Page 75 of Second First Kiss

She spun back around in her chair and nibbled at her cuticle, something he realized she did when her nerves got the better of her. Which meant he got the better of her. Strange reaction for someone who told him she wanted to just be friends.

“Kat was just telling us what she’s discovered about the invoices and missing inventory,” Jax said. “It’s a bigger problem than we thought.”

“You’ve got a lot of problems, it seems,” Brynn said to Nolan, with a teasing smile.

“You want to catch me up to speed?”

“First off,” Kat said. “I was able to break into your firewall in less than five minutes. Access your customers’ info in less time than it takes Tiny Dancer to doodie in your yard. Including their credit card info.” The whole table erupted into snickers.

Nolan wiped a hand down his face in frustration. “Why am I the only one taking this seriously?”

“We all are.” Brynn rested her hand on his. “We’ve just had more time to process the info. You just walked in. And laughing is better than crying.”

He put his hand over his sister’s. “You’re right. I’ve just had a long day, and this is the icing on a shit cake.” He turned to Kat. “So you know who did this?”

“It’s complicated,” she said. Nolan had become accustomed to all of her looks over the past few weeks, but he didn’t recognize this one.

“How?” he asked.

“Someone logged in from inside the firewall.”

“How is that possible?” Lucas asked.

“It is someone with access to your system.” Kat carefully read the room and with a gentle voice she said, “Probably an employee.”

A blanket of disbelief tented the room. Their business was a family. Trust ran deep with their employees and, to date, that trust had never been broken. Not that they knew of.

“Are you sure?” Brynn asked, her voice quivering with emotion.

“Who is the son of a bitch?” Lucas roared.

Kat’s gaze went back to Nolan. “This is where it gets complicated. It was Nolan’s login and password being used. But when I glanced at some of the times, you weren’t here. Well, at least one for sure.” Her cheeks heated and he knew what night she was talking about.

Based on the shy way she looked away with embarrassment, the whole room was now privy to that information. And for a woman who proudly wore her one-night-stand badge, that interested him.

“Have you had a chance to look into the invoices?” Jax asked, his voice shaking with rage. His fiancée, Milly, placed a calming hand on his back and made soothing circles.

Something inside Nolan, something close to jealousy, prickled up his spine at the supportive and loving gesture.

“I have and even though I haven’t had time to compare it to the inventory, I can assure you that they’ve been doctored.” She looked up at him. “I’m really sorry. I know this isn’t what you wanted to hear.”

“It’s not your fault,” he said, pulling out the rolling chair next to Kat and taking a seat, but not before giving her shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

She was startled by the show of affection, as was his family. Which was strange because Nolan was an affectionate guy, always the first to initiate a hug or an atta boy. Even with his brothers. It’s what made him a great agent—his compassion for the victims. So why were they so surprised by his outreach to someone who was clearly uncomfortable being the messenger of bad news?

“I’m just glad we’re getting some answers,” he said. “Did the extra security cams I installed catch them in action?”

“They turned the cameras off from inside,” she said.

“Shit.” Nolan pressed his palms to his forehead. He was starting to feel a headache form behind his right eye. “I was so sure it was R. J. that I never suspected it was someone we know. I didn’t even think to put some up in the storage rooms.”

“Why would you?” she said, and this time it was she who made the first move, resting her hand on his leg. It was only for a split second, but warmth spread through his body like wildfire.

“Why did you say they?” Brynn asked. “Do you think it’s more than one person?” She sounded so betrayed that more than one person could be in on this.

“Yes. Because it would take one person to shut off the cameras and security system. And at least two to carry out the boxes,” Nolan said. “I’m really sorry, guys. I’ve been so wrapped up with other things, I didn’t get on this fast enough.”

The minute the words left his mouth he wanted to suck them back in. He was talking about work, but Kat would assume he was referring to their time together. Which couldn’t be further from the truth. But now that he thought about it, maybe she was right that this was bad timing for both of them to play around with being anything other than friends—without benefits.

---