Big Bad Alpha: A Billionaire Romance
Page 24
"We own several different clubs, the one we met at last night being one of them," Brooks said, shifting his manual shifter in the car.
She was in shock. Cambry certainly hadn't realized that Brooks was wealthy, but it turned out he was, in fact, very wealthy. A few moments later, he pulled the car up in front of a hole-in-the-wall restaurant that resided in between two larger companies. Having never heard of it, she felt nervous about what the food would taste like, but she decided to try to have a positive attitude about it.
They walked in and she saw that there were only about ten tables, but only one of them was being used. Brooks led her to one in the corner and a moment later a man came over and set two waters and two menus on the table before them. "Brooks!" he exclaimed, holding his arms out to the side.
Brooks stood and wrapped his arms around the man, pulling him into a hug. They clapped each other on their backs for a second. "It's good to see you again," Brooks said when he pulled away.
"It's been far too long!" the man said. "And who is this lovely young woman?" he leaned over and placed a kiss on the back of Cambry's hand.
"This is Cambry," Brooks told him, smiling. "Cambry, this is an old family friend, Nicola. He owns this restaurant."
"It's a pleasure to meet you," Cambry said with a smile.
Brooks sat back at the table. "We'd like a few moments to order," he told Nicola. "Cambry has never been here before."
"Of course, of course. Welcome to my restaurant, Miss Cambry. I shall return," Nicola said before returning to the kitchen.
Turning to Cambry, Brooks held out one of the menus. "So," he said. "This is a Thai food restaurant, run by an Italian family, in America, which is probably why it's not very well known. But it is delicious."
Cambry laughed and accepted the menu. "Well, that would explain why I've never heard of it." She studied the menu for a few moments before deciding on a Thai chicken salad with a curried dressing. Just as she set the menu down on the table, Nicola returned. She figured he must have been watching them, waiting for when they were ready to order.
"What can I get you?" he asked, pulling a notepad and a pen out of his back pocket.
The rest of the evening flowed well and Cambry found that she really enjoyed Brooks' company. Not only was he handsome and funny, but she found that he was also charming and kind toward others; all of those were characteristics that she found attractive in a man. When they were done eating, Brooks drove them to an ice cream shop where they both ordered strawberry ice cream on sugar cones. As the evening wore to an end, Cambry realized that she hadn't enjoyed herself as much as she had with Brooks in a long time.
Eventually, though, he drove her to her apartment and walked her to her door. As she pulled her keys out of her purse, Brooks took them from her and unlocked the door and opened it for her. "I really enjoyed myself tonight," he said, before she walked into the apartment.
Cambry shyly looked down at her hands, which she held clasped in front of her. "I did too."
Brooks smiled and placed Cambry's keys back into her hand. However, instead of letting go, he wrapped both hands around hers. "I would like to see you again, if you're okay with that," he told her.
She looked into his eyes and nodded. "I'd love that." In her head, she was debating whether or not she should invite him in for a drink. Inviting him inside would imply that she wanted to take him to her bedroom. While that was certainly the truth, she didn't want him to think that she was the kind of girl who slept with guys on the first date on a regular basis. Jenae had told her she would make herself sparse that night in case Cambry wanted to invite him in, so at least she didn't have that to worry about.
While she argued with herself about what to do, Brooks leaned in, pausing inches from her mouth. Cambry pushed herself to him, meeting his lips. Her stomach was a bundle of nerves, but the way he kissed her made her melt. She immediately made up her mind. When they pulled away from each other, she looked into his eyes and said, "Would you like to come in?"
"Only if you're sure that's what you want," Brooks said, but the desire in his eyes told her that he wanted to as much as she wanted him to. Smiling, she took a hold of his hand and pulled him through her front door.
Chapter 3
Before she showed Brooks where her room was, Cambry headed into the kitchen and poured them each a drink. Knowing that she was about to put the moves on Brooks had her stomach doing flips, but not in a bad way. She was nervously excited and she wanted the alcohol to help calm her down.
Immediately she drained her cup, keeping her eyes on Brooks. He noticed and set his glass on her coffee table. "Are you all right?" he asked, placing both of his hands on her shoulders.
Cambry nodded. "Yes, I just don't normally invite a man into my apartment on the first date."
He nodded understandingly. "I can go if you want. We don't have to do this."
She met his eyes and saw that they were filled with concern. "I want to," she whispered after a moment.
Brooks smiled and took her cup, setting it next to his. He pressed his lips against hers, slowly parting them so that he could slip his tongue inside her mouth. She wrapped her hands around his neck and he placed his hands on her ass, lifting her up. As Cambry wrapped her legs around Brooks' waist, he carried her down the hallway. He broke away long enough to ask, "Which one is your room?"
"First one on the left," she said and he carried her into it. After he shut the door with his feet, Brooks walked to her bed and laid her down on it. She watched as he pulled his shirt over his head and threw it on the floor by his feet. He reached down and grabbed the hem of her shirt, then pulled it up over her head. He growled in the back of his throat when he saw that she wore a white lace bra.
Smiling, Cambry sat up and reached behind herself so that she could unhook her bra. She watched Brooks' reaction as she pulled it off, revealing her breasts. Before she could drop it on the floor, he leaned over and began to lick one of her nipples. Cambry gasped and wrapped her hands into his hair.
He slowly began to close his lips around her areola, lightly sucking. She moaned as his tongue swirled in circles. She slowly sat up so that she could reach down and pull open the button on his pants and pulled them down, along with his boxers. Her eyes widened as his cock was revealed, standing upright before her. "Oh my god," she whispered, taking all of him in. "It's so big."
Lifting the corner of his mouth up, Brooks flashed her a half smile. "And it's all for you," he said.
He straightened and pulled her pants down. Once they were off, Cambry moved herself further onto the bed and Brooks followed her. He placed the tip of his cock at her opening and paused. "Take me," Cambry whispered and he pushed himself inside of her.
Brooks moaned as she moved in her hips in motion with his. He pushed in and out of her and she could feel every inch of him inside of her. After a few moments, she pushed him away and moved so that she kneeled on the bed. "Lie down," she instructed and he smiled, enjoying her taking charge.
Lying down, Brooks positioned himself so that his head was at the end of the bed and his feet were at the top. Cambry placed her legs on either side of him so that she straddled him. As she pushed herself onto his hard cock, Brooks reached his hands up and began to massage her breasts. She moved her hips forward and back. Brooks moaned as he matched her motions, thrusting himself in and out. As they moved in tandem, Cambry felt her clit rubbing against his pelvic bone. She knew that if she continued, she would soon orgasm.
Cambry placed her hands on Brooks' chest to help support herself. Brooks began to moan more loudly and she smiled, listening to him enjoy their intimate time together. "I'm close," he moaned after a moment.
"Me too," she replied. She hoped that he could hold out long enough for them to orgasm together, as that always helped hers last longer. She began to moan loudly as the tension built inside of her. Just a moment later, she felt the tension break as the orgasm swept across her body. She cried out in pleasure at the same time that Broo
ks did too. She felt him push harder into her with each spasm of his orgasm, pumping his load inside of her.
Once they were done, Cambry pulled away and collapsed on the bed next to him. Brooks immediately jumped up and grabbed a towel that he found on the chair next to her bed so that he could clean her up. He gently wiped her opening and her thighs before he cleaned himself. Then he laid on the bed next to her, still naked. "That was incredible," he told her.
Giggling, Cambry rolled and laid her head on his chest. "Yeah, it was."
"This probably isn't the most romantic thing to say afterward, but are you okay with it?" he asked.
She tilted her head so that she could look into his eyes and nodded. "Yeah," she replied with a smile. "I am. Are you?"
He nodded as well. "Yes. I was just worried about you. Especially with this being our first date and all."
Cambry shrugged. "I don't normally invite the guy in on our first date, but there was something about you that I just couldn't resist."
Brooks smiled and kissed her nose. "Well, for that I am glad."
They laid in silence for a while and eventually Cambry could hear Brooks' even breaths, signaling that he had fallen asleep. She closed her eyes and soon enough she was also asleep.
In the morning, Cambry's eyes popped open in surprise. She had realized the night before she hadn't even thought about the fact that she was no longer on birth control. She had just stopped taking it about a month before because she decided she didn't like the way it made her feel. Because she was still so used to being on it, she didn't even think about the fact that they would need some alternate form.
Trying not to wake Brooks, who still slept peacefully next to her, she crawled out of the bed and pulled on her robe so that she could go into the bathroom across the hall. Once she was finished, she quietly opened the door to Jenae's room and saw that she was sleeping peacefully in her bed.
Cambry quietly went back to her own room and got dressed. She wanted to hurry to a pharmacy she knew of that was a few blocks away so that she could get a day-after pill. As she dressed, she heard Brooks stirring in her bed and turned to see if she had woke him up. His eyes were open and he watched her with curiosity. "Is everything okay?" he asked.
She nodded, pulling on her pants. "Yes. Sort of. I need to get to a pharmacy."
Brooks sat up quickly, allowing the blanket to fall so that his bare chest showed. "A pharmacy?"
"Yes," Cambry said. "I have a small problem."
Realization dawned in Brooks' eyes. "Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't even think about that last night. I assumed if it was a problem, you'd tell me."
Cambry nodded. "Normally it wouldn't be, but I just stopped taking my birth control about a month ago and I've been so used to not having to worry about it."
Brooks climbed out of the bed and began to pull his clothes on. "I'll drive you over."
She looked at him, grateful that he immediately stepped up to help her. "You don't have to do that," she said. "I can just walk."
He shook his head. "Nonsense. I have a car and it's here. There's no point in you walking."
"Thank you," she replied.
Once they were dressed, they left the apartment and Brooks drove her to a nearby pharmacy. After she got the pill, he asked, "Since we're out, would you like to grab some breakfast?"
"Sure, that would be great," she replied.
They went to a local breakfast diner that was known for its pancakes. Cambry expected there to be tension in between them, or at the very least awkwardness, but Brooks didn't seem to be bothered at all by the situation. Instead, he had stepped up to help her take care of everything and she was incredibly impressed. "Thank you for your help this morning," she said after they had told the waitress their order.
Brooks took a sip of coffee before replying. "It's not a problem. We did this together, I figured we should help solve it together."
"Well I certainly appreciate it," Cambry told him. "Not every man would have been willing to help."
"Then that's not a man," Brooks said, flashing her a smile. "It is my belief that you see everything through, whether you want to or not. I'm not saying I didn't want to help with this, but there are times when I don't want to have to deal with something, but I still do. That's just how I was raised."
"Your father must be proud of you, if that's how you see life," Cambry told him. The waitress returned and placed their food before them.
Brooks shrugged. "I don't know about that. My parents and I have an odd relationship."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Cambry said after swallowing the bite of food she'd had in her mouth.
"Thanks," Brooks replied. "So, do you know how effective that pill is?"
Cambry pursed her lips, thinking about the numbers she had floating around in her head. "I've heard it's something like eighty-five percent effective, or somewhere around there, but I'm not one-hundred percent sure."
He nodded. "Well, I guess we can only wait and see where you fit in."
After they'd eaten, Brooks dropped her back off at her apartment. "Can I call you tomorrow?" he asked as they stood at her door.
"Yes," Cambry nodded. "I'd love that."
Smiling, Brooks pressed his lips against hers before we walked away. As Cambry's stomach fluttered with nerves, she prepared herself to go inside her apartment and tell Jenae about everything that had happened.
Chapter 4
Six weeks later, Cambry sat at the table at Brooks' parent’s house. He sat next to her and his mother sat across from him. On Brooks left side, his father sat at the head of the table. Dinner had just been set on the table and they were preparing to eat. Brooks plan was to tell his parents that evening that Cambry was pregnant with his child and that they had decided to get married.
He knew his parents wouldn't be thrilled, especially since they had hoped he would marry their business partner's daughter, Ashley, but he didn't care. Even though it had only been a little more than a month he knew he was in love with Cambry and since they were going to be having a baby he figured they might as well get married.
Cambry and Brooks had discussed this ahead of time. He told her he would do most of the talking, but that she was welcome to jump in if she wanted or needed. As she dug into her chicken and rice, Brooks mom, Connie, began talking. "It's so lovely to meet you, Cambry," she said. "Of course I'd heard him talk about you, but I didn't realize how serious you two were until he mentioned bringing you to dinner."
Smiling, Cambry replied, "It's a pleasure to meet you as well. Brooks speaks only positively about you." Inwardly she sighed, hoping that Connie and her husband Benjamin would take the news well.
While they ate, Benjamin opened a bottle of wine and poured some into each of their glasses. When he reached Cambry's, she held her hand up. "I'd actually rather have water," she told him politely.
"Oh, of course," he said, sitting. She poured herself some water from the pitcher on the table. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Connie staring at her and wondered if her soon-to-be mother-in-law was guessing the reason that Cambry had turned down the wine.
She chose not to meet her eye, but instead kept her eyes on the food in front of her. Connie waited until Cambry had taken a bite before she said, "I was going to have our chef cook some fish tonight, but then Benjamin decided he'd rather have this dish. It's one of his favorites. Do you eat fish, Cambry?"
Cambry shot Brooks a look before answering Connie. "Normally I do, yes," she replied, trying to maintain as vague an answer as possible.
"Tell me, when is your birthday?" Connie asked, abruptly changing the topic.
"Oh, it's in January," Cambry told her, wondering where she was going with her thinking.
"Well," Connie said, clapping her hands together. "That's only two months away. If you two are together, we'll have to throw you a big party. What's your favorite cocktail? I'm sure you know Brooks has an incredible talent for making drinks. We'll have him and some of his friends there to make it for eve
ryone."
Brooks jumped in at that point, hoping to save Cambry from his mother's obvious attempt to get information. "Mom, let's not get too ahead of ourselves. We've only been dating a month. I'm sure Cambry doesn't want a birthday party with all of our family friends there."
A disappointed look crossed Connie's face for a moment, but it was brief and she quickly brushed it aside. "Well you know how I love to throw a party. I'd love to do this for her."
"Thank you, but that's not necessary," Cambry said.
Connie turned to her. "You do drink, don't you?"
"I sometimes do, yes," Connie said, slowly nodding her head.
"Mom, do you have something you want to ask?" Brooks said.
Benjamin had silently watched the interaction between the three of them and still remained quiet when his wife spoke. "Have you gotten that girl pregnant?" Connie asked, pointing a finger at Cambry.
Brooks sighed and passed his hand over his face. "Well, this isn't how I wanted to tell you, but yes. Cambry is pregnant with my child."
Connie gasped, dropping her fork and knife onto her plate. Benjamin's face had a stunned look on it and he opened and closed his mouth a few times. Cambry watched as his face turned from a pale white to a bright red in a matter of seconds. Neither one spoke, so Brook began again. "I know we've not been together long, but I've fallen madly in love with Cambry," he said, taking her hand in his. "We want to get married, with just a few family members and friends."
Benjamin finally spoke. "Absolutely not. We were willing to put up with you seeing other girls for some time, but you are not marrying anybody but Ashley. That's all there is to it." His voice was well controlled, but underneath the surface there was a seething anger that scared Cambry.
"Dad," Brooks said. "I'm afraid you don't have a choice. Cambry and I will be married."
"Not if I have anything to say about it," Benjamin said, pounding his clenched fist onto the table.
"Well you don't have anything to say about it," Brooks told him, standing. He placed his hands on the table. "Cambry and I are going to be married and you're either going to have to accept that or disown me. We'll leave now and when I come in to work tomorrow, we will discuss this like adults." He gently pulled Cambry up and led her out of the house.