The elevator was suddenly groaning and shuddering, and I quickly held on to the walls as the elevator screeched into a stop.
What. The. Fuck.
My gaze flew up in horror even though I knew God wasn’t actually literally up there. I was partly panicking, but mostly I was just incredulous. Like, come on, God. Seriously?
“I hope you’re not blaming God for this.” It was him of course, and the lazy amusement in his accented drawl made my body tighten despite the low-key anxiety that was making my heart thump just a little harder than usual.
“It should only take a while for maintenance to get the elevator up and running again.”
I could only nod, still not trusting myself to speak. While it wasn’t my first time to hear him speak, there was something about the situation…was the enclosed space just making me hallucinate or did his voice sound so much sexier than usual? Either way, it was making me feel really, really hot…and in a way that had nothing to do with the elevator’s sudden ventilation problems.
“Ioniko, by the way.” Damn man still sounded amused as hell, and I had a nasty feeling it was because he knew exactly how he was affecting me.
I reluctantly turned to face him, powerless to ignore a lifetime’s worth of etiquette lessons that had been drilled into me. As my gaze settled on his collar bones, I said shortly, “Schuyler.” It was as far as I would go. Manners dictated I answer him, and nothing else.
After a few seconds, I heard him chuckle and say, “And that’s it?”
“That’s it,” I answered while still refusing to meet his gaze.
“You’re different from most women.”
Because I didn’t throw myself at you?
“And no, koukla mou—” I could sense him smirking this time. “It is not because you haven’t tried hitting on me like the others did.”
Shit. So he also read minds; is that how it is? How much perfection could one store in a human body without mutating into, I don’t know, a saint or the next Hugh Jackman?
“There were other women who acted coy from the start, thinking that by playing hard to get they could capture my attention. You, however…”
Were the only one who didn’t really want to be noticed?
“Exactly.”
His words almost had me looking his way. Almost. But it did make me struggle not to smile as I took pains to point out the obvious. “I haven’t even said anything.”
“I heard you all the same,” he parried back, and his words were uttered with such incredibly languid self-assurance that I could no longer help it. My gaze lifted to his, and there it was. Those green eyes were all smolder and seductive glitter, and a laugh bubbled past my lips. “You’re good.”
And of course, he had an immediate riposte to this, with his green gaze turning deliciously diabolical as he asked, “Good enough to have dinner with me tonight?”
You wish, I thought right away even as I only shook my head and said quite simply, “Nope.”
“And we’re back to monosyllabic answers again.”
“Yup.”
His gaze took on a contemplative gleam. “Why do you keep resisting?”
“Because there’s no point in giving in.”
His gaze narrowed. “Are you currently seeing someone?”
I shook my head and told myself it wasn’t jealousy I detected in his voice. Just…nope, nope, nope.
“Then I see no reason why we shouldn’t enjoy a meal together.”
I shook my head again. “We’re not in the same league, okay?” This back-and-forth banter was fun, even I had to admit that. But to let things progress beyond this…just…nope.
“I beg to disagree.”
“Disagree away, but I’m not changing my mind.” I made a wry gesture towards myself, saying, “I mean, look at me, like, really look at me—”
“I have been.”
“And look at you—”
“And I like what I’ve been seeing.”
Yeeargh. I hadn’t even seen that coming, and I gave him a grudging smile. “You are really, really good at flirting—”
“It’s not the only thing I’m good at,” he purred.
And oh my God, but he did it again! Considering the nature of my job, I should’ve seen those pick-up lines coming miles away, but…nope. There was just something about this guy—
A groaning sound interrupted my thoughts, and when the elevator suddenly lurched into movement, it was only then I realized that Mr. Greek here had me so diverted I had actually forgotten about being trapped in a metal cage.
I breathed a sigh of relief as the elevator gradually stopped shaking and settled into a smooth descent. Knowing I owed him thanks at the very least for keeping me from shitting my pants in panic, I turned towards his direction…just in time to see him moving towards me.
Shit.
Closer now.
Move your ass, Mathers!
But he was already right in front of me, backing me into a corner, one palm flattening against the mirrored wall just as his other hand cupped my chin to lift my face up.