Page 32 of Cocky Tech God

Her eyes narrowed. “Okay…”

“I want to be the only one. No one else.” I couldn’t believe the words that came out of my mouth. It was my rule—the last rule I thought I’d ever have.

Our eyes met. The air grew stiff around us. This was a turn of events clearly neither of us expected. But there we were, simmering in the rules we’d just set. The rules that included short-term exclusivity. The rules that bound each other to the other.

“No one else,” Lucia finally said, her voice hoarse.

The deal had been struck.

Now the devil wanted his due.

Lucia

I didn’t see Hansen again until the four o’clock panel featuring him and other industry CEOs.

I walked through the conference room, feeling excited about my prospects. My main goal, outside of making as many connections as possible, was to focus on my software demo and presentation for Morgan Financial Holdings. And to get Graham alone without Hansen’s interference—or anyone else. But especially him. I would feel as if I didn’t do all I could if I didn’t discuss with Graham how my software would help his wealth management company in a more in-depth level that wasn’t limited to a ten-minute presentation. And I also wanted to get to know Graham on a more personal level. If he didn’t choose my software, then he might refer me to someone else, or consider me in the future again. The possibilities were there regardless if I won the contract or not.

Mindless, I walked down the aisle only to be jerked out of my thoughts by a swift hand just as I made it halfway to the front. Brett stood from his seat. He smiled at me under the fluorescent lighting with gleaming blue eyes. I was happy to see him, but I became acutely aware that something had changed within him since yesterday. His eyes were softer…like he was admiring me. Like he wanted our business relationship to be more. I suppose that was natural after having spent a whole night with him at my side, talking about software development and imbibing until late into the night. We’d fallen asleep talking while in the sponsor suite. We weren’t alone. There had been other developers who’d crashed in the sponsor suite as well. The suite was a playland of video games, software demos, and tech movies playing on a loop.

I’d screwed up. I should have gone to my room. But I hadn’t been ready to face Hansen at the time because facing him meant that I’d agree to his week-long arrangement. Obviously, I did that and more, so all I ended up doing was wasting a night of mind-blowing sex. What an idiot I was. And I obviously gave Brett the wrong idea based on the expression on his face right now.

“Hey, Luce,” he said and touched the empty seat next to him. “I saved my favorite developer a seat.”

“You’re too nice to me, Brett.” I had no choice but to slip in between the narrow space and sit down.

“Aww. It’s easy to be nice to you.” He laughed.

I didn’t. Instead, I glanced around the room. It was packed with attendees waiting to hear the CEOs speak on cybersecurity.

“Are you hurting from last night?” Brett leaned in to whisper in my ear.

I backed up abruptly, a laugh on my lips. “I should be hurting a lot more, but I’m okay. You?”

Brett straightened to put space between us. His face didn’t hide his rejected emotion very well. He lifted his chin. “Yeah. Same here.”

My gaze moved up to the panel. There, like a laser beam, Hansen stared straight at me, his eyebrow lifted, his lips lightly smirking. I pursed my lips, trying hard to tamp down the smile that wanted to curl up. And damn, the man was hot as hell sitting up there looking like a monarch. The panelists on either side of him vied for his attention, but he didn’t seem interested at all. He just stared at me, communicating what I understood without words.

Mine. That’s what his eyes and that sexy as hell smirk conveyed.

Butterflies flooded my stomach fast and vicious. Chaotic. I wanted to vomit. That dick in Prada loafers was mine for the week, and I couldn’t wait to indulge again.

Dimming lights marked the start of the discussion. A projector lit up the screen at the front of the room. I listened intently as the panelists discussed different breaches in cybersecurity and the impact those breaches had on their respective businesses—loss of revenue, loss of talent, loss of clients and their potential referrals. Well into the discussion, my text notification buzzed my phone in my messenger bag. I hadn’t realized how loud the vibration was until it practically shook my whole chair, garnering annoyed glances from those around me.

I quickly and as quietly as I could retrieved my phone and swiped on the glossy black screen. A message box was front and center.

Hansen: Looking chummy with the thunder from down under. Does he have any idea how many ways I defiled you just hours ago?

I sucked in all the air I could. God, this one naughty message had me absolutely throbbing with excitement. But it was a dumb move on his part. Couldn’t he see how easily someone—Brett—might see his message?

My eyes lifted, but I caught Brett’s inquisitive gaze next to me instead of Hansen’s from afar. I smiled and discreetly turned over my cell phone so that the screen faced the top of my thigh. When the moment of danger passed, and I was comfortable that no one, specifically Brett, cared about my cell phone, I turned over the phone and quickly typed.

Me: You should be thinking about bending me over the balcony rail right now instead of being jealous. You have all access to my body for the next five days. NO ONE ELSE DOES.

I looked up and immediately met Hansen’s gaze across the room. He’d already read my message. His teeth sank into his bottom lip. Even from the distance I could see he was affected. More than that, the guy was most definitely turned on.

The moderator called on Hansen to answer a question, and he casually turned away to respond as if I hadn’t just sexted him. He was smooth and had seduction down to a science to boot. After he responded, confident and knowledgeable as he was, he turned his full attention back to his phone and not to the round of applause. His fingers moved over the phone in lightning speed.

And then my phone vibrated against my thigh again.