Baby for Sugar Daddy: A Secret Baby Romance (Heartstring Dating Agency Book 6)

by Lauren Wood

  Jordan didn’t have any reason to deny me, minus the more obvious ones, but we’d gotten over that, by now. Yes, my father was one of his closest friends. Yes, he was ten years older than me. Yes, in a way he’d been raised like family. But, not really around me. I’d seen him a handful of times. He was nothing like a brother to me.

  He was my lover, and I’d be damned if I was going to let him go.

  He was the ideal man that I should be with anyways. Drew didn’t understand the stress that I was under. He didn’t understand why I was such a workaholic, and in the end that was the reason that he’d broken up with me. He had wanted a woman that could be waiting at home for him, every night for dinner. She would cook meatloaf once a week and would bear him as many children as he deemed was necessary.

  Drew wanted to be the worker, the provider of the family. I had theories that I’d intimidated him, that maybe he didn’t like the fact that I was so into work, that I was bound to make more money than he was. That I’d come from money, and he hadn’t. There were so many things working against our relationship and almost no reason to keep trying to fix it.

  So, we’d let it go. When something wasn’t worth fixing, it was labeled as a piece of junk and thrown away. Our relationship had been no different.

  But none of that had been important in that janitorial closet. The only thing that my thoughts had been focused on was how hard Jordan was plunging into me, like a maniac, as if he couldn’t get enough of me. He was fucking me like it was the last time that he would ever get the chance to do so.

  There was no way that it could have been goodbye, right?

  My heart started to race. Was he really trying to break things off with me?

  My mind started to wander between every thing that had happened between the two of us. Jordan had never explicitly told me that he liked me, but, then again, I’d never explicitly told him that I liked him, either. My thoughts were moving at seventy miles per hour as I tried to focus.

  Had he thought that this was nothing more than a friends with benefits relationship? Did he think that he could end this anytime he wanted if it was convenient for him? My anger spiked. He couldn’t be serious, could he? If that was his way of saying goodbye then he was about to have another thing coming his way.

  Who did he think he was? My hand balled into a fist. I wasn’t just the kind of person that he could dump when he felt like it. I checked my phone and saw that there weren’t any missed calls or messages from him.

  I didn’t know what I was expecting. Jordan hardly ever texted or called after one of our indulgences. But, this time, I really wanted him to. Maybe it was for reassurance, or maybe it was some other reason that I wasn’t completely aware of. But, I wanted a text that told me that he was in this for the long run, that yesterday hadn’t tarnished what we had together.

  There was no way that I could forget the look that had been on his face when I had told him about what my father had done. He had looked terrified, like he’d seen a ghost. And, I didn’t understand why.

  Of course I’d wondered if Dad had caught us, but if he had, then wouldn’t he have said something about it to me? And when would he have seen the two of us anyway? Jordan had just been overexaggerating.

  He was so terrified that Dad would find out. But, even if Dad did find out, what were we going to lose? I was a grown woman, and Jordan was his own man. My dad couldn’t do anything to keep us separated. All we had to do was wait until Heartstrings had been bought out, and then we were free to do whatever we wanted.

  It was sneaky, and a part of me felt bad. I had never been the sneaky type. I, also, had never been the type of girl to hide things from my dad. We were always close when I was growing up. I didn’t keep secrets from him.

  But this was something that I didn’t have a choice with. He would be sorely displeased if he found out, and I didn’t have a doubt that he’d sabotage this upcoming deal. We had to wait until that wasn’t an option, and after that, I wanted to become official with Jordan. I didn’t want this to be in this relationship that we had to hide.

  I wanted for him to be able to show me off, and for me to do the same. And he had to have felt the same way, right?

  My phone started ringing. My heart jumped in my chest because I thought it was Jordan. Maybe he was calling to claim his love, or perhaps he was calling to get another time and location for the next place that we were going to get it on. Whatever it was that he was calling for, I was more than eager to answer the phone.

  I was left disappointed when I realized that it was only Jake. I sighed before answering the phone.

  “Jake,” I said his name in greeting. I had started to be more formal, mainly because now he wasn’t just my best friend’s brother. He was someone I had to do business with. My father had always taught me never to mix business and pleasure, but sometimes, I believed, it could be done without making a mess.

  Especially when Jordan’s name was involved.

  “Cat!” he exclaimed. “I am so excited about this takeover tomorrow.”

  I smiled, as I thought about his words. I pulled up my calendar, and he was right. Tomorrow was supposed to be the first merger meeting where I would sign the documents that would release Heartstrings from Jake and Lucas and into the names of Mark, Jordan, and myself.

  I had been so lost in my thoughts that I’d completely forgotten that. “Yeah, our first merger, how exciting.”

  “Have you guys gone over any big changes you’re going to make yet?”

  “Even if we had, I wouldn’t be able to discuss them with you.”

  “Guilty,” he said, jokingly. “I know, I know. I’m just excited to see my baby going into such good hands.”

  “Your baby?” I raised an eyebrow.

  “Yes, I did help build her from the ground up.”

  “I know,” I told him. “And, you’ve done an amazing job. Really good work.”

  “Hey, Cat,” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Don’t be a stranger, okay?”

  “What?”

  “This company, it’s going to be time consuming, but don’t let it take over your life. When it’s time to go home and spend time with family and friends, do it. And don’t leave Izzy to herself for too long because then she comes to me to do things with her, and there are just some things a man shouldn’t do. You should have seen the movie she forced me to watch last night.”

  “What movie?” I asked.

  “A Walk to Remember.” He gagged.

  “That’s an amazing love story, what’s the matter with you?!”

  He laughed. “Just promise me, okay.”

  “I promise.”

  17

  Jordan

  It was time to make everything official. Heartstrings was going to be transferred into the names of its newest three partners. I was going to be the acting CEO while Mark was going to keep sole proprietorship, as the owner, and Cat, because it was her first job, was going to be acting as the president, the largest role that she’d ever gotten in a business setting before.

  We met in the lobby, each of us beaming with excitement. With all of us on edge, in the best possible sense, we proceeded up the elevators and met with Jack and the Meadows siblings in the conference room. They had gone all out with big fresh vases of flowers and bottles of champagne on ice to celebrate the occasion.

  “The day has finally come,” Lucas smiled, coming over to shake each of our hands. His siblings greeted us in a line to do the same. “Hope you don’t mind all the fuss,” he waved over the line of photographers and reports who were joining us—ready and poised to take pictures. “People make a big fuss over this type of thing.”

  “No, I totally understand.”

  Cat flashed them an eager smile. I could see the stars in her eyes. She was imagining a photo of us circulating with her name in the caption: Heartstrings newest Executive President—Catherine Whitaker.

  I was pretty excited about seeing my name right in there with theirs next
to the title of CEO. I had claimed many titles in my career, including CEO a few times before. But never for a company as big as this. We were all teeming with adrenaline from everything finally falling into place.

  Of course I still had the worst case scenarios flashing through my mind—like Mark somehow piecing everything together at the last second, if he somehow hadn’t already, and snatching the pen from my hand right before he beat my ass. Or what if Cat went on some wild hair and decided to rat us out? She’d screw herself over just as much by doing that, but the stakes were high and it was making me paranoid. I was getting crazy enough to expect the most bizarre and impossible outcomes, just trying to be prepared and stay on top of it all.

  For a moment I thought about how much I was going to lose if Mark knew the truth. This wasn’t the only business that I shared with him and acted as CEO. Being the owner, he could easily fire me. I’d still have my name, but it would be hard to get amazing jobs without people asking why I’d been dropped, in the first place. And having to tell them it was because I screwed the owner’s daughter didn’t sound like a good way to get a second interview.

  People were taking our pictures left and right, and I could already imagine the headline that would be present in magazines and newspapers the next day. Heartstring, the billion dollar company focused on uniting two people, was bought out by the business tycoons Mark Whitaker, Jordan Ashford, and newcomer, Catherine Whitaker. Hopefully we’ll see some new features that’ll make the app better than ever.

  At one time, who owned what businesses wasn’t important. That was the last thing that people wanted to hear about, but now it was all the rage. The bigger the company, the more people were interested in knowing who ran it.

  I’d had my face on the front of several magazines, at this point. To say that I was used to it was an under-exaggeration. And the reason wasn’t always because of a business takeover. They’d named me one of the country’s most eligible bachelors which was how I had ended up with the line of women that constantly wanted me.

  But, I didn’t want any of them. The only woman that I wanted was the woman that I wasn’t supposed to have. I couldn’t stop my gaze from going to Cat, as we all settled around the table. She looked so excited, and it was written all over her face how big this was for her. This was her opportunity to break out into the business world. This was her time to shine and prove to people that she could do this, that she was just as much of a tycoon as her father was. She could make a name for herself outside of her father.

  I had thought that signing this piece of paper meant that we were free from burden, that we no longer had to worry about the fact that Mark could take this away from us if he’d found out the truth. That we would be safe, but, now I was realizing the exact opposite.

  What if Mark wasn’t the worst case scenario? When people found out about us, and people would find out, wouldn’t they discredit her? There were already whispers that everything she’d achieved was because of her father despite her stellar grades, accomplishments, and attitude. People were quick to blame it all on nepotism although that was hardly the case.

  But if people found out that, not only was her father a huge businessman, but she’d been sleeping with me, another large name in the industry, nobody was going to take her seriously. They would think that all of her accomplishments were because of either her father or myself. Nothing she did would ever be taken seriously, and with how hard she had worked, I knew that was the last thing that she wanted.

  Breaking it off with her had nothing to do with me not liking her. In fact, I cared about Cat more than I was willing to admit. And it wasn’t just because we’d slept together, and she was a beautiful woman, although that was part of the reason. She was someone that I could have seen myself being with in the long term.

  But, that wasn’t an option. In the case where she had to pick between her occupation and a family, I knew, without a doubt, that she would pick the first choice. But, she wouldn’t see things the same way that I did, I knew that. If I tried to explain it to her, she would just think that it was some kind of excuse rather than acknowledging the truth for what it was.

  If she was going to be with me, then she had to kiss her credibility goodbye. She wouldn’t make it in this world, not really. And I wouldn’t even give her the option of picking me over work. She had done too much to get where she was, and I wasn’t going to let that all be for nothing because she’d met me.

  It didn’t matter how mean I had to be. This thing between us was officially over.

  “And, now all you have to do is sign on the dotted line, and the company belongs to you two gentlemen and you, lady.” Lucas threw Cat a grin, and, briefly I wondered if he had a thing for her. My anger spiked before I realized that it didn’t matter whether he did or didn’t, although he was married. I wasn’t her boyfriend, and she could go out with whoever she wanted. There was nothing holding her back, not anymore.

  And who wouldn’t notice such a beauty? For a man not to acknowledge her, he may as well have been committing a sin. She was different from anyone and everyone else. Men would notice that and want her like there was no tomorrow. After she appeared in these magazines, she would have a long line of suitors.

  Even if I broke her heart now, over time she would forgive me and forget about me. She’d be able to have the career that she wanted and a man who was on her side. Would they care for her as much as I did? No, but they would care for her enough. And Cat being happy was the most important thing to me.

  I took my pen and signed my name along the line before looking around and smiling at everyone. Mark didn’t return my smile. My eyebrows furrowed, but I tried not to think about it. My eyes fell on Cat, who looked ecstatic with what she’d just done. She beamed at me and gave me a thumbs up before she cleared her throat, remembering that she was trying to stay professional.

  Mark leaned towards me, and I realized this was the first time he was talking to me today. Usually, the two of us were very talkative, but, for some reason, today had been different. He had taken a seat, and he looked out of it. He smiled every once and a while, but that was about it. And never were the smiles directed at me.

  Something was off.

  “It would be terrible if this entire transaction was ruined because of someone’s misconduct and poor decisions.” The words made me freeze. I looked at Mark, and without a doubt in my mind, it became clear to me that he knew the truth. My heart was burning like a wildfire, and I reached out and gripped the edge of the desk where nobody could see.

  Now, my answer was concrete as if it had been written in the stars. Cat and I had to stop seeing each other. My eyes glanced down, and I saw that Mark had already signed the paper. But, that wasn’t the only way that he could rip us off. It seemed like he was only mad at me. None of his anger was directed at Cat, and that was fine.

  All of this was my fault, and I was more than prepared to take responsibility for it. But that meant never seeing Cat again unless it was strictly for business.

  18

  Cat

  I quickly learned that nothing made me friskier than closing a deal as big as Heartstring. The papers were signed, and all that was left now was to bask in our success. And I knew just how I wanted to celebrate.

  We shook hands with my dad and sent him off on his way, so the two of us could finally be alone. Well, we were sort of alone—if it wasn’t for all of the other pesky workers scrambling around the building. Even the inconvenience of that didn’t get to me too much. Because now I got to look at them knowing that they worked for me, and the feeling was good.

  I stood on my tiptoes to purr in Jordan’s ear. “What do you say we get out of here?”

  He seemed cold as he flicked back his sleeve and looked at his watch. “I’ve got some things to take care of. I need to go.”

  “Oh, come on,” I laughed in disbelief. “You’re not really going to just take off like that after we signed the papers!? We did it, Jordan! We have to celebrate!”

&
nbsp; He looked intent on refusing me again, but then something in his serious eyes changed. “You know what…you’re right. About needing to mark the occasion anyway. Let’s go around the corner and grab coffee.”

  “That’s not exactly what I had in mind…but okay,” I answered slowly, still confused by his demeanor.

  I followed him out, but there was a sick feeling growing in my gut as I studied him. Something about him had changed suddenly. Sure, he had been off for a few days now, and I knew he had plenty of doubts. But for some reason I thought he would feel better once the deal had actually gone through. Part of me still thought all of that before was just from nerves.

  He was stern yet distracted as we ordered our drinks and sat down at a table by the window. The moment I took my seat across from him, I started to realize this wasn’t just a casual coffee. And there was nothing sexy about it either. No, sex was obviously the furthest thing from his mind, but he couldn’t blame a girl for trying. I didn’t know what was eating at him exactly, but I was still determined to keep riding my high of everything being closed and Heartstring officially being ours.

  “Want to go back to your place after this?” I asked anyway.

  I was met with a long, heavy and awkward silence.

  “Look, Cat,” he said finally. His tone made something catch in my throat. This didn’t sound good.

  “I think…now that everything is done with the Heartstring deal…Well, I was thinking about how things will look from here. We’re going to be working together every day, and…”

  “Like we have been all this time,” I reminded him, feeling more worried and defensive with every word he said.

  “But it’s different now,” he argued. “We’re going to be in the public eye. A lot of people will be looking to us for answers. We have to have clear heads and we can’t have any weirdness or tension between us throwing us off our game. We have to be a team.”