The Billionaire's Carnival Baby (A BWWM Romance)

by Tiana Cole

  Myeisha handed him a piece of paper. “This is a printout of the email she sent me. After I met with her, I flew her to New York because this deserved a face-to-face meeting.”

  “And why are you getting so personally involved, Myeisha?”

  “Because I am personally involved, Ken. When you decided to assume I’d slept with you, when you started treating me like an ungrateful wench, that kept me involved. In a sense, your unwelcome desire to screw me wound up leading to you being drawn to Audra. Now she’s pregnant. And now that I've helped her explain things, I intend to disengage myself from your private life as much as I can. I have a wedding to plan.”

  With that, she defiantly stood and left his office. Steele watched her go before turning his attention back to Audra. She could feel the heat of his stare, and it wasn't lust this time.

  “What do you want?” he asked.

  She returned his gaze. “To find out what you want. Do you have any interest in your child?”

  He closed his eyes and let out a long breath. “I don’t honestly know,” he said, then reopened his eyes. “I just… I need time to think.”

  She stood up, facing him as she readjusted herself. “I'll be in New York for a few days. Myeisha said we couldn't do this instantly, and it seems she was right.” She placed her hand on her hip and smiled. “Seems she’s right about a lot of things. At any rate, she knows how to find me. If you want to talk, we can talk. Otherwise I'll go back to New Orleans and figure out what I do next.”

  “I’m supposed to believe that’s it?” Kenneth asked skeptically.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You drop this bombshell on me and expect me to believe you’re going to walk out with no demands, no threats of sending your lawyer to my door? Not even a sobbing and heartfelt entreaty that I do the right thing?”

  “I'm not sure what the right thing is,” Audra shrugged. “And I don’t know you, Ken Steele. I know we had great sex in Brazil and that I’m carrying your child, but I know nothing about you as a person. I can’t want or expect anything particular from you. I came here to break the news and find out what you wanted to do, that’s all. As I told Myeisha, and as I wrote in my email, I thought you had a right to know about the baby. I thought you might want to do something to ensure he or she has proper care, and is maybe provided for. I thought you might even take a personal interest in who the baby is, but I can’t force you to do any of those things. If none of that matters to you, what would I threaten you for? We had consensual sex, but you promised me nothing.”

  “It’s a lot to take in. And, excuse me for saying it, but it’s hard not to think you have something else on your agenda.”

  “I know. I used the excuse that it was a lot to take in when I got pissed at friends trying to help me.” She started for the door but turned to say, “And, in all fairness… there’s one other thing on my agenda, as you call it.”

  He sighed, then mumbled, “Okay, now it comes.”

  “I wanted to see you again.”

  “And?” he asked, surprised by her admission.

  “I can see why I was attracted to you. It was quite a night. Unforgettable, even without the baby as a reminder. I’m glad for that.”

  Leaving on that line pleased her. It appealed to her theatrical sense and had the advantage of being true. At times her body ached with memories of his touch, and underneath her concerns about the baby was the faint hope that he might want to touch her again. As Gale had told her, it was okay to hope.

  ***

  Kenneth Steele sat in his chair feeling like he’d just been run over by a truck. For the past several months he’d lived his life thinking that Myeisha had slept with him, and then, for no apparent reason, allowed an incredible night of sex to become a wall between them. It had hurt. He didn't know what he'd done wrong. Not that he’d expected her to love him since he knew she wanted a different life than he’d ever give her, or would ever want to live. He didn't want to love and cherish her—that would give the universe the opening to hurt him again.

  Besides, although Myeisha was sexy, a lovely black beauty, she wasn't inspired by the outrageous as he was. She proved to be a fairly conventional woman unimpressed by his money or glamorous lifestyle. Now he wondered if part of the amazement he'd felt from the night in Brazil had been from thinking she’d finally seen the light.

  He’d been made aware that it had been a lie. No, not a lie—a mistake. His mistake. No wonder she’d been put off by his attempts to get close to her. He’d thought that they’d enjoyed a night that changed everything; she’d thought that leaving when he kissed her reinforced the idea that nothing had changed. He’d been shocked that Myeisha, for all her beauty, had aroused him so much, built the fires so high, but he’d wanted to believe it. What else could it have been?

  And now he, and Myeisha, both knew. Those two stunning women—they looked so much alike, yet Audra was quite a different person. Myeisha was organized, efficient, but not self confident. Audra, on the other hand, was confident and strong. She’d come to New York ready to leave with nothing if he wasn't prepared to help her with his child.

  His child.

  What a thought, that he would have a child. Catherine had wanted children but he’d put her off. Things were just taking off in the business; he had every penny they could raise and more invested in projects. He’d been right about the investments, too. He didn't seem to be good at a lot of things, but he could smell a good investment a mile away. His sense of timing was flawless.

  If he’d gone along with Catherine and given her what she’d wanted, he might be poorer but at least he’d have a child. Catherine hadn't even gotten to enjoy the money—it came in about the time she’d been killed, and he felt like he’d cheated her, or at least life had. Catherine had died without getting what she wanted, and now he was going to have a child… without her. The idea elicited a flash of anger. Directed where? At himself? At Audra Dawn? At fate? Certainly not at poor Catherine. With a child in the offering, the world had now changed. He had something to live for—but he also had someone to lose.

  The way things were, even if he did all he could for the child, at least Audra wasn't a risk to his world. He’d kept that distance for now, but there was still danger. Glimmers of what he’d felt that night when the sparks she’d given had dazzled him beyond belief were still burning hot. Today he’d seen them dancing in her eyes, the lizard quick, sinister, and dangerous flickers of uncontrolled passion. He had to be cautious. When she sat in the chair across from him, crossing those lovely brown legs, his imagination jumped back in time, forcing him to see her naked except for a flora mask. He could recall the pleasure of her body writhing under him, and being on fire with lust for her.

  Yes, without her even trying, he feared the passion he felt could spread through him like a contagion. Once it did, the passion might own him and could evolve into love. Love, he knew, made you vulnerable. Your heart could he smashed by the crash of a car, or a disease, and then… No, he couldn't face that again. However, he couldn't ignore it, either.

  ***

  After the meeting, Myeisha put Audra in a taxi that dropped her off at a nearby hotel she’d arranged and paid for. Just being in such a place seemed unreal to Audra. It was easily the fanciest place she’d ever stayed in, with plush furniture in the lobby, and white-gloved porters and a restaurant as nice as any she’d seen. She was taken aback by Myeisha’s generous offer to put her up in such a place. It was old and elegant in the way hotels used to be before video rooms and gyms became the norm. When she got to her room, she found her phone was ringing.

  “I think you made a good impression. Kenneth said he wants to take you out to dinner,” Myeisha told Audra when she answered. “Are you up for that?”

  “That was quick.”

  “One thing about Kenneth Steele is that he likes to make decisions quickly. The downside is he expects everyone else to do the same.”

  “So he means tonight?”

  “Now
you've got it. Where would you like to go?” Myeisha asked.

  “Speaking woman to woman, I don’t know which expensive restaurant to insist on, and I doubt he’d go for the French place in New Orleans,” Audra joked.

  “As good as that place was, probably not. And we won’t leave an important decision like that to him. Leave it to him and you could wind up at a burger place. If you really want to get to know him, that’s something to keep in mind.”

  “I suppose it is,” Audra laughed. “Think he can be retrained?”

  “I have no idea. You can see what’s possible tonight. At any rate, I've made reservations at a place I like and think you will, too. He’ll pick you up in the lobby at seven.”

  “Fantastic,” Audra beamed, overjoyed at the prospect of seeing Kenneth Steele again.

  “Spare a thought for me while you are at my favorite restaurant. I'll be stuck here organizing his proposals for a meeting coming up in Japan.”

  “I hope you get overtime.”

  “No, but I'll bitch and moan about the long hours and if the deal goes through, he’ll feel guilty and give me a bonus. I always make sure it works out.”

  “Then I refuse to feel guilty for going out on the town while you’re slaving away in the office,” Audra chuckled.

  “Good for you. Keep things going the way you have and I’m sure you’ll see a good outcome, even if it isn't exactly what you want.”

  “And what do I want, exactly? I’m not so sure anymore.”

  She heard Myeisha laugh before saying, “You want Kenneth Steele to adore you. To want to be with you.”

  “Oh my God. Is that how I come across?”

  “Not to him. He’s just a man, after all. Rich, powerful, sexy, and intelligent, but just a man after all.”

  When she hung up, Audra felt a flush of embarrassment. Yes, in the best of all possible worlds Myeisha would be right, but she knew better. This was the real world with all its hassles. What she wanted, what she should focus on, was getting a solid agreement from Steele to help out with the baby. Getting that would be a major accomplishment.

  Anything else was fantasy.

  ***

  “I was surprised to get your invitation quite so soon. Did you come to some decision?”

  Even now Audra found it hard to believe she was sitting across a table from the man who’d been her mystery lover. The steps that made it happen were clear enough, but the entire thing was a bit surreal. They were now out in public at a lovely restaurant. Somehow this was different from meeting with him in his office alongside his assistant. Of course the two had trapped him; she’d been working with Myeisha to break the news to him in a way that forced him to hear it all the way through. Myeisha had been eager to inform him of how the confusion had created the awkwardness between them, and Audra had been eager to let him know about the baby. In a strange way, though, it was really all part of the same package; it all came from Carnival fever in one way. It had affected the three of them, but she was the one who felt the consequences most of all… at least it seemed that way to her. So far Ken Steele had been calm and collected. Negotiating, rather than involved.

  He wore an elegant suit that only served to accent his physique, and looking into his green eyes, she knew that some of the Carnival magic was right there with them. It was impossible to tell if he felt it, but she certainly did. He’d left her after their passionate affair and she wanted him again. She felt the tug of sexual desire, but facing it squarely, she bit her lip and let herself admit that it went beyond that. It wasn't just that he was sexy, and that he’d burned her with a desire she wanted to feel again. On a totally other level, something about him called out to her. Apparently there was something she sensed in him that Myeisha didn't feel at all. Something indefinable that resonated with her and her alone.

  That meant something.

  He was playing things cool, however, by being well mannered and polite to a fault. Trying to make him speak from the heart… she had no idea how to do that. He wore his suit and a pose that masked his emotions like his Carnival mask had hidden his identity. Then again, he’d had only a short time to get used to the news that he had a child coming, and she doubted that he knew exactly how he felt about the idea yet.

  “I’m still don’t have my head entirely around the idea of you being you and not Myeisha,” he confessed. “I imagine you've gathered that much. And the idea that the wonderful, exciting night we had resulted in a baby. Our baby.”

  “I’m glad you’re willing to admit the sex was good for you,” Audra smiled. “And that last part was a shock for me as well.”

  “I doubt I can even imagine how that felt,” he said, looking at her with sincerity. “To suddenly find out that you've been growing a child for some months. Did you ever consider…” He lowered his voice and leaned in closer. “You know… terminating the pregnancy?”

  “No. I believe in a woman having the right to choose, but for me it’s just not an option.”

  “Why? Are you religious?”

  “Not particularly. It might not be anything more than a motherly instinct, and I wouldn't have been able to say that before I got pregnant. But once I knew...” A sudden thought made her grow cold, and then angry. “Wait, are you suggesting I should do that?”

  He waved a hand dismissively. “Sorry, I didn't mean that at all, although I suppose it came across that way. Honestly, that was a pathetic attempt to get to know more about you, the mother of my child. I was thinking about you getting the news, feeling alone, and that made me curious about how you saw it. Your email was such a reasoned piece that I’m curious about the woman who wrote it, almost as much as I’m curious about the woman I spent such a fantastic night with.”

  “Well, your enthusiasm was colored by thinking that you were finally bedding Myeisha,” Audra pointed out. He blushed slightly and it endeared him to her. Some men might have denied it, but not him.

  “To a certain extent that was true. As I remember things, however, once I started dancing, I was far too much in the moment, too wrapped up in the exciting woman I was with to be thinking things like that.” He looked at her for a moment, his eyes locked onto hers as he recalled that night. “You were radiating sex,” he smiled. “I should have known it wasn't her when I discovered you weren't wearing panties. I can't imagine her going out that way.”

  Audra wondered whether he could be believed when he talked about his attraction to her. He seemed to think it was true, or perhaps he was a great liar. “But now you are getting your head around the facts?” she asked.

  “The emotions as much as the facts, perhaps even more,” he answered. The waiter showed up and Kenneth smiled politely. “Since you can’t drink anything fun, why don’t we order our food and we’ll talk while we eat?”

  “That sounds nice.”

  When the waiter left, Kenneth nervously rearranged his cutlery for a moment. “So you know, I accept everything you've told me as the absolutely the truth. For a few legal reasons, such as a need to shut my lawyers up, I'll ask you for a paternity test, but I believe we both know how that will turn out.” Audra felt herself getting light headed. It was the tension leaving her body, making her weak. She’d been holding herself together with willpower, and now the part she’d agonized over the most was over. The waiter brought their food and when he left, Steele continued the rest of his thought. “I’ll do what’s necessary to see you and the baby through the birth and beyond. I'll have my doctor recommend an OB in…” he trailed off, struggling to recall where Audra was from.

  “New Orleans,” she finished for him.

  “Right. I'll ensure that you have the best care. I understand you have no insurance?”

  “No…”

  “I'll get a health insurance policy for you and the baby, but don’t worry about that at the moment. Do you have an apartment? Do you work? Tell me about your living situation.”

  She did just that, answering all of his questions. She told him about her family, about her brother T
erry and his offer of help. She told him her intention to get back with a cruise line at a higher level, and how she wasn't sure that was still in the card. She mentioned going to school and her job, and how it was her friend Gale who led to her finding Steele’s picture. If he was pretending to be interested, it was an amazing performance, as he genuinely seemed fascinated. It all spilled out, and some of it sounded shabby, but she didn't care. Now that she was past the embarrassment of admitting she’d gotten knocked up by a man she didn't know, she had little to hide.

  “Fine,” he said, and handed her a card. “When you get back, put together a list of your bills with the account numbers and email them to my accountant. I've given him a heads-up and he’ll be expecting it. He’ll pay your rent and utilities and see that a food allowance is deposited in your bank account monthly. I expect you to eat healthy food—organic, fresh… that sort of thing.”

  “Yes, of course, I want to. Thank you.”

  “So we can’t have money be a problem in that regard. If you want to work until you get close, and the doctor agrees, that’s fine with me. If you need anything else, contact me. I’ll be glad to satisfy any reasonable request.”

  “That’s very generous of you,” Audra beamed, thrilled by his help.

  “Not really. I want you to have a smooth pregnancy and the baby to be healthy.”

  “And then?”

  He put down his fork and deliberated for a moment before responding. “I don’t have a clue what happens then. That’s the part I have to come to terms with. We have a number of months ahead of us so we can work that out.”

  “We?”

  “I’m happy to accept part of the responsibility for the baby. I promise you and our child will not be living on the street, but other than that… I just don’t know how involved I can get. I won’t make stupid promises. Step one is for you to get yourself sorted out with the prenatal care and all that. I'll want reports, and we’ll talk more about how we proceed,” Kenneth explained.