Page 45 of Fatal Conspiracy

When she reached his navel, she dipped her tongue in for a moment before kissing lower until she could place one on his tip, drawing an exclaimed gasp from his lips. Rather than back off, she continued kissing, licking and suckling as his moans of pleasure filled the room. His body shook with the effort it took to hold back and let her explore him the way he had her.

When he groaned long and low, she glanced up, worried by his expression. “It just hit me that I don’t have any condoms,” he whispered.

“I can’t get pregnant, and I’m clean,” she answered before running her tongue down his shaft.

“I’m clean, too, but I want you to understand that I do respect you. We can wait until I have condoms if that makes you more comfortable.”

“I trust you, Derek. Maybe that’s nuts after only knowing you a few days, but you’ve given me every reason to trust you.”

“That’s the first time someone didn’t say you’ve given me no reason not to trust you.”

“When you’re my size, actions speak much louder than words. There is a difference between showing someone they can trust you and telling someone they can trust you.”

His lips were on hers as he leaned over, ramping up their desire until she thought she’d combust. “Derek,” she moaned. “Please.”

“I won’t hurt you?” he asked, lifting his lips to hold hergaze. Maybe he was searching for honesty, so she’d give it to him.

“Physically? No. Emotionally?”

Before she could finish, his lips were on hers again as his hand moved between her legs to prepare her for their joining. “Also no,” he murmured.

“You can’t know that. We haven’t known each other that long.”

Rather than respond immediately, he continued to stroke her until she lifted her hips, showing him how ready she was to be with him.

“To be clear, I don’t sleep with women I’ve only known a few days. At least, I haven’t until tonight. I have strong feelings for you—stronger than I’ve had for any other woman in my life—and in a completely different way. Maybe that doesn’t make sense to you, but it does to me. That’s what tells me this is right.”

“When you know you know?” she whispered, but rather than answer, he rolled to the side and gently lifted her to straddle him. As they locked gazes, she saw the answer to that question. He knew, and now he would give her time to accept him with her body and her heart.

* * *

ALAYAH WOKE SLOWLY, her body warm and tingly as she cuddled into Derek’s side. He’d been so incredibly tender during their lovemaking that she’d wanted to cry. It wasn’t just his touch but the way he made love to her with his eyes. When he told her how beautiful she was and how lucky he was to be part of her life, she realized that she’d never made love to any other man. They’d shared their bodies, but not their minds or their hearts. That wasn’t the case with Derek. They’d opened themselves up and shared everything. For her, that included the parts of herself she neverlet anyone see. He saw it all, kissed it all, and changed her unequivocally for life.

Her gaze strayed to the clock, and she was surprised to see it was after eleven. As much as she wanted to stay snuggled up next to him, she needed to check in with Mina. It had been hours since their request for Secure Watch to dive into Josh’s business. They might not have anything yet, but it was her job to be sure. The moment they had a path to follow, she had to work quickly if they wanted to end this and return to their normal lives. Not that hers would mean much without Derek, but he deserved a chance to do big things.

Slowly, Alayah scooted away from him, his hard body now soft and relaxed in sleep. She hoped he was getting the rest he needed to plot a new course for his life, however unexpected that might now be. It would be a life she would never be part of. As much as she had enjoyed their time together, city life wasn’t for her, and neither was working with tech moguls. She’d been there, done that, and couldn’t do it again. Did the idea of losing what they could be together make her sad? Terribly so, considering she had fallen for him hook, line and sinker. Regardless, Alayah would never ask him to give up an opportunity like Black Marlin Technologies. Hugo wanted him to have his company, and he had worked hard for it, even if he hadn’t come to that realization yet. She would never ask him to compromise or give up his dream if that was what he wanted. Sure, Minneapolis was only six hours from Secure Inc., but long-distance relationships rarely work. Determined, she put all the “what-ifs” from her mind so she could find a killer who was determined to stay hidden. If she couldn’t share her life with Derek, at least she could be the hero he needed right now.

Once she had shimmied off the bed, she scooped herphone off the nightstand and closed the bedroom door behind her. After a quick shower, she threw on a pair of warm pajamas and checked her phone. Mina had left a message that she should check her email ASAP.

Excited, she fired up her machine and clicked open the email, hoping they’d found something on Josh. It only took her a few seconds of scanning the files to let out a soft whistle. They’d hit the motherload. Josh was up to his ears in debt and sinking fast. Now she just had to figure out why.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Alayah leaned back in her chair to ponder the information she’d read from Mina’s sources. Josh’s business was more than profitable, so why was he so deep in debt? Where was the money going? He had a nice house and car, but otherwise owned nothing extravagant that would indicate a spending problem. Maybe he was a gambler? There was a note at the bottom from Mina stating that he’d taken out a predatory loan by every definition. When it came due in a few months, it would put him under. Especially if Hugo’s app was released first and better appealed to consumers. Since Hugo planned to release the app free, that put another big wrinkle in Josh’s plan. Logically, the first order of business was to contemplate if the debt Josh carried had gotten him killed. According to Derek, Hugo hadn’t told anyone that he planned to release the app for free. At least not anyone outside of the company, but she couldn’t help but wonder if he had told Josh and that was why they were fighting backstage.

It was time to dig in and figure out what part of Josh’s life was the contributing factor to his death. Gambling debts would make sense. If he owed money to the wrong people, he would probably do everything in his power to pay them off, even if it meant taking out a loan with less than favorable terms.

Head in her work, she began tracing his financials and his whereabouts. Were the conferences he attended held at big casinos? Were there rumors that he’d been invited to any behind-closed-doors, high-stakes poker games? Every avenue she went down led her to a dead end in that respect. If Josh had been gambling, it wasn’t blatant. Sports betting was a possibility, but looking at his life, he didn’t have any interest in sports, so the knowledge to make educated bets probably wasn’t there. Not that he couldn’t be paying someone to do it for him, but his financials didn’t reflect that either. They had to be missing something.

Blackmail.

The one word floated through Alayah’s head in such a way that her fingers froze on the keyboard. Blackmail would explain why he was so far in debt with nothing to show for it. The money was coming from somewhere, but since they couldn’t see all his business accounts, she couldn’t be sure if he was siphoning off the business funds or using his own. She also couldn’t see if he was taking large sums at once or wiring funds in smaller amounts to someone.

She grabbed her phone, knowing Mina would still be awake. She wanted to run it past someone else before she wasted too much time. She glanced at the bedroom door and sighed. Waking Derek by talking on the phone didn’t appeal, so she set the phone down again. They had two dead tech giants on their hands for no apparent reason. What was the reason?

Almost as though whoever is behind this knows how not to leave any digital evidence behind.

Derek’s comment from earlier in the day slammed into her. Someone was scrubbing the digital evidence. It was there, but it was hidden just like when they’d made it looklike Derek was responsible for Hugo’s death. Someone had access to the hotel servers, both theirs and the one Josh was at. Not surprising considering the virtual lack of security on these systems, but regardless, planting code to cover your movements was next-level diabolical and extremely purposeful. Whoever was behind it was known in the industry and was attempting to hide behind a digital cloak.