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Hack into the security system
Kill Gregor
It sounded so simple when broken down into digestible chunks, but I only wished it was as easy as it sounded. So much was riding on this—there was no mincing words here; it was a suicide mission, just as Liam had said—and I would never be able to live with myself if anything happened to Ansel. Especially if I had anything to do with it.
He reached across the console and squeezed my leg as if he could feel the tornado of anxious thoughts swirling inside my head.
“How are you so calm?” I almost snapped, suddenly breaking the silence. I wish I had a time machine so I could go back to this morning in the shower and stay in that perfect moment with him forever.
Ansel didn’t wince or react in any way; always the picture of serenity when things were tense. He kept his eyes forward on the road, but his right hand remained on my knee, massaging the muscle there. My skin broke out into goosebumps as his calluses scraped my skin. “I am nervous,” he started, “I would be a fool not to be.” He merged into the next right, taking the exit ramp that bleeds into downtown proper. The part of the city that I knew like the back of my hand. “But there is a difference between being nervous and staying relaxed. You have to learn to relax, even when you’re scared. If you let the fear overtake you, it clouds your thinking, and that’s when people get killed.”
“Noted,” I said under my breath. If only it were that easy.
He glanced at me from the corner of his eye. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, Skye. You know that, right?”
It’s not my life I’m worried about.
I pulled on the practically sheer fabric of the bodysuit I was wearing. It was so tight. Why did I agree to wear this? Somehow, in my dark cloud of spiraling thoughts, I had let Ansel pick my outfit for me; the bodysuit and tight leather skirt he had bought me that I had vowed never to wear. Unfortunately, I really didn’t have a choice. All my other clothes were too dirty. I thought it would be fine, considering this was supposed to be a quick errand, but now I was wishing I had just worn one of Ansel’s shirts as a dress. I would have looked ridiculous, but at least my lungs could fully expand without bursting a seam.
I was so nervous that I couldn’t even enjoy the heated glances Ansel gave me as he drove. Or the way his fingers moved up my thigh, reaching his hand up my skirt to rub against the front of my panties.
Okay. I wasn’t so far gone I couldn’t enjoy that. I knew he was doing it to distract me, and to be honest, it was sort of working. Better than any coping mechanism I had already tried, anyways.
An hour or so later, after the security system had been purchased and sat in a plastic bag on the floor of the car between my feet, we sat in bumper-to-bumper traffic, the car slowly inching forward every so often. I tapped my foot nervously, wanting to scream. I definitely didn’t miss downtown traffic and of all days, why did we have to get stuck in it now? Every second lost was time we couldn’t afford to lose. If Ansel really intended to have me hack into the cameras, then I needed to make sure I could do it in my sleep. In a poor attempt to distract myself, I stared out the window, watching the different men and women dressed in suits or high-waisted skirts, toting their beautiful leather suitcases and designer purses, as they headed to their different offices.
I knew this road really well, actually. This was the street I would always take from my work to Carter’s office. Every week or so, I would race to his office after work to bring him a fresh shirt whenever he had to meet a new client for dinner. Carter thought it was unprofessional to meet with someone wearing the same clothes you had been sweating in all day, but never bothered to keep an extra pair of clean clothes in his office.
Why bother when your girlfriend would answer your every beck and call?
I sighed.No point feeling bad for yourself. He’s someone else’s problem now—
Suddenly, it dawned on me that we hadn't taken this road earlier to get to the electronics store. “Ansel, where are we going?”
“I’m taking you to lunch,” he said, pressing lightly on the gas as the car inched forward.
“Lunch? I don’t think we really have time for that.”
“Why? Everyone has to eat. I can’t expect you to work on an empty stomach.”
I don’t think I could eat right now, even if I tried.I returned my gaze to the window, frowning at the sleek suits on the street. “Where are we going?”
“La Petite Mermaid. Have you been?”
“No, but I’ve heard of it. I thought their waitlist was crazy long, like you needed a year-long reservation to get in.”
He chuckled. “You do need a reservation, but don’t worry, I know a guy.”
I opened my mouth to ask if he wasn’t sure we should just grab something fast like from a burger joint, when my eyes locked on the building across the street. I knew that building—all windows with carved-out marble steps leading to the front entrance. My heart stuttered to a stop as my vision tunneled as if I was staring through a telescope and all I could see was that building.
I unclicked my seatbelt. “Ansel,” I said in a harsh voice, placing my hand on the handle of my door, “I need you to pull over. Now.”
“What?” he replied. I didn’t hear what he said next—it was something along the lines of“What the fuck are you doing?! Get back in the car!”But I couldn’t be sure. It was hard to hear his words over the sound of honking cars as I weaved past as I ran towards the glass building.
Chapter twenty-three
Iignoredtheachein my ankle as I climbed the marble steps, and entered the building, cool air conditioning kissing my skin as soon as I pushed open the double glass doors. Wearing heels with a hurt ankle was not the best idea, but since the only other pair of shoes I had at Ansel’s were flip-flops which clashed with my outfit, I had no other choice. I felt pretty badass though, marching into Carter’s office in my favorite black heels.
That was until I saw the receptionist.
