Knocked Up

by Nikki Chase

  That’s probably because my problems usually don’t involve Kat.

  Even on days when I’ve made multi-million-dollar mistakes, it doesn’t touch me—not really. I already have more than enough money to last me the rest of my life. Losses like that don’t bother me.

  But if anyone hurts Kat, I’ll use everything in my power to make that person’s life a living hell.

  Something buzzes on my desk, and I sit bolt upright as the screen of my high-priority phone lights up.

  It’s Kat. She wouldn’t have called this number if this weren’t important.

  She fucking knows.

  “Excuse me,” I say to Angela before I pick up the phone. “Hello.”

  “Heath, what’s going on?” Kat asks in a panicked voice.

  “There’s nothing to worry about,” I say gently. “I’ve got everything under control.”

  “Do you?” Kat asks. “It doesn’t look like it. I saw you trying to get through the crowd on TV.”

  “That was a normal after-lunch crowd for me,” I lie. I only get that kind of attention when something big happens.

  “Yeah, right. I used to be your personal assistant, Heath. Tell me the truth.”

  “Everything’s under control, Kat. That’s the truth.”

  Kat remains quiet for a few seconds before she says, “I should say something.”

  “What?”

  “Not to you. I mean I should say something to the media.”

  “Absolutely not,” I say. “You’re on bed rest.”

  I notice movements in my peripheral vision, and I realize Angela has been waving her arms, trying to get my attention. She’s pointing urgently at the TV screen across the room from us. Jeff’s saying something.

  “But Heath—”

  “If that’s all, I need to go so I can actually handle this crisis,” I say. “Sorry, kitten. I’ll see you at home. Just turn off the TV and take a nap, okay?”

  I hang up the phone, then I watch helplessly as Jeff tells them everything—Kat’s full name, as well as the contract. Yes, that contract. The one with all the sordid details of our arrangement, including how much sex is involved.

  Everybody’s going to see this and know Kat’s name. My mind flies back to that day when Jeff went berserk in my office. He said he was going to save Kat from my evil clutches, and now I guess he’s decided her safety is more important than her anonymity.

  And worse than that, my parents will see this and think Kat and I have been trying to deceive them.

  “Fuck,” I say, almost at the same time as Angela.

  Kat

  “Hi, Angela,” I say into the phone as my heart thumps in my chest. I know I'm not supposed to do this.

  I mean, it's not illegal or anything, but Heath won't be happy.

  Well, too bad, because I’m doing it anyway.

  “Kat?” Angela asks in a hushed voice.

  We’ve seen each other and spoken a few times at the office, of course. But we're not close and we both know we're only talking because there's an emergency going on, and we may be able to help each other. That's what I’m hoping for, anyway.

  And we both know we can't talk in front of Heath.

  “Is it safe to talk?” I ask.

  “Yes. I’m back at my desk.” Something rattles on Angela’s end of the line. “Actually, I’m leaving my desk now. It's probably best if I go outside to speak to you.”

  As Angela’s heels click-clack against the tiled floor of the office, I ask her, “What's really going on?”

  “Jeff’s gone rogue. He’s gone to the media and told them how Heath’s apparently committing sexual harassment and assault. He even showed them your contract,” Angela says.

  I know that much from the TV, but that's not what I’m asking. I bite my cheek as I pace the floor. The marble tiles feel freezing underfoot, like my blood. Beads of cold sweat form on my temples.

  I hear the sound of a door opening and closing, and I know she’s probably standing in the balcony where people usually smoke.

  “Yeah, I know.” I swallow and ask, “Is everything under control?”

  Angela laughs. “No, Kat. Everything’s fucked up.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “I mean we don’t have a plan. Nada.” Angela takes a deep breath. “Heath wants to just tell them to respect his privacy, or something like that. I haven’t thought of the right wording yet. But I don’t think there are enough words in the dictionary to make his statement sound good. People want answers, and Heath’s basically doubling down on his no-comment policy.”

  I wince. “That doesn’t sound good.”

  “No, it’s not good at all. He’s treating it like he used to treat his sex scandals—you know, from before he got married?”

  My chest tightens, but I manage a short “yeah.” This is not the time for jealousy.

  “Yeah,” Angela says. “This is completely different, though. Those girls didn’t work for him, and they were obviously professional gold diggers—or socialites, as they prefer to be called.” Angela’s eye-roll is almost audible.

  “How is it different this time?” I ask.

  “It’s different because this concerns the company,” Angela says. “This could end up hurting our reputation and credibility, especially because Heath’s trading style is to go after unethical companies. We have enemies, and we need to keep our image squeaky clean if we want to maintain our brand as ethical investors.

  “Our clients, they don’t only choose us because we grow their money, but also because we do it in a way that allows them to sleep at night. And now, Heath’s being painted as a monster, who preys on his innocent, young assistant. How are our clients going to make peace with the thought of their wealth going toward supporting someone like that?”

  “They aren’t going to,” I blurt out as realization dawns on me. “They’re just going to switch to another company.”

  “Exactly.” Angela pauses. “We’ve already been quiet for far too long. The news broke in the morning and it’s past lunch time now, so it’s been almost four hours of silence.”

  Angela huffs a wry laugh. “God, I can’t believe I just said that. But it’s true. After Twitter, people expect answers within minutes. It didn’t use to be this way in the good old days. We could take a breath and carefully formulate a response back then.”

  Angela is in her forties, which means that she didn’t grow up with Twitter. It also means that she’s been doing PR for about two decades, and she knows her shit. If she says things are fucked up, she’s probably right.

  “Is there anything we can do to fix things?” I ask as my heart pounds. I’d do anything to contain this situation.

  Angela goes quiet. “Is that a serious question?”

  “Yes, of course.” Why wouldn’t it be?

  “Well…” Angela lets her voice hang in the air, intensifying the suspense. “I can’t fix this mess… but you can.”

  “Me?” I frown.

  I’ve never dealt with the media before. And now that things are so bad even Angela can’t fix them, I’m supposed to be the knight riding into battle to save everyone?

  What can I do?

  I’m a nobody. I’m not Heath, with his wealth, power, and high profile—or Angela, with her years of experience as a PR professional.

  “Yes, you’re the only one who can save us now,” Angela says. “Are you serious, though?”

  “Yes,” I say in a heartbeat.

  “You mean that, right? You’re not just saying whatever you think I want to hear?” Angela asks urgently. “Because while I’m sure this is going to work, it also means that you’ll have to put yourself out there for people to scrutinize and judge.”

  “Yes,” I repeat. I’m doing this. They’re attacking Heath, which means they’re attacking the only family I have. And I can’t just sit here drinking my caffeine-free tea and rubbing my pregnant belly.

  Angela lets out a big, relieved sigh. When she speaks, the tension has disapp
eared from her voice, replaced by eagerness. “That’s perfect. You’re saving the whole company, Kat. You’re doing the right thing. You’re helping a lot of people keep their jobs.”

  “What do I have to do?”

  Now Angela’s all business. She speaks with the certainty of someone who has a solid plan. “You’ll just have to tell them the truth. I don’t know anything about your relationship—good job hiding it, by the way. I had no clue. But I know Heath, and I know you. I’m sure everything between the two of you is consensual.”

  “Of course,” I say.

  “I’ll be honest, I had my doubts. But seeing you so willing to put your ass on the line to save Heath when he insisted on not dragging you into this… I can tell you two have something real.”

  “He insisted on what?” I ask, curious. This is the first time I’m hearing this.

  “Well, I suggested that the only way I could see to solve this problem was for you to make a statement to clarify everything. But he said that was out of the question.”

  I don’t know how to feel about this information.

  On one hand, my chest swells at the thought of Heath being so protective of me.

  On the other hand, this is my problem too, damn it. And if I can help solve it, I will. Bed rest, schmed rest.

  Heath

  Earlier That Morning

  Everything's perfect when I wake up.

  I open my eyes to see a beautiful woman lying next to me, all soft and feminine and mine.

  Oh, and she’s carrying my baby—in her belly, and not just in her arms like she said when I offered her the deal.

  I never thought that deal would give me everything I could ever want.

  I start to get up, but Kat takes my hand.

  “Go back to sleep, kitten,” I say as I plant a soft kiss on her temple.

  She makes a sexy, sleepy moan and my heart flips—my cock stirs, too. It’s been too long since the last time I fucked this gorgeous woman. The urge to claim her body and mark her with my seed again is building up, even though obviously my swimmers have already conquered her womb.

  The human body is dumb sometimes. Having sex will not serve any procreative purpose, but fuck, I’d give up my left arm to do it.

  But I can’t. I have to think of what's best for Kat and our baby. I just wish my fucking dick got the memo. Jesus Christ, I’m already hard as rock and pulsating against my sweatpants. I can see it tenting the grey cotton fabric.

  This reminds me of that time I had a raging boner at a pool party held by some kid from school. I had to slip into a bathroom and rub one out before going back out.

  Kat puts my arm around her waist and I snuggle close until I’m spooning her, except I have to stick my ass out so my cock doesn’t poke her. That would make it really hard for me to stop myself from rubbing myself against her.

  It’s warm under the blanket, and she’s warm, too. As I wrap my arms around her, my fingers graze the bottom of her tits—braless and enlarged by pregnancy. She smells like vanilla and cinnamon, like her body wash. I draw closer to take in more of her scent, and as my lips brush against the back of her neck, I freeze.

  Don’t kiss her.

  My lips and tongue on her neck are sure to elicit a few moans and some writhing from her. I know this because that move has never failed me with Kat.

  Damn this bed rest.

  Kat turns to me, her eyes heavy-lidded. Her lips curve to form a smile. “I didn’t hear your alarm.”

  “It hasn’t gone off yet. I just thought I’d take a shower now, since I’m up anyway.”

  “No, stay,” she says in a sweet voice I can’t possibly say “no” to.

  So I run my hands over her back, smoothing out the creases in her shirt. Then, she fucking moans—she does it the way people getting massages do and not the way people being fucked do, but my cock doesn’t know the difference anymore.

  I swear, right after this baby arrives, I’m ripping her clothes to shreds and burying myself balls deep inside her.

  “How much time do you have?” Kat bites her bottom lip and gazes at me from underneath her lashes, desire darkening her big doe eyes.

  “No.” I watch as she parts her lips and lets out a big, heavy sigh. Shit, I’m in trouble. “Don’t tempt me, woman.”

  Kat giggles. She runs her delicate hand down my side, and my cock jumps in my pants. I swear my body’s forgotten its own age; I’m reacting more like a teenager than a twenty-eight-year-old.

  Kat’s eyes widen as she glances at the bulge in my pants. A small smile plays on her lips. “Come on. You know you want it, too.”

  “Fuck, do I know it,” I say in desperation. Can’t she see how badly I want her?

  “Let me suck your cock,” she says with hunger in her voice. How did I luck out at finding this woman? She offers blowjobs without me having to ask.

  We haven’t done anything in weeks, and the pent-up sexual energy that has built up inside me is unbearable. At night, when Kat’s asleep, I sneak out into the bathroom to jerk off. Without that release, I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep next to her tantalizing curves.

  The worst thing is, Kat has been an absolute nympho. She touches me all the time, giving me that look—the one with the intense gaze, the small smile, and the slightly raised eyebrow. After showers, she walks out stark naked into the bedroom and then takes her sweet time picking out clothing items and putting them back in the wardrobe before she finally covers herself with the first outfit. It doesn't make any sense. She barely even leaves the apartment.

  She looks like a goddess with her heavy belly. She’s glowing. I don’t know if it’s from her pregnancy or from being able to spend her time doing what she loves at home, but I dig it.

  After holding myself back for so long, my willpower is wearing thin.

  Besides, the doctor said she’s allowed to have some outside stimulation, as long as there’s no penetration.

  “Okay,” I hear myself say.

  Kat turns onto her back, and I climb out of the blanket. I quickly slip off my clothes, then I get on my knees, straddling Kat’s head.

  “Mmm…” Kat stares eagerly at my cock, her full lips parted.

  I lower myself and lift my gaze to the ceiling when Kat’s warm, wet mouth envelops the head of my cock. Her tongue licks and swirls over me, making me groan.

  I reach in front of me and slip my hand inside Kat’s panties. With her giant belly in the way, we can’t do a sixty-nine. But my fingers can still work magic on this woman’s body.

  It doesn’t take long for us to reach our peaks. I finish her off with intense, prolonged teasing of her clit, while she makes me come with a combination of her beautiful mouth and her pumping hand.

  “Do you think the baby felt that?” Kat asks as she rubs her round, tight belly over her shirt.

  “I hope not.” I grimace.

  Kat laughs. “Relax. He’s a lot more resilient than that. That’s what the doctor told me.”

  “You mean the doctor who doesn’t believe in bed rest?”

  “Yeah.” Kat shrugs. “I don’t know why you discount what he says. He’s a legit doctor.”

  “I know. I just prefer to be safe than sorry.”

  “Says the guy who’s famous for taking risks,” Kat says.

  “That’s only when it comes to stocks.” I pull her close and give her a quick kiss on the lips. “With you? And our son? I’m not taking any risks.”

  The corners of Kat’s lips tug up into a big smile. Despite her protests, I know she likes it when I look out for her best interests.

  “I’ll take a shower, okay?” I start to get up.

  Kat puts her hand on my abs, then traces the lines of my hard muscles with her soft fingers. “I’ll join you.”

  “I’m almost late.” I give her a grin as I hop off the bed. “And with you in the shower, I wouldn’t even be able to make it to the office. Go back to sleep, kitten.”

  Kat pulls the blanket up to cover her shoulders and gets comfortab
le. It makes me want to join her. It would be heaven to snuggle in bed all day with Kat and our baby boy. But I can’t do that.

  There’s a time for everything, and right now is the time for a shower.

  Once I manage to extricate myself from my favorite little seductress, I whizz through my routine for the day. I shower, have an avocado and a few strips of bacon for my breakfast, and drive to the office.

  The day goes by like any other day, until Angela comes knocking on the door with unusual urgency. It doesn’t take long for her to explain what’s going on, and it doesn't take long for me to decide what to do either.

  When someone at a meeting casually mentions a press conference happening on the ground floor of the building, I realize I should've tucked myself in with Kat under the blanket this morning and skipped work.

  Angela hasn't told me anything about the press conference, which means she's doing something behind my back. And considering her suggestion this morning to have Kat make a statement, I’m guessing that’s what’s going on.

  If I were home, I could’ve at least stopped Kat from coming all the way here, or even prevented her from finding out about this PR crisis.

  But now that she’s already here, all I can do is minimize the amount of information she shares with the media.

  That said, they already know her name and recognize her face. It’s not like I can keep her identity hidden any longer.

  But I also can’t just let her take this bullet for me. Besides, she’s supposed to be on bed rest. Surely doing a press conference counts as the kind of “strenuous activities” she’s not supposed to do.

  “Excuse me, Mr. Zhang. There’s an emergency. I have to leave this meeting,” I say as I stand up from my chair. All eyes turn to me, especially those of my own employees. They know I never miss an important meeting with one of my biggest investors.

  “But I flew here to see you, all the way from Beijing. Can't we finish this before you leave?” The disapproval in his dark eyes doesn’t change my mind.

  “Sorry, I have to leave now,” I say, already holding the doorknob with one hand. “Parker over there has handled numerous accounts like yours, and I’m sure he can help you with everything you need. I’ll personally review your paperwork once I get back to the office.”