Love Bytes by Dahlia DeWinters Read Free Book Online

threatening the future of their company.
    “Ah…yes.” Violet shot Francis a look of pure venom, which he returned with one of his flat, impenetrable gazes. She turned to Joe, who was trying to be casual, but the tension between her and Francis was too obvious. “Well, Joe, my partner here is ushering me off to a meeting, so I’d better get going.”
    “Sure.” His gaze swung back and forth between the two of them, but his tone was easy. “See you soon. Nice meeting you, Francis.”
    “Likewise.” Francis didn’t look in his direction. “Let’s go, Violet.”
    “Bye, Joe.” Violet waggled her fingers in Joe’s direction, smiling, but inside she was seething.
     
    ****
     
    In the parking lot, Rogers stood behind his car, hoping he was out of sight of anyone in the building. He should have parked around the back. Here, anyone glancing out of the windows of the coffee shop or NorthStar Tech might see him. By the time his cell phone rang, he was chilled to the bone. He wished he had taken the time to throw on his coat. But since first call had demanded that he be available in less than two minutes, he thought it prudent to get outside as soon as possible. There was no profit in making these people wait.
    He pressed the cell phone to his ear. “Hello.”
    “What is the delay?” Female, older, and impatient, the voice on the other end of the line was not one that was used to being disappointed. “I would have expected them to be shut down by now. Over.”
    “They’re still working.” Rogers didn’t waste time wondering how she knew that operations were still going on. “They’re trying to make corrections. They have us working—”
    “No, that won’t do. I want them shut down. I want the files gone, erased, kaput.”
    “I’m working on it. I’m trying to be subtle.”
    “Subtlety is not a virtue in this case, Rogers. Shut them down or you don’t get paid.”
    The line went dead.
    Rogers tucked the cell phone in his pocket and rubbed his cold hands together. That wasn’t the agreement from the beginning, but he couldn’t back out now. He sighed, his breath clouding in the frigid air. In for a penny, in for a pound.
     

Chapter Eight
     
    “What’s wrong with you?” Violet dropped her laptop on her desk, upsetting one of the pencil jars. She frowned, her emotions in unaccustomed turmoil, and crossed her arms to confront her normally placid partner. “Have you gone insane?”
    Francis regarded her without expression as he unbuttoned his coat and hung it on the rack by the door. “What were you doing in the coffee shop?”
    “Why are you answering a question with a question?” Violet’s temper ramped up a notch. She itched to smack him.
    He gave her a smug little grin. “You just did the same thing.”
    Violet balled her fists at her sides and advanced on him, her temper near scalding. He didn’t flinch as she approached, the little smirk on his face making her angrier.
    “You should see yourself, Vee, like a little steam engine all puffed up. So cute. Are you going to slap me?”
    Her sudden laughter at that image diffused her anger. “Why did you hurry me off like that?”
    He shrugged and moved past her. “Why are you wasting your time talking to him?”
    Violet tilted her head to the side, watched his back as he walked to his desk. “Why do you care?”
    “He’s trying to put the make on you.”
    “Again, why do you care?” She followed him, examining him for any changes of expression. “We’re fucking, Francis, nothing more.” The lie was easy, taking no more than a second to trip across her tongue. “Stop making a big deal out of simple conversation.”
    He didn’t answer her for a long time as he sat and stared at a spot on the wall behind her. She felt suspended in time, unable to move unless he said something to set her free. Did he think the same thing? That they were just fucking? Feeling outside of herself, she watched him pull off his glasses and begin polishing