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chapter 42
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The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 43
AlexIn the morning,I awoke in the soft sheets of the four-poster bed. I turned and watched the smooth curve of Lola’s shoulder down to her slim waist. I listened to her soft breathing, and for the first time in weeks, I realized I’d woken up calm and relaxed. Sleep had been impossible for the past few weeks, a restless rolling schedule of nightmares and anxiety. But here, in the lake-house, I felt peaceful, and for a while, I listened to Lola’s breathing while the sun rose and the room turned from blue to burnished orange.I got up and got dressed in a rough, cable-knit sweater and a pair of ripped jeans I found in the chest of drawers. I went downstairs and got into the car.The town of Gemini was ten minutes’ drive from the house, and though O’Rourke had told me not to see anyone or do anything, I already knew I wasn’t going to listen to his advice. It was impossible. How could I hole up in the lake-house for days, without doing something, without moving? I might be feeling lighter
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 44
LolaWhenwegotbackto the lake house, it was still and quiet, a warm afternoon. I’d hoped Alex would take me out on the boat again once we got back, but we’d both been spooked by the appearance of the old man.“You want to talk?” said Alex.“Not really,” I said. There was so much on my mind that I didn’t feel like talking, so I went upstairs and showered. I was so spooked that I jumped at my own reflection in the mirror when I got out.Who could the man have been?A spy? A guy working for Luca? Luca was a flashy guy, who wore expensive suits and shiny watches and ordered the most expensive thing on the menu (even though he rarely paid for it). I couldn’t imagine the sallow, roughly-dressed man staring at us in the diner on Luca’s payroll.While I trusted Alex, or wanted to trust him, all kinds of fears began to swirl around my stomach since I’d seen the stranger. Alex had promised I’d be safe when we went out for the day. But how could he keep that promise? Hadn’t the boat ride, having
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 45
AlexI was dreaming.Dreamingof the apartment in Philly, the matted, tangled hair of the man as he slipped out of the door. I was calling to him, waiting for him to stop. “Don’t go,” I cried. “Don’t go, dad!”Then, my eyes opened, and I heard the cry from outside: “Hey!” It was faint, but the voice was unmistakable. It was a voice I’d know anywhere.It was Lola.I’d had that dream a hundred times, but, I reflected, I hadn’t had it in some time. I got up and looked out through the window.Lola must be at the southern end of the house. I slipped on my sweater and some pants, and put on a pair of shoes. I took the car keys, just in case we’d need to leave in a hurry. Had they found us?I went down the stairs and through the living room. The house was quiet and still.Where was Lola?I went into the kitchen, and was about to leave when something caught my eye through the window. I stepped forward.I peered down towards the lake, and rubbed my eyes which were bleary with sleep. I could see
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 46
LolaMax was gone bythe time I’d gotten back to the lake. I didn’t know where I could find him, or what I’d say when I saw him. I only knew one thing; that Alex was gone.“You’re an idiot,” I said, over and over again to myself. But for once, I wasn’t talking about myself. I was talking about Alex. How could he think that I had anything to do with Max’s appearance? Why couldn’t he see that this was perfect: that with Max’s testimony, we could prove that the certificate was fake?When Alex calmed down, he’d be sorry. He’d realize that he hurt me. But for now, I didn’t know what to think, and I couldn’t sleep for the rest of the night.I took out my phone, but when I looked at the clock, I saw it was five in the morning. I didn’t want to wake Sara, so I decided to wait for the sun to rise in a few hours and get a hire car back to the city.When I finally set out, carrying my bag with me down the road, it took me an hour. In the stillness of the morning, I was tired and my eyes ached. An
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 47
Alex“Ninety six,”I grunted.“Ninety seven. Ninety…eight!”A hundred pull-ups. There are professional athletes who wake up and don’t have the energy to do a hundred pull-ups. But of course, it was not about energy. It was about motivation. And I was highly motivated during the three-hour workout I’d just subjected myself to, during which I’d already beaten all my personal bests and was about to beat another.“Ninety-nine,” I cried, and then came the last one. Every muscle in my body was burning already, but I didn’t care. Anything not to think about what had happened since I’d got back to New York this morning.I collapsed onto the floor, and lay flat on my back, almost weeping from the pain. When I got up, I could see myself in the mirror, angry, red-faced, and soaking with sweat. I warmed down for a while, and then hit the shower. But even a gentle comedown from the enormous levels of physical strain I’d been under wasn’t enough to stop my legs from turning to jelly.The revelation t
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 48
LolaI didn’t know what to do.I simply didn’t know what to do.That night I stayed up in my apartment, in shock. I didn’t even know how to react to Sara. She was my closest friend, but I knew that some part of me blamed her for allowing Macy to be taken away. But however true that might be, I knew that it wasn’t Sara’s fault, wasn’t Sebastien’s, either. He stood guard all night while we sat on the sofa together, and I frantically wondered what to do.“I’m gonna help you, sweetheart,” said Sara, and I believed her. But as the hours dragged on, I realized I was exhausted, stressed and tired.“Macy,” I said, as if to no one. “Where are you?”I burst into tears, and that night I cried myself to sleep in Sara’s arms.In the morning, I woke up. I checked the clock: it was just after seven. I cursed myself for sleeping while my own daughter was out there somewhere, in the hands of that creep. I wanted to hope that Luca wouldn’t harm her, that he’d be true to his word and keep her safe for t
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 49
Alex“Sun’s coming up,”said a voice beside me.I looked up, and put down my glass.The bar was emptying out, and gradually the patrons who’d been partying into the early hours of the morning had finally made their way home. But I was still here: I’d arrived an hour ago, after pacing the streets, and had been nursing a Manhattan at an upstairs table.“How did you find me here?” I said.“I asked where Alex Lowe goes to drink,” said my father. He stood, looking rather helpless and sad. His face had a rounded, smooth quality that mine didn’t, and if you cleaned him up a bit, he’d look pretty young for his age. He had to be almost seventy. “You’re quite famous, you know,” he added.“And how long,” I said, leaning over the table, “did it take you to find that suit to put on?”“Not long,” said Max. “Do you mind if I sit down?”“What is this?” I said. “An ambush? Did Lola send you here?”“No,” said my dad. “And if you don’t mind me saying so, you were rather too harsh on her. Not her fault tha
The Billionaire's Secret Baby chapter 50
LolaI was out-of-my mind scared now. And the worst part was that I was alone. I couldn’t have asked Zeke to come out here by himself. And plus, I had a feeling about the warehouse in Red Hook. Something about that place I knew well, the wide, open industrial spaces with strange, bleak views of dockyard and the city beyond. Somehow I knew that Macy would be here, at this one.What I didn’t know was where exactly, or where Luca was keeping her. The address:110 Petersen Ave, was an enormous old factory that had been converted into a warehouse. I knew I’d gotten there when the cab passed by an old, red-brick wall, and I saw the place behind a set of gates, wrought-iron with1—1—0carved above them.“Anywhere here’s fine,” I said, and got out. It was still drizzling a little, and even from here, I could hear the rain tapping on the roof of the warehouse. I went to the gate, and discovered it was unlocked. I was dressed in a hoodie and a baseball cap I’d borrowed from Sebastien, but even so,
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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
