Page 22 of Twice the Rivalry

“Men in our world don’t like when women beat them at what they consider their domain,” Glitch sighed. “I dealt with it all the time growing up, and even more so when I got out of college with my degree. Which is exactly why I never shy away from an opportunity to prove I’m better than them. Code isn’t any different. Only, this time, he’s going to be getting that experience up close and personal.”

Karissa chuckled. “You two are going to make things interesting around here.”

Glitch grinned at her. “Something tells me that won’t be a bad thing. Now, enough about annoying men. You can help me get this cheesecake done so I can get back to work. I haven’t heard back from the team yet, but I expect I will in a few hours. I want to make sure that I’m ready for when they do.”

CHAPTERTWELVE

CODE

He slammed his office door and sank into his chair, infuriated. Both at Glitch for thinking she could help herself to his money like that, and at the fact that she did it without him noticing. It didn’t exactly make him feel like he was doing a great job at security when someone could hack his credit card from 5 feet away and use it without triggering any alarms or notifications. The only reason he even noticed was because of the email confirmation of the order.

If she was trying to remind him she was better than him, she succeeded, and it ate at him. He didn’t think of himself as sexist, because he saw for himself many times over with the other women that they could take care of themselves and do anything they wanted. But this woman, she was a whole other level he wasn’t sure he could stand longer.

He glared at his computer screen, pissed that yet again she was getting under his skin. And also pissed that he was now even further behind. He was letting her distract him, and he was putting so much effort into making sure that she couldn’t get into his system that he was focusing on the wrong places. He needed to get a grip, and he needed to do it fast before he made a serious mistake.

He now also needed to move some money around to ensure the upcoming draws from his family in the next couple of days would be covered without any issue. He wouldn’t let his family suffer because of a battle with a hard-headed, careless, entitled woman. Though, he supposed she was used to getting her own way.

He had looked into her background after he discovered her legal name. She came from the kind of wealth that made him look like a damn poverty case, and he was doing just fine. If he wasn’t mistaken, Glitch was one of the wealthiest women in the country, and she had some of the best education money could buy. Though, in this field, money could only buy you so much without the skill to back it up. Still, he doubted she knew anything about what it was like to worry about your next paycheck.

Something his father had worried about plenty of times when they were growing up. After their mother died when Code was four, he and his brothers had watched their father struggle at times to make sure they had enough. He always managed it, but still, even now, he struggled. His father ran a construction company, and Code was the only one of his siblings not working at it, though he was a silent partner and made sure to contribute funds often.

Like now. Which was exactly why he needed to make sure that Glitch’s purchase didn’t screw things up. His family was counting on that money to get them through, and he wouldn’t let them down.

He set up new alerts and restrictions on his accounts and credit cards, so that if someone even thought about trying to access them, it would set off so many alarm bells a dead man could hear them. Then he transferred money around and ensured the funds would be available when the payment needed to go through in a couple of days.

He sat back, feeling a small sense of relief, but he stiffened when he heard his door open and then close softly. He knew it was her without having to turn around. Instead, he focused on his screen, all the while listening as she stepped toward him. He heard the chair creak as she took her seat, and the soft clack of her keyboard as she began to type.

He shifted forward and told himself to get back to work, that nothing would get done if he just sat here and let her get deeper into his head. They worked in silence for almost a full hour, the tension in the room growing with each passing minute. He tried his best to ignore it, but every sound she made grated at him.

Suddenly, she broke the silence. “I apologize for using your credit card without asking you. I’ve already requested that my attorney transfer the funds to you in a way that can’t be traced back to me.”

He paused, his fingers hovering over the keyboard. “Thank you,” he replied stiffly.

He heard her turn, but remained in place, forcing himself to remain focused on the string of code he was working on. “So what is your issue with me, exactly?” she asked curiously.

That made him turn to look at her. “My issue with you is that you do shit without asking first,” he told her gruffly. “Did it ever occur to you that maybe I don’t want, or need, a new desk? That ordering one is just a waste of money because when you’re gone it won’t be used?”

She arched a brow at him. “Your desk is literally being held together with duct tape, so I think it’s safe to say you’re going to need a new one at some point. The one I picked has all kinds of ergonomic supports. It’s also U-shaped, so we can keep our current arrangement, but you can spread things out after I’m gone if you want to give yourself more room to work.”

He glared at her. “I don’t need a desk that big, it’s a waste of space,” he sniped. “I like my setup. I may not have all the fancy equipment you do, or the space you do back at your clubhouse, but that doesn’t mean there is anything wrong with mine.”

“I never said there was anything wrong with your equipment,” she huffed, annoyance making her blue eyes glitter. “I told you that your system had some vulnerabilities, and instead of taking it to heart, you acted like I cut off your dick.”

“There is nothing wrong with my system,” he gritted out through clenched teeth, his hands fisting on the arms of his chair.

“Obviously there is, if I can get in with no problem and without you even realizing,” she tossed back, giving him a haughty look that made him even angrier. “And like every other man in this line of work, you hate it when your weaknesses are pointed out by a woman.”

“You being a woman has nothing to do with it,” he growled at her. “My issue with you is that you strut around acting like you’re better than me, and everyone else for that matter. Like I give a shit you’re some goddamn former mercenary, or you went to some big fancy school with your family money. Some of us had to earn it all on our own, the hard way.”

The glittering in her eyes stopped and her gaze went stormy. “You don’t know shit about my life growing up,” she hissed, rising from her seat and stepping forward. He stood too, looking down at her, letting her see his anger.

“I know you had privileges that others could only dream of,” he tossed back coldly.

“Money doesn’t buy happiness, Code. And I don’t act like I’m better than anyone else because of it. I work in an MC clubhouse instead of in a home of my own. I don’t own anything brand new except my equipment, but I refuse to apologize for that. I’ve worked my ass off to earn it. Do you really think that because I have money, my team treats me any differently than your MC treats you? They don’t give a damn about my money, and I don’t give a damn about what they do or don’t have. We are a team, and if they needed anything, I wouldn’t even consider saying no. As for my skills, I have worked day and night for years to get where I am. Because other lives depend on it. I’m not doing it for my own gain, or to lord it over some man’s head that I’m better than them. I made sure it wasn’t my error that would get me, my team, or the people we were responsible for, killed. You have no idea what that kind of pressure is like. The level of perfection that’s required to endure it.”

Hesitation moved through him at her words. He hadn’t thought about that. Again, because she always made him forget the most basic of logic when she was around.

She stepped back and shook her head. “Whatever, you don’t want to listen to me anyway. You’ve made up your mind about me, and I really don’t care what you think of me. If I overstepped with you, fine, I’m sorry, but that’s all I will apologize for. I won’t apologize for pointing out things that you need to work on, because if you were in my position, you would do the same thing, and you know it. You just can’t see that because I have tits and a vagina.”

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