Heart-Shaped Hack (5 page)

“Of course not. I do all my work from the Batcave. Believe it or not, I actually bank here. I was just signing some papers.”

Kate had never seen a man look so utterly scrumptious while wearing glasses. There was something about the combination of his hair, his scruff, and the semi-rimless designer frames that made him irresistible. “Are the glasses a disguise? Because I totally knew it was you.”

“The glasses are real. I often suffer from eyestrain since I spend so much time on the computer, and I was up late last night, working.”

“They make you look very smart.” She took a moment to imagine how his scruff would feel rubbing against her skin if he were to kiss her.

“I am smart, but I think you mean devastatingly handsome. More so than normal, that is.”

“You’re so humble.”

“Ready?” He walked to the door and held it open for her.

“Yes.”

“Follow me.” He looked at her and laughed. “That shouldn’t be a problem for you.”

They took the elevator to the basement, and when the doors opened to the parking garage, Kate followed Ian to a row of cars. He stopped beside one and pulled a set of keys from his pocket.

She gasped.

Ian smiled. “It’s a—”

“1964 Shelby Daytona Cobra Coupe.”

“’65. But color me impressed.”

“My brother Chad was obsessed with this car. He used to have a poster of it on his bedroom wall. There were only six built between 1964 and 1965.”

“A bit rare indeed.”

The last authentic Shelby had sold at auction for around seven million. Ian’s was obviously a replica, of which there were quite a few, but it was still a very notable vehicle with a price tag that started in the low six figures. “Helena called it an old blue car.”

He grinned, looking contemplative. “Technically, that is correct.”

Kate could not resist running her hand lightly over the Guardsman Blue paint and the white racing stripes on the hood. The Shelby was unmistakably race-car-like in appearance with its aerodynamic design and unique body style. Chad was going to be so jealous. “For someone who values his privacy, isn’t this a bit ostentatious?”

“How so?”

“Rakishly handsome playboy who makes grand philanthropic gestures and drives a flashy car. Any of this ringing a bell?”

“Rakishly handsome playboy?”

“Well, if the Prada loafer fits. Wouldn’t you fly under the radar more easily in, say, a Ford Focus?” she asked.

“A Ford Focus? You want me to tool around town in a Ford Focus? Jesus, would I still have my balls?”

“No, they cut them off when they hand you the keys. Of course you’d still have your balls. What kind of question is that? This conversation has gotten way off track.”

“You mean because we started out talking about my car and now we’re talking about my balls?”

“Are we?”

“I believe so.”

“Maybe we should go back to talking about your car.”

“You want to drive it, don’t you?”

“Why would I want to drive your car?”

“Why
wouldn’t
you want to drive my car? Can you handle a stick shift?”

“Yes, and rather competently I might add.”

“That’s an enormous turn-on. Truly.”

She pretended not to hear him. “This is not a good car for Minnesota winters.”

“Horrible, I agree. My other car has four-wheel drive, but it’s not nearly as fun to operate as this one.” Ian dangled the keys in front of her.

He was right. Kate was dying to drive his car and couldn’t wait to see how it handled. She took the keys, opened the door, and reached over to unlock the passenger side for Ian. They belted up, and she started the car.

“Please note that I’m already making good on my promise, Katie. Because I assure you, driving this car will be the opposite of boring.”

Kate maneuvered the car through the city streets, familiarizing herself with the dashboard and getting a feel for the clutch. To his credit, Ian remained calm, not giving her any pointers or questioning her driving skills in the least. Heads turned as they drove by, and Kate felt like she was on display.

“People are looking at us,” she said.

“No one is looking at us.”

“Everyone we’ve driven by has looked at us.”

“They’re probably just looking at you.”

“Yes, I’m sure that’s it.” She adjusted the mirror. “Do you care if I take this out on the open road?”

“I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.”

Kate made her way down University Avenue toward the Central Avenue intersection where she would pick up Highway 65.

“My first car was a stick,” she said. “I wanted to pull my hair out when I was learning, but now that I drive an automatic, I really miss it. We did a lot of driving back home, and my girlfriends and I spent many Saturday nights driving too fast down dark country roads, looking for the party. I’m from Indiana. Zionsville to be specific. It’s near Indianapolis. I moved here for my undergrad at the University of Minnesota and then stayed for law school. My parents and my brother Chad still live there. Or did you already know that?”

He gave her a look that said
Aren’t you cute
?

Kate chuckled at her naiveté. “Of course. What was I thinking?”

“Any plans to move back?”

“Probably not. I like it here, and I see my family often. Either they come to visit me or I fly home. What about you? How does a native Texan end up in frigid Minnesota?”

“I was just passing through and decided to stay. I own a computer security company and work from home, so I can live anywhere I want.”

“That’s fantastic!” Kate tried to hide her relief at the revelation that Ian was involved in something other than illegal activities, but she wasn’t very convincing.

“Oh my God,” Ian said. “You really did think I was some kind of common thug.”

Kate shook her head vehemently. “No I didn’t.”

“Yes you did,” he said, mimicking her.

Kate decided to come clean. “Well, can you blame me? You’re all ‘I hack whoever and whatever I want,’ and then you swoop in with bags of cash which you freely admit you’ve stolen.”

“I have my reasons for stealing from cyberthieves, but it isn’t because I need their money. I have a substantial income of my own, which I obtain via highly legitimate means. And I like cash because it isn’t traceable. You really shouldn’t assume, Katie.”

“So what is it that you do, exactly?”

“I specialize in penetration testing. Pentesting for short. I’m incredibly good at it.”

“I’ve never heard of that. That sounds made up.”

“I assure you it’s a real thing. Penetration testing is when I hack away at you until I penetrate your defenses. Once I’m in, I go as deep as I can until I’m as far inside as you’ll let me go.”

“Are we still talking about your company?”

“Aren’t we?”

“You said ‘penetrate
my
defenses.’ And ‘get in as deep as you can until you’re as far inside me as I’ll let you go.’”

“Freudian slip. I meant that companies hire me to penetrate their computer systems so I can identify their weaknesses. I wonder how tricky you’ll be.”

Kate bit her lip to keep from smiling. “You just did it again.”

“Really? That’s interesting. Anyway, once I show a client all the alarming ways their computer systems can be compromised, I charge them an exorbitant amount of money to make sure it won’t ever happen.”

“And they don’t mind paying it?”

“People will pay any price when you exploit their weaknesses.”

“If you’re a legitimate business owner, then what’s with all the cloak and dagger? Like not telling me your last name, which is just silly, by the way.”

“It’s not in a hacker’s nature to share personal information. Anonymity is kind of our thing. And sometimes I hack into things I’m not supposed to,” he said. “For fun.”

“How shocking.”

“And
occasionally
I find myself in a bit of hot water, which I prefer to keep other people out of.”

“So the anonymity is to protect the people you associate with.”

“In a manner of speaking, yes.”

“You could have just told me that.”

“I’ve already said too much. For some reason, being around you is like swallowing truth serum. Your beauty disarms me.”

“Thank goodness I possess at least one weapon I can use against you.”

“Your legs are another.”

Kate laughed. “I’ll have to remember that.”

She increased her speed, waiting until she’d redlined the engine before shifting into fourth. She loved that sound, and there were few things more fun than driving a fast car. She could see out of the corner of her eye that Ian was watching her. It was equal parts unnerving and exhilarating.

She passed the other cars, weaving expertly in and out of the lanes, loving the way the car handled. When the traffic finally thinned out, she pressed down on the gas pedal until the speedometer was just under seventy-five.

“Come on, you can do better than that,” Ian said. “How long has it been since you’ve had a speeding ticket?”

“Years. I can’t remember the last time I got pulled over.”

“Then what are you waiting for? If you get caught, I’ll pay the fine. As long as you keep it under a hundred, you won’t lose your license.”

Kate loved to listen to loud music when she drove on the highway, and listening to something old-school—Aerosmith, maybe—would be really fun in the Shelby. Purists balked at adding a stereo, but most replica owners installed them anyway, even if it did reduce the true Shelby experience. Ian’s car had no radio of any kind in the dash. It didn’t even look like there was a place for one.

“You’re sure about this?” Kate asked, already easing the gas pedal toward the floor. Whoever built this car had likely spent a lot of time on it, and she was surprised Ian wasn’t acting more concerned.

“Positive.” He reached over and yanked on her seatbelt to make sure it was tight.

Kate accelerated. There was a fairly empty stretch of road ahead, so she kept her foot on the pedal as the speedometer inched toward eighty-five, ninety, ninety-five. She realized that music would have actually detracted from the experience because the sound of the engine, loud and raw and unbridled, was all she needed.

There were two cars up ahead, one in front of her on the left and one on the right. Luckily, neither of them were police cars because Kate flew around the first and, as soon as she passed it, had to immediately swerve back into the other lane. She lost herself in the sensation, feeling more invigorated than she had in a long time.

“Go, baby, go,” Ian shouted.

She continued on that way, passing cars when she encountered them. When she checked her speed, she experienced a moment of exhilarating panic because the needle hovered just below one hundred and ten. A little voice inside her head warned that she would surely lose her license if she came upon a policeman. She told that voice to shut up. Besides, she walked to work.

Kate spotted a cluster of taillights up ahead, which would leave her no room to pass, and she reluctantly began decelerating. She was surprised at how
slow
ninety felt as she brought her speed down to a more acceptable level. A few miles down the road, she pointed to an exit sign which listed several options for gas and food. “Shall I pull off here?”

“That depends. Have you satisfied your need for speed?”

She laughed. “For now. But you might have created a monster.”

“Come on over to the dark side, Katie. I’ll save you a seat next to me.”

Kate nosed the car into a parking space at a restaurant whose sign promised the best charcuterie in Minneapolis.

She followed Ian inside, and after the waitress seated them, Kate said, “That was absolutely incredible.”

“I agree. Watching you drive my car was one of the hottest things I’ve ever seen. The only thing that would have made it better is if you’d been wearing a skirt. But even in jeans it was awesome.”

“Driving your car while wearing a skirt might be difficult.”

He looked perplexed. “Not if it was short enough.”

“You’re shameless.”

Ian opened his menu. “When do you need to be back?”

“I don’t. I left Helena in charge. She’s closing up today.”

“I promised you lunch over an hour ago. You must be starving by now.”

“A little. Should we see if they’re right about the charcuterie? There’s a sharing platter.” Kate had fallen in love with the dish—basically an assortment of salty and tangy cured meat—in college.

“Drives fast, likes meat. I might have to marry you.”

Kate looked at him pointedly. “You forgot pretty.”

Ian started laughing. “You’re like a breath of fresh air. Really you are.”

They gave their order to the waitress and asked for tall draft beers to go along with their meal.

“One of the conditions of this date was that you would no longer be accessing my computer. Have you kept your word?” Kate had googled whether she’d be able to detect the presence of a backdoor, but she’d learned it would require more technical knowledge than she currently possessed. And if the hacker who’d put it there was halfway competent, it would be nearly impossible.

“Katie,” he said, looking offended. “Of course I have.”

“I hope so, because my next browsing session is going to be epic.”

His eyes grew big and he leaned forward. “Tell me.”

“No.”

“It’s going to be something dirty, isn’t it?”

She gave him her best sultry look. “Boy, is it ever.” Kate was actually planning on watching hair tutorials on YouTube, but she couldn’t resist the opportunity to tease him a little.

“You can’t just dangle things like that in front of me. I’m not that strong.”

“You’ll have to be. That was our agreement.”

“Okay. But you didn’t say anything about staying out of your dating account, so I might have made a few enhancements to your profile picture.”

“Yes, I saw that and updated my bio accordingly.”

The waitress set down their beers, and after Kate took a drink, she said, “How did you remain so calm when I was going one hundred and ten miles an hour?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. You seemed to know what you were doing. Why, would you not be as calm in the passenger seat if I was driving that fast?”