Dirty Sexy Alphas (Twenty Book Box Set) - Hannah Ford Page 0,114

me.”

“With pleasure, Mr. Hill,” I said. Annie had already helped me bustle my dress, but I still held it up as we crossed the room, weaving our way into the crowd.

Somewhere in the middle, as the guests shifted to make room for us, I found Annie.

And Ben.

They were dancing closely, Annie’s focus so intense on Ben that I couldn’t catch her eye.

Landon pulled me up against him, wrapping his arms around my waist as we moved to the beat.

Annie finally glanced up as she slipped her arms around Ben, her eyes catching mine over his shoulder.

He’s so hot, she mouthed, grinning wickedly. And I had to admit, he did clean up pretty nicely.

I just smiled back, giving her a small thumb up. I still couldn’t believe Ben had come all the way up here. After the internship ended, he’d returned to school for his final year. But he was thinking of transferring up to UW for his doctorate, and Annie had convinced me that we should give him a formal tour.

Professor Valdez was all too happy to give him the real tour, but Annie had been more than willing to research the best bars near campus. I hadn’t heard from her in the last several days, unless of course it was for official wedding business. She’d been too busy showing Ben around town to give me the time of day, and judging by how closely they were dancing, maybe she’d shown him a few other things too.

Ben looked up, catching my eye. His grin told me there were no hard feelings about how things had gone between us.

And when he turned back to Annie, dipping her low, I had to admit they had chemistry.

“Regretting your choice?” Landon asked, his voice hot and low in my ear.

“Never,” I said, turning back to him.

When the song ended, he led me off the floor, and we made our way toward a set of double doors, in search of fresh air. Halfway to them, someone stopped us. A tall, dark-skinned man I knew to be Landon’s new business partner.

“Congratulations,” he said, leaning in to hug me. “Happy to have another Hill to back the company name,” he said.

Landon had named his new facility Hill Sports Medicine. Because this one was well and truly his—and he was proud to have his name on the building. As Prestige continued to bleed both money talent, Landon easily found backers for a new complex. One that would assure investors that he was the man running the show, restoring his reputation and clout one day at a time.

It seemed fitting, now, that he hadn’t named the last company for himself. That Alexa couldn’t take that, when she took Prestige.

And now, with my new biochemistry focus, partnering with Landon made sense. He would be hiring established professionals, of course. People I could learn form. Work with. He’d promised me a part in the hiring process, so that I could form the kind of group I would be happy working amongst.

But some day, I’d head my own department. When I was qualified. I would create my own position, once I’d had time to tour other successful facilities, figure out what I was most drawn to.

Somehow life had gone from a dead end, to a wide open highway that could twist and turn in any direction I wanted it to.

“Thanks, Terry,” I said. “You’ll be there next month for the ground breaking, right?”

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

It was ceremonial more than anything—the permitting for the facility Landon had in mind would take months. But he’d closed on the property, a twenty-acre site near the Seahawks training facility, with a river wrapping around it. On closing day, Landon dragged out a picnic blanket and a couple bottles of champagne, and we sat there for hours, getting tipsy and celebrating.

“We’ll see you there,” Landon said, hugging him. “But for now, no more business.”

Terry grinned. “Alright, alright. I’ll let you two enjoy your night.”

He left us then, and we continued our path toward the two enormous double doors, onto a balcony. It was a little chilly, and therefore mostly empty, but it had a stunning view of the Puget Sound. Two ferries crossed in the waterway, one docking somewhere below us, and the other heading to Bainbridge Island. The stars had glittered to life while we’d dined and danced, and the moon hung low over the water.

I stepped up to the railing, and Landon wrapped an arm around me, resting it on the railing