Page 13 of Hacker Unknown

I cleared my throat. “The pilot just texted—the plane’s ready. Anything else you need?”

Antonio narrowed his eyes. “Remember, you’ve got one month, no matter where in the world you are, to see a doctor.”

Sonali looked at me. “Wait, are you sick?”

“No,” I lied. “Let’s go.”

I waited by my office door as Kat and Sonali hugged. Afterward, Sonali walked toward me, and I caught that strawberry scent again. She was on the shorter side, maybe five six—at least eight inches shorter than me. We headed down the hallway. Before we made it into the elevator, Naomi Sterling stopped us. I was pretty sure she had a crush on me, but I saw her more like a little sister.

“Are you sure you don’t need backup, Paolo?” Naomi asked. “I’m not on a case right now.”

“I’m good,” I started to say, but before I could finish, Sonali stiffened beside me. I didn’t know if it was because she was going to be alone with me or that Naomi rubbed her the wrong way.Before I could react, Naomi wrapped her arms around my waist and pressed her head to my chest.

“I’m gonna miss you while you’re gone. Make sure you call,” she said, clinging to me.

I patted her back awkwardly. “I—uh—yeah. I’ll call.”

Sonali murmured, “I’ll give you two a moment.” She walked a few steps away, but I noticed her glancing back at us. The hug was lasting way longer than I liked, so I gently pried Naomi’s arms off me. “I have to go.”

“Yeah, but I like being in your arms so much. Please call me when you arrive.”

“I am on a mission. If I have time I will call.” I grumbled.

Sonia was looking at her phone, though I saw her eyes flick my way. “Ready?” she asked.

“Yeah. Let’s get out of here.”

We stepped into the elevator. A few months earlier, someone had stopped the door alarm in this very elevator, and twenty minutes later, Antonio and Kat stepped out looking … well, like they’d done more than ride to a different floor. I’d overheard Antonio comment about there always being ‘something’ about elevators, and I never really understood it until that moment. The small space trapped Sonali’s strawberry scent, and I could almost feel the heat from her body. I wasn’t sure what it was about this woman, but I suddenly wanted to protect her.

She was still glancing at her phone and peeking up at me every so often. I hadn’t taken my eyes off of her, not caring if she caught me staring.

“I think we need some ground rules,” I said.

She sighed. “I’ll do whatever you ask.”

“That will make protecting you easier. Stay next to me at all times—it’s important. And if I tell you to duck, run, jump—you do it immediately. Don’t second guess me.”

She scrunched her nose. “This must be what the Zayla was talking about.”

There was no doubt in my mind that many of the women in the office including Zayla could protect themselves. Mostly because of the training they had gone through. Except Sonali hadn’t done any training.

“I can only imagine what the women in this office told you. But it is important you listen to me and don’t second guess a word I say.”

Her blue eyes connected with mine and she chewed on her lip for a second. I wanted her mouth on something else, but I had to stop that train of thought.

“Okay,” she replied.

I wasn’t convinced. Something in her eyes told me that, when push came to shove, she might not listen. We exited the elevator, and I pulled the keys to the company Range Rover from my pocket. As we approached, a shadow stepped out from beside the vehicle. I couldn’t see the man’s face, but from his stance it was Lance, my past had shown up. I spun back to Sonali.

“Get back in the elevator. Go upstairs and tell Antonio that my past is here.”

I couldn’t let them see her. If the Don found out about Sonali, they’d go after her too. We were already dealing with enough. The mafia hadn’t reached out to me in months—they let me walk away, albeit at a price. Their showing up now couldn’t be good.

Sonia hesitated. “But you don’t have backup.”

“I told you to do everything I say,” I snapped. Her eyes narrowed. “Just go upstairs and tell Antonio my past is here. He’ll know what to do. Go.”

She didn’t move fast enough for my liking, but I jogged toward the car before Lance got any closer.

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