Page 54 of Theirs to Take

“I am,” she agreed. He wanted to ask her who she’d be going home to, but he knew better than to ask employees personal questions.

“You?” she asked.

“I think that I will,” he said. “It’s been a long day. You mind sharing an elevator?” he asked.

Ruby giggled, “Well, it does have a twelve-person capacity, so sure,” she teased. What was it about Ruby that had him so tongue-tied and saying all the wrong things?

“Right, thanks,” he breathed. When the doors opened, he waited for Ruby to step in first, and then followed her on. The doors closed and she cleared her throat, watching the numbers light up over the top of the door as the elevator descended. He took the opportunity to look at Ruby, really look at her, and God, she was adorable. She wore Converse with her skirt and dressy blouse. Her red hair was pulled back in a messy bun and her thick, black glasses were falling down the bridge of her nose.

“Can you please stop looking at me like that?” she whispered, turning back to look at him.

“Looking at you like what?” he asked. Sure, he had been caught, but playing dumb was his only option.

“I can see you out of the corner of my eyes, Luke. You were looking at my outfit.” She turned to face him, almost standing toe to toe with him. “Listen, I know that I’m odd. Heck, I’ve been called a nerd more times than I care to admit, but I won’t let you make fun of me too.”

“I wasn’t going to make fun of you, Ruby,” he assured.

“Then, why were you looking at me like that?” she asked.

“Because I think you’re hot as hell and I was trying to memorize you right now, at this moment, until I get to see you again.” Her little gasp made him rock hard. The elevator doors opened to the lobby, and he loved the way she watched him as he stepped off.

“Have a good night, Ruby,” he said. She watched him until the elevator doors closed on her again and he smiled to himself. He’d finally gotten up the nerve to talk to the new girl, and as far as he was concerned, it had gone well.

Ruby

Ruby stood on the empty elevator blinking at the closed doors, trying to figure out if she had just heard Luke say what she thought that she had. He was the head of security at the firm that she worked for and every day, he checked her bags and said good morning to her, but she was sure that he did that for everyone who passed through the front doors into the building. She had no idea that he thought that she was—what did he call her? Oh yeah, hot as hell. No one had ever called her that and she was still in shock hearing the hunky hulk say those words to her.

“Wow,” she breathed. “He thinks I’m hot as hell,” she repeated. The words didn’t even feel right on her own tongue. It was as if she was repeating a lie to herself, and she almost wanted to laugh at how ridiculous it sounded.

She was jolted backward when the elevator started to ascend to the seventh floor. Shit, she had forgotten to get off of the damn elevator after what Luke had said to her, and now, she was going to have to work her way back down to the lobby. A part of her thought about just heading back up to her desk and hiding out there for a bit until she could sneak out of the buildingwithout running into Luke again. But that would be ridiculous. She needed to get herself together and leave the building, just as she had planned. Then, she’d go home, make herself some dinner, and open a big bottle of wine.

When the elevator stopped on the seventh floor to pick up passengers, she stepped to the back of the car and asked for someone to push the button for the lobby. If she was lucky, she’d be able to hide in the crowd of passengers who had just gotten onto the elevator and leave the building without having to see Luke again. She needed time to process everything that he had said and that was going to require copious amounts of wine.

She didn’t feel as though she had taken a breath the entire time she made a run for it to her car. Ruby felt as though she was acting like a child, and if anyone knew what she was doing—running and hiding from a grown man, they’d believe she was a complete fool. How many women would run away from a man who looked like Luke Tracy? She was betting that the answer was not many.

As soon as she made it home to her tiny apartment that she had rented purely because it was close to the office, she pulled off her jacket and Converse and practically flung herself onto the sofa. What a day and all she could hear in her head was Luke’s voice telling her that he thought that she was hot as hell. It was playing on a loop up there and nothing she did would shake it loose.

The knock at her front door startled her from her daydreams and she sighed, standing to answer it. She pulled the door open and found her neighbor, Millie standing on the other side.

“Hey,” Millie said.

“Hi, Millie,” Ruby breathed. “Listen I just got home and I’m exhausted.”

“Oh,” Millie whispered. “So, you’re not up for dinner then. It’s fine, really. We can just reschedule.”

“Reschedule?” Ruby asked. “Crap, I forgot about our dinner plans,” she said. “I’m so sorry. Come on in.” she stood aside to let her friend in, and Millie looked hesitant.

“It’s fine if you want to reschedule,” Millie said again.

“Not at all,” Ruby insisted. “I was about to open a bottle of wine to help me unwind. I’m sure I’ll get my second wind as soon as I down my first glass. We can order some takeout if that works for you.”

“Well, I could go for some Asian takeout,” Millie agreed.

“Deal,” Ruby said. “I’ll call in our order and you grab the wine from the fridge and open it. You know where everything is.”

“Yep,” Millie said, seeming to pep up a bit. Millie had been her only friend in town since she moved into the apartment two months ago. Honestly, besides a few people at work, she didn’t know anyone in her new hometown. Being alone usually worked for her since she was kind of a homebody and very much a loner. Ruby didn’t go out to clubs or parties like other girls her age. At only twenty-four, she should have been living it up, going on dates with men her age, but she was always a bit shy and tried to hide away. It was easy to do since guys weren’t beating down her door, begging her to go out with them. No one wanted to date a nerd.

Millie poured her a glass of wine and handed it to her. “So, how’s the new job?” She asked Ruby that every time they got together. She had been working for Alex McTavish for almost two months now, and Ruby always gave her the same answer.

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