Dante
I chuckled at her reaction to the new car. I'd already messaged Luca to get the car while she was busy ranting to me earlier. Just to be safe, I planted a tracker on the car-don't judge. After she left, a few minutes later, I walked out of the building, helmet in hand, mounted my bike, and zoomed out.
I arrived at home. Me and my guys live together, and everything we need is in the house. It's a mansion on the outskirts of the city. The basement was where the real deal was. It's like an underground fortress. There was a hospital there-not as big as a real hospital, but it had all the equipment needed to treat anything, be it a bullet wound or worse. It was headed by my medic, Lisa. We go way back. She only comes when needed. She graduated from the University of California and majored in medicine.
When I entered the house, I was greeted by the kitchen. Luca walked up to me as we headed toward my office.
"I heard word about Vortex," he said.
I gave him a look. "Yeah?"
He smirked. "You seriously interviewing people now?"
I shrugged. "It's not like that."
"Hmm," he said, clearly not buying it. "You didn't have to buy a whole new car though. It was only the bumper that had a lift problem."
I gave a small smile. "I know. My mind was just... clearer after the interview."
He raised a brow but didn't press further. I pushed open the door to my office and walked in.
I sat down, boots on my desk, helmet beside me, still thinking about her. The way she stormed into the building, ranting like I'd ruined her life with a cup of latte. Hell, maybe I did. Still, there was something about her that stuck. She was chaotic energy wrapped in a petite body, and for some damn reason, it didn't scare me off-it pulled me in.
I got to work. After working a little, I went to look at the guys in the basement. These were the ones injured during last night's mission-some with busted ribs, others stitched up by Lisa. War-torn but still breathing.
When I entered, they perked up.
"I got y'all McDonald's," I said.
They sat up instantly. One of them gave a tired grin. "Best boss."
I rolled my eyes and smirked. "Don't get used to it."
Truth was, I ordered the food earlier while thinking about her-Raven. The moment she stomped away from me after the interview, latte-stained and cursing under her breath, had burned itself into my memory.
And I had a feeling she wasn't done shaking up my world.
---
After a few more hours of working, I couldn't bear it anymore. The thought of her was too intense-she was everywhere in my mind. Her voice. Her glare. Her fire. It was messing with me.
I took a cold shower, thinking it might clear my head. It didn't. The moment the water hit my skin, all I could think about was her-her lips, the way she stared me down like she wasn't scared of a damn thing.
Damn it.
I threw on a black sweatshirt and pants, grabbed my helmet, and rode off.
I knew where she lived. I'm not proud of it, but the tracker on her new car gave me the address. I parked across the street from her building, leaned on my bike, and waited.
But that wasn't enough.
I moved closer, hiding behind a tree just across from her porch. The street was dimly lit-dark enough for me to become one with the shadows. Just like I was trained.
A pizza guy arrived.
And then I saw her.
She came out in those tempting little shorts and hoodie, bare legs and sleepy eyes, hair slightly tousled like she'd just rolled out of bed. She grabbed the pizza, then paused-her eyes scanned the street, sensing something. Almost like she knew I was there.
Smart girl.
But when I saw the delivery guy give her a once-over, I nearly saw red. I waited until he turned the corner, then followed him quietly. Let's just say he earned himself a busted nose and a swollen lip for looking too long.
After that, I returned to my post.
I looked up just in time to see her silhouette by the window, then the lights turned off.
---
I returned home just before sunrise, the sky starting to stain with a hint of orange and grey.
The ride back should've calmed me. It didn't.
I parked my bike, kicked off my boots at the front steps, and walked straight into the kitchen. The house was still, most of my guys asleep or passed out in the lower quarters.
I pulled a beer from the fridge-not because I wanted it, but because I needed something to occupy my hands. My thoughts? Already occupied.
By her.
Little storm. Raven Voss.
There was something about her. The way she moved. The way she stared me down with fire in her veins like she had no idea who I really was. Or maybe... she just didn't care.
I should've let it go. Walked away after the accident. Handled it, moved on, kept my distance.
But I couldn't.
Something about her kept dragging me back.
I sat at the edge of the kitchen counter, bottle still unopened in my hand, staring out the window like I could still see her standing in her doorway.
Then my burner phone buzzed-two short vibrations.
I flipped it open and saw the message from one of my tech guys.
> Vortex firewall restored. Breach sealed from internal node. Trace logs wiped clean.
My brow lifted.
She did it.
Not only did she patch the breach-I couldn't even trace her movement through the system. Clean. Precise. Ruthless.
My lips twitched.
Damn, she was good.
Which raised one big question.
What the hell was a techie like that doing keeping her skills buried?
And what else was she hiding?
Just as I was about to toss the burner aside, it vibrated again.
Another message. Same number.
Only this time, the words made my blood run cold.
> You need to keep an eye on her. She's on someone else's radar.
I froze.
Someone else?
Who the hell is watching my little storm... besides me?
---