HACKING THE BILLIONAIRE: Part 2 Read Free

“If you’re still insisting on getting out I’ll hire a nurse to be with you.”
    “You’d do that for me?”
    “Of course I would. I wouldn’t want to be stuck in a hospital either.”
    She could hear her voice fading. “You’re a good man, Dirk.”
    “Thank you, Riley. Now go to sleep.”
    “The cops will want to talk to me,” she said.
    “I won’t let them disturb you. I’m staying right here,” he said.
    She smiled at the vibrations she felt through his chest as he spoke. “Right here?”
    “Yes, right here. We’ll sleep here until the morning and no one will get you,” Dirk said.
    “Promise?”
    “I promise, I’ll keep you safe, Riley. You’ll wake up tomorrow and I’ll still be here.”
    She yawned. “You are a good man, Dirk.”
    “Remember that, Riley.”
    “Hm.”
    She didn’t remember the rest of the conversation.
    ***
    Dirk woke before Riley, so he watched her sleep. Even with her mouth hanging open, she was still beautiful. He should run. Far and fast. Away from her, but he couldn’t. She was so different from the women he usually dated.
    And he wasn’t really dating her. It was supposed to be pretend, and when the leaker was caught she’d move on. He’d go back to his models and airheads. Women who didn’t challenge him or his status quo.
    Women whom he didn’t want to change for. Women so different from this gorgeous redhead currently in his aching arms. His hand had fallen asleep, but he had no desire to move. He wanted to capture this moment to have in his memory for when Riley was gone.
    Which she would be. She wouldn’t put up with him for too much longer. Just until the leak in his company was plugged. She had a job to do. She’d be on to the next one soon enough.
    He brushed a hair out of her face. She murmured in her sleep. At least he’d made her feel safe enough to go back to sleep. No one had bothered them. The nurses must have known that he wasn’t leaving her, so they didn’t even try to kick him out.
    Not being family, he figured he shouldn’t have been allowed to stay. He would have negotiated with them to be here for Riley. Wasn’t necessary.
    He smiled at Riley. How had this woman wormed her way into his heart?
    She stirred, her eyes opening with a snap. “You’re staring at me.”
    “Yes, I am.”
    “Can I go home now?”
    “I don’t know what the doctor has to say about it, but I’ll do my best. Either way, I’m hiring you a bodyguard.”
    She frowned. “I don’t like that idea.”
    “Riley?”
    “Hear me out.”
    “Go ahead,” he said, but he wasn’t convinced that he would like what she had to say.
    “Last night scared me. I’ll admit it.”
    “Then?”
    He looked at her, hoping she would return to his place.
    “I’ll move back in with you.”
    “Why do I sense there’s a ‘but’?”
    “Because there is. Why not use me to flush out whoever this is? We can then find the evidence if I know what I’m looking for.”
    Use her as bait? Put her in danger? “No. Absolutely not.”
    He shifted out of the bed, taking back his asleep and aching limbs. Her brow knit.
    “I can do this without your permission,” Riley said.
    “I can also find another company to take over this job.”
    “Why would you do that? Clearly I’m getting close.”
    “No. I forbid it.”
    She sat up, then cringed. She took a few deep breaths. “You don’t get to forbid it. I’ll talk to my boss, and he’ll agree with me.”
    “No. I’m the customer and I’m right,” Dirk said.
    In no universe would he let Riley become bait. That would be even more dangerous than it was now.
    “Then I’m not moving back in with you. I’ll go somewhere else. A hotel or something, but I’m not moving back in with you if you don’t let me do this.”
    He sighed. Damn, she was a good negotiator. “That’s emotional blackmail.”
    “Whatever it takes. Right? Don’t you use all the tools in your box to get what you want?”
    Beaten at his own game. “How do you