Baaul: A Change of Heart

Chapter 1: Not A Vacation

"It's your own fault, Renee." Steve's antagonistic voice made the hair on her neck prick in anger, but instead of giving him the argument he wanted, she continued aggressively stuffing her clothes into her suitcase.

It's only three weeks, she told herself again. Three weeks out there, and she could be back home safely behind her monitors again. No matter what they said.

"Are you even listening to me, Renee?" Steve was closer now, and though she knew the parole officer wouldn't hurt her, she still didn't like how close he was trying to get to her lately. He was taking a special interest in her, and though he pretended that this whole thing was professional, Renee Williams was not stupid. After all, the whole reason she was even being shipped off to some luddite conversion camp was because she was smart. Too smart.

At an early age, computers fascinated her. It started when her first love, her gaming console, took a shit outside of its warranty period. Living in a below poverty household, there would be no replacing it. So, she went to the library at the ripe age of seven and learned through tutorials how to pull the damn thing apart to fix it. From there, she went on to not only build computers, but also understand their language.

By age twelve she had become savvy enough to hack into the school's database and announce to everyone the school was going to be closed for the week simply because she forgot to study for an English test and didn't want to fail. It worked, and she hadn't gotten caught. By 16, she had shut down a famous vlogger who was openly spewing hatred for indigenous races, which cost him thousands of dollars in advertising revenue. By 19, she built a computer powerful enough to thwart location while she hacked into political closets to out them as the lying, evil bastards they were. It had been her first arrest and it had been nothing but downhill from there, because once you make an enemy it of high powers like that, you're put on a watch list for the rest of your life.

"You just couldn't help yourself!" Steve ran his calloused hands over his scruffy face while he attempted to slow his angry breaths. "It was all Norman and I could do to prevent you from going to prison, yet you're treating me as the villain!"

Norman, her lawyer, didn't like her much, so she doubted that he really tried all that hard. It's more like he owed Steve and pulled in a favor that was owed.

Finally, Renee turned to him with such anger. Her wild, multicolored hair whipped her neck. She thrust an accusatory finger at him. "Because you're the one who turned me in to begin with Steve! This wouldn't be happening if you hadn't decided to stop by unannounced!"

Steve Rauls pinched the bridge of his nose, bunching up the muscles of his torso and shoulders. "It's my job, damn it! Don't break the fucking law and I won't have a reason to turn you in! You know that you're not supposed to be within a hundred feet of computers, Renee! Don't blame me for the dumb decisions you make!"

She rolled her brown eyes, making sure he saw it before returning to her aggressive packing.

He wasn't wrong. She wasn't even really mad at him because he was honestly a great person. She was just mad that she was caught. Damn it all, she had been so fucking close to the end of her probation period too. Just three more days and she'd have been done with her two year ban… all of that thrown out the window all because Steve was a fucking by the books cop and her carelessness.

A heavy hand on her shoulder made her look back at the older man. She sometimes forgot that Steve was almost ten years older than her because he certainly didn't look to be in his upper thirties. His baby blue eyes softened as they traced her face and for a moment Renee was struck by the beauty of him.

Standing a full head taller than her, she estimated his height to be somewhere over 6 feet. His arms were thick with muscle from his constant gym visits which was more for the benefit of his work rather than for vanity reasons. She knew because that's just the type of man he was. He had sandy blonde hair that liked to lean to the right side no matter how much gel he used to try to tame it. He gave her that crooked smile that always made her heart flutter just a bit. "Just think of this as a relaxing vacation. It doesn't have to be so bad, Renee."

Renee tried to hold onto her anger. She really did, but damn it when he gave her that good 'ol boy smile her knees went weak. Finally she just sighed and sat down at the end of her messy bed. "I just don't understand why I have to go all the way to fucking Puerto Rico for this shit!"

"Because if you were sent to any place with an actual signal we both know you'd build a computer out of a fork and a walkie radio or some shit. This is the safest option to force any temptation out of your way. But Renee… if you blow this… nothing is going to save you from prison time." Steve gave his best silent plea look. Just begging with his eyes to not disappoint him and damn it all if it didn't always get her.

There was no denying that there was a chemistry between them, but Renee simply didn't trust him. She had never been one to date someone just because you could nor was she one to hook up randomly. Steve wasn't really the type either, but they'd never work out. Why? He saw her as a project. A person to help get on the straight and narrow before they could be ultimate 'wifey' material. Renee saw nothing wrong with using her skills to publicly out those in power or shut down hate sites. See the problem?

Renee averted her eyes to the floor, breaking the smoldering connection he was trying to make. "Yes, dad. I won't let you down."

It made her cringe just a bit to humble him by referring to him as her father. She'd never shame for a person's kink game but the whole 'Call me Daddy' thing was a bit too incest pedophilia for her tastes. He felt the same way because it always put him in a foul mood.

"You're such a shit. It's a wonder why I even bother with you." He scowled.

Yeah. A real wonder.