Page 4 of Draco Family Duet

I walked over and wrapped my arms around him. “True, but we’re ready, and that’s half thebattle.”

“Am I asking too much?” He studied the pricing and spec sheet he’d created. “I don’t want to seemgreedy.

“You’re not greedy. You deserve to be paid for what you’ve developed.” I smiled and patted him on the back as we surveyed the convention center. The doors had opened and people were piling in. I scanned the room and watched for the first person to come our way. The games hadbegun.

2

Blaise

As I surveyedthe parking lot, I realized this was one of the few times I wished I’d taken Fredo up on his offer to drive. When he offered, I simply couldn’t see having the man sitting around in a hot parking lot all day. Still, when I saw all the other drivers out here mingling, I imagined it might have been a nice break forhim.

As I strolled inside, I scanned the crowd for anyone I might know. On the far left side of the first row of exhibitors, I recognized Ira Gunther and immediately moved the other direction. Listening to him speak was the equivalent of hearing nails being dragged down a chalkboard. Instead of risking a meeting, I walked directly to the back of the exhibition hall, hoping to find some hidden gem of a software program I could use to either grow or protect my business. Most of the time in these places, I waited for something to catch my eye. In this case, as I strolled through the place, someone did. The woman was about average height for a female, with a medium curvy build. Naturally, that was what I noticed first because while I stared at her, she turned around and bentover.

“Admiring the view?” Irachuckled.

“Fuck.” I stiffened. “What brings you here, Ira? Don’t you have a campaign to run or an ass to kiss somewhereelse?”

Ira chuckled. I’m not sure if he knew I loathed him and found it charming, or if he truly believed I was being playful. Iwasn’t.

“No, Blaise, I’m here for business. Always looking for the next big thing that might help my candidate win.” He grinned and tapped his temple. “I’m a very forward thinker, youknow.”

“I didn’t, but I should’ve guessed. After all, you are backing Sterling Girard, the billionaire who wants nothing more than to increase his wealth and squash the little man, while sticking such a pretty bow on it, the peasants rush to thank him.” I rolled my eyes. “I hate to break it to you, but if you support that man, you’re not a forward thinker, Ira. His ideology is common at best and destructive at worst.” I began to walk away from him. I couldn’t take my eyes off of the woman in the booth, but apparently, he had followed my line of sight and was determined to have the lastword.

“Well, I see what you’re thinking about.” Ira snickered. “Watch out for that kitten,” he warned loudly. “She hasclaws!”

I kept walking, but waved my middle finger in the air. When I heard him chuckle, I knew he’d seen it. Naturally, the woman with the dreamy ass turned, saw me flipping the bird, and glared at me. I froze. Not only was she as captivating from the front as she was from behind, but she barely glanced at me before she turned away and returned to whatever she’d been doing. I frowned and stared at her while I tried to make sense ofit.

A hand was laid on my forearm. “Can I help you? You seem out of sorts.” The tall blonde beside me drew even closer when I finally made eyecontact.

Without being obvious, I pulled out of her grasp and murmured, “No. I’m good thanks. Justthinking.”

This time her hand landed on my shoulder. “What are you thinking about?” When I glanced in her direction, she batted her eyelashes atme.

I stepped aside and held up both hands, hoping she might back off. “I’m good, thanks.” Then I started toward the woman I could barely take my eyes off of, but before I could reach her, Ira had stepped in front of the booth. I watched for a moment from within hearing distance before pretending to be interested in the adjacentbooth.

“We’re inside now,” Ira murmured. He chucklednervously.

“Yes, we are,” the woman noted calmly. “If you want to know more about the program being offered, you’ll need to talk to MalcolmWallace.”

My head tilted as I tried to place the name, which sounded so familiar to me. Next Gen Tech. That’s right. A few years ago, he’d been an innovator there, but something happened and he lost his job. Apparently, he had decided to go off on his own. This guy had been working on a security program, the first ever to provide 512-bit encryption. I nodded to myself, but the woman behind the table took it as an invitation to speak with me. “Please, not now,” I groaned. The last thing I needed when I was trying to eavesdrop was an interruption. There was enough background noise as it was to make hearingdifficult.

“Sorry.” She held her hands up and started to back away, then paused. “In case you have any questions.” She sashayed towards me and passed me hercard.

I barely glanced at it before I stuck it in my pocket. Malcolm was speaking now, describing his new program. Ira seemed entirely toointerested.

“What if you could know the exact method for convincing your client to work with you, your potential buyer to part with some money, and the best markets and how to reach them? How much would that change your marketing strategy? Imagine the money you could save if you only spent where you knew you’d find success.” Malcolm grew more excited as he worked through his salespitch.

“Sounds intriguing,” Ira admitted. “I knew I wanted to talk to you.” Then he grinned and the woman disappeared behind the backcurtains.

I snickered. Smartlady.

Ira stiffened, but continued questioning. “So, would this work with say…politicalcampaigns?”

Malcolm nodded enthusiastically. “Absolutely. This will work with anything. You throw a scenario at me and I can show you how it would benefit your industry. It’s incredibly versatile.” He passed Ira somepaperwork.

“How much?” Iraasked.

I could actually see his wheels spinning, but I was way ahead of him. This program, while incredibly beneficial for business, could pose a huge problem if it ended up in the wronghands.

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