“Maybe Mom will want to eat with us,” she whined. “You haven’t been spending much time with us at all. You’re gone every weekend, you know. We hardly ever see you. All we wanted was to go to dinner with you and spend a little time with you.”
Guilt over how little time I had spent with my daughters began to set in. “Look, how about we plan it for tomorrow, Lauren?” Surely I would have this thing with Emma straightened out by then.
“Okay, fine. Here’s the real reason we wanted to talk to you tonight,” she confessed. “There’s this little island in the Caribbean that Ashley and I saw on the internet, and it’s for sale, Daddy! We want you to buy it for us.”
I should’ve known they wanted something.
“I’m not buying you girls an island.” I’d grown more and more aggravated with my daughters the past few months. They really had no aspirations at all, except to spend as much of my money as they possibly could. “But you’re right, we do need to talk. Not about what you want me to buy, but about what I want the two of you to start doing. It’s time to make some changes. It’s time for you and your sister to stop following in your mother’s footsteps and take a page out of my book for a change.”
“What does that even mean?” she asked, sounding confused.
“I’ll get into it much deeper tomorrow night, when you, your sister, and I have a little sit-down.” I heard the phone beep and saw Emma’s name finally pop up on my screen. “I’ve gotta go.” Swiping the screen, I answered the call, “Emma?”
Her voice sounded thick, like she’d been crying, “Christopher, I’m sorry. I swear to God that I never meant for this to happen. I don’t want you to worry. I’ll disappear.”
“No!” I shouted. “Don’t disappear, baby!”
“I’ve got to. It’s the only thing I can do now that I’ve messed up so badly.” She broke down then, crying uncontrollably before saying, “I’m pregnant.” And then she ended the call, just like that.
Time stopped. My entire body went numb.
She’s pregnant?
Chapter 22
Emma
“Who is he, Emma?” Valerie asked me as I dropped my cell on the bed and cried for the umpteenth time in the last six hours.
“I can’t tell you,” I whimpered.
“You can and you will.” She pulled me up off the bed to make me look at her. “I know that I don’t know this guy, but he sounded older to me. He’s an older man, isn’t he?”
I nodded. “Yeah.” She could know that much.
“Okay,” she let me go, and I fell right back on the bed like a limp noodle. “Since he’s older, you guys might not have as big a problem as you think you do.” She picked me back up. “Unless this guy is married. Is he married, Emma?”
“No!” I said, a little outraged that she’d think I’d have an affair with a married man. I fell back on the bed again as she let me go.
“You need to stop that crying and start talking, girl. Because this makes no sense to me.” She sat back down on her own bed, which was only a few feet across from the one I was on. Thankfully her roommate had agreed to stay at a friend’s place for the rest of the day so I could be with Val alone. “So, dry it up and start talking.”
Shaking my head, I sat up but knew there was no way in the world to fix this. I wiped my nose with the back of my hand, and she made a face before throwing a handful of old napkins at me that she grabbed from her nightstand.
After blowing my nose, I said, “Look, we can’t come clean about what we’ve been doing. I’ve already told you that.”
“I want the whole story, and I’ll decide that for myself.” She crossed her arms over her chest and gave me a demanding look. “Let’s start simple. What is his name?”
I wasn’t planning on telling anyone his name. “No.”
“Yes!” she spat at me. “And right now, Emma Hancock!”
If I wanted her help, I knew I would have to come clean, so I just went for it. “Christopher Taylor.”
“See how easy that was?” She smiled at me then asked, “And why can’t you two see each other in the open?”
“He’s my boss. He’s my father’s boss. And he’s my father’s old college friend.” I wiped my eyes with the napkins then took a deep breath. “I’ve really got to stop crying and start trying to figure out what I’m going to do. I can’t stay here forever, that much is obvious.”
“Are he and your dad friends now?” Val asked. She had a contemplative look on her, and I could only hope she was coming up with some sort of plan.
“They are.” I knew it was utterly hopeless, but Val clearly hadn’t come to terms with that yet. “Do you know if they still have homes for unwed mothers the way they used to in the old days?” I asked, trying to think up a plan of my own.
She shook her head. “I don’t think so. Now, tell me more about this man. I can see how he wouldn’t want to end his friendship with your father, but does he have any other reasons he doesn’t want this getting out?”
“His daughters are pretty mean, I think. He doesn’t want them to bother me, he said.” I thought about what else I could do, since there probably weren’t any homes for unwed mothers anymore. “Maybe I could get a job at a daycare, and that way I could learn how to take care of this baby. Then when he’s born, I can keep him at the daycare with me. It’s a win-win.”
“Do you honestly think that working at a daycare will pay enough to put a roof over your head and raise a child, Emma?” She looked up at the ceiling as if that was the stupidest idea in the history of stupid ideas. “This man is the boss of the company you work for. That means he’s got to have money, which he can use to pay you child support. So, does he have money?”
I nodded. “He’s a billionaire.”
Valerie gulped as her eyes went wide. “A billionaire? Are you for real?”
“I am for real. But to secure any child support from him, I’d have to tell our secret, and I can’t do that.” Didn’t she remember how my father really was? “You do remember my dad, right? I mean, the reason we’ve kept this a secret is mostly because of him.”
Valerie stared at me, the creases in her forehead and the way her lips pulled to one side told me she had something to say to that. “Emma, you do realize that your father will find out that you’re pregnant eventually—and he won’t stop until you tell him who the father is.”
She’s right.
“Well, I’ll just have to never see my parents again, I suppose.” The thought made my heart hurt. “I’m going to miss them. And I’m going to miss Christopher, too. I’m even going to miss Mrs. Kramer.” And then another round of tears start up.
I’d never felt so alone in my life. All I had now was Valerie, and that just wasn’t going to be enough. I fell back on the bed, putting my hands over my face as I felt the weight of responsibility for not only myself, but now a child, too.
Val took me by the shoulders and pulled me back up. “Okay, you’ve gotta stop doing that. It’s not helping anything. Here’s what I think you should do. Call the baby-daddy back and tell him he’s gotta come up with something. He’s a grown man; he’ll figure something out. You are, for lack of a better word, immature.”
“Am not!” I whined. But deep inside I knew Valerie was right.
I’d been babied by my parents my whole life, and while I’d done a lot of growing up in the last few months, I was nowhere near mature enough to raise a baby on my own. But I had absolutely no idea what to do about my predicament...
“But I can’t call him and just tell him to solve all my problems. I can’t put this on his shoulders. It’s the woman’s responsibility to make sure she’s covered when it comes to birth control. I’ve always felt strongly about that. And I didn’t even think about it for even one second. It’s my fault, so I’ll figure out how to deal with it. I’m sure there’s a hotline I can call. I’ll just go get a motel and make the call and get out of your hair.”
Val didn’t move. She held me there by my shoulders. �
��You will not do any such thing, and you’re not in my hair. Look, Emma, you’ve kept yourself alienated your whole life. You never ask for help, even when you need it desperately. I don’t know why you do that, but you’ve gotta stop.
And cut out that nonsense about it being the woman’s responsibility—it takes two to tango, and if he didn’t want a kid he should’ve thought about that too. You’re not alone in this. There’s a baby growing inside of you now. And if you don’t take care of yourself, then you won’t just be hurting yourself anymore, you’ll be hurting him too.” She pointed at my stomach. “Now, I know you don’t want to hurt little junior there.”
“No, I don’t.” I put my hand on my stomach. “I wonder if it’ll be a boy or a girl? I wonder if one is easier to take care of than the other? Do you think Christopher will ever forgive me for this?”
“I’m sure he already has.” Val sat on the bed next to me, wrapping her arm around my shoulders. “Give the man a call, Emma. Give him the chance to step up and do what’s right. If he doesn’t do what’s right, then we can go from there, but you have to give him a chance. You said he’s got daughters. He’s a father already. I doubt he’ll want this child to go through life without him.”
“But I’m so embarrassed. And I’m ashamed, Val,” I admitted. “I’ve lied for so long about where I’ve been going on the weekends; I’ll have to explain all those lies if I came clean about everything.”
“That’s usually what coming clean involves, Emma—revealing all your lies.” She laughed lightly. “You won’t be the first or last person to get caught in a lie.”
“Yeah, but I don’t have to get caught in it. I can just go away and live my life without my parents. Lots of people have done that,” I said.
“As if your parents wouldn’t hunt your ass down, Emma.” She let me go and stood up. “The reality of your situation is that you can run for now, but they will catch up to you. Your parents will find out about this baby. And one day they will find out that Christopher Taylor is that baby’s father. Now you can grow up and tell them about this to their faces, or you can hide like a little kid—the kid they think you are.”
She was right, and I knew that. But I couldn’t ask Christopher for help. “Then I’ll tell them. But I can’t do it yet. I’ve got to let some time pass. I’ve got to give myself some time to accept this.” I was teetering on the edge of insanity as it was; I couldn’t go to my parents just yet.
Val’s phone made a dinging sound, and she pulled it out of her pocket. “I’ve gotta go to the bathroom.”
Valerie had lots of friends. I knew if I stayed around that I’d get in her way. I needed to leave. I needed to get to a motel and find a hotline so I could get the help I needed.
She meant well, I knew that. But she just didn’t understand the relationship I had with my parents or my relationship with Christopher. Valerie’s advice, while spot on, wouldn’t work for me. I was wasting her time and energy.
Patting my tummy, I whispered, “It looks like it’s just going to be you and me.”
Valerie was all smiles as she came out of the bathroom. “How about a bottle of water, Emma? You should drink lots of water. I think that would be good for the baby, and you’ve cried so much, you’re probably a little dehydrated.” She went to the minifridge and pulled out a couple of bottles; walking back toward me, she held one out for me.
I took it and then unscrewed the lid. “Valerie, you’re a great friend. I’m going to get going and find a motel. I want to take a long bath and just relax. I appreciate your advice, I really do, but I’ve got decisions to make, and I need to be on my own to make them.”
She sat down on her bed. “Did you bring a bag with you?”
As I drank the water, I thought about what she’d asked and nearly choked on it. “Damn! No. I didn’t bring anything, other than my purse.”
She nodded. “Yeah, I thought so. How much money do you have?”
“A few thousand in the bank. I’ve got my bank card and my credit card with me.” I thought about the cost of buying new clothes, paying for a motel, and filling my gas tank. And then I realized that I had the company car. “Damn! Damn! Damn!”
Val got up, turning her back to me. “You didn’t drive your car here, did you? You brought the one the company lets you drive, didn’t you?”
“Okay, Valerie. Here’s what I’m going to need you to do.” I put on my thinking cap. “Drive my company car back to Manchester. Go to my house and pack up everything of mine that you possibly can. You’ll have to do this in the middle of the night while my parents are sleeping. I’ll give you the code to the security system. Park the company car in the garage and bring my old car back here to me, then I’ll have my car and my things.” It was the perfect plan.
“Sure, I could do that for you, Emma.” She turned back to look at me. “But what good would that really do in the long run?”
A knock sounded at the door, and she went to answer it. “I’ve got a much better idea.”
I couldn’t think of a better idea, but I was willing to hear hers. She opened the door as I got up to go wash my face.
“Emma?” a deep voice called out to me.
I didn’t have to turn around to know who was at the door. And I knew things were out of my hands now.
How could she?
Chapter 23
Christopher
“Emma?” I watched her body freeze up at the sound of my voice. “Baby, I’m here for you.” I walked into the small dorm room that belonged to her friend.
Thank God Valerie had answered my message when I arrived at Columbia. I knew Emma had to be there somewhere, but I had no idea where. Valerie had responded to my message with the number to her room, and I came straight away to get my girl back.
Emma still hadn’t moved so much as a muscle. I wrapped my arms around her from behind and kissed the top of her head. It felt so good to have her back in my arms.
“You shouldn’t have come,” Emma whispered. “She shouldn’t have told you where I was.”
“I had to,” her friend said as she came to stand in front of her. “I’m not letting you run, Emma. He’s come here for you, and I’m not about to let you make the biggest mistake of your life by trying to do this on your own.”
I had to hand it to the young lady, Valerie was an excellent friend. “Thank you for letting me up here, Valerie. After Emma called, I knew there was only one place she’d be, and that was with you.”
“I’ll leave you guys alone.” Val looked at me with a soft smile. “It’s nice to meet you, Christopher. Do right by my friend, please.”
“I will, I can promise you that.” I turned Emma in my arms, and she buried her face in my chest as her arms wrapped around me. “We’ll lock up when we leave.”
“Thank you,” Valerie said just before she walked out the door. “Love you, Emma. Call me later.”
Alone at last with the young woman who carried my child, I knew I had to let her know how I really felt about her. “Emma, I want you to know that I love you. I want you to know that I’m here for you and this child. And we’re going to tell everyone about us now. No more hiding.”
Her arms tightened around me. “I love you, too. But I’m so scared.”
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little scared as well, but she needed me to be strong for her. “There’s no reason to be afraid. You’re not alone in this. You shouldn’t have run off, baby. You scared me to death, you know.”
She looked up at me with red-rimmed eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry about everything. I should’ve been on birth control or made sure we used condoms, but I never even thought about it. If I’d been smarter, then this wouldn’t have happened.”
Swaying back and forth with her in my arms, I could do nothing else but smile into her eyes. “Don’t blame yourself—I wasn’t thinking about birth control either. And I’m glad this happened.”
Slowly her expression transformed into disbelief. “You can’t be glad about this. Don’t l
ie, Christopher.”
“I’m not lying.” I pulled her along with me to sit on one of the small beds and then I pulled her onto my lap. “At first I was shocked and numb, but then it started to sink in. We’re having a baby. You and I are really having a baby. And I’ve never been happier in my entire life.” I knew my smile matched my words, and I couldn’t have wiped it off my face if I tried. “I’ve also never loved anyone the way I love you. Having a baby is exactly the right thing for us to do, Emma. Can’t you see that? This child is a product of our love. Nothing could make me happier.”
Her brow furrowed, she still did not look convinced. “This isn’t going to go well. This will not be easy. I have no idea how my father will react, but it won’t be good at all. And I’m sure your daughters won’t be jumping up and down with joy either.”
“I don’t care. They can all get the hell over it, baby. First of all, you won’t be living at home with your parents anymore. You’ll be moving in with me in my home.” Watching her reaction, I wasn’t exactly pleased.
Her face melted and paled. “No! Your daughters will hate me, Christopher!”
“I don’t want you to worry about them. If they don’t treat you right, they’ll have to move out.” I wasn’t about to let them make Emma’s life uncomfortable in the least. “I mean it. If they say one bad word to you, I want to know about it. No one, including your father, is going to say a harsh word to you, or they’ll have to deal with me.”
Slowly, her expression began to change. Trust began to glow in her eyes. “That’s so much for you to take on.”
I kissed her lips softly. “I can take it on, Emma. I want to take it on, don’t worry about that. Come home with me now.”
“I guess that’s the best thing for me to do. We can weather this together, I think, no matter how many people will hate this.” She looked into my eyes as she ran her hand over my cheek. “I do love you. And hearing you say all that stuff about us having a baby makes me so happy. I’ve been such a mess since I saw that stick this morning. But you’re here, and you’re making me feel very safe, very happy—very taken care of.”
His Secret Virgin: A Forbidden Romance (The Sons of Sin Book 3) Page 14