Falling For The Boss

by C. M. Steele

  “Are you still on about her? You’ve been miserable since she left. Dammit, what will it take for you to notice me?” She tugged at her hair then slapped her hands onto her waist. She glared at me in pure rage.

  I wondered just how fucking nuts she was. I had never shown any interest in her, and I never would. “Are you fucking serious? This is about you wanting me? I don’t, nor will I ever want you. Jessica is the only woman for me. That’s it. You’ve cost yourself everything for nothing. I wouldn’t have wanted you even if you’d painted me as a total bastard to the public. I haven’t wanted anyone until Jessica, and now, with no help from you, I have her back. So pack your shit and get the fuck out.”

  She was sobbing into her hands. It hurt me, but the damage she had caused was way worse than the guilt I felt. Erin was fucked in the head. She could have made me become my father.

  Apparently realizing that crying was getting her nowhere, she stopped sobbing and started to pack her things. Just as she was getting the last few items, security came up to tell me the police were there.

  I turned back to her, but it was too late. All I felt was burning pain then nothing.

  Chapter 21

  When an email went out about the building going on lockdown due to shots fired, I hoped to God Nate was safe, but he wasn’t. It took three hours before we found out what had happened at the office. After I’d hung up with Nate, he went to confront Erin. At first, she accepted her firing with grace, but when someone mentioned that the cops were there, she pulled out a gun that she’d had hidden in her purse, and she shot Nate in the head. No one had expected that.

  I stared at my phone in the hospital waiting room, as if Nate was going to call me. I twirled the phone around, tapped it on my thigh, hoping that this was just a mistake. Maybe it wasn’t him they’d brought into the hospital? I knew it was, but I didn’t want that. My strong muscle-bound protective beast wasn’t fighting for his life; he couldn’t be.

  I heard Layla’s sobs coming from next to me. She was in John’s lap, being cradled as I needed Nate to do for me. Layla sobbed loudly again, but as much as I wanted to care, all I thought about was Nate.

  “I can’t lose him too,” she cried.

  “You’re not going to, love. Your brother is a hardheaded ass. He’s going to be just fine,” Moriarty said. “Baby, didn’t you tell me about the time he fell from rock climbing, and you didn’t think he’d make it? But he pulled through. He’s a strong SOB. He’s going to make it.”

  “Yeah, and he promised never to try something so dangerous again. This shouldn’t be a high-risk job. I want him back. I need to say I’m sorry. I love him.”

  I listened to their conversation, hoping they were right and he was a strong, hardheaded bastard. I needed him to be. Living without him didn’t seem like an option now. He was everything to me, and our life together so far had been too short.

  One of Nate’s surgeons came up to us. “You’re Mr. Hendricks’s family, correct?”

  “Yes, we are. How is he?” I asked. Layla may be his sister, but he was the love of my life.

  “He made it through surgery. There’s a lot of swelling on the brain, so we put him in a medically induced coma.”

  I gasped. I didn’t trust doctors after my mother’s botched surgery, and this was more medical intervention than I would ever be comfortable with. But if it helped him, I had to be okay with it. “Can we see him?”

  “I’m sorry, but not at the moment. We want to give him some rest. His body has been through a great deal.”

  “So when can we see him?” I asked.

  “Just give it a few hours, please.”

  When they finally let us in to see him, I collapsed to my knees at the door. Seeing him with all those tubes and bandages, knowing that there was a high probability that he wouldn’t make it, hurt me. But the doctor had made it clear that I needed to be calm if I expected to see Nate, so I regained my composure and fell at his side, placing my head on his bed. It took all I had in me not to shake him to try to wake him.

  “Is she the girlfriend?” the doctor asked.

  “They’re engaged,” Layla said quietly.

  “Okay. Well, it’s late. I’m sorry, but you can’t stay overnight. At this point, it’s best if you come back in the morning.”

  “We understand,” John said.

  I didn’t understand. I didn’t want to understand. We’d slept in each other’s arms every night for almost a week. Had it not even been a week? I sobbed, gripping his hand.

  “Come on, Jess. We have to go.”

  “I don’t want to leave him. I can’t leave him.”

  Before I could do anything else, Layla removed my hand from Nate’s and John picked me up.

  “Let’s take her to our place. I think it’s best if she’s away from their bed,” Layla said.

  “Whatever you want, my dear.”

  Dammit, I didn’t want John carrying me, but I didn’t fight it. If I did, I’d race back to Nate’s side. It was the longest night in my life.

  ~~~~~

  One month later…

  “Any news today?” Layla asked, barging in just as I opened the door to my apartment. “Nothing’s changed. He’s still in a coma. When they stopped the forced coma, I thought he would open his eyes, but he hasn’t.”

  “How is my niece or nephew?” she asked, pressing her hand to my flat belly. I could tell she was nervous and scared as much as I was.

  “Missing their dad.” I sobbed.

  I had been trying not to cry because I had a lot to do at the company. Nate’s VPs of finance and operations had met with the three of us to help manage the company. I took care of the emails mostly from my place. I was glad that I hadn’t given it up because going back to the house without Nate seemed impossible.

  Layla gripped my biceps tightly. “Dammit, Jess, don’t do this to that baby in there. Don’t give in. Don’t do what my father did. Nate deserves more than that.”

  I could see the pain in her eyes, but I didn’t know why they didn’t speak about their parents. I felt out of the loop. “What did your father do?”

  “Nate never told you about the past?”

  He’d told me that he would tell me one day, but I didn’t press. Whatever upset him about his father ran deep. Causing him more pain was the farthest thing from my mind. “No. We were focused on the future.”

  “Well…” Layla plopped down on the couch and patted the seat next to her. I did as she suggested and took a seat. “My dad loved my mother madly. More than anything—more than us. When she died from cancer, he realized he couldn’t live without her and killed himself. I was little, so I don’t remember them as well as Nate does. My mother’s death was tragic but unavoidable. My father’s was selfish. He left Nate to take care of me. It wasn’t easy for us. He struggled so often to keep food on the table, but Nate never gave up. At eighteen, he had to become a real man and a father. And just like a father, he got on me about everything and he sacrificed everything. You were the only woman he even dated in twelve years. I thought he was insane, but he was dedicated to making a good life for us and well… he never thought he could trust himself not to become my father.” Layla sighed, looking close to tears herself. I understood how much she loved her brother.

  “When you left him, he changed. The hardworking, sweet man was gone. In his place was a gym rat with a frown and a beard. He was so damn miserable; I was beyond worried. I was so damn afraid I’d lose him that I hated you. But after learning the truth, I couldn’t hate you, and after I knew you loved him, I trusted you to protect him. I’m telling you now, don’t give up. Nate wouldn’t accept it.”

  “I would never do that. Should the worst…” It took me a moment to get myself together before I said, “The baby and my memories of him would be all I had left. This baby is a part of Nate. I can’t abandon him or her.”

  “Thank you.”

  “No, thank you. I needed to hear that. Some days are harder than others. Especially because th
at bitch didn’t die. Her trial is tomorrow. Like there’s really a reason for it.” I crossed my arms and slumped back in defeat.

  Layla huffed. “I know. You know she’s trying to claim insanity by reason of mental defect or some shit?”

  “I’ll give her a mental defect. All I need is a gun. I hate her.”

  “Take it easy. Remember stress isn’t good for the baby.”

  “Are you doing the same?” I arched an eyebrow at her.

  “Yes, I am. I have John. He takes the stress away.” She winked suggestively with a big-ass grin.

  I couldn’t even stop the laugh that poured from my lips. It was the first time I’d laughed since I got that dreaded email.

  “That’s a start, Jess. It’s a start.”

  ~~~~~

  I didn’t want to attend the trial, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted her to pay for Nate. Losing him was more than I could bear. If it weren’t for his baby growing inside me, I didn’t know what I would do. I was sitting beside Nate’s bed, holding his hand and steeling myself for the trial beginning in an hour.

  The hospital room seemed so quiet except for the beeping of the machines. It was hard to listen to just the sound of my voice, waiting for a tiny hint of him returning to me. I rubbed my belly then stood up. Bending over, I kissed Nate’s cheek. “I love you, Nate. Please come back to me.”

  John and Layla drove me to the courthouse. When I walked into the courtroom, Erin was already sitting beside her lawyer. She gave me a snide look, and it took everything in me, and John, to hold me back.

  The trial lasted a full day, and it only took the jury an hour to find that fucking cunt guilty. When I got back to the hospital, it was late. I whispered to Nate what happened. I knew he couldn’t respond, but the doctors said he could hear me, so I talked to him the way we did every night before and after we made love.

  Chapter 22

  “Jessica!” I shouted or so I tried. It came out like a little croak. God, my throat felt raw and drier than dirt. What the fuck was happening? The room was so damn bright, and my head felt as if it had been split in two. “Jessica?”

  I tried to reach for her, but she wasn’t there. I didn’t know where she would have gone or why I felt as though I didn’t have the strength to stand. Focusing, I realized that I wasn’t at home. I was in a hospital. Like that, my confrontation with Erin all flashed before me.

  “Mr. Hendricks, you’re awake!” cried a woman I didn’t know. She had on scrubs, so I didn’t know if she was a doctor or nurse.

  My eyes were still a little fuzzy. “Tell me, doc. Where’s Jessica?”

  “She should be on her way. She visits you every day. Tell me, how are you feeling? Can you wiggle your limbs for me?”

  I did as she asked, happy that Jess would be here soon. “How long have I been here?”

  “Three months, Mr. Hendricks.”

  “Three months?” My eyes widened, and I started to panic.

  “Yes. Do you know what happened to you?”

  “I take it I was shot in the head. The gun was the last thing I saw before I felt the pain.” Looking around, I heard someone coming.

  Like music to my ears, I heard Jessica yell, “Nate!”

  She rushed toward me in a sexy suit, but there was a massive difference. My eyes met her round belly. Wow, holy shit. Three months? It looked like six.

  “Jessica, come here, baby.”

  She ran to my side but stopped just before the bed. I knew it was because she was worried, but fuck, I needed to feel her.

  “Mr. Hendricks, that’s not a good idea.”

  “I don’t give a shit.” I gave them a look to back off. I wanted my woman. “I said come here, Jess.” I opened my arms as wide as I could.

  She lay down on top of me, and I wrapped her up in my embrace. A rush of satisfaction and obsession came over me. I was never letting her go again, no matter what.

  “Nate, you’re back,” she whimpered, her tears combining with mine.

  “Yes, I am, and we’ll never be apart again,” I promised.

  Epilogue

  The sun had just come up, but I’d been up for hours. I stood against the window frame with a cup of coffee, just thinking. It had taken me two months to become fully functioning and to relearn all the skills we’d soon be teaching our baby. My muscles had weakened and just using them had been a trial. Thankfully, Jess stood by my side, growing larger with our son.

  After I’d recovered enough to leave the hospital, I sold my company for over two billion dollars. It would be a long time before I could work at full capacity, and we didn’t want the company to tank during my transition back to work. Thanks to Jessica, John, Layla, and my VPs, we had been going steady but hadn’t picked up any new projects. Moriarty turned out to be a good guy, and after he’d found out Layla was my sister, all tension between us disappeared. He loved her and upsetting me would upset her. He wouldn’t do that to her.

  After the news of my injury broke worldwide, sympathy poured in, and the rumors were squashed. My image turned around in a flash, but other than the selling of the company, my reputation didn’t matter to me. I only had eyes for Jessica, and it would always be that way. We spent every day together, though we gave each other a little space. I would watch sports with some of my guy friends, and she’d read in her personal library or do her thing with Layla and my brand-new niece. Life was too perfect, so I kept waiting for the other shoe to fall.

  Any day my son would be coming into the world, and that scared the fuck out of me. What if something happened to Jessica? Would I be like my father and abandon my child because life was too hard without her, or could I continue on for my child? I hoped that I never had to make that decision, but I wondered if I could be stronger than him. As the time got closer, my fears grew.

  "Nate, what's wrong?" My wife slipped her hands around my waist and pressed her head against my back. I could feel the hardness of her rounded belly. Our baby boy was already growing strong in his mommy.

  "Nothing, love,” I said absently. My mind and heart felt full of love for both of them.

  "Tell me,” she grumbled against my spine.

  I swallowed hard before I admitted, "I just love you, Jess. It scares me."

  "Wait. Are you going to leave me?"

  I heard the fear in her voice. It had to be those damn baby hormones because her ass was nuts if she really thought that was what I wanted.

  "Fuck no, are you out of your mind?" I spun around and tilted her chin. "I'm afraid of losing you. I can't… and that scares me. I don't want to be like my father."

  Her hand caressed my face, giving me her love with just a touch. "Nate, you're not him. You know the damage his selfish decision caused."

  "I do, and that's what scares me."

  She placed tiny kisses on my chest. "Don't worry, because the only dying I plan on doing is la petite mort." She waggled her brows at me with that mischievous smile I loved.

  “That I can definitely go for,” I growled in her ear before nipping at her earlobe. She knew what worked to get me out of this funk. I kissed her sweet plump lips, claiming them tenderly.

  “Yum, coffee,” she murmured. Since she’d found out about the baby, she cut back on the coffee and it wasn’t always easy for her.

  “Did you get your fix or did you need more?”

  “More, definitely more.”

  I took another drink and kissed her harder. I walked us back to our bed then set my mug on the nightstand before sliding my hands down her silky nightgown and rubbing her belly. I lifted the nightie off her body, leaving her in just her tiny panties. I growled. Her tits were even bigger than before. I hadn’t thought they would grow so much, not that I was complaining. Hot damn, those babies called to me. I took her round nipple in my mouth, teasing and sucking on it.

  It amazed me that all my concern was gone. All of my thoughts were on making us come. I lay her down on the bed before removing my boxers. My cock bobbed and caught her attention. She reached for it,
but I pulled back.

  “No, babe. I’m too excited for your mouth. If your lips even caress the tip, I’m done.”

  She giggled. Jess loved that she had such sexual control over my body, and so did I. Climbing onto the bed and between her thighs, I dipped my head to get a taste of my sweet honey.

  “Mine,” I growled the moment her taste hit my tongue, making her hips arch off the bed. Her flavor and desire triggered the caveman in me. I growled and grunted, unable to speak as I lost myself in her. I parted her lips and licked the soft center, teasing more juice out of her.

  Jessica moaned, running her hand over my head then pushing it into her pussy. I loved when she demanded I make her come. It only took a moment before I had her chanting and crying out my name. “Oh, God. I’m coming.”

  I didn’t let her come off her orgasmic high before I lifted her hips and plunged into her heat. My moan joined hers as her pussy pulsed on my cock. Her warm, throbbing walls brought me close. With a few deliciously deep strokes, I came hard as fuck.

  ~~~~~

  I fell asleep after our love making, but it didn’t last long. I felt the pains start before I got out of bed. I felt different in a way I couldn’t explain during the previous day, but I didn’t want to freak Nate out, especially after his early morning breakdown. I felt my belly stiffen again for the tenth time in the past thirty minutes. I needed to really get to the hospital, but first, I needed to shower.

  The water felt relaxing on my body. I turned so the sprayer could hit the painful spot on my lower back. Another pain hit me hard, and I clutched the wall. I had to get out and go to the hospital. Breathing deeply, I opened my eyes and saw that the water was tinged with a little blood. Shit. It was game time. As quickly as possible, I got out and dressed. Nate was downstairs, making me some breakfast. Another pain struck when I grasped the bedroom doorframe.

  “Nate!” I didn’t think I could make it safely down the stairs without his help. Faster than I thought possible, Nate was running up toward me. “It’s time.”