I feel myself beaming, victory surging through me. “And Dr. Martin?”
“Right,” the older woman says. She gestures for the secretary taking minutes at the end of the table. “Patricia, could you please page Dr. Martin? It seems we have a lot to discuss.”
“We’ll be sure to forward an official transcription of this meeting for both of your records upon completion,” a middle-aged, balding member says. “And again, our deepest apologies.”
“No apologies necessary,” Noah tells them, sounding sincere. He looks down at me. “It ended up being worth it.”
Noah Taylor? Being cheesy? Next thing I know, the sky will start falling.
He pulls me out of the boardroom after we say our good-byes, neither of us saying anything further until we’re down the hall and far out of earshot. I squeal when he suddenly turns and lifts me from the ground, pulling me up and against his body before covering my mouth with his for a searing kiss. He holds me there for far longer than is appropriate, given where we are, but I can’t find it in me to care, just enjoying the warmth of his arms and his kiss and everything else.
I fall back down to the floor slowly, my body sliding against his until my toes touch the linoleum before my feet fall flat. He’s beaming at me like I’m some sort of present, and I find it infectious, my mouth mirroring the motion.
“I can’t believe we pulled that off,” I laugh.
Noah shrugs. “You mention lawsuits to these people, and they’ll just about piss their pants.”
“Probably should have been our first course of action,” I say with faux irritation.
Noah chuckles. “Turns out I’m not as smart as I thought.”
“That’s okay,” I deadpan. “I’ll be sure to teach you a thing or two.”
“Perfect,” he says with a grin.
We don’t hear the footsteps over our own chatter, so it’s a mild surprise when we hear his grating voice.
“Well, if it isn’t the lovebirds,” Dennis calls. “Funny seeing you here. You decided that your job wasn’t worth it, after all?”
I feel Noah tense beside me, but I press a hand to his chest, smiling at Dennis sweetly. “Actually, we just had a long talk with the board about something a lot worse than lying on a relationship disclosure form. Didn’t we, Noah?”
“That’s right.” Noah nods stiffly. “Turns out, they’re much more interested in things like extortion and HIPAA violations.” He clicks his tongue. “Doesn’t look too good for the hospital when one of their staff is messing around with things like that.”
The color draining from Dennis’s face is beyond satisfying, and it’s clear by his expression that he hadn’t considered this possibility in the slightest. He really thought he’d won, that he’d pulled a fast one on us, and that in itself makes me want to kick him between the legs. I decide the complete ruining of his career will be much better.
“Have fun in there,” I coo.
“You fucking bitch,” Dennis growls as he takes a step toward me.
He doesn’t even make it a foot before Noah has him pinned against the wall with his forearm pressed to Dennis’s chest, Noah looking murderous as he speaks slowly and carefully.
“Dr. Martin,” Noah says, a simmering rage in his tone. “If you ever touch her, I will show you exactly what that famous alpha temper looks like and rip both of your arms off to ensure it never happens again. Do you understand?”
I notice Dennis swallow thickly, his face white as a sheet. He looks older like this, frailer. Still, I don’t feel the least bit sorry for him. He is a complete fuckhead, after all.
“I’m going to set you down now,” Noah tells him. “And you’re going to walk away. And you aren’t even going to look at Mackenzie.”
Dennis says nothing, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.
“I said,” Noah repeats darkly, “do you understand?”
Dennis’s lips roll together. “Yes,” he says quietly. “I understand.”
“Good.” Noah smiles cheerfully, his entire demeanor changing in the blink of an eye. “You have a good meeting.”
Dennis turns on his heel quickly, like he’s afraid that Noah might come after him, and I can’t pretend it isn’t incredibly hot, seeing Noah turn on the alpha switch like that. I’m all for feminism . . . but hot damn.
“That was . . . intensely satisfying,” Noah says after a second, turning back to me.