Chapter 18
Holly
The gala is tomorrow night, and I have to go to this final tasting.
It’s not optional.
It’s my name on the line, my work, my reputation.
I need to make sure the dessert is perfect, the table layouts are locked, the playlist finalized, the floral installations greenlit.
All the tiny, invisible details that make or break a million-dollar charity event.
Noel tried to argue. Hard. But this is my job.
My responsibility.
And I’m not letting anyone else step into the line of fire for me.
“We just have to stop by my office first,” I tell him when we make it down to the private parking garage beneath Volkov Towers.
Noel nods, jaw tight, hands flexing against the steering wheel like he’s imagining punching something.
Or someone.
He’s been quiet ever since he burst into that glass office I was using at Sigma, slammed the door, and kissed me like I was air and he’d been holding his breath for years.
Not that I minded.
God, not at all.
The man makes my knees weak and my brain foggy. And okay, maybe this is moving too fast.
Maybe I am caught up in the sparkle of Manhattan at Christmastime.
In the protective arms of a very dangerous man who somehow makes me feel like the safest person in the world.
But something about Noel Kane just feels right.
The way he watches me.
The way he listens.
The way he doesn’t treat me like I’m fragile, even though I probably look like I might break at any second.
I just hope my heart isn’t completely wrecked when this all ends and he moves on, as he undoubtedly will.
Men like Noel don’t do forever.
They do missions. Objectives. Exit strategies.
Still. Right now? I need to focus.
We pull up to Big City Events, and even from the curb I can see lights on inside. It’s still business hours, so I’m not surprised some of the team is here.
What does surprise me is the sight waiting when I walk through the glass doors.
The conference room is full.
And not just anyone. Carly Williams, my boss, is standing inside with Ambrose and Darlene—two of my co-workers—and they’re holding contact info for my biggest vendor partners in their hands.
And behind them, like a slap in the face, is a whiteboard.
My whiteboard.
Covered in color-coded sticky notes, sketches, catering orders, final seating charts, and scribbled reminders that only I could decipher.
Every single detail of the gala.
On display.
Without me.
I don’t slow down.
Noel follows, his frown deepening with every step. His hand hovers near my back, like he wants to step in but knows I need to do this myself.
I push open the door without knocking.
“What’s going on?”
All heads whip toward me.
“Oh, Holly! There you are,” Carly says, eyes wide and fake smiling. The kind of smile she uses in meetings when a donor shows up unannounced. “I—I didn’t expect you back so soon.”
I blink. “Of course I came back. I’m here to get the final copies of the itinerary before tomorrow’s event. What is all this?”
I motion toward the whiteboard, my voice tight, controlled, teetering on the edge of something messy.
Carly clears her throat and looks to Ambrose, then to Darlene, like someone’s going to jump in and explain.
They don’t.
“Holly, we were just, um, reviewing contingency plans,” she says finally, stepping forward with a placating smile that grates on every last one of my nerves.
“You’ve been under a lot of pressure lately, and with everything going on—your personal safety concerns, the threats, your, um, temporary leave—”
“Temporary leave?”
“Yes, well, I just thought it would be helpful to loop in a few key people.”
“My temporary leave?” I repeat, and I can see the sarcasm.
My voice pitches up, sharp and incredulous.
Carly blinks.
“Holly, you’ve been working remotely, and I wasn’t sure you’d be back in time. I had to make sure the event could run smoothly.”
I open my mouth. Close it again.
“Carly,” I begin, trying for a calm I sure as shit do not feel, “I’ve been out of the office for one day and like you just said, I have been working remotely. In fact, I’ve been sending you emails to update you on my progress every step of the way.”
Rage is simmering in my chest.
Embarrassment too.
But worse than that is the sense of betrayal.
This event is mine.
I brought in the client. I built it. Every vendor. Every detail. Every backup plan.
And now they’re standing here like I’m a liability.
Like I don’t matter.
Noel shifts behind me. I can feel the tension radiating off him like heat from a forge. But he doesn’t speak.
He lets me handle it. And I have to hand it to him—that’s hot as fuck.
Because I will handle it. Even if it means resigning when this is all over.
“Oh,” I say, voice cool and clipped. “So you’re replacing me now?”
“Of course not,” Carly rushes to say. “This is still your event. We’re just being cautious. That’s all. Unless you feel as though you can’t proceed? Holly, I am simply looking out for you and the company’s best interests.”
“Right,” I murmur, already walking over to the board. “Well then, let’s make sure the team is actually up to speed, shall we?”
Because if they’re going to try to take this from me, they’re going to learn real fast that I’m not someone who gives up easily.
Especially not when I’ve got a bodyguard with a gun, a kiss that melted my brain, and something dangerously close to hope burning in my chest.