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He growled in reply as he planted his hands on the desk. “Michael happens to be tech savvy. I’m going to ask him to see if he can do something to help you with the files before he leaves.”
“When will you be back?”
“Three or four hours. Don’t worry. I will have men positioned outside in case there’s an issue, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.” He stole a kiss anyway, laughing when I groaned. “Just stay inside while I’m gone. Margaret will be here. She doubles as his teacher for now so the little man should stay out of your hair. Here is a burner phone for you, the password all twos. I’ve programmed my number into it. Call me if anything odd happens.”
“Okay and I don’t mind that fabulous little boy being in my hair. He reminds me of the troublemaking side of his daddy.”
Now his laugh was full blown, his entire face lighting up. But in his eyes, I could sense that what I’d suggested continued to trouble him. In truth, it did me as well.
“I’ll keep that in mind. Just be a good girl or else.”
“Yeah. Yeah. I know. Or I’ll be punished.”
“Exactly.” He pulled away, giving me a heated onceover. When he walked out, it took a few seconds before I shifted my attention back to the computer. I typed in the name of the Russian mafia organization, finding more articles than I had on the O’Connors. After reading a few articles it had become apparent that they had no issue ruffling feathers, acting as if they owned the world. I started writing down a few notes, startled when I heard a man clearing his throat.
I placed my hand over my heart as I peered at Michael. “I didn’t see you standing there.” He has something in his hand. It looked like a hard drive. “What do you have there?”
“It’s a device I had built that decodes almost any password. It’s proven to be helpful on more than one occasion,” he said as he walked closer.
“I don’t think you should tell a prosecutor the details.”
Chuckling, he inched closer. “All I need to do is attach this to the system and it will eventually decode every password connected to the computer, including every file. Decoding them might take a couple hours, but given we’re not talking about thousands of codes, maybe not that long.”
“Okay. So I just need to be patient.”
“Exactly.” He took a few seconds, plugging it in and typing in certain commands.
I moved away from the desk while he was working, drifting to one of the windows. The day was beautiful, so much so I had a feeling Christian would want to play outside. I noticed a playset on the lawn close to the river, the beautiful setting drawing myattention. No wonder the tire swing remained. Maybe later we could spend some time outside. Like a family. Geez.
“The device is running now, Ms. Beckett. Give it thirty minutes or so and you might see some results.”
“Thanks, Michael. And you don’t need to call me by my formal name. Sedona is just fine. You did risk your life as well to save mine.” I turned back toward him, smiling. He’d been so formal around me that I was slightly uncomfortable.
“Boss man wouldn’t like that.”
“I guess I’ll need to talk to him.”
“I’m certain he’ll listen to you.” He grinned. “He doesn’t to almost anyone else.”
I laughed, which allowed him to smile. “He is stubborn.”
“Yes, he is. Don’t tell him I said that.”
I acted as if I was zipping my lips. “Your secret is safe with me.”
Nodding, he started to walk out of the room then stopped short. “If I may say something that might seem out of turn.”
“I’m really not that formidable, Michael. Say whatever you need.”
“He’s much happier since you came into his life. He’s done nothing but work for as long as I’ve known him.”
“He does adore Christian.”
“Yes, but he’s felt the burden of not knowing about being a father for years, and it’s almost crippled him. You need to understand that he has the capability of tracking down anyone. To know hisson was out there, forced to go through tragedy pushed him into near depression. Having you around is a reminder that there’s more to life than work.”
I nodded, uncertain of what to say at this point.
“I’ll check back with you when I return from the meeting.”
