Rock Star Romance: Dan (Contemporary New Adult Rockstar Bad Boy Romance) (Hard Rock Star Series Book 4) (75 page)

Carter—
Eric,
she
corrected herself—smiled, relief plain in his expression. “Yes, exactly. I’m
ashamed to admit that because of your age, I went through the other four before
I tried you…but none of them ever even found me.”

Cassie laughed. “That
doesn’t surprise me.”

Eric peered at her,
and she felt a peculiar tingling sensation spread through her body—like she was
massaged all over with light particles, or a vibrating mist. “Why not?”

Cassie thought for a
moment, trying to find a way to explain it to him. “Let me ask you this: why do
you think those other PIs didn’t find you?”

Eric blinked slowly in
response to her question. “They all went in different directions,” he said at
last. “One of them started trying to cross match identities to find my real
one. Two of them took the picture and started asking around places, and that
got them close, but never actually anywhere I turned out to be. And the other
one tried to get around the block by running my finger prints.”

Cassie was nodding as
he spoke, and she chuckled as he finished talking. “That sounds like grizzled
PIs. Depending on their careers, they may pick up a few really good tips and
tricks and use them well enough to get by—but ultimately, if you work in the dirt,
everything starts to look like mud. They’ve learned bad habits, and often, they
lead to bad decisions. That’s one area where my age is an advantage—and lucky
for you, it’s a big one.”

Eric was gazing at her
in wonder, “Wow. I should have just come and talked to you.”

Cassie laughed. “The
way you live has given you blind spots too, I’m sure.”

Eric smiled at her,
and it was so unselfconscious that she felt her own smile broaden in return.
“Oh, please. Tell me what my blind spots are. And how would you know them,
anyway?”

She laughed again, and
this time it was distinctly surprised; an ultra-rich type with a sense of humor
about himself was rare—but then, so was a client catching her completely off
guard. “Well, you’ve just said your name is Eric Riverston—and despite the fact
that I know you’ve taken care to avoid doing almost any press or allowing any
real information about you to be spread on the internet, I make it my business
to know things that are clearly none of mine.”

His eyes were
sparkling with excitement. “You really
are
good. But how do you know
about me if you didn’t assume my identity was false, like the other guys?”

“I didn’t say I never
figured out the false lead,” she corrected him. Cassie took a step closer to
him and lowered her voice when she noticed the bored looking store clerk gazing
over at them, not even pretending to do work anymore.

“I knew Carter was
fake, but I didn’t know which of the identities my searches traced back to was
yours, or even if any of them were. So I worked on the assumption that none of
them were real, but that I was right about the fake name. Photos are hard to
fake, and I could tell the one you provided was authentic. And then I started
with obvious places—listing places that only had real physical receipts. Sometimes
it doesn’t work, but my gut is usually right. And it was, partially. So you’re
really Eric Riverston, software-wunderkind-turned-tech-giant worth more than he
could ever spend in his lifetime, huh?”

Eric laughed. “Yeah,
that’s me. Although I regret the
wunderkind
title. I’m twenty-seven; not
exactly a baby.”

“
I’m
twenty-seven,” Cassie interjected, “and
I
don’t have my own island.”

Eric arched one of his
sandy blonde brows. “How do you know I have an island? How deep into the
identities did you get?”

“Deep enough, Eric Sue
Riverston.” Cassie struggled to keep her face still as color rushed to Eric’s
cheekbones.

“How did you—I had
that changed!”

The store clerk was
wandering over to them, and instead of answering, Cassie just laughed and shook
her head.

“Come on. We should go
somewhere else, Sue. The locals are starting to get restless.”

****

Cassie’s step was
light as they walked to the coffee shop two blocks away, and she told herself
it was because the case had turned out to be more interesting than she
expected—not because Eric’s aquamarine eyes kept connecting with hers and
refusing to pull away, or darting to her lips and back as she spoke.
He’s
just intense. These Silicon Valley types always are, and you’re probably just a
tad cuter than he expected.

The coffee shop was
mostly deserted, since there were two chain coffee bars a few blocks away, and
most of the college kids who frequented places like it were in class or
sleeping away hangovers. Cassie settled into a seat next to the window,
indicating to the waitress that they’d like to see menus.

“So you found out more
than anyone else did about me, but still didn’t connect the photo to my
identity?”

Cassie shrugged as she
accepted the greasy menu from the wide-hipped waitress. “My results were inconclusive,
and my gut told me I’d found out more by just doing something instead of making
endless guesses.”

Eric pushed his hair
away from his forehead and sat back in his seat; Cassie felt that odd tingling
sensation sweep over her skin again, and she couldn’t fight the shiver that
rolled through her this time. “I’m so glad you turned out to be the best; I
know you’re going to be just perfect for this job. Two coffees, please?” Eric
smiled at the waitress as she nodded and strode away to retrieve two mugs.

Cassie watched the
woman until she was out of sight, then made herself meet Eric’s gaze. “Eric…Mr.
Riverston, you still haven’t told me what this job
is
, so there isn’t
any guarantee that I’m going to take it.” She kept her voice level, but it
disappointed her to even say it aloud; hormone-based reasons or not, she did
have a feeling that whatever he had for her was big—possibly even career
changing.

He nodded
thoughtfully, adding sugar the coffee the waitress had just poured. “Eric,
please,” he said. “You probably know about my security project?”

Cassie nodded. “Not
the specifics, but I know it’s something that the big search engines are after,
and even a few mobile phone developers.”

“It’s going to change
mobile and internet security completely,” he confirmed. “It’s been in the works
for nearly three years, and last month I got close to finishing it. Then
something weird happened.” Eric shook his head bitterly. “I should have caught
on immediately. Bits of code kept changing slightly—not enough to detect immediately,
but enough to change functionality in a major way. Then when I fixed it, things
started to rewrite themselves—which, at first, was just annoying. But it lead
to a major shutdown of my systems, and I lost a chunk of the program
completely. It took us months to get back up and running.” He sighed. “Then
everything started all over again. I finally started to look closely and saw
the instances of where the source of corruption was introduced to the software
and had started to wipe it, but not completely erase it. I found enough data to
tell me that someone is sabotaging my project. And it’s coming from inside my
own company.”

Cassie’s mouth dropped
open. “Wow. Really? Are you completely sure? Don’t get me wrong,” she said
hurriedly at the look of irritation on his face, “when things are sabotaged, a
likely suspect is someone involved in the situation directly. But it’s also
natural to get a little defensive or jumpy after working on something so hard
for so long.”

“I understand,” Eric
said mildly. “But I’m sure. It’s one of the few things I’m sure of.”

Cassie bristled, but
forced herself not to react to his attitude.
He’s just stressed out,
she
reminded herself. “I just want to be sure before I start investigating and
feelings are inevitably hurt. When the truth comes out in cases like this, it’s
usually ugly, and bonds that are broken are nearly impossible to repair. And
I’d generally recommend against trying.”

Eric dropped his eyes
from hers and sighed, his shoulders slumping forward as he seemed to visibly
deflate. “You’re right. I’m sorry, I’m just very nervous. This could all turn
out so badly.”

She felt a rush of
empathy for him. “It’s going to be ok. I’ll make sure of it.”

Cassie reached across
the table and squeezed his shoulder lightly, smiling in what she hoped was a
reassuring manner. But when Eric’s green eyes met hers, she grew less sure of
her ability to stay completely controlled during this case: there was heat
there in his gaze, whether he meant for her to see it or not—and she pulled her
hand back quickly, her blood running hot from the scorching energy coursing
between them. Eric smiled slowly, and he caught her fingers in his hand before
she could finish retracting her arm; Cassie gasped softly, and she felt herself
blush.

“Thank you,” Eric said
in a low voice. “You’re too kind.”

Her skin grew warmer,
and she realized the odd tingling sensation was back, like the sun was shining
to warm her and her alone.

You can’t take this
case,
she told herself desperately—then, almost simultaneously:
you have
to take this case.

Eric pulled his hand
back, and it was like she had been pushed from cloud nine and left to fall to
the Earth. “I know your rates, and I’m prepared to offer you double.”

That startled her.
“Double?”

Eric nodded.
“Something tells me that this might get…” he trailed off, looking for the right
words. “I’ve seen people get dangerous when they’re cornered,” he finished.
“And I’m sure you have, too. They may be different kinds of danger, but I want
to make sure this is worth your while.”

Cassie laughed. “Are
you afraid someone’s going to hack my social media pages? Ruin my reputation?”

Eric didn’t laugh.
“You never know.”

After that, they
ordered, chatting idly as they waited for their food to arrive. Cassie was
surprised to find that everything she’d discovered was true—he owned low income
housing in several cities that he rented out for free or reduced prices, he was
a digital artist whose work was sometimes showcased at museums in cities around
the globe, and he’d graduated college at the age of sixteen. Cassie was
astounded that he’d managed to keep nearly everything about himself under the
radar, even the fact that the biggest software breakthrough in years was his;
she was even more shocked to find that his aversion to attention was genuine.
It made her want to know more about him, and Eric was genuinely impressed with
her, so they ended up talking for more than two hours after they’d finished
eating. Finally, Eric reluctantly paid the check and mentioned that he had to
get back to work.

“I’ll start right
away,” Cassie promised as he walked her to her car. She looked around as he
stopped next to her passenger side door. “Where’s your car?”

“A few blocks back,”
he answered. “I thought you might be staking the place out.”

She smiled at him.
“All that trouble, and I found you on my first try.”

Eric returned her
smile, and she saw the smoldering heat occupy his gaze again for a moment
before it faded away. “You’re very impressive. I look forward to being further
impressed by you, Miss Vine.”

Cassie’s heart skipped
a beat, and her mouth felt suddenly dry. “Cassie. Call me Cassie.”

Eric paused for a
moment, as though he was savoring her name on his tongue. “Cassie. I’ll see you
later.”

For a second, it
looked like he was leaning down toward her, and her stomach seized with terror
and exhilaration; then the moment was over, and he was turning and walking down
the street, his hands in the pockets of his jeans. Cassie’s eyes fell on his
backside as he walked, and she felt a burst of desire awaken inside her.

Godammit. I’m in
trouble.

But Cassie had never
been one to flee from trouble. Instead, she did exactly as she promised,
working on the case as soon as she received a huge zip file filled with
information. Cassie had some tracking and security software of her own, and
started to cross reference information with what she knew about the company.
Unfortunately, her mind kept coming back around to Eric, and she repeatedly
lost the thread of her investigation until she finally gave up and took a break,
collapsing on her bed and giving herself over to a vivid fantasy in which Eric
massaged her sore muscles with his powerful hands underneath the lip of a
waterfall.

Cassie was
dumbfounded. It’s not like she wanted action—sure, she didn’t always have the
most
memorable
one-night stands, but they got the job done. And she knew
she was attractive—all shapely legs and long curves, generous breasts atop a
slim waist, striking features and long, sweeping soft brown hair. She knew how
to dress herself down and blend her body into any situation, and because of
that, Cassie could basically become invisible at will. It was a skill she took
pride and not a small amount of pleasure in—but it was a skill she found was
rendered useless in front of Eric. The entire time she spoke to him, it was
like his gaze was a searchlight, illuminating her world with dazzling white
energy after being so used to slipping noiselessly through space. He saw her,
and she wasn’t sure what that meant for her—only that it filled her with terror
and a warm, dizzy joy.

****

By the end of the
night, she’d managed to create some leads, and Cassie woke up at the crack of
dawn to find her cellphone tinkling shrilly in the darkness of her bedroom. She
reached for it blindly, upending an empty water jug as her finger unlocked the
screen. The time read 5:42, and she realized her blurry eyes were staring at a
text message from Eric.

Barbara’s Café? 1
hr?? E.R.

She didn’t remember
giving him her number— but she didn’t remember giving him her address either,
and after she showered, dressed, and printed all of her work so far, she opened
the door to find a package wrapped in an overnight envelope.

What the hell?
Cassie
looked around the hall, but no one else was moving down the too-bright
corridor. She ripped open the envelope slowly, shaking it upside down until a
heavy black rectangle fell out into her palm. It was a brand new cell phone,
already charged and loaded with her contacts. Anxiety crowded in her chest; the
return label showed that it was from Riverston Enterprises. Eric had sent her a
phone that was already connected to her personal account—but how had he gotten
her login information?

He’s a tech genius,
she reminded herself.
Assume he knows everything. Assume he’s seen those
lingerie pics you posted once and then deleted out of shame.

She didn’t feel any
less put off by the time she’d driven to Barbara’s Café, but she wasn’t
anxious, either. Eric was clearly trying to be nice, and she would just need to
lay down some ground rules.

Cassie pushed into the
little café and saw that Eric was already seated at the table they occupied the
day before. He turned when she entered, and when he smiled, the leap her heart
made in her chest did nothing to comfort her nerves. He was wearing a light
blue sweater and khakis, an outfit oddly similar to her blue polo and khaki
skirt.

“Cassie, thanks for
meeting me on such short notice.”

“No problem,” she said
graciously, plunking the phone onto the table. “Thanks for the…what is this? A
bonus? A bribe?”

Eric look startled.
“What? It’s a phone.”

Cassie let her
skepticism show on her face. “Come on, Mr. Riverston. You didn’t give me a
cutting edge phone I just happened to tweet about a few weeks ago as a way to
try to speed things up maybe? Can’t wait in line like everyone else?”

Eric’s green eyes were
angry at first, but he struggled to reign himself in. “I thought you said you
didn’t have bad habits like everyone else. I think you’re a little paranoid,
Miss Vine.”

Cassie frowned. “I
told you to call me Cassie.”

“And I told you to
call me Eric. I also told you that I was impressed by you and was looking
forward to seeing your work. I wouldn’t ever try to rush your job. Just like
I’m sure you’d never try to dictate mine.”

Cassie fumed silently,
but she realized he was right; she’d come in defensive and expecting the worst.
She sighed and tightened her caramel ponytail, forcing herself to meet his
eyes. “I’m sorry. You’re a big client, and I’m letting that get in the way of
how I think.”

Eric’s expression
softened. “It’s okay. I only got it for you because I’m afraid someone at my
company could be watching me. I can’t chance them finding out about the
investigation before I’m ready.” He paused, and his cheeks flamed scarlet.
“Wow, now I sound paranoid.”

Cassie shot him a
smile. “You’re being smart. This is a good idea. I assume this is a secure
line?”

“Yes. Everything you
send and receive on that phone will be completely secure.”

Cassie turned the
phone over in her hands. “Does this run on a version of your security software?”

“Yes. A simplified
version that only I have access to.” His eyes flickered to the folder she’d
brought along. “Do you have something for me?”

Cassie opened the
folder and explained what she’d found. “Just as you thought, it’s coming from
inside your company. It looks like they went through some trouble creating a
sort of data signature that shifts, so that it varies between its real source
and a host of others, making it harder for them to get caught. I’ve narrowed it
down to twelve possibilities…and one is your brother.”

Cassie was ready for
the rage Eric responded with. “Excuse me? My brother? My brother would
never
do something like this to me.
Ever.
You’re mistaken.”

Cassie kept her face
as neutral as possible. “Eric, I understand that you and your brother are
close. But if we want to get your software secure, we need to take this
seriously. James is a real possibility. I’m sorry, but it’s true. He has a
motive.”

Eric was silent, and
Cassie could see the anger in his eyes being replaced by the realization that
she was right. “I think I knew that,” he admitted. “He’s never stopped making
weird jokes about Dad leaving me the stocks that got me where I am today. Even
though he’s doing well on his own,” Eric finished defensively.

“But he’s not a tech
savior,” Cassie said softy. “He’s not a billionaire. He’s not you.”

He dropped his eyes
and stared at his mugful of coffee. “I wish being himself was enough.”

Her heart hurt for
him; she could see that their relationship had been more affected than he’d
wanted to admit. “I’ll give you daily updates,” she promised. “As soon as I can
say for sure who it is—or who it’s not—I’ll let you know. I’m sure I’ll figure
out something useful enough to justify billing you for breakfast each morning.”

Eric laughed, and the
clouds that had darkened his gaze rolled away. He reached across the table and
grabbed her hand again, and Cassie felt her smile widen automatically.

“I can’t thank you
enough, Cassie. Are you going to be okay meeting me early like this? Will this
work out okay?”

She shrugged, still
grinning broadly. “Guess we won’t know until we try. Let’s call it a test.”

And she kept her
promise. Every morning they met at Barbara’s and discussed her findings over
bacon, eggs, and the strongest coffee Cassie had ever ingested. He’d always
text on her new phone, and she’d always zip over to find him already there.

One morning, she
surprised him by being there before they opened, and she sat with him in his
Mercedes with warm air pouring from its vents. The woman who normally served
them didn’t show up for so long that she worried she’d been in an accident.

“Don’t say that,” Eric
said, his voice thick with worry. “Oh, great. Now I can’t concentrate.”

Cassie laughed at him.
“We can just go someplace else to drown our sorrows in caffeine.”

Eric paused and turned
toward her, his green eyes sparkling. “Or how about mimosas?”

Cassie gaped at him.
“Champagne at 5:30? Where are we going to find that?”

And that was how
Cassie ended up Eric’s apartment for the first time.