Page 22 of Hack
"No worries." That fact didn't shock Archer at all. He'd expected Carter to be touchy about letting anyone touch his computer. "I'll just keep doing what I'm doing until you say you need my help."
Carter glanced up and met Archer's gaze. "It's not just you, okay? I'm that way at work too. I hate handing stuff to others to handle, even when I know I need to. It's like if something goes wrong, I want it on me. I want full control of everything. Not the best way to work, but you can't teach an old dog new tricks."
"No offense taken. I get it, I really do." Again, he was curious what Carter did at work, but still didn't feel it was his place to ask. "Just so you know, you can ask for help when you need it. If you'll get those trackers for me, I can leave to put them on and give you a few days to go through things on your own. I don't want to be underfoot or have you thinking you need to worry about me."
"I don't. I know you want this asshole caught as much as I do. I'm not worried about you being offended. We both know what needs to get done." Carter stretched his legs out in front of him. "I have to go into work tomorrow for a few hours. I'll call about the trackers then, but it could take a day or two to get them. I also know I have to go into work on Tuesday night. It will be a late one, so you'll be on your own."
"No problem. There is more than enough to keep me busy." Archer meant it. He was used to being on his own and honestly preferred it.
The hostess called Carter's name and they both stood. As he followed her back to a booth, he glanced at the plates on the tables they passed, getting an idea what the food was like. He was hungry.
Once they were seated and the hostess left, Carter glanced across the table at him. "We've worked on the case all day. No more. Let's talk about anything but that."
Archer opened his menu. "Fair enough. I'm not sure I'm good at the get-to-know-ya small talk, but we can give it a go."
"Don't have an active POF account?" Carter grinned.
"So inactive that I almost want to cringe for knowing what POF is." Archer laughed.
"Yeah, me too. If it wasn't for the work I do and the younger guys I work with, I wouldn't know either." Carter smiled as he looked at his menu.
Unsure why he cared, Archer was glad that Carter didn't have some girlfriend on the side. It meant his focus was on the case and they wouldn't have some girl calling and demanding time when all Archer wanted was to move forward in following leads.
"So there's no woman waiting back home for you?" Carter asked.
Archer raised a brow. "You dug into my background. You should know the answer to that."
"Just because I didn't find anything doesn't mean it's not there. It just means it's either new or you're good at hiding things."
"I am good at hiding things, but not women, or men either for that matter. I travel too much to get caught up in any social entanglements. I'm not the soft and cuddly kinda guy. Most wouldn't want what I have to offer."
Carter's eyes filled with a questioning look, but he didn't ask, so Archer didn't expand on what he'd said.
"Anyway, my background is as boring as it probably reads. No family, no ties to anywhere or anyone. I have the home in Virginia, but don't go back often. When I feel the need to take some time off, I'll head home, but I get restless fast. I'm never there for long." He set his menu aside after deciding on the sirloin.
"I'm the same way. I spent more time in the house today than I have in years. I sleep at work a lot of the time, and if I do go home, it's for a few hours' sleep, check the mail, pay the bills, and get back to work." Carter shrugged. "Nothing for me at home. Sometimes I wonder why I keep the place."
"I've wondered the same about mine, but I figure everyone needs a place of their own. Even if they don't spend a lot of time there, we all need four walls that we can call our own and escape into."
The waiter came and they both placed their orders. Once they were alone again, Archer decided to ask the question that was on his mind. "So, you spend so much time at work, what do you do?"
Carter reached for his glass of water and took a long drink before setting it down. He stared at the table for several seconds before glancing up again. "It's not something I can talk about. It's not that I don't want to, it's that I can't. Too many others would be affected by me opening my mouth. You know where my talents lie, so you can probably guess what I do in a general way."
Archer was a little let down that Carter wouldn't talk, but he understood. If rumors were right, and he was one of the best hackers in the country, then whatever he had his hands in probably wasn't legal. If he worked with others, it would put them at risk. He ran a finger over his own water glass, rubbing it through the condensation that was on the outside of the glass. "Nothing I need to worry about by staying with you or being associated with you?"
"No, nothing. My home is my safe house in a way, and anything I'm involved with wouldn't affect you at all. I won't be working on anything around you other than the case. Two separate lives in a way. I respect you having to ask the question, but I promise, you have nothing to worry about."
Archer nodded. "Thank you for that."
Carter gave a single nod. "I don't know how long we'll be working together, but I am more than able to juggle the two jobs and keep them separate. I will be working late hours at my other job, but hope that I can spend most days with you, focusing on this case and finding a way to bring Lyle to justice."
Not wanting to drag the conversation back onto the case, Archer nodded. "Then I won't ask again." He glanced out the window, watching a group of teens rollerblade down the sidewalk. "So, tell me about the area. This is my second time coming to California. The first was when I contacted you last week. Do you miss living back east?"
Carter shook his head immediately. "Not a bit. I hated the snow, hated the crowds. I mean we have a shitload of people here too, but it's different. Everything is different. I don't know how to explain it, but you'll notice it after being here a few days. Everything is more casual, more at ease. I like watching the sun set into the ocean instead of rising out of it."
"There must be some metaphor there." Archer grinned. "I'm hoping to get out and see the area a bit while I'm here, but the case comes first. I seldom sightsee when I'm working, but since I doubt I'll get back this way anytime soon once we finish up, I figure I might as well see what there is to see."
"If we find the time, I'll take you out and show you around. I've been here so long now that getting out and seeing it all again might be a good thing for me." Carter stared out the window, a distant look in his eyes.
As Archer watched him, he guessed that Carter's life was much like his. All work and no play. They both focused on the job, and once it was complete, moved on to another. He liked that they seemed to have that in common, seemed to understand each other. It would make working together easier. They both had the same goals in mind and the same end game.
As the food was set on the table, he decided he wouldn't ask any more questions. Carter would let him know what he wanted him to know, and would ask him whatever he wanted to ask. Things with them would work best without digging into each other's lives. They had a murderer to catch, and that was all that mattered.
