Chapter 189

Nine’s Global Defense System…
He’d tried to hack it himself so many times, but always came up empty. How did Lottie get in? Or maybe the real question was, what was her connection to Nine?
Charlotte’s hands flew across the keyboard, typing faster and faster as lines of code filled the screen. She was building something incredible right before their eyes. Then, a mechanical chime broke the silence.
Beep…
“Global Defense System, level three firewall established.”
In less than a minute, a security system that had been frozen for years roared back
to life, its defense level rising higher and higher. Every bit of it was Lottie’s work.
Beep… beep… “Level six firewall established.”
Beep… beep… beep… “Level ten firewall established.”
“Global Defense System is now fully operational. Facial recognition required to save file. Nine, please face the camera.”
Still a little dazed, Charlotte raised her head. The scan completed with a soft click.
Anthony was right there, leaning against the arm of her chair, watching everything unfold. His dark eyes narrowed, a slow and knowing smile curving his lips. So, Nine…
The mysterious, world-class hacker he’d been trying to track down with all his resources was the very person living under his own roof. Suddenly, it all clicked. That night Lottie barged into his study, all fired up-it was because he nearly exposed her ID.
Little liar. How many secrets was she still hiding from him?
Anthony’s mouth twitched with amusement. He bent down and gently scooped up Charlotte, who had fallen asleep at her desk, and carried her back to bed.
As he watched her sleep, his mind wandered back to that unexpected kiss in the car. His lips pulled into a fond smile, his gaze softening with an affection he could hardly disguise. He leaned down and pressed a tender kiss to her forehead.
“Now we’re even,” he whispered.
Charlotte couldn’t handle her alcohol at all. Usually, she wouldn’t even tough the stuff dust two sips of fruit wine and she’d slept through most” of the day.
When she finally woke up, it was already morning.
She sat up slowly, rubbing her aching temples as she tried to remember what had happened. She recalled leaving school, getting into Anthony’s car and fola god did she climb onto his lap? Everything after that was a blank.
She knew she got drunk easily, but she’d always thought she was a quiet, harmless drunk. There was no way she’d done anything crazy. That had to be the case. Reassured, she göt ready and headed downstairs.
There he was. Anthony, sharp as ever in his well-tailored suit, holding a mug of coffee, looking impossibly elegant and just a little intimidating.
“Good morning, Charlotte.”
“Morning, Helen.”
Charlotte managed a calm, polite smile as she took her usual seat at the table and reached for some toast, keeping her face completely unreadable.
Anthony set his coffee down and leaned back, fingers laced together on the table, a teasing, irresistible smile playing on his lips.
Charlotte glanced up and immediately locked eyes with him. Her heart skipped a beat. For some reason, she felt guilty.
“Lottie, you were drunk last night.”
The words made her stomach flip, but she kept her face steady. “Mm,” she replied, as if it was no big deal.
“You’re not curious about what you did?” Anthony straightened, pouring her a glass of warm milk, his voice light, almost playful.
Charlotte felt her cheeks burn. She must have done something embarrassing. “I was drunk. I don’t remember.”
Trying to play innocent?
“Alright,” Anthony laughed softly, his voice low and smooth. “Why don’t you try and remember? If you can’t, I’ll be happy to help jog your memory.”