“She sounds like she has the right idea.” I shrugged as we meandered over to my original cabin and Rodney waved us in. We met with his bunkmates, Melanie and Lorenzo. We all sipped the coffee Rodney made, and he told us he was excited for the rest of the day.
We went swimming and paddleboarding, met more of the team, and enjoyed what felt like a vacation. There were sixteen of us, so we could hang with some in the cabin if we didn’t want to swim, grill with others if we didn’t want to sunbathe, or catch up with old friends if we didn’t want to engage with new ones.
Cade texted once to tell me to come eat, and I rolled my eyes because it was probably a reminder that I hadn’t gone to have lunch with him. Was he watching me out here with everyone? Was he at all interested in coming out to be part of the fun?
Lucas caught me staring at our cabin while we sat in the sand, munching on a few leftovers from the grill. He nudged me. “How’s living with the infamous Cade?”
What did I say to that? “He’s definitely different from what I thought he would be.”
“I want more than that and you know it.” Lucas nodded as a few people passed us and waved.
“I don’t know. He works a lot, obviously. He’s mostly on his computer. But he eats cereal, which . . . I didn’t exactly expect.”
“You know, when he’s with his brother and Dante, they seem different,” Lucas muttered, pulling up pictures on his phone. That was the life Cade lived. He’d be photographed with his family because they were the Armanellis, but when he was alone, people let him be.
I shrugged as I looked at a picture of him laughing with a little girl, security surrounding them. The headline read, “Rare Spotting: Billionaire Tech Mogul and Alleged Mobster Caden Armanelli Enjoys Day with His Niece, Ivy, Heiress to the Bratva.”
“So, he loves his infamous family,” I murmured, but the words and the picture stirred something in me. Something a lot like insecurity started as a tiny snowball and rolled down the hill, growing and growing in size. He had this big life, this family that he never talked about but obviously enjoyed, and I wanted to know more about it. More about him.
The feeling scared me. We were supposed to just be having fun.
“Right? He looks so damn human here other than the men in suits around him. Seeing him every day, the concepts of tech billionaire and mobster fit, but he’s not as happy as this picture shows. Unless he’s with his niece, maybe.”
To most of the world, though, he wasn’t human. He was like a mutant that could hack into all their data, and everyone feared him for that.
“I wonder if it’s hard for him to know everyone’s secrets and be normal?” I pondered out loud, thinking of the conversation I’d had with him in the cabin. We all had our crosses to bear.
“Maybe if we get him to participate in some of the trust exercises later this week, we can ask him.” Lucas chuckled, like the idea was ludicrous.
Quite frankly, it was. Seeing that picture of him had reminded me how out of my depth I was with him. I was fooling around with a mobster, a billionaire, and a man who could cause destruction to just about anyone he wanted.
Instead of going back to my cabin, I avoided him. I avoided the situation. I reminded myself that indulging in my stupid desires was what had gotten me into trouble in the first place years ago.
I wouldn’t do that again.
I was here to showcase my work on JUNIPER, to teach people how effective we could be as a team. This was what the retreat was supposed to be about—getting to know one another so we could trust each other when the time came to learn JUNIPER, to implement it, and to be the best team we could be, for the good of the country.
Rodney came to hang out with us just as the sun set. Right before the bonfire, I told Lucas I had to go back to my cabin to change.
“Change for what? We love you in your bikini top and skirt,” Rodney joked, his innocent flirting a welcome distraction in the latter part of the day. Not that he was the only one, I’d seen a few people doing the same today. We were all having a good time.
It was probably not the smartest professional move, but again, everyone had come from different states to learn about JUNIPER to prepare for the election. We weren’t going to see each other again, so there was really no HR protocol, and with most everyone being single, except for one or two people, hookups were bound to happen.
I was single, aside from my very hot boss whom I was sharing a cabin and a bed with, even though I’d never wanted to. The boss whose hands I thought about every chance I got. The boss who was a billionaire tech mogul that I needed to stay away from.
I was single, I repeated to myself as I smiled at Rodney. Very single. “I’ll get bit by mosquitos and be freezing if I wear this all night.”
Rodney chuckled, yanked his hoodie over his head, and pushed it over mine. The warmth of it wrapped around me fast as he pulled my arms through and stood back to look at me in his clothes. “There. You’re all set now.”
I rolled my eyes but smiled at his wink, while Lucas whistled. “Rodney knows a good-looking woman dressed nice when he sees one.”
We made our way to the campfire and found Adirondack chairs to lounge in. I silenced my phone, knowing this was going to be more of an intimate setting, and ignored the numerous texts I had from Gerald, my family, and even Cade.
I couldn’t avoid glancing over at his cabin, though. It glowed bright even as the horizon dimmed behind it. He hadn’t come out to socialize all day, and it was a good reminder that he wasn’t one of us. I probably wouldn’t see him all night until I went back to our cabin.
The bubbly blonde event coordinator, Ms. Heather, practically skipped over to the sixteen of us in our Adirondack chairs as the moon showed its face. “I’m so happy you’ve all made it. I believe Mr. Armanelli should be on his way soon. He’s informed me”—she waited a beat as if to make sure we had all noted that she was speaking directly with him—“that he’s made some tweaks to JUNIPER and has been working on other classified projects so far this week.”
I caught the grunt before it flew out my mouth. If my pussy were classified, he’d worked on it very well.
“He’s sorry for his absence but is so excited to meet everyone tonight. There will be a bartender, and food stations are set up for dinner, which we’ll have after we go over introductions. Because this is team building, we’d like everyone to introduce the person to the right of them, and from there, please tell us how you got into cybersecurity.”
Everyone went around the circle. We’d all already met and had a great day, so the introductions felt like cheesy formalities.
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.”