He frowned. “So, they want to get rid of me?”
“No, getting rid of you is the last thing they want right now,” she said. “The product roll-out wasn’t as strong as they wanted, but things are picking up because the public still trusts you. For some reason, your commitment to staying out of the spotlight has made them more likely to trust you.”
“Nobody likes a corporate hack.” Hiding the satisfaction from his voice was impossible, so he didn’t bother. He hadn’t shunned the media to score points with the public, but the one thing he knew about corporate politics was that at the end of the day people liked authenticity. That was probably why the public was still on his side.
“Yes, well, the corporate hacks control Dover’s board,” she reminded him. “You might not like them, but you need them to keep the company going. Just like they need you. Which is why the board doesn’t want to get rid of you. On the contrary, they think you’re too valuable to lose. Your ideas are too good and the public trusts you too much. A temporary suspension is one thing, but they don’t want to lose you permanently. They want to keep you on while they find a way to stop you from caring about Heather.”
“That’s never going to happen.”
“Which is what they’re afraid of,” she said.
“Why are you telling me this?” he asked. “If anyone on the board finds out that you spilled the beans to me, they’re liable to try to make work a nightmare for you. I’d step in to prevent that, of course, but they’d do some damage in the meantime.”
“I’m telling you because you’re my friend,” she said earnestly. “And because the board deciding to run your love life after years of leeching off your hard work without so much as a thank-you pissed me off royally.”
He gave her a grim stare. Telling the board about his feelings for Heather had felt damn good in the moment, but the revelation might have put her in danger. There was no way of knowing exactly what the board was planning without more information. Information he was unlikely to get on his own. “I know it’s a lot to ask, but if they call another secret meeting could you tell me what they say?”
She nodded. “Of course. I’m loyal to you, Simon.”
“I know.” He reached over and patted her shoulder awkwardly. “I couldn’t have survived all these years without you. Thank you, Linda.”
She flashed him a smile. “Does this thank-you extend to me trying to get you and Heather back together?”
“Hell no.” He turned from her and started walking back to her office.
“So, what are you going to tell her?” Linda asked.
Not the truth. At least not all of it, and not yet. If the board was plotting against him to hurt Heather in some way, there was no way she could protect herself. She might have insisted that he stop helping with the investigation into clearing her name, but Heather didn’t have the same kind of power that he did. It was his job to protect her, even from her own stubbornness.
He’d let her work on clearing her name with Linda’s help. The rest he’d do in the shadows and pass it off as Linda’s work. But he’d deal with the board his way. Without telling Heather about it. Because, if he told her, she’d beg him to back off, and that was absolutely not an option. His love for her was already putting her in danger. That was why protecting her was his responsibility no matter what.
Simon sauntered over to Linda’s office door, squaring his shoulders as he prepared himself to talk to Heather. Whatever he was going to tell her now was going to leave out a hell of a lot. He couldn’t tell her he loved her, and because of that he couldn’t tell her that the board was plotting against her. One led to the other, and until he came clean about his feelings he’d have to keep secrets from her. It hurt his heart to have to keep so much hidden from the woman that he loved but focusing on his feelings rather than her safety was selfish.
“Well?” Linda prompted.
He placed his hand on the doorknob, ready to open the door and tell Heather what she needed to hear. “I’ll think of something.”