Single Dad CEO: A Billionaire Boss Romance

by Lara Swann

  I ignore the interruption, too pleased with the question that he obviously thinks proves his point. This isn’t something we prepped - but I immediately know exactly what to say.

  “Sexual relations first developed between Jessica Reynolds and myself when we were sixteen in high school.” I say calmly and this time I actually get a real look of disbelief. “When I saw her again for the first time in ten years, as my new secretary, we decided those sexual relations were so long ago that working together wouldn’t be inappropriate. When we worked out that this wasn’t the case, she resigned.”

  I’m skipping a few things there - like all the really fucking hot sex in the office - but since they’re picking and choosing what they let me answer, I figure that’s fair. And they’re too surprised to object or pick any of the rest of that apart.

  After a long moment of silence, the judge speaks.

  “Do you have any more questions for Mr. Stark?”

  Danielle’s lawyer seems to come back to himself, glances at his notes and then shakes his head.

  “No further questions.”

  I come back to my seat with a few deep breaths, my nerves feeling jangled and tight from the intense set of questions, and I can’t help wondering how I did. I know my answers were good at the end there, but it doesn’t take away from the fact I am actually dating my former secretary, so it seems hard to judge.

  Patrick gives me a brief nod - and at least he doesn’t look more tense than he did before I testified, but I still feel uneasy.

  “The next witness we’re calling is—”

  Someone from behind whispers something to him and he glances back, a brief frown flickering over his face. He turns back before the judge can say anything though, and clears his throat.

  “Wendy Lane.”

  Wendy - Danielle’s secretary, who used to work at ExVenture with her - comes out and the lawyer starts taking her through the questions. She confirms all the meetings between Danielle and I, but no one was ever denying those, then moves on to give statements about working at ExVenture and character assessments of both me and her boss. It’s irritating, but hardly proof of anything - and I’m more distracted by what seems to be going on over on their side of court, a flurry of activity, with people coming and going and whispered conversations between them.

  The judge hasn’t missed it either and I can see him frowning as he looks over at them. Part of me hopes they’ll be kicked out or penalized for causing a disturbance, but he doesn’t actually say anything.

  Danielle’s expression becomes obviously drawn and I can’t help the slight hope kindling in my chest as I see it.

  Something has gone wrong.

  I share a look with Patrick as Wendy’s testimony comes to an end - and their lawyer hesitates.

  “We’re having trouble locating our next witness, Your Honor. May I request an early adjournment for lunch?”

  The judge raises and eyebrow and that little bit of hope flares even further as I process that.

  Having trouble locating the next witness.

  That has to be good, right?

  He glances at the clock, then finally nods.

  “We will take lunch early. You have one hour.”

  “Thank you, Your Honor.”

  They all stand and start flowing out of the court before I’ve even had a chance to look at Patrick - and I can see the local press following, too. A slight weight eases in my chest at that. We were concerned they were going to question Jessica and I - but now Danielle has helpfully provided something more interesting for them to follow.

  Jessica joins us as we head to the meeting room Patrick booked for the day and order lunch to be delivered. None of us had any desire to have lunch in a public cafe in the middle of this hearing - even if the press are distracted, we were never going to risk that.

  “They can’t find a witness?” Jessica asks, confused, as we all start discussing what’s suddenly going on. “How does that even happen?”

  “It’s more common than you’d think.” Hamish says, musing. “Someone gets cold-feet, is scared of appearing in court, doesn’t want to testify anymore…”

  “Which, since they’re all lying for her, I can understand.” I say, just a little bitterly. I’m not in the slightest bit sympathetic.

  This is exactly what they all deserve.

  “They’re not exactly lying.” Patrick interjects, always one to insist on the details. “Character witnesses are always subjective.”

  “They’re supporting a lie.” I insist, feeling obstinate as I bite into my sandwich.

  I barely taste a thing, too caught up in everything that’s happening. The whole morning has been a whirlwind of emotions - and the only thing that’s keeping me from pacing around the room is that I finally have Jessica right next to me again, and the reassurance of her hand on my leg is better than any amount of movement.

  “Who do you think it is? The witness?” Jessica asks, her gaze seeming far away.

  “Amanda Speed.” Patrick says immediately. “It has to be - everyone else are just giving character witness statements or confirming details. They’d just skip those if they lost one. Amanda is the only one who provides an actual witness to the harassment allegations—”

  “That didn’t happen.” I point out again, then glance up. “So she’s the only one that actually is lying, too. You’re right, it’s got to be her.”

  Patrick doesn’t argue with me this time - and my eyes meet Jessica’s as I slowly start to smile, nudging her slightly.

  “Maybe whatever you said to her worked.” I say, watching her eyes widen. “It might not have been enough for us to prove she’s lying, but…”

  “We’re not done yet.” Patrick interrupts, shaking his head. “Usually when these things happen, the adjournment is enough for the witness to be talked back into testifying. It’s a nice thought, but lets not get ahead of ourselves.”

  “It’s going well though, isn’t it?” Jessica asks, frowning, then glances at me. “This must make their case look weaker - and your testimony seemed really good.”

  From the silence that Patrick and Hamish meet that with, I have an uncomfortable feeling that maybe that’s just bias on her part.

  “I guess we’ll see.” I say, sighing, the weird mix of hope and adrenaline and anxiety in my stomach a little too much to deal with. “We’ll see how it goes when we get back in there.”

  She squeezes my hand and gives me a little smile. “At least, at the end of this, it will be done.”

  I manage to smile back, letting myself feel the light at the end of that tunnel. “Yeah. At least there’s that.”

  That’s not what happens, though. We get back into court to hear that Danielle’s lawyer has requested - and been granted - a continuance due to the absence of their witness.

  From what I can see, the judge looks reluctant, but after hearing details of the testimony he finally allows the delay.

  The hearing is brought to a close before I can quite work out what’s going on - and when I finally get a chance to ask Patrick, with us all gathered outside the courthouse together - what he says is the last thing I want to hear.

  “We’re going to have to reschedule another court date.” He says, his mouth pursed in a thin line that’s the only indication of his irritation. “I’m sorry, Kenneth, I have no idea how far away that will be. It’s not easy to find another date.”

  “Wait, so…this is all just going to continue? We’re going to have to do this all over again?” Jessica asks for me, my brain already rebelling as it comes to exactly that conclusion.

  “No. Fuck that.” I shake my head, angry. “Don’t tell me they can just drag this out as long as they want. It’s already been months.”

  “I’m sorry, Kenneth.” He shakes his head. “I’ll push for a dismissal, but since the judge allowed it, it’s unlikely. I’ll let you know when I know more.”

  There’s nothing more I can say to any of that and I’m left looking at Jessica, feeling more f
rustrated than I have been throughout this entire process.

  “It’s probably a good thing they can’t get Amanda to cooperate.” She volunteers and I know she’s trying to make me feel better, but right now, that’s not what I’m thinking at all.

  “I would’ve rather she come out and say whatever she wanted against me than have this dragged out for who-knows how much longer.” I shake my head again, and she steps toward me, wrapping her arms around me and resting her head on my chest.

  “I know.” She says softly. “Me too. I just want it to be over too.”

  I sigh, but pull her in closer, leaning down to breathe her in deeply.

  “I’m sorry. I’m not angry at you—”

  “I know. You’ve been dealing with far too much, for far too long.”

  “What are we going to do, Jessica?” I murmur, the question more rhetorical than anything.

  She looks up at me, her gaze firming as it meets mine.

  “We’re going to ignore it.”

  I frown. “What?”

  “We’re going to live our lives, enjoy ourselves and say fuck them by doing all of that and not letting this get to us. When the next date comes around, we’ll deal with it then, but until then…I just want you, Kenneth. We don’t need to worry about any of this crap.”

  As she speaks, the passion and determination lighting her face, I can’t help but feel a smile start to spread across my face again, the hope I’d thought dampened and dead inside me flaring right back to life again.

  “You’re right.” I lean down and kiss her, feeling the way she melts into me and reminding myself just how damn lucky I am. “That’s exactly what we’re going to do. We’re going to live - with whatever comes our way.”

  She smiles, linking her arm with mine as we turn to find a cab.

  “And you know, that’s probably going to piss Danielle off more than anything.” I say, smiling at her as I pull her closer, wanting to feel as much of her soft curves against mine as possible. “Did you see all the evils she was sending your way in court?”

  Jessica laughs, then grins at me. “I guess I did what she couldn’t - entice the rich corporate CEO with all the money.”

  “Mmm.” I smile, a spark of electricity running through me at the thought. “Entice is exactly the right word…and you know…looks like we have the rest of the day alone together.”

  Her eyes light on mine. “Ooh, I can think of a few ways to spend that…”

  I chuckle. So can I.

  And what better way to spend the time waiting for news on this whole clusterfuck?

  * * *

  Even with all the positivity between Jessica and I - and the amount of fun for the rest of the day - I’m still anxious to hear about the next court date. I want to know how much longer I’m going to have to wait.

  How much longer this whole thing is going to be in my life.

  Over the next few days, though, that’s not what comes back.

  Instead, Patrick calls to tell me he thinks Danielle’s case might have fallen apart - and he’s not sure there even will be a court date. It might just go away. It seems too crazy to believe that after all this time stressing and worrying about it…but as the week continues, it looks like that’s exactly what’s happening.

  On Friday, I finally get the call I’ve been waiting for.

  “It’s done.” Patrick says. “It’s final - they’ve withdrawn the case completely.”

  “What?” I ask, still unable to believe it. “After all that…”

  “I guess Amanda never came back to them. Without any direct evidence or witnesses, it’s just Danielle’s word against yours, and that never works out well - even in the current climate of suspicion, and with the whole thing with Jessica.”

  “I…damn, I don’t know what to say. It’s all over? It just seems so…sudden, for her to just give up.”

  “Well…I heard a few other things too.” He pauses, and my curiosity spikes.

  Patrick isn’t usually one for discussing unsubstantiated rumors or gossip - so if something caught his interest, I really want to know why. Especially if it’s about Danielle and this case.

  “What things?”

  “I don’t know for certain—”

  Of course not.

  I have to smile at the disclaimer.

  “—But I think the lawsuit became uncomfortable for Danielle too, particularly if there was a high risk she was going to lose it. There was probably a reason she was pushing so hard to settle - and I don’t think it was just about the money or ease of it. I don’t think she ever wanted to go to court - I don’t think she ever expected you to actually do that.”

  “Uncomfortable?”

  “She’s just started a new job. I get the impression her boss there wasn’t too comfortable about working with someone who filed a sexual harassment lawsuit.”

  Oh. I hadn’t thought about that.

  “Particularly an unfounded one.” I mutter.

  “Yes.” This time Patrick’s voice is amused, and that tells me more than anything just how pleased he is about this result. “Particularly an unfounded one. Congratulations, Kenneth, it’s over. You won - enjoy it.”

  I smile - and unbidden, it breaks out into a full-on grin.

  “Thank you.” I say. “I most certainly will.”

  I hang up and have to grab onto the wall for a moment, the sudden feeling of relief making me almost giddy, as all the tension floods out of me.

  Fuck.

  I don’t think I even knew how much stress that had been causing me, that constant tension I wasn’t even able to fully place.

  I relay the whole conversation to Jessica later that night, absolutely thrilled.

  “Oh god, you did it.” She grins at me, hugging me tight.

  “I think you’re the one that really did it.” I murmur, stroking her hair back from her face. “I have no doubt what happened was because of whatever you said to Amanda, Jessica, really. Thank you.”

  She blushes, leaning forward to kiss me anyway.

  “It’s over.” She whispers. “We can forget about it.”

  “We can.” I deepen the kiss, tilting her head up to mine. “No job to worry about, no lawsuit…now we can just enjoy what we should have had all along.”

  She grins, pushing me back, and I let her almost tackle me to the bed.

  “I’ll hold you to that, Kenneth. Every day.”

  “Please do.” I say, reaching up to pull her properly on top of me, giving myself over to the pleasure and passion - none of the hesitations or doubts left to worry about.

  Just us. And Abbie, happily asleep in the room down the hall and oblivious to what we’re about to get up to.

  The only things that matter.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Jessica

  “Do you think she’s going to stick around?” Kenneth asks softly, voicing the same question in my mind.

  He’s standing beside me, his arm around my waist as I lean into him, while we look out the French doors to the garden beyond. It’s stark and bare now, with the cold winter day keeping everyone inside and just a few evergreen shrubs to show any color at all, but it gives us something to look at while we try to give Gramps some space at the other end of the room.

  It’s the first time I’ve brought Mom here and he insisted he wanted me there too - which meant that in turn, Kenneth insisted on coming along with me - but I don’t want to intrude on their time together. Even from here, I can feel some of the emotion that’s coming from that corner of the room. It’s been a long time.

  “I don’t know.” I finally say. “I didn’t think so, at first…but now?”

  I glance back over in that direction, at the worn face of my mother, and try to sort out the confusing mix of feelings I still feel whenever I see her. I’m not sure whether they’ll ever go away, exactly, but that doesn’t necessarily make them all bad. It’s just…a lot.

  “I don’t know…I’m starting to wonder whether she really means it.” I
cuddle closer to Kenneth, feeling a shiver run down my spine. “It’s been a long time - for all of us - but for them in particular, I think.”

  “They look like they’ve got a lot to work out.” He follows my gaze briefly, before turning back to the glass doors.

  I nod. “I don’t know all of it, but…well, I think they both have regrets.”

  “If they’re going to work all that out…”

  I nod again. “Maybe she’ll stick around to do it.”

  He squeezes my shoulder. “What do you think of it all?”

  I glance up at him to see the gentle concern there. The same mix of hope and uncertainty that I feel myself.

  “I’m not sure, exactly. I think…I think I’d like that. But it’s still strange - just the thought of all three of us being in this room together. It’s not something I thought would happen.”

  “I never thought you’d come back to me.” He murmurs. “But I couldn’t be happier that you did.”

  I look up at him, a question in my eyes. That doesn’t seem like the same thing…we found each other again by chance.

  He shrugs. “I still don’t like what she did to you - what I saw you go through, all those years ago - but if I get a second chance…well…maybe I’d like to believe other people can deserve them, too.”

  I look back over at Gramps and Mom, sat there together, and a slight shiver runs down my spine. I hadn’t thought about it before, but I wonder just how willing I would have been to meet with her if I hadn’t had Kenneth back in my life - if I hadn’t already had those months where I was wondering, in the back of my mind, whether someone really could be different.

  Seeing Kenneth again - getting to know him, all over again - it’s changed me in ways I’m not even sure I fully realize. It’s healed things I don’t even think I ever saw. I rest my head on his shoulder and sigh gently.

  “I’m glad you wanted one - another chance - that you convinced me.”