Hacking Mr. CEO (Billionaire Heists #3) by Anna Hackett

I just stared at Maverick, my throat tight.

“Remi? Angel?” He squeezed my hand.

“Um… No one’s ever really swooped in to help me with things. Usually I hustle, work hard, take care of things myself.” I cleared my throat. “Give me a second.”

He got a look on his face that I couldn’t quite interpret.

“It’s going to be all right,” he said.

I really, really want to believe that. “Okay, big guy, you have a deal.”

He arched a brow. “I have a name.”

“Mr. Tech Billionaire CEO?”

He gave me a grumpy look.

“Maverick,” I said.

His lips twitched. He shook my hand. “Nice to officially meet you, Remi.”

His hand was big and strong like the rest of him. And I imagined it touching other parts of me.

I snatched my hand back, nabbed a fry, and shoved it in my mouth. I had no business imagining any sort of fantasies with this man.

“So, where do we start?” I asked.

“Get in touch with The Shadow. Tell him you’ll do the job, but play reluctant.”

“That should be easy enough.”

“Tomorrow, come to my office.” He cocked his head. “Think you can try a reverse hack?”

“Try to hack him?” I pondered. “Maybe. I can embed something in an email.”

Maverick smiled and it lit up his rugged face. “I like the way you think.”

“Dude, don’t do that.”

“What?” He looked confused.

“Smile. You’re hot enough as it is, and smiling makes it so much—” I waved a hand.

“You think I’m hot?”

“Oh, come on.”

He shrugged. “My friend Liam gets voted the best-looking billionaire bachelor. And Zane gets the sexiest.”

“Pfft. Sure, Liam Kensington is pretty, and Zane has that tall, dark, and handsome thing going on, but some women like their men rugged, muscular, a little rough.”

Maverick leaned forward. “Really? Is that what you like?”

Danger. Danger. “Ah, so, back to the task at hand.”

He looked amused. “Right. Come to my office tomorrow. I think you know where it is,” he said dryly.

I smiled. “I totally rocked my electrician coveralls.”

“Can you get there without being noticed?”

“You think The Shadow is watching me?” I fought a shiver.

“Could be.”

“Yes, I can get there. I was a champion at sneaking out to arcades as a teen.”

“Good. I’ll need you to show me the messages you have from this guy, and we’ll find a way to track this asshole down.”

I fiddled with my soda cup. “This could be dangerous.”

“Yes. That’s why he needs to be stopped. He’ll keep hiring hackers until they get the Calix Project, and then the security of our nation is at risk.”

I bit my lip and nodded.

He was looking at my mouth again. Heat spread through me.

Two teens approached, both of them wearing baggy jeans and hoodies.

“Hey, man, are you Maverick Rivera?”

Mav shook his head. “Nope, but I get that a lot. Gets me good tables at restaurants.”

The kids’ shoulders drooped. “Figured Rivera wouldn’t be at Dave and Busters.” They shuffled off.

I shook my head. “You aren’t the friendliest guy, are you, Maverick?”

“So my friends tell me.” He rose. “You have a way home?”

“Yes, it’s called the subway. It’s an underground train that the unwashed masses use for a couple of bucks a ride.”

“Funny. I’ll see you tomorrow, Remi.”

I nodded. Strangely, I didn’t want him to go. “Tomorrow.”

I watched him stride off. Okay, I watched his ass as he strode off.

The man was all kinds of fine.

I took the subway home—my mind churning about the situation, and the fact that I was working with a billionaire.

I shook my head. It had been a crazy few days.

Hoofing it down the street, I turned into our street. Speaking of all kinds of fine. A tall guy was carrying a box into the place across the street. His worn jeans and flannel shirt did nothing to hide his muscled bod. He had dark-brown hair with the hint of a curl, and scruff across his jaw.

Old Mrs. Hansen had been trying to rent the upstairs apartment for ages. I crossed over to the auto shop and pulled out my keys.

When I glanced back, the man was looking at me. When he noticed me watching him, he lifted his chin and walked inside.

The hairs on the back of my neck rose.

Oh, God. Something was off. The guy was too watchful.

My stomach clutched. What if he worked for The Shadow? Was he watching us? What if he snatched one of the kids?

Panicking, I raced up the stairs to my loft. I paced, horrible scenarios playing over and over in my head.

I yanked out my phone and hit the button.

I’d saved Maverick’s number as Big Guy.

“Remi?”

“Maverick.” I dragged in a breath. “There’s a guy here.”

“Where?” His voice was sharp.

“I just got home. There’s a guy moving in across the street. A big guy. I saw him watching me.”

“Don’t worry, he’s mine.”