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chapter 36
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The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 37
SamanthaMy eyes shot open,and I gasped, sitting up and clutching the bedcovers against my chest.Blinking, I gazed around and was momentarily confused when I saw I wasn’t in my own bed.My memories from the night before flooded through me the next instant, though. I was in Ryan’s bed, in his house. That was all well and good, but what had woken me up? I don’t think it’d been a dream. I couldn’t remember having one, anyway.I couldn’t understand what I was feeling, but the hairs on the back of my neck were standing up, and my muscles were tense. It was as if my body had locked itself into a defensive state, but I didn’t know where the danger was.Suddenly, I heard a crash from downstairs.“Ryan!” I gasped, grabbing his shoulder and shaking him, my heart racing. “Ryan, wake up!”With a groan, he shook his head and murmured, “Sleeping…”“I know you’re sleeping,” I growled, shoving him harder. “But I need you to wake up! I heard something downstairs.”He opened his eyes and stared up at me
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 38
I didn’t know how much time passed before I heard a soft knock on the door.“Who is it?” I hissed.“It’s me, Sam. It’s safe. You can open the door.”I recognized Ryan’s voice, so I carefully opened the door and slipped out into the hallway.“You okay?” Ryan asked, looking me up and down.I shrugged. “I guess. Did you call the police?”“Yeah,” he told me, rubbing my shoulders in a soothing gesture. “They’ll be here soon. We can go downstairs and wait for them.”I nodded and let him lead down to the living room. We sat together, snuggled up on the couch in silence while we waited. It didn’t take long for the police to arrive, thankfully.“Hang out here,” Ryan murmured. “I’ll talk to them.”I nodded and pulled my knees up to my chest as he walked out of the room. I felt sick, and I couldn’t stop thinking about Henry and what I needed to do to keep him safe. I hated to admit it, but staying away from Ryan until he’d resolved this ex-employee thing was probably for the best. If it were jus
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 39
RyanI tossed and turned the rest of the night, my bed feeling oddly cold and empty without Sam in it. When I finally gave up on sleep and got up, I made my way down the hall to Sam’s room, but when I looked inside, she wasn’t there. I wasn’t surprised. Disappointed, yes, but not surprised. I didn’t bother to check Henry’s room. Sam wouldn’t have left him behind.I knew that there was nothing I could do about her decision at present. She had every right to make it, but I was terrified by what it could mean in the long-term. Would she ultimately decide to cut me out of their lives again because I complicated things too much? She hadn’t asked for any of this. My life came with risks, and it wasn’t fair of me to force them onto Sam and Henry.I was frustrated beyond belief, but with myself, not with her. If I had stayed seven years ago, none of this would be happening. Henry would know I was his father, and Sam and I…was it too much to imagine we might have been married by now? Living ha
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 40
“We need to talk,” I told her.She furrowed her brow. “Are you serious? You want to do this now?”“I know we said we’d wait until after Bill was caught,” I said. “But I don’t think we can wait until then. I don’t want to wait until then.”She pulled her hand from my grasp as irritation and frustration flashed across her face.“Ryan, I’ve already told you, I can’t risk Henry. I’m sorry, but that’s just how it is…”“But I can protect you both,” I insisted. “I know this isn’t fair, Sam, but Bill won’t be the last problem I’ll ever have to face. I’m too rich and too well-known. Being with me in general is a risk, but I don’t want you to think I don’t recognize that and won’t do everything in my power to keep you and Henry safe.”“I get that, Ryan,” Sam huffed. “I really do, but can we please not do this now? We’re at Jason’s wedding, for crying out loud! Let’s just get through the night, and we can figure this all out tomorrow or something, okay?”I didn’t want to wait, but at that moment
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 41
I grinned at his begrudging confession.“I appreciate that,” I told him. “That’s awfully mature of you.”“Yeah, well, what can I say? I’m a very mature, amazing person. You’re lucky to have me as your best friend.”I laughed and nodded. “Yes, I am. No arguments there.”Jason grinned. “All right, well, I think my work is done here. I should get back to my loving wife if people will let me near her. Talk later.”“Good luck.”Jason maneuvered his way back into the crowd, and I took a moment to consider everything he’d said. Sam wanted me, but she was scared, that much was clear. I couldn’t let her retreat from what was happening between us because of fear, though. I had to convince her that we were meant to be with each other, despite everything else happening around us.Filled with new determination, I finished my drink and set the glass aside before moving away from the wall. I intended to find her and convince her once and for all that a life together was what we both truly wanted.I
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 42
SamanthaI closed my eyes and tilted my head back, sucking in the cool night air. I felt some of the tension leave my shoulders and the pressure leave my head.It was nice and quiet out here. I’d needed to escape the crowd and the noise of the reception for a moment, so I’d gone outside to get some fresh air. Stepping out of the hall, I’d thought I’d just wander the parking lot a bit, but I’d spotted a little garden with a walking path next to the building.At that moment, I stood in the middle of the garden, letting my head clear as I cooled down.I hugged myself, thinking of what Ryan had said to me earlier. I couldn’t decide if I was angry at him or not.He’d blatantly ignored my wish to not talk about us until after the wedding. For that alone, I should be furious.However, I couldn’t quite bring myself to be angry with him. He was fighting for me. For us. I knew he was worried about what was happening between us. At the first sign of trouble, I’d pushed him away. I’d ran, convinc
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 43
RyanHaving not found Sam inside the reception hall, I rushed outside, my heart beating so hard that I was afraid it would burst. I was terrified. My mind was racing with terrible thoughts of what might be happening to her. If Bill had found her, I had no idea what he might do. How desperate he might be to hurt me.“Sam!” I called out in a booming voice. “Sam! Where are you?”I didn’t see her anywhere. Shit, where was she?Suddenly, I heard her. She was shouting and sounded terrified. I spun around and spotted a small garden not far away. She shouted again, and I took off running toward the garden.“Sam!” I bellowed, pumping my arms so I moved faster. I reached the garden’s walking path and hurried in among the hedges and flower beds. I turned a corner and suddenly came upon them. Bill had a hold of Sam’s shoulders and appeared to be trying to contain her, but she was fighting him. Twisting and turning her body, she was also slapping at him as she screamed in fear and fury.I didn’t he
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 44
SamanthaI woke with a start and gazed around in confusion. It took me several moments to realize I was in a hospital room and a bit longer to realize I was hooked up to beeping machines with an IV stuck in my wrist.Panic seized me, and I began to hyperventilate. How’d I get here? What happened?My heart monitor began to go crazy, and within seconds, a nurse came rushing into my room, followed closely by Ryan.“Miss Berner?” the nurse said in a calm voice as she reached my bed. “Miss Berner, it’s all right. Can you take a deep breath for me? We need to get your heart rate down.”She took my hand and held my gaze as she showed me how to breathe. I watched her and mimicked her as she sucked air in and slowly blew it out again and again.It took a bit of time, but I managed to pull myself out of my panicked spiral as I focused on my breathing. The machine stopped beeping at last, and I didn’t feel like I was on the verge of a heart attack. The whole time, Ryan stood at the end of my bed
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The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 55
I held the door for her to get into the car. My dad picked up Makayla so she could give Deira one last hug while I walked around to get into the driver's side. We waved at everyone, and I drove away. As we wove through the grounds of the estate, I kept looking over, stealing glances at Deira as the dappled sunlight flitted over her, turning her hair gold and making her skin glow. I could feel heat pooling in my groin and a desperate need coursing through my veins. I thought again at how long it would be until we got to the hotel that night, and decided it was simply too long.Instead of turning toward the main road, I looped us around toward the back of the estate. I remembered a particularly secluded spot that was perfect for what I had in mind. A few minutes later, I pulled the car to a stop."Is something wrong?" Deira asked, looking over at me curiously."Nothing's wrong," I replied with a wicked grin. "I just don't want to wait until we get to Hawaii." When she realized what I me
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 54
CASSIUSThree Months LaterDeira made a beautiful bride.Watching her walk down the aisle toward me, with all our family and friends present, I knew that I had made the right choice in asking her to marry me. In fact, I knew that every choice I had made since that moment I decided to step into that steam room, despite it unexpectedly being occupied, had been the right choice.It was a simple ceremony, because once I'd proposed and she'd accepted, we both wanted things to move quickly. Neither of us saw a reason to wait. So, our whole wedding party was just three people. Scott was my one groomsman, and Dani was her one bridesmaid, and Makayla was the flower girl. In fact, Makayla was something of a flower empress, having demanded to be put in charge of all the floral decisions for the wedding. When that happened, Deira just laughed and looked at me."She gets this from you, you know," she had said, smirking.For my part, I thought she had made great decisions. The flowers looked beauti
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 53
A few days later,I was standing outside a hospital room, fidgeting with my dress. Cassius took my hand, pulling it away from the floral garment."You look great," he whispered. "Don't worry." We were about to go into his mother's hospital room, where his parents were waiting to meet Makayla and I for the first time. Makayla was bopping excitedly beside me. She had been on cloud nine ever since Cassius and I had explained that she had grandparents, and they were waiting to meet her. I, on the other hand, was very nervous."Ready?" Cassius asked. I took a deep breath, and nodded.It turned out that I didn't have anything to be nervous about. Cassius's father immediately stood up and gave me a warm hug, and his mother insisted I come sit by her so she could hold my hand and talk to me. They both were very kind to me and, more importantly, to Makayla. Just as she'd been with Cassius, Makayla seemed instantly at ease with them. It didn't take long before she was chatting away to them, talk
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 52
DEIRALeave it to Cassius to make a dramatic entrance, I reflected as I stared at him from afar. Whether it was barging into my steam room or crashing into my car or running through the airport yelling my name, he never did anything subtly. I looked at him, standing there breathing heavily. Had he run through the airport looking for me?I glanced back at Dani, and she raised an eyebrow. She didn't have to say anything more for me to understand the question she was asking. That raised eyebrow said, well, what are you going to do? It might as well have said, well, Deira, what do you want? I hadn't expected to have to answer that question at the airport, right before we went through security, but apparently, that's what was happening. Now I had two choices.I could turn my back on Cassius, take Makayla's hand, and walk through the security gate toward a totally new life, or I could go over to Cassius and ask him why he was here. I could give him one last chance to be part of my life. It
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 51
CASSIUSThough my mother was doing well, I still spent the next week or so in the hospital. Now that I'd reconciled with my parents, I wanted them to know that I was there for them. But also, I knew that once I returned to my real life, I would need to talk to Deira, and I wasn't ready. Not because I wasn't sure what to say—in fact, the opposite. I knew that I wanted Makayla and Deira to be part of my life now, and forever. But we'd had such a rocky path, I was a little scared of how Deira would respond to me.So, I put it off for days, until my mom finally prodded me to leave the hospital."You've been here forever," she said. "Go home, get a shower, and get a good night's sleep. And then, once you're refreshed, maybe talk to your girlfriend about us meeting our granddaughter." She winked at me."She's not my girlfriend, Mom," I protested, feeling like a teenager."But you like her, right?" my mother asked, and all I could do was grin in response. "See," she continued. "You have to g
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 50
The next morning, Dani took Makayla to school on her way to work, letting me sleep in. I laid around her apartment all morning in my pajamas, then went for a quick run before getting myself some lunch. I was very consciously not thinking about work, or Cassius, or anything else. I had half-expected him to call me at some point, but he didn't, and I couldn't help but be relieved. I didn't think I could talk to him until I decided what to do about Mr. White.In the afternoon, I picked up Makayla from school and took her to the park to play. That night, the three of us made pasta and played board games. It was nice to have some time to just have fun, without thinking about all of the stress of the past few months. The next day, after dropping off Makayla at school, I found myself thinking about my blog. I hadn't thought about it in months. I went to the home page and started looking over some of my past entries. Before long, I found myself writing down ideas for new posts. It had been ye
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 49
DEIRA I had hurried inside after getting out of Cassius's car, but I didn't want to go back to Dani's apartment when I was so upset. I waited until I saw Cassius drive away, and then I went back out to take a walk around the neighborhood. I had meant to calm down, but I found myself reliving our conversation and soon I was crying. Cassius not believing me about Mr. White hurt even more than I had let on. I'd let out all my anger on him, but beneath the anger was a deep pain and a sense of betrayal. Why did he think I would make something like that up? What did I have to gain from that? And did our relationship mean so little to him that the word of an employee he barely knew was better than my word? That last part stung more than I wanted to admit. For all the ups and downs of our relationship, it had never felt meaningless to me, but it seemed for Cassius this always came second to his job. He believed Mr. White over me, just like he had taken a business call instead of watching
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 48
After I got my dad calmed down, I went to find the doctor. I wanted a clear understanding of the accident and my mother's injuries. The doctor confirmed that the coma appeared to be because her body had been through a trauma, and that there was nothing worrying on the scans. All her other injuries were minor, especially considering the severity of the accident, but we wouldn't know her true status until she woke up. I made sure he understood that I was the point person now, and that my mom was to want for nothing. He nodded and reiterated that there was nothing to be done but wait. The waiting was excruciating.I found myself wanting to call Deira, but remembering the look on her face as she'd slammed the car door, I didn't think that was a good idea. I called Scott instead. He offered to come to the hospital, but I asked him to take care of the business instead. That way, I could concentrate on taking care of my parents."Of course, man. Whatever you need. Anything else I can do?" he
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 47
The address wasn't far, and I made it there in twenty minutes. Deira was just taking Makayla inside when I pulled up. I waited in the car and a few minutes later she emerged. I was going to get out and meet her, but she walked right to the car and got into the passenger seat."I can't talk long," she said. "But I realized storming off like that earlier wasn't helpful, so I wanted to try to explain." She fidgeted, like she was nervous."I did talk to Mr. White," I said, wondering if what he said was true, and now she was nervous because she regretted her actions. At his name, she glanced over at me sharply."Did he admit what happened?" she asked, seeming surprised."He told me his side of things. Why don't you tell me yours?" At the phrasehis side of things, her face fell. She looked down at her hands and took a deep breath. Finally, she spoke."He accused me of sleeping with you to get my job," she said quietly."What?!" I hadn't been expecting that at all, and I was so shocked I fel
