The Alpha Billionaire's Unexpected Baby: A Billionaire BWWM Pregnancy Romance

by Joanna Jacobs

  “Permit me to be cliché but I’ve never felt anything so strongly as I do this. Perhaps this is why I trust it,” Blake said.

  “Do all the men in your family ask women to marry them right away?” I joked to try to make myself feel calmer.

  Blake grinned, “No, I’m the first. I suppose I’m a rebel that way.”

  “Oh, a trouble maker then?”

  “Well, I did once take apart my mother’s favorite chair…”

  “Someone sure likes to live dangerously!”

  “I think I was. Auntie did say something about maternal instinct is why mothering figures didn’t eat their young.”

  Despite the joking banter between us I still felt a bit anxious. Our brief conversation made me think about just how little I knew about Blake. We had always had a professional attitude between us and this was all so sudden. I didn’t even know he had real feelings for me until fairly recently!

  There was so much we didn’t know about one another. We didn’t know the other’s values, where we wanted to go in life, children, and other things. We were from two entirely different worlds. Blake could enter mine but it would be more difficult for me to enter his let alone be accepted into the fold.

  The announcement over what movie would be playing on the trip back was heard. At least it was some mindless comedy. I could use some humor that I did not have to think about. It might get my mind off things and put me into a better mind set.

  Blake didn’t seem to be paying much attention to the movie as the wheels were already turning in his head. What he was plotting I couldn’t say, but he was indeed deep in thought. A person could easily be forgiven for thinking he were a statue due to his sitting still, staring off into the distance, as he was deep in thought.

  How would Blake introduce me to his family? It would be far easier to introduce him to mine as they might be more accepting. Every parent wants their child to marry into a good and well off family so there were no worries there. I knew many members of my family wouldn’t care about Blake’s skin color but they might want to know about his financial situation.

  As a kid I always had thought things would be so simple when I became an adult. I was convinced I would have everything figured out. There were times that I wanted to go back to being a kid and thinking that.

  Chapter Four

  We knew the biggest obstacle would be Blake’s family so we had decided to work on them first. It was rather a divide and conquer plan as if we could beat and even win over the hardest ones the rest of the dominos would fall into place.

  At least that was the plan.

  As Blake’s parents had passed away the next logical step would be to try to win over his brother and sister-in-law first. He could work on the aunts and uncles next.

  I had hoped the wealthy in this family would be more open to receiving a “poor” person into their fold but I was not to be so lucky. I suppose in some ironic way that it was a bit too much to ask.

  The house that belonged to Blake’s family was gigantic. Far bigger than I ever imagined it would be! It was like a mansion that was incredibly advanced and big. In a way it made me miss the simplicity of Italy’s houses. Even the simple ones had more beauty to them than these mansions here. This home was so modern looking it felt more like I was entering a strange world than a home. Even new homes had all their own quirks and odd things that made them unique. This house, however, seemed to be made up so that not one single thing could be out of place. It was so modern and perfect looking it was unsettling.

  If I had to step inside I would be worried about getting lost. The outside was so mechanical looking I wondered and dreaded what the inside looked like. I imagined some sort of mechanical drawing that had lines leading to everywhere and nowhere at once. I could also remember an artist’s drawings, but I could not recall his name at the moment.

  Standing outside with Blake I turned to him and asked, “Does your family use walkie talkies or other communication services to navigate around this maze of a house?”

  Blake’s face was serious when he answered me, “You have no idea.”

  “You’re kidding me!” I exclaimed.

  “My brother and friends did when we were kids.” He paused, “Dad felt bigger was better and wanted to show off his wealth so he built and built. I think the only house in this country that is more complicated is the Winchester Mystery House.”

  Taking advantage of the change of subject I said, “Would you believe I’ve only been in there once?”

  “Really? I’ve never been but maybe one day. Something or another always got in the way. Let’s go and get it over with.”

  Taking my hand either to keep both of us steady or to keep me from being lost in this maze we walked up the steps and Blake opened the door.

  “Hello! Is anybody home?”

  “Blake! Is that you?” A man’s voice asked.

  “It’s me and I brought my fiancée with me!”

  Fiancée. I hadn’t expected to hear that so soon. It felt like a jolt of surprise but I couldn’t explain why I felt so surprised. I had an entire day to think about it and getting used to the new title.

  “Where is she?” Blake’s brother asked.

  The statement alone made me feel invisible. Would I have been noticed by them if I was wearing nicer clothes or even if I was a different skin color?

  Blake’s mouth pursed into a thin line. “Alex! This is Amanda, my fiancée!”

  “She is?” Alex asked.

  Blake rolled his eyes, “Don’t be stupid! I told you about Amanda!”

  Alex frowned. Reaching over he grabbed his brother by the arm and hissed, “Can I talk to you?”

  Frowning himself Blake quietly excused himself. Despite them walking out of the room I could hear the argument between the two of them.

  “She’s not one of us!” Alex hissed.

  “Is it because she’s black?” Blake responded.

  “Don’t be racist! She’s not from the same social circle as we are!”

  “Grandpa was ‘new money’ once!”

  “This is different! You know no one will accept it!”

  “Well, they’re going to have to!”

  As the two brothers argued I began to feel even more and more awkward. I knew it wasn’t my fault but I didn’t want to create this amount of discord among them. At the same time I feared if I said anything it could somehow make things worse.

  I saw a pretty blonde woman and hoped that she would be my ally in this whole debacle. It didn’t take me long to learn she was Alexander’s wife, Melinda, and no more keen on having a “poor person” enter the family than anyone else.

  “Aren’t you a little over dressed for cleaning?” Melinda asked.

  Over dressed? What? Did she just say what I thought she had said? “Beg your pardon?”

  Suddenly Blake’s voice spoke up again, “Where’s she going to stay then? Huh?”

  “We’ll set up a guest room for her,” Alexander said.

  “Her name is Amanda, thank you very much.”

  Melinda looked in the direction of the arguing. “Oh dear, what brought that on?”

  Blake was the first to enter the room followed by Alexander. Neither of them looked particularly happy.

  Blake moved by my side and took my hand in his, “Miranda, this is my fiancée Amanda.”

  Even a blind man would be able to see the shock and then revelation that crossed Miranda’s face. Both to my surprise and then annoyance she did not make any effort to apologize for suggesting that I could be nothing more than “the help.”

  I suppose I should have felt some gratitude that I was being rejected because I did not fit into their world. It didn’t help the stinging feeling nor the anger that I felt.

  Blake’s voice cut into the awkward silence, “Well then, I’m going to go show Amanda to her room.”

  At the time I would’ve preferred to stay in a hotel room.

  I know they would have preferred that too.

  Chap
ter Six

  “Coming here so soon might’ve been a mistake,” I said to Blake once we were out of hearing range.

  “They’ll have to adjust to it,” Blake answered.

  “Perhaps you should’ve given them some warning.”

  “No amount of warning would’ve done any good. They wanted me to marry a woman who came from money but the heart wants what the heart wants.”

  I paused as we walked up neatly painted stairs. Why they had been painted white and not allowed to let the natural uniqueness of the hardwood show was beyond me.

  “Are you sure I shouldn’t go to a hotel?” I asked.

  Blake looked to me, “You’re our guest. Guests don’t have to stay in hotels. Besides, we have planning that we need to do.”

  I had forgotten about the wedding due to the displeasure of Blake’s family. I had the feeling it would be just my family attending the dress fitting and everything that went with it.

  “How soon are we planning on getting married?” I asked.

  “Soon,” Blake answered.

  “How soon is soon? I have to get a dress we need a cake and—”

  Blake smiled patiently at me. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll find a way to make it all work out. Tomorrow you can get your Aunt and sister to help you pick out a dress.”

  The spiteful part of me wanted to get a dress at a second hand shop just to rub it in the faces of Blake’s brother and sister-in-law. I knew not all wealthy people were so snobby and judgmental but the temptation was just so overwhelming.

  “They’re going to judge and let them. The only people they’re hurting are themselves,” Blake said.

  I wish I was as easily convinced. In-laws could easily wreak havoc with relationships and I knew they could do so just as easily. Blake was bound and determined that nothing bad would happen so I did my best to stay positive for him.

  The next morning my Auntie came to pick me up to go dress shopping. I had made arrangements to meet them elsewhere so they could not be scrutinized by Blake’s family.

  “So when do we meet this Blake?” Auntie asked.

  “Soon, I hope.”

  “Trouble in paradise?” My sister guessed.

  “It’s trouble with the in-laws. They’re incredibly judgmental and don’t like it that I’m not one of them.”

  “It’s their loss. At least you two will be away from them.”

  I paused, “You two don’t disapprove?”

  Aunt stopped me before I could say something else, “You’re my daughter and I want you to be happy. Having a son-in-law will take some getting used to but that doesn’t change who you are.”

  For the first time in what felt like a long time I threw my arms around Aunt and hugged her tightly. Having someone’s support meant so much to me.

  After a few minutes my sister spoke up, “How about dress shopping?”

  “The dresses here are so expensive I was thinking about the second hand shop. I’m sure there’s plenty of pretty dresses available there for a cheaper price.”

  “Practical to the end.”

  “I’m only going to be wearing it once so I don’t want to spend close to a million dollars on a dress I’m only going to be wearing to the wedding.”

  “I repeat, practical to the end.”

  “You’d do the same thing.”

  “You win this round.”

  Aunt laughed, “Come on girls!”

  The first thrift store we came across was an attractive one. It had been an old building that was converted and updated. It was also huge which I liked. I suppose part of me was stubborn that I refused to accept Blake’s money on buying my wedding dress. Some of it was due to my pride and the rest was due to the fact I feared his family would hold that little fact over my head for the rest of their lives. I could already imagine the comments about needing a “hand out.”

  Money was not the only reason I chose a thrift store to go shopping in. Not only did I like them but every wedding dress needed alterations which would have been very expensive. Getting a dress at a shop like this would’ve saved me a lot of money in alterations as Aunt could do them. Sometimes being thrifty was a good thing to be!

  I was right about finding a pretty dress at the second hand store! It was a modern piece but done to look vintage. It had pretty lacy and beaded straps which suited me just fine. I understood why people liked the strapless look but it wasn’t for me. I would’ve been too worried about the dress sliding down and think I would’ve spent more time tugging at for fear of it falling. If I wasn’t going to be accepted before I was bound to be rejected forever for a wardrobe malfunction!

  I also liked the fact the dress was a light ivory color. A white dress could indeed be pretty but unless your teeth and eyeballs were perfectly white it was not going to look flattering. I didn’t want my eyes to look red nor my teeth look yellow.

  “Here I am!” I told them when I stepped out of the dressing room. “I’m a little tall for the skirt but I like it that I can’t trip over the skirt.”

  “I love it!” Aunt said.

  My sister nodded in agreement before asking, “What about the veil?”

  “I was thinking a birdcage veil. I like the look of them.”

  After a few more words of encouragement were exchanged I went back into the changing room and changed back into my street clothes.

  I liked being able to wear the wedding dress of my choosing. I was able to pay for it in cash and it was mine! Not even Blake’s family could take that away from me.

  Chapter Seven

  That night Blake joked that he wanted to see the dress but I refused to let him see it. I had placed the dress in a large dry cleaning bag and then neatly folded it into a sturdy box. It wasn’t the best way to store it but it would have to do until I could find a better way.

  I also didn’t want to admit it to Blake but I didn’t trust his brother or sister-in-law not to do something that could potentially damage the dress.

  Blake was sitting on a large and plush bed that was being used as my guest room. It was a huge bed, so big that at least three people could sleep comfortably on it. I certainly had to hand it to his family; they certainly didn’t do things half way!

  It seemed rather excessive to me but then I wasn’t their family. If it had been me I like to think I would’ve done some things a bit differently. The extra money could’ve made quite the investment to schools, churches, or to kids.

  “Just one peek?” Blake jokingly asked. That brought me out of what I was thinking. As soon as he spoke I had forgotten what I was originally rambling in my own mind about.

  “Not even one!” I retorted as I carefully placed the box inside the closet.

  “That’s no fun.”

  “You’ll just have to wait until the wedding. Besides, Aunt has to alter it so it’ll fit me better around the waist and hips area.”

  Blake nodded his understanding and leaned back. “It’s really nice of your Aunt to do that for you.”

  “Aunt’s always been altering fancy and expensive dresses. I’m worried, though.”

  That made him sit up and even lean forward. “About what?”

  “The wedding.”

  “What about it? Do you think we should wait?”

  “It’s not that, it’s how is your family going to react to mine? You know that they don’t like me so how are they going to react to a whole group of people who are ‘beneath’ them?”

  Blake got up from his perch on the bed and took my hands in his. “You leave that to me, okay?”

  Looking up at him I managed a small smile and a nod. I smiled again when he quickly kissed me.

  “I’ve got an idea,” Blake said. “Why don’t we go out for dinner tonight? Just the two of us? It’ll help get your mind off things.”

  “Let’s go somewhere nice,” I said.

  “Then we shall. I’ll leave you to get changed and I’ll meet you down stairs.”

  Blake closed the door behind him and left me alone to choose
what I wanted. At first I thought about that little black dress and then decided that it would be too cliché. I had nothing against the idea of a little black dress but I wanted something unique this time.

  I had decided on a dark coral colored satin dress with a matching lace overlay. I had always liked lace and the overlay provided for a nice textured look without any of the weight or expensiveness. Designers should really use lace more often.

  For black I decided to wear black pumps. Not the stiletto types as I feared I would fall and break my neck trying to navigate my way around this monster sized house.

  I skipped the jewelry for the most part both to feeling that I didn’t need it and also out of worry. I wasn’t worried of theft of it but Blake’s family and friends could feel I was trying too hard to be like them and thus give them reason to give us further problems. It reminded me of the story of the La Calavera Catrina or elegant skull that was drawn by José Guadalupe Posada. He had drawn the La Calavera Catrina to poke fun at the Mexican natives who tried to imitate the Europeans in dress.

  Would they feel that I was trying to imitate their style?

  I knew I shouldn’t worry myself over such things, and besides, Blake was waiting for me down stairs. I had to act confident and collected to them as they would exploit any kink in the armor that they could find.

  Walking down the steps I soon found Blake who smiled up at me.

  “Ready?” He excitedly asked.

  Looping my arm around his I leaned in and smiled, “I’m ready.”

  Perhaps saying it a bit too loudly to get attention or to ruffle some feathers Blake then said, “I really do like the dress that you are wearing. It’s beautiful and looks elegant on you.”

  Playing into it I said, “Does my coach have to turn into a pumpkin at midnight?”

  “Only if you want it to.”

  If Alexander and Melinda heard they did not say a peep. That suited me just fine.

  Chapter Eight

  Sometimes it seems the more you’re waiting for something the longer it takes to even get here. Other times when you’re not waiting for something it comes rushing right up on you. I did wait for our wedding date to come up on us at a snail’s pace but it ran at us at full speed.