The Billionaire's Temporary Bride (Scandal, Inc Book 3)

by Avery James

  Despite her growing anxiety about breaking the news to Jack, Charlotte was becoming more and more excited about the possibility of becoming a mother. Sure, the timing wasn't ideal, but she didn't know when it would be. There was always some crisis or problem looming on the horizon. Whether it was the campaign or something else, she doubted there would ever be a perfect time to have a family.

  Jack's fifteen point post-debate lead had dwindled to single digits. Jack was still the frontrunner, but in a tight three-way race, his victory was far from certain. The Beacon Hill brownstone became a second campaign headquarters, with staffers meeting around the kitchen table at all hours of day and night. Charlotte had lost count of the number of times she had started to fumble through the start of telling him about the pregnancy when a campaign advisor stepped into the room to pull Jack away.

  On the Sunday before the primary election, early in the morning, Charlotte decided she would tell Jack. The campaign was at its highest flurry of activity so far, and Jack was getting ready for a morning of stopping by churches and coffee hours and social events to drum up last minute support.

  "Honey," Charlotte said, watching him button the cuffs of his shirt closed, "there's something I've been meaning to tell you."

  Jack smiled at her in the full-length mirror, but turned with a look of concern on his face when she didn't smile back. "What's up?" he asked.

  It was like the words froze in her throat. As she tried to find the courage to go on, there was a knock on the door, and Charlotte jumped at the opportunity to save herself from having this conversation yet. "Who could that be, so early?"

  "The campaign staff isn't going to be here for another half hour or so," Jack said. He moved toward the bedroom door.

  "I'll go see," Charlotte said. "You stay here and finish getting ready."

  She leaned back against the wall after leaving the bedroom to wait for her heart to stop racing before she headed down to the foyer.

  To her surprise, Big Greg Lapierre loomed in the doorway. Standing there, he seemed much larger than he had the other times Charlotte had seen him. He wore a tan overcoat and held a manila envelope in his huge hand.

  "Good morning, sweetheart. I've come to make an offer to your husband," he said. "Is he home?"

  "Jack," Charlotte called, "there's someone here to see you." She motioned Big Greg inside. "I'll have him come meet you in the living room."

  Despite the courteous nod he gave her, Charlotte disliked something inherent about Big Greg that she couldn't put her finger on. He lumbered through the hallway toward the living room, stopping to look at the family photos on the wall.

  "Beautiful people," he muttered. "Beautiful family, all of you."

  Charlotte made her way back to the bedroom to tell Jack, but he was already standing outside the room, giving her a puzzled look.

  "Who's here?" he asked, in a tone that made it clear he already knew.

  "It's Greg Lapierre," Charlotte said. She put her hand against Jack's chest and could feel his heart hammering against his ribs. "Jack, wait. Before you go running in to—"

  "What does he think he's doing, showing up here? The nerve of him." Jack moved past Charlotte's touch, striding toward the living room with a determined look.

  By the time Charlotte caught up to him, the conversation had already started. She stood in the doorway between Big Greg while his hand idly turned the manila envelope on the coffee table between him and Jack.

  "Resign from the campaign," Greg was saying. "Say you're pulling out for family reasons. That's what they all say isn't it? 'I've decided to take this opportunity to focus on my family.' Only you'll be taking the focus off of your family. Especially that pretty little mama and bastard son of yours down in North Carolina."

  "You have no idea what you're talking about," Jack said. His nostrils flared with every word.

  "I know exactly what I'm talking about." Greg leaned back in the armchair until it creaked under his weight. "If I can give you some advice, you really shouldn't keep your mistress and your bastard baby in a house that's known to be owned by your family. You wanted to be a big boy, Jack. Well, this is how we play ball in the big leagues."

  "Greg, do you want to know the unvarnished truth?" Jack said.

  "I'd love to," Greg said.

  "First off, you're not in the big leagues. You're barely in the minors right now. You're a state senator. I'm a congressman. I have more money and power at my disposal than you'd believe. And, as you know, I have a bit of a temper when people come after my family. Any of those things should be ample reason to avoid pissing me off, but that's not the truth I want to tell you. What I think you need to understand is that you're an idiot, a buffoon stuffed into a cheap suit. I could call the police right now and have you arrested for blackmail. Do you understand that? You have committed a felony."

  Greg looked at Jack for a moment and then burst into laughter. "Let's just imagine I agree with what you say. That would be true if there were any chance you'd let this go public. What would happen if that pretty little wife of yours found out?"

  Charlotte stepped into the room. "What makes you think I don't already know?"

  Big Greg frowned.

  "Jack, I need you for a minute," Charlotte said. "I think it's time you showed our guest to the door."

  "That sounds like a wonderful idea," Jack said. "Now, Greg, get the hell out of my house."

  Greg marched out, his heavy footsteps his only response.

  "You forgot your folder," Jack called after him.

  "Don't worry," Greg said. "I have copies ready to go to every major news outlet in the state."

  The door clicked closed behind him.

  "I swear if another thing goes wrong today, I'm going to lose it," Jack said. He crossed the room and threw his arms around Charlotte. "If it weren't for you, I'd probably have gone after him right then and there. Maybe that's what he wanted. I'm sorry. I shouldn't let him get to me like that. With the end of the campaign getting so stressful, the last thing I need is for someone to make my family life weigh on me any more than it already has. You were saying something, though, before that clown showed up. What was it?"

  "Nothing," Charlotte said. "It can wait. You need to focus on winning this primary."

  It wouldn't be too much longer to wait until this leg of the campaign was over. She would tell him the morning after the primary, she decided. It was getting to the point where Charlotte wasn't sure how much longer she could hide the truth, even if she wanted to. This time, there would be no backing out.

  "I just can't wait until this is all over and we can go back to some semblance of normalcy, just you and me," Jack said. He kissed Charlotte on the forehead and rested his chin in her hair.

  Charlotte felt the deep pit of guilt in her stomach as she nodded in agreement. Whatever happened, she was sure things were never going to go back to normal.

  Chapter 32

  Jack looked out from the wings of the stage at the podium where he would shortly give his speech. Red, white and blue balloons floated overhead in the ballroom that was already filling with volunteers and supporters. Polls had closed an hour earlier, and the only thing left to do was wait for the race to be called.

  Jack's campaign manager Lauren was almost skipping as she walked across the stage to Jack. "Hey, you're about to win your primary and become a lock to win the general election in the fall, cheer up. Congratulatory calls are already pouring in from all over. There are rumors flying around that you're on the radar for VP in a few years."

  "Is that so?" Jack asked. "Sorry, I'm just worried about Charlotte. She's not feeling well, and I think it might be serious."

  "She'll be fine. I hope she knows how lucky she is to have you," Lauren said. "She'll be here in a few minutes. I'll have her head straight to your suite upstairs."

  "Thanks, Lauren," Jack said. "Go get everyone ready. I'm going to take fifteen minutes."

  "Of course, Senator."

  "Don't say that yet," Jack said.
"We still have the general election to get through this fall."

  Jack was worried. He knew all the promises he and Charlotte had made to each other. He knew how she brought out a side of him he had never known, but he didn't know what would happen after he officially won the candidacy.

  Charlotte had been acting so strangely. Every chance they got to be alone, she found some excuse to leave or invited other people to join them. She kept mentioning the number of days until the primary as if it would save her from something. Something was going on, but he couldn't be sure what it was.

  Charlotte had been ducking out of events, saying she didn't feel well, blowing off interviews. He was beginning to worry that she was starting to doubt her feelings toward him, that she had decided she couldn't trust him after all. Was she anticipating the end of their contract already? Maybe she was just trying her best to get through the primary before breaking his heart. Maybe she had decided way back in North Carolina that it would be better for the both of them if she played the part of the doting wife just long enough for him to seal his nomination.

  He'd been losing sleep over it. As if the demands of a senatorial campaign weren't enough, he spent his nights running through everything he could have done wrong with Charlotte and everything he could possibly do to make things right.

  Charlotte had even insisted on going separately to the final rally. She told him she was feeling under the weather, but he was concerned she really meant she didn't want to be there. She had been under the weather increasingly often. Was she just using it as an excuse to avoid Jack, or was she actually so unhappy with the campaign and with their relationship that her body couldn't handle the stress?

  Jack had starting thinking about what their life would be like after the election, after politics and all of it. He let the curtain fall back across his view of the podium and made his way to the elevator. He felt like he was walking in a cloud. All around him, people were jubilant, but Jack felt a sense of dread. He decided that as soon as he saw Charlotte he would tell her he had no plans of backing out of their marriage, even after the terms of the contract were up. He needed Charlotte to understand that he wanted to build a life with her.

  When he got to the suite, Charlotte was already there, waiting by the window, wearing a navy blue dress. She looked upset. She turned to face him as he crossed the room.

  "There's something I need to tell you," Charlotte said, "and it can't wait another minute."

  "I have something I need to tell you too," Jack said. "I love you, and I don't want to lose you, and I'm going to do everything within my power to show you that I'm committed to this relationship. You've been denying it left and right, but I know something is bothering you about our relationship. I know it was wrong of me to hide things from you, but I couldn't tell you the truth either. I wanted to protect you from it, as dumb as that sounds. You were right to be mad, but I love you, and I'm committed to you no matter what."

  "Good, because I'm pregnant," Charlotte whispered.

  "What?" Jack said. He felt the color drain from his face. "This isn't like last time, right? There's no gotcha moment?"

  "No," Charlotte said.

  Jack felt like she had knocked him in the side of the head. "How long have you known? How far along are you?"

  "A few weeks. I'm almost two months along."

  "The honeymoon."

  "Yeah, the honeymoon. I've been trying to figure out how to tell you. I know you don't want to be a father, and I never should have put you in this position."

  "You couldn't have told me this earlier? You went on and on about how we needed to be open and honest with each other. You told me you couldn't be with someone who hid the truth from you, and you turned around and hid the biggest thing you could possibly hide. How long were you planning on keeping this from me?" Jack asked.

  "I didn't know at the time, ok?" Charlotte said. "I was scared and I didn't know what to do. I know fatherhood is the last thing you want, and I know you didn't want to be married in the first place, and I'm sorry, Jack. I'm sorry."

  Charlotte waited for his response, but none came. There was a knock on the door.

  "Give us a minute," Jack called.

  "You're up for national interviews," Lauren said from the other side of the door. "The news cycle is calling."

  "Go," Charlotte said. "You won, and people want to see you."

  "You should have told me," Jack said.

  "I just did," Charlotte replied.

  Jack slumped down in the chair and ran his hands through his hair. None of his thoughts on the matter seemed to converge on a single opinion. He was thrilled that he and Charlotte would actually be a family. At the same time, he had never wanted to be in this position. He couldn't be a family man and a high-level politician at the same time. "Not like this Charlotte," he said. "Not like this."

  The pounding on the door grew louder. It might as well have been the sound of the storm brewing inside his heart. Why did it have to be right now? Jack wondered. Why right before I have to give a speech to the whole world?

  He put his fingers to his forehead to try to concentrate on what was important: family, happiness, Charlotte.

  She saw the look of confusion on his face and broke into tears.

  "This was all a mistake," Charlotte said. "I'm sorry." She turned and hurried off to the bedroom of the suite.

  "Charlotte!" Jack called.

  The door at the other end of the room burst open. Lauren was beaming.

  "Jack, we need you out here now," she yelled. "They called the race. You won. Everyone is downstairs waiting."

  ***

  "Phone and keys," Lauren said. "No weird pocket bulges for your photo op."

  Charlotte could hear her through the door, and from the sound of the light thuds that came after, Jack had left them on the table.

  "Lauren, I can't come down now," he said. "Give me five minutes."

  "Now," Lauren insisted.

  "One minute," Jack said.

  Charlotte knew him well enough at this point to know exactly how he would have looked as he said it. There would be no argument.

  Lauren's voice was quieter when she replied. "If you're not down there in one minute, don't blame me if you look like a sore winner on the news."

  After a few seconds, Jack's voice came from the other side of the bedroom door.

  "Charlotte," he said. "We'll talk about this after."

  "Don't go," Charlotte said. "Can we please just take five more minutes?"

  "You know I have no choice. Obviously, I don't blame you for finally telling me, but you really should have told me sooner."

  Charlotte couldn't decide if opening the door to look in his face would make her feel better or worse. By the time she turned the doorknob and peeked out, Jack was stepping out of the suite. The sound of joyous staffers and overstressed reporters erupted a few moments later.

  One moment he was there, pleading with her, and the next he was gone, leaving Charlotte alone with the crushing sense that she had trapped her husband in a situation he'd been forthcoming from the start that he never wanted to be in. She couldn't take it. She couldn't just sit there and wait alone.

  She leaned forward and put her head in her hands. She could hear the din of the crowd growing fainter as they quieted down for Jack's speech.

  The TV in the suite was already tuned to a news channel broadcasting a live feed of the podium where Jack was about to give his speech. Charlotte couldn't watch him smiling for the cameras. She clicked the TV off and hung her head. Though her fingers, all she could see were Jack's keys on the table.

  She had to get out. She had to get away from the crowds and the press. Most of all, she had to get away from Jack. She didn't want to hear what he had to say. She knew it already. He had asked her to marry him because he didn't want something permanent, but she fell in love with him anyway, and he fell in love with her, and now she was breaking his heart. She didn't want to see that look of betrayal again. She couldn't bear to think
of what he thought of her. She just had to get away.

  Charlotte scooped Jack's keys off the table and walked down the fire escape to a back exit. She peeled out of the parking lot and headed off into the night. She didn't know where she was going, and she didn't care. She just got on the nearest highway and headed west. She didn't know whether to cry or scream or pound her fists against the steering wheel.

  If she had just told Jack as soon as she had found out, everything would have been fine. She'd be standing next to him on the stage. Or maybe it wouldn't have. Maybe he would have freaked out anyway. Charlotte's head spun as she tried to think it through.

  Mile after mile zipped by as Charlotte sped through the night. Every sign she passed on the highway reminded her of campaign stops she'd made with Jack, smiling on his arm as his happy wife. She couldn't handle remembering the romantic dinner they'd had outside Worcester or sneaking in a kiss behind a barn in Old Sturbridge Village. She knew she was already too far away to make it back to Boston in time to save face. Jack's speech would be over by now, and her absence would be very apparent. Charlotte wanted to ride on until she was out of the world she and Jack had started to build together.

  Her phone kept buzzing over and over again until finally the battery died. It wasn't until she entered Connecticut that she knew where she was heading. Home. Not Jack's home, not her apartment in DC. Home.

  When she got off the highway hours later, Charlotte wondered if she should just find somewhere else to stay for the night. After all, it was well past 2 AM on a weeknight. Her parents would be asleep. She wondered if she should pull over, plug in her phone and call Jack. Then again, she had stolen his car and driven several states away. For all she knew, he could have reported her missing. Charlotte pulled over and stopped the car on the side of the road a few blocks from her parents' house. She dug her phone out of her purse and stared at the dead screen. She tried to think of what she'd say to him. She didn't even know how she felt or if she could muster any words at all.