Sleeping With My Boss: A Standalone Novel (An Alpha Billionaire Romance Love Story) (A Dirty Office Romance) (79 page)

CHAPTER
THIRTY-FIVE

Ryan

I
thought I was still
dreaming when I opened my eyes and saw Echo hovering over my bed. I closed my
eyes again trying to hang on to the image of her face, but when I felt
something brush my arm, I opened my eyes again and found her still there.

"Echo?"
I said groggily reaching out. "Is that you?"

"Yep, it's
me," she smiled as she slipped her hand into mine. Her eyes were bloodshot
and she looked exhausted. She leaned in closer and whispered, "I was so
scared, Ryan. I thought we were all going to die."

"All
okay?" I mumbled. "Where's Cece? She okay?"

"I'm fine,
Seal," Cece said from her spot by the door. "Listen to Echo, we don't
have much time."

"What's going
on?" I said trying to focus on Echo's face.

"We need to
find someone, Ryan," she said. "We need to get your father's hard
drive to Commander Arvin Donnelly. Do you know him?"

"Yeah,"
I said as my eyes tried to force themselves closed again. "Commander. Just
here."

"The
Commander was here? Visiting you?" she asked. I could hear the surprise in
her voice.

"Mmm
hmm," I nodded as I winced.

"Where is
he?" Echo asked again. "We need to find him, Ryan."

"Headquarters,"
I said as the pain in my side started its sharp march across my side.
"Went to HQ. Go there."

"You heard
him, Cece," Echo said as she turned toward the door. "We need to get
back to HQ. Can you get me out of here?"

"What's going
on?" I asked and then winced again as the pain tore it's path across my
body. Echo reached out and hit the medication button. The last thing I
remembered before I went under was Echo's lips softly brushing across mine, and
then I was out cold again.

CHAPTER
THIRTY-SIX

Echo

I
took the steps
two at a time as I raced toward the Commander's office. Mentally, I kicked
myself for not just staying put and waiting for him to return, but I'd needed
to see Ryan with my own eyes and make sure he was still alive.

The Commander's
secretary, the cute little brunette, was at her desk and waved me in as I
approached her.

"The
Commander has been waiting for you, Miss Frost," she said. "Please go
right in."

I walked through
the door and then stopped short.
 

"Please come
in, Miss Frost," Commander Donnelly welcomed me. "Don't be alarmed,
we're all here to help."

He quickly
introduced me. I shook hands with Vice Admiral Kelly and the Commander before
he asked me if I had the hard drive. I nodded, pulled it out of my bag and
handed it over.

"If that's
all you need," I said standing up and turning toward the door, “then I'll
just get back to the hospital."

"Miss
Frost," the Vice Admiral began. "Do you know what this hard drive
contains?"

"I know that
it has Dr. Powell's work on sentient artificial intelligence on it," I
admitted. "But I don't really have any idea what that actually means in
terms of real world application because I wasn't involved in the research
process."

"But you were
involved, Miss Frost," the Vice Admiral said. "You just didn't know
it."

"I don't
understand," I said looking back at Commander Donnelly.

"Miss Frost,
Dr. Powell involved you in his research process by having you write code for
him, did he not?" he asked.

"Yes, he did,
but I wasn't privy to the information he gathered in his lab," I said.
"I just wrote programs that he asked for. Things that organized
information."

"Actually,
your programs were fueling Dr. Powell's research," the Commander said.
"He relied on your ability to code in order to continue pushing forward
with his project."

"I don't
understand," I said again.

"Miss Frost,
Dr. Powell was working on developing a sentient artificial intelligence that
would allow the military to eliminate the need for human soldiers on the
battlefield," the Vice Admiral said and then sat silently as the
information sunk in.

"Wait,
what?" I replied uncertain that I'd heard what I thought I heard.

"Dr. Powell's
research would make it possible to replace human soldiers with machines that
contain sentient artificial intelligence," he repeated. "We would
never again have to send young men and women into battle to be killed."

"That's
unbelievable," I whispered. "That's just in movies and science
fiction novels."

"No, actually
it's not," the Vice Admiral said. "There's a company in Boston that's
created a humanoid capable of moving across rugged terrain and there are three
other countries that are in various stages of developing similar technology.
Dr. Powell came to us knowing that his project was just a blip on the radar."

"Why would he
come to you?" I asked. "Not to be rude, but shouldn't this go through
the Pentagon or the CIA or something more secretive?"

"That's just
it, Dr. Powell's research wasn't taken seriously," Commander Donnelly
said. "He'd tried selling the idea to the Joint Chiefs, but they'd told
him he was out of his element. And at the time, he was. His project wasn't well
organized nor was it well executed."

"So, why are
you taking him seriously now?" I asked.

"Because it
seems that your presence and your programs are what turned the project around
and made it viable," the Vice Admiral said. "Without you, he never
would have made progress nor would he have come as far as he did in the past
two years."

"Two
years?" I asked. "That's since I graduated."

"Yes, we
know, Miss Frost," the Vice Admiral smiled. "Your education was an
excellent one, and we'd like to offer you the opportunity to continue it, if
you're interested."

"What would I
have to do?" I asked suspiciously. "Am I going to have to sell my
soul to the devil or something?"

"No, Miss
Frost," the Vice Admiral chuckled. "We're not the evil empire.
There's no soul selling involved in our business. We would simply like to offer
you the opportunity to learn more about the process of coding for SAI and continue
Dr. Powell's research."

"But I'm not
a biochemist," I said. "I'm a computer programmer. I don't know
anything about the biological or chemical processes of Dr. Powell's
research."

"That's why
we want to pair you with the staff that Dr. Powell worked with and have you
continue to write the programs they'll use to continue his research,"
Commander Donnelly said.

"How will
they know what to do?" I asked. "Dr. Powell is dead."

"That's why
the hard drive was of vital importance," the Vice Admiral said. "We
believe it contains the research methodology and plans that Dr. Powell had laid
out for the next three years. We believe that if we can get that map, his lab
associates will be able to puzzle out the next steps he was planning to
take."

"And you want
me to help?" I asked.

"We believe
that your programming skills are what will enable the lab researchers to take
the next vital steps toward fully developing the SAI that Dr. Powell
envisioned," the Vice Admiral said.

"I don't know
that I have enough programming knowledge to go that far," I said looking
back and forth between the two men.

"That's why
we want you to enroll in a graduate program at Cornell and learn what you need
to keep programming," Commander Donnelly said. "We will pay all of
your expenses, plus you'll earn a salary from TriCorp for running the
lab."

"Wait, you're
sending me back to TriCorp?" I said. "I don't think Julian Baines
will allow that."

"Julian
Baines is no longer in charge of TriCorp," the Vice Admiral said in a way
that told me it would be unwise to ask questions about why that was so.
"There will be a new CEO in a few weeks, and we see no reason why your
employment would be problematic."

"I'd just
like to say that my father always taught me that if something looks too good to
be true, then it probably is," I said warily. "What's the
catch?"

"There's
really only one catch," Commander Donnelly said handing me a card with two
numbers on it. "You are never ever allowed to tell anyone what you are
doing. The only people you will be allow to talk with about the project will be
a board from the Office of Naval Research, and the Vice Admiral and
myself."

"I can't talk
to anyone else?" I asked making sure I'd heard him correctly.

"No
one," he said solemnly. "Not your friends, your professors or even
TriCorp's new CEO, once he steps in."

"So,
basically what you're saying is that my work will be conduced in total
secrecy," I said.

"That's
exactly what we're saying, Miss Frost," the Vice Admiral said.

"Can I think
about this?" I asked.

"You have one
week to make a decision," Commander Donnelly said. "If you need to
talk to someone about it, you may call me or Vice Admiral Kelly, but you are
not to discuss this with anyone else."

"Wow, you
guys sure know how to woo a girl," I said with a wry grin.

"Miss Frost,
I understand that this an enormous responsibility," Commander Donnelly
said. "But please understand that Dr. Powell's project has far reaching
implications for the Navy and other arms of the military. We take this
extremely seriously."

"I'm sorry, I
understand," I said as I suddenly felt the weight of responsibility come
crashing down on my shoulders. "Just out of curiosity, what happens if I
say no?"

"We'll cross
that bridge when we come to it," Vice Admiral Kelly said.

"I see,"
I nodded. "Then if you gentlemen will excuse me, I've got some thinking to
do."

"Very
well," Commander Donnelly said as both men stood and shook my hand.

As I walked out of
the office, it occurred to me that Vice Admiral Kelly's tone had given me the
distinct feeling that they had not planned to cross any bridges they didn't
want to cross.

CHAPTER
THIRTY-SEVEN

Ryan

On
Friday afternoon,
much to the surprise of the hospital staff, I got up and signed myself out
against medical advice. I was tired of laying in bed waiting for someone to
give me permission to get up and walk the halls even though I probably could
have run a 5K. My SEAL training gave me an advantage when it came to recovery
and as a result, I was antsy and wanted out.

Echo and Cece had
been in earlier to visit and bring me real food, but I hadn't wanted to let
them know my plan because I had errands I needed to run before I returned to
Echo's apartment and let her know my plans. I was used to functioning on my
own, and I had no intention of changing my ways now.

I caught a cab
from the hospital to Eva's mother's townhouse and was informed that Eva was at
the Park Avenue apartment packing it up. When I arrived, I found her standing
in the middle of the living room yelling at two men who were moving the baby
grand piano.

"No, no,
no!" she shouted before lowering her voice. "Look, you need to wear
gloves when you move it or you're going to damage the surface with the oils in
your hands."

"Good to see
that you're focusing on something productive," I said as I entered the
room and looked around. Most of the things that had made this feel like my
father's home were gone.

"Oh, hello
Ryan," Eva said sounding vaguely disappointed to see me.

"What
happened to you?" I asked as I pointed to the designer-made sling that
stretched across her body and kept her left arm snugly against her body.

"Oh,
horseback riding accident," she said. "One of Mummy's mares was not
properly broken in and they gave it to me to ride."

"Bummer,"
I said without sympathy. "You live a rough life."

"Don't mock
me, Ryan," she said narrowing her eyes. "I won't have it."

"I'm sure you
won't," I said as I walked toward the balcony. "Where's the corner's
report and what's going on with the will?"

"Well, you're
a man who gets right down to business, aren't you?" she said dryly.

"Yes, well,
after this past week I've realized that I might not have a lot of time
left," I said looking at her pointedly. "But then you wouldn't know
anything about that, would you?"

"I have no
idea what you're talking about," she said as she brushed a strand of hair
away from her face and then looked in the mirror that hung over the mantle.
"I'm just trying to adjust to life without my husband."

"Cut the
grieving widow shit, Eva," I said without sympathy. "I don't buy
it."

"It's not up
to you, now is it?" she hissed sending a chill up my spine. She quickly
reverted back to her usual high-society bored tone and said, "And it's a
darn good thing, too."

"Corner's
report. Where is it?" I said as I looked at her more closely. She was
wearing a brightly colored summer dress that looked like a field of English
flowers and a pair of flats that she uncharacteristically shuffled as she
walked.

"I don't
know, I don't have it," she shrugged. "I think it went to Julian's
office. He's the executor of your father's estate, you know."

"Oh yes, I'm
well aware of that," I said. "And I intend to challenge that in
court, but first I want to find out how my father died."

"Give it a
break, Ryan," she said rolling her eyes. "Your father wasn't a
healthy man. He had heart problems and a host of other issues that he clearly
ignored for many years. I told him to get a full check up and find out what was
going on, but would he listen to me? No. Alan Powell listened to no one."

"Why don't
you give it a break, Eva?" I asked as I moved toward her. "You didn't
care about his health, you cared about his money. That's all you ever cared
about, isn't it? I never once heard you say anything about him needing to take
care of himself."

"That's
because you cut and run," she shot back bitterly. It was a low blow that
hit right where she intended. "You ran away the first chance you got and
you never looked back. Your father knew you didn't want to be anywhere near
him, so he left you alone to live your life, but his whole life was focused
around you. It was always about you."

"What in the
hell are you talking about?" I yelled. "He didn't care about me one
bit! He spent his entire life chasing some research dream that didn't include
me or anyone else, for that matter."

"You really
are blind, aren't you?" she said with a brittle laugh. "Every single
thing your father did was about you, Ryan. His research project? All about you.
His devotion to SAI? You, again. His connection to the Navy brass? That was
you, too. Everything your father did every single waking moment of every single
damn day was about you!"

"You're full
of shit, lady," I said as I stood staring at her trying to piece together
the information she was spewing.

"And at night
it was all about your beloved mother," she spit venomously. "He
thought of you during the day and dreamed of your mother at night. I never
stood a chance. There was no room for me."

"Eva, my
father often said he loved you," I replied dryly. "I don't know what
you're talking about."

 
"Alright, you want me to spell it
out?" she said in a voice that dripped with carefully contained rage.
"You killed your father. You are the reason he is dead. You and your damn
SEAL team. You killed him, Ryan. You and you alone."

"You,
bitch!" I shouted as I grabbed her arms and shook her.

"Let go of
me!" she screamed in pain as I gripped her shoulder. "Stop it! You're
hurting me!"

"Tell me how
my father died!" I roared as I shook her harder. The scream that came out
of her mouth was one of agony rather than rage and when I heard it looked down
and saw a large stain seeping through the fabric of her dress. I quickly let go
and stepped back. "What the hell? Eva, you're bleeding!"

"You stupid
son of a bitch," she growled as she ran into the guest bathroom and yanked
a towel off the wall pressing it to her shoulder as she searched for her phone.
"You have no idea what you've done."

The sound of her
voice struck a chord and I turned to see Eva pointing a gun in my direction. I
dropped to the ground and crawled behind the sofa closest to the windows.

"You can't
hide from me, Ryan," she said quietly. "I'm not letting you leave
this apartment."

I fought with
everything I had to keep from saying anything and giving away my position as I
took my surroundings into consideration. She was at a distinct advantage
holding the gun, but I had the element of surprise on my side as I swept my
eyes across the part of the room I could see in search of a weapon.

"SEAL or no
SEAL, you're not getting away from me this time," she cackled as I
realized, whether due to grief or greed, she'd gone over the edge. I knew this
would give me the advantage for only a brief second or two, but that's all I
needed to take her down. I could hear her shuffling closer and knew I didn't
have much more than a few seconds before she started firing.

Holding my tongue
and gathering all the strength I could muster, I kicked the far end of the
couch as hard as I could and then drew my legs up as quickly as possible. Eva
fired a shot at the end of the sofa and that gave me the opportunity I was
looking for. I grabbed a cushion off the couch and launched it at her as hard
as I could, knocking her off balance. As she struggled to keep hold of her gun,
she fired a second shot into the ceiling before I was on her and wrenching the
weapon out of her hand and punching her as hard as I could to knock her out. I
felt the stitches in my side pull, but they didn't give way as I looked up and
saw the horrified expressions on the faces of the piano movers.

"Call the
police," I said as calmly as possible. "Now!"

The two men
scurried out of the room as I dropped to my knees holding my side as I tried
not to pass out from the pain.

I was
unsuccessful.

#

I
woke up in a
familiar looking room, but this time I wasn't alone. Echo was leaning over me
smoothing my hair and straightening the sheet as I slowly opened my eyes.

"Hey,
you," I croaked. "Water?"

"Hey,
you," she smiled as she reached across the bed and grabbed a glass
offering me the straw. I sipped a little and then closed my eyes briefly.

"What
happened?" I asked.

"I was going
to ask you the same thing," she smiled as she patted my hand. "What
did you do, Ryan?"

"I think I
found my father's killer," I said. "Did I?"

"Not quite,
son," a voice from across the room broke in. "But you did find the
people responsible for kidnapping Echo and breaking into the lab."

"Huh?" I
said as I tried to raise my head, but the pain from my side made it impossible.
I turned to see Commander Donnelly moving into view.

"Lieutenant,
you were very foolish to go to see your stepmother alone today," he said.
"We'd suspected she'd had something to do with the kidnapping and had
police investigators watching her, but they didn't see you enter the apartment.
You almost got yourself killed."

"But
why?" I said still groggy from the pain medication.

"They were
after something bigger than your father's fortune," he said. "They
wanted his research so they could sell it on the black market."

"I have no
idea what the hell you're talking about," I said looking back at Echo who
refused to meet my eyes. "What's going on?"

"Lieutenant,
let's just say that you solved a crime that both had and hadn't yet
happened," Commander Donnelly said. "When you're feeling a bit
better, we're going to send someone in to take your statement, but until then,
I want you to rest and take it easy. And I mean it."

"Yes,
sir," I nodded as I looked at Echo who was now smiling at me again.
Commander Donnelly left the room and I turned to Echo. "What the hell is
going on?"

"Your
stepmother was the one who kidnapped me," she said. "She tried to
kill you because you figured it out."

"I don't
understand why she would have wanted to kidnap you," I said wondering if
the confusion was drug induced.

"She wanted
to sell your father's research on the black market," Echo said eerily repeating
Commander Donnelly's exact words.

"How did she
even know what my father was doing?" I asked.

"I don't
know, you'll have to ask her," Echo said as she leaned down and silenced
me with a soft kiss.

"Don't do
that," I said pushing her away. I could feel the effects of her touch
instantly and was afraid that if she lingered, I'd show my entire hand.

"Okay,
sorry," she said as a hurt look crossed her face and she backed away.
"I'll just hang out here until Cece comes to relive me."

"Echo..."
I began.

"No, it's
okay, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to overstep my boundaries," she said
cutting me off. "It won't happen again."

"I
didn't—," I tried again.

"Are you
ready for more pain medication," the nurse on duty said as she pushed open
the door and came in with her cart looking at Echo she said, "I need to
take vitals and check the wound site. Why don't you wait outside?"

"Be back
later," Echo nodded and walked out the door.