Page 21 of Cocky Tech God
I shrugged. “This is the place to have those hard conversations.”
“Indeed.”
A group of attendees moved past us, and Brett moved out of their way. They must have also been headed to the reception.
I dropped my gaze to my aching feet.
“Are you going to the cocktail reception?” he asked.
I met his eyes and shrugged. “I’m headed there now.”
He grinned. “May I join you? I’m here solo.”
I nodded. “That makes two of us.”
He grinned again. Or maybe he hadn’t stopped grinning.
The walk down the long-carpeted corridor was pleasant. The topic of conversation was cybersecurity software development, which I welcomed. I’d not thought of Hansen once during that conversation, but when we found the line to get inside, there he was, surrounded by several men in suits…and Calista Everette.
Calista. I gazed at her. She really was a bombshell. Tall with a blond, sharply cut bob. And she probably was Hansen’s new-old bedmate. Good for her. I looked away.
The woman at the reception check-in table shoved three tickets in my hand, jolting me to attention. I’d been too lost in my thoughts to realize the line moved quickly.
“Pardon me,” I said, fumbling with the three attached red tickets. “Thank you.”
“Don’t lose them, these are the only ones you get,” she said, annoyed. Then she thrust a new row of tickets to Brett, repeating to him what she’d said to me.
I glanced at Brett, amusement turning his lips up in a smile. I grinned too. I needed to lighten my mood and remember this was an important networking opportunity.
Once inside the packed ballroom, we made a beeline for the bar. The alcohol on offer was underwhelming. Only beer or wine. Something stronger would have been better, but I opted for the only sparkling wine available. At least there was that. Brett got a Caybrew, the beer of Grand Cayman.
“I can’t believe we found a seat.” My flats slipped off my heels under the table, giving me a respite from the ache in my arches.
“A lot of people here this year.” Brett scanned the room and turned to me and held up his foaming pilsner. “Cheers, then.”
“Cheers.” I took a sip and scanned the room myself. People were packed like sardines, and the energy in the room was moving fast. Hundreds of companies were represented in various industry. All looking for tech tools and support.
“I researched your software after the panel this morning.” Brett pushed around the small square cocktail napkin with his fingertips against the table.
“Did you?” Making waves was the only way to rise from obscurity, that much I knew.
“I think your software is brilliant. Totally cutting edge in software development. I hope this isn’t inappropriate, but I would love to take a look at your codebase.”
Hansen had asked the same question back when I’d first met him, and I’d tell Brett the same thing I told Hansen. “Sorry, only my employees and clients are privy to that information. Are you a software engineer?”
“Yes, I’m a trained software developer, with JavaScript, Python, C, C++, and other languages experience. I’m in software technical sales and support right now, though, not research and development. But I’m a programmer at heart, and want to get back to R and D.” He put his elbows on the table, touching my arm in the process. “I actually came here to meet Hansen Holte of Holte Cyber Solutions.”
I scrunched up my nose. “Hansen Holte? Really?”
“Yeah. Do you know him?”
Did I know him? The question was so simple, yet my answer was complicated now that Hansen and I were roommates. And had done…stuff that shouldn’t have perplexed me but did.
“I do know him. We’re a part of the same organization in New York, and I see him quite often.”
Brett nodded. “Right on.” He wiped at a thin foamy mustache left by his beer and continued. “I heard him speak at last year’s World Tech Conference in Sydney, which is where I’m from. I was just so impressed with the bloke; I basically want to ask him for a job.”
I didn’t blame him. Had I not had my own company, I would’ve wanted to work for Hansen too. The fact remained, Hansen was the man to work for in the cybersecurity software and cloud storage industry.