Page 15 of The Geek and the Sheikh

I know. Thank you.

We have a lot to talk about when I get there.

K. CU soon.

Jameel sat back in the plush leather seat and stared out the window. It would be nearly seven-thirty in the evening by the time he landed. He placed his partially eaten meal to the side. His appetite was gone. In its place was a desire for revenge.

He read over the information Bugs had sent him. Someone was trying to track her, which meant she was in danger. The idea of anyone, especially someone like Andrius Bronislav, getting their hands on Bugs made him feel sick to his stomach.

I won’t let that happen.

He lifted his cellphone and stared at the screen, reading Bugs’ message again.

Been playing Dragon Wars with RC. She works for MI6. Got me some jobs over the last few months. Tonight, we were on DW and I received an alert that someone had slipped a trojan into the program. I need you to check this file on RC, see if it's legit. I’m beginning to have my doubts. Nothing solid, just a gut feel. Mid says I should always listen when I sense danger. I’m scared. I think I may have blown it.

He thumbed the edge of his phone. There was no room for pride when it came to keeping Bugs safe. He was great with computers, but when it came to security and how to protect someone, there was one person he knew who could do it in their sleep—his brother, Tarek.

He tapped the favorites on his phone and then Tarek's number. He sat back and stared out the window, waiting as the call connected. Tarek answered on the third ring.

"This is Tarek."

"Hey, bro. I need your help," Jameel quietly requested.

"I'm listening," Tarek replied tersely.

* * *

Junebug shoved her scant belongings into her backpack and looked around the hotel room. She nervously paced a tight path from the window to the door and back. Dread and despair were waging a major battle inside her as she tried to decide if she should stay or leave. Was she overreacting? Maybe it was a coincidence. Maybe someone other than RC had been trying to track her.

But I recognized her coding. I’m sure it was hers!

Ok, so maybe it was RC, but she didn't mean anything by it. Hackers were curious. It was an occupational hazard. Junebug stopped next to the bed and sat down on the edge before rising again with nervous energy. What was her gut telling her?

Run.

This didn't feel like when Jam-man had tried to track her. This felt... sinister.

“I trusted her! How could I be so dumb?”

Her quivering words echoed back at her. She shook her head. She had fallen for the oldest, lamest trick in the book—blinded by love, blinded by 'friendship'.

“You saw want you wanted to see, Junebug,” she scolded herself.

“Well, now you can find out who RC really is!" she argued.

"And if she really does work for MI6, she may be waiting for them to capture me and use me and… and…" She stopped and gripped one of the phones she had with her. "Maybe I should call Midnight and ask her what to do. She would know… or Idella."

She shook her head. No, she wouldn't do either. Midnight finally had a chance to have a life without her. Besides, Midnight was probably somewhere over the Atlantic at the moment. Her sister couldn't help her. And Idella wasn't a good idea either.

Idella was an internationally famous superstar singer who was also an international assassin. Bugs had known the identity of Idella's counter-persona as long as she had known the woman. She was Idella's secret contact, helping Idella on her top-secret deadly assignments. The problem was, Idella didn't know whoBugsreally was. Idella only remembered her as the annoying, hyper-active kid who drove Harlem crazy.

Junebug fisted her hands. She could do this. She just needed to stay safe until Jameel got here. She quickly estimated how long it would take him to finish his flight and drive through traffic.

She looked at the clock, did the mental calculation, and groaned. "You can stay safe until he arrives. This is a busy hotel. They have all kinds of security. Use your skills, Junie. Tap into the security system and monitor who is coming and going. Do a facial recognition on each person. Change rooms. Yes, change rooms. Do that first," she mumbled, sliding into the chair at the small desk and accessing the hotel reservations server.

Minutes later, she had secured the same room but on the floor above this one. She hastily packed her laptop and exited the room. She kept her head down as she strode toward the elevator. The doors slid open as she pressed the button. She waited as three people exited the elevator before she stepped inside and pressed the Close Door control.

Uncertainty filled her when she saw Jameel’s friend stop in front of the door she had just left. Didn’t Jameel say Wells wouldn’t arrive for thirty minutes? Well, twenty minutes now.

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