“This is turning into a circus,” Bill muttered.
“Let’s hear it,” Dev said, clearly amused by the whole scene. I, on the other hand, was ready to melt into a puddle and slide out the door.
Nick ran a hand through his hair, wiping his palm on the front of his suit pants. “It has come to my attention that I was accused of hazing Paxton Marshall and making him say despicable things about Miss Markham. Those allegations are not true. Paxton Marshall is a little prick,” he swallowed hard and took a steeling breath while the other partners tittered around the table, “Paxton Marshall made unspeakably rude comments about Miss Markham, and I held him accountable for what he said. If anything, I lost Annie the client. It’s not her fault.”
He blew out a breath and flipped over his page. “I also heard that there were allegations that Miss Markham and I enjoyed an inappropriate relationship. While I may harbor feelings for Miss Markham, she is a consummate professional and did not engage with me. If anyone has been unprofessional, it’s been me. Please do not fire her on my account, as she did nothing wrong.”
I propped my forehead on my fingers. Silence fell across the room as Nick folded the paper and shoved it back in his pocket.
Dev started a slow clap, to which Nick gave a relieved grin, then realized it might be a joke and sobered.
“I guess I’ll just . . . go,” he said, gesturing to the door.
“By all means, stay,” Bill grumbled.
“That was really sweet, but it’s the opposite of what Annie told us,” Allan said.
“Annie, what?” Nick blurted. “No. You need this job. Don’t do this for me.”
I giggled, my face on fire. He was being so adorable but also a little stupid for blowing his own cover immediately. “We’ve got it figured out, bub.”
“Do you ever,” Bill said, massaging his temple.
“What’s the plan?” Nick asked.
“Mr. Oberbeck?” Marcie said. “We’re kind of in the middle of a meeting here.”
“Oh, right. You can tell me later,” he said, smiling brightly. “I’ll go.”
Nick slinked to the door and just before he closed it, he waved at me one last time.
I closed my eyes, smoothing my skirt and trying to regain my composure. “I am . . . so sorry about that,” I said, completely mortified.
“Aw, Annie, he loves you,” Dev teased. He’d really made a 180 during this meeting, showing that 1) he was a bro in the best way and had been a bro for some time by keeping my relationship with Nick quiet, 2) he had a sense of humor he’d been withholding, and 3) most importantly, he didn’t hate me.
“Jesus,” I muttered. Why does it matter if I went to law school and passed the bar and signed multi-million-dollar deals and helped my dad with finances when the guy I loved could come in and make me look like a lovesick fool in front of all my colleagues?
“He just poured his whole heart out for you, Annie! Give the kid a break,” Marcie cackled. “But back to the point. My fellow partners in Athlore, we can’t stop these two kids from falling in love, but we can make a new direction for this company that will actually do some good in this world. What do you say?”
“I need to study the projections, but on the surface, it doesn’t seem bad,” Dev said. “Bill? Allan? Tomas?”
“Maybe let’s all vote on it by the end of the week?” Tomas suggested.
“Fine by me,” Allan said.
“Bill?” Marcie prodded.
“Yeah, fine,” Bill conceded.
“And Annie can get back to work tomorrow first thing?” Marcie asked.
“Wait, she hasn’t been working?” Allan asked.
“I suspended her while I investigated the Paxton Marshall allegations,” Bill said.
Tomas rolled his eyes. “She lost one potential lead, Bill. Big deal. Can we all get back to work now? Annie included?”
“I vote yes,” Dev said. “Send us the presentation, Annie, and we’ll get back to you by Friday about the new division.”
