by Ally Nelson
When Chloe pulled up to the park with Dana still sniffling in the passenger seat, she knew that she had a choice to make.
“Come on, let’s go sit on the swings.” Chloe got out of the car and waited for Dana, before the two of them walked over to the swings. “Remember when Danny broke up with me and we came out here?” Each of the girls sat on a swing.
“Yeah.”
“We must have sat here for five hours talking about how we were going to make voodoo dolls of him.” Chloe laughed and Dana cracked a smile.
“I don’t want to make one of my dad though.” Dana said. She wiped her nose on the sleeve of her shirt. “Maybe that woman he’s seeing though!” Dana sighed loudly.
“Dana…” Chloe looked over at her.
“Hmm?” Dana was staring down at the sand under the swings, dragging her feet along in straight lines.
“You know how we usually tell each other everything?” Chloe asked. Dana looked at her.
“What do you mean usually?” She sniffed loudly.
“Well, sometimes something happens and someone else asks you not to say anything and even when you want to tell your best friend, you can’t…” Chloe blurted out.
“I guess.” Dana said, her forehead wrinkling.
“Well, I have to tell you something.” Chloe said. Dana planted her feet on the floor and stopped her swing from moving.
“What?” She said flatly.
“Well, you know how I’ve been babysitting Jack and Lola?” Dana nodded. “Well, when I started there, I sort of noticed that something was different.” Chloe said.
“Different like what?” Dana asked.
“Different like your mom was gone a lot and your dad was really kind of lonely and sad.” Chloe said. Dana cocked her head to the side as she began to think that perhaps it was her mom who was cheating.
“And?” Dana asked.
“Well…please don’t tell your dad I told you…but one night when the kids were in the game room I went up to the kitchen. I was hanging out with Maria, eating some food she fixed for me when your mom came in.” Chloe said.
“Uh huh…”
“And Dana, she was drunker than I have ever seen anyone EVER. I mean, she couldn’t even stand up.” Chloe grimaced, afraid of Dana’s reaction.
“Are you serious?” Dana asked. Chloe nodded.
“I told her to go and lie down and she passed out pretty soon after. But that night I was talking to your dad and I told him what had happened.” Chloe said.
“What did he say?” Chloe asked.
“He said that she’s been drinking since you left for college and now that he’s working more, she’s been drinking even more. Now it seems like it’s become a pretty big thing between them and they have decided to separate.” Chloe felt relieved for telling at least half of her secret.
“But…why doesn’t she just stop?” Dana asked. Chloe shrugged.
“I don’t think it’s that easy. But I think your dad is just doing what’s best for Jack and Lola. I don’t think it’s anything to do with cheating.” Chloe said. Dana sighed loudly.
“I’m like the worst human being ever for thinking that he was cheating.” Dana said. Chloe felt the guilt nipping at her heels once again. “Why didn’t they just tell me?” Dana asked.
“Your dad said they didn’t want to ruin your last year of college…but I guess things have gotten so bad that they decided you had to know.” Chloe dragged her feet in the sand under her swing.
“Oh…” The two girls swung in silence for a little while.
“You okay?” Chloe asked. Dana sighed.
“I guess. I think I feel better than I did when I thought dad was cheating. I don’t know why I thought that. He seems to be holding it together pretty well, I guess he just fooled me in to thinking it couldn’t be anything that mom was doing to him.” Dana said.
“Well, I think sometimes it’s easier to tell other people about stuff like that instead of bothering your family with it.” Chloe said. Dana nodded.
“It’s weird though, because you’re just like family to us.” Dana said. Chloe nodded.
“Yeah. I think I was just there at the right time. I mean, what could he say after I saw Linda completely blitzed out of her mind?” Chloe asked.
“Was she really that bad?” Dana asked.
“Yeah, she had to lean against the doorframe to hold herself up. She came down looking for more wine.” Chloe said.
“Urgh, poor Maria…poor you.” Dana said giving Chloe a sympathetic gaze. “I’m sorry you had to be there for that, but I’m kind of glad that you were there for my dad.” She said.
“Yeah, me too.”
“Do you think I should talk to him? Let him know that I know?” Dana asked.
“Nooooo, please don’t do that or he’ll know that I broke his confidence and then he’ll never tell me anything again.” Chloe panicked, she didn’t want to lose what she had just built with Doug.
“Oh, right. Well do you think you can at least keep being there for him?” Dana asked. Chloe smiled at her.
“Nothing would make me happier.” She said.
Carrying the Billionaire Boss’
Love Child
By: Nicky Stewart
Carrying the Billionaire Boss’ Love Child
© Nicky Stewart, 2016 – All rights reserved
Published by Steamy Reads4U
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, including electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events are purely coincidental. This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only.
This book may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, please return it to the seller and purchase a copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.
Warning
This book contains explicit content intended for readers 18+ years old.
If you are under 18 years old, or are not comfortable with adult content, please close this book now.
Chapter One
“Thank you so much for your time,” Dana said as she got off of the phone. As soon as the phone call ended, she lied back in her bed. “That’s the fifth place that I called this week.” Dana said as she closed her eyes. She had just graduated from Columbia University Law School and she was really hoping to land a good job at a reputable law firm.
“Hey sweetheart,” Ryan Prescott, Dana’s father, said walking into her room. He knew that she was calling back the companies that she had did an application for and he wanted to see if she’s heard any good news.
“Hey daddy,” Dana said and sat up in her bed. The look on her face already told Ryan that she hadn’t heard anything new.
“Not having any luck with the companies?”
“All of them said they were still reviewing applications. They should be calling back qualified candidates towards the end of the week.” Dana said shaking her head.
“Well… that’s some news.” Ryan wanted to make his daughter feel a little bit better. Dana had a good head on her shoulders and he was sure that she’d land an interview soon.
“That’s what they all say, dad. I don’t have much work experience, but I do know that some employers say that as a way of turning people down nicely. I really don’t understand why companies give candidates false hope.” Ryan started coughing then and Dana was up to her feet quickly. Ryan had been sick for a while which was why Dana needed to get a good paying job as soon as possible. Ryan couldn’t work much and he didn’t appear to be getting any better.
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“I’m fine,” Ryan said once his coughing fit was over. “Don’t give up, you’ll hear something from them soon.” Dana frowned and wrapped her arms around her ailing father.
“When will you get the results back from your tests?” Ryan had been in and out of the doctor’s office trying to figure out what was wrong with him for the past two weeks, and none of them were giving them any answers.
“In a couple of days, but don’t worry about me sweetheart,” Ryan kissed Dana on the forehead quickly. “I’ll be alright; I have a lot of fight left in me. I’ll start getting better soon.” He had to get better soon because he hated making Dana worry about him.
“Alright, we’ll just have to wait till then…” Dana paused momentarily. “Get some sleep, you look exhausted.” Ryan gave Dana a small smile, he really couldn’t hide anything from her.”
“Yeah, I am feeling a bit sluggish. I’ll rest for a while.” Dana gently moved away from her father’s embrace and watched as he walked towards the direction of his own bedroom. As soon as he was out of sight, Dana fell back onto her bed.
“What am I doing?” Dana asked herself. This wasn’t the life that she expected for herself when she graduated with her Bachelor’s. She had come up with what she thought was a bulletproof plan. She’d work for a few years and save up to pay for her own place and then go back to school to get her Juris Doctor. Dana was expecting to land a job at a law firm as soon as she passed her Bar Exam. None of that happened though. Dana found it hard getting a job with a degree in English, so she decided to go back to school several months after she got her BA. Since she couldn’t get a job, she couldn’t move into her own place.
Dana worked her way through law school, which had to be the greatest challenge that she’d ever encountered and then graduated at the top of her class at the age of twenty-four. Dana knew for sure that law firms would be all over her once she was licensed to practice law in the state of New York, but after four months of applying for jobs with no call backs, she was starting to think she was ending up nowhere. If that wasn’t stressful enough for the young woman, her father got sick and is unable to work for the time being. If Dana didn’t do something fast, they’d be homeless before her father got his first FMLA payment.
“Maybe there’s more job postings,” Dana had to keep trying. She’d take anything that she could get, she didn’t necessarily need to be an Attorney even though that’s where her passion lies. Grabbing her laptop off of the floor, Dana quickly went onto her favorite job posting websites. “I need to lower my expectations for a while, companies probably don’t want to hire someone as an Attorney straight out of college. This is New York after all.” Too many things were on stake for her family at the moment for Dana to let her pride get the best of her.
It’s always been Dana and Ryan since Dana could remember. Dana’s mom had remarried and moved across the country when Dana was still a baby, the woman didn’t want anything to do with Ryan or Dana. Ryan wasn’t close to his family, and he and Dana mainly visited them once a year at Thanksgiving dinner. There wasn’t a ton of love from their dysfunctional family, but at least they had each other.
“Law Firms,” Dana said as she typed in Law Firms in the search box. She was sure that searching for that would yield her more results. She smiled as she saw hundreds of job postings come up. “Let’s see,” Dana skimmed the pages enthusiastically as she saw postings that she hadn’t seen previously. Dana ran her hand through her shoulder length auburn hair as she scrolled the page for anything that she hadn’t previously applied for. Dana didn’t have a lot of work experience, but she did do an internship at a small law firm in Manhattan. She shadowed many Attorneys and did some paralegal related tasks, it was too bad that they weren’t hiring at the moment.
Dana found many non-attorney jobs and quickly clicked into them. She seen some reputable companies and some companies that she had never heard of, but there was one company that caught her attention.
“Connors and Associates” She mumbled and clicked into the description. She’d vaguely remember reading about this company, but she couldn’t remember where she had read anything about them at. She saw that they were looking for a Legal Assistant and looking at the job description, she was sure that she’d be able to do this job well. “The pays not bad either,” Dana said as she saw the minimum for the job was forty-two thousand a year.
Forty-two thousand dollars a year wasn’t that much living in New York City, but it was better than zero dollars a year.
“Besides, I’m sure they’d be willing to give me a raise after seeing my degree.” If Dana was lucky enough to earn this interview, she was sure that her degree in law would impress the hiring managers. After Dana had applied for the job, she quickly googled the company and the results that she found was impressive. The company was only four years old and the top law company in New York at the moment. Dana was also shocked that it was a multibillion dollar corporation led by two brothers, Austin and Matthew Connors.
“The top company in New York! This is definitely something recent.” Dana had always researched law firms, and she was sure that she knew just about all of the more well-known ones like the back of her hand. It appeared that she had been mistaken. She quickly googled Matthew and Austin, she figured they’d be two middle-aged men, but she was surprised to learn that Austin was almost thirty-five and Matthew had just turned thirty-two.
“To accomplish so much at such a young age… I’m trying to get like that.” Dana wasn’t trying to be a billionaire, or even a millionaire. She just wanted to live comfortably enough to take care of herself and her father. Dana couldn’t help but be a little curious about the men who made it big at such a young age, she had to see what they looked like. Dana tried to find a picture of the two men, but she couldn’t find any images of them. The two men must have been incredibly private, she couldn’t find too many articles about them either. “I guess all things are possible when you’re worth billions of dollars.” Dana shook her head and closed down her laptop. She was exhausted, applying and looking for jobs had become the norm for her.
Dana got up from her bed and made her way towards her father’s room. She glanced through the slightly ajar door and noticed that he was in bed. His breathing was ragged and that made her frown. She really hoped that they hear the results of her father’s tests soon so they could work on fixing the problem. After checking in on him, Dana decided to make dinner. She was starving and she was sure that her father was too. She’ll try her hardest to think positively. Something would work out for her soon, because in her family’s current predicament, she’s their last resort.
Chapter Two
Dana walked the crowded streets of New York after taking a cab to just outside Madison Square Garden. She wanted to get a feel of the law firms in the area, more in particular she wanted to see this ‘Connors and Associates’. She didn’t understand why she was so intrigued by the place, but Dana had a dream last night that almost forced her to come see where the law firm was at. Dana dreamt last night that she had gotten the Legal Assistant job which she felt was a good sign. She wasn’t the type of person that was big on viewing dreams as a sign, but this… this had to mean something.
“This is it,” Dana said after she had walked around for about several minutes trying to locate the place. The building wasn’t the biggest building in New York, but it wasn’t small either. She wanted to walk into the building, but she didn’t know how the employees of the building would feel about that. Sure, she could have easily been a patron in search of legal aid, but Dana knew that wasn’t the reason behind her visit.
“Just go in, Dana.” Dana said as she made her way towards the automatic sliding doors. She didn’t know why she was feeling nervous all of a sudden, it wasn’t like she was there with ill intentions on her mind.
“Good morning, how may I assist you?” A smart woman in a business suit said as she looked up at Dana when she walked through the doors. Dana briefly looked down at herself and sighe
d internally in relief. She was happy that she dressed professionally that day, because she was a strong believer that all first impressions mattered.
“Good morning, I’m actually here today in search for some information.” Dana said. Since she was scoping out the company anyway, it wouldn’t hurt to pick up some pamphlets that might not have appeared on the website.
“Of course,” the woman said walking around the desk. “Please follow me, we have all sorts of pamphlets that may be useful for you.” Dana smiled at the woman and followed her into a neighboring room. The office building was quite nice with warm colors decorating the space. Dana saw employees in cubicles typing quickly and answering phone calls. The environment reminded her so much of her internship at Harrison and Associates. “Here we are,” The woman said and turned around and smiled at Dana.
“Thank you so much.”
“Of course, take whatever you need. Did you need to set up a consultation as well? These pamphlets are very informative, but I doubt they’d provide all of your answers for you.” Dana had to admit, the woman had her customer service skills down.
“Sure, if I need anything else I can call and try to set up an appointment with one of the attorneys here.” The woman gave Dana a big smile at that and gave her a business card.
“I’m Joy, if you need anything give me a call and I will find the best attorney who specializes in whatever you need.” Dana nodded her head and Joy walked her to the front door. “Enjoy the rest of your day.”
“Same to you,” Dana said and made her way out of the building. When Dana walked out of Connors and Associates, she absolutely knew that someone was going to give her a call back.
