The Dare Collection: August 2018. Avril Tremayne

      “You’re giving me a choice?”

      He smiled. “I’m not a complete ogre, Lily, regardless of whatever impression Maggie gave you.”

      It unsettled me that he’d read me so accurately. But wasn’t that why I chose him? He’d risen to the top of my list almost immediately when I searched on the dark web because he was a maverick to the core. Totally unscrupulous when he went after something he truly wanted.

      And the way he was staring back at me strongly suggested I was somewhere on his want list.

      Maybe that was the reason I should’ve been bone-tired but felt oddly invigorated despite being awake for twenty hours straight. If I’d been coding, I’d be getting ready to crash hard by now.

      My stalker’s latest “gift” arriving in my mail this morning had wiped rest from my mind.

      That unwelcome reminder refocused me. “I’m fine to answer your questions.”

      His brisk nod signified the switch back to fixer mode. “We’ll get to the background stuff when you’ve had some sleep. For now, tell me when you first realized you’d attracted someone’s attention?”

      I didn’t need to think hard. The memory was etched in my mind. “About seven weeks ago I received a piece of what looked like my code in an email. It was a very rough copy but it got my attention. And no, I wasn’t able to find out who sent it.”

      “So we could be dealing with corporate sabotage.”

      The possibility shocked me. “You think one of SDM’s competitors could be behind this?”

      The underhanded tactics that went on in Silicon Valley weren’t a secret, but usually they involved throwing enough money at an acquisition to secure it or throwing even more money at a problem to make it go away.

      His mouth twisted. “You’d be surprised at the lengths companies would go to get an edge on the market. If your code is as revolutionary as you say it is—”

      “It is,” I confirmed. The possibilities of my algorithm scared me a little but I was extremely proud of what I’d achieved. The thought of someone stealing it filled me with equal parts fury and fear.

      Caleb leaned back but it didn’t release me from the raw force field of his personality. I was convinced he’d need to be in another state for that to happen.

      “Then I suggest we make a list of the top twenty companies you think might benefit from this code.”

      I shook my head. “That’ll be nearly impossible to investigate before the deadline.”

      A fierce light blazed in his eyes. “Make the list, Lily. I’ll take care of it.”

      I got the unassailable impression that he would. The depth of that belief scared me a little. But it excited me even more. Which was ludicrous and a lot disturbing considering I detested being taken care of.

       Not true. You hate that no one’s cared enough without having an ulterior motive. Just like you hate that soft place inside you that wants to be taken care of.

      I tightened my gut against the abrading truth. But it was no use. Lately, I hadn’t been able to suppress thoughts of my stepfather as easily as I used to. Truth was, my stalker had amplified the yawning cavern of my life. He, or they, had exposed vulnerabilities that made me feel raw and fearful and alone. It was that last sensation I especially despised. I wanted that aloneness gone, and if I had to endure Caleb Steele for a while to achieve a return to normal, then so be it.

      “Okay, I’ll have it ready for you in the morning.”

      “Good. Tell me when you first noticed this wasn’t just an online thing?” he whipped back, sharp eyes narrowed.

      A swell of fear met quiet fury at the recollection of that first violation. “Two weeks ago I got another piece of code in the mail. It’s a long way from the one I was working on, but someone out there is taunting me with knowledge of what I’m working on.”

      A muscle rippled in his jaw. “Did they make demands? Ask for money?”

      “No.”

      “They’re trying to scare you into changing your routine. Trip you up in some way. When was the next time?”

      “He left me another code on top of my bike outside a coffee shop four blocks from my house.”

      His mouth thinned. “So he knows where you work and live.”

      I fought the shudder that rolled up my body. “Looks like it.”

      His hands curled into loose fists but his breathing didn’t change. He carried on staring at me with a level look, then nodded for me to go on.

      “The last time was yesterday morning. I received another code, but with a picture of me attached.”

      “A picture?” Caleb asked.

      I nodded, a sheet of ice unravelling through me at the recollection. “It was taken two days ago. I was shopping.”

      “Fuck.” Caleb’s jaw rippled with tension before he leaned forward, bristling with quiet fury. “What happened to the package?”

      “I have it at home.”

      His expression tight, he reached for his phone and had another conversation with the unflappable Maggie, issuing terse instructions about retrieving the package and having a discreet service dust it for prints. Just as briskly, he hung up and dropped the phone on the table between us.

      “Tell me about your online activities, outside of the work you do for SDM.”

      “That’s a very broad question.” The plane dipped, taking a little bit of my stomach with it. “You want to know if I messed up somewhere?”

      “I’m sure you didn’t but something you did triggered this.”

      The logic was too sound to dismiss. I tried to suppress it but my unease grew. “You don’t think I covered my tracks?”

      A smile twitched his lips. “You’re a coder. I’m sure you can clear your caches in your sleep. And I’m not talking about porn. Although I’d love to know which sites you prefer.”

      A flush heated my chest and spread lower to my abdomen. “Mr. Steele—”

      “Lily?” he responded with a heavy dose of snark.

      I took a calming breath. “I don’t leave a trail of where I buy my lingerie or post minute-by-minute details of where I’m going to be at any given time of day. I know how to protect myself.”

      “And yet he found you,” he stated with bracing finality.

      After a moment, I looked at him. “What do you want to know specifically?”

      “Coders make decent hackers. If you hacked your way into a job with SDM, you must be great. What’s your hacker handle?”

      All of a sudden the name that sent shivers down the spines of faceless dark web hackers felt pretentious. “Cipher Q.”

      His brows slowly rose. “You’re Cipher Q?”

      Another emotion swept in to mingle with the cocktail swirling inside me. This time it was most definitely not unpleasant. “You know about me?”

      He shrugged. “Cyber crimes are a problem for a few of my clients. Maggie and a few people on my payroll keep an eye on things like that for me. A few months back she wouldn’t shut up about some big-deal hacker contest going on. You won, if I remember correctly?”

      The kick of pride warred with the need to set him straight. “Yes, but it was all aboveboard. No cyber crimes involved.”

      “Who came second?”

      “Nordic Razor.”

      “What