One Night Baby - A Romance Compilation

by Tia Siren

  “I wouldn’t be either,” he said, staring at his phone again.

  “They are being real dicks about the contract,” I said, putting my phone down on the desk. “I didn’t want to go out with that woman. I’m only interested in Emily,” I reiterated.

  Landon raised his brows. “Those pictures don’t look like nothing. Look at the comments. It looks like people are rooting for you and the new girl. People are not quite as keen on you marrying a woman who may or may not have had your baby. Speaking of, is he yours?”

  I shrugged a shoulder. “I don’t know. I think so, or maybe I want to believe he is, but I don’t know for sure.”

  “You asked her, right? I mean, I know you did that one time, but maybe she thought you were joking.”

  I nodded. “Several times. She’s hedging. I think he’s mine, but she doesn’t seem to want me to know. I guess that means she doesn’t want child support?” I asked, trying to understand her reasons for not telling me. “I mean, wouldn’t she tell me right away if he was mine? That news story outlined just how much money she could stand to get if he was mine. I’ve been to her house. She could really use the money.”

  “I don’t know, man. I think you may be getting in over your head here,” Landon said, shaking his head.

  “How so?”

  “I can’t imagine you being a dad,” he said, wrinkling his nose. “I mean, have you ever even held a kid?”

  I shrugged. “I’m thirty-five. It isn’t like I’m a teenager. Millions of men my age are dads. There are about a million books out there that tell you how to be a dad. I could be a dad, Landon.”

  “I’m not saying you couldn’t, but a baby? Are you really ready for that kind of responsibility?” he asked seriously.

  I turned to look back out the windows. “He isn’t a baby. He’s three, and smart as hell. I’m not an idiot. I can learn.”

  Landon laughed. “He’s not exactly ready to move out. There’s a lot of child-rearing left to do. You’re looking at puberty and then the teen years.” He groaned. “I don’t envy you that. I know what I was like at that age.”

  “I’m ready to settle down. I don’t know that I’m going to be great at the father thing, but I’m willing to try. Emily will be there. She’ll tell me what to do,” I said, shrugging one shoulder. “Hell, I can hire a nanny to be my backup and tell me when I’m completely screwing up.”

  Landon laughed. “I see. You’re going to be one of those real hands-on dads.”

  I sighed. “If I don’t talk to Emily, I’m not going to be any kind of dad. She is going to be pissed when she sees those pictures. Plus, it’s only going to stir the pot, just when things were dying down a bit. If she gets sent home from work again, she is going to kick my ass. I would offer to pay her to make up the wages she lost, but that would really piss her off.”

  “Technically, if you fathered the child, you’re still the dad, whether you like it or not. You need to decide if you want to be in his life. You don’t need to have a relationship with Emily,” Landon pointed out.

  I turned to look at him. He was right. Of course he was right, but I felt like he was getting way ahead of things. I had just found Emily. I wasn’t ready to start talking DNA and custody and all that crazy stuff. I wanted to start over.

  “I have to call her,” I muttered, trying to stop my brain from jumping to worse-case scenarios.

  Landon’s phone rang. “I’ve got to take this,” he said, getting off the couch and walking out of my office.

  I walked over and closed the door behind him before quickly walking back to my desk and picking up my phone. I hit the button with her name on it, listening to the phone ring.

  “Come on, pick up. Please, pick up,” I whispered.

  She didn’t answer. I hoped it meant she was at work. I needed to see her. I had to explain the pictures. Last night, she had left rather abruptly. I hadn’t had a lot of time to think about what had happened. I had just changed and headed out for the date with Cora. Then it was work.

  I hit the redial button. Once again, it rang with no answer.

  “Emily, it’s Tyler. Can you call me as soon as you get this message? It’s important, please. I’ll call you later,” I said to her voice mail before hanging up again.

  I sat down, burying my face into his hands. “Dammit.”

  The show was becoming one of the worst decisions of my life. Yes, it had brought me Emily, but it seemed like it was an easy come, easy go situation. I may have lost her just as quickly as I’d found her.

  My phone started ringing, and without looking at the screen, I answered, hoping it was Emily.

  My frustration flared when I discovered it was Gabe.

  “What do you want?” I growled.

  “I wanted to get the location of the next date nailed down. We have you going out with Dana tomorrow evening,” he said.

  “You know what, I don’t want to,” I said, knowing I sounded like a petulant child.

  “I think you and Jack already went over this. It’s one more date,” he said, softening his voice.

  Letting out a long sigh, I slapped my open palm on my desk. “I don’t care where the date is. Just get it done so I can be through with this shit! You can inform my assistant,” I said, hanging up the phone.

  I felt a little guilty for taking my frustration out on the guy who was just doing his job.

  April’s voice filled the room. “Mr. Case, you’ve got a meeting in thirty minutes.”

  “Fine,” I said, standing and putting everything else out of my mind.

  I needed to focus on something I could actually fix or change. I buttoned my suit jacket, grabbed my briefcase, and strode out the door as Tyler Case, ruthless businessman. The other Tyler was going to have to take a back seat for the rest of the day. I had shit to get done.

  Chapter Twenty

  Emily

  It was my last break of my shift and I needed every minute of it. I went out back to sit on the small overturned bucket we all used as a seat. The restaurant had been busy all day. There had been the usual spate of reporters and undercover gossip bloggers hoping to get the scoop by making small talk with me. Everyone wanted to know if Tyler had dumped me already.

  Apparently, he had, judging by the pictures splashed all over the internet. He had dinner with me and then ran out the door the minute I left to go on a date with another woman. It still stung to think about it. I had known something was off by the way he had kept watching the time. He had been late for a date.

  I couldn’t believe I’d thought he was serious about having a relationship with me, with Tommy. We were nothing but entertainment for him and his stupid show. I looked at my phone, saw the missed call and the little voice mail icon. It was him. He had called several times, but I wasn’t interested in what he had to say. I ignored the voice mails and texts. My heart hurt, and for that, I blamed myself. I should have known better. I should have realized I was nothing but a passing fancy.

  Closing my eyes, I leaned my head against the brick wall behind me. “Dammit, how did I let this happen?”

  My ten minutes was up and it was time to finish the last couple hours of my shift. I made my way back inside, my shoulders hanging low and my body feeling as if I’d been up for days. It had only been one day though. I hadn’t slept at all last night and I was really feeling it today.

  After work, I walked toward my car in the small parking area and groaned when I saw Leo casually leaning up against it.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, my voice showing my exhaustion.

  “I want to talk,” he said, trying his best to charm me with a megawatt smile that did nothing for me.

  “I’m not in the mood, Leo. I’m tired and need to get home.”

  He stepped in front of me. His eyes narrowed into slits, his earlier smile vanishing, becoming an ugly snarl. He scared me when he got like this.

  “Emily, is that kid mine?” he said in a low, menacing voice.

  I looked him directly in
the eyes. “No.”

  “Bullshit! I did the math. He’s mine, isn’t he? All this time and you never told me!” he shouted, spittle flying out of his mouth.

  “Leo, he isn’t yours,” I said again, and I stepped around him, hoping to get to my car.

  He followed me to the driver’s side, reaching out and clamping his hand around my upper arm. “Don’t you dare lie to me,” he seethed.

  I turned to face him, not letting him see the spark of fear he had caused. “I’m not lying. He isn’t yours. You’ve known about Tommy for years. Why are you just now coming up with this?” I said, glaring back at him before smacking his hand away from my arm.

  He shrugged a shoulder. “I just figured it out.”

  Narrowing my gaze at him, it was all I could do to not roll my eyes. He wanted to claim Tommy because he thought I was hooking up with a billionaire. As always, Leo wanted a piece of the pie. How he thought he would ever get a penny of Tyler’s money was beyond my understanding. Maybe he wanted to claim some connection to get an in for a job he would work for a couple months and then quit. It was hard to say with Leo.

  “Leo, I have to go. I need to pick up my son from daycare.”

  “I want to talk, Emily. I’m not leaving until you talk to me about all this,” he said, and for a brief moment, I caught a glimpse of the old Leo, the man I’d thought I had loved so long ago.

  I sighed. “Leo, he isn’t yours. Just stop it.”

  “Let’s grab some dinner and go over it. I’m not going to stop bugging you until you talk to me. I’ll go to the press if I have to.”

  My mouth dropped open. “You’ll do what?”

  He shrugged. “Let’s be friends. Have dinner with me.”

  I took a deep breath and looked around. Fortunately, the media attention had died down quite a bit. Beyond the sneaky reporters earlier in the day, I hadn’t noticed any photographers. They were all chasing Cora, I thought, a frown twisting my face at the thought of Tyler screwing the woman.

  “Fine. Here, though. I’m not going anywhere with you,” I shot back.

  We went around to the front of the restaurant and walked in. Thankfully, it was relatively empty. I told the hostess we would be taking a back booth and only needed coffee. She smiled and promised to bring some right over.

  “Sit.” I gestured at Leo and watched him slide into one of the bright red booth seats.

  I sat down across from him and waited until we had both been served our coffee before I began to talk.

  “He isn’t yours,” I started. “When you broke up with me four years ago, you hurt me. I was having a rough time. Sarah knew about a fancy ball that was being put on. I agreed to go. I hooked up with Tyler Case. He is Tommy’s father,” I said, keeping my voice at a low whisper.

  He shook his head. “I don’t believe you.”

  I shrugged a shoulder. “It’s the truth. You and I hadn’t been together for weeks before you broke up with me.”

  He eyed me closely. “You could have already been pregnant with him when you and your rich boyfriend hooked up.”

  I sighed in frustration. “I wasn’t. He isn’t yours Leo. He looks nothing like you.”

  “He has brown hair,” he argued. “I have brown hair.”

  “So do I. So does Tyler,” I pointed out.

  Leo shook his head. “I don’t believe it. That kid is mine and I’ll prove it.”

  Exasperated, I leaned back in the booth, trying to figure out how to make the man see reason. “Leo, why the sudden interest? You’ve never talked about being a father before. Do you really think you’re in a position to be a good role model for him?”

  “I can get a job, Emily. I can be a dad.”

  I shook my head. “Not to my son you can’t.”

  “You don’t get to decide that. He’s my son, too.”

  I slapped my hand on the table. “No, he isn’t!”

  “I want a DNA test to prove it.”

  I smiled. “And who’s going to pay for that?”

  “I will.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Sure you will.”

  “I already have a place. It’s cheap. I can pay. I have a little money set aside. I want the proof he’s mine, and then I’m going to be in his life. I have that right. I’m going to stick around and be a good father to my son,” he said with real conviction.

  Unfortunately, I didn’t believe him. Leo was the epitome of a rolling stone. He was always moving from place to place, never held the same job long, and had a bit of a reputation for doing shoddy work when he did get one of the many handyman jobs he claimed to be qualified for.

  “You know what? That’s fine. We’ll do a DNA test. Then I’ll prove to you once and for all he isn’t your son.”

  He smiled. “I knew you would see reason. Don’t think you’re going to get me for back child support, either.”

  I scoffed. “As if there is anything to get.”

  He shrugged a shoulder. “You never know.”

  The way he said it made me a little uncomfortable. My earlier suspicion seemed to be on target. I had a feeling Leo thought he would actually gain something if Tommy was his and Tyler and I were in a relationship.

  “Leo, I’m not dating Tyler. We went out a couple times. That’s it. If you’re trying to work an angle, it isn’t going to pay off,” I warned him.

  “He’s my son and the DNA will prove it. We’ll hash out the details later,” he said, grinning like an idiot.

  I shook my head. “Whatever. Fine. I’ll take Tommy to the place and get his cheek swabbed. You’re paying for it. I already know he isn’t yours.”

  Leo smiled and reached into his front pocket, pulling out a scrap of paper with the name and address of a lab scrawled on it. “This is the place.”

  I took the paper. “Fine. I’m going now. Don’t call me and don’t show up here.”

  “Oh, honey, we are going to be seeing so much more of each other when this test proves he’s my son. We’re going to be one big happy family,” he said with that same smile that used to turn me on. Now it turned my stomach.

  I got up and walked out of the restaurant once again. I dreaded having to talk to Tyler, but now I absolutely had to. I knew the test would prove Leo wasn’t the father. Leo was a snake. He would sell the story of my son’s paternity in a heartbeat.

  Driving to pick up Tommy, I called the lab on my way. I wanted to make sure it was a legit business and verify the cost and turnaround time. I couldn’t really depend on Leo paying for the damn test, so I needed to be prepared. While I couldn’t really afford a couple hundred dollars, if it meant getting Leo out of my life for good, I would do it. The woman told me they were open until six today.

  I picked up Tommy and took him right over. I explained there would be two potential fathers coming in to have their DNA tested. I knew Tyler well enough to know he would want the DNA to confirm what he had clearly suspected all along. My secret would be exposed. I was looking forward to it and yet dreading it at the same time.

  Tommy had no idea what was happening, which was a good thing, and sat quietly while the tech swabbed his cheek.

  “Are we going to the big house tonight?” Tommy asked as I drove home.

  “No. We’re staying home tonight.”

  I didn’t want to explain that the big house was not a place I would be going, at least not with him to have dinner. I imagined Tommy would be spending time there, but I wouldn’t be with him. I wasn’t going to be Tyler’s side chick, booty call, or whatever the hell I was to him. I had more self-respect than that.

  Once we got home, I got dinner for Tommy and ignored another phone call from Tyler. Tommy and I spent the evening watching SpongeBob before I put him to bed and then indulged in a little self-misery by reading the various articles about Tyler.

  I typed in the show’s name and felt my stomach twist into knots when they teased footage from tonight’s date with a woman named Dana.

  “Wow,” I muttered, disbelief and hurt making me feel sick to
my stomach.

  How could I have believed the man was truly into me? I stared at the pictures of me, Cora, and Dana with the teaser headline about who he would choose.

  “Not going to be me,” I growled at my computer screen. “I’m not a second choice, and I’m damn sure not a third.”

  I slammed the laptop closed, instantly hoping I hadn’t broken it with the force of my anger and frustration. I guessed that explained why he hadn’t called me again tonight. He was otherwise occupied. I looked at the time. It was after nine. Was he taking her back to his place? Were they kissing in the back of his car?

  “Argh!” I hollered too loud as I stood up and started picking up scattered books and toys.

  I needed to do something to keep my mind off him. I hated that he had the power to hurt me. I hated myself for giving him that power.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Tyler

  I wasn’t surprised to see my date with Dana splashed all over the gossip blogs and clips from the date being teased as part of the episode airing on Friday. Jack was really pushing the love triangle drama, or, in this case, square. Emily still hadn’t returned my calls. I knew she had seen the pictures. How could she not have?

  Walking into the restaurant where I was meeting Landon for lunch, I saw he was already there, halfway through a mimosa.

  “Little early, don’t you think? Don’t you have a meeting after this?” I questioned him both as his friend and business partner and, to some degree, his boss.

  He shrugged. “Hair of the dog.”

  I rolled my eyes, shaking my head. “It’s almost noon, Landon. You’re still hungover?”

  He nodded. “Not so much anymore,” he said, grinning before taking another drink.

  As we ordered our meals, I glanced around the busy restaurant and felt people watching us. I was used to some level of attention, but with the recent drama stirred up by the show, it was far more intense.

  My phone vibrated in my jacket pocket. I pulled it out and nearly knocked my chair across the room when I stood up so fast.