Page 18 of Take It Offline

“Do you have to chew so loudly?” she asks.

There’s nothing sexier than getting Emma flustered. Her breathing speeds up, and her cheeks flare pink, and I finally get a glimpse of something real. It makes my heart rate take off every damn time.

“Sure. I can stop breathing as well, if you want?”

She narrows her eyes. “That boyish charm might win Roberts over, but it won’t work on me.”

“You think I’m charming?” I give her a winning smile.

It always makes her glare harder.

During every meeting, she’s a pro. Prepared, polite. In complete control.

So knowing I can crack open that calm exterior to the brimstone underneath?

Well…

It’s like a big red button taunting me—Don’t press.

Of courseI’m going to want to.

“Anything else I can do for you, boss?”

Her mouth tightens. “Don’t you have a meeting with Technology to get to?”

Interesting. Someone’s keeping an eye on my calendar. I’m not even surprised. Every time I update her doc—and Christ, she’s even got me calling itherdoc now—my sections have been reworded.

The lack of subtlety pisses me off even more than the blatant micromanagement, because come on, if you’re going to screw me over, at least try to be sneaky about it.

Surely she’s better than this.

On top of that, I can immediately see every gaping sinkhole our vendors are gonna use to get out of jail free, since charging us extra for our fuckups is their favorite pastime.

It’s disappointing.

I can see some promise in the parts she’s written, but it doesn’t change the fact that we’re competing. Emma doesn’t seem to have forgotten, that’s for sure.

So I’ll follow her rules… to a point. It’s not my business if she underestimates me. I’m used to that.

“I’ve already talked to Emma about this. You really didn’t need to waste your time.”

Jocelyn is younger than I’m expecting, which throws me off balance for a whopping five seconds before the version of Reese in my head slaps me for beingthat guy.

But I’m nothing if not adaptable.

So I quickly throw out the speech I prepared, because if I’m right—and I usually am about these things—I’ve been set up to disprove what was supposed to be a landslide victory for Tech. Now, in order to do that without burning this bridge, I’ll have to get creative.

I smooth down my tie and give her the kind of charming smile that works on just about everyone but Emma. “Indulge me.”

She nods. Good, now to sell it.

“Have you ever been out to site?”

With a shake of her head, she says, “No, I haven’t had the chance yet.”

“That’s a shame. It’s worth the trip. Although the helicopter training is a doozy.”

She smiles, right on cue.

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