Denial_A Stone Billionaire Series Novel

by Kaya Woodward

  Corban won't go anywhere near the programs he was designed before.

  He's done with that.

  “It's going well. I can't believe it, but we're turning a profit. Providing high-quality educational games at low cost to lower-income areas has benefits,” He smiles.

  “We're getting a grant from the City for a new project, that's exciting as well,”

  “For the library, right?” I ask.

  He nods.

  “But, business aside, what’s my mother done now?” he asks.

  “Well, you always were a smart man. You're a smart man; you'll trust me when I tell you this?” I ask confidently.

  “Of course,” Corban nods.

  “What is it, Noah?”

  I lead him out to the balcony before I say anything.

  “Your mother just threatened to destroy me, in the kitchen, in my home, with all my family here,” I state.

  I don't waste any time in explaining the situation.

  Corban whistles.

  “I knew she was up to something,” he snorts.

  Then he shakes his head.

  “That woman never learns. You know, I thought maybe she had it out for you, because of how strange she's been acting,” He huffs.

  “I need a smoke,” His voice is edgy.

  “No, you don't, you quit,” I remind him.

  “Yeah well, this whole thing makes me uncomfortable,” He tells me.

  “Strange how?” I persist.

  “Questions about you, and Tinsley. Questions about you seeing Tinsley, questions about Tinsley's pregnancy. Some bizarre questions. Most of them in regards to you and one strange conversation about the penthouse,” he tells me, seriously.

  This is news to me.

  “And you told her what?” I demand from him.

  “I gave her the same answer I always give her; I don't know,” Corban looks at me sternly.

  “I knew she was fishing for something, but I didn't know what. So, I thought it was probably best, not to give her anything,” he adds.

  “You seriously thought she was up to something,” I confirm.

  Revelation settles over me.

  Olivia is up to something.

  And there is someone else in the picture.

  Connor seems more probable if she spends a lot of time at the Whittaker Bradford Energy Office.

  “I just said that,” Corban raises an eyebrow at me.

  “Are you senile?” he jokes.

  “No. It confirms that we've got to be careful,” I explain.

  Corban scoffs at me.

  “Trust me, Noah, I know my mother, I know when she's up to something. You'd think after all these years; she would've let it go,” Corban groans.

  “She must know something we don't, or she knows about something, that I know about. Or there's something that we don't know, that she thinks we know, but we don't,” I've twisted my words around so much I don’t even know what I’ve said.

  “What?” Corban is thoroughly confused.

  “What are you talking about?” he asks.

  “I don't even think I know now,” I confess.

  My head swirls with thoughts, but I come up empty.

  No one knows this secret, and I've kept it for years.

  I've been careful to keep this from everyone.

  Olivia, Ava, Evan, Corban, Elizabeth, and Lauren.

  No one in the Darlington family is aware.

  No one in my family is aware.

  Ava senior's entire estate is under my control, as her state has been rapidly deteriorating.

  She needs someone to make decisions for her.

  She didn't trust Lauren, nor Elizabeth, and she had good reason to.

  Lauren is irresponsible with money at best.

  Elizabeth?

  She would raise all hell if she found out what her mother did.

  But she's behind bars now.

  “Noah what if Elizabeth got to my mother somehow?” Corban asks, deep in thought.

  “What if she got to my mother before she went to jail?” he continues.

  “You think your mother would do that?” I question, bewildered at his thought process.

  “Well, if my mother wants to get to you, somehow, who would be better to help her than your old nemesis? It can't be a mistake how long it took you to find Ava. With the two of you married, it would've been easy enough for her to distract you,” Corban lays it out for me.

  His theory works.

  “If Elizabeth approached her, she probably would've readily agreed to do whatever Elizabeth wanted,” I agree with him.

  “Even hurt me? My family?” Corban looks unsettled.

  “You didn't have a family, or Ava when this all started,” I tell him.

  “She did always hate that we were close, you and I,” Corban adds.

  “She wanted me to have nothing to do with you after the divorce. I simply didn't listen,” My words enlighten Corban.

  “Goddamnit,” His face reddens.

  “Why can't she just be a regular mother? One who calls too much and fawns over me?” His voice is filled with anger.

  I don't have an answer for that.

  “Honestly? Fuck. My father's dead, my mother, will do anything to destroy you, probably. Even if that means hurting my family,” He shakes his head.

  “Noah?” Corban says my name.

  “Yeah?” I ask.

  “Whatever you are going to do,” Corban tells me earnestly.

  “I want in. I don't care if she's my mother, I want in,” he pleads.

  “I don't even know what I'm going to do yet,” My response leaves him unsettled.

  “We can't just stand by and let her sneak around like this! People have to know! Someone has to know!” Corban’s voice is so loud I wonder if he'll scream for a moment.

  “Who?” I ask him calmly.

  “Do we call the police and tell him your mother is acting suspiciously? We'd be laughed off the phone,” I shake my head.

  “Impasse,” that’s all Corban says.

  He's right.

  I've got no proof that Olivia is up to something, just some idle threats.

  And what does she have?

  Something.

  She has to have something, or she wouldn't persist.

  “I have an idea,” I tell Corban.

  “What?” He asks.

  “There's a woman she hates as much as me. Probably because we're close. If she's been threatening me, I'm sure those threats extend to her as well,” My explanation isn't that solid.

  “Who are you talking about?” Corban asks perplexed.

  “Lauren Darlington,” I smirk.

  Corban nods in agreement.

  “You're right,” he nods.

  “I heard about how awful Lauren is for months after your wedding, and mostly because she was there,” Corban sighs.

  Lauren's cell barely rings before she picks it up.

  “Hello?”

  Her tone is irregular like she's angry.

  “It's Noah,” I say.

  “Sorry,” Lauren apologizes.

  “I'm waiting for a call from London, and they're taking their bloody time getting on about this,” She explains.

  “I'm trying to sell my flat, and my realtor is giving me the runaround. I might have to find someone else to sell it if this keeps up,” She groans.

  “You're selling your flat?” I ask.

  “I'm going to live in New York full-time now; I've secured a new job. I didn't want to say anything until the contract was finalized,” Lauren admits.

  “That's wonderful,” I am elated.

  Having her here is the best thing that could've happened.

  “Shall we have dinner then? Tonight?” she purrs into the phone.

  “Yes, I had something to ask you anyway,” I agree.

  “Perfect. I'll meet you at eight at the bar we always go to in So-Ho,” She finalizes our plans.

  When I arrive promptly at eight Lauren is already sitting a
t the bar.

  The place is a total dive with cheap drinks and loud music that draws in a lively crowd.

  I grab two drinks for us and make my way to a worn out leather booth in the back.

  The booth is too near the energetic band, belting out songs I don't know, to have a proper conversation.

  But no one is sure to hear us.

  She has to bend over the table to speak.

  “Why did you choose this booth, exactly?"

  Her voice is loud enough for me to hear, but the music will drown out her words for anyone sitting near us.

  “We need to talk,” I tell her, “About Olivia Winthrop,”

  Lauren's face immediately drains of color.

  I was right.

  “She's trying to blackmail you, isn't she?” I conclude.

  Lauren nods slowly.

  “Now I see why you picked this booth,” She smiles at me.

  But there's something behind her smile that is unsettled.

  “I thought it was me, that I'd done something to enrage her. Probably just my association with you, but I didn't think she'd have the gall to taunt you as well,” she explains quickly.

  “Well, you were wrong,” I growl.

  Lauren's face reddens with anger.

  “How could she do this! What is with her obsession with you!” her scream is drowned out by the music and the buzz of the crowd around us.

  “She's probably just infuriated,” I shout back.

  “I divorced her for someone else, not the other way around. She's had it out for me ever since the divorce!” I continue to scream.

  “What does it matter! She's been married ten times since then!” Lauren is genuinely screaming now.

  “How the hell does this woman think she has any right to do this!”

  The sight of Lauren enraged makes me unsettled.

  “What has she done to you?” I ask, my voice low.

  Lauren goes even redder.

  “She's blackmailed me into doing things I don't want to do! There's a sex tape I didn't know about. I have no choice, but to bend to her will. I didn't have a choice, Noah,” Lauren's voice is pleading.

  “So?” I prod.

  “She's had me trying to cause problems between you and Tinsley," she says.

  Her confession is startling to me.

  “What!” I yell over the din.

  “She pays those wretched paps to follow me around. To plant all those god-awful stories about us for Tinsley to see,” she admits, embarrassed.

  “Noah I'm sorry! I didn't want to do it! I had to! I can't let anything ruin my reputation here, or otherwise, especially with everything hinged on this job offer!” Lauren pleads.

  “Lauren it's not your fault,” I accept her apology.

  “I know you wouldn't do that maliciously to hurt me. I trust you,” I soothe her.

  “Thank you!” Lauren cries, near tears.

  “Don't, don't think anything of it. Tinsley and I are fine. You've done nothing wrong. All you did was protect yourself,” I tell her.

  Lauren grasps my hand, and I watch tears spill down her cheeks for the first time in my life.

  Lauren never cries.

  Ever.

  “Come here,” I comfort her.

  When she shakes her head, I move around to the other side of the booth and pull her into my arms. She hugs me back warmly.

  When Lauren begins to cry into my chest, I know Olivia has truly done her worst.

  “She won't get away with this,” I tell Lauren.

  “What do I do?” She pleas for help.

  “Do what she asks you to do,” I tell her.

  “Go along with whatever she wants, just do it,” I add.

  “And then what?” her voice is distressed.

  This only makes me only want to comfort her further.

  “I'll find a way to end this all,” I lie to her.

  I'm not entirely sure where to go from here.

  I've only proved that Lauren has been sucked into this chaotic frenzy by my crazy ex-wife.

  32

  Tinsley

  October 28, 2017

  Athena's birthday party, at some hot new restaurant, is the last place I want to be.

  In fact, I would rather be in bed with Noah, or anywhere else.

  I'd instead be stranded on a deserted island than here.

  That's because Lauren Darlington and Athena are such good friends.

  She's also not pregnant, and easily one of the most beautiful women in the room.

  I feel like chopped liver next to her because no one wants to talk to a pregnant woman.

  At least that's how I feel.

  Especially when she has the attention of every man in the room.

  “What's wrong?” Evan whispers to me.

  “I... I can't explain it. I feel unattractive right now,” I admit.

  “Well, every man in the room is looking at you. You're pregnant and gorgeous,” He says.

  “Really?” I ask uncertainly.

  For the first time in my life, I feel uncomfortable in my skin.

  “Trust me, Tinsley; you're radiant, you’ve got that pregnant glow,” Evan compliments me.

  So, I go to my happy place, and I think about Noah's child is inside me, growing fast!

  The flood of warmth I feel through my body is familiar, it’s the comfort I need.

  We have a child.

  That's all I think about.

  “Better? You just had the dreamiest look on your face,” he smirks.

  “I went to my happy place,” I tell him.

  Then I pat my belly and laugh at him and tune back into the conversation.

  At the wrong moment.

  “So, Lauren,” Athena is especially proper today, with her hair in an elegant bun, in a beautiful dress that flares out after her tiny waist in an emerald shade.

  “I've been reading things in those vulgar tabloids, about you and Noah?” Athena prods.

  “You read those things?” Lauren scoffs.

  “I don't indulge in that,” She adds.

  “It's a good way to spice up an otherwise boring night,” Athena's laugh makes the whole table laugh.

  “But seriously Lauren, what is going on with you and my dear brother?” Athena gets straight to her point.

  Lauren gives us all a secretive smile.

  “Well, there may have been some developments,” She adds with a blush.

  “Oh?” Athena purrs.

  Athena is suddenly very curious.

  “Well we've had lunch a couple of times, but after the gala, he took me to the top of the Empire State building, and we all alone, looking out over the city. He confessed that he missed me,” she says.

  I was with Noah that night.

  “And then we went for dinner a couple of nights ago; there was a kiss here and there,” She smirks

  Athena claps with delight before she indulges Lauren further.

  “Oh finally! It's taken ages, but you and my brother truly belong together! All the history between you is too much!” Athena crows.

  She’s a little drunk.

  Did she forget I’m here?

  “I'm glad you're happy, I know I don't have the best reputation,” Lauren smiles back her, her eyes diverting to me.

  “Have you slept together yet?” Athena is drunk enough to ask about her brother's sex life.

  No, he hasn't.

  He hasn't slept with Lauren goddamn Darlington because he's I am the love of his life.

  I know that.

  “Not yet, but I suspect it will be fantastic,” Lauren’s voice drips with innuendo.

  Her seductive smile makes me want to smack her.

  Smack that pretty little grin right off her fucking face.

  The more Athena drinks, the wilder she becomes.

  This is why she probably doesn't drink that often.

  Lauren bothers me so much that I ignore a slight cramp.

  Over white wine, for them not me, and delicious Asian-Fu
sion dishes, they continue to discuss Lauren's sex life.

  “And how are you going to deal, with only having one man?” Athena queries.

  “Sometimes, one is enough,” Lauren's voice is soft.

  “We have to start planning your wedding!” Athena screams.

  She’s way too into this. She’s ahead by miles.

  “Well, I suspect it won't be a couple of months before he proposes,” Lauren agrees.

  Then she smiles right at me.

  Evan gives me a look.

  Then he leans in to whisper.

  “What the hell is she talking about?”

  “I think that's for my benefit,” I whisper back.

  The cramps get worse.

  I need to get out of here.

  I need to see a doctor

  My throat begins to close, and I can't breathe.

  “Evan,” I grab his arm.

  “Something's wrong,” I whisper.

  “What?” He's suddenly full of panic.

  “I can feel something's wrong,” I repeat.

  “Well don't worry, I'm going to get you to the hospital. Right now,” He stands up.

  “Sorry ladies but we have to go, Tinsley's having a bit of a problem,” he’s so loud several people look at him.

  “Oh, so soon?” Lauren asks.

  This, of course, is accompanied by the most pathetic puppy eyes in Evan’s direction.

  Of course, she'd try to sink her teeth into him as well.

  “Lauren, she's having cramps. She's pregnant. Can you shut up for once?” Evan barks at her.

  Athena looks stunned as Evan whisks me out of the restaurant in record time.

  One cab ride later, and a few panicked minutes in the emergency room, I lay in a hospital bed, with all sorts of machines strapped across my belly.

  “The baby is fine,” the emergency doctor reports.

  “What you experienced, during pregnancy is quite normal, but you did the right thing by coming in,” the doctor adds.

  “Oh, thank god!” I cry with relief.

  “Thank god,” Evan sighs.

  Evan looks significantly less pale than he did before.

  “Holy shit, I thought we had a real problem on our hands,” he continues.

  “So did I,” I admit.

  Barely able to see through my tears, I take Evan's hand in mine, thankful that all of this was just nothing.