Ste froze. She rarely ever did anything sneaky, and a sh of sheer panic dashed across her eyes.


    But she forced herself to recover herposure almost instantly.


    She set the file back down and turned around. "I woke up and you weren''t there, so


    I came looking for you... Joshua, where did you go?"


    Joshua walked slowly toward her. "Harold called. I didn''t want to wake you, so I stepped outside to take it."


    His gaze drifted down to the file she had just been holding. He smiled, his expression perfectly gentle.


    "But what about you, Star... Up sote, did you leave something in my study?"


    Ste''s breath hitched. Trying to lie to a man this ruthlessly brilliant was like trying to hide an elephant behind a twig.


    She looked him in the eye and said softly, "I''m sorry, Joshua. I shouldn''t have been snooping through your things."


    Joshua closed the distance between them. "Star, you never have to apologize to me. I told you, I don''t need boundaries or space. You can look through my phone, you can search my study. You don''t even have to ask."


    He leaned down, his lips hovering teasingly right next to her ear, his voice dropping into a dark, maic hum.


    "I am entirely yours. Why would I care about a few meaningless papers?"


    His hot breath cascaded across her skin, sending a strange, terrifying thrill down her spine. She instinctively tried to pull back, but his hand snapped to the back of her head, locking her in ce. He captured her lips in a punishing, intoxicating kiss,pletely eliminating any chance of escape.


    He kissed her deep and hard, a possessive onught that made her heart race wildly. She pushed against his chest, trying to break free, but he simply pinned her hands, caging her in his arms until she was utterly trapped.


    It wasn''t until her knees went weak and she was gasping for air that he finally broke the long, suffocating embrace.


    Ste slumped weakly against his chest, panting heavily.


    Instead of taking things further, Joshua scooped her up and sat down in his heavy leather desk chair, settling her onto hisp.


    He pulled the drawer open and gestured to it. "Star, what did you want to see?"


    Ste didn''t move.


    Seeing her hesitate, Joshua simply pulled the files out himself, opening them one by one andying them out for her to read.


    These were almost all standard


    corporate proposals and mining extraction blueprints. He


    methodically emptied every single drawer of his desk, revealing absolutely nothing incriminating.


    Ste noted that the journal she had been looking for waspletely absent.


    As if reading her mind, Joshua remarked casually, "I destroyed that notebook. If it ever got lost or fell into the wrong hands someone could easily track my every move


    Ste stayed silent, her eyes drifting back to the file she had spotted initially-the one concerning the Chapman family.


    Catching her line of sight, Joshua picked it up and handed it to her.


    "Were you curious about this one, Star? It''s a partnership proposal I drafted for the Chapman Group."


    He flipped it open for her.


    It was exactly what he said it was—a perfectly standard corporate partnership agreement. Nothing sinister hidden in the fine print.


    Ste looked up at him. "You''re nning to partner with the Chapmans?"


    Joshua wrapped his arms around her slender waist. "Their corporate secrets were leaked, and they''re bleeding money right now. This partnership will solve their


    e


    immediate crisis McCoy Chapman will sign it without a second


    thought."


    His eyes darkened, a terrifyingly calcted smirk ying on his lips.


    "Aurora Williams marrying McCoy Chapman might not be a bad thing after all."


    Ste froze. In a fraction of a second, the entire horrifying picture clicked into ce.


    Joshua yedzily with a strand of her long hair, his voice dripping with cool arrogance.