Hardpressed Read Online Free PDF Page A

wrapped up in the intensity of it.”
    “You’re right. I’m already getting into a better mind-set, you know, the more time we spend apart.” She took a deep breath. “Anyway, enough about me and my problems. What about you and Blake? Is he still driving you crazy?”
    “You know it.”
    “In a good way or a bad way?”
    “Both, but we’re figuring it out.”
    She gave me a grin. “I think Blake has met his match with you, Erica.”
    “Oh?”
    “Yeah, I’m sure you don’t take any of his shit. Mr. Software Billionaire probably has no idea how to deal with you putting him in his place.”
    I laughed at the picture she drew of us. She might have been right. I couldn’t imagine many people challenging Blake the way I did. I did it for self-preservation though, not sport. Still, the tug of war drove us both crazy. Mostly good crazy.
    “He keeps me on my toes, and he could probably say the same about me. Never a dull moment, that’s for sure.” I smiled to myself and my heart did a little flip at the thought of him. Blake was full of challenges. I never knew what the hell to expect from him, but that was just another part of our relationship that I couldn't get enough of. The rush, the negotiating, and when the occasion called for it, the sweet surrender.
    “Okay, the look on your face is making me nauseous.”
    I laughed. “Sorry.”
    “Don't be. I'm just bitter and lonely. Anyway, stand your ground. I know you will, but those Landon men can be pretty damn persuasive.”
    She looked serious for a minute, then a smile curved her lips and we burst into a fit of laughter.
    *
    Walking into the office still took me aback sometimes. The space looked great with the subtle lighting and sleek workstations. Sid sat next to two of the newest team members. I leaned on the desk they huddled around. They paused and looked up.
    “What’s new, guys?”
    Chris was about a decade older than we were. This wasn't his first job at a start-up, so he brought some experience that most of us lacked. A heavyset guy, he had bright red hair that was overgrown and curled up at his shoulders. Based on the past week’s attire, he seemed to have an affinity for Hawaiian shirts.
    On the other end of the spectrum, we had hired James as our dedicated designer and front-end developer. He was a different brand. With a mop of nearly black wavy hair, tanned skin, and bright blue eyes, he was by far the most naturally outgoing of the entire crew. Well-built with a touch of bad boy about him thanks to some ink that peeked out from his button-downs, he wasn't hard to look at either.
    “Morning, Erica.” He flashed a smile that caught me off guard.
    I smiled back, surprised at being greeted with such enthusiasm so early in the morning. Good hire , I thought.
    Sid blew out a breath, apparently not sharing James’s mid-morning peppiness. “We’re trying to figure out a plan for rolling out the upgrades we talked about, but it’s a little hard with this band of misfits trying to take us down twenty-four hours a day.”
    “Uh-oh.” I cringed a little, having no idea how to go about technically fixing this problem beyond harping on Blake to work his magic. He’d been frustratingly vague about his association with M89, but clearly, due to whatever he’d done to piss them off so royally, the hackers were not going to give up easily.
    “Anyway, we’re figuring it out. Don’t worry about it.” He scowled and focused on the monitor, stopping periodically to jot down some notes.
    “Can I help?”
    “Nope.”
    His answer was predictably curt. For the Sid I’d come to know, who was regularly grumpy due to his erratic sleep schedule, being met with challenges at ten in the morning was unacceptable. I rolled my eyes and caught James smirking.
    “Keep me posted.” I pushed off the desk and disappeared behind the Chinese curtain partitioning my office from the rest of the space. Due to the size of the room and the budget, I’d decided to forgo