The Secrets Between Us (Billionaire CEO Romance)

by Katie Mettner

  “I can’t pretend to understand it,” she said honestly. “But I know it must be incredibly frustrating some days.”

  “Frustrating and scary, yeah,” I agreed. “There are a lot of products out there to help arm amputees, but everyday tasks can be a real challenge. The moment I found out I was pregnant, the first thing I thought was, how am I going to take care of a baby? I know other women do it, so I’m going to have to tap into that circuit and find out the tips and tricks I’ll need to be a single mom who’s also an amputee.”

  She put her arm around me and walked to a door where she knocked. “You don’t know that you’ll be a single mom.”

  The door opened and a head popped out. “Oh, hey, Ange,” the young blond-haired guy said. “I didn’t know you were coming down.”

  “I have a friend with me. I wanted to show her the lab,” she explained. “Henry, this is Mercy,” she said, motioning toward me.

  Henry opened the door further. “You mean, thee Mercy?”

  “Yup, thee Mercy,” Ange agreed.

  “Uh, where’s Hayes?”

  “In a meeting. Can we come in?”

  “Sure.” He opened the door wide enough for us to pass through.

  “Hi, Henry,” I said, offering a smile to ease his discomfort as much as mine. “If we’re imposing, we can come back at a different time.”

  He shook his head. “Nope, not at all. Come on in.”

  We stopped inside the door of the room, where a large machine sat surrounded by computers.

  “We actually have a rep here today showing us how the 3D scanners work. We’re trying to understand everything and have it in place before we hire a prosthetic engineer to get us started on the Justice Project.”

  My heart stopped and my mouth opened, then closed. “The Justice Project?” I whispered, my voice barely above a whisper.

  Henry glanced between me and Ange. “That’s the name of the division. Justice Technology. We’ve taken to calling it the Justice project.”

  “Wow,” I said, rubbing my forehead to keep the tears at bay. I’d cried too many tears in the last twenty-four hours and I was surprised I had any left, but there they were. “This is Justice,” I explained, lifting my arm up. “I call it Justice because I may not have gone to jail for killing my abusive husband, but Justice was still served.”

  He grimaced and stared at the floor. “I’m sorry. I had no idea. Mr. Rutherford just recently hired me to take on this project.”

  Ange laid her hand on his arm. “You didn’t know, Henry. Hell, I didn’t know. Maybe you could show Mercy the printer?”

  Henry clapped once. “Yeah, it’s totally cool. You want to check it out?”

  I nodded, biting my lip to keep it from trembling. “You bet, sounds interesting. I can’t say I’ll understand it all, but I’m game.”

  Henry laughed as he led us toward the giant stainless steel and glass machine. “I can’t say I understand it all, but I know the basics. Would you mind if I pick your brain about a few things? I have some questions no one else can answer.”

  I smiled the brightest smile I had, which probably was lackluster at best. “I’m happy to help any way I can,” I assured him. He delved into the workings of the machine and I tried to focus, but it was a struggle.

  I wanted to run.

  I wanted to run out of the building, jump in my car, and never look back.

  The only thing that held me there was the little soul growing under my heart, and the man whose blue eyes still ruled it.

  “I think I’m ready to head out,” I told Ange when we left the 3D lab and got back on the elevator. “I’m sure Hayes will be back soon and as much fun as this was, I’m not ready to talk to him. Thought I was, but after seeing all of this, I know I’m so not made for him.”

  She leaned against the back of the elevator. “What about that baby growing inside you?”

  I shrugged and stared at the floor. “What about it? I’ll raise it and Hayes will have no responsibility for it.”

  “And what about your heart?” she asked, just as the elevator dinged and the doors opened onto an even grander floor, if that was possible. There was money here. Old money. I had no doubt.

  She motioned me off the elevator and I followed her, hoping to find an exit and the way back to my car. I almost fell down when we reached a door and I read the nameplate. I backed up several steps and looked left then right.

  “Ange, I’m leaving,” I squeaked, my feet moving backward.

  “Relax, he’s not here,” she said, holding her hands out to me. “I need to grab something and then I’ll take you to your car.”

  I swallowed and read his name on the door again. Hayes Rutherford the Fourth. “God, what if I’m carrying Hayes Rutherford the Fifth? It didn’t dawn on me until now, but oh God, what if?” I whispered. “What do I do then?” I asked, my voice cracking on the last word and the tears starting their trek down my face again, for the umpteenth time in the last day.

  She propelled me into the office and sat me in a chair. “Head between your knees,” she encouraged gently, pushing my head down. “Slow and steady breaths.”

  I took several deep breaths, the spots disappearing from in front of my eyes when I slowed my breathing to normal levels. “Stay here. I’m going to get you some water. If you aren’t better in a few minutes, I’m calling a doctor.”

  I waved my hand when I sat up. “I’ll be fine, but I’d gladly take some water.”

  She slipped out of the office and I leaned back in the chair, my body and mind exhausted, but my heart broken. “How did I fuck this up so royally?”

  “You didn’t, but I sure as hell did,” came a voice from the door.

  I closed my eyes, my shoulders shaking on a sob. I shook my head and pushed myself up. “I was just leaving.” Before I could take a step, I wobbled and fell back into the chair.

  The door closed and he was kneeling in front of me with a bottle of water. “Not until you drink this and make sure you’re okay to drive. Also, hopefully not until you have a chance to listen to me grovel for your forgiveness.”

  My breath caught on his words when I took a sip of water and I nearly choked to death. I coughed, wiping my lips with my sleeve. “What?” I asked, still coughing. “When did you get here?”

  He pointed behind him. “About a minute ago when Ange came running out searching for a bottle of water. I promised her I’d make you drink the whole thing or she’s calling an ambulance.”

  I shook my head and rolled my eyes to the ceiling. “I don’t need an ambulance. I’m just exhausted and feeling a little sick.”

  “Both of which are my fault,” he informed me, ruefully. “I heard you were downstairs in the lab.”

  I lowered the water bottle to my leg. “Ange took me there. I had no idea it even existed. I didn’t ask to see it or anything.”

  He put his finger against my lips. “I know. Henry called me after you left. It sounded to me like you helped him over a hurdle.”

  I held Justice out to the side. “I don’t know how, but if I did, that’s great. I’m happy he can move on with his work.”

  “Mercy,” he whispered, his finger trailing down my face, but I pulled away.

  I shook my head once in anger. “Don’t. Don’t pretend like you care about me, Hayes. I can’t take it right now. I’m already as broken as a woman can get.”

  He frowned and grabbed a chair, sitting across from me, close enough our knees touched but nothing else. I finished the water and he took the bottle from me, keeping hold of my hand. “I know you are, and it kills me to know I’m the one who broke you. The things I said. The assumptions I made — they were disgusting.”

  I shrugged, my shoulder barely twitching. “I surprised you. It was to be expected.”

  He shook his head with sadness and shame. His eyes showed me determination, though. “It was a surprise, but behavior like that should not be expected. I’m an adult. I should have done better. Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” h
e asked, keeping hold of my hand even though I tried to pull it away.

  “I didn’t think it mattered.” I nearly choked on my next words. “You believed you couldn’t have children, so in your mind, no matter when I told you, I was going to be the hussy.”

  “No,” he said, his shoulders slumping with despair and fatigue. “I’m such an asshole sometimes, Mercy. I never should have said that. I was reeling from anger and pain.”

  I stared into his eyes and my chest quivered. I was in a no-win situation. I wanted to reach out to him with every fiber of my being, but at the same time, my heart couldn’t take more pain. There were tears on my cheeks when I was finally able to force words from my lips. “I didn’t deceive you, Hayes. I didn’t betray you. I took you at your word that you couldn’t have children, but here I am. I’m the one who’s carrying a child whose father doesn’t believe me,” I said, wrenching my hand from his and poking my chest. “I’m the one who has to figure out how to raise this child alone because his or hers’ father doesn’t want it!”

  He grasped my shoulders tightly. “No, you’re wrong. I do believe you.”

  “You believe me?” My breath hitched in my throat when he nodded slowly.

  “I was tested this morning. The doctor said I had over one hundred million sperm in the sample. Apparently, there would have been even more if it weren’t for the fact I loved you thoroughly all weekend.” He gave me that sheepish grin of his.

  The breath whooshed from my chest. “Hayes, what you’re saying is, you don’t believe me, you believe the doctor. There’s a difference.”

  He sighed and lifted my chin with his finger. “I don’t know what to say other than I believed for years I couldn’t have children, Mercy. Should I have believed you? Yes, I should have, but dammit I had surgery to prevent it. The surprise factor alone had me reeling.”

  “Tell me about it,” I whispered, not making eye contact. “You should have been me two weeks into January when I discovered the man I had fallen in love with had gotten me pregnant, and then ditched for greener pastures.”

  “I have no excuse for my behavior yesterday,” he said again.

  I leaned back in the chair, the exhaustion sapping my ability to sit up straight. “I guess I can’t blame you for not believing me, considering the circumstances. I’m just sorry it happened. I came here today to offer you the chance to be part of your child’s life, since I knew it was your child without a doubt. I’m willing to do a paternity test once the baby is born, and when it comes back that the baby is yours, like I know it will, I won’t ask anything from you, monetary or otherwise. I won’t keep you from your child. All I ask is that you don’t try for more than joint custody, even if the baby is a boy. I need to have contact with my child. I can’t, and I won’t, hand him over to the Rutherfords and walk away.”

  His hands grasped my face gently. “Honey, you’re not listening to me. I want you. I want our child. I want a life with you. I want it all, even though I know I don’t deserve any of it. I especially don’t deserve you and our child, but I’ll work the rest of my life to prove to you I’m not the man you think is sitting in front of you right now.”

  My eyes closed at his words and more tears fell. His lips kissed them away tenderly, and his thumbs never stopped caressing my cheeks. “At least the man sitting in front of me right now is being honest,” I whispered. “I can respect honesty. I can respect that you believed one thing while I believed another. I guess my only question is, how many more times will you question what I say? What I do? How many more times will you hurt me?”

  “None,” he promised, though it sounded like begging. His hands held my face so tightly he nearly crushed my cheeks. His eyes were filled with tears when he brought us nose-to-nose. “From this day forward, I believe you, no matter what it is. From this day forward, I love you, no matter the situation. From this day forward, you’re the only person who matters to me,” he whispered. “When our baby is born, I’ll be the kind of father that makes you proud every day.” His hand hovered in midair. “Can I?” I nodded and his hand came down to rest on my belly. “I went to a bar last night and drank half a bottle of whiskey to drown out the look on your face when I walked out.”

  “It wasn’t the idea that I was pregnant, it was the idea that it wasn’t yours,” I recited, and his hand gripped my belly instinctively.

  “You talked to Caleb?”

  I gave him half a smile, my hand resting over his. “He found me sitting outside the building and made me come in. He told me you were a wreck last night and how he’d never seen you so busted up before. He said your reaction came down to jealousy. Jealousy toward a guy who doesn’t even exist.”

  His other hand was caressing my face and he paused by my temple. “I know. I’m an absolute dick sometimes, Mercy. All I can hope is you’ll be the one to kick that clean out of me. You and our child. Will you give me a second chance?” he asked, then laughed uncomfortably. “I guess maybe it’s my third chance at this point. Three strikes and I’m out?”

  I grasped his face with my hand and leaned forward. “Good thing you hit it out of the park this time. I love you, Hayes. I want you. I want our child. I want us to be whatever kind of family we can be in whatever capacity you can offer us.”

  He blinked twice and a smile stole across his face. “In whatever capacity I can offer you? How about forever, Mercy. Is forever a capacity you can handle?” he asked, his lips almost on mine.

  “I’ll believe it when I see it,” I whispered, his laughter filling my head and his lips stealing my breath in a definitive kiss of forever.

  EPILOGUE

  MERCY

  Ten Months Later

  The camp was quiet other than the sound of the ATV plowing snow along the path. I leaned against the bedroom door of cabin zero and stared at the beautiful face asleep in the tiny bed. Even now, three months later, that little face melted my heart on sight.

  The changes I’d been through in the last year were astronomical, but my life always came back to this camp. It was the lifeblood of who we were, even when we couldn’t be here. When I moved into town with Hayes, I hired enough help to keep the camp running smoothly, and Hayes built a new cabin for Mr. Boling, the new caretaker. We wanted cabin zero to remain ours for weekends, holidays, and when we just wanted to escape the city.

  The telltale ring of the store bell had me tugging the door shut to the bedroom and scurrying to the store to see who it was. Hayes would have come in the back door, which meant whoever had arrived was a guest.

  The two smiling faces at the front counter had me squealing with joy. “Caleb!” I said excitedly, but quietly. “Ange!” I hugged them both, happy to see them again after a month of missing them. “You look so,” I motioned my hand around in the air. “Tan.”

  They both burst out laughing and I held my finger to my lips. “Baby is sleeping.”

  They clapped their hands over their mouths simultaneously, which was cute, considering they’d only been married for three months. The diamond ring on my own finger flashed to remind me that I’d only been married for three months, too. In fact, we were married right here at Cashmere Camp in a joint ceremony at the end of August, just a few weeks before our baby was born. It was beyond romantic the moment he slid the ring on my finger and our little one had kicked hard enough to show through my dress. There had been tears of laughter and joy, and for the first time in my life, I experienced what having a family truly meant.

  “How was the honeymoon?” I asked, grabbing a key from behind the counter.

  “It was a working honeymoon, as you know, but we found time to have some fun in the sun as well. I can’t believe we haven’t seen you for a month. I’m dying to see the baby,” Ange whispered.

  “I’m sure naptime will be ending shortly. Why don’t you go get your things settled in cabin four and then come back over? Hayes should be almost done with the plowing.”

  Caleb rocked back on his heels. “He’s done. He was just putting the ATV awa
y when we walked up, so he’s getting our bags. Is mom here yet? Sarah?”

  “Not yet,” I handed them the key, “knowing her, it won’t be long. She always wants her hands on that baby,” I said, winking.

  “Well,” Ange said over her shoulder, “she better take a number because I’m first!”

  They left the way they came, laughing all the way, and my heart filled to near bursting. I’d been so looking forward to the holidays this year, especially with the baby here. There was a menorah in the window, and a freshly cut Christmas tree by the fire. I had started studying Christianity and Judaism this summer. I was still learning, since the history of both was rich and extensive, but I had found a way to integrate both into our lives. It was Christmas Eve and once everyone had arrived and dinner was done, we’d spend the night decorating the tree, along with all the other Rutherford traditions I had yet to be introduced to.

  Cold arms went around my waist and I jumped, squealing a little when his cold beard nuzzled my neck. “We’re alone,” he whispered, his cold hands working their way under my shirt until I swatted at him, laughing.

  “We aren’t that alone,” I teased. “I just told Ange and Caleb to come back after they unpacked.”

  He kissed my neck and nuzzled it with his nose. “Are you kidding? They’re newlyweds, they’ll have to have a quickie before they come back over.”

  “I like quickies,” I moaned, “but your mother is also coming and I’m not going to get caught with my pants down, literally.”

  He laughed, his breath warming the skin he’d froze with his cold lips. “You’re probably right, not the way to start out Christmas Eve.”

  We heard a wail and I laughed at the look on his face. “And then there’s always our little interrupter.”

  “We need a weekend away.” He winked at me and headed for the bedroom. “Be right back.”