Noelle's Holiday Rebound: A BWWM Christmas Romance (A Glacier Hollow Christmas Romance Book 1)

by Cassie Verano

  “Yes, but certain knowledge exists that the relationship between you and your former employer surpassed a boss and employee relationship. A recent altercation arose at a Christmas function that caused several executive-level managers to question your ability to remain professional and your moral and ethical values, as well. Your actions impacted company performance at Timbers Pharmaceuticals. My concern is how will that type of behavior transfer into your performance here at MERC, and what impact, if any, would a personal relationship you hold with someone within the company have on this company?” Mr. Greenly persisted.

  How the hell did my personal affairs get into this room?

  “Mr. Greenly, I can appreciate your concerns; however, I must correct you on one erroneous statement that you made. My actions never impacted company performance. Did I take an inadvisable course of action at a Christmas party? Yes, I did. In hindsight, there was another way to manage the situation despite being provoked.”

  “Provoked?” Mrs. Anderson asked.

  I knew that heifer only wanted to dig in and get dirt. She wasn’t truly concerned about anything other than gaining details to run back and gossip with someone else about.

  “My professional career has not been marred with any blights except for this one moment of indiscretion. The incident occurred at a private party off company time and company property. Again, was it inadvisable? Absolutely, but I cannot go back and change the incident. It was a mistake that I’ve raked myself over the coals about repeatedly. I’m sure every one of you sitting at this table has conducted him or herself in a manner that you would just as soon forget at some time or another. The important thing isn’t what I did or how people recall what I did. Not even the fact that they’ll remember that better than all the good that I did. The important thing is that I learned a valuable lesson from it. And it’s a lesson that I learned well enough to ensure that I don’t repeat the mistake.”

  “Thank you for your time,” Mrs. Watkins said, standing and signaling the end of the interview. “We will be in touch after the holiday on our decision.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Watkins,” I said, reaching across the table to shake her hand.

  I did the same with all the others before I exited and headed home with an even heavier heart. Tucker had shown up and fulfilled his promises yet once again. Although Marc had said not to worry about anything, it hadn’t worked out for me.

  19 – NEW BEGINNINGS

  Noelle’s energy was off. I’d sensed it since I picked her up half an hour earlier. Now that we’d landed at our destination, I needed to address it.

  Reaching for her hand, I helped her off the helicopter.

  Pulling her into my arms, I held her close and waved the pilot off. We stood watching him rise into the air and depart. When the noise from the rotors finally subsided, she asked, “Was that your helicopter friend you told me about?”

  “Yeah. Did you enjoy it?”

  Nodding, she said, “It was nice. Seeing the valley and the city from that height. Simply beautiful, Marc.”

  “Good.”

  “So, tell me, what do you have planned for us?” she asked, looking around at the mountaintop we stood on.

  “We’re heading right over there,” I said, pointing to a big hut with an enclosure standing separate from it.

  “For what?”

  “For our New Year’s Eve date and to improve your mood.”

  Laughing, she tugged on my arm and leaned into me. “My mood is just fine.”

  “No, it’s not,” I replied, wrapping an arm around her shoulder.

  “What’s not right about my mood?”

  “You seem to be down about your interview, and you won’t talk to me about it.”

  “Marc, it’s New Year’s Eve, sweetie. I want us to be happy tonight. Just enjoying each other and not talking about the problems of the world,” she said, her eyes pleading with me to drop the subject.

  I would for now.

  “Okay, but we talk about it in the morning. Deal?” I asked, grabbing a handful of her ass.

  “Deal,” she said, laughing.

  When we approached the hut, I checked out some ice skates and led her to a bench.

  “I can’t ice skate!” she balked, accepting the skates from my hands.

  “I’ll teach you,” I said, kneeling to remove her boots and replace them with the skates.

  “I’ll fall!”

  “I’ll be there to catch you.”

  “I’ll embarrass myself in front of all those people!” she said, waving her hand at the other ice skaters who were already present.

  “I’ll still love you,” I said.

  Laughing, she threw her head back. “Do you have an answer for everything?”

  “I try.”

  “How’d they get up here?” she asked, testing my knowledge of having an answer for everything.

  “The ski lift,” I said, pointing to one arriving up the hill.

  “Why didn’t we take that?”

  “Because I wanted this night to be special. As special as you are, and the drive here would’ve taken us a couple of hours.”

  “I like your mode of transportation,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows.

  “I’ve got something else that you might like, too,” I said, grabbing her hand and placing it against my crotch as I stood.

  “I love that,” she moaned, pressing her face against my dick.

  “You’d better watch yourself before we give all these good people out here a rated R New Year’s Eve show.”

  “You’d better quit teasing me,” she said, her eyes sparkling with joy.

  After I’d put on my skates and tied them, I stood and led her out to the rink.

  “Just hold on to me and do as I say,” I instructed.

  Noelle’s eyes widened, and she nodded her head slightly as she prepared to take her first ice skating lesson.

  I’d never had so much fun teaching something to someone or doing something as simple as ice skating. But with Noelle, everything was a joy and led to some unexpected discovery about her personality.

  She did fall a couple of times when she failed to follow my instructions, but as I promised, I caught her before she landed on her ass.

  “Noelle, I have something that I need to tell you. Or rather show you,” I said, leading her off the rink after an hour.

  With wide, fearful brown eyes, she asked, “What is it?”

  Lifting my thumb to her forehead, I rubbed at the crease between her eyebrows created from the frown.

  “Smile and follow me,” I said, leading us back to the hut.

  “Mr. Peters, is that room ready?” I asked the owner.

  Smiling broadly at me, his thick bushy brown eyebrows twitched. “Yes. Here’s the key,” he said, handing me a master key on a keychain. “Remember, I showed you how everything works.”

  “Yes, you did.”

  “What’s this all about?” Noelle whispered as I led her to the rear of the hut to unlock the door of a small room.

  “Just wait. You’ll see.”

  I busied myself by turning on the television and connecting with the message. Sitting beside Noelle, I wrapped my arm around her and our eyes locked.

  A smile turned up her full lips, and she removed her purple and white knitted cap, letting her locs fall to her shoulders.

  “You’re so beautiful,” I said, kissing her copper tinted lips.

  “Thank you,” she said, hesitantly before turning back to the screen to take in the man whose face filled the space.

  A gasp slipped from her throat as she whispered, “Mr. Roman? Why is Mr. Roman on the screen?”

  “Shhh,” I said, pressing a kiss to her lips and then turning her back to the screen.

  Good evening, Noelle. I know you’re surprised to see me so early. And I’m sure after yesterday’s conversation that you probably didn’t expect to see me at all. And honestly, young lady, if it weren’t for your stellar record, you’d be right. However, it took a bit of
digging for me to get past the surface issues we faced. The problems Mr. Greenly bought to the surface concerned all of us, and while we knew you had a good resume and excellent referrals, I needed something a bit more. But I wasn’t sure I wanted to take that chance. The young man sitting beside you convinced me that I should.

  “You know Mr. Roman? What’s he talking about, Marc?” she asked, anxiety filling her eyes.

  “Listen, babe.”

  ...up Mr. Leonard at Timbers and spoke to Miss Young. Both of them not only commended you but shed a few more details that we did not have possession of in the interview. They disclosed some things that we’re not allowed to ask, and that honestly would be unprofessional to discuss. But in light of the conversation I had with them in conjunction with your stellar performance and impact on Timbers’ finances, I had to take things one step further. I spoke with Greg Timbers himself. We’ve been good friends for many years, and I trust him without reserve.

  “Greg Timbers? Greg Timbers hates me!” she declared desperately in a panic-filled voice.

  I squeezed her hand to calm her.

  Mr. Timbers only had excellent things to say about your work ethic, supervision skills, and your output. I respect everything that he has to say. And it’s with his recommendation that we’d like to offer you the role of VP of Finance at MERC Enterprises.

  Noelle turned from the screen to me and back again three times, squeezing my hand harder with each turn. I paused the video.

  Jumping up from the chair, she screamed out loud, jumping up and down.

  I laughed and jumped up with her catching her in my arms when she came down on one of those turns.

  “Congratulations, baby,” I said, sweetly against her lips.

  “Thank you, Marc,” she cried as tears slipped from underneath her closed eyelids.

  We lost ourselves in the kiss, our passion quickly taking over and dominating our heat in the small space. Slipping my tongue inside of her mouth, I claimed victory over her tongue as they dueled one another. My hands slid underneath her coat and sweater, loving the way her heated, soft skin felt against my fingertips.

  The moans she released were soft and sensual, eliciting groans from me and thoughts about what I’d like to do right now.

  Noelle broke the kiss, pulling back from me.

  “Wait a minute. What’s all this got to do with you? What did he mean when he said, ‘The young man sitting beside you convinced me that I should?’ How’d you get your hands on this video, Marc?”

  Yeah, I knew we’d arrive at this point at some time.

  Sighing, I held onto her and said, “Baby, Paul Roman is my stepfather.”

  “What? So, I got the job because I’m sleeping with you?” she asked in horror pulling out of my arms.

  “No!”

  “That’s exactly what happened, Marc! You heard him.”

  “I did hear him, and I also spoke with him after you left.”

  “You never even mentioned that when I told you I was interviewing with them!” Noelle accused.

  “I didn’t want you to worry about the exact thing you’re worrying about now and not give it a shot. I knew if I’d told you that, you wouldn’t have even tried, and I needed you to try. Needed you to believe in yourself!”

  “You’re the reason I got the interview in the first place, aren’t you?” she asked, tears streaming down her face.

  “No, I’m not! Noelle, you got the interview on your merit. It wasn’t until I was talking shop on the phone with dad that I learned about his old VP Fred Stephens leaving. He was looking for a replacement, but someone with a different vibe than the ‘old school,’ as he said. He told me that he wanted fresh blood. We talked about it, and he mentioned a few of the candidates, and your name was on the list.”

  Shaking her head, she said, “It still doesn’t make sense. Your dad and everyone in that interview made up their minds about me after Mr. Greenly’s question. Nothing about that said I was getting the job. I’m the one that left there yesterday morning with certainty that it wasn’t happening.”

  “Yeah, but Dad told me that they’d all made up their mind to hire you until that question. Babe, what I learned today was that Mr. Greenly is a good friend of Timbers. Not Greg, but Tucker. He knew about the relationship between you two for a while, and he’s the one that shared with Tucker that you were interviewing for the position. When he shared that information with him, that’s when Tucker paid a visit to him at the office to shed some information about your incident at the party.”

  “That explains it.”

  “Explains what?”

  “I saw Tucker leaving the office when I was arriving, and then he commented that I couldn’t stay away. Did he know your stepfather owns MERC?”

  “Yes, he does. And he was determined to ruin your chances, but he stepped on the wrong territory. See, Christmas night, I ran into Tucker at a ball like I told you. He was so busy trashing you that when he realized I was going to your place, he decided to threaten me. I didn’t accept his bribe, and he was pissed. Then he switched positions and started telling me about how you belonged to him and how you loved him, and no one could take his place. What he didn’t realize was that his dad, wife, and father-in-law had stepped outside and were standing behind him. When he finally noticed them, I left. But Greg called me later and let me know that Anya’s filing for divorce. Greg barely salvaged the contract with the city, but only if Tucker was demoted, which he was. And Greg renewed the contract before the renewal date. Not only that, but I received a call earlier today, letting me know that I received that Vermont state government contract I was after.”

  “That’s great news for you, Marc! But it doesn’t change my position,” she said.

  “It does, babe. I told you all along things would work out and not to worry. And they have. I had no idea you applied for the position within my Dad’s company until days before you were to interview. But it wasn’t my recommendation that changed Dad’s mind. I only pressed him not to give up so easily. It was the conversation with Mr. Leonard and Miss Young, your VP of Finance and HR Director, that convinced him to give you a shot. And the only way they could convince him to take a chance on you was because you left a good impression on them. That’s all you, baby, not me.”

  Shaking her head, she said, “I don’t know. This is a lot, Marc.”

  “What’s the problem?”

  “I need to know that I did this on my own and that my performance, productivity, and reviews won’t be impacted by a relationship that I have with you!” she cried out.

  Reaching for her, I pulled her close in my arms. “My stepfather would never allow that to happen. He holds everyone to strict moral and ethical standards in his company, which was why Greenly knew that asking you that question would work. It placed the doubt in Dad’s mind that would easily lead him to pass you up. But Dad also only hires the best, and he was certain that you’re the best. Look, I would never do anything to get in the way of or influence your role in his company.”

  “But you already did, Marc. Don’t you see?”

  “No, I influenced him not to give up. To research and dig deeper, looking only at the facts. That’s what I’ve always done with him, and he’d expect nothing less of me. And I’ll always do that, Noelle. You’re right; the love that I have for you allows me to want to push every boundary and make all things possible. But my love for you also requires that I equip you to be the best you can and support you in pushing your boundaries and eliminating the rules. It allows me to respect you. I’d never step on your toes, baby. I only want you to grow. Be mad at me, but don’t shoot this opportunity in the foot.”

  Noelle turned away from me, pressing her hand against her forehead. She paced the room for a few beats before she looked up with tears in her eyes.

  “I need this.”

  “And they need you.”

  Dropping her shoulders, she lowered her head and closed her eyes. I don’t know if she was praying or meditating, but after
a couple of minutes, she looked me in the eyes. A slow smile spread across her lips, and she said, “I’ll take it!”

  Once more, she jumped up but this time, wrapping her legs around my waist and arms around my neck. I greedily consumed her lips as she offered herself in appreciation. I wasn’t one to turn down a love offering.

  And as much as my dick wanted to be satisfied at the moment, I had to promise him he’d get sated later on.

  “All right, you need to watch the rest of this quick video. Another two minutes, and then we need to call Dad and let him know your final answer,” I said, lowering her after our kiss finished.

  “Okay,” she said.

  After we finished the video and phone call and thanked Mr. Peters, we returned outside to the skating rink.

  “Baby, we’ve only got one minute to the New Year,” she said, glancing at a big clock erected at the other end of the rink.

  Rod Stewart and Dolly Parton’s version of Baby, It’s Cold Outside played on the overhead speakers as people gathered around the big clock.

  “Come on,” I said, skating to join them.

  She intertwined her fingers with mine, and we slowly skated to the big gathering of people.

  “I’ve got a little log cabin just a mile down the road from here that we’re going to christen after this New Year rings in,” I said into her neck.

  Her shoulder shrugged up, trapping me there while she giggled. I kissed and licked along her neck, thinking of all the things I’d do to her tonight.

  “That sounds cozy. But Mr. Easton, I hope it’s not as big as the ‘cozy’ log cabin you’ve got back at Lake Glacier Mountain.”

  “Nope, it’s just small enough for two people to get naked and large enough for those two people to ravage each other’s bodies.”

  Noelle giggled again as the people around us shouted, “...Four, Three, Two, One! Happy New Year!”

  “Happy New Year, Noelle Riley!”

  “Happy New Year, Marc Easton!”

  SNEAK PEEK AT HOLLY’S HOLIDAY SURPRISE...

  “...I’ll wait up for you dear. Santa baby, so hurry down the chimney tonight. Think of all the fun I’ve missed. Think of all the fellas I haven’t kissed. Aighhh!!!”