakery when she needs to bring something over.

“Max.”

Talon’s stern tone would scare me, and he’s not my father.

“I have no interest in Dahlia. I never did.” Max folds his arms across his chest and glares at me. “She’s a wonderful person that’s good with kids, and Hope likes her. But that’s all it is.”

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