Because I got that, because I couldn’t not get that, I reached up and rubbed my eyes. I was pissed, wicked pissed, in fact, but her apology came as much of a surprise as the rest of her words.
"I understand, Star. I’m probably the only person who does, so maybe try to not piss me off?"
"I-I just didn’t think. I reacted."
"I know. But where I’m concerned, you don’t have to, do you? You just call me. You just say, my friend has a problem. Can you please help me? Christ, I’ll even help without the ‘please.’ Just try not to cost me five hundred thou every time you need something, huh?"
"That’s how much he’ll fine you?" She sucked in a surprised breath. "Fuck, your dad’s a real piece of work, isn’t he?"
"You’re only just figuring that out?" I questioned dryly.
"Well, no, but I didn’t think he’d fine you for a fuck up."
"He does. It’s a deterrent, and it usually works."
"Did he fine you the first time I hacked your system?"
I hummed. "He did." A ping sounded on my phone, and I frowned, pulling away to stare at the notification before gruffly telling her, "You didn’t have to do that."
"No, but it’s not fair for you to take the hit when it was my fuck up."
I grunted as I stared at the five-hundred large that were sitting pretty in my bank account, which was proof that she not only knew my account number, but that she’d known it for a while.
What was her game and why did it give me a boner?
Why did everything about this crazy fucking piece of work get me hard?
Heaving a sigh, I muttered, "It’s not your fuck up if there was a way into my code, no?"
"No."
"Maybe instead of taking down my system, you can help shore it up?"
"It’s one of the best systems I’ve come across," she offered.
"You don’t need to boost my ego."
She snorted. "I’m not. Look, I said sorry and I paid you back for the fine that’ll hit your pocket. I have no need to smother your ego in kisses."
I’d let her smother other parts of me in kisses though, that was for goddamn sure.
"It can’t be that good if you keep on breaking through it."
"There’s probably only a handful of people that could." I heard the shrug in her voice. "Truth be told, I only found my way in because I was working under pressure. I wouldn’t have spotted the weakness otherwise. You know how it is when adrenaline is riding you hard."
I’d like to ride her hard.
"Nothing should be weak. I need it to be working perfectly. My brothers’ lives depend on it, Star." And they were all that mattered. More than my parents, more than the men, my brothers were the ones I had to protect.
"We’ll fix it," Star promised after a few seconds. "Together."
Warmth filled me. And it had no business sinking into that nice, ice-cold pit inside me either. But like most things where Star Sullivan was concerned, she didn’t ask. She just did. "Thank you," I rasped, appreciating the offer, as well as knowing that I’d take any help she had to give if it meant perfecting my system.
"You’re welcome." She hesitated. "I really am sorry, Conor. But thank you for helping Savannah."
"I think she’ll need the help," I pointed out softly. "I don’t think this will be the only time they target her."
She grunted. "I should have planned ahead for that."
"You should have told me. I’d have put guards on her."
"She’s stupid," Star muttered. "She’s one of those people who tries to avoid her guards because they cut into her privacy."
My lips curved. "Not sure that’s stupid, or just a desire for autonomy. It’s not like she’s had much of that over the course of her life."
Star snorted. "You do know I was raised amid the same hype, don’t you?"
"Yeah, but everyone handles that stuff differently. You decided to become a CIA agent," I said dryly. "You’re probably more deadly than most assassins that people could send your way. Savannah decided that the truth would be her shield."
"Well, from where I’m standing, it ain’t that much of a shield," she said with a sniff.
I smiled, because how was I supposed to argue with her after the night’s events?
"She’s safe now. She’s under our guardianship."
"Sure she’ll love that." Star laughed. "Guardianship? Be sure to use that specific word and that’ll get her running."
"I don’t know, she’s pretty shaken up," I said softly. "She fell down the stairs, and has a lot of bruises. Nothing that some make-up shouldn’t be able to cover, but they still look nasty."
"Christ, I should check in with her."
"No. Aidan’s taken her to a bedroom. She’s going to get some rest first. I’ll have a doctor come by in the morning if need be."
"Do your brothers know you’re this efficient?"
A smile curved my lips. "Now, where would the fun be in that?"
She cackled. "One way to keep them on their toes."
"Also one way for them to not give me more shit to do on top of the crap I’m already drowning in." I smirked. "Okay, you get going. We both need to rest."
"You think I’m going to sleep? Thirty-six hours into running down this code, Conor. I’m about four away from hitting the jackpot."
Intrigued, I propped my feet up on my cat’s head, sank back into my desk chair and demanded, "Tell me more."
Thirteen
Aidan
By the time I’d showered and changed, the pain hadn’t abated all that much, but I knew this was my new normal. I was going to have to accept it and find a way to move past it.
Easier said than done, but the warmth from the shower made it a little easier on me.
As I’d cleaned up, I’d thought about how Savannah and I had first met, about the secrets only she and I knew regarding the family, and I had to admit that it felt like fate that we were crossing paths again when I’d gone out of my way to avoid her.
How crazy was it that of all the people Lodestar, Conor’s hacker friend, knew, it was her.
I mean, if I’d known Lodestar was Star Sullivan, Gerard Sullivan’s daughter, I’d have figured it out faster. But that was news to me. Not Conor though. He truly was a sneaky pain in the ass. As much as I knew his mind was a tangled Gordian knot, not unlike the code he lived in, I also knew that there was way more going on with him than my brothers realized.
Feeling like a fool, as I stepped by the bedroom I’d put Savannah in, I carefully opened the door.
It was a breach of privacy, but the urge to make sure she was okay was too strong to ignore.
The lights were off, but she’d kept the curtains open. Beyond her French doors, there was a soft, muted glow from an outdoor lamp that lit up the patio, and it enabled me to see the small hump she made in bed.
This was as close as I’d ever gotten her horizontal on a mattress and for the first time in what felt like forever, my dick actually twitched. Through the detoxing process, my sex drive had gone into hibernation. I’d been more focused on actually getting through the day and surviving than getting off.