chapter629

"Yeah." Lydia nodded and looked at him. "Do you want me to take care of those rumors online?"

Connor reached over, brushing his fingers through her dark hair, his voice soft and full of affection. "You work hard enough already. I'll have someone else deal with it."

Lydia was the infamous hacker L, but Connor didn't want her to push herself. If she could rest, he wanted her to.

By noon, the scandal that had been blowing up all over the internet that morning had vanished completely. No matter how hard people searched, it was just gone, like it had never even happened. Some stubborn users tried posting videos of Connor's rescue, but nothing got through the review.

Impressive, right? Most people assumed it was the government stepping in. They had no idea it was Connor who had quietly wiped the slate clean.

Connor had already bought movie tickets for the two of them for that afternoon, the showtime set for two thirty.

They'd just finished lunch and were about to head out when Lydia got a call from Elliot.

"Lydia, Mom and Dad told me you and Connor are going to see my new movie?

"Yeah, we've both been swamped lately and didn't get a chance to see it. We finally have some time today, so we're going."

"Which theater are you at? I want to go with you."

Connor, listening in, froze. He finally had a chance to go on an actual movie date

with Lydia, and now Elliot wanted to tag along and play third wheel?

"We're at Oscar Cinema on Peace Road, the two thirty show."

"Great, send me your seat numbers. I want to sit next to you."

"You might not be able to get a ticket now." Connor had bought theirs the day before. It was probably sold out by now.

"No worries, I'll figure something out. Just send me your seats," Elliot said, sounding way too cheerful.

Lydia agreed. Okay."

Before leaving, both she and Connor dressed up in full disguise, hats and masks and everything. Connor had actually wanted to rent out the whole theater, but Lydia said that would ruin the fun. If it was just the two of them, they might as well watch at home. The real point of going to the movies was the crowd, the energy, the vibe.

When they got to the theater, they spotted Elliot already sitting at their row, wearing

a hat and mask like he was on a mission. No idea how he'd managed to score a ticket.

"Lydia!" Elliot waved, grinning, with two giant tubs of popcorn in his lap.

The theater wasn't very crowded yet, lights dimmed. Lydia and Connor were just about to sit down when a young couple slipped in from the other side and plopped fight down in their seats.

The guy looked Lydia and Connor up and down. "Hey, want to switch seats? You take ours, and I'll give you five hundred bucks."

He had bleached blond hair and pulled five red bills out of his wallet, holding them

out with this smug look, like he was doing them some huge favor.

"You Elliot started, but Lydia cut him off. "I got this, Elliot."

Connor's expression had gone icy. Was this guy serious?

Lydia gently held Connor back, glanced at the two side seats the couple had

abandoned, and asked calmly, "Those are your seats?"

The girl, all long hair and heavy

makeup, hugged her popcorn and nodded. "Yeah, just a little to the side Five hundred bucks you're coming out ahead." She said it like Lydia should be grateful.

The guy tilted his head, waving the money toward them again, sounding impatient. "Tickets were only eighty each. I'm offering five hundred. That's more than fair.

Lydia shot them a cold look and let out a short laugh. "Do we look like we need your five hundred?"