-I’m coming home and you better be there when I get there.-
An odd feeling goes through me and I don’t answer the text. But I do wonder how Jason is in jail for assaulting Elmer and still managing to come back home. And when he’s saying home, is he talking about my place?
I certainly hope not as I’ve leased it to one of my old boy toys, as Jason calls them. Sebastien has lived with his older brother for several years now. He jumped at the chance to lease my apartment.
He took the news of my running away pretty well since he got a great place to live out of it. With a promise to tell anyone who stops by that I’m off the market for reasons no one needs to know, he kissed my cheek and told me goodbye.
The driver pulls up in front of the building Jason’s lawyer’s office is in. “You want I should wait for ya’s?”
“Please,” I say then get out and make a mental note to never call this private car service again if I ever do come back to New York.
Making my way up to the office, I notice a woman staring at me as I enter the elevator. Finally, she speaks, “You’re the woman who’s here to see my boss. I saw your…” She stops herself then looks away with a fierce blush on her face. “Sorry, nothing.”
With a clenched jaw, I say, “You don’t have to tell me. I can see it in your face. You saw the video.”
With a sigh, she says, “Yeah! Oh my God! What were you thinking? I mean, I could tell you were drunk and fucked up but, my God! What were you thinking?”
“Clearly, I wasn’t. And why, may I ask, did he let you see the video?”
“I open all of his texts and mail and shit like that.” She looks me up and down. “You’re much prettier in person. So what’s it really like to be with two dudes? I mean with two gay dudes. And why would you marry an obviously gay man? That video left me with so many questions. I’m really glad I ran into you. Do you two still have that dog? And what about the other guy? Is he still a part of you guy’s sex life?”
Heat fills me as embarrassment washes over me. “I’d really rather not discuss any of that. I was drugged up as hopefully, you could tell. I don’t remember most of what happened.”
The elevator stops on my floor and I’m not happy that she gets right back off the elevator with me, walking along next to me. “What do you remember?”
Stopping to look at her, I find myself almost speechless. “Really? Are you really that fucking mean?”
“Mean?” She looks puzzled. “What’s mean about it? I’m just so damn curious. I’ve never seen so much in only thirty minutes. When the clown came in what did you think? He was kind of scary looking to me. And he just stood there, juggling those bowling pins as he watched the three of you going at it. It was spooky.” She runs her hands over her goose-pimpled arms. “His big old red nose was constantly moving as you were sandwiched between those two guys. Are they like circus freaks? Is that why the clown was there?”
Stopping at the attorney’s office door, I turn to her and put on my best sad face. “Listen, lady, the kid was a mistake. A drunken mistake. I really don’t know if they were in a circus or not. God knows they sure could be in one. I need to see what the hell Jackson wants then I need to disappear forever.”
Following me into the office, she runs to a desk and grabs a pen and paper off of it. “One more thing, please. If this goes viral, like I think it will, can I please have your autograph.”
“No!” I shout as I bat away the pen and paper she’s shoving at me. “Are you fucking insane?”
“I was going to ask you that! How funny, huh?” She actually laughs and I try hard not to punch her.
Moving away from the deranged woman, I go inside Jackson’s office, finding him on the phone as he motions for me to come in and sit down. “She’s here now. I will.”
He takes the headset off and places it on his desk. “Well, well, well, if it isn’t Brittany Does the Circus.”
He’s laughing at me!
Placing my anger in a compartment in my brain, I say, “You have the most unprofessional staff, Jackson. Confidentiality is practiced here, I assume.”
“Don’t worry, no one will leak a word about your video. Entertaining as it is, it is in my very capable hands. As we speak, I have people making sure it will never hit the internet. You can thank Jason for that.”
“Not that I needed your help, Jackson. I do have a lawyer myself. She’s quite capable of handling things.” I cross my legs and notice I missed a spot shaving one of them this morning. Moving my hand to cover the small patch of dark hair on my knee, I fidget in the plush leather chair.
Seems today is just not my day!
“Speaking of that, why didn’t you have that lawyer of yours deal with this when it happened?” He sits down and places his elbows on his cherry wood desk, lacing his fingers and leaning his chin on them.
“I kind of forgot that it was being videoed. Mostly, I was rushing away from that hotel room. You can imagine how badly my head ached after all that.” I try to smile at him but find it hard to overcome my embarrassment.
“And your ass,” he adds with a grin. “How was that, being a Brittany sandwich between two weirdos? And did that speech impediment bother you at all? It didn’t look like it did. I don’t know how I’d handle being talked to in an Elmer Fudd voice, but you seemed to enjoy it. And so did that German Shepherd. Bestiality, Britt? Can’t say I saw that coming. What a twist, huh?”
“Look, Jackson, it’s obvious you have an agenda here, so get to it,” I tell him as I’m not feeling as embarrassed as pissed off now with all of his jokes.
“Oh yeah, that. I do have an agenda.” He tosses me a paper. “Sign that.”
“I don’t sign things until after my lawyer has read them.” I push the paper back but I did notice the word prenuptial on it.
His grin is gone. “You do love, Jason, right?”
“I do, but I can’t look at him since he’s seen that so that point is moot. And you seem to forget that I’m not without money, myself.”
Jackson gets up and gestures to the New York skyline behind his big window. “This is a fickle town. You may not always have that kind of money. And here’s the thing, Brittany, with your antics and social problems, I foresee your behavior hurting my client. So sign the paper. Then your attorney and I will come up with a prenuptial agreement to protect you both. I have to tell you that Jason asked me to do this.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “Jason asked you to do this when?”
“A little while ago. For reasons I can’t figure out, he still wants to marry your apparently easy ass. He says he has everything to do with your slutty behavior.” Sitting back down as he’s through with his grand gesture, he smiles at me as he leans back in his chair as if he’s won some game.
“Were those his actual words, Jackson?” I ask as I uncross my legs.
He’s keeping his eyes on mine as he answers, “Of course not. He put it in a much nicer way. You see, my client is infatuated with you. The sun rises and sets in you for him. I can see the writing on the wall, Miss Caldwell. It’s you who will break his heart. It’s you who has already broken the man he was. Anti-depressants are something you already have him on. What’s next?”
“You think you know him but you don’t. He needs those pills. Jason has needed help for a while now. He’s hidden his depression in the arms of many women. What you may have seen as a well-adjusted man was a façade. Just below that shallow veneer lies a boy who was hurt when his best friend died when he was a young teen. That wound never healed. It needs to now. And I want to thank you for reminding me of that.”
As I get up to leave, he pushes the paper across the desk again. “He won’t marry you without that, I promise you.”
With a smile, I look over my shoulder at him. “I don’t even want him to marry me, Jackson. As a matter of fact, I’m taking marriage off the table. So shove that pre-nup up your ass. If you add a bit of lube, it might feel fantastic. That’s my opinion, anyway.”
Wa
lking out the door, I know I’m about to break someone’s heart, but it has to be done. My only regret is that he didn’t get to have what he wanted for as long as he wanted it.
Chapter 5
JASON
After a quick text to tell Britt that I’m about five minutes away, I get my first text from her. -Go to your place, not mine.-
Calling her, I get her voicemail. She hasn’t spoken to me at all. I suppose the pre-nup has made her mad. I had an idea it would, but she has no idea of how badly I want her money protected.
The whole thing with Beatrice and the baby has me afraid of what might possibly happen in the future. I asked Jackson to get with Britt’s lawyer to come up with a pre-nup to keep her money safe.
He told me she refused to sign the paper that would allow him to confer with her lawyer on the agreement. When I called to explain things to her, she refused to answer.
And now it seems she doesn’t want me in in her home!
To say this day has been long, isn’t even close to how I feel. I have jetlag from the hours spent in them in the last twenty-four hours. I have a headache the size of Texas and my insides actually hurt as I feel terrible about what the woman I love has gone through.
My cell rings and I see it’s Beatrice.
My God, what now?
“Hello.”
“Thank God, you picked up, Jason! It’s Morgan.” She breaks down and I hear a shuffling noise.
A man says, “Hey, I know we’re the last people you want to hear from. The baby is really sick. He has pneumonia.”
“Who is this?” I ask as I drum my fingers on my leg.
“This is Bea’s brother, Cullen. I know the story about you and my sister. I know you may not be my nephew’s father. But this baby needs help my sister can’t afford. The doctors here aren’t doing all they can because Bea doesn’t have health insurance. I know this kid might not be yours, but man, he needs your help right now.”
An irritation runs through me, making me itch. “What the hell can I do?”
“At the very least, could you get on the phone with the hospital and tell them to get little Morgan to the best hospital for him and that you’ll pay for it all?” he asks me.
I can hear Bea crying in the background. I need Britt here to tell me what to do. Then it hits me. I can make this decision on my own.
“Can you give the phone to whoever can make that decision, Cullen?”
“I can, and let me tell you something, Jason. There ain’t a member of this family who thinks Bea did right by doing what it is she’s done. Not a one of us. But she’s ours and this baby is ours too. If it turns out he ain’t yours, we’ll gladly pay you back every last cent you spend on saving him for us.”
“You don’t have to worry about doing that. I got this. And thanks for calling me.” I sit up a bit straighter as he hands the phone off to someone else.
A woman says, “If we’re to send him to the hospital he should be in, I’m going to need a valid credit card with at least a hundred-thousand-dollar limit, Sir.”
“Not a problem, my cards all have higher spending limits than that. I want that baby taken to the best place for him,” I tell her as I take my wallet out.
The cab driver calls out as he stops, “Here we are.”
“Shit,” I hiss. “Hey, I didn’t get a chance to tell you to take me to my place, Ralph.”
“Not a problem, Mr. Brennan.”
The great thing about public transportation is they never get pissed about taking you one more place. The money makes it no problem at all.
“I’ll need a copy of the credit card emailed to our billing department and then we’ll get the child transferred,” the lady says. “I’ll send you the email address in a text, okay?”
“That will be fine. I’ll get it back to you as quick as you send it.”
With the end of the call, I find my pulse higher than usual and sit back to take in deep breaths. No blackness is coming in but a strange sensation is creeping over me.
Closing my eyes, I lay my head back on the seat and rest. I’ve been going and going for a long time now. I need rest. I need lots of rest.
Before I know it, the cabbie is calling out to me, “We’re here, Mr. Brennan. Your place.”
“Oh!” I shake my head and hand him a hundred. “Keep the change.”
He shouts out his thanks as I get out. I didn’t take any luggage. I had it sent home. The lobby looks almost foreign to me as I walk in. It’s been nearly two months since I’ve been here.
Up my private elevator I go and when the doors open I find my penthouse empty. “Britt,” I shout.
Nothing.
My cell dings and I look at it to find the message from the hospital. “Crap! I must have fallen asleep!”
Quickly, I open it and send back the information they need to take care of the baby. I get back a message from the hospital telling me they’ve completed the transaction and are sending the baby on to the Children’s Hospital in Dallas.
Falling on my sofa, I lay back on it and put my feet up on the coffee table. I’m tired as hell but it makes me feel good to help the baby. If he’s mine or not, it makes me feel good to help him.
So I call Bea. She answers with a sob, “Thank you, Jason.”
“Yeah, not a problem. Hey, I can set your family up at a hotel near the hospital. Call me and let me know which one is closest and I’ll get as many rooms as you need for as long as he’s in the hospital.”
“Really?” she asks with tears in her voice. “Jason, after what I did, you would do that for me?”
“You, no,” I say. “The baby and the people who love him, yes.”
“I’ll make this up to you, I swear it,” she says.
“All I ask is that if he’s mine, work with me, not against me. I’m sorry for my part in our relationship too, Bea. None of what we did is his fault. I’m coming to terms with that. And I know this is probably emotion talking but fuck it! Even if he’s not mine, I’m going to set up a fund for the little guy. He’ll never want for a damn thing. And if I’m not his dad and the man who is won’t do right by him, then he can still carry my name and I’ll be his daddy.”
“Oh, Lord, Jason!” she says with shock. “Are you messing with me?”
“I am not messing with you, Bea. You can take my words for the truth. Please keep me posted on his progress, will you?”
“Of course. Jason, thank you. In a million years I never expected such a thing. Not ever. Thank you. I have to go. They’re moving him now. Thank you. God bless you, Jason.”
“God bless you too, Bea. And may God bless and watch over Morgan. Call me when things settle, okay?”
“I will. Bye now,” she says then ends the call.
My heart thumps in my chest and I feel hopeful for the baby. I don’t really know what’s gotten into me all of a sudden. I feel happy about it, though.
The smell of cigar smoke wafts around my nose. I look around and see no smoke. “Hello,” I call out.
Then I remember that no one has a key to my private elevator. Not even Brittany. I never got around to giving her one.
A shadow moves across the room in front of me. “Who’s there?”
The smell is getting stronger. I’m freezing all of a sudden.
“I’m okay,” I hear as if it’s a whisper on a breeze.
“Who?” I ask as I sit up and look hard into the darkness of the large living room.
No one answers me then I feel a sudden jolt on my right side as a flash of light fills the room. The taste of cinnamon and sugar hits my tongue and I remember breakfasts with my grandfather.
We loved to eat that when I visited him. One tear runs down my cheek as I ask, “Are you here?”
The chandelier above me starts to shake and flicker as I look up at it and laugh. “You are! Gramps! I love you! I miss you! You have no idea. I never got to say goodbye. I never got to tell you that I loved you. You were taken away in that ambulance and I didn’t see you again until you
were in that box in that funeral home. Gramps, I have so many questions.”
The lights go completely out. My heart sinks then comes back as they light all the way up. Higher than the lights have ever been. So much light is coming from them, I’m afraid they’re going to bust. In a flash of intense light, they go out and the only thing left is the taste on my tongue.
The faint smell of my Gramps cigar is in the air. The elevator door opens and in that bright light stands my angel.
“Britt,” I say as I sit on the sofa and wipe the tears from my eyes.
“You smoking in here?” she asks.
“Something like that.”
Her silhouette moves out of the elevator toward me. “I’ve missed you,” she says.
Rising, I go to her and take her in my arms. “I’ve missed you, Pumpkin.”
Her lips touch mine and I see it all. My future. And it’s not at all what I expected!
Chapter 6
BRITTANY
Peppering kisses all over his handsome face, I find myself in his warm embrace. “I’m so sorry, Jason.”
“Don’t be,” he says as he hugs me tightly.
Pulling back to look at him, I ask, “How much trouble are you in for beating Elmer up? And how badly did you hurt him?”
“I’m not in any trouble thanks to a nice Captain who made sure the charges were dismissed by one of her judge friends.” He pulls me back into his arms and presses my head against his chest.
But jealousy courses through my veins as I heard the word, her, come out of his mouth. “Her, Jason? A woman helped you?”
With a sigh, he eases his hug and pulls back to look at me. “It was a woman, yes.”
“What did you do to get her to help you?” I ask and feel a knot forming in my stomach.
His face splits into a wide smile. “Man, I wish I had a lie detector because I so want you to know I’m telling the truth.” He takes my hand and pulls me along to sit on the sofa with him. “Britt, the cop came onto me pretty damn hard. I was handcuffed, and she was all leaning over my back, pressing her boobs against me and she even ran her hands over my dick.”
The Shameless Billionaire Series: Billionaire Romance Box Set (An Alpha-Male, Billionaire, Bad Boy, Bad Girl, Romance) Page 21