by Alice Ward
“We can’t alter DNA just yet,” he said in closing, “but here at Stafford Scientific, we have experienced a breakthrough in nanotechnology that would allow us to repair human tissue. We’re very close to human trials, but we need to win over the medical community first. I plan to reveal our breakthrough at the convention next month.”
Excited murmurs rose around the table, and I went to work. There was a lot of technical talk I didn’t understand. As a scientist, I found it insanely frustrating, so I made a commitment to study more about nanotechnology later that night so that I was ready for the convention.
“We can’t wait for the approval of the medical community,” a man towards the back argued. “At the convention, we need to present more than just the possibilities of the research. Sure, a few rats were cured of their heart defects, and a blind guinea pig could see again. Who cares? It’s not enough to prove nanotechnology can be safe for humans. We need conclusive evidence. Begin the human trials now.”
“We’re not there yet,” Noah said impatiently. “The whole point of this convention is to draw in the medical community so that we can safely begin the human trials.”
“Fuck the medical community. We can buy the medical community.”
Pounding his fists on the table, Noah exerted his authority. “You would risk the lives of innocent people so carelessly? Why?” he demanded.
The man wasn’t put off, the fool. “This is a business, not a charity. Who cares if a few lives are lost? All medical trials have death.”
I gaped at the man but kept my face carefully blank. I wanted to jump up and shout at him, hit him with my tablet. Instead, I waited to see what Noah would do. If anything.
“We’re not a pharmaceutical company. I did not start this company to kill people. Our brand of science is meant to help people, not hurt them. If you don’t understand that, you can leave.” Noah spoke sharply, like a judge holding his gavel.
The man shrunk in his seat. “I’m sorry, sir. I was merely playing devil’s advocate. Of course we should ensure the trials are safe and supervised by professionals in the medical field.”
I doubted he truly believed so.
His apology didn’t ease Noah. The fire, so hot it was cold, was lit. “This presentation is over,” Noah seethed. “Leave. All of you. Now.”
I moved with the crowd who rose from their seats, but Noah held me back. “Not you, Imogen. You only leave with me. Never before. Never after. Your place is by my side.”
Julia waited for us back in our office, a coffee in her hand. “Please know you can always call me away from lunch, sir. I’m at your beck and call.”
“Don’t let it happen again,” he barked and disappeared behind the door to his office.
Seemingly used to his discourtesy, Julia turned to me. “How did it go?”
“Terrifying,” I admitted.
“Let’s get a drink after work,” she decided. “I think we both need it.”
***
A drink after work turned into many drinks. We sat in a blues bar, the lights low, the walls covered in black velvet. It was mellow, a remedy for the long day. With the soft soulfulness of the music in the background, we talked.
“Tell me more about you,” Julia requested as she downed her fourth margarita. Work Julia was quickly diminishing, revealing Real Julia, her truer self.
“There’s not a whole lot to tell.”
“Any boyfriends?” she asked. “What are the men in Milwaukee like? I imagine they’re big and husky like lumberjacks.”
I laughed, glad she hadn’t yet realized Corey and I were more than friends. “Milwaukee is only two hours away from here. Less depending on how fast you drive. You should go visit sometime and see for yourself. The men are okay.”
“Only okay? Someone else has caught your eye!” she reasoned, lighting up. “Who is it?”
“No one here,” I said honestly. “He’s far away. But I hope he returns soon.”
“Me too,” she said. “For your sake. So you like it here in Chicago? Mr. Stafford hasn’t scared you off?”
“No, he hasn’t scared me off. I really need this job. I’ve got my armor on. And I want to stay. More so than I thought I would. I have a feeling there’s more of the city I’ve yet to experience, but I like it here.”
“You’ll really like it here if Mr. Stafford continues his pattern.”
“What pattern?”
“Nothing,” she mumbled, waving her hand. “I’m just drunk. We should redecorate the apartment. It’s a bit bland, don’t you think? Maybe add some color. I like yellow, like sunshine.”
“Me too,” I said, thinking of my hatchback. “I also like a bright aqua blue, like a tropical sea.”
She held her margarita glass high. “Then we have our new color template!” she declared joyfully as she swayed in her chair, the alcohol definitely kicking in.
“Woohoo!” I cheered, feeling my own kick. “We’re making our house a home!”
“Home is where the heart is. And the booze.”
Recalling that Julia was far from her actual home, I asked, “Do you miss your family in Boston?”
“I don’t have any family,” she said, much more solemn. She took a sip of her drink then added, “I was a foster kid.”
“But you’ve done so well.”
She giggled, as if I had said something funny. “Of course I did. I was determined to. I enjoy the fact that I put myself through school. I liked the challenge. Life is boring without challenge.”
“I don’t have any family either. My mother abandoned me when I was a kid. I was raised by my grandma, but she recently passed.” Some of the emotion I’d been withholding leaked out, making my voice hoarse.
“That is so fucking sad. We can be family,” Julia decided. “We’ll be sisters. We can’t let anything come between us.”
“Sisters,” I toasted.
We talked some more, and we made plans to go dancing, but our night was cut short when Noah stormed into the bar. His sandy blond hair was unruly, the first time I’d ever seen it out of place, and there was a weariness that faded the brightness of his eyes, but he remained as overbearing as ever, greeting us with obvious disapproval.
“Imogen, come with me,” he directed. “We need to go over the notes from the meeting today.”
With the alcohol pumping through my blood, I was tantalized by his imperiousness. The power he emitted engulfed me, made me his willing servant, prepared to do anything he asked of me. But then I looked at Julia and remembered the vow I’d just made that no one would come between us, especially not a man who was as pompous as he was gorgeous. I couldn’t abandon her, so I stayed where I was.
“I emailed them to you,” I told him, letting the alcohol fuel my courage instead of my lust. “We can go over the notes tomorrow.”
I looked at Julia for support, but she shook her head and mouthed, Don’t.
Noah was prepared for the battle. “Your time is my time until midnight. It’s in the contract. You will be compensated financially for your overtime, of course, but you will come with me. Now.”
Sharply, he turned his attention to Julia. “Go home. There’s a cab waiting for you.”
“You can’t talk to you that way!” I said, rising from my seat, feeling woozy. I giggled, my buzz hitting me fast. “I mean, you can’t talk to her that way.”
Immediately, his demeanor changed. “Imogen, are you okay?” he asked with concern.
“I think so,” I uttered, though the room spun around me. “Hey, are you a dragon? Corey said he’s a dragon and I’m his gold.”
“Corey isn’t here,” Noah reminded me.
“He’s not?” I asked, saddened, then tumbled forward, losing my footing.
Reaching his arms out, Noah caught me, holding me by the wrists, his grip strong and caring. Blushing, the humiliation sobered me, pushed my buzz away, but it did little to tame my arousal. “Corey’s not here, but you are,” I whispered, completely aware of what I was saying.
He didn’t look so certain. “Are you able to work?”
“She’s able, but she shouldn’t have to,” Julia said, joining me in my small rebellion.
Noah straightened, returning to his fortitude. “We’re all leaving,” he ordered and grabbed my hand and led me outside, his skin warm against mine.
Reluctantly, Julia followed us and got into the cab. “Have fun, sir,” she grumbled as she slammed the door shut.
Behind the cab, a company car waited for us, its tinted windows ominous in the night. Still blushing, I slipped into the backseat and found my tablet. To avoid any awkward conversation about what I had whispered, I immediately turned it on and pretended to search through my notes. For a long while, we didn’t speak, but as my humiliation wore away, I saw the car ride for what it was — an opportunity to learn more about my sexy rebel in Thailand.
“Did you and Corey grow up in the city?” I asked.
“No, we didn’t,” Noah answered vaguely as he adjusted his tie, refusing to look at me.
It irritated me, breaking the spell from earlier. Folding my arms across my chest, I sank into my seat. “You really should treat your employees better.”
“Why? It’s my company. I pay my employees well. I make sure their families are taken care of. If they don’t like it, they can leave.”
“That’s a coward’s way out. I know you built the company with your own sweat and blood, but your employees deserve respect. Without them, you’d be standing in a lab all alone.”
“I do respect them. That’s why I take care of their families. I just make sure they respect me too.”
Passing by a park, I realized we were heading away from the offices. “Where are we going?”
“I instructed the driver to circle around for a little while. We can go through the notes here.”
“Good thing I don’t get car sick,” I said, scrunching my nose.
It made him laugh, lightening the mood. “You’re too adventurous to be car sick.”
“I am adventurous, but I’m also tired. My boss is very demanding.”
“You haven’t seen demanding yet. Shall we start? You can begin by reading me the notes of the meeting.”
Reluctantly, I turned the tablet back on and went over the discussion on nanotechnology. Closing his eyes, Noah leaned back and listened to me as if I were singing him a lullaby. As he did, there was an intensity to his face that was a mix of anticipation and fatigue. Halfway through the notes, I stopped. “This is really important to you, isn’t it?”
His bright green eyes met mine once more. “It is.”
“Why?”
“You read the presentation.”
I nodded. “But why is it important to you?”
“It could save lives.”
“Is there a life you hope to save?”
His jaw clenched, and he tensed. “There are many lives I want to save.”
I understood too well. The weight of what he was trying to accomplish hit me. “Maybe Julia should be the one working with you on this. She has way more experience than I do.”
“Julia will be promoted before the convention. And she’s not a scientist. This is your project. Don’t worry, if I didn’t think you could handle it, I never would have hired you as my assistant.” He placed a hand on my knee, and I let him, telling myself he was merely trying to comfort me, even though the strength of his grip made my stomach flutter with anticipation.
“If Corey hadn’t emailed you, and I’d applied on my own, would you have hired me?” I asked, desperate to remember the man I really wanted. If anything happened with Noah, if I fell for this attraction, Corey would never forgive me.
“Yes, I do believe I would have given you some sort of position, but his email gave me the opportunity to learn more about you. After reading about your life, I knew I could trust you to be my assistant.”
“How so?”
His eyes burned into mine, igniting a fresh course of adrenaline that rushed through me. “You stayed close to home. After you graduated from high school, you could have gone to any university, but you didn’t. I suspect it had to do with your grandmother. You wanted to be close to her. That’s loyalty. And for that reason, I’m glad my brother emailed me. It brought you to me.”
“I’m glad he emailed you too,” I said, trying to ignore how much I liked his hand on my knee. It was firm but protective, like he was. “You know, Corey trying to save the herd of elephants isn’t much different from your commitment to nanotechnology.”
His eyes refused to leave mine. “It’s clear how enamored you are with my brother. Tell me, Imogen, are you as enamored with me?”
My mind stayed with Corey, but my body pulsed under Noah’s intensity. There was plenty of room in the backseat, but we were so close, pulled together like magnets. “I don’t know you,” I breathed.
“You barely knew him.”
“I didn’t like him when I first met him,” I blurted out, trying to break his hold on me.
It didn’t work. Tenderly, he massaged my knee. “Does that mean you don’t like me?”
“Yes,” I said, swallowing anxiously. “And no. Like I said, I don’t know you.”
He leaned closer to me. “What impression of me do you have so far?”
“That you’re tired.”
Slowly, he moved his hand farther up my thigh. “You are perceptive.”
Against my will, I shivered. My core throbbed with his hand so close. It was inappropriate, but it was delightful. Beneath my low-cut dress, my breasts heaved as my breath quickened. Noah was so damn attractive, and not just because he looked like his twin. I was drawn to the stability promised by his authority. Tattoos and ruggedness were alluring, but nothing was sexier than a man who knew exactly what he wanted.
Think of Corey, I reminded myself. My loyalty is bulletproof. It’s because of him that I’m here, that I’m no longer a tumbleweed.
“Have you heard any more from Corey?” I stammered, trying to steady my breath.
“Corey is an adult. He doesn’t check in. The email he sent that led you here has been the only contact he made. It took years to receive that email, and it will probably be years before I hear from him again, likely when his trust fund runs dry.”
His hand gripped my thigh harder, and I almost flinched under the touch. “Do you know why he asked me to take care of you?” he challenged, but he didn’t wait for me to answer. “Because he’s not coming back. He never has, and he never will.”
“Why did he leave?” I asked, less upset by his proclamation than I’d thought I’d be.
The muscle in his jaw popped. “Maybe you should ask him that.”
“I can’t. He’s not here.”
It was a setup, an excuse for Noah to place his lips next to my ear and whisper, “Precisely. He’s not here. But I am.”
It was erogenous. His breath was warm against my ear, insinuating everything he could do to me with his mouth so close. A nibble on my earlobe. Kisses down my neck.
Bulletproof.
“This is his home,” I insisted softly. “Everyone returns home, sooner or later. He promised me he’d find me. What will you say to him when he does?”
“Out there is his home,” Noah grunted, but he backed off. “You know it as much as I do.”
“I’ll take the chance,” I said, relieved that he had given me back my space, and a little disappointed. The spell had been broken, but my body remained charged, and only Noah could release it.
Reaching into a compartment against the divide that separated us from the driver, Noah pulled out a bottle of beer.
“I didn’t take you for a beer man,” I said.
“I only drink it when no one is looking. Don’t tell anyone.”
“I’m looking.”
He opened the bottle and took a sip. “You�
��re not no one.”
Thirsty, I went to grab a bottle for myself, but Noah put his arm out, blocking me. “You shouldn’t drink. It impairs your judgement. If anything impairs your judgement, I want it to be me.” When I didn’t respond, he added, “And we still have work to do.”
Remembering my notes, I settled back into the seat and returned to my tablet.
“What do you think of my speech? Is it transparent enough?” he asked.
“For who?”
“For everyone at the convention, especially the medical community.”
Briefly, I read through the shorthand of the speech, re-familiarizing myself with it. “It’s very technical. I wasn’t even sure what you were referring to half the time, and I’m a scientist.”
“It’s technical because the research is technical,” Noah asserted.
“I know, but you have to remember that the medical community is influenced by the needs and interests of the general public. I would worry less about being transparent to doctors and surgeons and worry more about the people who will be reading the newspapers the next day. With a breakthrough as big as this, everyone will be talking about it. Your speech will probably be posted online. It could go viral. Direct your focus on the everyday people. Make sure they understand the importance of the work. If you do that well, then Stafford Scientific will forever be linked to nanotechnology, the way Cola and Pepsi are linked to soda.”
Taking my tablet from me, he scanned my notes. “I see what you’re saying. I’ll have my writers fine-tune the speech.”
I yawned, tired out by the drinks and the tension between us.
“I’ll get you home,” Noah said and instructed the driver to take us to my apartment.
“Are you going home too?” I asked. “It’s after midnight. You’re off the clock.”
Noah laughed. “So I am. I think I will go home. For once.”
When the driver pulled up outside my apartment building, I grabbed a bottle of beer and jumped out before Noah could protest. As I walked up the steps to the building, I didn’t turn around to see if he’d left. I knew he hadn’t. I could feel his eyes on me, tracking me, making sure I was safe.