Free Uncovering You: The Complete Series (Mega Box Set) by Scarlett Edwards Page B

piss them off?”
    When I hear myself and realize how improper my question is, my cheeks flame red again.
    Stonehart’s eyes darken, as if he cannot believe I asked that question. I open my mouth to apologize for my imprudence, hating the way my professional skills have evaporated into thin air. I’m cut off by a short, barked laugh.
    “Miss Ryder.” He sounds amused. “I believe that is the most direct and honest question anybody has dared ask me in weeks.” He takes my elbow again and leads me to the elevators. I have to take two quick steps to match one of his long strides.
    “Yes,” he continues. “They will be ‘pissed off.’ But the perk of owning a building—” he hits the elevator call button, “—is that you get to make executive decisions.” He gives me an unreadable glance as the doors open. “That is, at the risk of being questioned by inexperienced interns.”
    If that isn’t a loaded remark, I don’t know what is. I flush scarlet red for the third time since I’ve met him. I’ve never had a man throw me so off balance.
    The elevator is packed, for which I’m infinitely thankful. The trip up will give me some time to properly compose myself.
    Gratitude turns to panic when the crowd files out, meek as mice, when Stonehart steps in. None of the people waiting in the lobby follow us.
    The doors close. I’m alone in here with him. My heart’s beating as fast as a hummingbird’s wings.
    He catches me staring. “Impressed?” he asks.
    “They know you,” I manage.
    His dark eyes flash with amusement. “Astute.”
    He swipes his left wrist in front of a card-sized scanner. A beep sounds, and the light to the highest floor turns on.
    “Biometric NFC chip,” he tells me in an off-handed way. “A tiny kernel I had implanted six months ago. Developed by the research team at ZilTech. One of my subsidiary firms. I understand you’ve dealt with them?”
    Stonehart’s phone buzzes before I can answer. He looks at it. “Excuse me.”
    I step half an inch back so I can admire his profile without being caught. He has one of those faces that only get better with age. I try not to eavesdrop on his conversation. I’m struck by the fact that sharing an elevator this way must be a very rare occasion for him.
    And so far, all you’ve done is make yourself look like an idiot , a tiny voice derides me.
    The elevator shoots up. Just three floors from our destination, it comes to a sudden halt. At the same moment, Stonehart drops the phone from his ear.
    The doors stay closed.
    He turns to me in a predatory move. “Going higher requires a retina scan,” he tells me. I can literally feel the reverberations from his rumbly voice. “The first swipe can be faked. This cannot. We have thirty seconds before the elevator goes back down.”
    He looks at me. I blink dumbly.
    “You should know,” he adds, “that I hate wasting my time.”
    He takes one step to me as the words sink in. Only the slimmest margin of air separates our bodies.
    “ Lilly .” The way he says my name sends a shiver of arousal down my spine. I crane my neck up to look at him. “ Impress me . Prove that I’m not wasting my time.”
    My nerves are beyond frazzled. My palms are sweaty. My mind races for the right thing to say, but all it finds is blank space. His smell fills my lungs with every breath, destroying my composure.
    “W-what do you want?” I stammer.
    “I want…” his powerful arms jut out against the mirrored wall on either side of me. I’m trapped. My breath catches as he leans in and his cheek scratches against mine.
    “I want,” he rumbles in my ear, “your mind .”
    My knees go weak. Thank God he doesn’t see me falter as he pushes off and turns around, back to me. The insane attraction flaring to life inside me is all wrong. The incomprehensible power dynamic Stonehart seems to revel in confuses me even more.
    He clasps both hands behind his back. “I want to take the company public,” he announces, the