“Lauren. Lauren.” Hannah shook me awake. “Gabe’s on the phone.”

I sat up straight on the couch, even though I wasn’t entirely conscious. “I don’t want to talk to him.”

She shoved my cell phone at me. “I called him. So you have to.”

“Lauren.” I could hear the worry in his voice. Christ, what the hell had Hannah told him? I looked up at her.

“Everything—I told him everything,” she said, as if she could read my mind. She bit her lip in guilt. “I’m sorry. I’m just…scared.”

I shooed her away and tried to collect my thoughts, turning my attention back to the phone. “Hey. I guess Hannah told you I had a visitor at work today.” As the memory of my meeting with Clive clicked into focus, my adrenaline started to thrum.

“He’s dangerous. It’s official.” I could hear the anger in his voice.

“For once, I openly admit to agreeing with you.”

“Can I come over? I don’t want you alone right now.”

I looked out the window into the darkness, feeling that yearning again. “Timmy’s outside. I’m fine.”

“I didn’t ask if you were fine. I’ll see you soon.”

I started to object, but he’d already hung up. I looked down at my rumpled pajamas, then at the empty wineglass on the coffee table in front of me. I was a mess.

Not only was I a mess, but Clive Warren was trying to use my own technology against me in order to coerce me into selling my company to him. And Gabe, the gorgeous and questionably trustworthy CEO billionaire, was on his way over.

What to do, what to do.

I pulled the blanket up over me and curled into a ball. I wasn’t going to give up, but I didn’t have a clear strategy. Not exactly, not yet. I planned to fight Clive with everything I had and keep up with everything going on at the lab. I would continue the clinical trials, get my regulatory approvals, meet with my investors to secure funding, and then my technology was going to go live. Everything would go as I’d planned.

I refused to entertain alternatives. I wasn’t going to let Clive or some foreign black-market buyer ruin my life’s work. That was the upside of being brilliant—I’d think of something, eventually.

I made myself get up, then I showered and threw on a pair of sweats. Hannah had bought me all sorts of clothes I never wore. Maybe I could find something comfortable yet appropriate to wear in front of too-attractive male company.

Gabe came in while I got dressed. I could hear Hannah talking to him in worried tones.

I came out of my room, my hair still damp, and glared at her. “I can speak for myself, you know.”

She turned and gave me an exasperated frown. “But you don’t do it unless I force you to.” Her face softened. “I’m sorry. I know I’m meddling, but that’s what people do when they love you and they’re worried about you.”

“Hey,” Gabe said. He was wearing a sport coat and dark jeans again. He looked slightly dressed up.

“Hey yourself. Hopefully, we didn’t pull you from anything too important.” For some reason, I crackled with jealousy, suddenly wondering where he’d come from.

“I wanted to be here, remember? You didn’t actually invite me.” He took a step toward me, and I could see the stubble on his chin. He was so tall and handsome, it almost hurt to have him in my kitchen. “Are you okay?”

“No,” I said in a low tone.

“I’ll just leave you two alone,” Hannah said before she quickly ducked out.

“That’s a first,” I called, but I wasn’t mad at her. She was meddlesome, but she was all I had. I also happened to know for a fact that her heart was in the right place.

Gabe came closer, reaching out and rubbing my arm. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Heat rushed through me at his touch. “Not really. Clive Warren threatened me today. I’m still processing.”

“I want to help, if I can. Actually, I’d like to go after him and crack his skull open.”

I considered the man in front of me. Gabe was right there, saying all the right things, but part of me—the part that never should have trusted Clive Warren—felt the need to vett him. There was too much at stake. It was imperative that I exercise flawless judgment from here on out.

“Why is that?” I asked. “Why would you do that for me?”

Gabe regarded me patiently. “I know you’re not big on human interaction outside of the lab…but is it so hard for you to believe that I care about you?”

“Care about me? Or care about my company?” The harsh words tumbled out before I could stop myself, and I instantly regretted them.

He dropped his hand from me and backed away, probably worried that my spiteful paranoia was contagious. “Jesus, Lauren. You are what I care about.”

“I’m…sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

He shrugged. “We can forget about our business deal. If that’s what you need to trust me enough to give me a chance, consider it done.”

I believed him, so I shook my head. “I don’t want to jeopardize our business arrangement or…anything else.”

Gabe’s gaze pierced mine. “Do you have any idea what you do want?”

My immediate and uncensored reaction, which I felt deep in my gut and farther below, was a distinct hell yes. To start with, I wanted him to put his hand back on me. I already missed his touch. But I hesitated, unsure of what to say. “I would like to explore…other partnership opportunities…with you.” I groaned inwardly at the inadequacy of my words. “But it just seems like a lot, all at once.”

And by the way, if I seem awkward and unsure of myself? I’ve never had a boyfriend, or even a second date.

He nodded, as if he understood, which soothed me a little. “It has been a lot all at once.”

“I still don’t understand.” My heart was pounding in my chest. “Why me, I mean?” I couldn’t wrap my head around why he was pursuing me in anything other than a professional capacity. Gabe could have any woman he wanted, and I hadn’t exactly made things easy for him.

He cocked his head, his eyes boring into mine. “Do you think I’ve gotten to where I am today because I’m lucky?”

I shook my head, confused. “No. Of course not.”

“That’s because it wasn’t luck. It was because I saw a market hole early, and I filled it. I’m an early adopter. I can see how something is extraordinary before anyone else can.” He swallowed, and I could see a muscle in his jaw pop. “And I can see that you are extraordinary, Lauren.”

My heart swelled.

“When you’re not being extraordinarily frustrating, that is.”

“Thank you—for the first part, anyway. It means a lot to me.” In fact, it meant everything to me at the moment, but my logical brain couldn’t make sense of the overwhelming amount of raw feeling that was coursing through my body.

I took a step toward him.

“It means a lot to me, too,” he said gruffly. “So please—stop pushing me away.”

“I don’t mean to, and I don’t mean to be frustrating. I’m…sorry.” Two apologies from me in one conversation? A personal record.

I took another step.

Gabe watched me warily. “Are you coming closer?”

My heart hammered in my chest. “Only if you want me to. I know I’ve been difficult.”

He held up his hand. “Hang on. Don’t move. I need to be prepared.”

My confidence faltered a little. “For what?”

A small smile returned to his face, and I caught a flash of that dimple. “For my brain to go haywire.”

I took that as a good sign and finally closed the distance between us. Gabe put his arms around my shoulders and leaned over me, his dark brown eyes flashing.

“Why would your brain do that?” My voice sounded hoarse. My kitchen had suddenly gotten very, very hot.

“You’re a scientific genius. I think you can figure it out.”

Then he very gently but very firmly put his lips to mine.

I felt the kiss in every part of me. I could see what he meant about a haywire brain. I couldn’t think at all, just feel. He deepened the kiss, lengthening it, and I responded by unselfconsciously throwing my arms around his neck. Gabe’s hands roamed down my back and a shudder of desire rolled through me. It came from someplace deep inside, a place I hadn’t known existed.

I kissed him back hungrily. I hadn’t known how hungry I was.

“Were you finally nice to him?” Hannah suddenly called, swerving around the corner and bursting into the room. Gabe and I instantly broke apart and she clapped a hand over her mouth, looking horrified. “Oh boy. Oh my God. I’m so sorry! I didn’t know he was still here!”

I gave my sister the evil eye while Gabe chuckled and straightened his jacket. “It’s okay. And yes, your sister was finally being nice to me. I was just saying goodbye to her.”

“You don’t have to,” Hannah said, sounding simultaneously apologetic and gleeful from behind her hand. “You can stay and maybe she can keep practicing being nice—”

“Hannah,” I interrupted, my voice a warning.

Gabe turned to me, still chuckling. “Thank you for…having me.” The undercurrent to his words made my whole body tingle in response. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“Okay.” I could feel my face turning red. “Thanks for stopping by and…everything.”

He chuckled again, kissed me briefly on the nose, and was gone.

“Well, well, well.” My sister crossed her arms against her chest, looking like the cat who just cornered the canary. “We finally have a winner, ladies and gentlemen! Gabriel Betts is a total keeper!”

“Please,” I groaned, “You’re being ridiculous.” Even now, I could feel his hands as if they were still on me…and I wished they were.

She arched an eyebrow at me. “You want to deny it?”

“I want to go to bed.”

Hannah looked triumphant as I made a hasty beeline for my room. “Just remember,” she called after me, “I told you so!”

* * *

The next day I went about my work ruthlessly, gathering data and preparing compliance reports for the FDA as if I were gathering an army. Still, the whole day, my thoughts wandered from Clive to Gabe, from Gabe to Clive.

On one hand, I still seethed over my meeting with Clive yesterday. He’d threatened to take away my company, the thing I’d put my heart and soul into for the past six years. He’d threatened the very reason for my existence. I would make him pay for that—I just had to figure out how. While I figured that out, I refrained from calling the FBI. I hated to admit it to myself, but his threat had resonated with me. I didn’t want him selling my technology to a third party on foreign soil. Even though the stolen specs weren’t the correct ones, any R&D department worth its salt would be able to recreate the correct technology eventually.

On the other hand, the Gabe hand, I felt…positively giddy. I kept checking my phone as if I were a teenager, but there were no texts from him. I found cold consolation by reminding myself that he was a CEO as well, and was probably buried with work.

Hannah buzzed me in the early afternoon. “You need to see something.” She went quiet for a second. “Two things, actually. And you aren’t going to like either of them.”

“Great.” I opened my browser. “What?”

“Go to Clive’s company website. He has a new announcement.”

I held my breath and navigated to his site. The News page had an announcement, dated today, that his company was “working on an exciting partnership with one of the biggest stars in healthcare technology.”

What the hell. “I can’t believe he’s doing this.” I felt the floor spin beneath me. He was forcing my hand by going ahead with his plans to either partner with me or take me down in broad daylight.

“That’s just the first thing. You might like the next one even less. Go to the Valley News’s Business page. There’s a picture—I’m just warning you.”

I clicked to the page, feeling as if I were going to throw up. I pulled up the Boldface Names column, which recounted business dealings and other, more gossip-oriented news about local business people.

I stopped scrolling when I got to the picture. It was of Gabe, his hand on the arm of a stunning woman with long, stick-straight dark hair and legs that went on forever.

I gripped the mouse so hard I was surprised it didn’t shatter. “Who is that?” I asked flatly. I lacked the strength to actually make it sound like a question.

“She’s a, err…model. For a sportswear catalog.”

“Of course she is.” I swallowed hard. “I told you I couldn’t trust him.”

“I don’t know about that,” Hannah said. “That’s who he left last night. To come and see you. If you read the column, it says he ran out on her in the middle of dinner. I debated even showing this to you. I didn’t want to make you upset.”

I looked at the picture again and felt sick. “So why did you?”

“Because I didn’t want you to stumble across the column and think the worst. I wanted to give you the context to analyze the information properly.” My sister, who knew me better than anyone, gave me a scientific presentation.

With only one way to analyze the information, I looked at the picture and felt the hot, unwelcome sting of jealousy.

“I have to go. I’ll see you later.” I hung up and grabbed my coat.

“I’m going out for the rest of the day,” I told my assistant, Stephanie, as I hustled past. She looked shocked, but I ignored her. I texted my driver as I strode down the hallway. I need a ride. Stat.

I had to pay a very important CEO a visit.

* * *

The driver pulled up in front of Dynamica, and I just sat there, miserably, as he idled by the curb. “Would you like me to pull into the parking lot, Ms. Taylor?”

“No,” I said.

“Am I coming with you?” Timmy asked.

“No,” I said again.

Timmy raised an eyebrow, but I ignored him.

I hadn’t called Gabe to tell him I was coming, in part because I wasn’t sure I would have the chutzpah to actually go up and see him. Maybe the supermodel athlete was there, dropping off his dry cleaning, waiting for him to take her to dinner again, or just staring at him in adoration.

I cracked my knuckles, then just sat there for another minute, trying to gather courage. Finally, I sighed and opened the door. “I’ll just be a few minutes. I’ll text you when I’m ready to leave.”

I headed into the reception area of the sleek building. I’d never been there before, but it looked modern and seemed brand-new. Gabriel had done well for himself. From what I’d read about Dynamica, it had been profitable from the beginning and had grown at a healthy rate every year.

I would be happy for him if that were physically possible for me at the moment.

I nodded curtly at the receptionist. “I’m Lauren Taylor. I’m here to see Mr. Betts. He’s not expecting me.”

She picked up the phone and spoke quietly while I fidgeted, waiting. I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the window and noticed I wore a black skirt, black sweater, and black flats. My hair was pulled back in a low, lackluster ponytail. Hannah would have an absolute fit if she knew I’d gone to see him like this.

“Mr. Betts will see you now.” She motioned for a security guard to collect me, watching me with thinly veiled interest. Gabe probably didn’t often accept unscheduled visitors.

The guard led me to the corporate suites, through what seemed like an endless hallway filled with incandescent blue lighting and small potted plants. I felt as if I were in a luxury hotel rather than a technology company. Finally, we reached Gabe’s office.

“Mr. Betts is waiting for you,” his young, male assistant said. He smiled at me from behind a pair of electric blue glasses. “It’s very nice to meet you, Ms. Taylor.”

“It’s nice to meet you too.”

“Lauren,” Gabe said, smiling up at me as I shakily walked in. “This is certainly a surprise.”

“Sorry,” I said.

His assistant closed the door behind me.

“You don’t need to apologize. I was going to call you as soon as I finished with this report. And I’m not unpleasantly surprised. Just surprised.” He looked different behind his desk. He was still wearing jeans, as was expected in Silicon Valley, but he seemed more serious. More commanding. He stood up and motioned me toward his couches. “Please, sit. Unlike you, I actually do use my sitting area sometimes.”

I warily sank down on the couch. Last night I’d been in his arms, but now I sat across from him awkwardly. Still thrumming with jealousy, I had a hundred questions about that picture but wasn’t brave enough to bring it up. “Did you hear about Clive’s announcement today?” I asked instead.

He nodded. “He’s forcing your hand.”

“That’s exactly what I said. To myself.”

“I’m surprised by how aggressive he’s being. He has balls of steel.”

“And I’m going to cut them off.” I jumped up and started pacing. I hadn’t let myself think the whole thing through, but being there with Gabe, finally talking about it, the wheels started turning. “If he thinks that he’s going to ruin my company, he’s got a surprise coming.”

“You should call the authorities,” Gabe said as he watched me pace. “Why not involve the FBI? You have the security video, you have the chip, you have the statements he made to you. What do you have to lose at this point by turning him in?”

“I can’t. He said if I call the authorities, he’ll sell the specs he stole from me to a third-party buyer—a foreign one.”

“He really is a piece of shit,” Gabe seethed.

I nodded, feeling jittery. “If I call the FBI, they can arrest him, but he’d still have time to sell. And he’ll do it—I know he will. So I either sell him a majority stake in Paragon or he sells my patch.”

“But you can’t sell to him,” Gabe said, shaking his head. “He’s an asshole. So I say, either let me have a go at him or call the police.”

“I can’t…and I can’t let you do that. If I have him arrested, I’d have to start disclosing trade secret information. What my patch is, what it does. The fact that I’m finally having successful clinical trials.” I whirled toward him. “Please don’t tell anyone that. This is such a vulnerable time for my company.”

“I won’t. You have my word.”

I resumed pacing. “If he sells the technology to someone else, someone who has the means to bring the patch to market—my company is dead.”

“But even a foreign company has some sort of regulatory process they need to go through and laws they have to obey,” Gabe said. “They can’t just steal your technology and skip merrily to market. Doesn’t work that way.”

Gabe was correct, but Clive had pretty much said otherwise. “Clive made it seem like his potential partner wouldn’t have barriers rushing the patch to market.”

“He could be bluffing.”

“I know. I just need to think it through. There are a lot of moving pieces.” I wrung my hands together. “If I say no to him and contact the authorities, he’ll sell. But even if that’s a bluff, or if the buyer can’t go to market, Paragon would still be in trouble. If my protected information starts to come out, in court filings or in media articles, I lose my trade secret status. So anyone can start to recreate the technology that I’ve developed for my invention. I don’t want that—I don’t want any competition. One of the major advantages of the patch is that it’s unique. It needs to be first to market to be successful.”

“Then…have you considered just giving him what he wants?” Gabe asked quietly.

“He wants a majority stake in Paragon. And for me to partner with him and his error-riddled technology that’s destined to fail, just so he can profit from my hard work! There’s no way. He’s not going to get either.”

“But think about it. What if you agreed to partner with him on his deliverable now? You could help him with the technology. That would give him at least some of what he wants without risking everything you’ve worked for. It might be enough of an incentive for him—enough of a gain—that he’ll leave you alone.”

I softened toward Gabe, even as I disagreed with him. “I appreciate that you’re trying to be reasonable. I know I’m not capable of that right now. But I can’t agree to work with Clive. I could never trust him, and giving in to his demands would just be giving him permission to continue his abuse of the relationship. Plus, I don’t think he’d accept that now. It’s probably not enough.”

“You might be surprised. He might say yes.”

“I doubt it. He wants more.”

Gabe looked at me thoughtfully. “He wants you. He wants any piece of you he can get. Don’t underestimate your power, Lauren. Look at what you’ve built. Look at what you’ve achieved. People are trying to steal from you because no one else can do what you’re doing.”

I felt miserable, not powerful. “I don’t want to have power over him. I just want him to go away. And I know that’s not going to happen. Not easily, anyway.” I looked at Gabe’s handsome face, feeling that yearning again.

“We can make him go away. But you’re right. It won’t be easy.” He paused for a second, as if he were thinking it through. “For now, we have to deal with the fact that Paragon has a very large problem on its hands. He went public with that statement because he knows you haven’t told the FBI or your board about what happened—about the data breach. He wants to put you in a corner. Either accept his buyout or he’s going forward with the stolen technology.”

I nodded, anger starting to burn through me again. “That’s what he’s trying to do, but it won’t work. I can still tell the board about the breach.” I kept pacing, my fists clenched, my knuckles whitening at my sides.

“Why haven’t you told them?”

“Because the timing of this is so horrible. I’m supposed to meet with my investors next week for another round of fundraising in order to bring the technology to market. If news breaks that we’ve had a data breach—and even if that news stays internal for now—my people will doubt my ability to bring this to market safely. The only thing my investors and my board have known for the past six years, without a doubt, is that they could trust me to keep Paragon safe. That’s why I have all this security, all this secrecy. We’ve been keeping this thing under wraps for this long to prevent our competition from beating us to market, and that’s exactly what Clive’s threatening to do. At our most vulnerable hour.”

I stopped pacing and rubbed my temples. “A security breach right now threatens my credibility with the board and my investors. And my credibility’s all I have.” I slumped on the couch across from him, feeling relieved to at least have talked to someone—but then I remembered. The photo. The supermodel athlete.

I shot back up to my feet. “I have to go.” I grabbed my bag.

Gabe stood and blocked my exit. “Oh no, you don’t.”

I looked him in the eye. “Yes, I do. I appreciate that you’ve heard me out on this. Now that Paragon is partnering with Dynamica, I should keep you in the loop.” I tried to dodge past him, but he caught me by my shoulders, gently stopping me.

He cautiously released me. “Why are you running away?”

I straightened up and adjusted myself, lackluster ponytail and all. I thought of the photo, with Gabe’s hand on that woman’s arm, and the jealousy came back. “I want to make sure I get out of here before another one of your dates show up.” I groaned inwardly at the way I sounded.

Gabe nodded, as if he’d expected my reaction, but he didn’t budge an inch. “I’m guessing you saw the picture online. That’s Sara. I see her from time to time. We’d had those plans for two weeks, though. Before I met you.”

“It’s really none of my business, anyway.”

His eyes bore into mine. “Well if that’s the case—what’re you doing here, Lauren?”

I shrugged, feeling as if I were crumbling on the inside. “I really have to go.”

Gabe smiled at me then, but it wasn’t his nice smile. “You and I both know that’s not true.”

“Please. Let me go.” I felt like I might cry for the second time that week.

“I want to hear you say it.” His voice sounded stubborn, but there was something more underneath. It was…need. I heard his need.

“Say what?” What the hell did he want from me?

“That you were jealous.”

I took a step back, surprised at his directness. “I was surprised when I saw the picture, that’s all. I thought you wanted…”

He raised his eyebrows, waiting. His face had softened a little, almost as if he felt sorry for me. “Wanted what?”

I took a deep breath. I might as well tell him the truth. I didn’t think it was possible for me to embarrass myself any further.

“Me.” I thought you wanted me.

He took another step closer to me. “Well, you were correct. As usual.”

Electricity crackled between us, but I had no idea if that was real or if he could feel it too. I had no idea about anything, for once.

“If I’d thought I had an actual shot with you, I would have canceled that dinner.” He reached out and brushed the hair from my face. “As soon as your sister called me, I left.”

I melted against his palm, then I remembered myself and opened my eyes. Gabe was staring at me. Suddenly, yet another room felt too hot.

He traced my jaw with his finger. “So, do I?”

“What?”

“Have a shot with you?”

“I have no idea what that means,” I said weakly.

“I know.” He smiled at me. This time, it was his nice smile…the one with the dimple. “But I’d like to show you, if you’ll let me.”