Page 11 of The Tech Guru's Heart

“You gonna hack it and track me?”Ezra teased.

It took a few heartbeats for Link to reply, “Maybe.”

Ezra lifted his brows, surprise filling him.“Really?”

Link sighed.“I won’t if you tell me not to,” he told him, sounding a bit resigned.“But it’s sort of what I do.”

For some reason, Ezra didn’t find the idea of Link tracking him all that horrible.It was kind of flattering, actually.The big man wanted to expend time, energy, and expertise into keeping track of him, and he was upfront about it.

Not like he’s keeping secrets.

Chuckling, Ezra admitted, “You know, I don’t care if you do that or not.”Then he rattled off his satellite phone number.

“Thank you,” Link replied, sounding sincere.“You don’t know what that means to me.”

Ezra shrugged.“So, well, I can call you when I get back to civilization in a couple of weeks,” he offered.

“Okay,” Link agreed.“Be careful out there.”

“I always am.”Ezra smiled, his gut fluttering in the face of Link’s concern.“Oh, how’s your nephew’s birthday party?”

“Real good,” Link told him.“Rylie appreciated the game I gave him.We’re going to play together sometime.”

“Is it an online one?”Ezra hadn’t bothered playing more thanAngry Birdson his phone in years.“Or something on a gaming system?”

Ezra knew there were many different platforms available these days.Although, he could probably only name a couple of them.He knew that when people heard he was an accountant, they expected him to be a gamer, but after working on a computer for many hours a day for his job, staring at any kind of electronic device was the last thing he wanted to do to relax.Ezra even preferred his books to be the paper kind.

Wow.We really are opposites.

“It’s on a gaming system.PlayStation 5.You familiar with it?”

Chuckling, Ezra shook his head, not caring that Link couldn’t see him.“No.Not at all.”At least, he’d heard of that one.

“Well, my nephew and I share the interest, so it’s nice to nurture that connection,” Link told him, his voice growing quiet.After a second, he cleared his throat and stated, “I guess I should let you focus on driving.I’ll talk to you soon, Ezra.”

“Okay, Link,” Ezra replied.“And thanks for calling.”

“I always do what I say I’m gonna do,” Link claimed.“Bye, baby.”

Before Ezra could comment on Link’s statement or his use of a term of endearment, the line went dead.“Just something else to think about,” he muttered with a shake of his head.

Doing as Link had suggested, Ezra focused on the road.

*

AFTER DRIVING FOR SEVERALmore hours, Ezra pulled into the bed and breakfast where he’d reserved a room.He yawned, more than ready for a soak in the jetted tub the room was supposed to contain.Then Ezra would hit the sack, enjoy his last homemade breakfast—the place’s website boasted amazing reviews for their food—and get an early start.

Ezra parked, shut off hisRange Rover, and climbed from the vehicle.Clasping his hands together, he stretched his arms over his head.He twisted one way, then the other, before bending forward at the waist.

After blowing out a deep breath, Ezra reached into his back seat and grabbed his overnight bag.He locked hisRoverand headed to the front door.Squinting against the porch light, he stopped on the stoop and rang the doorbell.

The front door was locked after dark, but he had a reservation and knew they expected him.A few seconds later, he heard the sound of clicking.The door opened to reveal a slightly plump middle-aged woman.

“Hi, Misses Weathers?”Ezra held out his hand.“I’m Ezra Pendle.”

“Of course.Come in, Mister Pendle.”Misses Weathers opened the door wide and beckoned him inside.“How was your drive up?”

“Please, call me Ezra, and the drive went smoothly,” he responded, entering a nicely appointed entrance area complete with a check-in desk.With a wry smile, he told her, “Mister Pendle was my father.”

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