“You would have had to close this off anyway,” he said, placing the grate and drywall aside.

“Don’t we need vents... you know, to breathe and all?”

“Yes, Miss Smarty Ass. But there are ways to make sure they are secure.”

“Did you just call me Miss Smarty Ass?”

“That’s what you are.” Smitty pulled a small flashlight from his back pocket and leaned down to look into the vent. “Is there actually something here, in this building, that someone would feel the need to break in?”

“Computer equipment, I guess. But it would take a major effort to get the desktops out of here since each one is locked to its desk. And we don’t allow anyone to use laptops in the office except Pack. And we take ours wherever we go.”

“Hhhm. Then why would someone try and break in here, Jessie Ann? Since it don’t look like y’all have much to steal that isn’t locked down.”

She didn’t answer him and he wasn’t shocked. Smitty knew when someone was lying to him, and Jessie Ann was lying her cute little ass off. Something was wrong. Really wrong. And the whole “locking down the office thing” was merely a way to push her hand. He had no idea she’d go through with it. As soon as she realized how much this would cost her, Smitty thought for sure she or one of her friends would put a stop to it. He’d tried to trip up each of them as this progressed, finally getting to meet the people so close to Jessie, including “dancing dog Phil.” But they kept their mouths shut and signed whatever his team put in front of them until Sabina muttered something about putting Smitty’s company on retainer.

Stubborn little SOBs, weren’t they?

Letting out a tired breath, Jessie sat down on the floor, her back resting against the wall. “I should have gotten some coffee. Now I’m too tired to get up and get any.”

“Want me to get you some?”

She gave a faint smile. “No, but thanks for offering.”

Clicking off the flashlight and closing the door, Smitty sat down next to her. His leg brushed against hers and he felt her body tense the slightest bit.

“All right, Jessie Ann, cough it up. What aren’t you telling me?”

“Nothing.” And if he didn’t know her, he’d probably believe her.

“Woman, you are lying to me. I can’t help you if you lie to me.”

“I didn’t ask for your goddamn help.”

Smitty leaned forward, resting his arms on his raised knees. “I’m fixin’ to get mad, Jessie.”

“You’re fixin’ to get mad?”

“Yeah.”

“Why don’t you just get mad?”

“I’m not there yet. But I will be if you don’t start talking to me.”

Jessie pushed herself toher feet. “I have nothing to say.”

He watched that cute little ass walk across the room to the door. Was that what she’d been planning to wear out tonight with him? Ripped black jeans with gray thermal leggings underneath, a Chicago Blackhawks hockey jersey that reached to her knees, and white high-top sneakers.

Maybe she was trying a little too hard not to make an effort? Although now all he wanted to do was get those clothes off her and see what the hell she was hiding.

Why did she insist on driving him crazy? Well, hell... two canines could play this game of tug.

She had her hands on the door handle when he asked, “Does this have anything to do with the kiss?”

And he almost felt real bad when that door smacked her right in the face.

Jess gripped her forehead and spun around to stare at Smitty. “What kiss?”

He slowly got to those big wolf feet. “The kiss we almost had sixteen years ago.”

“Why would anything have to do with that kiss that never happened?”

Smitty gave her an indulgent smile. “Now, Jessie Ann, we both know how you felt about me.”

“How I—”

“And maybe you still feel that way so you’re afraid to get too close to me. To trust me. To—now, Jessie, let’s not start throwing things.”

Jess held an old 60-gig external hard drive in her hand that she’d grabbed from one of the shelves. The thing weighed a ton. It would cave his head in quite nicely.

“I’m just trying to find out the truth.”

“And you’re doing that how?” She didn’t want to talk about that night. The night he’d pushed her away. Always a late bloomer, sixteen-year-old Jess still hadn’t had her first kiss by then mostly because she’d wanted that kiss to come from Smitty. But he’d hurt her that night when he pushed her away. Not physically, of course, but emotionally her young, way-too-romantic heart had been crushed.

Even now, sixteen years later, she still didn’t want to have this discussion. She could already feel her cheeks heating from embarrassment, remembering how she wasn’t cute or hot enough to get a drunk boy to kiss her. What girl couldn’t manage something that simple from the weak? Apparently she couldn’t.

Already she could feel her embarrassment turning to anger. No, she didn’t want this discussion. She didn’t want to hop down memory lane with Bobby Ray Smith. Not now, not ever.

“You know, Jessie, I’m of the mind if we get that kiss out of the way, maybe you could focus on the bigger issues right in front of you.”

Huh. Look at that. Her leash just snapped.

Good thing he was fast because that heavy piece of metal came right for his head. Smitty stepped to one side and it went sailing by.