Free Power Play by Tara Lynn Page A

moves.”
    “Evolve or die,” I said. “Those are the rules of this world, right? I'm sure every change that led to humankind seemed ludicrous until it worked.”
    “Except the ones that led to a dead end,” Kerry said softly.
    I smiled at her. Guess our game was back on. “You disapprove of this business move?” I asked.
    “It's not my call.” She said very carefully. “You're making the decisions. All I can do is serve.”
    Something wasn't right. I leaned in, but she ducked her eyes.
    “As Kerry says,” Phil spoke up from the other end, “we're all here to serve. And I think all of the prodigies in this room share your view. Grow or die.”
    “Right.”
    I tried to lift Kerry with my gaze, but it didn't work. There was my foot, of course, but that seemed far from the right gesture for the moment. Phil kept talking though.
    “So our team will be led by Leo Ginsberg. He's actually headed to Harvard Business School later this year, but you'll get to hire him while he's still cheap.” Phil chuckled.
    “It'll be an honor to help you, Mr. Stone,” a round, energetic voice said.
    I glanced over. Leo was a solemn ginger boy with a block face and glasses. He looked smart, but that wasn't the point of all this.
    “Leo, you sound like a swell guy and all, but I'm a Wharton man myself. I was actually wondering if the team leadership could fall to-”
    A sharp little heel struck me in the calf. I bit my lip. Kerry had scribbled a giant “No” facing me on her sheet.
    “Actually,” I said, swallowing my tongue. “Never mind, Leo. I think you'll do an amazing job.”
    I surveyed the entire room. “In fact, I'm sure you'll all do an amazing job.”
    The smiles on their faces were genuine now, from their eyes to their ears. Why in the world was I not seeing it on the one face that mattered?
    I pulled my phone. “Phil,” I said. “Would you mind if I had the room? I've got a small conference to hold.”
    “Of course, Mr. Stone.” He and the consultants scattered to their feet. Kerry tried, but I weighed her hand down with mine. The edges of her eyes simmered, but that didn't stress me. I just wanted to know why.
    Phil hustled the consultants out, then waited at the door.
    “I'm gonna need Miss Martin present for notes,” I said.
    “Ah,” he shot her a last look, then shut the door.
    I ducked down into Kerry's vision. “Are you alright?”
    Her words came through gritted teeth. “Get you hand off me.”
    “What?” I tore my palm away. “Sorry, sorry, did I hurt you?”
    She yanked back, crashing her chair into others further down the table. She strangled her armrests and just sat huffing at me.
    I had seriously fucked something up here.
    “Tell me what I did, darlin'.”
    Her eyes condensed to coals.
    “Am I a human to you?” she asked.
    “What?”
    “Am I a human or just some toy?”
    “You're not a toy!” I wheeled around the corner, but she clattered her chair chain further back and I stopped. “I respect the hell out of you. You're more real than any other girl I've met.”
    She shook her head. “I always knew there was something off about you. It didn't click until I heard the word ‘billionaire,’ but it makes so much sense now. What I do - my job, my life. It’s all just a game to you.”
    “It's not.”
    “No? Then why did you march in here and take over my life?”
    “That wasn't my aim. I thought if you were too busy to see me, then I could bring myself to you.”
    Her eyes flared wider. “So this job is all BS? You wasted a couple hundred grand just to have me in arm's reach?”
    “The job's completely real.” I pulled open my laptop. Fuck, was I going to have to write this girl a powerpoint to show her what she was doing to me?
    Just my luck, the presentation crashed on me.
    “You seemed like a decent guy.” She was speaking to herself. “You treated your men well. You tried to understand their work. Heck, I thought you were smart. And now you’re wasting company money