Seducing Chase (16 page)

Nate cocked his head. “I think I do.” She looked down at her blotter and he noticed a tear escaping, falling in a fat plop on her desk. He leaned forward, awkwardly patting her on the shoulder. “Hey, it’s all over.”

Her co-workers thankfully were already moving away, and he reached out blindly with one hand and closed her door.

“I know. They’re good tears. Well, mostly.”

“Mostly?”

She looked up at him. “I’m going to miss you.”

The thought of what this would mean to him hadn’t even occurred to him in that moment. He’d been so happy for Val that nothing else registered. Now Nate struggled to swallow around the lump in his throat.

Needing to make a connection with her, he planted his hands on her desk and leaned forward. “Back atcha.” With a quick kiss, he pulled away before he wasn’t able to force himself to. “Well, I’ll leave you to it.”

“Wait!” Nate raised one eyebrow. “I have no idea what to do. I mean, I know, but my brain is like mush. We should do a press release, and we’ll have to hold a press conference.”

“Might want to wait for the okay from the FBI before you do that.”

“Oh geez, of course. I need to talk to them. And to Richard. You need to call Doug!”

He couldn’t resist another quick peck. “Slow down, baby. I’ll help you through it if that’s what you want.”

“You weren’t just going to leave, were you?”

“Well, no,” he responded, shifting his weight from foot to foot as he straightened. “But I figured this is your time in the sun. You should take advantage and enjoy it.”

“How could I enjoy it without you? You were such a huge part of this.”

“You’re the star, baby. I just helped out a little. You kept this place going through its darkest days.”

Val blushed, ducking her head. “Can you craft the release while I get the ball rolling on the media alert?”

“Of course.”

“I mean, you don’t
have
to do anything. Technically your job is done here, but…”

“Would you stop babbling?”

She bit her lip. “Sorry.”

“It’s adorable, but entirely unnecessary. I’ll stay as long as you need me.”

“Okay, good. I’m not sure I could handle you leaving right now on top of everything else.”

He wasn’t sure what she meant by that, but didn’t want to hope she was referring to more than work. Nate knew damn well he was falling for her, but with the crisis wrapping up, he’d be going back to New York and she’d remain here in Buffalo. He hated long-distance relationships, having never seen one that worked, so their time was inevitably limited.

Nate moved back to his own office and began the press release. As he wrote, his own smile spread despite the less-than-happy thought of leaving here. The hospital would regain much of what it had lost, and Val’s stress load would go down considerably. Despite the time it would take for the hospital to regain its stellar reputation, Doug was the real casualty. The board would never hire him back on and Nate wondered if he’d stay in the area and try to find a similar position at one of the other hospitals, or if he’d be forced to move. That thought reminded him he hadn’t yet called Doug with the news. More than likely someone else had already gotten to him but, on the off chance no one had, Nate didn’t want him to hear it through the media.

Doug’s phone went to voicemail, and even though it had been a few days since his unceremonious firing, Nate figured he might still be licking his wounds. He left a message with the bare-bones information and urged Doug to call him, then went back to the press release. There wasn’t a lot of flash and hoopla you could add to a standard press release, but Nate was determined to put out a quality product, one that said in no uncertain terms the hospital was ready to put this behind them and show the world they were still one of the best.

When he printed out his draft and brought it to Val, he discovered he was actually nervous about what she thought of it. She finished reading and looked up at him with a frown. “You’re wasting your talent. You know that, right?”

He was surprised by her outburst. “What do you mean?”

“This press release,” she waved it in the air, “kicks ass. I know you enjoy what you do, but you should really consider doing something that makes more of a difference to the world.” He started to speak and she silenced him. “I don’t mean to be judgmental, but I just couldn’t keep my mouth shut.”

“I understand, but I do have my own life and run a very successful business. Not everything I do is superfluous.” Val was mostly right-on with her assessment, but Nate still found himself going on the defensive.

“I never said what you do is useless, it’s just—”

“No, I get it. Anyway, once you look at that I can send it out for you if you want. I’m sure you’re busy with the press conference.”

“Yeah, and we just sent out an all-employee memo.”

“Let me know what changes need to be made. I’ll get out of your hair.”

“Nate—”

“Seriously, Val. Don’t worry about it. Get your stuff done.” He turned and was out the door before she could say another word.

Once back in what would only be his office for another few hours, he called Lesli again. She was thrilled to hear he was coming home and asked him if she should call the actor back. He declined, making an excuse that he wanted a little time once he got back to re-acclimate and catch up. Lesli didn’t question him and he promised to call when he knew more.

Nate thought about going back to his hotel room and packing, but decided against it. If Val needed him he wanted to be available to her. So, instead, he went through everything he’d been doing for her and began to transfer all his files onto a flash drive. They’d never given him access to their internal servers, and there was too much to simply email. As the last file copied from his laptop to the flash drive, a strange, hollow feeling stole over him, but he willed it away.

There was no place for him here. Hell, there was no place for someone with his background in all of Buffalo. His job could only be done in New York or LA; and though he’d grown to love the warm people, unique architecture and fabulous restaurants in Buffalo, it was time to go. He had a job and a life to return to and, at this point, the sooner the better, before his heart was engaged any further than it already was.

The shrill ring of his cell phone pulled him out of his own thoughts and he answered without glancing at the caller ID.

“They got him?” It was Doug, but his voice sounded like he’d been chewing granite or something.

“Doug?”

“Yeah, it’s me. I, um, I’ve been having a little trouble the past couple of days.”

Nate’s ears perked up. “What kind of trouble?” It came out sharper than he’d intended.

“Nothing illegal or anything,” his friend answered. “I’ve just been using a little too much alcohol to console myself, I think.”

“Really…” Nate answered, clearing his throat. “And what does Marie think of that?”

“She’s sympathetic, but I think she’s about had enough.”

“Marie’s a great girl, and you’ve kids to consider, too, man.”

“I know. And now that they’ve caught him I’m sure things will get better.” There was a pause, and even across the phone lines Nate could tell Doug wanted to say more. “You’ve been unbelievable the past couple of weeks. I don’t know how to thank you.” His voice broke on the last word and Nate’s eyes closed.

“Hey, you saved me in college, bud. I was just returning the favor.”

Doug snorted. “What you did for me there was about a million times more than I ever did for you.”

“Not true and you know it. Anyway, I’m just glad I could help.”

“So I guess you’ll be going back to the city now, huh?”

“Yeah. I’m helping Val close out some stuff here and then I’ll get on the road.”

“I wish we would’ve had some time to talk; to have you over for dinner or something, but everything was so crazy—”

“Don’t worry about it. Maybe I’ll try to make it back up here sometime.”

“To see Val?”

“Um…”

“Even with how preoccupied I was, I knew you two had gotten involved. She’s a great girl.”

“Who you didn’t trust to handle the situation on her own.”

Doug groaned. “I know, I know. That was shitty of me. I’m sure she could’ve, but I’m still glad you were there.”

“Me too,” Nate whispered.

“Keep in touch.”

“I will. Same goes for you. Let’s not have another bunch of years go by before we talk again. Say hi to Marie and the kids for me.”

They hung up and Nate laced his hands behind his head, leaning back in his chair. Despite his being fired, Nate couldn’t help but be a little jealous of Doug. He’d met a woman while they’d been in college and had married her as soon as they’d graduated. Now he had her and two great kids. Probably a nice house with a big yard. Nate finally admitted to himself that he wanted a woman like Val, someone to come home to at night. As much as he loved his Porsche and his loft overlooking the Hudson, ultimately it wasn’t a fulfilling life and he knew it.

Val gave him the corrected press release and then he didn’t see her again for the rest of the day. The press conference was scheduled for tomorrow and she’d been holed up in meetings with Richard and the board of directors, as well as the FBI, for hours. He waited around the office until after seven that night, but when she still hadn’t returned he shuffled back to his hotel room, overwhelmed by exhaustion.

His phone woke him from the strange dream he’d been having, where he was trying to get to Val but could never catch her. It took several rings for him to come back to reality, and when he answered it, his voice was thick with sleep.

“Did I wake you? Oh my God, I’m sorry, Nate.”

He immediately recognized Val. “Don’t worry about it. What’s up?”

“I just called to tell you the press conference is all set up and if you need to get home I understand.”

“Do you need help?”

There was a pause and he held his breath. “No. I think I’m okay.” Another pause. “Will you leave tomorrow then?”

“Probably.” He was waiting for her to say something meaningful.

I can’t do this without some sign from her. I can’t put myself out there… I’ll look like an idiot if she doesn’t want the same thing.

She cleared her throat and his heart felt like it was beating out of his chest. “You’ve been a tremendous help and there’s absolutely no way I can ever thank you; no way the hospital can ever thank you.”

“You don’t need to thank me.”

I don’t want you to thank me.

“Yes, I do, and though words, despite being our chosen medium, are woefully inadequate, I’ll just say you’ll never know how much easier dealing with his crapfest was since I knew you were there to help.”

Apparently she was choosing not to remember the spats they’d had about how to handle the crisis, and that was fine with him. Nate licked his lips, trying to relieve their sudden dryness. “I’m happy I could help. Doug’s always been a good friend to me when I needed one.”

“Anyway, I’ll let you go. I’m sure you’ve got arrangements to make and all that.”

He wasn’t sure what else to say. Never in his life had he been faced with the prospect of losing something he actually cared about. “Okay. You take care of yourself.”

They ended the call and he lay back. That was the single most depressing phone call he’d ever had. With a start, Nate sat up. Even though he wasn’t about to chuck rocks at her balcony—if she’d had one—and declare his love, there was unfinished business between the two of them and he’d be damned if he left things like this.

Within minutes he was in the Porsche and speeding toward her house. She lived outside of Buffalo and as the minutes ticked by he became more and more impatient. By the time he reached her, Nate was tapping his fingers on the wheel and his left leg was bouncing.

Vaulting out of the car, he hurried up her porch steps and rang the doorbell. When she didn’t respond immediately, he started pounding on her door. He hammered away until the door flew open, and there was Val, her hair still wet from a shower, standing there looking so beautiful his breath seized.

He walked into her house without a word and she took a step back.

“Nate?”

He picked her up and carried her over to the couch, placing her down gently and immediately following. He’d intended to talk, to tell her how much he’d enjoyed their time together, but seeing her like this, her skin dewy from her shower, his brain short-circuited.

Plunging his hands into her wet hair, he plundered her mouth, pouring every ounce of feeling into his kiss. She met him parry for parry, her own hands scrabbling for purchase in his much shorter hair. His hand parted her robe and found her wet already. Without finesse he pushed one and then two fingers inside of her and swallowed her surprised gasp. He was like a madman, completely consumed by lust for this incredible woman.

Finally he forced himself to pull away, but only long enough to open the sash of her robe, baring her to his gaze while also making quick work of his pants. Nate rolled on a condom, sending up a quick litany of thanks he’d remembered to bring some, and was back between her legs and pushing inside her warm, wet heat within seconds. Her back arched and a burst of primal male satisfaction overtook him.

Nate hitched her legs up on his shoulders and began to pound into her, hoping like hell he wasn’t hurting her, because he wasn’t sure it was even in his power to slow down. Val held onto his forearms, her mouth open and her eyes squeezed shut.

“Open your eyes. I want to see you when you come.”

She did, her eyes wide and filled with heat as he continued to power into her with long, full strokes. It didn’t take long for either of them to find their climax and, with a shout, he pushed inside as far as he could and let go. He couldn’t catch his breath. Unfortunately he feared for the viability of the condom, given the strength of his release and, with no small amount of regret, pulled out and went to the bathroom to dispose of it. When he returned, Val was sitting up, her robe closed once more, and he wondered if she regretted what had just happened.

“I’m sorry,” he blurted before he could think better of it.

A furrow appeared between her brows, and she said, “It’s okay. It’s not like I was pushing you away.”

“I know, but—” He chewed the inside of his cheek, as he tried to decide how best to put how he was feeling. “I shouldn’t have attacked you like that.”

She indicated he should sit next to her and he sank down, wondering what she would say next. He didn’t have to wait long.

“I want to say something to you. Nate, you could do so much more. You could
be
so much more.” She looked down for a moment before meeting his gaze once more. “I know you don’t want to hear this, but why are you wasting your talent on people who aren’t worth it when there are so many who are?”

“It’s what I chose. It’s what I’ve always done. It’s what I’m good at.” He shrugged.

“You’d be good at public relations no matter who or what you were doing it for. I just hate to see people who could be making a difference not taking advantage of it. That’s all.”

“Your kind of work is perfect for someone like you,” he argued, rising and pacing to the other side of the room. Turning back, he said, “People like me should stick to what we’re doing.”

Val shook her head. “I have no idea what you mean by ‘people like you’. You’re a good man, Nate.”

“I’m glad you think so. Anyway, I just really came to say good-bye. After we talked I just felt…unsettled.”

“Me too,” she whispered.

“So, um, I’ll be watching to see how everything plays out, and please don’t hesitate to call me if you need anything.”

Obviously sensing this was the end, Val rose and went to the door.