CHAPTER ONE
Tuesday, September 5th
Lucky looked over her shoulder and prayed that Sam wouldn’t catch sight of her because the last thing she needed was for him to come over and start a conversation. She’d successfully avoided him for months and wanted nothing less than for it to continue.
Taking one final glance, she confirmed he was fully engaged in his conversation, so she scrunched down in her high-back chair. The large lobby of the Chicago Athletic Association Hotel wasn’t where she expected to see the fed and why he was here with a fellow agent was anyone’s guess.
And, yeah, she’d figured his companion was exactly that because they both wore similar expressions, suits, and shoes. Also, the unmistakable stick up their asses left no doubt that Chicago’s branch of the Federal Bureau of Investigation was in the house.
Not that she was thinking about Sam Barton’s ass.
Except that he was one.
And had a fine one.
Moving her glasses to the top of her head, she rubbed the bridge of her nose and knew the enmity she harbored for Sam was the result of how foolish she felt for falling for his pretty face.
When they’d met a year ago on an SAI op that involved the local Italian mob, she’d thought he was the most handsome man in the world and fell promptly in lust. He was six feet of gorgeous, with a face that would make angels weep at the sheer perfection of its symmetry.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have a personality to match.
They’d worked together on and off since the initial meeting and she soon discovered he was an unmitigated pompous asshole. Not only had he been supercilious, but he’d also taken shots at her clothes and opinions. Which killed the crush and, by the time they were done working together and the bad guys from the Russian Bratva had been taken care of, she was happy to be free of his company.
Which was a blessing she was enjoying to this day.
Except…she could actually use his help.
Which sucked, since there was no way she’d ever ask for his assistance with Anton Vazov. The Bratva pakhan she’d come across last spring was one of the most deplorable humans to ever walk the Earth, and she wanted to see him brought to justice. Regrettably, she hadn’t figured out a way to make it happen.
But, Sam could, because he headed up the task force that oversaw organized crime in the city. At least she thought he could despite the fact, Vazov didn’t operated primarily in Brussels. Rolling her neck in a circle, she tried to release the tension that was accumulating and knew she’d eventually figure out a way to have him taken down.
But today wasn’t that day, because she had a crisis at work that was going to take all her focus. Checking her watch, she hoped the second-best hacker-turned-security-expert slash ex-boyfriend showed up soon because she wanted him to join her at SAI and help her solve a hack that had proven particularly troublesome.
Hearing her name, she looked up and saw Griffin striding toward her and, unfortunately, Sam’s head popped up as well. Their gazes clashed and then locked.
“Shit,” she mumbled to herself as she raised her chin in acknowledgment. Seeing the intensity of his gaze made her realize he hadn’t given up yet. Which meant she was going to run the moment she was done with the meeting.
Raising her eyes, she watched Grif approach and bless her with his signature-sexy once over. It had often dropped her panties in the past and unfortunately, it didn’t seem to work anymore, which was a shame since he was so damn attractive in a bad-boy hacker way. “Hey, Grif, pack that smile away because I don’t want you to waste your smoldering sexiness on me.”
“Lucky, it’s never wasted.”
He leaned down to kiss her and she decided to make the most of the situation and ensure Sam had no reason to come over. When their faces were an inch apart, she whispered, “Give me your best kiss so the two feds that are sitting on the other side of the planter take notice.”
“Kissing you isn’t a favor, Lucky.”
“Make it a good one.”
He gave her one more sexy smile, then cupped the back of her head and brought their mouths together, laying a mind-numbing, body-tingling, firework-worthy kiss on her that she would remember for a long time to come.
The moment he released her mouth, she sucked in a deep breath and then laughed. “It’s too bad we can’t get along when we’re boyfriend and girlfriend.”
Griffin tipped his head against hers and took her hand and squeezed. “We’re too much alike, unfortunately.”
“That we are.” She pushed at his chest and he playfully stumbled back. No way he would’ve moved if he didn’t want to because besides being incredibly intelligent, he was also well built.
Lucky watched him drop his bag on the table and then collapse into a chair facing her. “Thanks for coming.”
“Do you know the expression, steam coming out of someone’s ears?”
“Yes…”
“It’s actually happening to one of the feds. He’s giving me a death glare and…” raising his hand, Grif waved. “I wonder if he’s going to explode.”
“Well, that hopefully will keep him away.”
“Are you going to explain any of this?”
“I worked with Sam last spring…he was an ass and then did a weird turnabout and has been calling me on and off all summer.”
“Yeah, that makes sense since he looks like he wants to kill me.”
“Why are men so weird? One minute they’re all jabs and insults and the next it’s let’s go to dinner and hang out.”
“As cocky as I am, I’m not comfortable speaking for all who possess a Y chromosome, but I will say, sometimes we’re idiots when faced with the thing we want most.”
“I can’t even begin to unpack what that means, so I’m going to move on to why I asked you to meet me today.”
“Is it another job offer?”
“Yes, and before you give me the ten reasons why you don’t want a permanent gig, please hear me out.”
“You know that I’m a lone wolf and like to go where the wind takes me, but since you sounded slightly desperate on the phone, I’ll listen to you before I say no.”
“You’re a prince among men, Grif.”
“True.” He ran his hand over his jaw and shook his head. “Why didn’t we work, Lucky?”
Lifting an eyebrow, she waited to see if his inquiry was serious and decided it wasn’t when he broke into a chuckle. “We both know why and to rehash the past isn’t worth it.”
“You’re right.”
“I usually am,” she said as she sat back. “I need your help with a client who has recently been hacked because I can’t figure out where the initial breach was made. I’ve been working on it for a week, and I’m completely flummoxed.”
Grif leaned forward and picked up his phone and held it up. “Can you repeat that, please, so I can record it for posterity?”
She sat forward in her chair and put her mouth close to the upheld phone and spoke slowly, “Save me, Grif, because you’re the only one who can.” When he smiled like a madman, she knew she had him. He wasn’t a man motivated by money or glory; he wanted to know unequivocally that he was the best in the world at what he did, and her admission just proved that.
“Okay, Lucky, I’ll come over and save you.”
Shaking her head, she held out her hands and waited until he took them. “Thank you. Would you like to know what we’re dealing with?”
“Sure.”
She let go of his hands and sat back. “I’ve got a client who has an enormously large audience that streams content directly onto their computers and a systems administrator recently discovered an anomaly in the event log that indicated a failed task. When she researched it further, she discovered it was a piece of software that was meant to be sent to all the computers that were on the network.”
“I’m guessing it wasn’t a systems update that was written incorrectly.”
“You would be right.”
“And everyone thinks the next world war is going to be won by missiles and SEALs.” He shook his shaggy hair and snorted. “It’s going to be a cyber war that decimates governments and infrastructure.”
“We always say that because of what we do and see. Very few people understand the techno threat is as big as any jihadist movement or man-child in North Korea.”
“So, you want me to come over and save your bacon?”
Sliding her gaze from side to side, Lucky bit her lip and nodded. “I’ve spent a week on this, and I can’t find the point of origination. I’ve got projects backed up, and I’m understaffed. I don’t want to disappoint the client, but I’m stuck.”
“I’ve got time before I need to be in Brussels, so I’ll come over and take a look.”
“Thank you, Grif. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.”
He tilted his head and studied her. “You’re almost as good as me at these sorts of things, so are you giving up because you really can’t figure it out or because it’s cutting into your time investigating the Russian mob?”
“Are you hungry? Because I sure am, and I think we should celebrate you joining the team by heading to the game room and playing a round of bocce and grabbing some burgers.”
Groaning, Griffin put his head in his hands. “Your response confirms my worst fears…you’re fixated and not going to let go until you see his pile of ashes.”
Lucky leaned forward and spoke quietly, “Vazov traffics in humans. Innocent women are kidnapped, fed drugs until they’re hooked, and then forced into prostitution. I can’t let this go.”
“Any chance you’re going to let all those retired Spec Ops guys you work with handle the takedown or are you seeing yourself as a one-woman vigilante force?”
“I know you’re asking that rhetorically.”
“If only I were.”
“So, food and drink or do you have other plans?”
“I do have plans this evening, but I’ll take a rain-check. I figure we’re going to be spending a ton of time together once we get into the breach, so we’ll probably be sharing a lot of meals.
“I’ll have Mama make some of your favorites, so you’ll be well fed.” Lucky laughed as she watched him press his enormous hands to his heart and grin. “I was never sure if you liked me or my mama’s cooking.”
“It was you, Lucky, and Mama Chiara was just the frosting on an already amazing cake.”
“I miss you, Grif.”
“Me too, Luciana.”
“Okay, enough of this nostalgia. If I wallow in it for too much longer, I’ll forget why we’re a bad idea.”
“Maybe just one more night spent under the sheets would be a good idea for old times’ sake.”
Throwing her head back, she laughed. “That won’t help because that’s where we work best.”
Grif winked and then let out a frustrated sigh. “Damn, Lucky, that is the truth.”
Clearing her throat, she sat up and squared her shoulders. “No more of that.”
“You could’ve left me a small morsel of hope.”
“Why? I’d just end up crushing it later.”
“Don’t remind me.”
“Can you come in tomorrow?”
“Yes, but first give me the update with the haps at SAI.”
“Stazi and Hank fell in love and just moved in together. Jason and Maddox are the same. We have a new guy named Brandon who’s the brother of the founder of SAI and a man named Ed just joined. He’s retired Delta and really funny.”
“Hank Uptight Coleman fell in love with Stazi? Our Stazi?”
“Yep. And he’s no longer wound tighter than a det cord ready to explode. He’s relaxed and smiles all the time.”
“And they say modern miracles don’t occur.”
“I know…right!”
Griffin’s alarm on his phone buzzed, and he clicked it off. “Got to go.” He lifted his bag off the table and slung it over his head. “See you tomorrow at the office.”
“Thanks for agreeing to come work with me. Don’t think I could unravel this without you.”
“Anytime.” He sat up straight and leaned to the left slightly. “Should I kiss you again, just to make sure the fed gets the message?”
Lucky stood and held out her hands. “Give me a hug, and that will be enough.”
Griffin stood and opened his big arms, and Lucky stepped into them and rested her head against his chest. Hugging Grif had always been wonderful, and this was no exception. When she felt him kiss her head, she knew it was because he felt genuine affection for her and nothing else. “Thanks, friend.”
He stepped back and gave her a wink. “Don’t forget to bring the good donuts in the morning.”
“You got it.” She watched him walk away and caught Sam’s eye and immediately sat down. No need to attract any more of his attention if she wanted to escape without having a conversation. Gathering her things, she was about to leave when her tablet buzzed. She lifted it out of her bag and groaned as she read the incoming information.