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Compton studied him at length, resentment on his face. “Who are you?”
“Just some random guy with an obsession for mysteries and code.”
“A risky business.”
“Not necessarily. It’s really the code that interests me. Although I do notice things...” he added, dangling it like bait.
“Looking for a payoff?”
“You think I’m going to blackmail you about something in your personal life, but you’re wrong.”
Compton looked furious. “I can have security in here in sixty seconds. They’re on stand by.”
“Of course you can. But you’re wrong. I don’t want you to call security and I don’t want a police file. I’m ambitious, driven and eager, things you respect.”
“You think I haven’t had upstarts come in here before and try to impress me?
“I’m sure you have. But I’ve figured your puzzle and I could prove worthwhile in many other ways, if you let me see it through. Take a chance on me, Lara did.”
“You think you can come in here and tell me what to do?”
“Is it so hard to give a little trust, Sir?” Too much sarcasm, but he could feel it slipping away. “I was watching your sons because I’m frankly astonished two guys with so many opportunities are so lazy.”
Compton swore under his breath,
“Then again,” Draco added, pressing ahead before he got thrown out, “I believe I’m only saying aloud what you’ve been thinking. That’s why you wrote the macro, to see what they’re made of. They have things handed to them. You didn’t. I read all about you, Sir.”
“Of course you did, a good con man would.”
Draco’s gut tightened. Con man? Fuck.
“My security will have you out of here and out of Lara’s life so fast your feet won’t touch the ground. You latched onto my daughter, you realized who she was and you saw an opportunity. You wheedled crucial corporate information from her. That alone could have you locked up behind bars for a long time.”
“But you won’t, because you’re curious to see what I’m going to say,”
“Don’t try to second guess me! How much do you want to walk away from her? To keep quiet about the in-house breach?”
He really was worried about the fraud story coming out.
“I want one thing, respect for Lara. Give her an equal stake in your business, the same as her brothers.”
Eyes black with fury, Compton slammed his fist on the desk. “Lara chose to side with her mother!”
“So you’re taking it out on Lara?”
Compton glared at him, but he couldn’t deny it. “Lara is the best of my children, the sharpest and the most motivated. I want her to enjoy life a bit before getting stuck in here.”
Was that really the truth? “Lara’s doing a business degree for one reason, to impress you. She’s taking every option viable to arm herself for a career in finance, and she’s doing it for you, to get ahead in a field you might approve of. What’s coming from your direction?”
“What the hell do you mean, she’s nineteen and she’s already got a job here.”
“A temporary placement on a piffling task anyone could knock up in an afternoon, and you’re not even paying her entry level rate. She’s working for free while her brothers get executive roles and ludicrous salaries to fund their habits.”
Furious, Compton rose to his feet, hitting a red button on his phone cradle as he did so. Seconds later the door sprung open and two security guards marched in.
“A night in the cells will give you time to figure out where you went wrong.”
He’d intended to have Draco arrested all along. Draco’d gambled on it, figured it would pan out this way, and he was ready. “I’ve said my piece, Sir.” He rose to his feet. “I stand by every word.”
