The CEO

by Shealy James

  I slapped him and laughed. “Stop it. I’m being serious. This is hard. It’s hard to not care about him, no matter how horrible he’s been. I’ve known him since kindergarten.”

  “I know, babe, but you have to think the guy who was sitting in that room wasn’t the kid you knew in school. You both have changed and need different things now. He knew he couldn’t hold on to you, so he tried to take away your self-worth, so you wouldn’t see how undeserving he is of you.”

  “You may be a little biased,” I said with a small smile.

  “Maybe, but it doesn’t make it any less true. Here’s what I need to know. Between finalizing your divorce and your phone call to Mark, did you get what you need to move on?”

  I smiled widely at him. “I think so. Had I not talked to Mark tonight, I wouldn’t have felt good about it, but he let me go. He said some things I needed to hear, and I reminded him I really only want good things for him. It was a good talk.”

  “Good.” He splayed his hands flat on my back under my shirt. He seemed nervous. “What about us?”

  “What about us? I told you I wasn’t mad at you.”

  “I’m sure this is terrible timing, but I have to know if you think we have a future together now that you can move on from this.”

  “Until I got off that bathroom floor, today was as far into the future that I could see.”

  “And now?”

  “I don’t know. I know how I feel about you, but I’m not sure if I’m ready to look ahead yet.” Grant nodded his agreement, but I could see the disappointment all over his face. “It doesn’t mean there isn’t a future, but I just can’t make any plans yet. I’m still wrapping my head around today. Remember we’ve only been together a month. My life was on pause until I met you, and you like it on fast-forward. I’m not there yet. Let’s just take it one day at a time, okay?”

  “Whatever you need, baby.” I knew it wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but I didn’t have anything to offer yet. A part of me felt like it was unfair of him to even bring up our future on the same day I finalized my divorce, which was the reason I didn’t want him here for that. Had he not been there, though, who knows what would have happened? I needed a change of topic before my brain ran away with my reason.

  I started pressing kisses to Grant’s chest. “What about what you need? Today has been all about me. How about we make tonight about you?” I started trailing kisses lower and lower.

  “I like the way you think, gorgeous.” By the time I lowered his boxers to continue my trail of kisses, he was hard and perfect. He pressed his hips up as I continued to tease him. “Baby,” he groaned.

  “What do you need, Grant? You never told me.”

  “Mouth. Now,” he demanded.

  “Your wish is my command, Prince Charming.”

  ***

  Grant woke me up the next morning by running his fingers up and down my back. I found myself using his chest as a pillow and our legs entwined. “Good morning,” I said without lifting my head.

  “Good morning, peach. You ready to go home?”

  “Ugh!” I groaned and rolled over. “Go back to Seattle and face reality? No. Let’s stay here. I hired you a cook and a housekeeper and a builder.”

  He climbed on top of me. “Let’s see what your cook and builder think when I make you scream my name like you have a tendency of doing when I’m inside of you.”

  “Hey! I’ve been quiet since we’ve been here,” I reminded him.

  “Because I covered your mouth with mine. I can’t do that if it’s my mouth making you scream, now can I?” He started kissing his way down my body. I squirmed with need.

  “Okay, okay,” I squealed and squirmed away. “Let’s go home.”

  He pulled me back to him and looked down at me, smiling sweetly.

  “What?” I asked.

  “You called Seattle ‘home.’”

  “It’s where I live, silly.”

  “That’s all?”

  “It is also where my charming boyfriend lives, and I couldn’t stand to not be where he is.”

  “Better.”

  We both climbed out of bed and helped each other shower before we repacked and headed downstairs for breakfast. My mom was in her spot, and Dad was actually still in his seat reading the paper. He set it down when we walked in the room.

  “How ya feelin’ today, peanut?”

  I walked over and gave him a hug and a kiss on his cheek. “Like a million pounds has been lifted off my shoulders. Thank you again for what you did.”

  “No problem, kiddo. You guys flying out today?”

  “Yes, Grant has a private jet on call.” I rolled my eyes and scoffed. “Rich people.” Grant pinched my side, making me squirm away.

  “Must be nice,” Dad said. “I’m not even allowed to buy a boat. Women just don’t get it, do they, Grant?”

  Grant laughed and tapped me on the nose. “No sir, they don’t.”

  “Oh jeez. Not the boat thing again,” Mom chimed in.

  As my parents argued about a boat, Grant and I happily ate the bacon, eggs, and toast my mom made us. Dad kept trying to get Grant on his side, but he was smart enough to say he wasn’t getting in the middle. Wise man.

  After a long goodbye where both parents told me how much they loved Grant—yet another thing no one ever did with Mark—Grant and I were on our way to the airport. Grant talked about how much he loved my family on the drive down there and asked questions about everyone as if he hadn’t learned enough about them. It felt really nice to have everyone connected like that, and I sighed happily as we held hands and talked.

  We came back to my apartment where everything was just how I left it. It felt nice, homey. I unpacked while Grant made phone calls letting people know he was back in town and would be back in the office tomorrow. I would be filling out online applications tomorrow for a new job. I hadn’t had much time to think about what I would do if I didn’t find one, but tomorrow I would have to deal with it. Right then I just wanted to enjoy the time with my man who promised he would spend the afternoon with me and more.

  Epilogue

  “Why do I still work for you, Eve?” Scott asked as he gave me a plate of saltines and a glass of ginger ale.

  “Because I love you and your risotto,” I told him. Tonight was a huge New Year’s Eve ball Mitchell Corp was hosting, and I was a nervous wreck. My stomach had been a mess for the last few days, and I was starting to wonder if I would ever keep any food down. My family was in town, and my mom insisted I try crackers and ginger ale because I hadn’t kept anything down in two days. I felt fine most of the day, but the second I was around food, I was running to the bathroom.

  “Then quit throwing everything up.”

  “Sorry. I’ll try to control it better.” I smirked as I took a bite of another cracker and then laid my head back down on the island in our beautiful new kitchen. Grant surprised me one night with a wonderful date and an even better house, large enough for us to grow into and have my family visit. It was ridiculously extravagant and homey, a perfect combination of Grant and me. That was the night I finally admitted I saw no other future than one that included Grant. We had lived in the giant French-style estate for a little over two months since then, and I couldn’t have been more excited to spend my first Seattle Christmas here. He flew my whole family out to surprise me, and my mom and Jane had been helping me prepare for tonight’s party ever since.

  Grant came into the kitchen and found me with my face on the cold granite. “Not feeling well again, baby?” he asked as he kissed my upturned cheek and rubbed my back.

  I didn’t even lift my head off the counter when I spoke. “Just peachy. I can’t wait for tonight to be over with.”

  “You know everything will go perfectly.”

  “No, I know this is the first event I have planned for your mother. She just started actually trusting me. I don’t want to go back to her bad side because I ruined her biggest event of the year.”

  “Won�
��t happen. She adores you. Besides, tonight you will be there as my date, not to work. You hired Michelle to make sure the event runs smoothly, remember?”

  “Doesn’t mean I’m not worried about it.”

  “Good morning,” my mother said cheerfully as she entered the room. She looked fresh as a daisy, which just made me feel worse. “Peanut, I need your help with something. I can’t decide which dress to wear.”

  “Mom, we already picked the ice blue one. Quit changing your mind.”

  “Could you just come and look one more time, please?”

  “Fine,” I grumbled as I climbed off my stool.

  Grant pulled me back to him. “Be nice,” he reminded me before he kissed my neck. “I love you.”

  I turned around and hugged him. I needed to go back to bed and spend the day alone with him. He had been getting up early to take care of some things in his office before anyone woke up, so he could hang out with everyone during the day. I missed my mornings with him.

  When he let me go, I followed my mom to the guest suite upstairs where they were staying. Jane was already in the room waiting on us. She was dressed too. What was with people getting up and dressed so early?

  I collapsed on the bed. “Morning, peanut. Feeling better?”

  “Nope. The crackers won’t kick in for another five or so minutes. Little bastards. The Pepto didn’t help either. I just threw that up.”

  “I think I have something that might help you,” Jane said and handed me a plastic bag from a pharmacy.

  “What is it?”

  “Open it,” my mom encouraged.

  “You want me to take a pregnancy test? I’m not pregnant. I’m on birth control for one thing. For another, I can’t get prego, remember?”

  “You were on antibiotics last month. Those negate the helpful effects of birth control. That’s how you came into existence,” my mom helpfully informed me.

  “Humor us,” Jane said as she pulled me off the bed and guided me to the bathroom.

  I did my business and set the tests on the counter while I washed my hands. I hated taking these things because it was so depressing when it read “not pregnant” after the two minutes or however long. I didn’t even look at them. I opened the door and went back to my spot on the bed. I may have also been a little tired and cranky.

  My mom went in and picked up the test. “Hmmm…just as I suspected.”

  “What?” I asked.

  Jane was smiling and suddenly bouncing around clapping her hands. “You’re pregnant!”

  “What?” Then I followed up with a very confused, “How?”

  Jane smiled. “Well, when a man and a woman love each other very much…”

  “Shut up. You know what I mean.”

  “Maybe you and Grant are just a better fit. Oh my god. You have to go tell him. He’ll be thrilled. This goes right along with your warp speed relationship.”

  I ignored my sister’s comment while I let the results settle in my brain. “Oh my god, I’m going to have a baby!” Nausea was forgotten and excitement took over in my belly.

  We celebrated for a few minutes more before we calmed down and joined the boys. Dad, John, Grant, and Scott were playing with the kids in the basement when we joined them, but I needed some time alone with Grant. I had been missing him, and for the first time in days my stomach didn’t hurt.

  I excused us and dragged him up to our little private oasis in our bedroom. “Baby, what’s going on?”

  “Nothing. I just miss you. We haven’t had very much alone time since my family came into town, and I wanted an hour with my man before I spend the rest of the day preparing for a night with hundreds of people.”

  He wrapped his arms around me. “Why didn’t you just say so? What did you have in mind?”

  “Whatever you want. I just wanted you, now you get what you want.” I ran my hands down his body before stopping to unbutton his jeans.

  “I take it you’re feeling better?”

  “Much better.”

  “I’m glad to hear that, my gorgeous Georgia peach, because I have been missing you too.” He lifted me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist while he carried me over to our huge bed. The next hour before I had to get ready to go up to the venue was well spent in that huge bed.

  At the venue I made sure everything was set and ready to go before I rushed home to get dressed. I refused the help of a glam team Grant always offered because I still didn’t like the idea of wasting money on something so frivolous. Rihanna was singing about wanting him to stay, and I was stepping into my shoes, dressed in my black strapless bra, matching panties, and my garter belt with my thigh highs on when Grant walked in to check on me.

  He stopped dead in his tracks and stared at me after he closed the door to the bedroom. Yeah, that made me feel good. “Damn, baby, forget the party. We’ll stay here since you dressed up just for me.” He was dressed in his Burberry tux with a light pink bowtie. My black dress also had a pink sash to match his bowtie. The pink was in support of breast cancer research, which was the theme of the night since we had just found out Iris had been diagnosed with it after they found a lump in a routine mammogram last month. She was handling it like only Iris could, even though she would be undergoing a double mastectomy in just two short weeks. Impressed by her strength, I made sure this night would honor her.

  “What is it you need, handsome?”

  “I need you to hurry up. Both of our families are here and are waiting to toast to our evening.”

  I stepped into my fitted black velvet gown and turned so Grant could zip me into it. Once he buttoned the top button, I tied the pink satin sash around my waist into a nice bow. I put on the diamond teardrop earrings and the matching necklace Grant had given me for Christmas. They were on full display with my hair up in a smooth chignon and my lips a dusty rose color.

  “Okay. I’m ready.”

  “You look amazing, baby. I can’t wait to walk down that pink carpet with you on my arm.” Yes, I really did get a pink carpet instead of a red one. We were supporting breast cancer awareness this New Year’s Eve in every way possible.

  We walked downstairs together only to be greeted by my entire family including Holly and Matt, Grant’s entire family including a pregnant and now showing Daphne, Maddox and Nolan—yes together, they were telling, or showing rather, his dad tonight—Tara and Daniel, and Scott and Lana, who agreed to watch all seven kids. With Jane’s four and Grace’s three, all I could say was bless Scott and Lana. I didn’t think they knew what they signed up for when they agreed to babysit.

  After exchanging greetings and pleasantries with everyone, Harrison tapped the side of his glass. “I’m happy to be here with everyone tonight. This year has been interesting to say the least. We have had some highs, like finally welcoming Eve into our world, and some lows, like finding out my wife has the fight of her life in front of her, but tonight I look around and find myself grateful for every moment. My children couldn’t be happier, and that alone makes me the luckiest man in the world. Grant, I believe you wanted to say something?”

  Grant smiled and moved from behind me to my side. “I agree with my dad that tonight is a special night. This is the first time everyone most important to Eve and me is here, in the same state, in the same house, in the same room.” Grant turned to me. “With that being said, everyone in this room knows how much I love you. I’ve been waiting my whole life for you, and you have given me just about everything I could have ever wanted.” He slid down on one knee and pulled a small box out of his pocket. My hands immediately went to cover the gasp that came out of my mouth while tears flooded my eyes. “Evelyn Elaine Bryant, you are the other half to my soul, and I wouldn’t be complete without you. Please say you’ll marry me and spend the rest of your life completing mine.”

  I nodded before I whispered, “Yes.” A whisper was all I could manage through the flood of emotions coursing through me. He slid the ring on my finger and stood to hug me.

  While he
held me, everyone started surrounding us to congratulate us, even the kids. Apparently everyone was in on his proposal, but Grant had always been the go big or go home kind of guy. I hugged every person there before it was time for us to pile into the limos.

  In our limo, Holly and Nolan also became best friends, and she told me later she was okay with him as her local replacement. Maddox was a nervous wreck about showing up with Nolan on his arm, so I grabbed and held the hand that wasn’t resting on Nolan’s knee. He looked at me with grateful eyes and squeezed my hand, because he knew I was telling him that we were right there if he needed us. Grant didn’t make a joke like he normally would, because he knew tonight was a big deal for his friend.

  I rested my left hand on Grant’s knee and watched as my new engagement ring sparkled in the lights. It was a stunning, classic Harry Winston ring with an oval cut diamond and tapered baguettes set in platinum. It must have been around four or five carats because it was huge, but this was Grant we were talking about. He didn’t know any other way. Grant’s hand covered mine as he thoughtlessly twisted the ring on my finger while he talked to John and Jane. Moments like this where the wonderful from my old life entwined with my new life still made me giddy.

  Thinking about it made me tear up a little—damn pregnancy hormones—and of course someone noticed.

  “Eve, you okay?” Tara asked.

  I smiled. “I’m great.” I played the tears off by wiggling my ring finger for her, and Grant wrapped his arm around me and kissed my head. I was deliriously happy in that limo on the way to the party.

  The party was perfect. The pink carpet was fun for people, and there were reporters lining the carpet trying to catch the famous people we had invited. Grant and I both made a short statement about the event for the papers, because we wanted people to know how they could donate to the cause.

  Once inside, the room looked like a dream. There was white and silver everywhere, except the flowers were light pink. People were dressed in black with some kind of pink somewhere on their body—my idea. People were really creative with hats and shoes and jewelry. It was really fun to see how everyone incorporated their pink into their formalwear.