Dirty Little Secret_A Secret Baby-Second Chance Romance

by Michelle Love

  The drifter thing wasn’t true at all. I’d spent my adulthood in one place—Chicago. I’d worked in one club, Underground. I had no idea why I’d told him that lie.

  But the truth sounded so pitiful; I couldn’t bring myself to tell him about the sorry existence I’d lived for the last eight years. An existence that had been caused by that one fiery night when I’d given him my virginity, and he’d given me a baby that I’d never had a chance of getting to know.

  I should’ve run away from my parents. Straight to Kane Price.

  Chapter 10

  Kane

  Zandra Larkin sat half a foot in front of me, and I couldn’t believe it.

  Our son looked at us from his seat on the couch, completely unaware that the woman I had yet to call by name was his mother. Unsure of what to do if she told Fox her name, I decided to wait and see what happened.

  Fox knew the name of his mother. But how would he react if he found out this woman was her?

  With his wellbeing at the front of my mind, I asked, “As a drifter, where have you lived?” I wanted to know if Zandra Larkin had become a person that shouldn’t be in Fox’s life. I was praying that she hadn’t changed too much, that she’d be exactly right for his life.

  I knew the attraction that I’d felt for her all those years ago was still there. It was simmering under the surface, urging me to hurry up and grab her, to pull her into my arms and get her into my bed. The way she looked me over told me she felt pretty much the same way I did.

  Her blue eyes darted back and forth, telling me she was having a hard time coming up with the answer to my question, which I found odd. Finally, she said, “I’ve only lived in Chicago. I don’t know why I said I was a drifter. I’m not. I guess you make me nervous, Kane.”

  The answer reminded me so much of the Zandra from my memory that my mind went back to that night.

  Watching her from across the room filled with wild teenagers, I liked the way Zandra sipped from the red Solo cup filled with beer. Her cute little nose wrinkled with each tiny drink she took. I knew she would never finish that cup of alcohol.

  Two other girls stood with her, talking quietly as they looked around at the others now and then. One of them said something that made them all laugh. Zandra’s laugh sounded melodic and magical. Her sweet smile made my pulse speed up.

  I didn’t know a lot about the girl, except that her parents were the strictest people on the planet, supposedly. But Zandra was out for the night. I’d overheard that she’d gotten to come to the party only because her friend had told her parents that they were going to some kind of a lock-in at her grandma’s church in Beaufort, a town a couple of hours away from us.

  Apparently Zandra wasn’t opposed to telling a little lie so she could have some fun, and that told me she just might not be opposed to what I wanted either.

  Taking notice that Bobby Franklin was coming up to the girl I’d already pegged as mine for the night, I was shocked by the spark of jealousy that shot through me.

  “Hey, Zandy, how’d you escape?”

  Her pretty blue eyes went straight to the floor, her shyness taking over again. “I’d rather not say, Bobby.”

  But her friend didn’t mind letting him in on the secret. “She lied to her parents for the first time ever!”

  Zandra’s cheeks turned beet red. “Hush, Stacy.” She pulled the cup to her lips and took another sip, wrinkling her nose again. “I don’t want anyone thinking I’m a liar.”

  Bobby nudged her shoulder with his, and I saw red for a second or two.

  My girl.

  He whispered something in her ear, so I had no idea what he said. But the blush on her cheeks went a shade deeper, and the red haze of jealousy came back to cloud my vision.

  Time to make your move, Kane.

  A tug on my white coat pulled me out of my reverie.

  “Hey, Dad. Can I run down to the nurses’ station to see if they’ve got anything good to eat? They always have cake or something down there.”

  “Yeah.” I looked at Zandra. “You want him to bring you anything back? The cake is always good.”

  She shook her head. “No, thank you.” Her eyes went to Fox and followed him as he walked out of the office, leaving us alone. She looked back at me after he closed the door behind him. “It’s good to see you, Kane.”

  “You too.” My hands itched to touch her. But I didn’t dare, not here. “I would really like to take you out sometime.”

  “No.” Her answer came way too quickly. Her hair flew around her shoulders as she shook her head, adamant. “I can’t.”

  “Why is that?” Purposely, I reached out, taking her hands into mine. “You’ll have to come up with something good, you know. You did take off on me that night. I think you owe me a date or two. Or I owe them to you, rather. I’ve never forgotten you—I want you to know that.” It wasn’t a lie. She came into my head pretty often.

  “Kane, things are different now.” She tried to pull her hands away, but I held onto them. “I’m different now.” Her eyes bored into mine. “I’m not that same little shy girl you knew back then. I’ve grown up. I have all the baggage that comes along with being a grown woman now. You could say that I’m damaged goods.”

  With a chuckle, I pulled her up. Having her standing in front of me, facing me, our bodies only inches apart, had my dick getting hard.

  “I’m a doctor. I fix damaged people for a living. If you’ve got problems, I’m the perfect guy to help you get rid of them.” Pulling her right hand to my mouth, I watched her lips quiver as I kissed her palm. “Give me a chance, Zandra.”

  There had always been a part of me that was mad at her for running away, for never telling me she was pregnant with my baby, and for giving him away. But the biggest part of me simply wanted her. I would get to the whys of that later on.

  For now, I only wanted her again. In my arms, in my bed, in my life. And that meant in Fox’s life too.

  I would have to say her name some time, after all. She didn’t know who he was, but he would know who she was right away, and he would definitely say something.

  For now, I wanted to keep the cat in the bag. I knew next to nothing about Zandra’s life, or her state of mind. I had no idea how she would take the news that I had our son and had had him since he was born.

  How will she take that?

  As I looked into her eyes, I saw a lot more strength there than I had seen eleven years earlier. She wasn’t a girl anymore; she was a woman. A mature woman who’d been through a lot and had come out the other side of it a stronger person.

  “I do not want to be fixed, Kane. I’m not willing to become your patient.”

  The idea of playing doctor with her began to fill my head, and it made my dick grow harder. “Oh, but I could make that a lot of fun, Zandra.” I pulled her into my arms, brushing the hair off her face as I stared deeply into her eyes. “Come on, give me what I want. Say yes. You know I can talk you into it. Don’t make me beg, baby.”

  Her body shook as I held her. My cock pulsed against her cunt, making her cheeks flush. “Kane, please,” she moaned.

  Moving my mouth closer to hers, I gave her my demand. “Give me what I want, and I’ll let you go.”

  “I can’t,” she muttered. “Please.”

  “No.” My lips grazed hers, teasing. “I still want you.”

  “Oh, God,” she whispered, and then leaned in to meet me halfway.

  The kiss sent me back in time to that one magical night when I’d had her underneath me. To when I’d been panting with such intense passion that I thought I might pass out. The sex had been off the charts that night. We’d fucked like wild animals after our first soft session when I’d introduced her to making love for the first time.

  If I hadn’t been expecting Fox to come back to the office at any moment, I would’ve put her ass on that desk and taken her nine ways to Sunday. But he was going to be back, and most likely soon.

  He couldn’t catch us like that. Pulling
my mouth away from hers, I had to smile when I saw the raw desire on her beautiful face. “So, that date I want. Can I get it now?”

  Her chest rose and fell against mine. “I really can’t.”

  “Wrong answer, Zandra.” Grabbing the back of her head, I grabbed a fistful of her silky hair, pulling it back, then kissing her again. Harder, more demanding this time. I wanted her to give into me the way she had when we were young.

  I could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Her tongue danced with mine. Her hands gripped my arms. When I took my mouth off hers, I was panting too. “Tell me what I want to hear.”

  “He’ll be coming back soon, Kane. You don’t want your little boy to see us like this.” She searched my eyes as she went on. “I can’t go out with you. I’m sorry.”

  “I’m not the kind of man who takes no for an answer when I know damn good and well that you want exactly what I want too.” My blood boiled as it raced through my veins. “Tell me that you don’t want me, and I’ll leave you alone.”

  Staring into her eyes, I defied her to lie to me. “You know I do. But I just can’t get involved with you.”

  Letting her go, I walked away from her in frustration. I could’ve just spit it all out—let her know that I knew her secret. Let her in on the secret I was keeping from her, too.

  You’re the mother of my son!

  It would be out in the open, and we could see where things would take us. I could tell her that I forgave her for never telling me the truth. And she could tell me what the hell had happened back then.

  Why had she let her parents force her to put our son up for adoption? Had she wanted that too? And why in the hell had none of them seen fit to let my family know a thing about the baby she carried?

  Instead, I took a deep breath to control myself as Fox came back into the office, holding up a brownie. “See, they did have something!”

  Zandra ran her hands over her shirt to make sure it was straight, looking down as she did so. “Well, I guess I should be going. You’ve got work to do, Kane. It was nice to see you again after all these years. Being that we’re both living in Charleston, I’m sure we’ll run into each other now and then. It was a pleasure to meet you, Fox.” She rattled on as she made her way to the door.

  Fox took a seat on the sofa again, munching on his sweet treat, basically giving it all of his attention as he virtually ignored us. While he was distracted, I headed to the door, placing myself between it and her. “I’m not busy at all. Please stay a bit longer. Let’s catch up.”

  One brow cocked as she gave me a sly smile. “Haven’t we already done that?”

  “Verbally,” I whispered. “I don’t want you to go yet.”

  “I know what you want.” She winked. “Sorry, Kane. I can’t.”

  “You can.” I leaned back on the door. “And you will.”

  It had been a very long time since I’d craved anyone like this. But now that I had her, I felt a hunger for her that rivaled anything I’d ever felt. I would have her obstinate ass under me again if it was the last thing I did.

  Fox got up to toss the napkin, now empty of brownie, into the trashcan. “What are you guys doing anyway?” He walked up to my side, looking at me with a confused expression. “It sounds like you two are fighting about something.”

  “We’re not fighting,” Zandra said as she looked down at him, running her hand over his head. The maternal action made me catch my breath, and I wondered if she had any idea that this was the boy she’d grown in her belly for nine months. “Your dad’s just being silly, is all.”

  Fox looked at me, his tone surprised, “You’re being silly?”

  It wasn’t like me to be silly, and Fox knew it. “No, I’m not being silly. I’ve just asked her on a date.”

  Now his eyes grew big. “A date?” He looked at Zandra. “You should say yes, ’cause my dad never goes on dates.” Then he looked back at me. “You must really love her, Dad.” He tried to whisper that little bit, but I was sure people on the other side of the hospital could have heard him.

  Zandra choked a little as she backed up, holding her throat as she looked down at the floor. “I just can’t. I really can’t.”

  Patting my son on the top of his head, I said, “Grownups don’t talk about love so soon, son. But I would like to take this nice young woman out for dinner and maybe some drinks and dancing, if she’s not opposed to it, of course. Gentlemen never force themselves on a lady. You remember that, Fox.”

  Zandra suddenly found herself with the upper hand as she saw that I wasn’t about to teach my son to bend a female to his will the way I’d been trying with her earlier—and fully planned on doing again. “Glad to hear you think that way, Kane. So you do understand that I just can’t go out with you on any kind of a date. Sorry about that.”

  “Aw, man, Dad. She don’t love you back.” Fox shook his head. “Sorry, Dad. That’s gotta hurt.”

  “Oh, it does.” I held my hand over my heart. “Just one little date is all I’m asking for.”

  Fox turned to look at her. “Please, lady. I’ve never seen my dad like this. He’s so, so—um—acting so weird, is what he is. It’s just dinner, drinks, and dancing. Come on. Please.” Then my son put on his most pitiful pleading face as he tried one last time. “Please. Can you do it for me?”

  The way Zandra looked at him made my heart stop. Her eyes shimmered a bit, and I could tell she was holding back tears. Maybe she was thinking about the boy she had given away.

  She had no idea she was looking at that same child.

  “You two are making this very hard.” She looked up at me. “Kane, if I thought it would be a good idea, I would say yes. I’m sure nearly every woman in this city would love to go on a date with you. I know that’s how it was back when we were in high school.”

  “But I’m not asking any of them out—I’m asking you out.” I crossed my arms over my chest and looked at her with a sexy grin. “Come on, just say yes already.”

  Fox walked over and put his hand on her arm. “Come on, please? Just tell him you’ll go on at least one date with him. I’ve never seen him this way.”

  Reaching out with her left hand, the one with the bandage wrapped around it, she said, “I just can’t, Fox.”

  He caught her by the wrist, looking at something on the inside of it. “Hey, you’ve got my birthday tattooed on you.”

  Holy hell!

  Chapter 11

  Zandra

  Really? He even has the same birthday?

  I didn’t think life could by any crueler to me than it already had been when it came to my son, but apparently I’d been wrong. I could feel a pain in my chest that I didn’t think would ever go away at the idea that Kane had been raising a son so similar to our own, while the one we’d created was somewhere being raised by strangers.

  Kane’s little boy looked me right in my eyes. “What’s your name?”

  I cut my eyes to Kane, trying to hide the pain I was sure was obvious in my own, and found him holding his hand over his mouth as his eyes bored into the back of his son’s head. Each slow step he took led him to us. But he didn’t say one word.

  Looking back at Fox, I said, “My name is Zandra Larkin.”

  He let my wrist go as he took a few steps backward. His father caught him from behind, hugging him. “This is your mother, Fox.” He said the words so softly, I was sure I must have misheard.

  “I know,” came the boy’s choked reply. “Mom, it’s you. It’s really you.” Tears began to flow from his little eyes before he turned to his father, putting his arms around him, hugging him tightly as he sobbed. “We found her, Dad! We finally found her!”

  With no idea what to do or say, I felt my head going light, my vision starting to tunnel. “What the hell’s going on?” I asked breathlessly, feeling as though all the air had been sucked out of my lungs.

  Kane moved quickly, still holding his son as he came to steady me before I fell down. “Let’s all sit down over here on the couch.”r />
  He helped us both sit down, and I felt the heat of tears burning the backs of my eyes. “Kane, I don’t understand what’s happening here. Please help me understand,” I said, hearing the desperation in my voice, but I was beyond caring.

  I’d never imagined in a million years that he knew about the pregnancy. I’d had no clue that he knew we had a son. And not an inkling that he had actually had our son all these years. My mind was ablaze with questions, but my mouth didn’t seem to be working as I sat there, slack-jawed.

  Kane helped fill in the blanks, taking a deep breath before telling me everything. “Your neighbor overheard your parents yelling one night, and she found me and told me that she’d heard that you were pregnant. She’d been at that party and had seen us go off together. She had a strong idea that I was the father, so she told me about what had happened.”

  I looked at him as Fox cried, still hugging him, his face buried in his father’s shoulder. The sight was too much for me to bear, so I focused on Kane’s eyes. “How did you know he was yours?”

  “Come on, Zandra,” he said with a smile. “I knew. And after the baby was born, we had a DNA test done to prove it, so we wouldn’t have any issues should something come up in future.”

  “How’d you adopt him?” I knew I was still missing a lot of pieces to this puzzle. “You weren’t even eighteen yet when he was born, were you?”

  “My aunt and uncle adopted him. They tracked your family down. They found the adoption agency you registered with, and they made sure they were chosen to adopt the baby.” Kane ran his hand over Fox’s head. “But I’ve been his dad since day one.”

  Fox pulled his head off his dad’s shoulder, wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, then turned to look at me. “Can I ask you something?”

  I looked into his eyes—into the eyes of my son. My heart felt like it was trying to leap out of my throat. Nodding, I said, “Sure.”