Seduced by the Billionaire: The Complete Collection

by Lee, Nadia

  Chapter Nineteen

  Meredith pulled her coat closer as the chilly November afternoon air drifted between the trees and gravestones. The overcast sky had leached all the warmth out of the day, and coldness pressed around her, heavy and thick. She carried a big bouquet of orange daisies and tiger lilies. This was such a familiar ritual—visiting Judy on the tenth of every month.

  The cemetery was well-kept and beautiful. Thank god for that. She’d worried that Judy’s father might have selected the cheapest plot available. Given how little he’d thought of his daughter, that wouldn’t have surprised Meredith at all. The familiar elderly groundskeeper puttered about, and she gave him a small smile like always and placed the flowers before the headstone that read:

  Judith Patricia Aylster

  Beloved Daughter and Sister

  Meredith shook her head. Beloved sister, yes, but beloved daughter? Hardly.

  “Hey, Judy,” she said. “Hope you’ve been doing well. Eric’s been doing great since my last visit. He’s a much better golfer—thanks to Barron—and he’s learning how to play chess. I don’t think he has the patience and focus to come anywhere close to beating Alex, but he’s not doing too bad.”

  She pulled out her phone and tapped for the latest photo of Eric. He had his arm around Bear and grinned up at the camera. In front of him was a chessboard. She flipped the phone, its screen pointed at Judy’s grave.

  “See? Isn’t he handsome?” Meredith smiled. “He’s such a great kid. He’s also learning to cook basic things from Ethan. It’s better this way because, you know, I’m not at all great. I think Ethan’s sort of bitter I got our grandmother’s Griswold cast-iron waffle iron. He’d been coveting it for a while.” She put the phone away. “Oh, and recently, Eric met your brother. I don’t think Daniel suspects anything. I haven’t told him the truth. Hope you don’t mind. I just couldn’t… I can’t risk losing Eric.” A long sigh. “But I’m worried, too… How can long I keep it from him? We’re, um, sleeping together now, and that complicates things.” She pressed her lips together. “I wish you were here, Judy. You were one of the most fearless people in the world. You’d know how I can tell the truth to Daniel without losing Eric.”

  “Meredith?”

  Meredith yelped and spun around; Natalie was standing behind her. As usual, she was well-dressed in a dark, coffee-colored turtleneck sweater, pale knee-length skirt and matching boots. A long coat was draped around her shoulders.

  “Natalie! Oh my goodness, you scared me. What are you doing here?” Meredith asked, her voice chalk-dry.

  “Sorry. I was looking at a plot that my great-aunt wants me to ‘evaluate.’ She thinks I’m some kind of feng-shui expert or something.” Natalie’s brows creased. “Are you all right? You’re so pale.”

  “Yes, I’m fine. I was just…thinking.”

  “Actually, you were kind of talking out loud.” Natalie stopped, looking a little uncomfortable.

  Oh god. Meredith licked her lips, but it only seemed to make her mouth drier. “How much did you hear?”

  “Some.” Natalie’s gaze wavered. “What’s the relationship between Eric and Daniel?”

  “Oh my god.” Meredith put her hands over her face and found they were shaking. “Please, you can’t tell anybody.”

  “I don’t know anything to tell.” Natalie placed a gentle hand on Meredith’s shoulder. “Is Daniel Eric’s father?”

  “No,” she said faintly. “Daniel’s not Eric’s father. I don’t know who Eric’s father is. You have to believe me.”

  “Okay.”

  Meredith pressed her knuckles against her mouth and blinked away tears. She’d never told her secret to anybody, not even her mother, and she didn’t know if she could tell Natalie now. A part of her shriveled at that—Natalie was just trying to help—and Meredith wished she could open up and finally unburden herself. It’s been ten years!

  But did she want to stick Natalie in the middle of the mess? If Natalie knew, she might feel obligated to do something. Meredith was certain that her actions back in Europe were most likely criminal if somebody wanted to press charges.

  “Meredith,” Natalie said. “No matter what, I’m on your side. I want you to know you can count on me.”

  Meredith shook her head. “You don’t know what I’ve done.”

  “I don’t need to know. You’re one of the nicest people in the world. And hey, all of us were a little wild when we were younger. As long as we learn and move on, we’re all right.”

  Meredith tilted her head. “You think I…” She blinked a few times. That was such an amusing view…that she’d been some promiscuous wild child. Meredith choked back a laugh. “No, nothing like that.” She sobered. “It’s much worse.” She checked to make sure no one else was around, then leaned toward Natalie and whispered, “Eric’s not my son.”

  * * *

  Claude tapped his fingers on his office desk as he listened to the man on the phone give him a litany of excuses about the steps he’d taken and how none of them had succeeded. Why didn’t people understand that the world didn’t reward failure? Claude let out an impatient sigh. “So what are you saying, Frankie? Can you or can you not find out?”

  “We can…if you’re okay with us grabbing some of the kid’s DNA. His mother’s too.”

  “Then why don’t you do that?”

  “It could be a little dicey.”

  “How so?”

  “Possible breaking and entering.”

  Claude snorted. “You’ll just have to make sure not to get caught.” Men needed gumption to succeed in life. “And while you’re in her house, see about any legal documents pertaining to the kid, got it?”

  “No problem. Anything else?”

  Claude considered. The DNA test would prove once and for all whether Eric was really Meredith’s. All this work would be for nothing if he was, but if he wasn’t… Wouldn’t it be nice to know who he was related to? “Yes. Send somebody to my place to get a DNA sample from me as well.”

  “For what?”

  “To find out if my hunch is right. I’ll pay you extra for the work.” Claude hung up with a smile. His instincts had never led him wrong. He saw no reason why they should disappoint him now.

  * * *

  “What?” Natalie’s eyes were as big as the daisies Meredith had left on Judy’s grave. “How… What are you saying?”

  “I mean, he’s my son, I’ve raised him…but biologically speaking he’s not.”

  “So you adopted him?” Natalie’s expression softened a bit. “Nothing wrong with that.”

  “No. Um. I…” Meredith drew in a ragged breath. “I took him from a hospital in Istanbul.”

  Natalie’s hand covered her mouth. “Oh my god, Meredith! You stole him?”

  Meredith couldn’t speak through the lump in her throat.

  “That’s kidnapping,” Natalie whispered. “I don’t even know if there’s a statute of limitations on that, especially with the international laws involved. Oh my god. What made you do it?”

  “He’s Judy’s son.”

  “Judy who?”

  Meredith gestured at the grave in front of them. “Judy Aylster. Daniel’s sister. She passed away ten years ago in Istanbul.”

  Natalie stared at the gravestone, her mouth slightly open. Finally she said, “Does her family know?”

  “I couldn’t… There wasn’t…” Meredith shook her head. “Nobody knows.”

  “Why don’t you tell me the story.”

  Meredith took a deep breath. “About ten and a half years ago, Judy asked me out of the blue to go on a trip to Europe. She said she wanted to see the world before she committed to going to college and so on. So I was like, why not? We were eighteen at the time, and it sounded like fun.” She looked out over the rows of gravestones, remembering. “Then I started to notice she didn’t feel so great. She kept getting nauseous, so I thought maybe she just wasn’t adjusting to the food or something. I suggested returning to the States, but she i
nsisted we stay in Europe. I thought she didn’t want to go back because of her father. They…didn’t get along.”

  Natalie nodded.

  “But it turned out she was pregnant. She’d decided to go to Europe when she was past her first trimester and knew she was going to have the baby. But she couldn’t tell her father. He was always so judgmental, and ultra-conservative when it came to his daughter. So I promised to keep it a secret from her family too.”

  “What was she going to do with the baby? You can’t hide something like that from your family forever.”

  “She was going to travel for several months, have it in England and then give it up for adoption.”

  “Ah.”

  “But the baby came really early. We were still in Istanbul, and she started having contractions. I drove her to the hospital, but we were hit by a driver who ran a light. I don’t remember much about what happened after that. I woke up in the hospital. I was just so…out of it. Probably in shock too.” Tears stung Meredith’s eyes. “When I asked the nurse how Judy was doing, she said she wasn’t going to make it. I sat with her while she drew her last breaths.”

  “Oh no. I’m so sorry.” Natalie reached over and squeezed Meredith’s hand.

  “Thankfully the baby survived. The nurse said it was a miracle. They told me they found Judy’s papers, so they’d contacted her parents already. They asked me about mine, but I guess my bag got lost in the chaos or something because I couldn’t find it. I was on my way to a public phone to call home when I heard Judy’s father.” The memory was so emblazoned in her mind, she could never forget the hatefulness of the scene. “He was furious that she was dead. He called her a stupid child who didn’t know her place in the world. She should’ve stayed home where she belonged and behaved because then she would’ve lived. But because she was stupid and wanted to be wild and irresponsible, she got herself killed. He kept saying, ‘You asked for it, Judy. You asked for it.’”

  “Oh my god,” Natalie said.

  “I told the nurse I didn’t want to bother her family and we returned to my room. Another nurse from the nursery came. She was holding a baby…Judy’s baby, and she handed him to me and asked, ‘Is this your baby? You’re the only American woman registered at the hospital.’” Meredith took a fortifying breath. “Then I knew the hospital had made a mistake. They didn’t have the paperwork straight, and they hadn’t filled out the birth certificate or anything. I was about to tell them he was Judy’s but the baby gurgled and gripped my finger. Like he didn’t want me to tell them…like he wanted me to love him. And I fell in love with him that instant. He was mine. Judy wasn’t going to keep him anyway, and I certainly wasn’t going to give him to be raised by her father. He was a horrible, horrible man with no capacity for love.” Her lips trembled, and she pressed them to control herself. “I called Ethan for help. I couldn’t call my mom. She knew I couldn’t have children, and I didn’t want her to stop me.”

  Natalie gasped. “You can’t have children?”

  Meredith shook her head. “My uterus is malformed or something. My doctor told me it wasn’t going to happen for me. Mom knew, but my brothers never found out. It’s not something you can just…bring up, you know?” She wiped the tears impatiently. She’d known it since she was sixteen. Why was she still letting it bother her? She had Eric, the most perfect child any mother could ask for.

  “Meredith, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  “Ethan didn’t ask any questions until Eric and I came home.” Meredith had to let it all out before she lost her courage. “He and Gavin wanted to know who had fathered the baby, but what could I say? I had no idea. Judy never told me, and I never asked. I figured she’d tell me when she was ready, but then…” Meredith shook her head. “The fact that the guy never offered to make things right let me know he wasn’t worth it, and she wanted to move on. Thankfully my mother never said anything, and I never explained the situation to her either. It was easier to pretend.

  “But now things are different. There’s Daniel to consider. If he were anyone but Judy’s brother, I wouldn’t say anything, but I feel so wrong about keeping him in the dark. At the same time I don’t know how I can tell him. It’ll just…kill whatever he feels for me.”

  “Do you love him?”

  Meredith nodded miserably. “Sometimes I wish I didn’t. Then it would be so much easier. But I can’t ignore what’s in my heart.”

  “I think you should tell him. He might surprise you. If his father was such an awful person, maybe Daniel will agree that you did the right thing by taking the baby away.”

  “I don’t know. He’s got this weird idea that people change and that nothing good in the world is lasting. If I tell him, won’t it make him think the absolute worst of me?”

  “But keeping it to yourself will be worse. I mean, unless you’re certain that’s how you want your relationship to be. If somehow he finds out the truth on his own…”

  “I know!” Meredith buried her teary face in her hands. “How could I have made such a mess out of everything?”

  “Because you’re a loving person.” Natalie hugged her. “Whatever mistake you may have made, you did it out of love. There’s nothing more forgivable than that.”

  That only made Meredith sob harder.

  “You deserve to be happy, Meredith. You’re one person who truly deserves to find a man who loves you for all that you are because you’re just that wonderful. I’ve never met anybody as pure in heart as you.”

  “Except for the Eric part,” Meredith whispered.

  “Especially for the Eric part. Don’t forget you’re not alone,” Natalie said with a gentle smile. “No matter what happens, I’ll always stand by you.”

  “Oh my god, you’re the best.” Pure gratitude surged inside her, and Meredith threw her arms around Natalie.

  Natalie hugged her back. “Of course I am. Now give me a smile and let’s get out of here.”

  Chapter Twenty

  That evening after work, Meredith drove to her place. She couldn’t remember what she’d done all day long. Ever since running into Natalie at the cemetery, she hadn’t been able to focus on anything. Natalie was right. She should tell Daniel everything.

  Except she didn’t know how. She didn’t have the guts to face him and tell him the whole story. How would he react? He’d be furious, wouldn’t he? Would he accuse her of all sorts of horrible things and return to Houston? Or would he understand why she’d had to do it?

  Meredith shook herself mentally and got out of her car, jingling her townhouse keys. She stopped and frowned. Somebody had left the house door ajar.

  Had Eric forgotten to close it in his excitement over…whatever boys got excited about? “Hello?” she called out.

  Only empty, silent darkness inside. She frowned and dialed Nancy. “Hey, did you bring Eric home today?”

  “No. I picked him up after school and dropped him off at his uncle’s with Bear. He supposedly has a date with his aunt.”

  “I see.”

  “Why? Is everything okay?”

  “I don’t know yet. I’ll call you back if I need anything.”

  “Okay. Do you want me to bring Eric home?”

  “Um. No. Not yet.” Meredith reached into her purse for her pepper spray. Just in case.

  You’re probably being paranoid. There’s nothing here. Nothing. Besides, even if there is somebody, it’s too late. You already gave yourself away with that hello.

  She shook herself mentally. That was not productive thinking. She went upstairs. The bathroom was empty. She glanced around, but there was nobody in there unless the intruder was hiding in the cabinet. She snorted at the idea and went to Eric’s room. Nothing looked missing there, but she couldn’t be sure. Her room looked fine also, except something seemed off about her vanity. She finally reached her home office. Icy apprehension slithered up her spine. Her papers had been gone through.

  She rushed to her desk and checked the stacks. She’d been working on the n
ew projects and figures for TLD the night before, and she’d left them in three neat piles: yes, no, maybe. About half of the proposals had made it to “maybe” and the rest had been divided between “yes” and “no.” But now there were three piles of equal height.

  Then her gaze fell on the steel document cabinet. The lock on it hung broken.

  Her heart hammering in her chest, Meredith stared at the cabinet, then the piles of documents on her desk. Her lips were so dry, not even licking them seemed to help. Maybe she really should’ve gotten a platoon of Uzi-carrying men for security like her brother Gavin had suggested. Her fingers moved on the keypads on her phone, and she heard the sound of Daniel’s voice. “Hello? Merry?”

  “Hi,” she said thinly. “I think somebody broke into my house.”

  * * *

  Daniel sat up straight in his office chair. “What? Are you all right?”

  “Yeah. I think so.”

  The tension in his chest loosened a bit. “Are you alone?”

  “I guess.”

  She guesses? “Where are you?”

  “Home. It’s seven thirty, Daniel.” Her voice had a mild, semi-confused tone.

  “Get the hell out of the house and call 9-1-1.” He jumped out his chair and reached for his coat. The workday was finished. He gestured at the VP in his office to walk with him. The man’s eyes widened slightly, but he nodded.

  “Uh. Okay,” Merry said.

  “Never mind, I’ll call the police. Just get out. Don’t do anything stupid. I’ll be there soon.” He hung up.”

  “Is everything all right?” the VP asked.

  “No. Sorry to cut the meeting short, but I really have to go.” An elevator was closing, and he ran and stuck his hand between the doors. A few people inside raised their eyebrows, but he ignored them.

  His entire body throbbed with the need to reach Merry before anything happened. She’d said she was unharmed so far. And she’d said she was alone. No, she’d guessed she was alone. Daniel shook his head. She needed better security. Her neighborhood was affluent and relatively crime-free, but that didn’t mean she was safe. Some unscrupulous asshole might find her a convenient target for ransom. Even if the family business wasn’t doing so hot, her brothers had piles of money. And it was no secret her mother and Barron Sterling lived together…and that old man had enough money to feed every hungry person in the world.