eyebrows knit together. He was fully aware that part of his duties was to help promote his department. His reputation was part of what had won him this position in the first place, and the board had told him they expected him to actively participate in all publicity campaigns. But in the last six months, he’d managed to remain uninvolved in such efforts, which was the way he wanted to keep it.
“Ana, I’ve told you before. I’m a doctor, not a public relations ploy.”
A spark of determination entered Ana’s eyes. Noah had always respected her, but now, her flinty gaze made him wonder just who would win if he was forced to go head-to-head with her.
“Dr. Brennan,” she began, and Noah tried not to flinch. He recognized that by addressing him so formally, she was making it clear she was serious. “So far I’ve tried to be sensitive to your situation.”
Noah flushed with suppressed anger. “I don’t need your pity, Ana.”
She leaned forward. “It’s not pity to give someone time and space to mourn.”
He looked away. “I don’t need time and space. I need to be free to do my work.”
Ana sighed. “Your work includes bringing attention to the hospital and its programs, along with fund-raising to support those programs. You’re one of the top pediatric oncologists in the country, and that benefits the hospital tremendously, but it’s also important to broadcast those successes.”
Noah stiffened. “My job is to save children’s lives,” he corrected.
“Which is something you do with great skill,” she returned, “but it’s not all that is expected of you. The board would like you to be more actively involved in promotional efforts.”
Noah blinked. “The board is more interested in me playing a part for the public than helping the children on this floor fight for their lives?”
Ana’s expression hardened. “Self-righteousness is not an attractive trait, Doctor, even on you.”
He didn’t reply. It wasn’t self-righteousness. He had no claim to righteousness of any kind. If a doctor couldn’t save the very patient who had mattered most, what right did he have to act blameless?
Still, he had no desire to use—and in fact, was very much against using—his skills or reputation to support a sales pitch for the hospital.
“Noah, I need you to work with this new PR coordinator. Trust me, she’s trying to help these children as much as you are. More funding will allow for better technology, updated equipment, and a host of other things that will only give the kids an edge in fighting cancer and other diseases.”
Noah clenched his jaw, chastened by her words. He’d never begrudge the children the opportunity for more resources. What he resented was the hospital trying to use him, to leverage his skills and status when both of those things were clearly overrated.
“Promise me that you’ll be nice to this coordinator.”
He raised his head. “I am always professional with staff,” he pointed out.
Ana arched an eyebrow. “I didn’t say I wanted you to be professional, I said I wanted you to be nice.”
“I am nice,” he protested.
Ana looked skeptical. “Well, let’s just take it one step at a time, shall we?”
Noah appreciated Ana’s position, but he wasn’t going to make any promises. He wasn’t the easiest person to work with, and his attitude often put people off, which was just fine with him. It was better for others, and for him, if they didn’t get too close. And he didn’t intend to make an exception for this new coordinator, no matter how sweetly Ana asked.
CHESAPEAKE VIEW’S ONCOLOGY ward was actually a bright, welcoming place. The walls were painted a buttery yellow, and butterflies with vibrant wings in jeweled tones of red, green, blue and orange were stenciled onto the walls. As Tessa stepped off the elevator, she faced the reception desk, made of blond wood and accented by the teal counter. The lights were housed in globes of pastel colors, emitting a soft, radiant glow. There was a waiting area with blue overstuffed chairs and sofas, along with a large, flat-screen TV running an endless loop of cartoons. A glass mosaic dominated one wall depicting a garden with butterflies amid the flowers.
Though the environment was cheery, Tessa prepared herself for a fight. She’d been warned that Dr. Noah Brennan could be difficult, but if she was going to do her job well, she’d need him on her side.
Tessa took her new job seriously. Her position as a marketing and PR coordinator was a newly created role, and her contract was only for a year. The hospital’s board of directors was looking to raise funds and boost awareness of their programs, specifically in the pediatric oncology unit. If she was able to leverage Dr. Brennan’s reputation and accolades to bring more attention to the hospital, the board had hinted her contract would be extended.
And she desperately wanted this job to continue. While she’d enjoyed working at the animal clinic, her small salary there hadn’t been enough to pay for the upkeep of her grandmother’s cottage.
Plus, this job was a blessing, allowing her to keep her hand in pediatrics, which had once been her passion, without requiring her to work directly with patients. She missed the daily interaction with children she’d had as a pediatric nurse, but her heart ached too much now to be around them day in and day out.
She adored kids. She always had. Becoming a mother was something she’d looked forward to her entire life, or at least until a couple of years ago. Since then, she’d made a concerted effort to avoid children. Now, she only prayed she could excel at this job so she could find her way past the heartache of the last two years.
She checked the time on her phone and nibbled at her lip in worry. Her boss was nowhere in sight. She had been scheduled to meet Ana Morales here fifteen minutes ago. The episode at the coffee shop that morning had cost her time, though, and she was running late. While Ana was a fairly flexible person, Tessa knew that arriving late, especially when she was finally going to meet the hospital’s most prestigious doctor, wasn’t the way to keep this job.
Fearing maybe Ana had come and gone without her, Tessa moved toward the nurses’ station to see if Ana was hopefully running behind herself. She was relieved when she spotted Miranda, one of the nurses. Miranda confirmed that Ana was already there and waiting for her in Dr. Brennan’s office. She pointed the way down the hall, and Tessa set off at a brisk pace, hoping she hadn’t missed anything too important. As she walked, she remembered her conversation the week before, when Ana had described the hospital’s chief pediatric oncologist.
“Noah is one of the best in the country, if not the world,” Ana had said. “He’s brilliant when it comes to treating childhood cancers. He came on board six months ago. He was looking for a— Well, a change of scenery, I suppose you could say.”
Tessa remembered sensing there was something Ana wasn’t telling her about Dr. Brennan, but Ana had continued speaking before she could ask any questions.
“We’ve tracked the success of other hospitals’ PR campaigns, and using someone
