“I still have a lot of influence on that panel, Victoria.”

“You wouldn’t want them to think their star nurse is mentally unfit, would you?”

I stared at him, my blood running cold.

The sheer selfishness of his threat left me speechless.

He was willing to ruin my career just to protect his fragile ego.

“You are a monster, Mark,” I whispered.

“I am a businessman protecting his reputation,” he corrected.

He stepped even closer, his shadow falling over me.

“So, what is it going to be?” he demanded.

Before I could find my voice, I heard the heavy click of leather shoes on the tile behind us.

A tall man stepped around the corner, holding a roll of architectural blueprints under his arm.

He wore a dark canvas jacket over a gray sweater.

His face was shadowed with grief, but his eyes were sharp and focused.

It was Daniel Morrison, the architect.

He stopped a few feet away, his gaze shifting from Mark’s angry face to my trembling hands.

The air in the hallway grew thick and silent.