Page 23 of Protecting You

Passed over in favor of Callan.

She doubted he knew that they’d been up for the same job. The only reason she knew was that she’d seen him going into the interview after she left. And then heard through the alumni grapevine that he’d been hired.

Whatever he was up to, she wouldn’t risk her career to help him. Sanders wasn’t her only client, but he was her best-paying one. If she was going to lose him, then she needed to work harder to promote her business. Which meant she didn’t have time for whatever it was Callan was up to.

She needed to get back to business ASAP.

She’d accepted Sanders’s job, and it seemed innocent enough to her. She’d find the name of this Russian guy, pass it along, and then be done with the man for good.

She finished her slice—she’d barely tasted it—and pushed back from the table to check on the download. The rest of her files had transferred onto her thumb drive, so she deleted them from the cloud, then deleted her account altogether.

Whoever had stolen her desktop wouldn’t be able to access any sensitive information now.

With that done, she closed her laptop and faced Callan. “I’m going to bed.”

“Okay.” He wiped his hands on a napkin. “We’ll talk in the morning and make a plan.”

She snatched her water bottle to take with her into the bedroom. She’d be awake for a few more hours, but she didn’t need to spend another minute with him. “I have a plan.”

He pushed his plate aside. “Can you share it? Or is that top secret too?”

She ignored his sarcasm. “I’m going to get the name of the Russian and pass it along. Then, I’ll be done, and you can go on with whatever it is you think you need to do.”

“First, you can’t pass along anything until we talk about it. Second, it’s not going to be so easy to sever your ties with him.”

“Sure it is. I’m not required to work for Charles. He can’t force me to. I’ll just make up some excuse and?—”

“His name is not Charles.” Callan seemed to be working hard to keep his frustration in check. “And I guarantee it’s not going to work.”

His arrogance had her heart rate spiking. “Youguaranteeit? There’s zero chance you might be the tiniest bit wrong about anything.”

He smiled. “You’re finally figuring that out.”

“We’ll see.” She swiveled and headed to her bedroom.

“Hey, Alyssa?”

She turned at the door. “What?”

“I’m sorry you’re caught up in this.” He wasn’t smiling now. “You need to remember two things. One.” He lifted his pointer finger. “I didn’t get you involved. You were already working with the guy when I showed up.”

True. And if Sanders was Ghazi, and Ghazi was who Callan thought he was, then the man was dangerous.

“And two”—his next finger popped in the air—“I have nothing to gain by lying to you. I stepped in because you’re an old friend, and I don’t want you to get hurt. I am not your enemy.”

Her irritation dissolved.

It was true that Callan was arrogant. But also, he was probably right.

She nodded.

“Please, don’t reach out to him until we talk, okay?”

“Okay.”

“I need to go to my apartment and pick up some things. Don’t go anywhere while I’m gone.”

The thought of Callan leaving heightened her anxiety, but she wasn’t about to admit that.

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