He had touched a nerve. Johnny chuckled inside his own head.<em>Peasant?</em>Was she for real? Did people actually talk that way? Good god, this one was a piece of work. Still, his probe had done what he had meant it to do. Funny thing about people who were used to being surrounded by ass-kissers and yes-men, anything less than unconditional assent threw them completely off their game. And her comment about how he needed her money...he harked back to the safe in his loft apartment, containing several dozen bundles of unmarked Ben Franklins...and the two safety deposit boxes in which he had squirreled away his emergency fund, should he need to suddenly disappear...and the offshore account in the Caiman Islands, which held enough currency to buy a mansion...not a large one, but even so...he didn't do this for the money.<br/><br/>Well what was this now...? She had skirted her mammoth desk, and was invading his space in a big way. Her hand rested on the edge of her desk, perfectly manicured nails trailing lightly on the polished mahogany surface as she leaned in to him...was she scenting the air around him? Well he could smell<em>her</em>. He caught some kind of muted spice, with a hint of sweet...he couldn't place it. Her voice dropped a few decibels, and sent a line of goosebumps swishing up his spine. Somehow, he felt as though<em>he </em>were the one being visualized naked...<em>Ok, focus. Head in the game.</em>He blinked the feeling away. Clearly this Syn Tierny, CEO of Brigantia Technologies, had her own game to play. He reached out and took the pen once again. He was good at games.<br/><br/>"Contract, Miss Tierny, contract; no one's buying anyone here." He ducked to the side, leaving her hanging, and used the butt-end of the pen to flip open the leather folder. "So you want what I have to offer." Glancing over the paper, he scratched his signature onto the bottom. "There. Now it's an official secret." Tossing the silver pen onto the desk, he returned his attentions to her. "So now that we're in confidence, why don't you tell me what's so important that you need my talents to get it?"<br/><br/>