Steven
Book One in the Dallas Billionaires Trilogy
By Kirsten Osbourne
Copyright 2012 Kirsten Osbourne
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Book One in the Dallas Billionaires Trilogy. When the younger sister of a woman he used to date shows up at his house with a child she claims is his, he convinces they’d be better off living with him than simply taking child support from him. He finds himself wildly attracted to the new “nanny” and sets out to win her heart.
Kirsten Osbourne’s website is at: http://kirstenosbourne.com
Chapter One
Bailey Borders looked at the house number on the printed page, and then looked at the house in front of her. She swallowed hard. There was no way this could be the right house, could it? This place looked like a palace. She looked down at her torn jeans and her tee shirt with the spit up stain on the shoulder. She should have taken the time to stop and change somewhere, but how could she do that with the baby?
She turned into the long driveway and pulled up in front of the house. She was surprised there wasn’t a guard sitting at the gate waiting for her. It was that kind of house – a colossal brick home with large columns at the front. She couldn’t see how deep it was, but she’d be willing to bet it was the biggest home she’d ever seen. Her 1994 Ford Fiesta with the back bumper tied on with a wire, was going to look terribly out of place here. Everything she owned was in the car. She and Faith had been evicted from their apartment just that morning.
She said a quick prayer that Steven Tilton was a forgiving man. She knew her sister had treated him poorly, but now that Angela was gone, Faith needed the support of her father. She couldn’t keep her if she didn’t get some financial help. She just couldn’t!
She hated to go begging, but there was nothing left to do. She’d used up her savings supporting her sister these last eight months. Paying for her funeral had been the end of her money. Period. She and Faith were about to be evicted, and she’d have nowhere to go. Please let him understand.
*****
Steven used the remote to snap off the television and grinned at his two friends and business partners. “Why do we even watch the Superbowl anymore? We always know who’s gonna win months in advance.” He raised his glass of whiskey in a toast. “To Sports Prognosticators Incorporated, the company that revolutionized the sports world!”
“To SPI, the company that revolutionized my sex life!” Cody couldn’t quite keep the grin from spreading over his face.
“To SPI, the company that made us the richest men in North America!” Justin threw back his drink and the other two followed suit. “Where would we be today without SPI?”
Steven shrugged. “I’d be out peddling some other kind of software. I’d still be a billionaire, though.” He grinned as he said it to let them know he was half joking.
The other two laughed. They’d all changed a great deal from those three nerdy college boys who’d placed a bet on the Rams to win the Super Bowl.
Steven had developed the software based on an idea Cody had. Justin had run the company. Even today, Steven was the programmer, Cody the idea man, and Justin the CEO. They had too many employees to count at their main office in Dallas.
Steven was happy with his life. He lived in a huge sprawling mansion in the quiet Southlake suburb of Dallas/Fort Worth. He worked from home most days, constantly upgrading the software that had made them rich. Every year on Super Bowl Sunday, the three men got together for a celebration. Their business had been born on a Super Bowl Sunday, and they were going to celebrate.
Steven’s housekeeper, Connie, usually had Sundays off, but she always came in to cook for them on Super Bowl Sunday. She made enough snacks they could have fed the entire company, but they never invited anyone else. They didn’t need anyone else raining on their parade. Super Bowl Sunday was, and always had been, a celebration for the three of them. “You boys winding things up?” she asked as she walked into the room and picked up the scattered dishes.
They all looked at one another. “We probably need some real food.” Steven looked at the woman who had worked for him since college. She was his mother’s best friend, so she’d known him all his life. “Anything in the oven?” His brown eyes pled with her to have mercy on his stomach.
She rolled her eyes at them. “I’m about to stick some ribeyes and baked potatoes in the oven. I’ll serve them before I go. I’d ask you three to make sure your dishes made it to the sink, but I’m not going to waste my breath. This room is going to look like a tornado came through it in the morning like it always does.” She shook her head as she left, mumbling something under her breath about knowing his mother had taught him better.
The three men ignored her mumblings, knowing she truly didn’t mind. It was her job, and she did it without too much complaining. Steven paid her five times what most women would make at the same job, and she was content.
They were all laughing and joking about a girl Cody and Justin had both had a crush on in college when they heard the doorbell. Knowing Connie was there and would get it, they ignored the sound. “If she saw me today, she’d beg me to date her,” Cody bragged.
Justin rolled his eyes. “She couldn’t stand you. Even back then, she secretly loved me. She just didn’t want to get in the way of our friendship.”
“She told me she thought you were a nerd, and she wanted me to meet her on the top floor of the library behind the stacks. She just didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”
Steven grinned at the antics of his friends. They were both insane.
Connie stepped into the living room then with a strange look on her face. “Steven, you need to come with me for a minute.”
“Can’t it wait?” Everyone knew he spent Super Bowl Sunday with his two best friends. Everyone he cared about in the world was in this room. Why would anyone come here today? If he didn’t know them, then he didn’t care to see them.
She shook her head. The look in her eyes had Steven getting to his feet to walk toward the door. “Be right back, guys.”
He followed her to a formal living area used only for show. He didn’t entertain much. He was too busy working. “Who was at the door?” Who was important enough to pull him away from his annual celebration with his friends?
“Angela’s sister.”
Angela? He’d dated her three times what? Eight months ago? What was her sister doing in his house? Angela was a heartless bitch, and he never cared to see her again. “What’s she doing here? Why didn’t you just tell her to get out?”
Connie shook her head, indicating the closed door. “You need to talk to her.” The look in her eyes told him there was a lot more going on than he realized.
He sighed and opened the door, stepping into the room. Her back was to him, but her blond hair was just like her sister’s. Her figure was just as curvy as her sister’s from behind, but where Angela had been tall, almost five-ten, this girl was much shorter. Maybe five-three, he guessed. “What do you want?” His voice sounded harsh even to his own ears. He couldn’t imagine Angela’s sister being anyone he wanted to have any type of contact with, though, and the sooner he made that clear, the better for everyone involved.
She turned, and for the first time, he saw the baby in her arms. He had never met Angela’s sister. Of course, Angela never talked about anyone but herself, so how
would he know she had a sister?
“I’m Bailey, Angela’s little sister.” She pulled the pink blanket away from the baby’s face. “You’re a daddy.” She watched his face carefully for a reaction. Angela had told her a lot about him, including the fact she’d never told him she was pregnant.
He raised an eyebrow. “I know for a fact she was sleeping with someone else while we were dating. What makes you think she’s mine?” He couldn’t take his eyes off the little bundle in the woman’s arms. Why did he feel like that tiny thing was his responsibility, even though he knew she couldn’t be his child.
Bailey shook her head. “She’s yours. Angela told me she was.” He had to believe her.
He stared at her for a moment. Despite her innocent face, she lied as well as her sister. “So? What do you want me to do about it?” He’d get a paternity test to prove he wasn’t the baby’s father. There was no way anyone was going to sue him for paternity for a kid who wasn’t even his.
“I want you to pay child support for starters. I can’t raise her on my own.” Her voice shook as she said the words, but her chin was lifted and her eyes were steady on his. She blinked to keep the tears that were making her eyes shine from falling.
“Where’s Angela?” Why wasn’t the bitch raising her own kid? He should have known she’d dump her on the first person she saw. It was so typical of Angela.
She shook her head, tears coming to her eyes. “She was killed by a drunk driver last month.” She sniffed. “I’ve tried to hold it together. I really have, but Faith got sick, and I lost my job because I had to take too many days off to take care of her. The daycare wouldn’t take her when she was sick.” She sucked in a deep breath. “We got evicted this morning. We have nowhere to go. If you could pay child support, then we can make it until I find a job and a place to stay.”
He looked more closely at Bailey’s face. Despite its natural beauty, there were dark circles under her eyes. She looked as if she hadn’t slept in weeks. A strong wind could blow her over, she was so tiny. He felt a strong surge of protectiveness, both for the baby and her caretaker.
He sighed. She seemed real. Maybe all the bitch genes had gone to her sister. “I have a better idea. Why don’t the two of you move in here with me? I’ll pay you to be her nanny.” What was he saying? He had no idea how to raise a baby. Especially a girl. What would he do with a baby girl?
She stared at him with wide eyes. “Live here? I couldn’t do that.” She shook her head. “We’ll find a place. We can stay in a cheap hotel until we do. Please, just help me out.” She wouldn’t fit in here. All she needed was some financial help. She didn’t need him or anyone else beyond that. And she was doing nothing wrong by asking for the financial help, she told herself for the umpteenth time. It was his child, and he had more than enough money to pay for her support.
“If that’s really my baby, I want her living under my roof, getting the full benefit of being my daughter.” Why was he saying that? He knew for a fact the baby wasn’t his, but he couldn’t resist the look in Bailey’s eyes. What was it about her that was keeping him from throwing her out on her ear?
Bailey bit her lip staring at him. It would solve a lot of problems, but Angela said he was an overbearing controlling psychopath. He seemed normal, and Angela had been more than a little crazy herself. What should she do? She looked down at little Faith and nodded. “Do you want to hold her?” Agreeing was the only sensible thing to do.
He stared at her wide-eyed, but took the baby when she held her out to him. She was so tiny, he was afraid he’d drop her on her head. Would she get permanent brain damage from that?
Steven looked down at the innocent child sleeping in his arms. Whoever’s baby she was, she deserved a good home. He could provide one. He’d let Bailey raise her and ignore her until she turned eighteen. When you had money, you didn’t need to raise a child. You paid to have it done.
He’d go ahead and have a paternity test done just in case she changed her mind and decided to sue him for paternity. He’d figure out what to do with both of them. Somehow.
His friends had come up behind him, and the three men stood staring down at the baby in Steven’s arms. “Is she yours?” Cody looked from his friend to the baby. “She doesn’t look like you.”
Steven shrugged. “I seriously doubt it. Bailey said she is. We’ll do a paternity test.” He didn’t tell his friends there was no way she possibly could be his. He didn’t want to upset Bailey.
Cody and Justin seemed to notice Bailey standing there for the first time. Cody let out a low whistle. “Does she come with the baby?” His eyes travelled up and down her body. Even in her ripped jeans and stained tee shirt, she was worth looking at.
Bailey self-consciously crossed her arms over her chest. These men were sizing her up as if she were something they were considering purchasing.
“Apparently, she does. She’s the baby’s aunt and the new nanny.” And he’d officially lost his mind taking in a woman and a baby off the street. Maybe he’d get that Eagle Scout badge after all.
He walked into the hallway and called for Connie. She appeared immediately as if she’d just been lurking around the corner waiting for her name to be called. “Yes?”
“Show Bailey to a room. The baby needs one too. Take care of it.” He turned and walked back into the living room with his friends trailing behind. He still held Faith in his arms as he waited for the women to deal with the room arrangements.
Cody turned the television back on. “Let’s watch the highlights from the game. Do you think the baby likes football?”
Chapter Two
After the men left, Bailey looked at Connie with wide confused eyes. “I guess I’m going to be living here.” She felt like someone had steamrolled right over her. She was too tired to care today, but tomorrow she’d try. She really would.
Connie reached out and patted her arm. She hadn’t liked Angela the one time she’d met her, but this girl, a smaller version of her sister, seemed like good people. “You’re going to be okay now.”
Looking around, Bailey felt completely out of her league. Any minute, someone was going to realize she was there, and they were going to kick her out. She shouldn’t even be walking into a house like this. She was just a poor preacher’s girl from Hamlin, Texas. She didn’t belong in a place like this.
“I’ll show you to your room and the baby’s room, and then I need to get dinner on the table before Steven is ready for it.” She turned and led the way up a flight of stairs. Bailey hurried along behind her.
She was shown to a small empty room. “Will this work for the baby’s room? You can pick out some furniture and have it delivered. Unless you brought some?” She glanced at Bailey as she asked the question.
Bailey shook her head. “I had to sell everything that wouldn’t fit in my car.” They’d never had much for the baby anyway. Just a small bassinet and a few clothes and diapers.
“We’ll get everything she needs. Steven doesn’t know what to do with half the money he makes.” She went back out into the hall and opened another door. “This will be your room.” Bailey looked around. The room was as big as half the house she’d grown up in. There was a huge bathroom leading off from it. Bailey smiled. Was it okay she liked the idea of moving into this beautiful home, and letting the baby’s sexy daddy handle everything?
It was directly across the hall from the baby’s room, so she’d be able to hear her at night when she cried. The room was perfect.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you!” This place made her feel like Eliza Doolittle. “Oh, I couldn’t live ‘ere Missus. It’s too good for the likes of me. I should be afraid to touch anyfin’. I ain’t a duchess yet y’now.”
Connie laughed delightedly. “My Fair Lady! We’ll have to watch it together sometime.”
Bailey grinned at Connie conspiratorially. “I love that movie. I’m always up for a good musical.” Musicals and old movies were all she’d been allowed to watch on television when she was
younger. Now she chose to watch them, because they were so much fun.
“What’s the baby’s name?”
“Olivia Faith, but I call her Faith.” Angela had chosen the name, and had been annoyed when Bailey began calling her Faith. It suited the little girl so much better than Olivia, though. She’d ignored Angela’s gripes about the name she used, because Angela barely had time for the baby anyway. Bailey had been her caregiver since she was born.
“Faith. I like that.” She patted Baily on the arm. “I’m glad you’ve come to us. I think you’re just what Steven needs.”
Bailey sat down on the edge of the bed, worn out from her stressful day. Getting kicked out of her apartment and driving halfway across Texas with an infant was not a restful way to spend a Sunday.
“I’ll be serving dinner in an hour. Come down and I’ll introduce you to all my boys.”
“Your boys, huh?” She liked how the housekeeper talked about the three men. They obviously weren’t her sons, but she seemed to love them as if they were.
“I claim them most of the time.” She winked ready to leave to go downstairs and start dinner and see how the boys were doing with that baby.
Bailey smiled up at Connie. “I’m going to unload my car, and I’ll be down in an hour.” She rolled her shoulders. She was already stiff from the long drive. The idea of bringing stuff up the stairs made her want to put it off until morning, but she knew she needed to get Faith’s things up right away. And it would be so nice to change into some clean clothes.
Within the hour, Bailey had carried all of her meager belongings up the stairs and taken a quick shower. She glanced at the clock after dressing. She had a minute or two, and she needed to make sleeping arrangements for the baby before dinner. She looked around her room trying to figure out what to do, and smiled as inspiration struck.
She walked to the big chest of drawers and pulled out the bottom drawer, setting it on the floor. She lined the inside with the comforter from the bed and nodded to herself. That would be the perfect crib for tonight. She could sleep with just one blanket.
Steven Page 1
