Judge Me Not: A Billionaire Single Mom Christmas Novella

by Maggie Cole

  My heart almost stops. He's building a center for children like Abby? I'm so choked up, I can hardly speak. "That's amazing."

  The driver pulls up to the curb and comes to our door. He opens it, and Colton steps out, then reaches in for me. I try to contain my shock. We're at the hospital Abby is always at. It's the part I've never been in since it's reserved for events. The pit in my stomach I always get when I'm here grows.

  I need to calm down. It's a different reason I'm here. It's a good reason.

  There's a red carpet and photographers. In a blur, I go through the motions, smiling while Colton guides me through it.

  "Sorry about all the chaos. It's a necessary evil for donations. I forgot to warn you," Colton says when we get inside.

  Pull it together. This is an important night.

  I smile. "It's okay. I don't have any money to donate, but if your mom needs any help, I could volunteer."

  He smiles. "You would want to do that?"

  I nod. "Yes. Very much."

  He hesitates then says, "Do you want to meet her? She's in front of the Christmas trees."

  "Please."

  He leads me through a sea of people with his arm around my waist. The ballroom is huge and decorated for Christmas. Instrumental holiday-themed music plays. Three giant Christmas trees are at the front.

  A beautiful woman with dark hair and gray streaks running through it stands in front of them, shaking hands and hugging guests. She wears a long green dress. When she sees Colton, her face lights up.

  They embrace, and he steps back.

  Her face is kind, and she smiles at me. "And who is this?"

  Colton puts his arm around my waist. "This is Jasmine."

  "Jasmine. It's nice to meet you. I'm Caroline." She hugs me. "My son never brings anyone to our event. You must be special."

  "She is special," Colton confidently states.

  Heat rises in my cheeks and flutters take off in my stomach. I quickly glance at Colton but turn back to his mom. "It's nice to meet you, too. I think it's amazing what you're doing. If there's any way I can help, I would love to."

  "I think that would be fabulous. Maybe then I could see my son more, too, hmm?" She raises her eyebrows at him then looks back at me. "He's always working so hard. I tell him all the time he needs to take a breather. I hope you're making him rest and do some things besides work."

  "Mom," Colton reprimands.

  "What? It's true."

  Well, I am his beck-and-call stripper.

  Why do I find it amusing all of a sudden?

  I seriously am off my rocker tonight.

  "Don't worry. I'll make sure he isn't working all the time."

  Someone behind us shouts, "Caroline!"

  His mom hugs me again and says in my ear, "I'm so glad you're here."

  "Thanks. Me, too. And thank you for what you're doing...for the children and their families."

  She only smiles. There's sadness in her eyes. It's an expression a mother who's lost a child or fears it on a daily basis wouldn't miss. I look away, blinking hard, and spin to leave.

  Colton steers me away. "Sorry. My mom—"

  "Is great."

  He studies my face.

  "She is."

  "Yeah, she is," he agrees and grabs two glasses of champagne from the waiter. He hands me one.

  I take a sip. "I do have a question."

  "Shoot."

  "Why does your Christmas tree in your house look like that one?" I point to the tree his mom is standing in front of. "Don't get me wrong, it's incredible. But I've never seen identical trees in two different places before."

  His face turns red. "My mom designs the trees for every fundraiser. Every year, she has the company come put mine up so I don't forget and miss the Christmas season."

  "Because you're working?"

  "Yes and no. I'm not a big fan of the holiday."

  I snort. "You and me both. What's your reason?"

  "It's not very exciting when you're an adult and it's just you and your mom. Plus, it was my sister's favorite holiday. After she died, it was a reminder that she's no longer here."

  I stay quiet.

  "What's your reason?" he asks.

  I choose my words carefully. For some reason, I still don't want to disclose Abby's cancer. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's a self-preservation thing so I don't become a sobbing mess again. So I take the easy way out. "It's not fun when you can't even give your child a Christmas tree."

  I don't miss the shock in his expression.

  I quickly ask, "You don't take a break very often?"

  He recovers. "No."

  "Is that why you're part of the club?"

  His jaw clenches.

  "Sorry. Star said you don't usually...associate with the women."

  His blue eyes darken. "No, I don't."

  "Then why are you a member?"

  He nervously shifts but doesn't take his eyes off mine. "It's the only bar in New York where I can have a drink and think. And when I'm doing business deals, I take the men there. You find out a lot about a person and what their weaknesses are at the club. They tend to agree to more things than they normally would."

  My stomach flips, but I still ask him what I can't figure out. "If you don't normally do this, why do it with me?"

  "It's not obvious?"

  "No."

  He motions for the waiter to come over. He takes my glass out of my hand and puts both his and mine on the tray. "Thanks," he says to the waiter then steps closer to me and cups my cheeks.

  My butterflies take off.

  He tilts my head and leans closer to my face. "I like you. I didn't want any other man to touch you. And I think I fucked it all up between us."

  I inhale sharply.

  "Did I?" His breath merges with mine, and his eyes drill into me, as if I am all he wants. I saw his possessiveness the prior night, but tonight it's laced with fear and regret.

  Blood pounds in my ears. The music shuts off, and a man announces, "Please take your seats."

  "We have to sit down," I murmur.

  His face falls, and he releases me. He guides me to the front of the room and pulls out my chair. We sit with his mom and other people he introduces me to, but I struggle to pay attention.

  He keeps his arm around me. I feel like I'm his and this could be real. That somehow, we could be together, and I could have a happily ever after. And I want him.

  But after dinner, they show slides of children with cancer. Several families come on stage and speak to draw in donations. And while I love and appreciate what he and his mom are doing more than they'll ever know, it takes the broken pieces I've mended together too many times and throws bricks on them.

  I struggle to breathe. I manage to hold it together so I don't have another breakdown in front of him and all these people, but it reminds me why I'm here.

  I'm not here to find my happily ever after, or eat an expensive meal, or dance. I'm not here to fall in love.

  I'm only here to save the person who deserves all of my love. My baby can't fight if I don't. And the only way to do that is by keeping my deal with Colton. I don't have the room to take risks. As much as I hate the fact I've become a desperate person for money, nothing has changed. I still have to pay twenty-five thousand dollars for ten to twelve treatments.

  After the presentation, I excuse myself to go to the bathroom. Colton follows me. "Jasmine, are you okay?"

  I manage to say, "Yes. I need a few minutes."

  He hesitates, as if he knows something is wrong.

  I force a smile. "I'll meet you at the table." I spin, go into the women's room, and lock myself in a stall.

  I don't know why I don't tell him about Abby. But hearing all the stories about children who didn't make it because they couldn't afford treatment and how they might have lived if they had, tears at my heart. And it's already ripped into shreds. I'm not sure how much more it can take before there's nothing left of it.

  I pull out my phone to
check on Abby and see I missed a call and several text messages from Cee Cee. The last makes my heart almost stop.

  Cee Cee: Meet me at the hospital. Abby's temperature came back, and it's over one hundred.

  My body shakes. I've been drinking champagne all night while my baby was here, under my nose, ill again.

  I run out of the bathroom and don't even see Colton. I barely hear him behind me.

  He catches up to me and stops me. "Jasmine. Where are you going?"

  I don't attempt to hide anything anymore. I blurt out while crying, "My daughter. She has cancer. Her fever spiked...and..."

  His eyes widen, and he pulls me into him.

  I push him away. "I have to go." I start to run again and don't even realize he's behind me.

  Since I've been here so much, I know the hospital like the back of my hand. I race through the halls and don't wait for the elevator. I take the stairs. When I get to the waiting room, Maribel is sitting on a chair, hugging her knees. Cee Cee is pacing.

  "What's going on?"

  I've seen Cee Cee's worried expression too many times. "We don't know. They took her for tests."

  9

  Colton

  Abby has cancer.

  Why didn't she tell me?

  Cee Cee embraces Jasmine, and my phone buzzes.

  Mom: Why did you and Jasmine run out of here? What is wrong?

  Me: We're on the eighth floor.

  Mom: Why?

  I glance at Jasmine. Cee Cee is talking to her in a hushed tone. My heart bleeds.

  Me: I didn't know.

  Mom: About?

  Me: Her daughter. She has a fever. I'm not sure what is going on.

  Mom: I'll be right up.

  I put my phone away, feeling helpless, wishing Jasmine would have told me about Abby.

  I preyed on a mother whose child has cancer and made her into my "beck-and-call stripper."

  I hate the term she used and the fact I made her feel cheap. And she may not have done anything yet, but there is no hiding what I did or the shame I feel. It started last night when I went to bed and has only been escalating throughout the day. Now, I've officially hit bottom. My self-disgust can't get any higher.

  Why would she tell me when I made her feel like my prostitute? There's no bouncing back from this. How could she ever see me as anything but a pig?

  The doctor comes out. Jasmine and Cee Cee rush over to him. I step behind them.

  "Dr. Plax, what's happening?" Jasmine's voice is so full of fear, I automatically put my arm around her.

  She doesn't push me away. Her body is trembling, so I tighten my arm around her.

  Dr. Plax looks at me in surprise. "Colton." He nods then refocuses on Jasmine. "Abby's test came back clear. Her fever lowered to ninety-nine point one. Nothing is showing up on her blood work or the scans. Her immune system is currently fighting whatever is going on."

  "Can I see her?"

  "Yes. She's in room eight-twenty-one, but let's keep it to one person at a time."

  "Thank you." Jasmine races down the hall.

  "Dr. Plax, what's Abby's full situation?" I ask. I've known him for years. My mother knows him better since she has done most of the groundwork for the new wing, but I've been in several meetings where he came in to consult on different issues.

  "I can't discuss her situation due to the laws. You'll need to get that from her mother. Or Cee Cee." He winks. "Excuse me. I need to see another patient."

  I turn to Cee Cee. "Please tell me what's going on."

  She hesitates.

  I firmly say, "Cee Cee, I can help."

  She purses her lips and glances at the teenager in the chair. "Yes. I'm aware of how you can help and what's involved."

  I cringe. "Can we discuss my downfalls at another time and focus on what is important right now?"

  She sighs. "Okay. Abby has leukemia. She's had too many treatments to count over the last three years. There is a new treatment that just got approved. The hospital is starting it in January."

  "I'm aware of it."

  She gapes. "How?"

  "Because we pushed the hospital," my mother's voice says behind me.

  Cee Cee scrunches her face.

  "This is my mother, Caroline. Mom, this is Jasmine's cousin, Cee Cee."

  My mom holds out her hand, and Cee Cee shakes it. "Nice to meet you. But why would you know about the new treatment?"

  "It's a long story. Colton will fill you in. However, can you finish explaining what is happening with Abby?"

  Cee Cee continues, "Before we met with Dr. Plax last week, all the doctors told Jasmine the only options for more treatment would only briefly extend Abby's life. They gave Abby anywhere up to a year. Everything depends on her not catching anything and how quickly the cancer would continue to spread. Dr. Plax said Abby was a perfect candidate for the new treatment. But the hospital won't allow it to start until after the new year. Abby needs to stay healthy enough to start, and Jasmine has to come up with twenty-five thousand dollars a treatment. Dr. Plax said the foundation had approved to pay the other half."

  I say to my mother, "Who on the board pushed for the January rollout?"

  Disgust fills her face. "Who do you think led the pact?"

  "Nelson?"

  My mom nods.

  "Who's that?" Cee Cee asks.

  "The greedy bastard who doesn't think about sick people, rather how the hospital can make more money."

  "I don't understand."

  My mom sighs. She puts her arm around Cee Cee. "And you never will. Walk with me. I want to know everything." She glances at the girl in the chair. "Is this your daughter?"

  Cee Cee smiles. "Yes. Maribel."

  "She looks just like you. Should we have her come with us?"

  Cee Cee shrugs. "She knows everything. Come on, Maribel."

  Maribel obeys, and I watch them disappear down the hall. Dr. Plax appears, and I corner him.

  "The treatment will save Abby's life?"

  He glances between us. "I can't—"

  "Then we'll talk in hypotheticals."

  His lips twitch. "Okay. What's our pretend situation?"

  "A child with all the same medical conditions as Abby gets the treatment. What are her chances of survival?"

  "The best we've ever seen based on the ten years of studies."

  "And side effects?"

  "Barely any."

  "So, it's a miracle cure?"

  "I won't call anything a miracle or a cure, but it's extremely promising."

  I lower my voice. "And you could administer it right now?"

  His face hardens. "The board approved January third."

  "So, the medication is sitting in this hospital right now, and you're not able to dispense it due to the board?"

  He double-checks no one is listening. "Hypothetically, you are correct. But you didn't hear it from me."

  "And can a child with a fever receive the treatment?"

  "No. The studies all show she needs to be forty-eight hours fever-free."

  "But then she could get it?"

  "As long as her bloodwork comes back normal."

  I pat him on the back. "Okay. I'll see you soon."

  He raises his eyebrows. "What are you going to do?"

  "Be the board's worst nightmare."

  He takes a deep breath. "Good luck. Keep my name out of it."

  "I will." I move quickly through the building, my rage building with every step I take. When I get to the ballroom, I scan the room for the table several of the board members are at.

  I grab an empty seat from another table and spin it so it's backward. I sit behind Dr. Nelson and the other major influencer on the board, Dr. Petri.

  "Gentlemen," I say and pat their backs.

  They turn and kiss my ass like they always do.

  I hold my hand up. "I've got a situation I need your immediate help with."

  "Oh?" Dr. Nelson turns in his chair more.

  "I assume you appreciate—no, le
t's cut the bullshit. I know you don't want to lose any of my support for this project or future ones."

  Dr. Petri scrunches his forehead. His voice crackles. "Of course not. What can we do for you?"

  I point at Dr. Nelson. "You convinced the board not to allow the new treatment for children with leukemia to start until the new year. You're going to have an emergency board meeting right now and override this decision, or I'm not only pulling all my funding, but I'm also going to get up on the stage with a microphone and tell everyone in this room the situation."

  "What situation is that?"

  "A little girl is dying without the treatment, and I'm sure other children are, too. And you're the guy allowing her to die."

  "I've done no—"

  "You are."

  "There are logistics for treatment. We have to receive the medication."

  "It's in the hospital. I've confirmed it."

  His eyes turn to slits. "From whom?"

  "None of your business. Your decision is stopping the treatment. So fix this immediately, or you'll see I don't make threats. I implement them."

  His face turns red, and he scowls.

  Dr. Petri clears his throat. He looks across the table. "Roy. Peter. Get Jenson and Hanover behind you. Board room in fifteen minutes." He scoots out of his chair. "I'll gather the others."

  "Why?" Peter asks.

  "Emergency meeting. Don't be late so we can get this over with." He walks off.

  I lean into Dr. Nelson's ear. "If you fuck this up, I'm taking it personally." I pat him on the back again and walk off.

  When the members start to leave, I follow them and wait outside the door.

  I pace the hallway but not for long. Five minutes later, the door opens. Dr. Nelson sneers. "You got what you wanted."

  "Send notice to the pediatric ward."

  "Now?"

  "Yes, now," I growl.

  He sighs, takes out his phone, and sends an email. "Happy?"

  "With your greedy ass?"

  He glares at me. "I'd like to get back to my evening now."

  I refrain from punching him and go down to the billing department. An older woman with blonde hair and oversized blue glasses is at the counter. She smiles. "Can I help you?"

  "I'm here to pay off an account."

  "Name?"

  "Abby Barello. Her mother's name is Jasmine."