Page 62 of Heartless Sinner

“Exactly.”

I release a sigh of frustration. “I have to figure this out. I can’t have shit like this happening before I take over, or after. Those blueprints need to be secure when the software goes into development.”

“I’ll keep working on the tech side and see what I can find. You may want to talk to Jaxon. Maybe he can come up with some idea to amplify the security on the blueprints.”

We’re all technical-minded, but where we lack, Jaxon makes up for it, and vice versa. Brahm and I are great with anything to do with computer systems and their infrastructures, while Jaxon is an engineer. Together, we create next-level technology. That’s great on the surface, but unfortunately, it attracts people like the Nexxus.

“I’m seeing Jaxon when I get back to New York. We’ll discuss it then.”

“Good. If you want, we can run through some reports and data until it’s time to head out. Who knows, we may come up with something more.”

“Sure.” I glance at the notebook he has near the laptop. It’s open, so I can read his notes. He’s written details about Boston. “Is that the other work you mentioned?”

He dips his head.

“How’s that going?”

“As expected when you’re trying to figure out who wants you dead. I don’t have much more than I did the other week.”

“Anything I can do to help?”

“Nothing yet. One step at a time, boss. You have hackers to find and a wedding to plan.”

I give him a faint smile, thinking of Scarlett again. Asking her to be my wife is singlehandedly the most insane idea I’ve ever had, but it feels more and more right every time I think about it.

There are just some things in life that feel like they belong to you. She is one of them, so while I may not have found the hackers here, I won’t be leaving Denver empty-handed.

The sound of the jet engines hums low in the background, but it doesn’t quite drown out the steady rhythm of my heartbeat as Brahm and I step out of the car.

The guards fall in line behind us, their movements precise and silent.

Brahm starts talking to me about the plans for our flight, but all my focus zeroes in on the figure standing near the private jet.

Scarlett.

She’s here. She came, and she’s waiting for me.

She’s wearing a simple black dress that clings to her in a way that hints at all my favorite parts of her body.

Dark hair whips around her face in the wind, wild and untamed. Like her.

She tucks the unruly whisps behind her ear with dainty fingers, looking smaller around my guards with their stoic faces and sharp suits. They surround her, their presence a silent reminder of the life she’s about to step into. Dangerous. Controlled.Mine.

She shouldn’t fit into my world, yet somehow, she does. She fits me.

Brahm realizes where my focus is and hangs back so I can continue forward.

It’s only when I’m close that she sees me.

The moment her eyes meet mine, it’s as if something inside me settles. It feels like relief, but it also feels like triumph.

“Bellezza.” I close the distance between us, drinking in the sight of her perfection. “You came.”

She brings her hands together nervously. “You kind of made it hard for me to refuse by paying the debt.”

I grin back at her. “Maybe I wanted you to have an easier night, so you’d have a clear mind to think about my offer.”

Her eyes glisten as she holds my gaze, the wall she usually keeps between us cracking just enough to let me see the gratitude she can't hide. “Thank you. Last night was the first we weren’t afraid.”

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