Four Secret Babies - A Second Chance Billionaire Romance (San Bravado Billionaires' Club Book 7)

by Layla Valentine

I realize that seeing me again might’ve been more…jarring for you than I’d hoped. It’s been years since we last saw one another, and I understand all too well that we didn’t exactly part on the best of terms.

  In short, if you wanted to toss this note and these flowers into the trash and never see me again, I wouldn’t blame you one bit. I just hope that I might be able to change your mind.

  You did something to me, Chloe. Though we didn’t know one another for very long, and our time together was short, you left a mark on me that I know I’ll never be able to remove, like a stamp on my heart.

  Your warmth, your beauty, your talent, your kindness—all of it together comprised a woman like none that I’d ever met before. I know that I have no right to speak to you again, but I also know that I’d be doing myself a disservice if I didn’t at least try to bring you back into my life in whatever way I could.

  And I know it’s what my father would’ve wanted. In his own way, he tried to instill in me the value of doing what was right, and leaving things how they were between the two of us would be as wrong as it gets.

  I suppose that’s all I have to say. If you’d like to see me again, I’ll be at McKinnon Park at five tomorrow evening. There’s a bench in front of Lake Wesson where I liked to spend my afternoons when I was younger. I’d love nothing more than to see you there. But if you decide against it, I’ll understand.

  Hoping to see you again,

  Jordan

  Emotions that I could hardly process washed over me as I pressed the letter to my chest. Jordan was right about one thing—I had all the reasons in the world to never want to see him again.

  But what he’d written in the note was so unlike him, so tender and open-hearted. The Jordan I knew, despite his sardonic sense of humor, kept his emotions close to him. The note was the total opposite of that; it was as though he was fearlessly putting out how he felt, exposing himself in a way he never had before.

  The mention of his father weighed heavily on my mind. I’d just assumed that Alfred’s passing would’ve resulted in Jordan plunging even deeper into his playboy ways, spending his dad’s fortune on partying and girls and whatever else necessary to keep maturity at bay.

  Was I wrong? Had his father’s death had the opposite effect—one of making Jordan grow up? It sure seemed that way. And his success as an entrepreneur certainly spoke to him maturing as a man.

  I set the note on the table next to the flowers and took a deep breath.

  Then I decided I’d go see him.

  And I couldn’t help but feel excited at the idea.

  Chapter 27

  Chloe

  “Thanks again for watching the kids tonight,” I said to Isabella as she stepped into the house and set her purse down on the kitchen table.

  I glanced over into the living room, where the kids sat entranced by the cartoon I’d put on for them.

  “No problem,” she said. “The guy I went on a terrible first date with has been annoying the hell out of me trying to get another, and this is the perfect excuse.”

  Before either of us could say another word, her eyes latched onto the flowers, the bouquet still as gorgeous and colorful as it had been yesterday.

  “Holy crap,” she said. “Where did these come from?”

  I blushed a bit, not sure of how much to say.

  “Jordan.”

  Isabella raised her eyebrows.

  “Wait, Jordan King?” she asked. “As in ‘the father of your children’ Jordan King?”

  She pulled out her phone and typed up something with a brief flurry of her fingers. Then she held out the phone to me. It was one of the local tabloid websites, the picture on the front page was Jordan on the streets of San Bravado, dressed in a stylish professional outfit, his eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses. The headline read “Jordan King Returns to San Bravado—Why?”

  “That’s the one,” I said.

  “Why is he back?” she asked, slipping her phone into her back pocket.

  Then, a look of realization crossed her face.

  “Wait a minute. Is he back here to see you?”

  “That’s what he tells me,” I said. “But who the hell knows how truthful he’s being. For all I know, he’s back on business and wants me for a quick booty call while he’s in town.”

  “That’d be a change of pace for him,” she said. “I mean, I don’t really follow the tabloids—okay, maybe a little—but everyone’s been speculating why the hell he’s been so business-focused over the last year or so. He went from ‘carefree lady-killer’ to ‘serious business-type’ out of nowhere. And now he wants to talk to you?”

  “I know,” I said. “It’s all so strange. But I bumped into him a little bit ago, and kind of blew up on him. And now he’s sending me flowers and telling me he wants to meet at the park.”

  “Then you’d better get going,” said Isabella. “Chances like this don’t come around every day.”

  She was right about that.

  “Okay,” I said. “I put some pasta in the fridge. Heat it up when they start getting fussy. Any problems—call me right away.”

  “I know the drill,” she said. “Now get!”

  I flashed Isabella a smile as I grabbed my things and headed out the door.

  The drive to the park was spent going back and forth between being ready to forgive Jordan and wanting to give him another piece of my mind. By the time I found a spot and parked, I was no closer to figuring out how I wanted to handle the situation.

  McKinnon Park, the biggest park in the city, was looking extra lovely. The heavy branches of the trees lolled gently in the wind, families played here and there, and the ocean beyond the borders of the park glittered under the setting sun.

  I made my way slowly through the curving stone path that led to Lake Wesson, hoping that my inner conflict would resolve itself by the time I spotted Jordan.

  When I laid eyes on that gorgeous mane of red hair, however, I still felt pulled in two different directions. I approached the bench from behind, and when I was close, I took a deep breath and spoke.

  “Hey, Jordan.”

  He turned his head, a warm smile slowly spreading across his face.

  “Chloe,” he said, standing up and approaching me. “It’s great to see you.”

  Jordan opened his arms and brought me in for a tight hug. As conflicted as I was about the whole thing, it still felt good to have his body pressed against mine.

  “Here,” he said, gesturing for me to sit down next to him.

  I noticed a tray of two coffees on the bench near where he was sitting.

  “I see you brought refreshments,” I said as I took my place next to him.

  “I did. These are from Blue Line. The one with the ‘L’ on it is your latte.”

  “You remembered my drink,” I said.

  “Most of that first afternoon you and I spent together is still pretty fresh in my mind. We can do lobster rolls after this if you’re hungry.”

  He gave me another warm smile as he handed me the coffee. I took a sip. It was as delicious and hot as it would’ve been at the shop.

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “Not a problem. I figured that after how I ruined your last coffee break, it was the least I could do.”

  The gesture was a thoughtful one, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t appreciate it. And Jordan struck me as the last type of guy who’d remember the small details. Maybe he had changed.

  “And thank you for the flowers,” I said, wrapping my hands around the hot to-go cup.

  “Of course,” he said. “I hope they brightened your day.”

  There was a long silence as the two of us watched the ducks float on the lake ahead. The sounds of children at play could be heard around us, and it reminded me of the secret I was keeping from Jordan.

  “I’m…really sorry about your dad,” I said. “He was a good man. I know it’s been a while since he passed, but I never got a chance to give you my condolences.”

  “
It’s appreciated,” he said. “I have to ask—were you there at his funeral?”

  “I was,” I said. “And I spotted you and wanted to say something, but…things were kind of weird between us at the time.”

  “That they were,” he said. “I was almost certain that I’d spotted you there, but I figured that if you felt comfortable saying something to me, you would’ve. I didn’t want to put you on the spot or anything like that. You did have a lot to be angry at me about, after all.”

  “Thank you,” I said. “And I figured you had enough people coming up to you to give you their condolences.”

  This was so strange coming from Jordan. There wasn’t a trace of arrogance or anything to his words. I could tell that he was speaking sincerely. But he didn’t know the half of it when he said that I had a lot to be angry about. I had more than he knew.

  “I did, but you would’ve been a welcome sight. Most of the people I spoke to were men and women I’d never met before, people who’d been helped by my dad in one way or another. It was…eye-opening, to say the least.”

  “He was an incredible person,” I said. “Plenty of people in this city are happy to make all the money they can, and that’s it. But your dad really seemed to care about doing good, leaving things better than when he found them wherever he went.”

  I took a sip of my latte before continuing.

  “Alfred made sure that every member of his staff was taken care of when he passed. I couldn’t believe what he’d left for us.” I shook my head. “And I can only imagine what he left for you.”

  Jordan let out a dry laugh, one that had the effect of making me very confused.

  “Not as much as he left you, I’m sure.”

  I crinkled my brow in confusion.

  “What?” I asked. “What are you talking about?”

  “Dad left me the house, a few odds and ends here and there, and that’s it. I didn’t get a cent of his fortune. He donated it all to his various charities.”

  My eyes went wide in shock.

  “Are you serious?” I asked. “I mean, I get not dumping billions on your kid when you die, but that seems extreme.”

  Jordan nodded. “It was, but he knew that extreme measures were going to be needed if he was going to put me on the right path. He didn’t withhold his money out of pettiness of greed or anything like that. He didn’t give it to me because he knew that if I had it, I’d stay the same man I’d always been for the rest of my life.”

  It made a certain kind of sense. Still, it was shocking to hear. Alfred was worth billions, and I’d assumed that Jordan was living the high life on what he’d been left.

  “So,” I said. “When he died you were left in New York, nothing to your name?”

  “More or less,” he said. “And the crazy thing is I wasn’t mad at my father in the slightest.”

  “Really?”

  It was easy to picture little spoiled Jordan King throwing the fit to end all fits when he’d been told the news.

  “Really. My father left me a letter with his will, letting me know his reasons. And when I finished reading it, I took a deep breath, set it down, and decided to get to work becoming the man he thought I could be.”

  “And it looks like that’s what you’ve done,” I said.

  Jordan raised his eyebrows slightly.

  “You know about my company?”

  I didn’t want to blurt out that I’d been following him here and there in the tabloids, so I tried to play it cool.

  “Yeah, Fan Service or something? I know it has to do with sports.”

  And it’s worth billions.

  “FanFriends,” he said. “I won’t bore you with the details, but it was the result of my partners and I noticing a niche that needed to be filled. So, that’s what we did. It took a year of working harder than I ever had in my life, but we managed to turn it into something really special.”

  “And profitable,” I added.

  He laughed. “Yeah, that too.”

  “So that’s it,” I said. “You’ve made your billions, and now you’re set for life.”

  He shook his head. “Not at all. This is actually just the beginning. Now I have to hire a massive team to make sure the app stays functional and useful. I also have to think about how our company is going to grow, and I plan on starting several charities—like my father.”

  “Then I was wrong,” I said. “You have a ton ahead of you.”

  “And more than anything,” he said, “I have to find someone to share my life with.”

  He turned his head, his eyes looking deeply into mine.

  I didn’t have to guess who he had in mind.

  “Are you serious?” I asked, not sure what else to say. “After all this time? After what you did?”

  “I know that I burned you before, and I know I didn’t treat you with the respect you deserve. But damned if I haven’t been able to find again what you and I shared. We had something special, Chloe, however brief it was. I just hope that you feel the same way.”

  It was just…so much. I didn’t know what to do. Jordan wasn’t being coy. He was making it clear beyond a shadow of a doubt what he wanted.

  “You want to date again?” I asked. “I mean, we weren’t even really dating before. We had a thing, and you ended it. Really poorly, I might add.”

  “I know I did,” he said. “I was careless with your heart, and I realize that you have no reason to forgive me for what I did. But seeing you again has only made what I want even clearer. It’s like I don’t have a choice in the matter.”

  No words came to mind. I’d never had a man open himself up like this before, share his feelings so openly before me like his. Jordan had put his heart on the line, and now it was my choice to do whatever I wanted with it.

  My eyes turned back to the lake as I did my best to consider everything he’d said. Then, as if a sign were appearing before me, a mama duck with four adorable little ducklings in tow floated ahead, the water rippling gently in their wake.

  Jordan had been a real prick, but I was guilty of something too, of keeping a secret that he deserved to know.

  “I know that I’m putting a lot on you,” he said. “But I figured after what I’d put you through before the best I could do was let you know how I felt, no lies or equivocations.”

  The family of ducks floated off into the distance. I opened my mouth to speak, to let Jordan know of the secret I was keeping from him.

  This new Jordan was something else. He was being the man I wished he could’ve been right from the start. My heart ached at the fact that it’d taken the death of his father to make him grow up like this.

  I decided that I needed more time. He’d given me so much to think about, and rushing into a decision right then and there would’ve been a bad move.

  “You’re putting a lot on me,” I said finally. “But I appreciate it. If anything was to happen between us, this sort of openness would be exactly what I’d need.”

  I turned my head away. “I just need to think about this,” I said. “You need to give me time.”

  “I understand,” he said.

  Jordan was being mature, but I could sense that this wasn’t the answer he’d been hoping for. I reached over and gave his hand a squeeze, the feeling of his skin against mine casting a brief spell over me.

  I had to go. I had to get out of there at that instant before I said or did something rash.

  “I’m meeting a friend for lunch,” I told him. “And I think it’s time I got going.”

  Jordan nodded, his expression stoic.

  “Sure,” he said. “It was good seeing you, Chloe.”

  “You have my number, right?” I asked.

  “Still the same one you’ve always had?”

  “That’s right,” I said. “We’ll be in touch.”

  I hurried up from the bench, shooting a somewhat awkward “goodbye” over my shoulder as I did.

  Quickly, I put distance between us. But I couldn’t help take one last gla
nce back at him. Jordan was still seated on the bench, his gaze straight ahead. In the distance, the family of ducks appeared over the crest of the lake’s horizon, swimming right toward him.

  Chapter 28

  Jordan

  San Bravado looked as majestic as ever as I stood on the balcony of my downtown hotel. I’d been back in town for several days, but I hadn’t been able to bring myself to step back into my father’s mansion. It had surely fallen into disrepair over the last year or so, and seeing it in a run-down state was something that I didn’t feel like I could handle.

  So, I rented out the penthouse suite of one of the best hotels in the city. My own penthouse had been long sold, and I figured this would be a treat, a remembrance of times past.

  But instead, all I could think about was Chloe and our conversation last night.

  She was right. I had put so much on her, and thinking that she’d be able to make such a momentous decision right then and there was, in retrospect, asking too much of her. Still, part of me had hoped that smile of hers that I loved would spread across her face and that she’d throw her arms around me, ready to start a new life together.

  How hopelessly naïve of me. Maybe I’d seen too many movies.

  My phone rang, and I stepped back into the hotel to answer it. The call was from Sarah.

  “Hello there, Mr. King,” she said. “How’s the hometown treating you?”

  “The definition of a mixed bag,” I said. “Strange seeing old…friends after all this time.”

  “Going back home after so long will do that to you,” she said. “But at least the weather’s better than what we have going on here.”

  “There’s that, at least,” I said. “What’s up?”

  “I wanted to let you know that I sent you some earnings reports from the last week—all good news. It’s nothing pressing, but I wanted to keep you in the loop while you were on vacation.”

  “Thanks, Sarah,” I said. “Appreciated.”

  Then there was silence.

  “And I wanted to check up on you. You seemed kind of in a strange mood the day you left, and I was thinking that coming back home for the first time since your dad passed might’ve been rough.”