Page 81 of The Honeymoon Hack
And I’d found what we needed. Instead of confessing, I gestured to the screen. “I’ve found details. Multiple shell companies, operational records going back decades. And an email about Dad.”
I added the contents of the folder to my upload, but the progress bar inched forward agonizingly slowly. The files were large, and I’d selected a lot of them.
“We have to get you out of here.” Will moved closer, dropping his voice. “If you’re still logged in when the cameras come back on, someone in security might notice.”
“I just need a few more minutes.” I navigated deeper into the directory structure. The upload progress bar at the bottom of the screen had practically stalled. “There’s so much here—art smuggling records, other victims, current operatives. I can find more information about Dad?—”
“Brie.” Will checked his watch. “The cameras can only be out for eight more minutes.”
“I’m close. So close. I can’t stop now.”
“How much time do you need?”
What I really needed was to grab the server and take it home. “Fifteen more minutes to make sure I’ve got the right folders. Then the upload will take a while after that. It’s so fucking slow.”
“When you close the KVM, will it disconnect you?”
“I don’t know. It might disrupt the transfer.”
“We can’t leave the drawer open.”
Will was right, but if I could get everything we needed today, we’d be done. Able to go home. I stumbled into another folder with references to my father’s case and an “eliminated asset” named Collins.
Collins. Another name from my mother’s list.
“I know I can do this,” I muttered, opening another subdirectory.
Will’s hands covered mine, pulling them away from the keyboard. He pivoted me until I faced him directly, his face inches from mine. This close, I could see the exhaustion in his eyes, but also the absolute confidence in my abilities.
“You know how to get into the server,” he said, his voice low but firm. “You know where the data is. This needs to be done in steps, not all at once. You need to log out, and we’ll make a plan for uploading in stages.”
The intensity in his brown eyes cut through my tunnel vision. He read me the way he always did. And Will was right. If security saw me accessing a server I shouldn’t be able to open, they’d revoke my access. I didn’t have enough intel yet, so I couldn’t risk it.
It felt like tearing out my own heart, but I scrubbed the log file, removing my digital footprint. Then, I logged out of the system entirely. The terminal returned to its login prompt. I slid the KVM drawer back into the rack. The soft click screamed at me, telling me I’d failed.
“We’ll figure something out tonight,” Will said. “We’ll find a way to get you more time.”
I nodded. “And I’ll design an automated search routine that will help me scan files faster.”
“Good.” He braced my shoulders and smiled at me. “Now I need to hurry back to the maintenance panel and turn those cameras back on before my window’s gone.”
And I’d need an excuse to tell Claire why I’d returned without the sweater I was supposed to retrieve. I’d have to say I got lost, maybe stopped to use the bathroom. Something believable that wouldn’t make her suspicious of why a simple task had taken so long.
Unless she’d already checked with security and knew I hadn’t left the server room?
The sound of wheels on the floor reached us. Without hesitation, Will pushed me against the server rack door, his body and mouth crashing against me.
His kiss was urgent, his hand cupping the back of my head while his other gripped my waist.
Heat exploded through me, my body responding instantly.
Yes!I’d wanted this again since our kiss on the beach.But it’s just cover, Brie. Same as the last time.
My hands ignored my brain, grabbing his neck and pulling him closer. I hooked his leg with my own, knowing the routine this time, knowing how to sell the illusion of newlyweds who couldn’t keep their hands off each other.
But, oh god, the way his tongue swept against mine. How his hand found my back, pulling me against him.
“What are you doing over here?” came a voice that was too close. Ronnie.
