Naked Sushi Page 6

  I looked again into his face and saw the puzzled expression etched on his features, as if he were waiting for me to explain further. I didn’t. To my relief, he returned to the present situation.

  “Now do you understand why I had to get out of the copy room without you knowing who I was?” he said, emphasizing his words. “I was looking for the intel that would explain how Briggs transferred funds to hide his dirty little secret.”

  “What secret?”

  “High-class call girls.” Steve said. “In Thailand, Hong Kong, Japan.”

  I let out a low whistle. “So that’s why he’s so determined to get into the Japanese market.” I paused, thinking, “His office manager said the documents you copied were Mr. Briggs’s tax returns. She was lying.”

  He nodded. “I found company bank transactions from years ago, but they weren’t much help. Not surprising. Briggs is a new player in the game. No doubt the woman is privy to his dirty dealings, making me suspect Briggs keeps what I’m looking for hidden in encrypted computer files.”

  “Can’t you get a search warrant and seize his financial records?” I asked.

  He shook his head, frowning. “It’s not that easy.”

  “Really?” I couldn’t imagine the FBI having to ask for permission to do anything.

  “Not since a federal judge handed down a decision against keeping NSLs secret—”

  “What’s that?” I asked, curious to find an acronym I didn’t know in this world of OMG, LOL and RAT. Remote Access Tools. A bored programmer’s fave pastime. Watching unsuspecting computer users doing weird things on their webcam, often sexual in nature. Not me. I preferred my fantasies in the flesh.

  Like now.

  I reveled in all this spy talk. Wishing we were two agents talking shop.

  “NSLs are national security letters,” Steve said, “where the Bureau collects private information on a target, like financial and phone records.” He explained the Bureau found its hands tied with the recent crackdown on issuing such letters. “This operation will be put on ice for years if we can’t gather the evidence we need to build a case against him.”

  I wiggled my fanny, knowing I had a secret.

  “Not if I can help you get it.”

  * * *

  A dark, moonless night hid us as we sneaked around the back of the old Victorian house, better known as my former place of employment. I got a cheap thrill up my backside when I showed Steve how to slip through the secret door and his groin nudged my butt cheeks. Even through my sturdy jeans I could feel his rock-hard erection.

  Dream on.

  Hey, a girl has to take what she can get. All through college, I spent my nights reading a handbook on string-searching algorithms instead of sporting a G-string. I never regretted it until now. I knew nothing about hotness, how to figure into that sexual equation of boy-beds-girl and thereby discover my self-worth. I always thought working hard and using your brain were all you needed to succeed in the corporate world.

  Look where it got me.

  No doubt I was now on the FBI’s watch list, though Steve assured me no charges would be filed against me if I cooperated with the investigation. That part was cool. What sent my sex-o-meter into a nosedive was that after our heart-to-heart, my new BF was all business. No head rubbing, no shoulder touching.

  Nothing.

  I kept my hands to myself. Had to. I was on a mission to clear my name and if hacking—I mean looking for a security hole in the company’s computer, Steve’s words, not mine—got the job done, then I was up for it.

  Lucky for us, the guard was on foot patrol on the other side of the building. Most likely smoking his favorite blend by the smell of it.

  Giving us time to get inside.

  “Be careful,” I warned Steve, bending low. “We might not be alone.” I was fearful he might trample a plump, happy cat, snoozing near the door, with his heavy black boots. To my surprise, the kitty was nowhere to be seen except for a series of paw prints tracked inside the house. My heart skipped a beat, hoping nothing had happened to her. The tawny feline was the only one I could trust at my old job.

  Steve cut through the narrow passage opposite from the phony window where we’d entered. “Where does that lead?” he asked.

  “To the main reception area.”

  “Then what? I need to get into Briggs’s computer.”

  “Not his computer. His office manager’s.” I told him about the companies I’d spotted in a file on her computer and the offshore locations of the bank transactions associated with them.

  “How did you secure the password?” he wanted to know.

  “CTI,” I said without missing a beat. “Creative techno intervention.”

  “You mean hacking.”

  “I call it saving my butt.”

  He shook his head, grinning. “You wait here, Pepper, out of danger. You could get hurt if Briggs and the men he’s working for show up.”

  “What could be more dangerous than being cornered in a room with you with my pants down?” I asked, following him. I caught a brief glimpse of the copy room with its big machine and cold platen glass. My pubes sent out a text alert. I squeezed my thighs, remembering Steve’s hands on my waist, his hot breath on the back of my neck.

  “You never fail to amaze me, Pepper,” he said, making me wonder if that was a good thing or a bad thing. After all, what did I know about the art of seduction? I was new at this. I worked two jobs in college and missed spring break when all the girls went au naturel and let the guys lick tequila body shots off their breasts and crotch.

  I just smiled and went all computer geek, creeping into Ms. Sims’s office like I was following the yellow brick road. Sitting down at her desk, I slid my fingers over the mouse, squeamish about leaving fingerprints, and turned on her computer. I entered the password and double-clicked on a file, then another. And another.

  “Holy shit.”

  “What is it, Pepper?”

  “There’s not just one file, but two more listing companies I don’t recognize, along with their shipping schedules and banking info. PacWest Comix, Tech-More Digital, Blue Seahorse Software.” I read more names off the computer screen, digging my fingers deep into the pocket of my red plaid flannel shirt.

  “So?” Steve asked, leaning over my shoulder. I wished he would cup my breasts, but my FBI hottie wanted answers more than he wanted to cop a feel.

  “When I first spotted them, I figured the company was outsourcing work. Now I have my doubts.” I kept digging through the files. “We’d have to write a new video game every week to keep up with the work demand from this many companies. Even I’m not that good.”

  Steve chuckled. “Don’t underestimate yourself, Pepper.”

  I smiled to myself, secretly pleased at his remark. “I doubt if they’re new customers, either. All our clients are informed on a regular basis about next year’s video games and upcoming marketing strategies.” I opened another file outlining the latest advertising campaign. “I was right. None of these companies are listed here.”

  “Most likely they’re shell companies used to transfer funds back and forth.” Steve stood behind me, his hot breath hitting the back of my neck and sending a shiver up and down my spine as he shined his flashlight on the computer screen.

  I sat up straighter, enjoying the closeness between us. Pushing my breasts out, hoping he’d get the message. He didn’t. Damn.

  “I can’t believe my ex-boss is a crime lord.”

  “Most likely he fell in with a syndicate who promised him bigger profits if he played ball with them. Like using his company as a front for illegal money laundering. I’ve no doubt Briggs got in over his head when he started using call girls to transport dirty money to offshore accounts.” He snickered. “Not to mention getting some action on the side.”

  I wrinkled my nose. Somehow I couldn’t picture Mr. Briggs getting it on with a cardboard-face bimbo.

  “Why would he do it?” I asked, leaning in closer. Steve pretende
d not to notice. “The company is doing well, our sales figures are up—”

  “When a CO starts thinking with his dick instead of his brain,” he said, “chaos follows.”

  I couldn’t resist adding, “Do you always think with your brain?”

  “I wouldn’t be here if I did.” He rubbed the back of my neck and the cool night air seeped through my flannel shirt. “Transfer these files for me, Pepper,” he said, leaning over me, his face so close to mine the stubble on his chin scraped my skin in a pleasant, sexy way. “I don’t want to get caught in here when the sun comes up.”

  “You mean we’re not going to finish what we started over the copier?”

  “And have you set off the alarm again?” he said, pinching my butt. “Don’t tempt me.”

  “I’m curious,” I asked, trying to change the subject to cover my disappointment. “What do spies do when they finish a job?” I inserted a thumb drive into the computer. “Go to Disneyland?”

  He laughed. “Sorry, Pepper, you’ll have to play Sleeping Beauty and lay low while I wrap up the case against Briggs.”

  “Any suggestions where I can...lay low?” I burned the files onto the thumb drives and then safely removed them from the computer. I was about to stuff them into my pocket when Steve grabbed them, but not before his hand brushed against my breasts, making me moan.

  Thank you, God.

  He said, “We’ll discuss that after we get these files into the right hands.”

  “Speaking of hands...” I rubbed up against him and ran my hand up and down his thigh. His hard muscle flexed under my fingers, telling me my superman was human after all.

  “Do all computer programmers think about sex 24/7?” He kissed the nape of my neck, nuzzling my ear, and then ran his fingers up and down my shoulders. I wanted to fall into his arms with joy when he wrapped his hands around my breasts. My nipples peaked like two peas under a hard mattress. I closed my eyes and then let go with a sigh of unbearable pleasure. I tingled when he unbuttoned my shirt, sliding the flannel off my shoulder and caressing my bare skin.

  “I can’t help it,” I whispered, closing my eyes, my whole being alive to the sensation of his lips trailing kisses on the back of my neck. “I work with hard drives all day.”

  “Lucky for me,” he said, digging his fingers under my soft, foamy bra cups and working his way up toward my hard nipples. Pinching and twisting my buds and then pulling on them like they were knotted rubber bands. I groaned.

  God, I couldn’t stand it. I wanted his fingers in me. Not one, two. Yes, two.

  Steve slid his hand down my jeans, making me shiver with delicious anticipation. Yes, closer...closer...oh, yes.

  I was floating in a la-la land of happy contractions when I heard angry voices coming from downstairs. I pushed away from him, every nerve in my body alert.

  Who the hell was that?

  Steve flipped off his flashlight and gestured for me to stay put, but I followed him anyway. I was so not letting him out of my sight. Not with those fingers.

  Racing on tiptoe across the corridor, we peeked over the railing and looked down the winding stairway. There below I saw Mr. Briggs and his office manager, Ms. Sims, arguing in the foyer. Then he pushed the button on the creaky, old elevator.

  Jesus fricking Christ. We didn’t have much time.

  Steve grabbed my hand and pulled me back into the office. Without a word, I turned off the computer. Steve wiped it clean along with the mouse and then we headed for the stairway.

  We were too late. The elevator was slow, but not slow enough. The door was opening.

  They’d see us.

  I freaked.

  Chapter Five

  “We have to hide,” I whispered, instinctively taking his arm.

  “Where?” he asked. “I can’t blow my cover with Briggs.”

  I saw the supply room door open halfway. “In here.”

  We barely had time to squeeze inside the dark room and close the door when Mr. Briggs and Ms. Sims swept past our hiding place. A whiff of her tart perfume sent a wave of nausea through me. Yuk. I cracked open the door and heard my ex-boss ordering her to check her computer files. The overhead light went on, and a familiar whir filled the silence. The cascade of blue windows coming up on the monitor cast an eerie glow on their faces.

  Zombies best described them.

  I cringed. What if they saw us?

  Could Mr. Briggs fire me twice?

  I pulled back out of sight, the sound of my breathing loud in my ears. Or was that Steve breathing down my neck? Nice. I couldn’t stop a shiver wiggling down my spine. Damn, this was no time to rev up my libido. We had to bail out of here and slip through the hidden entrance unseen.

  Still, I wasn’t complaining about the delay in our getaway. What girl would? Crushed up against his hard body in the small dark room, I couldn’t get enough of him pressed up against me, his hands caressing my back. Up and down. Slowly. His lips brushing the bare skin on my neck. Every nerve alert.

  I rubbed that special spot between my legs where my jeans cut into me. Damn, it burned. I wouldn’t be able to control my pent-up passion much longer. Not when it felt this good. A slow fire simmered in my belly, evoking a pleasant ache that set me on edge.

  Until I heard Mr. Briggs say, “I thought you erased that girl from your computer.”

  “I’m sure I deleted her,” said Ms. Sims, tapping her long black nails on her keyboard like a freak show organist. “Yes, her files are gone.”

  “I still can’t figure out how she knew I was going to be at that sushi restaurant.”

  The office manager stopped typing on her keyboard. The silence was so acute it made me want to grind my teeth to assure myself time hadn’t stopped. “I can,” she said.

  “What do you mean?” Mr. Briggs asked, clearing his throat.

  “She’s been poking around in here.”

  “What?”

  “See for yourself. I entered the luncheon information on your calendar. She must have hacked in here and found it.” She raked her nails across the wooden desk, straining my nerves even further. “I told you she was too smart for her jeans.”

  I let out my breath, pleasantly surprised. A compliment from this woman was akin to scoring a date with a Cosmo hottie.

  Mr. Briggs snorted loudly. “Then she had access to all my files, the little bitch.”

  Ouch! That hurt, Mr. Briggs, I wanted to shout. I saved this company from going into the toilet when a rival software firm tried to steal our code. I stayed up two days straight patching up the holes. And this was the thanks I got?

  I exhaled. Loudly. I was ready to bust outta there and tell him to go fuck himself when Steve pulled me back. His hands gripped my butt. Hard.

  “Cool it, Pepper.”

  “I’m not going to let him get away with calling me names,” I whispered, squirming. I opened the door wider and saw my ex-boss pacing up and down and wiping his sweaty face with a paper towel.

  “This isn’t the time to get personal.” Steve held me in a tight grip. I couldn’t move. “There’s more at stake here than your pride. A good agent wouldn’t let that bother her.”

  “What are you saying?” I asked.

  “Think about it, Pepper” was all he said.

  I let it go, seeing how Mr. Briggs was fit to be tied. Smacking his palms on the desk like a hungry walrus. “I want you to back up everything on that computer,” he told his office manager, “and then erase it.”

  Ms. Sims lifted her crooked brow. “That could take hours.”

  “I don’t care. Do it.”

  “This wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t insisted on hiring her,” she mumbled, rubbing it in. Mr. Briggs ignored her and left.

  His footsteps faded away and then the elevator bell dinged as the door closed. The upstairs was quiet again except for the office manager tapping away like the Mad Hatter on speed.

  “What are we going to do?” I whispered to Steve, leaning my head back against his shoulder
. The air in the small room was stuffy and made me sweat. “We can’t leave without her seeing us.”

  “Looks like we’re stuck in here for the rest of the night,” he said in a low, dreamy voice that turned my legs into warm, gooey caramel.

  “You don’t sound disappointed.”

  “Are you?”

  I heard an excited murmur from him as he pushed his groin into my ass, asserting his maleness with an undeniable show of power. I couldn’t deny I loved it. His unrelenting bulge pushing into my butt crack made me hover on the verge of a climax. Feeling all hot and sticky, I contracted my pubes just a little. Okay, more than a little. I enjoyed the surge of pleasure racing through me.

  Yes, yes.

  “I’m sure that’s hard on you,” I said, reaching behind me and grabbing the bulge in his pants to demonstrate my point.

  He stifled a groan. “I know how to fix that.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah,” he said in a low, sexy voice.

  My nipples tightened and a flutter of anticipation settled low in my belly. He lifted up my T-shirt and unhooked my bra. I nudged up against him and closed my eyes. I was just settling into the heat of the moment when—

  “Me-ow.”

  “What the hell is that?” Steve asked in a loud whisper.

  “It sounded like a cat.” I felt something furry crawl up my jeans leg, tickling me. A shudder went through me.

  What if it wasn’t a cat—

  Gathering up my courage, I bent down and wrapped my hands around a wiggling creature, then a second one. I held the tiny bundles of fur up to the light peeking through the door.

  I smiled.

  “Kittens. So that’s why the cat was fat and sassy,” I said, hugging the little creatures with the Hello Kitty cuteness. “She must have followed me inside the house and then sneaked in here to have her babies.”

  “They’ll be safe here,” Steve said, opening the door wider. “But we have to make a run for it.”

  “We can’t leave the mother and her kittens,” I protested, holding two in my hand and putting a third one into my shirt pocket.