His Surprise Baby: Miracle Babies Book 6

by Hamel, B. B.

  “Come on,” I say. “It’s not a big deal. Just something to eat then we can finish up for the night.”

  That gets her attention. “You got dinner?”

  I shrug. “No big deal. I was ordering anyway so I got you something too.”

  She glances at her computer and finally sighs. “Okay, I am starving.”

  I smile and lead her to the conference room. I push open the door and we step into a candle-lit space with two place settings.

  She stares at the table. There’s a bottle of champagne on ice and the food is covered by big silver domes to keep it warm.

  “Since you wouldn’t have dinner with me, I brought dinner to you.”

  She watches me walk over to my spot and slowly sit down.

  “You kept me late just because I refused to have dinner with you, didn’t you?”

  “Pretty much.” I smile at her, delighted she realized that right away.

  “Oh my god. You’re insane.”

  “Sit down.” I take the lid off my meal. It’s steak and lobster from the absurdly expensive steakhouse around the corner.

  She sniffs the air and I can practically hear her stomach rumbling. “I shouldn’t.”

  “Sit down and eat. Sharing a meal with me won’t kill you.”

  She hesitates. “You did go to all this trouble.” She glances down. “And I am hungry.”

  “It’s fine. Sit and eat.”

  She sighs and seems to wrestle with herself for a second longer, but clearly she’s too tired and hungry to fight it. She sits down, takes the lid off her meal, and digs in.

  I uncork the champagne and pour two glasses. She hesitates but doesn’t take a sip. “Very fancy,” she says.

  “Got it from Delaney’s,” I say.

  “Didn’t know they do takeout.”

  “They don’t. I just happen to know the owner.”

  “Of course you do.” She shakes her head but there’s a smile on her lips. She puts her glass down and pushes it aside.

  “Comes with the territory.” I sip my champagne and watch as she starts eating. She can’t help but smile and her pleasure brings me pleasure. It’s a strange experience, being excited for someone else’s happiness, but that’s where I’m at these days.

  “What do you think?” I ask her.

  “It’s really good.”

  “Worth staying late for?”

  She shoots me a look. “Almost worth the company.”

  I grin. “Please. The company only makes it that much better.”

  “Hardly.”

  “What else would you be doing right now if you weren’t here? Watching TV and waiting to go to bed?”

  She hesitates. “Probably,” she admits. “What about you? What does the important Finn Kelly do on a normal weekend?”

  “Work, mostly,” I admit.

  “Can’t say I’m surprised.”

  “You get the emails.”

  She laughs a little. “Yeah, I’ve noticed more and more late-night emails.”

  “I have to send them when it’s on my mind.”

  “I get that, but still. Do you ever sleep?”

  “Here and there.” I scrape my fork along the plate, not hard enough to make a sound, but hard enough to feel it. “I’ve been under a lot of pressure.”

  For a second, I think I see a crack in her armor. But if it was there, it disappears just as quickly. “It’s an important time.”

  “Doesn’t help that Maxwell and his company is up my ass.”

  She sighs. “He’s such an asshole.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  Maxwell is the owner of a competing 5G company, which in itself isn’t a big deal. Every industry has competition and normally I thrive under it.

  But Maxwell Barney is a scumbag. He’s the owner of Accessible 5G and pretends like he’s this upper-crust socialite. He puts on these goddamn airs and looks down his nose at absolutely everyone, all while doing the shadiest, most underhanded things in the business.

  I’d want to destroy him in the marketplace even if he were a great guy. But I want to destroy him everywhere because he’s such a bastard.

  “I don’t know how you do it,” she says softly. “Starting a second company like this. You didn’t need to get into another business, right?”

  “You’re right,” I admit. “I’m rich enough that I don’t really need to work.”

  “So why do it?”

  “Because I’m not the kind of man to sit around and watch my money grow in the stock market. I need a challenge, something to do. I hate sitting still.”

  She nods a little. “I get that.”

  “I’m lucky that I can go into business purely because I feel like it and not because I need the money. I know others aren’t that fortunate.”

  She raises an eyebrow. “Like me.”

  I grin at her. “Just like you. Although, you’re lucky enough to have a boss that wants to take care of you.” I glance at her glass of champagne. “Not thirsty?”

  She follows my gaze before looking back at me. “Pregnant. Remember?”

  “Shit,” I say, feeling like an idiot. I reach out and grab the glass before downing it just to get it out of the way.

  She laughs a little at my display. I grin at her and shrug.

  “Sorry. Not used to it yet.”

  “It’s okay. I almost drank, to be honest. I’m not used to it yet, either.”

  I push the glass aside and watch as she eats for a second. She has this way about her, like everything she does is an exact science. If something only needs three motions to do, she’ll find a way to get it done in two. It’s an impressive trait and a big reason why I decided to hire her in the first place.

  “Tell me more about your family,” I say.

  “What do you want to know?”

  “Parents happily married?”

  She nods. “Sure, happy enough.”

  “Do they know about…?”

  She frowns at me. “No. Not yet.”

  “Right.” I clear my throat. “Did you have a curfew growing up?”

  I keep up like that for a while, asking her questions about her life. She stops and asks me some things but I can tell she doesn’t want to go there. I figure it’s because my parents both died when I was young that she doesn’t want to press.

  I was mostly raised by an uncle. He took me in when my parents went missing while on a camping trip. Turned out, they got caught in a flash flood and happened to pitch their tent in a bad flood zone. They got swept away and drowned in a nearby river.

  It happened when I was six. I remember my parents as giants.

  I want my child to have a better memory of me. I plan on being there for him or her for its entire life, and I plan on living for a long time if I can help it.

  We lapse into silence for a bit, the meal finished. I feel content, maybe more content than I’ve been in a while. She doesn’t seem as angry and resentful of this experience now, which I guess is an improvement over earlier.

  “Listen, I should tell you something,” she says softly.

  “What’s that?”

  I can tell she’s hesitation, uncertain. I don’t push her though. If she wants to tell me something, she will.

  “When I was fifteen, I got in a car accident.” She bites her cheek and sighs. “The driver was my best friend and she was drunk. It was stupid to let her drive and stupid to get in the car, but I was a kid and… well anyway, it happened. She died.”

  I watch her carefully. “What was her name?”

  “Megan.”

  “I’m sorry that happened,” I say softly. “What was Megan like?”

  She smiles a little bit, going far away. “Funny. Sweet. Boy crazy. You know.”

  I grin. “So she was a teenage girl.”

  “Yep. She wanted to play field hockey in college…” She trails off and shakes her head. “Anyway, I got hurt pretty bad. I was in casts and in surgery a bunch of times. It took a few years before I healed from it. I thi
nk I’m still healing, honestly.”

  “That’s awful.”

  “I’m telling you because, well… my uterus got scarred in the accident.” She hesitates. “I was told I’d never conceive, but obviously that was wrong.”

  My heart starts beating faster. “Really?”

  “Really. They said it would be impossible.” She clears her throat again and I can see tears in her eyes. I reach out and take her hand and she doesn’t pull away. “I just thought you should know. I don’t know if that’s going to affect the baby or if I can even carry it to term. I have a doctor’s appointment and we’ll talk about that stuff.”

  I stare at her before standing. I walk around the table and kneel down next to her. She leans back away from me, a little startled, but I take her hand anyway.

  “I’m here for you,” I say simply, looking into her eyes.

  “Uh, thanks,” she says, bewildered. “You don’t have to be. I don’t even know why I’m telling you.”

  “You’re telling me because it’s important.” I stare at her, my heart racing. “This baby was never supposed to happen, and yet it did… which means it was meant to be.”

  She blinks rapidly. “Wait, what?”

  “It’s a miracle baby, Eden.”

  We stare at each other for a long moment before she lets out a low groan.

  “Oh, god,” she says. “Get up, you idiot.”

  She pushes me to my feet. I stare at her, the conviction in my chest threatening to tear me apart. She stands and yanks me until I’m finally upright.

  “Look, it’s not a miracle, okay? It was a freak chance. One in a million. I didn’t tell you that to make you… want this more.”

  “But you told me,” I say, pulling her against me.

  “Finn,” she says, hands on my chest.

  I kiss her, tasting her lips. She kisses me back despite herself. I can tell she almost wants to push me away… but she doesn’t.

  The kiss lasts a minute before we finally break apart.

  “You have to stop this,” she says gently. “We’re not doing this.”

  “It feels like we already are.”

  “No.” She pulls away from me. I let her go. “We aren’t.

  She walks to the door. “Eden,” I say. “That baby was meant to happen.”

  “No, Finn. This baby was random chance, pure and simple.” She stops at the door and throws up her hands. “This is insane. You’re my boss, you’re some rich and famous CEO guy. Why the hell do you want anything to do with me?”

  “You don’t see yourself at all.”

  She rolls her eyes. “Stop with the Hallmark bullshit, Finn. What do you want from me?”

  “I want my baby,” I say, taking a step toward her. “And I want you. I don’t care if you don’t understand it. I know you feel the same way. You want a father for this child and you want me just as bad as I want you. Just let go and let it happen.”

  “I can’t,” she whispers, as she pushes the door open and leaves.

  I sigh as the door shuts behind her. I stand in that room for a second, staring at the space where she stood, still tasting her on my lips.

  That baby…

  It’s a miracle. A real miracle. It’s a surprise, a miracle, everything I needed. I can see a new path unfolding in front of me…

  And I’m going to walk it. I’m taking my baby and my girl.

  I just need to make her see the truth first.

  5

  Eden

  “Oh, sweetie. You’re going to be okay.”

  Lily reaches out and takes my hand. I blink away tears, feeling like a moron. She passes me a tissue and I blot at my eyes.

  “I know,” I say. “I’ll figure it out. I’ll be fine.”

  “And we’ll be here. Have you told your parents yet?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Tell them. They’ll help too. This baby wasn’t expected but if you’re keeping it…” She trails off and shrugs. “You’ll have help. You’re going to be a good mom.”

  I get choked up at that again and have to look away for a second. “Thanks,” I say.

  She nods once and lets go of my hand.

  Nova comes running into the kitchen where we’re sitting. “Can I have a snack, mom?” she asks in her high-pitched little girl voice. Nova’s already getting so big. I remember when Lily first told me about her, how alone she sounded, but now that she’s with Abel, she’s been so much happier.

  “Okay, but just something small,” Lily says, throwing me a look. She gets up and gets a little pack of fruit snacks and hands them to her daughter. “Say hi to Eden.”

  “Hi, Eden,” Nova says, not looking as she opens the fruit snacks. “Do you like these?” she asks.

  “I love them.”

  She grins at me then runs away, back to the living room to watch TV.

  Lily sighs. “I swear, the older she gets, the ruder she is.”

  “Just how kids are. They lose interest in adults.”

  “I know.” She grins at me. “Guess you’ll know how it feels soon enough.”

  I groan. “That’s a terrifying thought.”

  “It’s good, but scary. I remember how it felt, all alone, Abel not in the picture, until…”

  “Until he was.” I hesitate a second. “Do you ever regret letting him back in?”

  “Never,” she says.

  “Our situations are weirdly similar, you know.”

  “Are they?”

  “I got pregnant in a foreign country from a one-night stand.”

  “True. But Abel disappeared on me for a long time. You know where your baby daddy is.”

  “Good point.”

  She hesitates a second. “And anyway, I thought you couldn’t… you know.”

  I sigh. “I thought I couldn’t either. All the doctors told me it’d never happen.”

  “Crazy.”

  “I know.” I shake my head. “I told Finn about that and he like…”

  “What?”

  “Freaked out.”

  “Upset?”

  “God, no. He was, like, excited.”

  She laughs at that. “Seriously?”

  “He called it a miracle.”

  She laughs again, harder this time. “This guy is nuts.”

  “He wants to be involved, Lily. Like, help me raise the baby and stuff.”

  She takes a deep breath to calm herself. “That’s not a bad thing, you know.”

  “You know about him, right?”

  She hesitates. “I know what you’ve told me.”

  I roll my eyes. She knows more than that. Everyone does. Finn is notorious for flirting with models on Instagram and sleeping with famous people.

  “He’s just in a different world,” I say. “He can’t handle being a dad, even if he thinks he wants to right now.”

  “Maybe that’s not fair. You can’t know that for sure.”

  “I’ve been working with him for a while now. I’m pretty sure I know.”

  She’s quiet for a second, watching Nova as the girl flips through channels.

  “You know, I felt the same way about Abel at first,” Lily says softly. “Turns out, I was so wrong.”

  “Abel’s different.”

  “Is he?” She arches an eyebrow.

  “He’s a military guy. Finn’s a rich billionaire. Kind of different.”

  “Maybe,” she says and runs her fingers over the countertop. “Maybe not. You’ll never know if you don’t try.”

  I narrow my eyes at her. “You seriously think I should?”

  “I’m not saying one way or the other, honestly,” she says gently. “Not for sure, anyway. I just think you should consider it at least.”

  I sigh and tug at a strand of my hair. I guess she has a point. I mean, if Finn is so serious about being involved, what can it hurt to let him try?

  Then again, if I let him in and he bails, that would be devastating for me. I don’t know how I’d handle it. Not to mention, it would obliterate our
professional relationship. I’d have to leave that job, and right now I really, really need it. Now more than ever.

  It’s such a risk. But if he really does want to be in our life, it could be totally worth it.

  “Do you like being around him?” she asks suddenly.

  “I mean, I don’t… He’s an asshole. He’s demanding. You know, I’ve told you all that.”

  “And yet you slept with him.”

  I give her a flat look. “Your point is?”

  “I’m just saying, if you like him and he really wants to try…” She trails off as Nova squeals and jumps up, singing the theme song to some cartoon.

  The conversation gets interrupted by a singing and dancing little girl, which is a lot better than dwelling on my shitty situation. We don’t come back to the topic and eventually I head back to my place.

  But what she said keeps ringing in my ears. If he wants to be involved… and I like being around him…

  God, sometimes I hate Lily. She’s right, though, if it works out, it could be really good. I hate to admit it but I do like him. He makes me feel good, makes me smile, makes me laugh. I thought he was just some controlling rich asshole but I’m seeing a whole new side to him.

  I mean, he’s also a controlling rich asshole, but still.

  I don’t know which way to go. But I am sure I need to at least think about it.

  6

  Finn

  Even on weekends I’m busy.

  Not in the fun way though. I’m not partying, staying out late, fucking models. I used to do that, especially back before I started Alternative Wireless. Now my days are spent hard at work at all times, even when the office is dead empty on the weekends.

  But even I can’t work every single hour of every day, though I’ve tried. I have to go home sooner or later.

  Home is a townhouse in Old City. I think it’s a historic landmark. Some old banker used to live in it, some guy that helped fund the Revolutionary War or something like that. Doesn’t matter though, since I gutted the inside and completely renovated it from top to bottom. I kept some original stuff, and the outside is still original, but it’s all mine these days.

  Eden has one job on the weekends. I know she hates it, but it’s part of what she does. Every Sunday morning, she shows up with a newspaper and my dry cleaning. She comes at nine in the morning sharp and she never comes inside.