Royally Yours: A Bad Boy Baby Romance

by Amy Brent

  But after an hour or so of periodically taking my headphones off to make sure I was really alone, I finally settled in and allowed myself to let loose.

  I finished the night breathless, and my proximity to Rafael’s office made flashed of that night we spent together flash through my mind. But once everything was done, I put my things away and headed out with everyone else.

  I couldn’t help but wonder, as I rode the earliest train of the day back home with all the other overnight workers, if I would ever see Rafael again, or if we were two ships that had passed once, never to meet any other time.

  Perhaps even more frustrating, I couldn’t figure out if that was a bad thing or not.

  But the more time that passed, the more mournful I felt. Like I had lost something incredibly important. Which was ridiculous because I knew it was a good thing that he was leaving me alone, and yet…

  I couldn’t help it. A week passed and nothing. My dreams grew more and more intense, replaying what had happened to us but adding new and more details until it was barely a shadow of its former self.

  I missed him. How could I miss him? We had slept together once and hung out a grand total of…three hours? That did not a friendship make, and yet here I was, hoping that he would show up in the corners of my vision.

  By Friday, I was pretty much sure that our chance encounter was just that, chance, and I should stop hoping for a repeat. But I couldn’t help but feel, when I left work for the last time, that eyes were on me.

  I stopped, glancing behind me to see if another coworker had changed up their route home, but no one was there. Shrugging, I dismissed it as a figment of my imagination and headed home for a lonely weekend.

  Chapter Seventeen

  ~Rafael~

  I yawned as I swung my feet out of bed, already hearing Saturday morning cartoons playing in the next room. It seemed that, despite our late night watching super hero movies, that Dominic was up and at ‘em.

  Groaning, I stood and headed to my living room. After everything that had happened at work, and the delicate position I had put both McKenna and myself in, I decided to work from home for the rest of the week and enjoy time with my son. It was something I hadn’t done since he’d gotten pneumonia when he was three and I found myself enjoying all the quality time we had.

  I always said how much I loved him, and how he was my world, but the week at home reminded me of just how much I took the time we had together for granted. He was already starting school and before I knew it he would be a senior about to go off to college. I needed to cherish each lunch we shared, every movie we watched. I would make sure he knew just how valuable he was.

  “Hey there, little man. I see you got yourself some cereal.”

  “Uh-huh,” he answered with a little nod. “Is good.”

  “I’m sure it is,” I said, heading to the kitchen to pour myself a bowl. “So, what do you want to do today? Hit up the science museum? Go to the park? Maybe hit the movie theater?”

  “I wanna play with McKenna!”

  I froze at that, my eyes going wide before I was able to slide my expression back to neutral.

  “What was that, buddy?”

  “I wanna hang out and play with McKenna! I wanna show her my book collection, and I think she would like some of my figurines.” He tilted his head back so he could send me a piteous look all the way from the couch. “Please, Dad?”

  “I’m sure that Miss O’Grady is very busy. She’s been working all week and no doubt wants to just stay home and be a bum for a bit.”

  “But Dad,” Dom whined in a very un-Dom way. What was with McKenna’s ability to make Barbos men act so outside of themselves? “She’s the only adult I’ve ever talked to who was so cool. She even knew all about Godzilla!”

  I pretended to be hurt at that, grabbing at my heart. “What, am I not cool?”

  But he just rolled his eyes. My son was wising up to my theatrics at the grand old age of five. There really was no hope for me now. “You know what I mean.”

  “No, I don’t,” I said in the most fatherly way I could muster. Grabbing my cereal, I headed to the couch to see what my son was watching.

  It seemed to be some overly dramatized show about card games. But there were also motorcycles somehow involved? I didn’t quite get the connection, but what mattered was that my little boy loved it and that was enough for me.

  I was grateful, however, that he didn’t bring up McKenna again. I didn’t know quite how to tell him that we would probably never see the breathtaking woman again, or even if I could tell him that. I thought that everything had passed, but as soon as the show was over, Dom was looking up at me with wide eyes.

  “Can we order pizza for lunch?”

  “You just had breakfast, little man, and you’re already thinking about lunch?”

  He nodded, his face guileless despite the fact that I could feel that I was about to have one put over on me. “But if I ask you right now, it will give you time to decide and order it.”

  “Look at you, thinking ahead of time. That’s very mature of you.”

  “Well I’m very mature,” he answered confidently, nodding his head. “Mature enough to pick what friends I want to have over?” He finished in a question and although I wanted to laugh at his try, I instead fixed him with a stern look.

  “Dom.”

  “Aw, please, Dad! She’s the only one who’d ever read the type of books I like and didn’t tell me I should try reading something else! She didn’t talk to me like was a little kid!”

  “You are a little kid, Dom.”

  “I know, but that don’t mean I like it when people treat me like I’m dumb!”

  “Fair enough. But I’m not asking McKenna over.”

  “Please, Dad! I’ve never asked for any friend to come over! Pleeeassse!”

  Normally I never tolerated begging, but he did have a point. In his short five years he had never once asked for a friend to come over. In fact, I wasn’t sure that he really had any friends his age. Although he was plenty charming, he didn’t seem to get along well with little ones. I liked to blame his mother, but I was willing to believe some of it was me and my own trust issues.

  “Alright. I’ll ask her. But I don’t want you to be surprised if she can’t make it.”

  “I understand,” Dom said with a solemn nod. “I just wanna try.”

  “Let me go grab my laptop and I’ll shoot her an email.”

  “Why not just text her?”

  “Uh, adult reasons.”

  “Okay. Whatever you say.” I could tell that he didn’t really believe me, which lead me to wonder if he thought I was too old to know how to text. I would have to show him just how technologically capable I was, but that would have to wait for another time.

  As I went off to grab my laptop, I was tempted to just pretend that I was emailing McKenna, but I had always taught my son that honesty was a requirement to relationships, not optional, so I needed to uphold my own teachings.

  I booted up my computer and stared at it for a solid ten minutes, thinking of how I could compose this email. Did I acknowledge our tryst? Did I continue as if nothing had happened between us? Did I apologize for contacting her and tell her that I never would of if it weren’t for Dom?

  I decided honesty was the best way to go as well. I told her that I wasn’t certain where things laid between us, but that Dom was begging to see her and that I promised him that I would at least try. I also put in that I had told him that she was most likely busy, so it would be no issue if she was occupied. Otherwise I wished her well and sent it off before I could second-guess myself.

  Still, I cringed as I reread my email. For being a confident man, and someone who prided myself of being in control of most situations, I certainly felt off-kilter now. If I didn’t know better, I would almost think that I had feeling for McKenna.

  But that was impossible. I had no idea who she was and almost all of our interactions started or ended with high levels of stress. Tha
t was not healthy by any stretch of the means. Maybe I just needed to start dating again.

  After I had broken up with Dom’s mother, I had gone on a year and a half spree of bouncing from relationship to relationship. It had been fun, and certainly tabloid worthy, but ultimately it left me feeling more alone than I had been after the divorce. None of those women really cared for me. I was either another notch on their belt or a way to secure their station.

  I sighed and rubbed my face, cursing the night that I had gotten so involved in my work that I had ended up staying late and seeing a strange woman dance.

  I got up to head into the living room -I could already hear the next cartoon about mechanized dinosaurs playing, but as I stood, I saw a notification that I had a reply.

  No, she couldn’t have responded so fast! Also, it was only eleven in the morning, as a night shift worker, I was pretty sure she usually slept in until after noon. But sure enough, as I sat back down, I saw that it was indeed her.

  I clicked on it, sure that it was her saying to never contact her again, but instead it was a cautious acceptance and she said she could be there in an hour and a half. It was a completely unexpected offer, and I couldn’t help but marvel at her generosity. She was willing to cross the city and endure what was going to be a very awkward interaction between her and I just so my son could hang out with one of his few friends.

  Or she was looking to get something out of it.

  I shook that thought out of my head. After everything that had happened between McKenna and I, she had never tried to wheedle anything out of me. In fact, she had done her best to generally avoid me and never be person of note. If there was one person who deserved at least an ounce of trust, it was her.

  …unless she was playing the long con.

  I took a deep breath and pushed myself away from the desk. What was wrong with me? It felt like I could never be happy and that no matter what the red headed woman did, she would always have my suspicion. What a terrible way to live!

  Oh well, if there was one person I could look to be positive, it was Dom. I headed to the living room and sat next to my little man.

  “So?” he asked, eye bright.

  “So what?” I asked, deciding to play out the moment a bit. I wasn’t often I got to razz my son; he was usually much to smart for any of that.

  “Did she answer?”

  “Did who answer?”

  “Dad!”

  I laughed, I couldn’t help it. “She said she’d be here in about an hour and a half.”

  He literally jumped up, nearly knocking his cereal over in the process.

  “See! I told you so! She’s coming!” Suddenly he stood stock still, his eyes growing wide. “I gotta clean my room!”

  With that he took off, leaving me to pick up our breakfast dishes. His excitement was infectious, and I felt myself looking forwards to her arrival as well.

  No matter what happened, it would be nice to see her face.

  Chapter Eighteen

  ~McKenna~

  I had slept surprisingly well for getting home after six am and washing up to the sounds of the rest of my neighbors getting ready for work. Despite my every intention to sleep in, I found myself waking up just after eleven, feeling fully rested and satisfied.

  I guess that week vacation really had done wonders to reset my body. Of course, not having the stress of waiting for a paycheck or being fired certainly helped. All in all, the day felt brighter, and for once it didn’t seem like there was a guillotine hanging above my head.

  Until my phone beeped, that was.

  I recognized the sound as my email going off and a wave of cold dread washed over me. The last time I had received an email from work, it had sent my life tail spinning in a direction that I had not expected. I didn’t even want to think what it could possibly contain.

  I tried to ignore it, tried to just roll over and forget than anything had happened, but my mind wouldn’t let me. Rolling over, I grabbed my phone and decided to face the music.

  It was from Rafael. I couldn’t believe it! A week with no contact and now he was going to email me, of all things? It had to be something good then. Or at least I hoped so. If it was a booty call, I was going to drop kick him into a new eon.

  I supposed that I should open it up before leaping to conclusions, so I did. My eyes quickly skimmed over it and I saw that Dom had specifically asked to hang out with me. Rafael had told him I’d probably be busy, but he promised to ask anyways.

  My heart melted a bit at that. I remembered how lonely Dom had seemed when his parents were fighting and how happy he had been our entire meal together. He was such a sweet, smart boy. It was clear he didn’t have a lot of people who understood the kind of things he was into, and like most bookworms, I could guess that he didn’t exactly have a ton of friends his own age.

  How could I say no? That would be punishing the son for the sins of the father. Quickly, I typed up an answer and told him I would be there in an hour and a half after I showered and caught the bus.

  For a moment I was worried that Rafael would offer to pay for a cab or something like that, but thankfully, he did not. I didn’t like the idea of being in his debt, or not knowing how to get to his place. The only thing the CEO did was send me his address and that was that.

  I took my time getting ready, being choosy about what I wore. I didn’t want to send the wrong idea, so I chose the most casual clothes I had; a loose sweater and some old jeans, then threw my hair into a ponytail and headed out.

  Despite the caution that was nagging at my mind, I was still excited to go. Part of me tried to argue that I was just happy to see Dom again, but part of me also knew that was total bull. I wanted to see Rafael. Too much of him was wrapped in mystery for me and I just wanted to dig back at all those layers and find out just who he was.

  The bus ride gave me plenty of time to mentally put together the greeting I wanted to say, and then overthink it about twenty times over. It wasn’t the first time I wished my mind didn’t work like a hamster on a wheel, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.

  Thankfully, there was still a fifteen-minute walk between the stop and Rafael’s place. Of course, he lived in the upper part of the city where they didn’t rely on such banal public transportation like buses, but I didn’t mind the trek. The physical exertion got me out of my head, and by the time I reached the lobby, I was only mildly sick from the whirlwind in my own head.

  The room was incredibly beautiful, all high ceilings and gold embellishment. It was like something out of a movie and I couldn’t help but feel incredibly out of place.

  “Can I help you, Miss?”

  I looked to see a man behind a large marble desk in the center of the room looking to me. I just stared blankly at him for a moment before realizing that he was talking to me.

  “Oh! I’m here to see Mr. Barbos.” I said, walking up to him and trying to look like I belonged.

  “Mr. Barbos? Let me see if he sent word of any visitors. I just started my shift, so I have a few messages left by the previous helper.” He typed a few things into the computer in front of him and I felt my stomach twist.

  What a bizarre reaction. Rafael had asked me here himself, I had absolutely nothing to worry about. I didn’t know what it was about the stunningly handsome man that made me doubt everything about myself.

  “Ah yes! I see a Miss Maxine Grady! Thank you for your patience, I’ll buzz the elevator down for you.”

  Buzz the elevator down? I didn’t quite get what he meant until I actually went over to the lift and saw that there was no call button at all. Oh. That was an interesting security measure.

  I was very pleased that it arrived quickly, the golden doors parting to let me inside. But then I was surprised once more when I saw there was no floor pad inside either. Instead, the doors just closed and whisked me upwards.

  Was this a thing? Did rich people really need to hire someone because they were too lazy to actually press and elevator button? Or was i
t more about showing off their wealth? Or was it some sort of luxurious hook the building used to convince rich people to live here instead of the other exorbitantly expensive penthouse across the street?

  I didn’t know. As much as I stressed about money and paying the bills, I didn’t really lust after the life of the mega-wealthy either. Rafael, for the amazing, incredible things he had, didn’t seem that much happier than me.

  The elevator finally came to a stop and the doors opened to reveal a single landing and just one door. Did Rafael really have the entire floor just for his apartment? That seemed…unimaginable.

  I thought about emailing him that I was here, but what if he wasn’t by his computer? I only had my work email hooked up to my phone because I didn’t own a desktop or laptop. I guessed I would just have to suck it up and knock.

  Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I strode forward and rapped on the door. I didn’t see any sort of bell, but I guessed that with the desk worker below, no one was going to come up that Rafael didn’t know was already on their way,

  I heard footsteps approach the door, light and quick, then a second later it flew open to show Dom’s smiling face.

  “McKenna!” He said, practically bouncing up and down. What I had done to make this little kid so enraptured with me, I would never know, but the smile he gave me was absolutely heartwarming. “You came!”