“Do we still have time to get anything from the PI?” I asked as he sighed.
“She’s playing it safe, Max. She knows we’re watching her. Blake has a house and a job now. She’s doing better in the eyes of the court. She’s the mother. You are single and a doctor who works a lot – they are going to consider that. Have you thought about the wife angle any further?”
“I know someone that would be perfect for that, but I need to convince her. She’s reluctant right now. I need to sweeten the pot.”
I sipped my coffee as he looked at me. “You can have any woman that you want, Max. How is this an issue for you?”
“I don’t think that a woman I met at a bar is someone I want to make me look good in court. I don’t think anyone that I’ve slept with from the office works either. This girl… She is kindness and innocence. She has met Riley and they get along. Riley loves her. It’s the perfect front for this case, but what if it breaks Riley’s heart when it ends? She didn’t have to experience losing her mother because she was too young, and I don’t want her to do it now.”
“Maybe this won’t be a front. Do you have feelings for this girl?” Liam asked me as I looked at him. “I know that Blake burned you and you are not looking for love, but it is bound to happen at some point. Maybe this is it.”
“Are you getting sappy on me?” I demanded. He shrugged.
“I just don’t think you should hold out so much. Blake was one woman and you’re doing fine without her. You can raise Riley, but maybe she needs a woman in her life as well. Maybe this is the one for both of you.” I knew that Liam was happily married, but that didn’t mean it was meant for everybody.
“For now, I’ll convince her to do this for me. I just need to win in court and I’ll take it from there. Hell, I’ll offer her some cash and make this work. I want Riley.” I told him as he nodded.
“Is she in financial need?” Liam asked. I thought about the story about her lab. I nodded. “That might work. You can keep it casual for Riley’s sake, but have everything on paper and everyone wins.”
Could I? Riley had adored Lucinda from the first time that she met her. If we spent any time together, lines would be crossed and people could get hurt. Thinking about losing her to Blake and knowing that she wouldn’t be raised well was what made me come to my senses. That was what made my choice. “I’ll talk to her soon. Do I need to be married or engaged by the court date?”
“Married. It can be a whirlwind relationship, but it needs to look foolproof. What would be even better is the girl expecting a baby – giving Riley a family. Blake is still single. I am going to try to dig up as much as I can to prove that you’re the better choice. I know there’s something.” I raised my eyebrow and nodded my head. “How long did it take you to have Riley with Blake?”
“She was six weeks pregnant when we got married after dating for three months,” I reminded him. He chuckled.
“You can do it, then. Seduce this woman and sweep her off her feet. Offer her money. Do whatever you have to do to get a wife,” Liam said as he glanced at the clock. “Want to grab some lunch?”
We left and walked over to a diner to eat as he talked more about Blake. He was a friend before he was my lawyer, well-aware of the bitter split between me and Blake. He knew that my loyalty was to my daughter and that I’d fight for her.
I left and went to my office for a few appointments, working on autopilot. I’d been doing this for seven years now, and every day I thought about my aunt and how she waited too long to save herself. My friends teased me about doing this to hook up with women, but they were wrong.
It didn’t help that I made a lot of money. I had a good life, and now I needed to use my wealth to convince Lucinda to play a part for me. I went to pick up Riley after work and had dinner with my sister before bringing her home. “Where’s Lucinda?” Riley asked as she looked at the house, running up to the door. The light was on. I ran after her as she looked inside. “Lucinda doesn’t live there, sweetie. She lives in the apartment around the back. Let’s not bother her.”
“I want her to have ice cream with me,” Riley pouted. I shook my head at her.
I started over to our house as Riley ran off. “Lucinda! Come have ice cream with me.” I looked at the beautiful woman. She avoided my eyes and knelt to talk to Riley.
“Don’t you need to go to bed soon?” Lucinda asked as Riley shook her head.
“I ate all my dinner tonight and Daddy promised. We have a bunch in the freezer and I want to share with you,” Riley pleaded. My heart tugged in my chest. She liked Lucinda – I was going to invite her into my life to save her.
This was twisted.
Lucinda agreed and came over as Riley told her all about her day while I unlocked my door. We walked inside and I watched as Lucinda dropped her face to follow Riley to the kitchen. “Is it okay if she has some?” Lucinda asked. I looked up and meet her eyes.
“Yeah, but don’t let her scoop it.” I said. She nodded and asked Riley where the bowls and spoons were. I listened as they talked in the kitchen and thought about my approach with Lucinda. I had money and I could fix all her problems. She could fix mine.
Lucinda stayed for a while and even tucked Riley into bed as I went into the kitchen for a beer. She came out and I looked up to her face flushing pink. “She’s asleep. I’m sorry that I monopolized your night with her, but she’s very convincing. She’s so sweet.”
“She likes you,” I told her. She nodded. There was tension between us as we stood in silence. I cleared my throat. “Can we have lunch tomorrow? I’d like to discuss something with you.” I moved closer to Lucinda, drawn to her. She pressed her lips together.
“What?” Lucinda asked as I listened through the house to see if Riley was asleep.
I reached out to touch her face and Lucinda whimpered as she stared at me. I knew that she wanted me. I felt my body responding to her as I pressed my forehead to her own. “I want to make an arrangement with you.” I brushed my lips against hers and she stilled. I didn’t just want the arrangement right now. I wanted her. I slipped my hand into her hair and she moved her head, parting her lips so I could taste her mouth. I slipped my tongue in and she met my passion with her own, pressing herself against me as images of her body rushed through my mind.
There was something about this kiss that I couldn’t pinpoint. There was some memory involved in it, but I pushed it away because I’d been with so many women. I’d kissed so many that it all had to blur together somewhere.
I held her by her hair and waist as I continued to claim her. I knew what her nipples looked like and how she liked to touch them. I saw her with her hand inside of her pussy, fucking herself as she came for my eyes alone.
I turned and pressed her to the wall, kissing her harder as I ran my hands over her side. She was curvy and beautiful. Lucinda gasped as I slipped my hand just under her breast. “Max,” she breathed as her hands gripped my waist. I kissed her neck and brushed her nipple over her bra, finding it hard. An image of her tugging on it played through my mind. “Oh, God. I can’t.”
“I need to taste you, Lucinda. I watched you pleasuring yourself on your bed last night and I haven’t been able to get the memory out of my fucking head,” I whispered as I sucked on her neck. She lowered her hand to stroke me over my slacks, making me suck in my breath. “You have watched me.”
“I need to leave, Max. I lose control with you.” Lucinda pushed me away, but I kissed her again.
“Have lunch with me,” I urged her as she looked at me. “I work in the city. I’ll send a car for you tomorrow. I need to talk to you.”
“What time?” she asked in a frightened voice as I dropped my hands away from her body.
“Noon,” I replied. She nodded and walked towards the front door.
Fuck the way she was affecting Riley. I was more concerned with what she was doing to me right now.
Chapter Nine – Max
I dropped Riley off at Mom’s and went to work,
still thinking about the night before. I was going to propose paying Lucinda to marry me and have my baby today at our lunch – something I swore that I would never do. The scary thing was that the idea of having her in my bed to make love to – to impregnate – was one of the hottest things that I could think about.
If she agreed, we could start immediately. I was blinded by my lust for her as I walked into my office for a moment of peace.
I worked through a few more appointments before I left for the diner. I’d cleared an hour and a half just in case she wasn’t easy to convince. I even told Liam to sit at a nearby table in case I needed him for anything. I was prepared, but I couldn’t get the kiss out of my head as I walked down the street.
I entered the diner a few minutes early and found a booth in the back. My eyes searched the room for Lucinda. I saw Liam sitting across the room with a computer in front of him. I nodded at him and kept looking, not seeing Lucinda yet. Maybe she refused the car after all, though Tony sent me a text when he was on his way there.
I heard the door chime and looked up to see her walking in. Lucinda brushed her hair back and looked around, seeing me as she adjusted her shirt over her skirt. She looked beautiful as she walked over. I made eye contact with Liam and he gave me an encouraging smile. Lucinda was perfect for this, with her clean appearance and even the awkward way that she approached me. “Thanks for coming,” I said as she slipped into the booth and looked at me.
“It sounded important. I figured I should give you a chance to talk, particularly since you suggested somewhere public. I can’t even think when we’re alone,” she admitted as a waitress stopped by, staring openly at me.
“Would you like anything to drink?” I asked her as she looked at the raven-haired girl.
“Iced tea,” Lucinda replied. I ordered the same. I handed her a menu and she stared at me before reading it. “So, what is this about?”
I made sure we ordered before leaning forward and resting my arms on the table. “I mentioned my divorce to you in passing, didn’t I?”
“Yes,” she replied, frowning at me.
“Riley’s mother is something of a free spirit. I caught her cheating on me while Riley slept in her crib in the room across from ours. I asked for a divorce immediately. At first, she was happy with the occasional visit and alimony. I agreed to it just for the sake of peace for my daughter. Given my job, it was very generous – it should take care of her just fine for the next ten years that I’m required to pay her.” She gave me a shocked look and I shrugged. “I just wanted my daughter. I didn’t want it to drag out or get ugly. It’s just money. I agreed to it and I have been raising Riley ever since along with help from my family. I thought I was doing the right thing.”
“What does this have to do with me?” Lucinda asked. I paused for the waitress to place our food in front of us.
“Recently, she’s started a case to take Riley from me. She has a one-bedroom apartment that isn’t nearly large enough for a little girl, but she won’t move to another area and pay less for a bigger place. She lives just at the edge of Manhattan in the busiest part of the city. It’s no place for a kid, but she’s coming across as someone that misses her daughter and wants the chance to raise her. She’s claiming to have a job and have her feet on the ground now – that she’s a different woman.” I watched Lucinda’s face as she picked at a fry on her plate.
“Maybe that is all true. Riley is beautiful and she might want to be a mother again. Can’t you two agree on joint custody for Riley’s sake?” Lucinda asked. I sighed.
“She gets child support if she gets full custody. That’s her focus: her living a better life that does not involve caring for Riley. I know Blake, and while I might have spent some time blind to her selfishness, I know now that she’ll never get Riley. She won’t nurture her. She’ll use the money for herself.”
“That’s a tough place to be in,” Lucinda sympathized, pulling a tomato from her burger. “Is she going to hurt Riley?”
“I don’t want to think that she’d abuse her own daughter, but I do think that Blake might neglect her. She’s young and wants to go out a lot. She doesn’t want to bond with her daughter,” I explained as I glanced over at Liam. He was watching us. I looked back at Lucinda. “I might agree to supervised visits if she were happy with that, but she’s after money more than anything. I can’t just hand Riley over.” I felt emotion wash over me and was surprised by the raw sympathy that crossed her face. “I love my daughter more than anything. I can provide for her and raise her the right way.” I picked up my sandwich and took a bite, trying to sort through my thoughts. “My attorney is well-aware of the fact that New York favors mothers in these cases most of the time, and he’s made a few suggestions to me.”
“What?” Lucinda asked. I licked my lips.
“I need to be married when I go to court. I need to be with a safe, caring wife that will be everything that Riley needs so the judge can see that. He even suggested that I should be expecting a new baby so that Riley will have a family with me.” I stared into her eyes as she blinked a few times. “I have a contract drawn up that promises you one million for marrying me as well as another million to have my baby. That can get you a new lab, Lucinda. That can make your life easier. And you’ll save my daughter.”
“You want to pay me to marry you?” She asked as the blood drained from her face. I looked around, wanting her to keep her voice down. Liam caught my panicked look. Thankfully, people were busy talking around us. I reached a hand across the table to cover hers.
“It’s not that calculated, Lucinda. I like you and so does Riley. We both know that. I just need to do this fast and I want to offer you some incentive. You’re in a tough place right now, and we can help each other.” Pain flashed over her face as she pulled away from me and rested her head in her hands. “I have no intentions of hurting you in any way. Everybody will be safe.” I leaned back as I wondered what was going on inside of her head.
“I know how much you love your daughter. Anyone can see that,” Lucinda said softly as she held her chin in her hand, looking pained. “Maybe the judge will be smart enough to know it as well. I can’t do this.”
“Wait, Lucinda,” I said as she stood up to leave the diner. I reached for my wallet and dropped a couple of big bills on the table, abandoning my food. Liam did the same. I told the waitress that the money was on the table as I rushed out, no doubt getting the attention of the other patrons in the diner as I pushed the heavy glass door open. She was walking down the sidewalk. I reached her and grabbed her shoulder. She stopped walking.
Her eyes were flashing as she turned to face me. “Ask the blonde to do this for you. She seems like she’d be willing to please you.”
I had to think for a moment about who she was referring to. The night played back through my mind as I clutched her shoulders and stared at her. “You saw me that night?”
“Yes, I saw too much of you that night.” She looked disgusted for a moment. I wondered how long she had watched us. “If I say yes to this, will you get to have company over as you wish?”
“I have not had anyone over or gone to their house since I met you,” I assured her as she looked suspiciously at me. “That was only when I didn’t have Riley over. I have been a little bitter about the divorce – I haven’t acted great.”
She looked at me with so much honesty before she laughed bitterly. “I am a virgin, Max. I have never had sex, and I can’t even wrap my mind around the idea of someone paying me that much for my first time. I think your daughter is one of the sweetest children I’ve ever met, but I can’t agree to this. I’m saving myself for someone special.”
Lucinda was a virgin? I knew that she displayed some kind of fear when it came to me, but I never would have guessed that. “How? You’re gorgeous.” I told her as she widened her eyes and pain passed through them.
“I’m just a girl. I am sure you can find someone to do… this for you. You’re gorgeous, too.” Lucinda turned to w
alk away and I watched her, trying to imagine the woman that masturbated for me as a virgin. She must have done something with some man in the past. I scratched my head as I felt someone approaching me.
“Did she say no?” Liam asked as I looked at him with a smirk.
“Yeah. I don’t think she’s into the idea,” I replied as I stared into the sky.
“She’d be perfect for the court and she’s beautiful. Is there something between you?” Liam asked as I tried to think about what to say.
“Attraction,” I admitted as I turned to head back down the sidewalk. “But I guess not enough. I’ll figure out a Plan B.”
I didn’t want a Plan B. I wanted Lucinda.
Chapter Ten – Lucy
I rushed right home, stunned by Max’s proposal. God, it was an epic proposal – one that I never would have expected but that I had dreamed of for years.
Okay, so I didn’t sit around and dream about Max begging me to play his wife. I just wondered what might have been if we weren’t interrupted that night. I knew now that we were still attracted to one another, so it was harder to fight. We were adults living our own lives, and my brother wasn’t here to protest this time.
I cleaned up my apartment with the blinds closed, wanting to stay out of Max’s sight. I planned a new experiment in the lab as his words played through my mind again and again.
If I signed off to marry him, just on paper, I could open a new lab all to myself. I could get a different place. He didn’t tell me when this court date was, but it seemed like an urgent matter. I could see the concern for Riley in his face as he explained the situation. It was hard for me to picture her away from her dad.
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