Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 93002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
Hawk gave a solemn nod, then added, “If you can’t crack that code, you should go to Atlanta. Talk to Emmett in person. And while you’re there, Lucas Jackson.”
“Why Lucas?” I asked, curious. I’d seen Lucas from a distance when he came to go over his system after the night everything had gone haywire, but I’d never talked to him.
“Because you’re not just good at coding, you’re good at code-breaking—two different things that aren’t actually that far apart. And if you’re interested in both, once you learn the things you need to know, Lucas will probably have some work for you. And between them, Lucas and Emmett can tell you how to learn the things you don’t know and can’t learn in those online coding classes. You follow me?”
I thought I did, and the idea of not just knowing how to write programs—not just shaping the code to create my visions but getting into cybersecurity—sent a thrill through my heart. “You think I could do that?”
“Oh, yeah,” he said. “Whenever you’re ready, give me a heads-up.”
“Thanks, Hawk.”
“Anything for you, Sterling. Soon enough, you’re going to be my little sister for real. And if your guy messes up again, let me know. I’d be more than happy to beat him up for you.”
“You’re the best,” I said, leaning in to give him a tight hug.
He went stiff for a microsecond before those big arms came around me, and an awkward pat landed in the middle of my back.
I headed for the door and then turned. “Hey! You never said when you were going to ask her.”
“Soon,” Hawk said, his dark eyes lit from within. “Soon. Thanks for, you know.” He patted his pocket where the ring lay safe until he was ready to give it to Quinn.
“Any time,” I said. “You just let me know when I can get started with wedding planning.”
“I’ll keep you posted,” he said, scooping up Leo once more and following me to the door.
I skipped down the steps of the gatehouse, my heart light, my head spinning with ideas. So many things I hadn’t thought of. It hadn’t occurred to me to ask Hawk to talk to the guys at Sinclair Security. It hadn’t occurred to me that Hawk would speak up for Forrest.
It hadn’t occurred to me that I was brave.
Hawk was one of the bravest people I knew. And if he thought I was, too, maybe it was time I did some reevaluating. Maybe it was time to take a risk and see how brave I really was.
Chapter Nineteen
STERLING
Iwasn’t usually the first one at dinner. Most often, that was Parker, accompanied by Nash unless he was out of town for business. But for the past few days, the lightness I’d felt immediately after talking to Hawk had faded. Now that the possibility that I could forgive Forrest had been introduced, I’d been restless, my mind shifting from my conversation with Hawk to the cipher in the peppermint tin to Forrest. Mostly to Forrest. I didn’t want to think about Forrest. Hadn’t I spent enough time thinking about him?
I couldn’t settle. Instead, I ping-ponged around the house. My room felt too small. The family gathering room too big. The outdoors too hot and sunny. I’d helped Quinn with a canoeing trip that morning, finished up some paperwork at Sawyer Outdoor Adventures, and came home to stare at the cipher again. Not that this time was different than the other million times I’d studied it. I was missing something, and I didn’t have the slightest idea what it was. I wasn’t ready to ask for help yet. I would, if it came to that, but I was still stuck on the stare at it and hope something makes sense approach.
I ended up on the first floor, on my way to nowhere, and heard Savannah in the dining room setting the table. With nothing else to do, I stopped in to help her.
“Sterling, I’ve got it,” she protested with a smile, her strawberry curls escaping her neat braid, welcome in her gray eyes.
I grabbed the silverware anyway. “I know,” I said, “but I’m bored and annoyed with myself.”
“Haven’t cracked the code yet, huh?” she asked.
There were no secrets in Heartstone Manor, especially not from Savannah, our all-knowing, all-powerful housekeeper. She was only a few years older than me, but it felt like there was a lifetime between us. Savannah was one of the most capable people I knew. She made running Heartstone Manor look easy, but I’d grown up there. I understood how much it took to keep the place going, especially with a skeleton staff. Until we found my father’s killer, we were living under high security. Too high to risk the kind of staff Savannah really needed. But even with all those restrictions, she made it look easy, and I was continually impressed with her. There wasn’t much she couldn’t do.