Page 121 of Brassy Bigwig

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

DIMITRIOS

Iexit the limo at twelve twenty-five. As soon as I got here, I realized I should have sent Ivan to pick Chloe up. That would have been the gentlemanly thing to do, but I was so preoccupied with thoughts of last night, it didn’t even cross my mind. It’s just one more thing I’m looking forward to apologizing for as I feast on Chloe’s delicious body when I get her back to the penthouse after this.

As my eyes scan the street, my heart leaps at every cab that turns down it, thinking Chloe has finally arrived. But as the minutes tick by, I begin to get worried she isn’t going to show. Only barely an hour ago she told me she was looking forward to it. So that doesn’t make any sense.

At twelve forty, I pull up our conversation and type out a text to her.

Me: I’m sure you’re just running a few minutes late, but I wanted to check in on you to make sure everything is okay?

Several minutes go by with no response.

Me: I’m worried about you. I hope you’re not having second thoughts. Even if you are, please respond so I know you’re okay. It’s not like you to be late.

After that, I pull up Shelby’s number and shoot her a text, too. She’s likely to answer me and might be able to put my worries to rest.

Me: Hey, Chloe was supposed to meet me for lunch. Do you know if she’s left the apartment yet?

A couple minutes later and I feel my phone vibrate in my hand as a phone call comes through. I quickly answer it, thinking it’s Chloe.

“Chloe?”

“No, Mr. Andino. It’s Clint.”

“Oh, hi, Clint. Listen, this isn’t the best time—”

“I finally finished going through the footage from the building like you requested. Sorry it took so long. But I wanted to tell you there was no sign of anyone suspicious on the tapes. The only people I saw were owners and their guests.”

Fuck.

“Okay, thanks Clint. I’ll drop off some money to you at the desk next time I swing by.”

“I appreciate it, sir. Thank you.”

I end the call, and a terrifying feeling creeps up my spine as I continue looking up and down the street for any sign of Chloe. How the hell would Blake be able to get access to our security system without being on our network?

I unlock my phone again and give Travis a call.

“Travis.”

“You’re good with computers and back doors and all that, right?” I ask as I pace the sidewalk outside of Il Forno.

“Yes. I’m an elite hacker.”

“So tell me, how would Blake be able to get on to our network or view our security footage without gaining access to our Wi-Fi first?”

“He’d have to be some kind of high-level hacker in order to pull something like that off. I mean, either that or work for the security company who installed the system.

His words cause my feet to stop moving, like they’re stuck in cement as a horrible thought enters my mind.

Reed.

No. That can’t be right. Reed has been nothing but supportive and helpful this entire time. He offered to install the system outside of… regular business hours. He initiated the installation and said it would be good to get it set up as soon as possible. He’s been living with Shelby this whole time. He’s been to the penthouse and around Chloe for months. Surely, one of us would have noticed something was off about him, right?

Suddenly, I feel like I’m going to be sick.

“Forget about Blake Myers. I need you to look in to someone else.”

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