Rodney and I were the very last people to go. “Yep, so, Lucas is right,” I said. “I’m Izzy Hardy, and he calls me Izzy Bizzy. I got into data security while I was working undercover for the government . . . before I got transferred.” I shrugged.
Melanie didn’t let my short answer suffice, though. “What got you into undercover work?”
“Honestly, a family friend pulled me in.” I took a deep breath. This was about team building. So, I tried my best. “He thought I needed redirection after getting out of juvie.”
I waited for a gasp or two but none came.
“The first day on the job, someone on his team called me an addict. They said I wouldn’t be able to hack it. Most of you probably saw that tattoo on my ribs today—the one that reads addict. I got it because I am one. I’ll always be even if I’m not using, but I wanted to remember to be more than that too.”
A few of the people glanced at my drink. I didn’t explain that my addiction was to opioids and that I’d monitored my alcohol intake since day one of my recovery. I knew the risks of a drinking induced relapse. I also trusted myself enough after nine years, but the lack of confidence in me still stung.
“I’m also a recovering addict,” Lucas chimed in.
And then two others joined in, along with Rodney. “I’m seven years sober, so I won’t be drinking. Thanks for sharing, Izzy. Good to know we all have struggles, whether it’s addiction, mental health, or something else. No one gets through life unscathed, right?”
Something about Rodney’s acceptance of the world made me envy him. “Well, without further ado, the last man of the evening—Rodney.” I waved a hand in front of him. My tone lightened the mood, and as the fire crackled in front of us, I described him. “Rodney’s an excellent paddleboarder, decent at the game of chicken, and can probably beat me in pull-ups. I also enjoyed how he made me and Lucas a mean cup of coffee with extra sugar just the way I like it this morning.”
“I’m hoping she’ll enjoy more than that soon.” He waggled his eyebrows at me, and my only response was a blush staining my cheeks. Harmless flirting. Without any sort of depth. That’s what I should have been pursuing. Rodney gave me butterflies but didn’t knock my socks off. Cade, though, he’d corrupted the butterflies, scared them away, and brought lightning in as a replacement.
Handbook be damned when it came to people hooking up on team-building work retreats. I had a feeling most were thinking about the same thing because we were all around the same age, intelligent, and very good-looking.
Rodney went on to tell the team why he was involved in data security, but I didn’t really hear him because my eyes were on the corner cabin. Would he want one of these women? Would he indulge if he got the opportunity? It made me hope he wouldn’t leave those walls, and I hated the way my jealousy flared when I realized Cade’s light was off.
And from the wooded shadows, I felt him before I saw him. Close.
Hovering.
Listening and analyzing everything we said.
Rodney finished up by looking at the event coordinator. “And since I’m the last to introduce himself—”
“Not quite the last.” Cade stepped out from where I’d felt him, and some of the girls gasped when they saw him.
Most of the guys were dressed in sweats and hoodies, so it shouldn't have been a shock to see him dressed in that too. Even I was in Rodney’s baggy hoodie. But Cade in black jogger sweats and a hoodie to match hit different. His athletic build filled them out perfectly, and he looked almost approachable.
He rocked back on his heels and introduced himself. “Cade Armanelli. Head of data security for the United States government, the Pentagon, and Stonewood Enterprises.”
Heather cleared her throat. She didn’t want to prompt anything from him, I could tell. Instead, she shuffled her papers around. “Well, I’m so happy to have you all introduced. Like I said, please feel free to eat at any of the grilling stations or have a beverage. My number is located on your itineraries under Ms. Heather if any of you need anything at all.”
She walked up to Cade and gave him a hug, murmuring she was glad he made it. The freaking man smiled at her, and I swear it was more genuine than when he looked at anyone else.
Jealousy unfurled inside me. I figured Heather, as our event coordinator, would hurry away, but she took a seat right next to Cade, like she’d saved those last two chairs across from me for them. No one knew we were hooking up, but damn, in that moment, I could have sworn the whole thing had been orchestrated to push every button on my emotional panel, a ploy to get me to blow a gasket. The bartender brought them glasses filled with amber liquid. It was like Cade had them all trained already, like he was being catered to above all of us.
With a beautiful blonde as his right-hand woman.
Predictably so, I guess. He was a billionaire mogul and our boss, after all.
The very one I’d told myself I hated only a few days ago. He was an enemy, not a friend.
Still, if we had to answer the questions, then so should he. The fire snapped, and the bugs buzzed around me as I got up to grab another drink. “So, what made you get into data security, Mr. Armanelli?” I asked. “Heather made all of us answer the question. You should too.”
He smirked at me as if calling him by his last name was ridiculous. Then, as I grabbed my beer and marched back to my seat, Rodney swept me up and pulled me into his lap.
Cade’s smile died. It dropped off his face like a weight falling from a skyscraper. That lightning in my stomach, the one he commanded, struck as I saw his glare take over.
“Ms. Hardy, I’m so glad you asked,” he murmured as his eyes watched Rodney’s hand on my thigh. My legs were bare except for the small skirt I’d thrown on, but that was basically covered by Rodney’s sweatshirt. “Data controls us all. When I was younger, it was a way to escape. Now, I make sure nobody can escape it.”
Melanie combed a hand through her long hair and flicked it over her shoulder, smiling at him. “I love that. It’s so heroic, all the work you’ve done.”
She did know he was a mobster, right?
Heather laid a hand on his forearm, and I saw her move her wrist back and forth, wiggling it enough that we all saw how the diamonds on a bracelet she wore sparkled in the night. “Cade’s done so much good for the nation.” She giggled then. “And for us. Cade? Remember when you got me this bracelet?”
I thought I saw Cade’s jaw tick and his amber eyes seemed to avoid mine in that moment. “I recall.”
“Cade, are you shy?” She smirked and I swear she met every single one of the women’s eyes as if to stake her claim on him. “This is what I mean. He won’t say that he gifted me a bracelet after we hung out a few times and he knew I would be able to set up events well for him.” She poked him. “You never give yourself enough credit.”
“How generous of him,” I blurted out and almost slapped a hand over my mouth. But Cade’s eyes caught mine and held me hostage, as though he was ready for me to lash out.
Cade hummed, not responding to my barb as he laser-focused on Rodney’s hold around my waist. “Izzy, I heard your story as I was walking over from my cabin. You ever prove to that specific someone that you weren’t what you had tattooed on yourself?”