by Kaylee, Katy
Logan leaned over and kissed her on the nose. “He is incredibly adorable. I just want to eat him up every time he is around. How do you ever discipline the kid?”
Amber laughed, and to Logan it seemed a little nervous. “They will try your patience, trust me. They could be the epitome of adorable and you still want to shake them until their eyeballs rattle sometimes.”
Amber got out of the bed and Logan watched as she went into the closet and pulled out a pair of dress pants and a blouse. He followed suit and picked up his clothes, putting on his pants and shirt, but leaving it untucked. He searched around the floor until he found his socks and shoes, and sat down in the chair in her room and put them on. They both had fallen silent, and Logan couldn’t help but notice that it felt almost awkward between the two of them for a moment.
He couldn’t have that, so he got up and walked over to her where she was standing in front of the mirror, pulling her hair back in a ponytail. He kissed the side of her neck and she smiled, leaning her head back. “Last night was amazing.”
“It was,” he replied with a smile.
She turned and pecked him on the lips. “And now I make the monster some waffles and you and I some elixir of life.”
Logan was taken back for a moment. “My mom used to call me monster. She still did it when I was getting ready to go into high school.”
Amber avoided eye contact, but walked over and kissed him gently on the cheek. “How do you like your coffee?”
Logan let out a deep breath. “Black, please.”
They went out into the kitchen as Bradley rounded the corner, his shirt on backward but everything else on point. Logan laughed and put his hands to his cheeks. “Oh no, Bradley, your head’s on backward.”
Bradley looked down and started giggling wildly. “No, silly, my shirt is.”
Logan put his hands on his hips. “Let me help you with that, sir. You never know when you could get confused and just start walking backward.”
Logan helped him fix his shirt, then lifted him up into his chair. Amber smiled at Logan and put Bradley’s pancakes in front of him. “Here you are, sir. Gourmet Eggo waffles.”
Amber walked over to the coffee maker and poured Logan a cup, handing it to him. He leaned against the counter and sipped it, watching Bradley eat his waffles, his napkin stuck in the neck of his shirt. Logan crossed his leg over the other and shook his foot at the ankle. He glanced down at Bradley, who had his back to Logan, and realized that the kid was doing the same thing. He thought it was a strange coincidence but shook it off, looking down at his watch.
He really didn’t want to leave. Everything felt so natural with the three of them all together. It almost made him smile, thinking about what it would be like to do that every day with the two of them. He knew that was something that was very far down the road, if an option at all, but he couldn’t help but let the idea run through his head.
After a few minutes, he gulped down the last of his coffee and set the cup in the sink. “I have to get headed over to my place so I can change and get to the office. Most likely all the conversations with the investors will be spilling out throughout today.”
Amber wiped her lips and nodded. “Mmm, I have to get him to preschool before I head over. I’ll walk you to the door.”
Logan followed her through the apartment after ruffling Bradley’s hair and saying goodbye just like his dad used to do to him when he was little. He was kind of surprised how naturally it came to him. Amber opened the door and Logan walked out, turning back and smiling at her. “Thank you for the lovely talk last night.”
Amber chuckled. “It was my pleasure… literally.”
Logan looked over her shoulder to make sure that Bradley wasn’t looking and then leaned in, kissing her gently on the lips. “I’ll see you at the office.”
She nodded her head and smiled as she shut the door. He turned, his chest full and his face smiling, and walked down to the elevator. The entire ride to the condo he had finally rented to get out of the hotel, and the entire time he showered and changed, Amber was on his mind. There weren’t just flashes of the passion that occurred the night before, but also thoughts of that morning. Standing there drinking coffee together in the kitchen, with Bradley eating at the table.
Logan wondered to himself if he would make a good father. He wondered if he could be a father to Bradley, since his father had left him. He wondered what life would be like if they could actually make it work together. Eventually, the media excitement over a kiss would fade, but he didn’t want the prospect of a future with Amber to do the same. She had become a staple in his life again, and he was feeling just as attracted to a life with her as he was to her herself. It was a crazy notion to him, but one that filled him with excitement, not fear.
When he was done getting ready, he reached for a tie, realizing that he had forgotten his at Amber’s place. He shrugged his shoulders figuring it would be a good excuse to stop by there again. Hopefully, he wouldn’t have to do that forever. Hopefully, one day she would actually invite him to her house. He wasn’t sure if she would ever be open to the idea of something more with him, but he sure hoped that there would be more mornings like the one he had earlier.
He called the car service and they met him downstairs, taking him over to the coffee shop to grab a brew before heading in. There were a couple of photographers there that snapped a picture, but Logan just let it go. Unless coffee had become scandalous over night, he wasn’t doing anything wrong.
When he got to work, he got busy catching up on all the stuff he had gotten behind on the day before with the calls from the investors. He shuffled through paperwork, made notes, returned emails, and tried to have a normal day in the office. He knew if they called to talk again he would get pulled away, so he was trying to use every second possible.
When lunch time rolled around, he had it delivered to his office and sat perusing the internet while he munched on his sandwich. On the main entertainment section, he found an article with Amber’s face on the front of it. He narrowed his eyes and began to read.
“The mystery girl that everyone has been wild to know the identity of has been recognized as a one Amber Stark. According to reports, Amber and Logan have known each other their entire lives. Her brother, notorious playboy gone reformed, and future heir of Stark productions was Logan’s best friend since diapers. Everyone knows the tragic story of Logan’s parents’ death, but few know that it was in fact the Stark family that adopted him. His arrival back in the LA scene was structured well, since he hadn’t spent much time there over the last five years. This is where the story gets interesting. Rumor has it, there was something going on between Logan and Amber long before and coincidentally, just weeks after he left, Amber was seen with a growing baby belly. Speculations can only conclude that the young Stark boy of Amber’s just might be the spawn of none other than Logan Townley himself….”
Logan’s mouth fell open and he leaned back in his chair. He went through his memories, thinking about the dates and how close they really were to when he left. There was actually a real possibility that Bradley was his. Just then, there was a knock on the door and Amber stuck her head in. “Got a minute?”
He stared at her for a second and then nodded. “Yeah, but close the door.”
She closed the door and looked at him suspiciously. “You okay? You look whiter than usual. Did you hear from the investors?”
He shook his head. “No, they won’t probably get back to me until the end of the week. I just read something though that brought a sensitive question to my mind. I want to be transparent with you and I hope you will do the same.”
She sat down on the edge of the chair and looked at him. “Okay. What’s going on?”
He sat up and stared her right in the eyes. “It is rumored that Bradley is my son. Is this true?”
He watched her freeze up for a moment and then let out a breath, giving a bit of a fake laugh. “No, of course not. I think you would know if you
had a son. No, the answer is no.”
Logan nodded his head and she continued on with a question about work. In the back of Logan’s mind, though, he couldn’t help but feel that she was lying.
Amber
Amber pressed the button at the gate of her brother and Melissa’s house. The speaker crackled and Melissa’s voice came out. “Yes?”
Amber leaned out. “Hey, it’s Amber. Can you open the gate?”
There was a click and the large iron gates opened up to a grand drive that circled around a large fountain in front of the pillared entry to their home. Amber had seen the house before, but every time she came there she couldn’t help but chuckle. It was almost as big as her parents’ house, something Jordan had said all his life he hated. Now, he lived in almost the same house with his soon to be wife.
Melissa was standing in the doorway with a concerned smile on her face. “He’s in the study with the door locked. He said he won’t come and talk to you.”
Amber rolled her eyes and walked inside. “Then I guess I will just have to yell through the door. I swear, he is worse than my little boy. Bradley, would you stay here with Aunt Melissa?”
Melissa smiled and reached her hand down for him. “We can look at the paintings.”
Melissa giggled and watched as Amber walked down the hall and lightly tapped on the study door. “Jordan, it’s Amber. I want to talk to you.”
His voice was muffled but understandable from the other side. “I don’t want to talk to you.”
Amber sighed. “Then I guess you will just have to do the one thing you’ve never been very good at, and that is listening. I just need to say what is in my heart. I am sorry that we didn’t tell you what was going on. I’m sorry that things were a shock to your system. It’s not something that was planned or looked for, it just fell into place.”
He grumped. “The wrong place.”
Amber narrowed her eyes. “You know what? I am being more than understanding of your temper tantrum, Jordan Stark, but this is my damn life. I can make whatever decisions I want about it, and I don’t need your permission for any of it. It’s not fair that you are treating me like I stole your puppy or something.”
The locks on the door clicked and Jordan appeared through its opening, standing there angrily. He pointed his finger in her face. “Every single thing I’ve said and done is absolutely one hundred percent fair. You slept with my best friend and then tried to hide it from me and everyone else in the family. There are a million men out there, and you had to sleep with my best friend. That tore him and me apart.”
Amber crossed her arms over her chest. “No, you and your attitude tore the two of you apart. You are the one who cancelled him being your best man and threatened his life. You are the one who made it weird and awkward. You are the one who can’t come to terms with it.”
He huffed and walked into the room, Amber following after him. She stopped and watched as he paced back and forth. Finally, he stopped and turned to her. “What about Bradley?”
Amber sneered, shaking her head. “What does he have to do with this?”
Jordan grabbed a piece of paper off the desk and held it out, her face wide at the top. “This article says that the two of you were seeing each other before he left five years ago. This infers that not only had this been going on right under our noses in Mom and Dad’s house, but that Bradley is really Logan’s child. Is Logan his father, Amber? Have you been keeping that from us and from him for the last five years?”
Amber scoffed and threw up her hands. “No, damnit. You read one article where they are reaching, and reaching far, and all of a sudden you come up with that? Do you believe Jerry Springer is all good television and no dramatization or acting too? Come on, Jordan. Bradley is my son, and that is all anyone needs to know. The article is trying to throw shade, and it’s going to lose Logan his company if we aren’t careful here. You may say you don’t care because you are angry, but I know you do.”
Jordan plopped down in the chair and threw the paper on the floor. “So, the article is bullshit?”
Amber sighed and leaned against his desk. “Yes. Bullshit.”
Jordan grumps. “Good, because I would hate to actually have a reason to kill him. Then there would be my conscience and Bradley to think of. It would get messy really fast. I just wish you could have been honest with me about what was happening.”
Amber rolled her eyes. “You mean, call you the second our lips parted?”
Jordan winced. “Gross. Just don’t.”
Amber bent down in front of him. “Look, things are confusing. They got even more confusing when the whole world decided to weigh in on my life and make whatever story they wanted to. On top of that, I can’t even think about the simplest part of this, Logan and I, because my family is acting like I started dating Hitler. Everyone is thinking about themselves, how it makes them feel, but no one is considering that I can’t have five seconds to decide how it makes me feel.”
Jordan looked up at her with pity. “Maybe you’re right. I should have stepped back a second and actually spoken to you. It just all made me so furious.”
Jordan stood up and wrapped his arms around his sister. “This doesn’t mean I forget. I’ll just take a time out for a bit and let you take a breather.”
Amber laughed. “Thanks, big brother.”
He pulled back and shook his head. “You will be the death of me one day, pixie.”
Amber smiled and turned toward the door. “I’ll talk to you soon. I gotta get the monster home, bathed, and in bed.”
Jordan waved his hand. “Yeah, yeah. See you soon.”
Amber walked back into the entrée way and put her arms out as Bradley ran to her. She gave Melissa a kiss on the cheek. “Thanks. I’ll see you guys soon.”
Melissa nodded. “Hopefully in a better mood.”
Amber scoffed as they walked out of the door and back down to the car. She got Bradley strapped into his car seat and climbed into the front. As they headed back out onto the road, Bradley called out to her. “Mommy?”
Amber turned down the music. “Yeah, sweetie?”
Bradley kicked his feet up and down. “Why did Uncle Jordan ask if Logan was my dad?”
Amber’s eyes shot up in the rearview and panic built in her chest. She hadn’t realized that he had heard that. She took a second and then forced a smile over her lips. “Oh, honey, he was just joking. It was an adult joke between the two of us.”
“Oh, okay,” he said happily looking out the window.
Amber let out a deep breath thankful that Bradley was so little and bought it instantly. At the same time, though, looking in the mirror at the little person who she loved more than herself, guilt began to flood her. She was lying to her son, and never letting him know his dad. He would grow up always questioning that and not having any clue that his mom could have remedied that from the very beginning. She was always trying to do what was best for Bradley, that was her job. When he was first born, Logan was nowhere around and hadn’t spoken a word to her since he left. How was she supposed to tell her son his dad was close without risking that he would hurt Bradley?
She took her eyes from him and stared at the road as she drove along. She never thought she would reach the moment where she was actually questioning her decision. She thought she would go the rest of her life avoiding him until he no longer came around anymore. Never in Amber’s wildest dreams did she think that she would end up working for him, much less be back in some weird relationship with him again. She hated that she cared for him so much. She hated that he truly was a good person. She loved and hated that every time he was around Bradley, it was like magic.
That morning, she had even stood there watching Logan help Bradley turn his shirt around and wondered what it would be like for the three of them to be a family. She was allowing herself to get in too deep again and it was starting to raise questions all around her. She wasn’t sure if she could keep the secret with all the media snooping around her life.
Up until recently she thought that Logan would be better off not knowing about Bradley. When he left her on her own and went out to New York, he showed her that his future was more important than their relationship. No matter what he wrote in that letter, she didn’t believe for a second that he was doing it for anyone but himself. Throwing the wrench of a kid into the mix would have confused him and caused a lot of damage between the two of them. In the end, she really didn’t think it would change a thing. Logan was used to his freedom, to his high living lifestyle, and to not having to be responsible for another person. Telling him that would change all of it. Or, if her worst fears were true, it wouldn’t change anything, leaving Bradley in the dust, broken hearted.
The problem was, between the media, Bradley’s suspicion, and now her brother, she didn’t know if she was going to be able to keep the secret. She didn’t know if at any moment he was going to find out, or realize it. She could tell earlier that day that he didn’t believe her when she told him no. She could tell that he had his own suspicions and, if she was being honest, he would have to be dumb not to. In order for it not to be his, she would have technically had to have been sleeping with someone else before they broke up, which obviously wasn’t happening. Best case scenario, she slept with someone the day he left, but he knew her better than that. She wasn’t that kind of girl.
They pulled into the condo’s parking garage and she rested her head back against the seat. She glanced up in the rearview mirror at Bradley, who was fast asleep. She stared at his angelic little face, seeing Logan more and more every day in those eyes, those cheeks, and the way he furrowed his brow when he was unhappy. She didn’t even know how she had gotten away with it for that long; the kid looked just like Logan. She guessed when you weren’t looking for it, it was easy to pass by.
She got out of the car and went around, carefully unbuckling Bradley and pulling him into her arms. He wrapped his arms around her and laid his head on her shoulder. “Mommy…” he said sleepily.