“I usually don’t read any of that stuff. You shouldn’t either, it’s toxic.” I didn’t want to admit it, but those rumors and lies did hurt, but I was the one to blame for them. I crafted the whole thing.
“Do you ever just want to run away from this?”
“Every day,” I sighed, and suddenly I wasn’t hungry.
“Pretty soon this is all I’ll have of you. These blasts in the paper, maybe a private dinner between your engagements. I want real pictures of you so that when I read these things and see them, I’m not tempted to hate you.”
“What about me? What do I get? You’ll be back to dating everyone because you know what you read about me is a lie. But for you, Alec? It isn’t lies, is it? It’s you. What do I have to recall? A child and a beautiful necklace and those dinners and play dates, but what do I get to remember? How your skin feels on mine or your soft snoring next to me?”
“Or my amazing cock?” he teased which was good; we weren’t heading to a nice place.
“That, I probably won’t forget.” I saddled up to him and lay in his lap as he scooted himself up against a tree.
“I guess we’ll have to get there when we get there, but for now, I just want to have a memory of you.” He laid his head on mine, and we stayed that way in the middle of Central Park not even bothering to notice that people had gathered. By the time the throng had become too dense, it was time to go.
Instead of meeting everyone at his penthouse, which had made him go ballistic, he gave the address to his apartment downtown. A driver met us at the park, and we were taken to yet another of his amazing dwellings. This was a massive apartment taking up the entire third floor. I didn’t have much time to look through it as there were makeup artists and Vera Wang’s fitting people, and of course, Maralis was there to help me get ready for the show.
As soon as I entered, someone whisked Alec away, and I was brought over to my own dressing room to be fitted into a maternity evening gown. While I was showing a little, and certainly my body had changed, I wasn’t showing enough, so they strapped a baby bump onto me.
“Really, Maralis, isn’t this going just a bit too far?” The damn thing was so strange and uncomfortable.
“Alec and I agreed to this. We would let the world know you were pregnant; he was going to make a grand show of things, then we’ll have the wedding next month. I have tons of engagements for the two of you to attend, by the way. So, you go on a lavish honeymoon, have the baby, drift apart, get divorced, and boom ... you’re a rich woman who has grown from her childishness, and you’ll be the most beautiful single mother on the planet. Maybe then you’ll be ready for someone real.” She zipped up the gown as she spoke, and I almost got sick. I was with someone real.
Chapter 30
Alec
Paparazzi followed us everywhere. For four months we had nothing but photographers and journalists following our every move. We couldn’t even walk out of the penthouse without a throng, and I mean like thirty people following us. I had considered selling the penthouse and finding a place with secret service-level security, but I loved my sanctuary too much, so I hired a service to guard us day and night so we could at least make it to the engagements we were booked to attend.
For the most part, we were trapped. I couldn’t even go to the lake house for fear they would follow us there. They had seen us on the lake and in Rochester and in Toronto but hadn’t found my house. It was in my grandfather’s name, so even a savvy web sleuth would have a hard time linking the house to me. Over the months, I desperately wanted to take Kylie there as she deserved a break from the relentlessness of our sudden uber stardom. I was an asshole at heart; I could handle it, and so barking at paps or throwing my menacing threats around didn’t bother me in the slightest, but it upset her.
Kylie was kinder and much more loved than me. She worked so hard. Not only did we have to attend events, but she was the face of everything maternity; magazines, fashion, breastfeeding tips, and on top of that, L’Oreal had chosen her as one of their select faces so she had weekly photoshoots to add to our already busy schedule. She made time for her foundation and was always on the phone emailing back and forth with her board getting things launched so that they could be up and running after the baby was born. She made precious time for her roommates, who I decided to let hang out with us at least one night a week because it was getting to the point that I was only seeing her when we had our mandatory ‘be seen outside as a couple’ events.
On the rare day when she didn’t just strip naked and fall into bed from exhaustion, she would come home and get into a pair of my athletic pants and one of my tank tops that showed her growing soft breasts out of the sides, grab a salad, sit on my couch, eat, and play video games. Her sweet little face crunched and grimaced as she tried to annihilate things. Her belly was big, but like a ball placed in the middle of her body. Her limbs were still strong and lean. Since I’d have work to do when I got home, we’d each go to our corners for a few hours to decompress. When Kylie sighed, I’d know it was the signal that she and I would have our much needed and cherished time together.
“I’m almost done here,” I said as I finished up writing an email to a real estate firm in France where I’d just brokered a deal for a new virtual reality themed amusement park.
It was quite an exciting venture as virtual worlds would allow guests to experience life unlike they’d ever known. Everything was so realistic; it was like you were actually there. We had space worlds, underwater worlds, fairy kingdoms, battle scenes, and places around the world. I agreed to it because I knew once it was finished, Kylie would love it. It was innovative and kept my thoughts away from all the madness Kylie and I were caught up in.
“Good.” She looked up at me with that sweet amazing smile that I didn’t think I’d ever tire of seeing.
As soon as I sat on the couch, she snuggled in, and her hand swirled around my cock, which was usually semi-erect just thinking of her. I loved her swollen belly and the meat she now had on her ass and thighs. I adored kneading her bigger breasts, sucking on her thick round areolas, which had darkened and spread during her pregnancy. We had found out at her OBGYN appointment several months back that we were having a boy. I couldn’t have been more thrilled. We planned on naming him Elijah because she loved the name, and I thought it was fitting. As my middle name was Douglas, we planned on naming him the same. Elijah Douglas Blair.
She played with my cock, and I bent down and gave little Elijah a kiss. “Hey there, little buddy.” I kissed him then Kylie. “Just a few more months and we get to meet him.” I was genuinely excited, though the arrival of our child held complications.
Kylie had never signed the contracts outlining the time frame of our living arrangement. We just never thought the timing was right. As it grew closer to Elijah’s birth, the issue of timing was ever-present in the back of our minds, but we didn’t speak of it. Whenever we had any time to ourselves, we made love or chilled out together. Oddly, she and I never fought, not even once. We were more antagonistic to each other in the beginning, but as we lived together, we just didn’t see the need. We talked to one another and became close friends.
“I’ve been dreaming about this,” she said as she dipped down to my cock.
I repositioned myself so she had better access to it. I didn’t want her straining. She gently pulled me out of my pants, and her fingers caressed my balls as her mouth worked its way up and down my bulbous glistening head. She still made me so hot. Instinctively my hand went to her head aiding her rhythm as she bobbed up and down on me, licking, kissing, and sucking so hard I almost came in her mouth.
I patted my lap as I gently pulled her off my cock. “All aboard,” I teased as I helped her sit on me facing the living area.
Since she was getting so big, we needed to get creative with positions.
“I think I’m pretty good.” She turned back and smiled at me as I fingered her very wet pussy.
“Yes, you are. You’re really we
t; have you been thinking about me all day?” I slid two fingers inside of her before I put myself in there. With the baby getting bigger, it was just that much harder for me to fit.
“Pretty much.” She wiggled on me, and I withdrew my fingers, spread her sweet ass cheeks to open up her pussy and gently worked my way in until she was comfortable, then she rocked back and forth on me gaining speed.
“Yes, baby. Yes!” She blew my mind every time.
She bounced up and down on me until she got tired, and I lifted her up off my cock. With both of us still very aroused, I carried her over to the bed. It was easier if she was laying down, so I set her down on the clean sheets and got in behind her then lifted her leg over my hip and returned to heaven.
“I love you.” Her arm reached behind her and stroked my forearm as I rocked softly in and out of her gorgeous pussy.
I’d been waiting to hear the words for so long, and there they were soft and sweet as she neared the throws of ecstasy. I bore down on her a bit harder.
“Do you?” I tried to sound as vulnerable as I felt.
She grabbed my arm as she climaxed and threw her head back to me. “Always,” she managed to say before she jerked and quivered on my cock.
That was what did it for me; I came so hard I’d put twins in her if I could. We were both so exhausted and spent we just lay together and slept where we were. The next morning, Kylie was looking a little pale. Nothing out of the ordinary, but I had worried that our nightly lovemaking and rigorous schedule might eventually catch up to her.
“You want a bath this morning instead of a shower? I think a good warm soak will be nice,” I asked after I kissed her good morning.
“Yeah, a bath sounds really amazing.” Her eyes drooped, and I almost ordered her to go back to sleep, but we had a meeting with the wedding planner on Tavern on the Green, and we were attending my work’s Christmas party.
We had petitioned Maralis to postpone our wedding until after the baby was born. We didn’t want it looking like the baby was rushing us to the altar, and we were both too busy to plan a fake wedding, a fake honeymoon, and a fake divorce. We nearly had to threaten her life, but she finally agreed, which took the pressure off of us but to make up for our ‘lack of a story’ we were forced to attend every Christmas parade, musical event, and opportunity to be seen together as a couple that Maralis deemed newsworthy. Attending my work Christmas party and giving out the hefty once-in-a-lifetime ten-thousand-dollar bonuses were going to be a little hit to my bank account, but I was being ‘Mr. Generous,’ that was my big media transformation.
I went from miserly to ridiculously magnanimous. In that same vein after my work party, which was an afternoon event, we had an evening event scheduled for Kylie’s non-profit where we were giving away homes, furniture, college tuitions. That, I was actually excited about because those kids deserved what they’d worked so hard for. So, knowing what kind of day we had ahead, I got Kylie in the bath, and then we were off and running.
“Here’s today’s headlines,” Maralis gloated. ‘“Elegant as ever, Kylie wore a stunning Versace gown to the Met last night, showing her enormous baby bump draped on the arm of her adoring fiancé, Alec Blair. From street kid to one of society’s most elite, Kylie Morgan has become the icon of fashion and good taste.’ Bravo! We’ve done it. You’re a comet, Kylie. No one can touch you now. How does it feel to be uber-famous?” Maralis flitted around the room, rolling up on Kylie as she was having her hair and makeup done.
I always felt like an accessory at these things, as I refused to have hair and makeup done. I found myself being more of Kylie’s protector. I learned why her roommates were so ferocious, and we had sort of called a truce with one another as I saw how much their love and devotion meant to her, and by that turn, me.
“I don’t feel any different,” Kylie said in a faraway voice.
Something seemed off about her that morning, and though I had no reason to be concerned, I was really alarmed.
“Oh honey, you look really pale,” Maralis noted. “Put some foundation in the next shade up on her and do something dramatic with the cheeks. You’re going to holiday parties today; you can get a little fancy. That’ll cover the pallor in your skin.”
When Kylie was dressed and made-up she looked like a doll. I hardly recognized her as the wild-haired woman who woke up with that just-fucked face, or the sweet roommate who wore my loungewear while fighting virtual zombies on my seventy-five-inch flat screen. When she walked out of my apartment that day, she was Kylie Morgan, the world’s most famous supermodel. She handed me her arm, and I was honored to take it.
The work Christmas party was a bore until all of my staff including the receptionist got their ten-thousand-dollar bonus check. It was fun seeing the look of joy on their faces. The next party was even more satisfying. Many deserving kids got jobs, money for education, and homeless kids got housing. It was so joyous and overwhelming I hardly noticed when Kylie fell down the stairs after giving her speech.
Her speech was so beautiful, though I noticed the exhausted graveled tone of her voice. I just noted that I’d make her go right to bed. We could make love another day; she needed sleep. As the baby grew, she got more tired. I remembered clapping and being so proud of her as I’d watched her write and rehearse that speech over and over again, and then the next minute I heard a crash and people screaming. I raced over to the stairs to see Kylie sprawled out and writhing in pain.
I didn’t think. I went into a full-on adrenaline-fueled panic. I grabbed her off the floor and screamed. “Someone call 911! Call 911!”
“Alec! Alec, it hurts!” Kylie crumbled in my arms.
“Get someone the fuck over here now; she needs to go to the hospital!” I was out of my mind.
The whole ambulance ride over to the hospital I was a monster. They had placed a mask over her face, and somewhere between loading her into the ambulance and driving away from the event hall, she passed out, her blood pressure dropped, and in one single instant, I was losing her and Elijah.
“NOOOOO!” I screamed out of my mind.
“Mr. Blair, we can’t allow you back here,” a doctor said as soon as we got to the hospital. “I promise we are going to do our best for her and the baby, but right now, you need to calm down. You aren’t helping her causing a scene like this.” The doctor turned to the throng of people carrying cameras and crowding the waiting room. “Get them all out of here, call the police, get security, I don’t care, just get them out my waiting room.”
All I could do was sit down and wait to hear if I’d lost everything. I called Christian, Avery, and Madison as soon as I got my wits about me, and they came, and we sat in the waiting room where I ate nothing and drank only coffee for nine hours. They never let me see her, and they wouldn’t say much about her condition.
“Why can’t I see her?” I’d ask anyone who’d listen to me.
“They’re just trying to get her stabilized, Mr. Blair.” I think the nurses were tired of hearing from me.
“They should at least tell us something.” Christian was almost as upset as I was.
He’d lived with me through my relationship with Ava, our marriage, and her death. Being my best and only friend, he understood how high the stakes were. Avery and Madison spent most of the time in and out of tears.
“What the fuck is wrong with this hospital? Why can’t you tell us she’s okay?” Avery was losing it almost as badly as I was.
Madison was the only sound one among us. She said, “It’s okay, Ave, calm down. Kylie wouldn’t want this. She’s a fucking fighter. She’ll pull them both through, I promise.”
After what felt like one hundred years, the doctor finally came out. His hair was wet and messy, his jacket was stained with blood, and he looked drained of any of the vitality he’d had earlier when he shouted at the paparazzi.
“We have her stabilized for now. It’s extremely rare, especially given her age, but she suffered a heart attack due to an undiagnosed heart murmu
r. She’s stable, but not out of the woods just yet.
“And our son?” I didn’t want to ask, but I had to know.
“He was born fifteen minutes ago via C-section.” Given the doctor’s somber look, I had assumed the worst.
I was so grateful Kylie was alive, but I sensed we’d lost our son.
“He’s alive, but he’s in very delicate condition. He’s almost two months premature and weighs just over three pounds. At this moment, we’d like to keep both of them in intensive care. Mr. Blair, you can come back and see them, but only you may come.
This was it, the end of the world.
Chapter 31
Alec
I walked into Kylie’s room, and everything was still. The curtains were drawn, the lights were off, and both Kylie and Elijah were connected to things that cast an eerie glow. She was so pale and lifeless. My heart raced. I’d been here before seven years ago when I walked in on Ava laying in much the same way, only the machines were no longer illuminated. At that moment, I wasn’t thinking of the baby, I was watching my wife, waiting for her eyes to open.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Blair,” a doctor said in a deep dark tone of voice. “There was nothing we could do to save her or the baby.”
I had no reassurance that Kylie was going to get through this. According to the doctor who briefed me before I entered the room, her heart hadn’t stabilized. I gazed at her lying in a bed surrounded by machines that were thankfully pulsating and beeping softly. She was pale, but she was breathing. After a moment, the doctor asked if I would like to see my son.
FAKE: An Enemies to Lovers Standalone Romance Page 20