Chapter Twelve

Beth glanced at her watch and smothered another unsatisfying, closed-mouth yawn. The Chief Financial Officer clicked his remote, flashing yet another slide of brightly colored graphs across the huge, pull-down screen in the conference room. The nasal, monotonous drone of his voice caused her eyes to glaze over, and if he didn’t wind it up soon, she’d be drooling like Homer Simpson.

She cast a surreptitious glance around the long, oval table and saw the occasional neck rub or pencil tapping on a notepad. At least she wasn’t the only one having trouble concentrating. However, she was willing to bet none of them had been awakened in the middle of the night by a pulsing orgasm after a restless, erotic dream of a ponytailed doctor with a very talented tongue. The dream had been so vivid Beth could swear she smelled his scent on her pillow. Hopefully that dream would soon become reality. She didn’t know where this…relationship was headed or where it would end, but now that she’d made the decision to move forward with it, she was anxious to get started.

Papers rustled around the table. People shifted, rearranging themselves in their chairs.

Finally—blessedly—the screen went blank, the CFO resumed his seat, and the lights flickered back on. Blinking, Beth caught a glimpse of her reflection in the floor-to-ceiling windows on the other side of the conference table and quickly pulled herself up from her slump.

Straightening her small pile of handouts, she clipped them together as the CEO, Brad Crawford, began his update on the upcoming construction of the new Emergency Department. She jotted down dates for meetings and projected deadlines around doodles, squiggles, and hearts.

Hearts, for crying out loud!

Brad’s cell phone rang and he apologized before taking the call. “Great, send him up!” He ended the call and addressed the meeting. “Our new ER medical director is on his way up.” Murmurs of surprise and missed memos circulated the room. He held up his hand and order resumed. “As you know, we had narrowed it down to two applicants. I got the acceptance call this morning from our first choice, and didn’t see the point in sending out a memo as he was joining us for the meeting today.”

As administration and the medical executive committee were conducting the interviews, the only contact Beth had with the potential hires was during ER tours. She had been out of town at corporate meetings on some of those days and had missed meeting a couple of them.

Her phone made a little zip sound in her jacket pocket. She slipped it out and snuck a look at the screen.

Are your eyes crossed yet?

Connie was an evil twit, but at least it broke up the monotony of waiting for their guest to arrive. Beth reread the text and grinned. There was a good chance Gabe was in need of a boredom breaker at his own meeting.

She typed in her message, pulling from one of her favorite movies.

Pop quiz: You have a bottle of wine, no glass, and a powerful thirst. What do you do?

The little zip sounded and a green balloon appeared on the screen with her message inside it. Beth snickered and dropped the phone in her pocket—it could be hours before he got the message.

A knock sounded on the door at her back.

“Ah, good.” The CEO stood and walked around the table to open the door. “Welcome, Dr. North.”

Beth’s head popped up. Whaaaa…? No, it couldn’t be! She started to turn, and then caught the reflection of the two men in the window across from her.

Oh. My. God.

The CEO extended his hand and said something, but all Beth heard was a ringing in her ears. The man standing in the door looked up from the phone in his hand, a huge smile on his handsome face. A face she knew all too well—a face that had hovered over hers while he thrust inside her until she screamed her pleasure.

Gabriel North.

Her Gabe.

The ringing in Beth’s ears subsided as she watched Gabe slide his phone into his shirt pocket. He took the CEO’s hand, gave it a firm shake. “Thank you. Sorry.” He tapped his pocket. “A very important message that required an immediate reply.”

Zip! Beth dragged her gaze from the window and pulled her phone out of her pocket.

Pour it on the freckle between your legs and lick it off.

Beth blinked down at the screen. The little sound that left her throat got her coworker’s attention. He craned his neck, trying to get a look at her phone. She dropped it back in her pocket like a hot potato and gave him a weak smile. “New horoscope app. Really…detailed,” she whispered.

“Ah.” He pursed his lips and whispered back, “Sounds like things are looking up.”

She gave him a noncommittal, “Hmm.”

People rose from their chairs, exchanged handshakes and introductions with Gabe and exited the conference room. His scent reached her just seconds before he did. Beth drew in a breath, filled her lungs with him. How could this be? She stood, took a breath, and turned.

“…And lastly, this is Beth Roberts, our nursing manager of the ER. The three of us will meet later in the week and get your take on the construction project for the expansion. You two will be working together with the architect on the layout, bouncing ideas off each other…”

Gabe’s smile softened as she slid her palm across his. Although his grin was a little too wide for two professionals meeting for the first time, no one seemed to notice as they shuffled out of the room and off to their prospective departments. She couldn’t believe he was here, in her hospital, and they would be working together. Her stomach took a low dip on the emotional roller coaster she was riding today. Less than an hour ago, they had agreed to start seeing each other. Well, they certainly would be, it seemed, but in a professional sense.

Of all the hospitals in all the towns, he walked into hers. Was her life a classic movie or what? Following up on a fling was a lot different than having an affair with a coworker. She studied his face, expecting to see the surprise and confusion bombarding her reflected back, but his eyes held the same determination as when he’d crossed the lawn and parked himself at her table at the wedding.

The shock of realization hit her full force. He’d known this was her hospital, that she’d be here, and he hadn’t mentioned it when they’d spoken on the phone. Conflicting emotions assailed her from every direction. Joy. Uncertainty. The gnawing pain of a lie by omission.

This could not be happening. Not now. Not when she’d just worked up the confidence to attempt a relationship with him. Every fiber in Beth’s body yearned to run to him, say, to hell with whatever reason brought him here, even as she struggled with the uncertainty squeezing her heart.

First things first, and right now she had to get through this moment as gracefully as possible.

“It’s nice to meet you, Dr. North. I hope you’ll be happy working with us here at Ridgemount.” She struggled to maintain an even, unaffected tone, but her voice came out a little tremulous, a bit on the husky side. He hesitated only a second before picking up on her cue to keep the fact that they’d already met to themselves. His fingers tightened around hers, just enough to reassure her they were on the same track…and send a sizzle of heat up her arm.

“Thank you, I’m sure I will be.” His eyes bore into hers, confident and sure. Trust me. The command was there, as surely as if he’d spoken it aloud. A flicker of hope sparked in her heart.

The persistent chirp of the CEO’s pager pulled Beth back to the moment. She tugged her hand from Gabe’s, curled her fingers into a loose fist, and let it drop to her side.

Brad clipped the pager back on his belt and glanced at his watch. With a grimace, he turned to Beth. “I have a conference call waiting. Would you mind orienting Gabe to the ER and then show him his office?” He took a set of keys out of his slacks pocket, handed them to Gabe, and shook his hand again. “Good to have you aboard, Gabe. I leave you in very capable hands.” His phone rang again as he walked through the door, leaving it open for Beth and Gabe to follow him out.

Questions continued to buzz through Beth’s head until she was dizzy with them. Staring up into Gabe’s soft brown eyes, Beth struggled to comprehend the turn of events. “I’m sorry, but I’m having a little trouble with what just played out. What are you doing here?”

“I’m your new medical director,” he said, giving her another hormone-scrambling smile.

Cursing those weak-assed hormones for turning her knees to jelly, Beth cut Gabe a don’t-give-me-any-shit look. “I’m not in the mood for jokes.”

The amusement faded from his eyes. Bracing one hand on his hip, Gabe rubbed the back of his neck with the other. “Yeah, I can see that.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you’d taken this position when we spoke earlier?”

“I tried to, but you were interrupted. Besides, I wanted to tell you face-to-face.”

“Well, you’re here now.” She snatched up her papers, held them in front of her chest like a shield. A tumble of confused thoughts and feelings bombarded her—joy that he was here and a sense of betrayal that he had taken this job without her knowledge. She wanted to push him away, demand answers and throw herself into his arms at the same time.

“You’re pissed. I understand. I crossed a couple of lines, and I’m sorry.” He rubbed his hand over his head, tugged at the ponytail at the nape of his neck. His gaze dropped to the papers she clutched to her chest. “Hell, you probably feel like I’m stalking you.”

Some of her anger evaporated at his self-castigating tone. She forced her scattered emotions into order. “No, I don’t feel like you’re stalking me.” Gabe’s shoulders sagged with relief and he took a step toward her. Beth shook her head. “Why did you take this job? You could have gone anywhere.”

He moved quickly for a man of his size, closing the distance between them in an instant. His hands framed her face, forced her to look up at him. “Because this is where you are.” His jaw tensed even as his thumb gently grazed her bottom lip. “I came here for you.”

The raw urgency in Gabe’s whispered confession swept the last vestige of doubt away. Her breath slipped out in a tiny gasp just before his lips came down to claim hers.

The gentle ferocity of his mouth melted her bones. Passion was there, but it couldn’t compete with the strength of the other emotions passing between them.

Lifting his head, Gabe pinned Beth with a heated look that all but singed her panties.

“I’m here because I can’t get you out of my head—the way you blush, the way you squirm around in a chair and squeeze your legs together when you get hot. I’m here because when I lie down at night, I can still hear that soft sound you make when you come apart in my arms, and I want to make it happen again. I’m here because when I’m with you I don’t feel empty inside. You make me whole again.” He dragged in a breath and reclaimed her lips.

Beth felt as if she were drowning, swimming through a haze of euphoria and lust. She was about to go under for the third time when the sound of voices in the hallway as they passed the office door brought her back to the surface. Placing her hand on Gabe’s chest, she reluctantly pushed him back.

“At the risk of sounding repetitive, this isn’t the place,” she said, drawing in a shaky breath. “While the hospital is happy to welcome you to the staff, I don’t think this is what they had in mind as part of the welcoming committee.”

“Nothing wrong with a little PDA,” Gabe said, and reached for her again, but she skillfully evaded his grasp. “True. Unfortunately, this type of public display of affection could get us fired.” Beth glanced around for her papers, and then shook her head when she realized she still had them clutched to her chest. One touch, one kiss, and her brain was mush. Now that her gray matter was functioning again, the complications of their situation settled in. Workplace romances were rarely a success.

Reaching down, Gabe adjusted his erection to a more comfortable angle. “Right now, I’d almost risk it.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Think you could show me my office first, before I get fired my first day on the job for walking around with a hard on?”

Fighting back the urge to run her fingers over the firm column pushing against the front of Gabe’s slacks, Beth pulled herself together and led him out of the conference room and down the hall.

“By the way, how did you find out where I worked? I don’t remember telling you.”

“I saw your paperwork on the desk at the hotel,” he admitted. “The thought of applying for the job didn’t cross my mind at the time, but after I left the hotel…” The muscle in his jaw ticked. “I couldn’t get you out of my head. I had been considering a change of scenery, interviewed at a couple of hospitals before we met, but nothing jumped out at me. Nothing caught my interest…until you.” He drew in a breath and pushed it back out. “It wasn’t over when I walked out that door, not for either of us. The only way to prove that to you was to be near you.”

“What if they hadn’t hired you?”

“I would have found another way.”

Beth’s step faltered. Part of her still wanted to be annoyed with him, but damn, with confessions like that falling out of his mouth, all she wanted to do was drag him into the janitor’s closet and have her wicked way with him.

They turned a corner and made their way toward the ER. “You’re quiet,” Gabe said, stepping to the side as a radiology tech pushed a patient past them on a stretcher.

“We need to talk. We’ll be working together…”

He nodded and kept walking. “That’s the plan.”

“Our offices are through here.” They passed through a set of double doors and into a small side hall with two facing doors. “This is mine.” She indicated the one on the left.

Gabe studied the plaque on the door that read Beth Roberts, MSN, Nursing Manager, Emergency Department. “And mine?”

“There.” She pointed to the door across from hers, watched him slide the key in and trip the lock. “We need to talk.”

“You’re right.” He grabbed her by the wrist, dragged her inside and flicked on the light. Kicking the door shut, he whirled her around and trapped her there with his body. “We’ll talk… after I do this.”

He claimed her mouth, took total possession with a raw intensity that left no doubt of his need. God, he tasted so good, every bit as good as she’d remembered. His breath rushed out, she swallowed his moan…or was it hers? The hard slab of wood at her back was nothing compared to the solid wall of muscle and man pressing her into it. Beth arched up, frustrated with the differences in their heights, the way it denied vital areas from meeting. She rose on the toes of her sensible, low-heeled shoes, but it wasn’t enough.

He was right. They could talk after.

With an irritated growl, Gabe tore his mouth free. “I need to feel you.”

“Oh, God, yes!” Right here, right now, Gabe wasn’t her coworker, he was a man. Her man. She no longer cared about the details of how he came to be here…only that he was.

He worked the button at her waistband free, pulled the zipper down and drove his hand inside. His fingers slid over her sex once, twice, and then plunged deep. Her body quaked, her inner walls grasped and squeezed at his fingers, but it wasn’t enough.

“More,” she moaned. “I need…I’ve got to have my hands on you.” Beth tugged his shirt free of his slacks, keenly aware of the thick column of his cock pressing against his fly. She plunged her hands under the soft fabric, smoothed her palms up the firm ridges of his abdomen. She pressed her hand to his chest, just over his heart, felt the gallop and pitch of it beneath muscle and bone.

For her.

She was in so much trouble and she didn’t give a flying fig. Right now, at this moment, all she cared about was this man, and that he was here, standing before her. Wanting her.

His forehead fell to hers, his breathing ragged and uneven. He pulled her hand from his cock, grasped her hips and dragged her in, grinding his erection against her upper abdomen. “I’ve dreamed about you, woke up with the taste of you in my mouth.”

Her breath caught in her throat. “I’ve dreamed about you, too. Of your mouth, your tongue on me.” She shuddered against him.

“God, Beth.”

“I came, but it wasn’t enough. It’s not enough now. I need you…inside me. Right here, right now.”

“Fucking hell!”

Had she not known it was lust that caused his fingers to bite into her hips, Beth would have been frightened, but she knew she was safe. By the way his eyes burned with it, the way his shoulders heaved as he fought for control, by the way his touch gentled, she knew. The hollow feeling in her chest filled to overflowing, sealed over, and healed. A new sensation crept in and tapped at her heart. Open up, it beckoned, and see what awaits.

Fabric shifted, just enough to accommodate. Beth toed off her shoes, slid her slacks and panties down to kick one leg free. Gabe fought his belt open, yanked down his zipper and shoved his slacks over his hips. His cock sprang free, heavy and full.

He bent his knees, cupped her ass in his hands and hoisted her up. “Hang on to me. I’m sorry. This is going to be fast,” he apologized and reached between them to align the rigid length of his cock between her thighs. “Ah, damn, you’re so wet,” he gritted, and then slid into her.

Beth buried her face against his neck, ran her tongue along the line of his jaw. His body shuddered. She wrapped around him, wound her arms around his neck, squeezed her legs around his hips and held him there. He was thick and hard and she thought she’d come from the sheer bliss of having him inside her again. He pulled back, all the way to the tip, and, when he thrust back in, the door rattled on its hinges.

They both froze.

Beth sucked in a breath. “Oh, God, as much as I’d love for you to do that again—”

Gabe’s forehead banged against the door. “You’d hate to get fired for getting fucked against my office door.” He turned, moved to the side and braced his back against the wall.

Beth glanced around the small room, her gaze landing on the desk. Gabe laughed, causing his cock to flex and pulling a moan from her throat.

“Baby,” he rasped, “there’s nothing I’d like more than to bend you over that piece of furniture and take us both to heaven, but unless it’s nailed to the floor…”

“Oh, God.” The image he painted, pushing over the desk, driving into her…her pussy clenched.

“Ah, fuck! Squeeze me like that again,” he panted. “Just…hold on to me.” Widening his stance, Gabe grasped Beth’s hips and lifted her, angling his pelvis up as he brought her back down hard on his shaft. Then he did it again.

“Gabe, that’s…oh, I…just don’t stop!” Each pause was punctuated with another lift and thrust.

“No way in hell. Just don’t scream when you come.” And then he moved, lifting, lowering, rotating his hips to find that sweet spot that drove her wild.

It started in the soles of her feet—that sizzle of electricity signaling her orgasm. It snaked up her legs, curled around her inner thighs, and with a low keening sound, Beth buried her face in Gabe’s neck and welcomed it as it speared her clit with an orgasm that clung to every inch of Gabe as he drove into her. He was right with her, his breath a harsh hiss against her ear as he thrust deep and held her tightly against him.

The soft brush of Gabe’s lips over her sweat-dampened temple was in stark contradiction to the choppy breaths lifting his chest against hers. “I’ve missed you, missed this,” he whispered hoarsely.

“Me, too.” After a moment, when she’d caught her breath, Beth lifted her head and said, “We really…”

“Need to talk,” he sighed. “I know.”

…

“This can’t happen again.”

Gabe pulled up his pants, tucked his shirt in and zipped up. It was hard to concentrate on the pros and cons of an office romance with Beth bent over, her bare ass bobbing as she worked her panties over her foot. “Uh-huh.”

She shot him a glance over her shoulder, tracked his line of sight and whipped around, and in doing so, gave him an equally distracting view of her breasts in a barely-there bra that exposed far more than it covered.

“Gabe!”

“Hmm?” His eyes shot up to find her frowning at him.

She worked the buttons of her blouse, and had she not been covering up such a precious view, Gabe would have marveled at the fine dexterity of her nimble fingers.

“Unless that’s an otoscope in your pocket, you haven’t heard a word I’ve said.”

Gabe glanced down at the front of his pants and sure enough, he’d gotten a semi from watching her dress, and she was fussing at him for it. Whether she knew it or not, they already had the makings of a relationship in the works. He looked up, gave her a sheepish grin and shrugged. “What can I say? I’m just happy to see you.”

She planted her fists at her waist and cocked her hip. “Will you please be serious? This is serious.”

It was serious and he knew it, but when Beth finger-combed her hair and smoothed it back in place, all he wanted to do was drive his hands through it and mess it back up. Because he knew that would get him into more trouble—and there would hopefully be another opportunity to mess her up in the near future—he sat down on one of the two chairs in front of his desk, offered her the other and resisted the urge to pull her onto his lap. When she’d taken her seat, Gabe scooted his chair around to face her. If he’d learned one thing from their night together, it was that Beth tackled her problems head on.

She was right. This was serious.

“We have two major issues here.” Gabe leaned forward and rested his forearms on his thighs, his hands dangling between his knees. “My taking this job the way I did has messed with your trust, and again, I apologize for that, but if I had called, told you what I was planning to do, you would have been against it.”

Several conflicting expressions crossed her face until she finally nodded. “You’re right, I probably would have.”

Probably. Gabe swallowed a grin.

“What I did, right or wrong, I did for us.” He reached for her hands, rubbing his thumb over the backs of her fingers. “That morning, at the hotel, when I asked to see you again, you almost said yes.”

Shock widened her eyes, parted her lips. For a moment, Gabe thought she was going to deny it, and then it was as if something released in her and she relaxed. “Yes.” The admission slipped out on a quiet breath. His fingers tightened around hers as his heart thundered in his chest. This fragile balance building between them suddenly became the most important thing in his life. Screwing it up was not an option.

“Less than an hour ago, we decided to see each other on a personal level. I hope that meant we were on the same page.” He watched her work this over in her head and tamped down the urge to pump his fist when she nodded. “This job is background noise. You and I, that’s my most major issue. I need to know if it’s still yours.”

Her blue eyes held his, steady and unblinking. “Yes. I want this to work.”

“Good.” That was what he wanted to hear. What surprised him was how badly he’d needed it. “You’re too far away.” He sat back and patted his thighs. “Come here.”

Her chin came up. Good. His girl still had a little fight left in her. His girl. Damn, he liked the sound of that. He was ridiculously pleased when she pushed out of her chair and sat on his lap. He waited until she settled herself, then he draped one arm over her hips and the other across her shoulders. He skimmed the pad of his thumb down her arm, felt her shiver, then cuddle closer. Trust.

“I took this job because this is where you are, to give us a chance at a relationship. I can walk away right now and never give this hospital another thought except that you work here, but unless you ask me to leave, I’m staying. Now, what has you so worried about the two of us working together?” He’d seen interdepartmental relationships work, but it was something she needed to resolve and he’d do whatever it took to make her feel secure where the two of them were concerned.

She rested her head on his shoulder. Her breath tickled his neck when she spoke. “Working together in the same department will be difficult.” Her shoulders tensed. He slid his hands there and worked the muscles loose. “If no one knows about us…”

“No. I’m not going to lie or hide what’s going on with us. If we’re doing this, we’re doing it for real. I want to date you, meet your parents”—he waggled his brows—“mow your lawn.”

“Administration won’t like it.”

“They can mow their own grass.”

She sighed. “You know what I mean.”

Yeah, he knew what she meant, but now that he was this close to having her in his life, there was no way in hell he’d let his job get in the way of keeping her there. Closing his eyes, Gabe tucked her back in and rested his cheek on top of her head. Contentment settled over him like a well-worn blanket and he’d be damned if anyone or anything ripped it away.

It would work out, he’d make it, but first he had to work it out with Beth.

“Okay, let’s put it on the table. What problems are we looking at?”

She rested her hand on his forearm, skimmed her fingers over the hair there. “A charge and a staff nurse had a relationship a few years ago. Preferential treatment caused jealousy and resentment among the other staff until the charge nurse transferred to another department.”

“So, you had a couple where one supervised the other.”

“Yes.”

He shrugged. “We’re both in leadership roles, so I don’t see a problem there…unless someone takes offense if I open a door for you, or allow you to choose which table to sit at for lunch.” That was easy enough. “What else?”

“Time off from work. Say we wanted to go on vacation…both managers would be gone.”

“Assistants, we both have them. Not the same thing as replacing two members of staff.”

“Disagreements at work bleeding over into our personal lives and causing problems between us.”

“We’re professionals. Work related issues stay at work.” Keep setting them up, babe, and I’ll keep knocking them down.

She was quiet for a moment. He gave her a gentle nudge with his chin. “Is that it? Is that all you’ve got?” The heavy sigh that lifted her chest told him that the next one was a biggie. Bring it, and I’ll tear it down, too.

“If…” She swallowed. “If this doesn’t work…between us…it would be difficult to work together—”

“No.” Gabe stopped that thought before she could take it any further. He pulled her face from his neck, tipped her head back on his shoulder, and sealed his mouth over hers. Desperation and need flavored the kiss, though whose he couldn’t discern. “The only ‘if’ here is if the job gets in our way, and I was looking for a job when I found this one. I chose this one to be close to you, and that’s all. Finding another won’t be a problem. We come first.” He banded his arms around her. “You come first.” She had to know that, believe it. Trust it. “I made that mistake once; I don’t intend to make it again. You and I know better than anyone that life holds no guarantees, but I say we take what we have now and run with it, take it as far as it goes.”

She was quiet for a moment, then murmured, “I want this.” She looked up at him, her eyes fierce with resolve. “I still have issues to work out, and I’m so sorry for what I said. I’ll never compare you to him.”

He brushed his lips over hers. Then, because he could, did it again. “We both have issues, we’ll work them out together, and I swear to you, no matter what happens, no matter how angry I get, I’ll never raise a hand to you. I can’t, however, promise we won’t argue or fight over stupid stuff. I’m not perfect.” She gave him a look. “It’s true. But you know the best thing about arguing and fighting with a lover?”

“What?”

“The make-up sex is smoking hot.”

She grinned.

He sat there for a while, content to just hold Beth, feel her sigh as she relaxed in his arms. “You remember at the wedding, just before Albert went down for the count? I was having a beer with Ian and you were helping your son.”

“I remember. We were eye-flirting.”

He snorted. “Honey, that was an eye fuck if there ever was one.” Her jaw dropped. “Anyway, when I looked up and saw you looking at me, I felt…alive.”

She looked up at him, her eyes bright and moist as they met his. “Like you’d been returned to the land of the living.”

She’d nailed it. “Yeah, exactly like that. You know what I mean?”

She pressed her mouth to his. “I know exactly what you mean, and I plan on making you feel that way for a very long time.”

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