Corrupted Chaos (Tarnished Empire)(2)

The fire crackled, and its light danced over him, illuminating his perfect bone structure as he said, “Dante, Delilah. Jet’s ready to go.”

Them? He’d come for them? Not me. I don’t know why that was a surprise and why my ego deflated a bit from the thought.

“Tonight?” My sister’s voice sounded shocked but hopeful. Dante must have planned a vacation for them with Cade’s help. It made sense considering Cade had the family private jet. For all I knew, it could have been the presidential jet considering the man was in the news for helping the country all the time with cybersecurity.

I stood so fast my knees popped when my sister got up to clear dishes on a tray table near our chairs. I moved to help, then followed her with my own handful to pad through the lush grass into our parents’ ranch-style home.

I whisper-yelled over the classical music my mom always played in the kitchen to Delilah. “I can’t believe Cade just shows up to our bonfire like this.”

“I think Dante probably called him.” Delilah shrugged, confused by my frustration. I myself wasn’t sure what it was about either. Maybe it was the way he’d confidently told me he was watching, like I was a loose cannon, or maybe it was because every time I saw him, he stirred something in me that he shouldn’t. I needed to keep my life like a calm lake, but when Cade came around, it turned into a tumultuous ocean, waves crashing violently on the shore.

I shook my head at my sister, placing a hand on the worn quartz countertop. “He’s deliberately acting like my babysitter since I’m still working for the government.” I didn’t need anyone behind me looking over my shoulder like I was going to mess up. I’d proven myself time and time again over the course of years of undercover work. And now being in cybersecurity, I was determined to stay ahead of the curve. I even took classes to keep up my skills. “I can take care of myself.”

“Well, he probably wants to make sure you’re safe, considering you’re friends.” She shrugged and put another dish in the sink.

“Colleagues,” I corrected, wrinkling my nose and brushing some of my hair that was frizzing away from my face. “Definitely not friends.”

Lilah peered over at me like she was questioning my sanity. I’d probably announced that last part a little too loudly. “Noted,” she grumbled, and I turned to the sink to wash the barbecue off a dish, hating that I’d let Cade get to me at all.

Still, I’d had enough people not believe in me over the years. And he was the worst of them. He never gave me more than a glance when he walked into the room, and I knew he’d bad-mouthed me when I’d first started.

Suddenly, my sister stopped and pointed over her shoulder, yelling, “Gotta go to the bathroom, Izzy,” as she beelined it out of there.

I spun around, knowing Delilah wouldn’t speed off unless she was avoiding something. And sure enough, the reason was standing right in front of me. All six feet plus a good couple of inches of him loomed over me like he was trying to intimidate me.

He wouldn’t. I didn’t care if he was a whole head taller. The more I thought about it, the more irritated I became that he even attempted to come around me outside of work. I crossed my arms. “Don’t sneak up on me in my parents’ house, Cade.”

He quirked a dark brow like I sounded ridiculous. “Hardly sneaking considering I’m stepping right in front of you.”

“Whatever. This is a family party,” I pointed out, trying to make one thing clear. “You shouldn’t even be here.”

There. Now he knew I didn’t ever want to see him outside of work, that I didn’t like him, that he wasn’t wanted.

“Technically, I’m Dante’s family.” He glanced down at his phone like he didn’t even have time to have this conversation. Then he peered back up at me, and his stare held a condescension I wasn’t ready for. “Want to go so far as to say we’re related too?”

Why did that feel like he was goading me? I turned around to scrub a dish way harder than necessary. “God, you’re so annoying.”

“If you think I’m annoying, quit your damn job.”

Yep. There it was. Him being an absolute dick. Cade didn’t want me on any team within the government. He’d had it out for me since day one because he thought I couldn’t handle the pressure of our work. It didn’t bode well for me. We all knew his ties to the president, to the Pentagon, to everyone. The man infiltrated everything because he had access to it all. A few clicks for him, a few hacks, and he’d be raking through my deepest darkest secrets.

“Start working in corporate America.”

I stopped my assault on the poor dirty plate and winced at his recommendation. I liked to think I worked as hard as he did. And I had unfinished business with the government. I’d researched enough while undercover to learn that a large Albanian family was breaking laws within our country. We’d caught them once, and I wasn’t going to stop until I had them all behind bars. “The Albanians aren’t done. You and I both know it.” I waved between us like he should understand. He’d seen what they were capable of in the past, and it was our job to make sure it never happened again. As I got better at sifting through the data, I’d found more evidence. “The drugs are a fucking cover for nuclear warfare, and I’m gonna help bring them down.”