I leaned back in my chair, processing the information. I should have known better. I knew Cherie. I knew she wasn’t capable of doing what I accused her of doing. I had fucked up. It was probably the biggest mistake I had ever made in my life and that was saying a lot. I made a lot of mistakes. I had gotten caught up in the snowball Amber created. I had fed right into her lies. She must have been feeling mighty proud of herself in that moment.
She had destroyed something beautiful with her lies. As if that wasn’t enough, she had to add fuel to the fire and created a lot of hurt for me and Cherie. I couldn’t totally blame Amber. I had picked up the ball Amber dropped and ran with it. I had allowed her betrayal to cloud my judgment.
“Fuck,” I groaned, slapping my hand against my desk.
“You heard,” David said, walking into my office.
I shook my head. “Why didn’t you stop me?”
He shrugged a shoulder. “Once you get an idea in your head, there is no stopping you. You were on a mission. I told you to take some time.”
“You told me Cherie sold the story!” I snapped.
He grimaced. “I was wrong. I’m sorry.” Regret was written all over his face. “I assumed the worst.”
“I should have known better. I was hurt by the breakup and looking for ways to vilify her. I fed right into Amber’s plot. I hate that I did it. Cherie has more integrity in her little finger than Amber will ever possess. Cherie would never blab about her personal business. It was one of the reasons she didn’t want to be with me. She was worried about her private life being splashed all over the tabloids. She never wanted me for my money. I fucked up.”
“Make it right,” he said as if it was that easy.
I scoffed. “Gee, why didn’t I think of that? I’ll just give her a call, say my bad, can we move on with our lives.”
He cleared his throat. “If I’m to understand correctly, she really is pregnant.”
Another wave of shock hit me. “Pregnant,” I said the word, testing the way it felt on my tongue.
“With your baby, I assume?”
I scowled at him. “Yes, my baby!”
He shrugged. “Just checking.”
“I’m going to be a father. I’m going to bend over backward to make this right. A father. Holy shit!”
He laughed. “I hope things do work out for you.”
“They will. I refuse to accept anything less. I’m going to cherish her and my baby. I’m going to make her my queen and show her I can treat her like she deserves to be treated. My baby is going to be spoiled as hell. I’m not letting Amber ruin this. Her nasty ways have caused enough damage. I’m going to make Cherie understand how sorry I am.”
He was quiet for a second. “What if she doesn’t want you back? I don’t want to sound like a dick, but you guys have been down this road before. I don’t want to see you hurt. I saw what you went through the first time.”
I shook my head. “I’m not going to take no for an answer. I know she loves me. She ended things with me because I treated Amber like shit and she didn’t like it. I realize that wasn’t cool. Amber certainly deserved it, but I should have been the bigger man. Cherie doesn’t want the glitz and glam. She wants to live a quiet life. I can give her that. I’m always going to be Evan Daniels the billionaire, but I can do a better job keeping myself out of the limelight. No more high-profile relationships. No more red carpets and interviews in magazines. I’m taking a big step back from it all. I want Cherie. If she wants me to give all this up, I will.”
“I won’t try and stop you. I can see how much she means to you. I support you in whatever decision you choose. Unless you try to give away all your money. Then I’m going to have to step in. I’ll be more than happy to take it off your hands.”
I laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“I’m glad to know it wasn’t her. I didn’t like thinking that way about her. No matter what happened back in the old days, I always liked Cherie. Mom did too.”
I groaned. “Don’t I know it. I had to run away from home before Mom followed through with her promise to paddle my butt for being a dick to Cherie.”
He grinned, getting to his feet. “And you know she would have done it.”
“Yes, I do.”
David left me alone with my regrets. I had made a lot of really big, hurtful mistakes over the past couple weeks. Cherie was not going to willingly take me back without a grand gesture. I owed her the biggest apology ever. A simple sorry wasn’t going to be enough. I had to shed my ego and pride and grovel at her feet.
She was going to be the mother of my child and I didn’t want to live in a world where we didn’t get to raise our child together. I wanted my baby to have two loving parents under the same roof.
It was going to be a monumental task, but I was up for it.
Chapter 38
Cherie
I didn’t think I could possibly feel any worse than I did in the days following my breakup with Evan. I was wrong. So, so wrong. It was Valentine’s Day. The day for lovers. The day Evan would have married Amber.
I wasn’t sad about the last part. Then again, part of me wished he had married the vile creature. He would have been miserable ever after and that would have given me a tiny bit of satisfaction.
Tara was going out with one of her standbys. She had tried to get me to go along on a double date, but I couldn’t do it. I was pregnant with another man’s child. The very last thing I wanted to do was go out with another man. I preferred to wallow in my own private misery.
I had seen the flower delivery trucks all around town earlier. Couples all over the city were spending their days with the ones they loved. Men were doting on their ladies with flowers and chocolates, and the lucky ones were getting jewelry. I hated the day.
I decided that from now on, I was going to ban Valentine’s Day. It was a stupid holiday designed to make the single people feel lonely. That was a cruel thing to do and whoever came up with the stupid holiday should be dragged into the street and made to eat a thousand pounds of chocolate.
I wondered what Evan was doing on his would-be wedding day. Was he out on a date with his next victim? Was he planning his wedding to his future ex-wife? He had to have set some kind of record for ending two serious relationships in a matter of months. All before Valentine’s Day. Maybe he was a cheapskate and didn’t want to spend his money on chocolates and flowers.
I heard a knock on the door and considered ignoring it. It was likely some eager salesperson hoping to make a few dollars selling roses door to door. The last thing I wanted to see was red roses. I never wanted to see a red rose for the rest of my life.
I opened the door to a massive bouquet of red roses. I almost slammed the door in the man’s face. “Can I help you?” I snapped.
“Miss Sanders?” he asked, looking a little worried.
“Yes.”
“Delivery for you.”
I took the flowers, assuming they were from Tara. I would take her roses. “Thank you.”
I closed the door, carried the roses to the dining table, and looked for a card. I couldn’t find one, which led me to believe they were definitely from Tara. I had to smile at her thoughtfulness. She was trying to make me feel better and I couldn’t be mad at her for that.
It was five minutes later when there was another knock on my door. It was the same situation, another dozen roses in a vase with no card. The onslaught of red roses continued for two hours with a delivery every five to ten minutes. My house was filled with flowers and the scent of rose was damn near intoxicating. I was going to have to open a window soon.
I had no idea what was going on. I had a feeling I had become the butt of someone’s joke. It wasn’t at all funny. I had called Tara and she insisted they weren’t from her. I was sure I had every rose in Miami stuffed in my house.
When the doorbell rang again, I had enough. I was going to reject the delivery. I didn’t know what the hell was going on, but I was over it. I jerked the door open, ready to shove
the roses where they wouldn’t see the light of day, when I saw Evan standing there holding a single rose.
“You,” I breathed the word.
“Me,” he answered with a soft smile. “Can we talk?”
I looked at the rose in his hand, realization dawning. “You did this?” I asked with shock. “Why? You hate me!”
“I don’t hate you,” he said. “Can I please come in?”
I frowned but let him in. “What do you want, Evan? Did you bring another witness? Who would you like to watch you humiliate me with your accusations? Maybe you’re recording this to post to social media.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I deserve that. No one is here. It’s just me.”
“You’re sorry? So you send me a thousand roses?”
He shrugged. “I wanted to say I was sorry. I owe you ten thousand roses.”
I stared at him, wondering what the hell he was up to. “Why are you really here?” I asked, keeping my distance.
“Can we sit?”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine, if that makes it easier for you to talk.”
“I’m sorry, Cherie. I am so, so sorry. I screwed up. I know that now. I should have known it then. I never should have said what I said. I never should have accused you of going to the press. I knew better. I know you are a good person. What I did was wrong.”
He looked sincere.
“What changed your mind?”
“I had Vaughn do some investigating.”
I shook my head. “So you didn’t believe me. Great. You’ve said your apology and you can feel better about yourself now. Good job. Now go.”
“Cherie, I’m sorry. I should have believed you. I was hurt. I was lashing out. Your rejection cut me deeper than I thought was possible. Combined with the bullshit Amber was pulling, I didn’t know what to think. I reacted without thinking. I’m ashamed of my behavior and I swear I will never do it again. I won’t be so quick to think the worst of you.”
“It hurt, Evan,” I said in a low voice. “It hurt me to know you thought I could ever do something like that.”
“I’m sorry. Can you please forgive me? I want to make it up to you. I want to prove to you I can be the man you need me to be, the man I know you love.”
I wanted him. “Evan, there is so much hurt between us.”
“I know. Trust me, I know. It hurt pretty bad to get dumped, and then when I found out you were pregnant and didn’t tell me, that cut deep.”
I grimaced. I wasn’t exactly innocent in the matter. “I didn’t tell you about the baby because I know you don’t want children. I saw the way you reacted to Amber’s declaration.”
He looked confused. “What do you mean I don’t want children?”
“You told Amber you never wanted a family. I didn’t want you to feel obligated. I know you and I know you would have done the right thing, even if it wasn’t what you wanted.”
He got up from the chair and came to sit next to me on the couch. He took both my hands in his and looked me in the eyes. “I didn’t want children with her. She was not a woman I wanted that kind of bond with. She will be a horrible mother and I didn’t want to be responsible for bringing a child into the world with her as its mother. You, baby? I would love to have a hundred kids with you.”
I stared at him. I could see the emotion in his eyes. He was serious.
“What?” I gasped.
“Don’t you remember us talking about how many kids we would have? We even named them. Daniel after my dad and Danielle if we had a girl. Cherie, I want to spend the rest of my life building a family with you. I want us to grow old together and have a life we can be proud of.”
My heart was singing with joy. “Really?”
He pulled me close to him, his warm body infusing mine with comforting strength. “Really. I love you. I know I’ve hurt you, but I promise I will never, ever, ever do it again. I have learned my lesson. I will trust you. I will trust my instincts and not listen to those little voices in my head. I know you. I’ve always known you. I got a little sideways but I’m never going to do it again. If I even get close to the line, slap me.”
I laughed, doing my best not to cry. My hormones were crazy, and tears tended to fall at the drop of a hat. “You’re crazy.”
“I’m so crazy for you I can’t see straight. Please say you’ll forgive me. Say you’ll give me a chance to prove to you that I can be the man you need. I’ll be the best daddy in the world. Just give me a chance.”
I smiled, reaching up to put my hand on his cheek. “I forgive you.”
The look of relief in his eyes made me happy. I did love him, and I hated to think of him hurt and suffering. We had both suffered. I hoped we never had to feel like that again. I wanted to make it work with him.
He leaned forward and kissed me. It was a passionate kiss filled with all the pent-up emotions we had both been holding on to. The one kiss signified the start of something new and exciting. It was a rekindling of an old flame and the birth of a relationship I knew would stand the test of time.
His arms wrapped around me, pulling me tight against his body. I held him close, my body longing for his touch. It felt like an eternity since we had been together. “I need you,” I whispered against his lips.
“You have me. Always.”
“Bedroom,” I told him, pulling away and getting to my feet.
He offered me that sexy, boyish grin. “You don’t have to tell me twice.”
I locked the door, shut off the lights, and headed for my bedroom. Once in the bedroom, we both stripped out of our clothes. I took great pleasure in looking at his body. We both stood before one another naked in more ways than the literal term. We had both been stripped to our very cores and made vulnerable. Now, we stood together, ready to be rebuilt in each other’s love.
I stepped toward him, giving myself to him. His hand reached out, caressing my arm while staring into my eyes. He slid his hand up, cupping my face and gently kissing me again. I surrendered to him, giving him all of me. Heat radiated from his naked body as he stood close without touching.
His mouth moved over mine in a leisurely way as if he had no worries in the world. One hand slid down my arm, coming to rest on my hip before gently stepping closer to me. My breasts brushed against his chest, sending shivers of deep desire over my body. My breasts were highly sensitive and even the slightest brush of his skin against mine was extremely erotic.
I moaned into his mouth, pressing my breasts against him as my arm wrapped around him. I wanted him more than anything else in the world. He stepped back and smiled at me before grabbing my hand and leading me to the bed. I eagerly pulled the blankets back and climbed in, waiting for him to join me.
“You’re beautiful,” he said. “I think you are actually glowing.”
I softly giggled. “I am feeling a little flushed at the moment.”
He chuckled, climbing onto the bed and stretching out next to me. He propped his head up on his hand and looked down at me. There was a softness in his expression that belied the passion I saw in his eyes.
“Evan?” I whispered.
“I can’t stop looking at you,” he said. “I want you so badly.”
“Then take me. I’m here. I want you. I need you.”
“I don’t want to hurt you or the baby,” he said with concern.
I smiled. “The baby is just fine. Do as you wish with me. Trust me, I’m not going to break. I’m good. If you don’t get on with it, I’m afraid I might just have to throw you down and have my way with you.”
His blue eyes flashed with that familiar hunger. “Me first,” he growled, his mouth slamming against mine.
I groaned, reaching up to pull him closer. I was never letting him go again.
Chapter 39
Evan
The woman was my everything. I couldn’t imagine my life without her in it. I wanted her to truly understand how much I cherished I her. I kissed my way across her chin, to her earlobe, and down the side of her neck.
I felt her shudder beside me.
“I love this little spot on your neck,” I whispered.
“Me too,” she groaned.
I smiled, running my tongue over the flesh before nibbling at it. She groaned, her body writhing. I kept kissing over her collarbone and then slowly down her chest until I was able to focus on one beautiful breast. I suckled every little inch of the voluptuous breast in my hand. When my mouth closed over her nipple, she nearly exploded off the bed.
I suddenly remembered the crash course reading I had done about pregnancy. I smiled knowing her nipples would be extra sensitive. That fueled me to lavish the other breast. She was squirming beside me, whimpering and making little mewling sounds.
“Baby, you turn me inside out,” I breathed.
“I want you so bad,” she whimpered. “Please, Evan.”
I kept my mouth on her breast, sliding one hand over her belly. I paused over her belly. The joy I felt over the baby news was impossible to put into words. It was amazing to know we had created a life. A baby born of our love for one another was magical. I slid my hand lower, nudging her legs open.
I ran my finger over her folds, applying a little pressure and sliding through. I could feel her wet heat begging for me to touch her. I pushed my finger deeper, sliding inside her tightness. Her body arched as she gave me the sweetest gift. Her body wept over my finger, spasming as she cried out in ecstasy.
“That’s my girl,” I said, dropping kisses over her face. “My girl. Always my girl.”
“Evan,” she said my name on a breath. It was the sweetest sound I had ever heard.
I couldn’t wait any longer. I needed to be with her. I needed to be inside her, imprinting myself on her soul all over again. I rose up, crawling over her, afraid to put my weight on her. I positioned myself over her, using my own hand to guide myself to her opening. I slowly, ever so gently pushed my way inside her.
I looked at her face and saw her staring up at me. Her dark eyes were full of emotion as she watched me make love to her. I held her eyes, staring into her very soul. “I love you,” I somehow managed to get out the words. “I love you more than anything in this world.”
Heart Breaker Page 23