The Hacker - Nancy Herkness Page 0,6

the gym earlier today. The amount of traffic passing through it was extraordinary. It’s no wonder that the streaming had no bandwidth to utilize. Now I am thoroughly intrigued but have no authority to intervene. Perhaps the problem will recur, in which case I am eager to be at your service.

Dawn rocked back in the puffy chair. He’d already looked into the problem . . . and found something weird. She didn’t know what caused “traffic” on a Wi-Fi router other than streaming videos and gaming. There was no use pursuing that now since it must have stopped.

The words that she came back to were: “I am eager to be at your service.” Was that just his southern courtesy or did he mean it?

It didn’t matter because Vicky had gotten the Wi-Fi fixed.

Thanks for taking a look at the issue. The traffic is weird but I guess it’s gone now. I appreciate your time. I’ll let you know if there’s any more trouble.

And that was the end of that. She waited a minute but Leland must have agreed with her because he didn’t respond. What more was there to say anyway?

Leland rested his elbows on the arms of his chair and steepled his fingers as he reread Dawn’s email. Nothing to indicate she wanted anything further from him. He stared at the ceiling for a long moment before he hit the delete key. He had the idle thought that a delete key in his brain would be useful too. He’d like to erase the disappointment he felt at not having a reason to communicate further with her. Their exchanges had given him a surprising amount of entertainment.

An internal message from Derek popped up on his screen.

Leland, can you come to my office in ten?

Leland glanced at the programs running on his screens and sent back: “Yes.” He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes as he hoped like hell this wasn’t another well-meant but misguided intervention from his partner. Both Derek and Tully had the idea that he was working himself too hard because he was trying to somehow forget his mother’s death three months before. They didn’t understand that he was honoring her. She was the one who had taught him his work ethic. Every project he completed was a tribute to her.

Ten minutes later, he braced himself mentally and sauntered into Derek’s corner office with the wraparound windows that showcased the towers of Manhattan, now blazing with myriad shades of artificial lights. Leland had a similar office that he almost never used, preferring his computer cave. Tully’s office faced the Hudson River because he liked to watch the boat traffic.

Tully was already seated on the leather sofa with his sock-covered feet propped up on the coffee table, his cowboy boots resting neatly side by side on the carpet. Derek sat in a chrome-and-leather chair opposite him, looking like a casting director’s image of the perfect consultant in his custom-tailored navy suit, albeit without a necktie.

It was a bad sign that both of them were there, especially in the evening. They seemed to feel it was okay to deal with personal stuff after normal work hours.

“You’re here late,” Leland said to Derek as he eased into a chair beside Tully. Since his partner had fallen in love with Dawn’s friend Alice, Derek spent more time out of the office, although he often worked from home.

“I have a personal request,” Derek said.

Leland steepled his fingers again as he waited with a faint sense of dread.

“You’re the only person I know who can do that and pull it off,” Tully said, imitating Leland’s gesture. “When I do it, I look like an asshole.”

“I could say that you always look like an asshole but it would be unkind,” Leland said.

Derek gave them a tight smile. “Could we focus here?”

“My posture indicates that I am focused,” Leland said.

“Right.” Derek cleared his throat. “Now that Alice and I are engaged, we are planning a wedding.”

“That generally follows an engagement.” Leland restrained himself from doing a fist pump of relief. This meeting wasn’t about him.

“Unless you elope.” Tully sounded hopeful. “I’ll drive the getaway vehicle.”

“We’re not eloping,” Derek said.

“Do you have a date yet?” Tully asked.

“As soon as possible,” Derek said. “Which means in about six months.”

“Your Alice is very organized,” Leland said. “Most New York metro–area weddings take at least a year to plan. Unless you’re considering a destination wedding?”

“We’re not . . .” Derek glared at his friends and partners. “Trying to