Tempting the Billionaire and His Heir

Alexa sat on the couch in Cody’s living room, idly flipping through TV channels while Cody paced around the room, muttering to himself. He had been like this ever since Jade had brought up Anthony Brown, and it was starting to get on Alexa’s nerves.

Finally, unable to take it anymore, she turned to him and asked, “What’s going on with you, Cody? You’ve been acting weird for days now.”

Cody paused in his pacing and glared at her. “What do you mean, acting weird? I’m fine.”

“You’re clearly not fine,” Alexa countered. “You’ve been pacing around and muttering to yourself. Is it because of what Jade said about Anthony Brown?”

Cody’s face darkened. “Yeah, it is. I can’t stop thinking about it. I’m glad I didn’t choose Jade to take on that job.”

Alexa raised an eyebrow. “Why’s that? You seemed pretty impressed with her skills.”NôvelDrama.Org: text © owner.

“I was,” Cody admitted. “But now I’m starting to think she’s not as trustworthy as I thought she was. I mean, she’s practically drooling over Anthony Brown. What if she tries to double-cross us?”

“Double-cross us?” Alexa repeated incredulously. “What are you talking about?”

Cody sighed and sat down next to her. “Look, you know how important this job is to me. If we mess this up, we could both end up in jail. That’s why I need someone I can trust to handle it. And I trust you, Alexa. I chose you for this job because I know you’re loyal and you won’t let me down.”

Alexa was taken aback by Cody’s words. She had never thought of herself as particularly trustworthy or loyal; in fact, she had always considered herself a bit of a wild card. But hearing Cody say these things made her feel proud, and a little bit scared.

“Why did you choose me, anyway?” she asked, trying to change the subject.

Alexa feels a sudden pang of anger at Cody’s words, but she tries to keep her composure as she asks him, “What do you mean by that? I’ve never fucked up before.”

Cody looks at her incredulously before shaking his head. “You really believe that, don’t you? Let me remind you of the time you messed up the job we had last year. You were supposed to get the target out without anyone noticing, but you ended up getting caught and almost blew our cover. Luckily, we managed to get out of that situation, but it could have ended badly for all of us.”

Alexa bites her lip, feeling embarrassed at the reminder of her past mistake. “That was a long time ago, Cody. I’ve learned from my mistakes since then.”

Cody gives her a skeptical look before continuing. “And what about the time you lost the package we were supposed to deliver? Or the time you got too close to a target and compromised the entire mission? Don’t act like you’re perfect, Alexa.”

Alexa feels her frustration building as she retorts, “Well, what about you? You’re not exactly perfect either. Remember the time you got caught stealing from that store? Or the time you got into a fight and got us all kicked out of the bar?”

Cody narrows his eyes at her. “That’s different, and you know it. I never claimed to be perfect, but at least I don’t make the same mistakes over and over again. You’re always getting distracted and putting us all at risk.”

Alexa grits her teeth, feeling defensive. “I’m not getting distracted, Cody. And I’ve never put any of you at risk intentionally.”

Cody raises an eyebrow at her. “Intentionally? Maybe not. But that doesn’t change the fact that you’re not capable of handling anything on your own. You need someone to hold your hand every step of the way.”

Alexa feels her anger rising at Cody’s words, but she takes a deep breath and tries to keep her cool. “I can handle things on my own, Cody. And I don’t appreciate you talking down to me like that.”

Cody chuckles, clearly amused by Alexa’s outburst. “I’m not talking down to you, Alexa. I’m just telling it like it is. You’re not cut out for this kind of work. You’re too emotional, too impulsive. You don’t think things through.”

Alexa feels a pang of self-doubt at Cody’s words, but she tries to push it aside as she looks at him defiantly. “Well, I’m not giving up. And I’m not going to let you or anyone else tell me what I can or can’t do.”

Cody nods slowly, a small smirk on his face. “That’s the spirit. But do you really think you have the guts to give up at this rate?”

Alexa feels a surge of determination at Cody’s challenge. “I do. And I’ll prove it to you.”

Cody chuckles again before standing up from the couch. “We’ll see about that, Alexa. We’ll see about that.”