“I do,” I tell her, shrugging my shoulders as if it doesn’t matter, even though I know it really does. “But I would much rather continue speaking to you.”
She slides in closer to me and we continue our whispered conversation as the rest of the party goes on around us. I hear snippets of what the CIA boss is announcing, but not enough to glean exactly what is going on. I know that this might be vital stuff that I should know, but I’m so sucked in by Michaela that I can’t even think straight. She’s intoxicating, addictive, and I need to know more about her.
“We’re utterly grateful to...”
“They will achieve...”
“Additional assignment...”
I’m sure that my staff are listening, and that someone will be able to fill me in later on anyway.
“Are you going to be talking?” Michaela gushes excitedly at me. “You’re an important guy, right?”
Normally I would feel proud to admit to exactly who I am, but with this girl I feel like I want to play it down a little bit, to put us on even footing. I don't know why but I feel like she will be more impressed by me being more like her.
“Well, I am Sean Knight,” I admit a little coyly. “And the CIA has hired Knight Digital, so unfortunately that does mean that I need to speak.” I try to play this down, but I quickly feel like I’m coming off braggy anyway.
“I thought you might be,” she admits, looking up into my eyes under her eyelashes, and for a heart-stopping moment I feel like all of this might have been a game, and that she has been hunting me out from the start. But then she opens her mouth again and completely blows that theory out of the window. “They’ve been calling you up to speak for the last few moments.”
“Oh, shit,” I laugh, glancing around like a crazy person. “I better go. Come and find me afterwards, okay? We can do something a little more fun!”
With that I step out onto the stage and I begin speaking. I don't even need to think about what I’m saying because I have this so rehearsed, so I can allow my mind to wander. My mouth is talking about all the future plans, but my brain is thinking about Michaela and what I would love to do to her. She drives me wild in a way that I haven’t felt in a while, and my body is absolutely desperate for me to explore that further.
“Thank you, everyone,” I grin as the words I have spoken a million times fall from my lips. Luckily the crowd goes wild with applause, showing that I least got everything out right, even if I wasn't paying full attention. The only person I notice who isn’t clapping is Zach, which doesn’t surprise me at all. Unfortunately, he is just as petty as me about our relationship. What does shock me is that he seems to making an instant beeline for me as I come off the stage.
“What do you want?” I ask coldly as we come face to face. I fold my arms across my chest in a pissed off manner, hoping that he will get the hint and leave me alone. But of course he doesn’t.
“Nice speech,” he says smugly. “I’m surprised that you didn’t mention the additional assignment though.”
My heart races with fear as I realize I heard those words from the CIA boss and that I wasn't paying attention. From the smug look on Zach’s face I can see that this was something very important.
“My speech got a massive applause,” I bluff unconvincingly. “What I did and didn’t say isn’t important.”
He walks away from me, shaking his head in laughter, which causes my panic levels to increase tenfold. There’s something in this, something that I need to know which means I’m going to have to swallow my pride and just ask someone.
“Hey,” I grab the kid who spoke to me earlier on, much to his wide-eyed shock. “I need to ask you something.” With that I drag him into the hallway and I ask him the full details about the additional assignment, telling him that I missed a part of it by going to the bathroom. He might know that I’m lying, but because all of my staff members respect me, he tells me quickly anyway. He lets me know that the CIA has tasked both me and Zach to come up with a recognition algorithm that uses surveillance footage to find people, and that whoever comes up with the algorithm first gets an additional contract.
I need this, I need it so damn badly, I have to get this over my enemy, which means I need to start right away.
“Thank you,” I gasp, walking outside and leaving the kid behind. Then I tug my phone out of my pocket and put in a call to my most trusted staff member, Gavin. He’s the cleverest guy I know, and if anyone can get this algorithm done quickly, it’s him...
2
Michaela
As soon as Zach has finished talking to Sean, leaving him behind looking very pissed off and confused, he makes a beeline for me. I glance behind him, not wanting to be seen with my employer, but luckily he’s already dragged some other guy out into the hallway.
“Things going well?” Zach hisses at me.
“Yes,” I nod firmly, keeping my expression serious. “I have made contact, and he seems to be falling for my charms.”
“Good,” Zach rubs my arm, sending a shiver running through my spine. There’s something about this guy that really gives me the creeps, but there isn’t anything that I can do about that. Unfortunately, he’s paying me, so I really need to keep him on my side.
I didn’t ever intend to become one of the best con artists in the city, and I certainly didn’t ever want to go down the line of effectively being a honey trap, but that’s where my life has taken me. It seems like the only skills I have are in lying and cheating people, and I have to make a living somehow. I might not like it, but it’s really all that I have.
“So, do you have any plans yet? Has it got that far?” Zach pushes me that one step further, and I nod quickly, wanting to get the hell away from him sooner rather than later.
“He’s taking me to drinks after this.”
“Good – go and get him now, get him away from here before he can get the advantage over me, and do... whatever the hell it is that you do best.”
I screw my nose up in disgust as a dirty smile plays on his lips. I don't know how far he thinks that this is going to go, but I never sleep with anyone that I’m paid to work with. However desperate I am for information I will never go that far. I enjoy sex, and the intense bond that it builds between people, and I will never taint that by sleeping with people that I don't like.
Not that I don't like Sean – he’s seriously the hottest guy I’ve ever had to deal with. He’s sexy, muscular, with a strong face and deep green eyes that are to die for. To be honest, if I had met him under different circumstances, things might have gone that way, but of course he’s nothing more than a pay check to me right now.
“Look, just keep seeing him, act interested in him, and keep up the cover for as long as you can. You need to get that algorithm before he can release it because I really need to win this.”
I resist the urge to roll my eyes at his admission – how petty and testosterone filled to need to win some stupid competition that I really don't understand. “Sure,” I nod, smiling on the outside, as everything within me screams. “Will do.”