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2024-10-29 19:42:56Yvonne's POV
I called a couple more people, hoping to secure a lab. I couldn’t fail before I even started. I stared at the notes on my screen. There was so much to do. I felt like I was staring at Mount Everest and I had no idea where to start. Maybe I was wrong. I couldn’t do it on my own. I was kidding myself thinking I could. I couldn’t ask Cynthia to leave the comfort and security of her job to help me. When the idea came to me to start over, I had been dreaming.I had this brief moment where I remembered the good old days and thought back fondly on them. I hadn’t thought much about the actual hard work. The long nights and the days when I had wanted to give up, because I was so frustrated, had vanished from my memory—until now. I had been young and hungry back then. I wasn’t quite as hungry now and I felt like I had aged thirty years since those early days. I was a married woman, estranged from her husband and pregnant with his child … who he didn’t even know aboutRelated chapters
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 87
Kylian's POVI walked through the foyer, heading for my father’s den, which had been transformed into a hospital room for my mother to convalesce in. It wasn’t the ideal room for her, but there were no bedrooms on the ground floor. She had pitched a fit, of course, but that had been expected. She wanted to be upstairs in her own room. It wasn’t going to happen. There was no way we could safely get her upstairs. I refused to take the risk.We had done what we could to transform the den into a comfortable place for her to rest and heal in. I was already working with a contractor to renovate a space on the ground floor to a bedroom suite for her. I knew there was no way she would move, but the fact of the matter was she was getting older and she had broken a hip. Climbing the huge stairs to the second floor several times a day wasn’t going to work. She would never agree to a lift, so it was either we put in an elevator or she moved downstairs.“Hey,” Kenyon said as I s
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 88
Kylian's POVHe shrugged. “It’s never been what I wanted. I don’t want that kind of responsibility. I like knowing I can walk away from the job if I want. If I were the CEO, there would be all kinds of restraints. I like the freedom of being the spare heir.”“What about Yvonne?” I blurted out.Kieran smiled. “I don’t want Yvonne. I wasn’t conspiring with her. I don’t love her. She’s a nice lady and we got along great, but it was never like that with her. I wanted to reconnect with her. I was surprised you and she were a thing. The Yvonne I knew was not your type.”“Yvonne is a beautiful woman. I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted her,” I persisted.He let out a long sigh. “I’m in love with someone else. I don’t want Yvonne. She is gorgeous, kind, and smart, but not the woman I want. One day I will tell you all about the woman I love, but for now, I need you to know I am not trying to ruin your life, take your inheritance, or anything else,” he said, and I almo
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 89
Yvonne's POVIt felt good to be back in the lab. Once my company had gotten started, I had rarely ventured into the lab. That was the research and development team’s domain. I was the lady in the big office and didn’t have the time to play with various ingredients. I missed the days of doing the creating. I had been involved in choosing shades and things like that, but the actual creation had been delegated to a group of experts.Now, it was all about my own dreams and my own talents in the lab, which weren’t quite as good as some of the team at my old company, but I could get by. It felt good to have somewhere to go and something to do. I had my earbuds in and was enjoying some piano music. It always helped me focus. I was creating the perfect shade of red lipstick that maintained the shine while lasting all day without the use of harmful chemicals. I knew there were others out there, but mine was going to be better.The morning sickness hadn’t been as bad when I w
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 90
Yvonne's POVHe sighed. “I can only imagine. It isn’t personal. He doesn’t know how to be the kind of guy who women dream of falling in love with. He’s Kylian. He’s stern and aloof, but underneath all that, there is a good man in need of a good woman. I think that’s you, Yvonne.”I fought back the urge to race over to Kylian’s house and tell him I loved him and it would be okay. I wasn’t going to let myself get hurt like that. Not again.“I’m not interested in fixing a damaged man,” I snapped.“He’s not damaged. He has a big ego, that’s for sure. But he wants you, I know that. He’s too stubborn and prideful to make the first move. He knows he screwed up, but he’s so arrogant, he can’t do anything about it. He’s ashamed of his behavior,” Kieran explained.I scoffed. “He should be ashamed.”“I know you love him, Yvonne. Don’t do this to yourself. Give him a chance to make things right. I know he did something that hurt you, but it wasn’t intentional.
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 91
Kylian's POVI wasn’t accustomed to going in to the office on a Saturday, but after cutting out of work so much this last week to check on Mom, I was a little behind. Not to mention, I had kind of checked out in general the past six weeks. I’d flip-flopped between caring and not caring about the company’s success. I couldn’t believe I thought I would be able to take a vacation.Things would have fallen apart without me. I knew it was a shitty management style. I needed to delegate more. Kieran was the right-hand man and could handle this stuff if I let him, but I was too afraid to let go of my control. I wanted to trust him, and I did a lot more than I had two weeks ago, but the company was difficult to give up control of—even a little. The whole situation was why I needed to take a step back and enjoy a little rest and relaxation on a sandy beach somewhere. I needed to get my head straight. There was too much shit bouncing around and making me crazy. Mistakes, missed opport
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 92
Yvonne's POVIt had been so long since I’d seen him in person. He looked exhausted. I wondered if he had been out late the night before. The thought made me crazy with jealousy, which I quickly dismissed. I had walked out on him. I had no claim to the man, even if I was carrying his baby. Kieran had obviously been wrong about Kylian pining over me.“Hi,” I said, the word came out as a whisper.He was so damn good looking. I hated how attractive he was. I couldn’t resist looking into his eyes. I could see the turmoil and my heart immediately went out to him. All thoughts of jealousy vanished as I looked at him stare back at me.We stood like that for what felt like forever before he finally stepped forward. “Would you like to come in?”I shook my head and stepped to the side as he walked toward his door, his key in hand. “No thank you.”He cocked his head to the side. “You came here for something, right? Or did you really come just to knock on my door and then
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 93
Yvonne's POV“I’m fine. Kieran is an ass.”“So are you,” I shot back.He was smiling when he turned around. “I am. But he’s meddling. He needs to mind his own business.”“He cares about you.”The words made him uncomfortable. I could see it in his eyes and by the way he was gripping the glass in his hand. “I’m fine,” he repeated.I took a drink of water. “Great. Then I guess I can go.” “Wait,” he said, stepping toward me once again.I took a step back, bumping into the back of the couch. “Kylian, I only came by to make sure you were okay.”He nodded slowly, his eyes on mine. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking,” he said in his husky voice that always made goose bumps pop out over my body.“Have you been thinking about what you did? How much of a jerk you were?” I snapped.Once again, he looked uncomfortable. “Yes.”I couldn’t let him off too easy. I was a softie when it came to him. He had convinced me to take him back once before. I had no
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 94
Kylian's POVIt felt good to be getting back into the swing of things. Monday had been amazing. I was able to take care of business that had been neglected during my mental-checkout phase. It felt great to be able to focus on the company and to keep it afloat. I did love power and I did love success, but I was no longer a slave to those two things. I had a completely different outlook on the world. I realized money and power were not everything. True happiness came from the people in your life and not what you could buy.I was sure my staff probably thought I was drunk most of the day yesterday because of my rather uncharacteristically good mood. It wasn’t normal for me, but I liked it. I was still the cutthroat business man I had to be, but I felt much better about the way things were headed. My date with Yvonne was tonight. I had been looking forward to it all day. Hell, I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it since she agreed to go with me.I vowed to behave
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The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 126
Kylian's POVShe was back a few minutes later with a fresh bottle. She handed it to me before sitting next to me, her head leaning against my shoulder as I fed our daughter.“You can go back to bed,” I assured her.“It’s okay, I like sitting with you. I haven’t gotten to see you much these past few days,” she said.I nodded. “I’m sorry. I tried to get out of that meeting yesterday, but it required my attention. Kieran wasn’t familiar with the company and I didn’t want to leave him high and dry.”“Don’t be sorry. I’m being needy.”“No, you’re not.”“How is Kieran?” she asked.I smiled in the darkness. “Good. Something is up with him, but I’m not sure what. I think it has to do with a woman. He doesn’t want to take over my job—I’ve offered,” I joked.“I’m glad you two are getting along. I really do like all your brothers,” she said.I smirked. “That’s because you don’t really know them. Trust me, if you did, you wouldn’t be quite as generous with your summation of their characters.”“St
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 125
Kylian's POVI heard the soft cries and blinked several times, orientating myself to the room. I listened a little longer to see if she would fall back to sleep on her own and realized it wasn’t going to happen. I stretched my arms before swinging my legs over the side of the bed to get up. I felt Yvonne stir and knew she was waking up as well.“Shh, go back to sleep. I’ve got her,” I told her, putting my hand on her shoulder.I had been trying to do my part, getting up for at least one of the middle-of-the-night feedings. Fortunately, Jaime was a content little girl and was down to only needing to wake once in the night for a bottle. She was a healthy, strong girl and required a lot of food. The first few weeks home from the hospital had been grueling. We were both up for a good two weeks straight before we finally managed to develop a routine that allowed everyone to get some sleep.“Thank you,” Yvonne mumbled.She didn’t need to thank me for doing something I was supposed to be doi
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 124
Yvonne's POVThe next thirty minutes flew by. I barely had a chance to breathe before I was holding my baby girl in my arms.“I think you must have set a new record for first time moms,” the doctor said with a grin.It was at that moment my doctor came into the room. “I missed it?” he asked with surprise.The other doctor gave him the rundown while I marveled at my baby girl.“Would you like to hold your daughter?” I asked Kylian, handing her to him.He took her, held her tiny head in his big hand, and stared at her, tears in his eyes before the nurse swooped in and took her to be weighed and cleaned up.“We have a baby,” he said with complete amazement.I smiled and nodded. “Looks that way. I know you wanted a boy,” I said, feeling a little like I let him down.He looked at me, his eyes wide, shaking his head. “No way! I wanted a baby. You girls are exactly what I want. I couldn’t imagine anything else. She’s perfect. She’s everything I could ever want. The two of you are my entire r
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 123
Yvonne's POVI slowly awoke, trying to figure out what it was that had stirred me out of a deep sleep. I didn’t have to pee, which was what usually woke me up.I lay awake a few minutes before I decided it must have been nothing and closed my eyes, hoping to sleep a few more hours.“Ow,” I muttered when a sharp pain ripped across my lower back.That was when I knew. I sat up, rubbing my lower back. I propped my pillows against the headboard and lay against them, staring at the clock that silently announced it was three o’clock in the morning. I waited, my eyes sliding closed until another sharp pain cut across my back, wrapping around to envelope my stomach in a vise. My eyes went to the clock. It had been ten minutes. I flipped on the bedside lamp.“Kylian,” I whispered, gently touching his bare shoulder.“Hmm.” He moaned, still half asleep.“Kylian,” I whispered again.He rolled to his back, blinking as he looked up at me. “What is it? Hungry?” he asked.I smiled and shook my head.
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 122
Kylian's POVWe finished our dinner before Desmond excused himself to go home to his own family. Cynthia left a few minutes after, leaving Yvonne and me alone in our home. It was ours. We were sharing a home and it felt great. I had been nervous for nothing.“Are you okay with all this?” She pointed to the boxes littering the living room and lining the hallway as we moved through our home.I looked at the boxes labeled with her name and smiled. “I am very okay with this. I can’t wait to start this life with you.”She laughed. “Look around. It’s started.” I smiled. “I guess it has.”“I need to call the stores first thing tomorrow morning and have all my deliveries changed to come here,” she mused aloud.“All your deliveries?” I asked.She grinned. “I’ve been doing some shopping for the nursery. I didn’t want it all sitting in my apartment for months, so I had the deliveries scheduled for next month. I figured that would give me plenty of time to get the nursery in order.”“You’ve bough
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 121
Kylian's POVIn keeping with the way Yvonne and I did everything, we moved her into my place in a matter of two days. We liked to move fast. I couldn’t bear to be apart from her and wasn’t about to let her get away. My penthouse was plenty big enough for all of us. The moving truck, along with a fleet of movers, had just brought in the last box. We were sticking with my furniture for now with plans to redo the place with both of our tastes reflected. That would come later.I could hear my beautiful wife and her friend chatting in the room we were making into the nursery. For too long, the room had sat empty. It had been outfitted to be a guest room with a large bed and dresser, but no one had ever slept in the bed. I forgot the room was even there most of the time. The maid dusted in there and put fresh linens on the bed once a week, but I never bothered going into it.Now, it would be my child’s nursery. Yvonne had already informed me we were not finding out the sex of the baby until
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 120
Yvonne's POVI leaned my head back, shouting at the sky with supreme pleasure as my body spasmed around his, my arms clenching around his neck as I held on tight. He stood, walking with me back into his apartment, my pussy still squeezing his dick inside me as he strolled through his home with my naked, quivering body draped over him.He lowered me to his bed, standing and pulling out of my body. I looked up at him, our eyes locking in the candlelight. It was then that I realized I was lying on more rose petals. There were candles flickering all around the room.I smiled up at him. “You were that confident, huh?”He grinned, raising an eyebrow. “I wanted to be prepared for anything.” “And then I demanded you take me on the balcony.” He laughed. “That was not expected.”His smile faded, and it was quickly replaced with a look of pure heat. His hands reached out to caress my thighs before he gently tugged, rolling me to my side and then to my stomach. I quickly got to my knees, my elbow
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 119
Yvonne's POVTasting his lips sent my body into some crazy, passion-filled frenzy. I couldn’t seem to stop myself. I wanted to eat the man alive. I felt like a ravenous animal as I plunged my tongue into his mouth while pressing my body close. I wanted him. I was desperate for his touch. I had been longing to hear him say the words and now that I had, it was like a switch had been flipped. I practically climbed his body, trying to get closer.“Shh,” he whispered, pulling his mouth from mine as he moved his lips to my neck, sucking and biting.I was so hot and turned on. I was already wet. I could feel the dampness between my legs. My head went back, looking past the twinkle lights strung across his balcony to the stars above. Being outside, in the fresh air and under the canopy of stars barely visible with the city lights flooding the area, was erotic. That wild side of me was feeding off the idea of being outside, in the middle of a bustling city with millions of people all around us
The Billionaire CEO'S Fake Fiancée 118
Kylian's POV“Yvonne, I want to start over. This is your wedding ring. This is the ring I want you to wear that signifies our new beginning. This ring is the one I want you to wear that signifies the rebirth of our relationship,” I said, grabbing her left hand.I carefully slid the ring onto her finger, immediately feeling better about everything. It was like being on a merry-go-round and it coming to a complete halt. Everything in that moment stopped spinning out of control and it just felt right. I no longer had the weight of the world on my shoulders. It was freeing and promising at the same time. I had a woman by my side. I had a partner in life.I had only this one chance to impress her and prove I was worthy of her partnership. In her presence, I suddenly felt unworthy. I should have done more. I should have hired a violinist to play music or had fireworks scheduled to go off. I looked at her, my heart in my throat, waiting for her to answer me.“Kylian, you didn’t have to do th
