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“Hey, it’s no big deal.” He attempted a small smile. The fact that it didn’t reach his eyes just left me feeling a thousand times worse. “I went with you to grab the cadaver, remember? You had to go through hell just to set everything up right. The last thing I want to do is ruin your chances of staying below the radar.”
Running my fingers along the back of my neck to locate the newest knot, I offered him a gentle grin. “I really do appreciate you helping me with that the other night. I thought I was screwed when Anita got my car towed.”
Granted, it was a stolen ride, but I didn’t get the chance for it to serve its purpose before I watched a tow truck pass by me with it hooked up. It had led to the biggest confrontation that I had ever allowed myself to risk with the vile woman. All I was trying to do was buy myself some time while I uncovered why I was cursed with eternal youth and the very woman that had brought me into the world was keen on destroying all my progress. The fact that I had gotten this identity set up at all was a fucking miracle.
Beau responded with a dismissive wave. “It’s nothing. You’re a friend, Bl — Aspen.”
“You’re an amazing friend,” I countered.
If I was being honest with myself, he was the only one I had. It didn’t matter how quickly I had risen in the ranks for the APL. The fact that I had the face of a young woman didn’t give me much of a standing with the others. Beyond Beau, only the bosses respected me. No one else would have stuck their necks out for me like he did and asking the bosses was not an option. A favor like that would have clued them in that I wasn’t who I swore I was.
Now, a hacker who needed to change her identity every five years because the royal family was getting too close to home? That was a story any human in their right mind would believe.
“Aspen.”
It took me a moment to realize that Beau had kept talking and I had simply tuned him out. I blinked several times before his words finally reached me. “I-I’m sorry,” I stammered. “I guess I’m just—”
“Exhausted?” He started scooting my rolling chair away from the computer and didn’t stop until he had moved me around the other side of the table. “Yeah, I can tell. I was asking if you’d gotten everything switched over. You were just staring at me like a zombie. It was creepy.”
I crossed my arms over my chest as he turned me to face him again. “Zombies don’t exist,” I grumbled.
“Not yet.” That bushy eyebrow went right back up. “You can’t argue with the fact that far too many people are going missing for the demons not to be into experimentation. Zombies are going to be a thing eventually. It’s just a matter of time until they are. Still…” He reached out to gently flick under one of my eyes.
I sucked in a breath, my skin tingling from the brief contact. It was just long enough to set the rest of my body on fire. The struggle not to squirm on the chair was unreal.
Beau’s lips twitched as if he could sense the inner turmoil brewing within me. “You can’t be much use to the bosses if you’re dragging like this. You know the royal family has a security wall from hell. They’re going to need you at the top of your game if we want to crack it before tonight.”
There was a part of me that yearned to shoot Beau down for overstepping. I was used to running myself ragged, especially since I’d joined their ranks. It was expected of me on a daily basis just to maintain my place. My relentless nature was why the T-Brothers had even noticed me to begin with. I had a natural talent for hacking and my rage against the demons simply fueled my desire to strip them of all their stolen riches.
Hell, I was the main reason why we were so close to their personal stash to begin with.
That didn’t mean the royal family hadn’t taken notice of the missing funds. We’d done our best to distribute the wealth just enough to where they couldn’t notice a sudden fluctuation in a specific area. As far as they were concerned, it simply looked like another low paycheck to humanity. We had been extremely careful. That didn’t mean they would brush it off like it was nothing.
The demons were simply better and now our time was running out. If we wanted to strike them where it really hurt, we’d have to go after the royal family tonight for everything they had. With any luck, all the missing funds would create a panic and the hierarchy would fall.
Beau snapped his fingers to regain my attention. “See? You’ve been going at their system since five this morning. You need to rest if you want any part of tonight.”
An exasperated groan escaped my lips as I rubbed my forehead. It didn’t matter how much I wanted to argue. Beau was still right. I had a vital role to play with the hack and I would be absolutely useless to the brothers if I was running myself ragged before it went down. “Alright!” I flung up my hands and eased out of the chair to offer it to him. “Fine. I’ll go grab a nap.”
Beau plopped down with a firm look at me. “No, you’ll get some sleep. There’s absolutely no need to keep one eye cracked open until tonight goes down. Get what you can while you can. Got it?”
My upper lip curled. “Since when did you become my father, Beau?”
He simply rolled behind the computer and started typing away. “Since I’m old enough to be it. Now get your ass moving before I have to tie you to the shelves just to convince you to rest.”
The edges of my lips twitched, especially when I spotted the sparkle in his eye. There was a part of him that was hoping I would resist just so he had the chance to hit on me, and I contemplated giving it to him. Considering that his body had not yet relaxed into the hacker meant I had a small window that was closing fast. I nibbled on my lower lip and lifted my jaw. “I don’t believe you.”
Those fingers stilled over the keyboard and the deep brown eyes swung my way. “Oh, really?”
The challenge was clear in his tone: go lay down or I’ll make sure you do.
I simply crossed my arms over my chest, refusing to budge.
It didn’t matter if I had responded with silence. My defiance was enough to prompt Beau out of his chair. He came at me faster than I had ever seen him move. All it took was him grabbing an arm and whirling me around before those arms wrapped around me. He hoisted me off the ground and carried me directly into the storage room where I’d set up my bed.
If it wasn’t for the fact that I was literally sleeping on the floor, I knew Beau would have tossed me down onto the wrinkled sheets. Still, he eased me down with frantic anticipation before he nudged the door shut.
Excited chills trickled down my spine as I watched him tug his buckle open. Just hearing the leather material rub against the belt loops was enough to leave me soaking for him. I kept nibbling on my lower lip while I watched him pull it free and toss it near the canned food. There was a part of me that poked at my consciousness that I could speed this along by shedding my own pants, yet I couldn’t bring myself to do it for him.
