I had known I was pregnant for about six weeks, but not telling anyone sort of made it feel like it wasn’t real. Now it was definitely real, realer than real ... too much.
I wasn’t surprised that Alec called again, what did shock me was Avery grabbing the phone out of my hand and, worse, answering it.
“Listen, fuckhead,” she started.
Though I tried to get the phone out of her hands, it felt good to have someone defend me. I let her do her thing. She didn’t give him much time to say anything.
“Kylie’s not a slut, and she didn’t try to get pregnant intentionally, and if you’d put a rain jacket on your schlong, you wouldn’t be calling right now. Face it, this is the modern age, women fuck. You don’t want a Jr., keep your shit covered up. Kylie’s taking birth control and fucking up her hormones, the least you can do is get some Trojans.”
I heard him yell through the phone, and Avery stopped her rant for a moment.
He didn’t sound angry, just insistent on getting her attention.
“No, I will not put her on the phone. We got this. You ride off into the sunset, lover boy. Her girls have her back. We’ll raise the baby, you don’t need to worry your narcissistic little butt about a thing, just be nice to her in the press, okay. She’s gonna warrior up for this, so don’t be an ass!” With that, she ended the call.
“Do you think I was too rough?” She burst into laughter
“Oh, my God …” I wasn’t quite sure her approach was the right one to take with Alec since he didn’t take kindly to being told off, but at least I felt loved. “You better help me raise the baby. Guaranteed he’s never getting near this level of crazy ever again.” I reached out and hugged Avery.
“Okay, I’m ordering pizza!” Maddy proclaimed. “And junk food ... we are gonna celebrate!”
“It’s seven-thirty in the morning.” I looked at her like she’d just descended from Mars.
“So? Giovanni’s is open in an hour. I can go down there right now and pressure him for a pie.” She ruffled up her hair and tossed it into a hairband she had around her wrist and was about to walk downstairs to the dive pizza place right under our apartment when my phone rang again.
It was Alec. Avery glared at the phone and almost reached for it, but I stopped her, letting the call go to voicemail. I understood I wasn’t giving him much of a chance, but everything in me was fragile and vulnerable. I had enough to deal with; I didn’t need Alec’s breed of ‘I need this to be worth it.’ Suddenly Avery’s phone pinged, and for a second I thought Alec may have found her number.
“Oh shit, Kylie.” She looked at me. “I just got a news blast about our Flower Street account. I’ve got good news and bad news, which do you want first?”
I hated when people threw out those kinds of ultimatums, no one ever wanted bad news, but since I’d had such an overwhelming amount of bad news in the last twenty-four hours, I couldn’t bear much more.
“Good news first I guess …” Doubtful the news was going to be any good.
“Well, Flower Street and Every Dream are trending on Twitter, Insta, YouTube, and Facebook. We’re like the top three. Our impressions are blowing up. Subscriptions are through the fucking roof, girl!” I loved her exuberance, but I hardly had the stomach for it that morning. “I know Alec is bullshit, but he put you both on the map last night. As much as I wanna rip him a new one, he did a lot for both of us.”
“And the bad news?” I cringed, waiting for the inevitable media frenzy about Alec and his outrageous bid last night.
The worst part of this was he was helping us. He was being incredibly generous, and I wasn’t giving him a chance. The look on his face when I told him I was pregnant was a cross between horror and shock, so maybe he really didn’t need a chance. I didn’t want to face his ‘Are you keeping it?’ level of commitment to our child so I ran, just as I always had. I ran and hid from all my problems in plain sight.
“You and Alec are practically married. In fact, um ... hisgirl246 says you were secretly married and are pregnant, that’s why the bid was so high and why he’s been showing up at your events. Also, they have pics of your baby bump ... with super zoomed-in photos of your belly on the catwalk.” She looked up at me.
It was actually worse than I had anticipated. I thought I was going to be able to hide my pregnancy for a while longer.
“I’m going to get pizza and ice cream.” Madison, who was standing at the door to hear Avery’s news, walked out. “We can do this. I’m gonna get food ammo, and we’ll figure this all out when I get back.”
I pretty much went numb as my phone rang again. I expected it was Alec, but it was Maralis from the agency ... Yep, things hadn’t hit rock bottom quite yet. I had to take the call.
“Hey,” I answered, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall again.
“Ask me how much we made last night?” Maybe she hadn’t seen the press ... not possible, but maybe.
“A lot,” I answered, knowing most of the money must have been Alec’s.
“Five million dollars ... and I just got off the phone with Alec. He’s leasing us the building for a dollar.” She laughed. “I love that man. How was your night by the way? He and I talked about an angle for this; I’m just glad you’ve actually found someone real.”
This morning just got more surreal.
“He’s just the same as the rest. Talk to PR about a strategy to use with him and get it all in writing, and I’ll have him sign it.” I didn’t want to sound horrible, but I did.
“Honey?” Maralis’ voice became softer, less enthused. “What’s really going on here? He seems to think this isn’t just for publicity?”
“Nothing ... the same ol’ thing. You know.” Avery stared at me with her loving condemnation.
“I don’t think so. I can tell by the sound of your voice ... you’re scared. This is all over the internet; you can’t just brush this off. I mean people are saying you look pregnant, and I kind of think they may be right. You haven’t changed your weight since you started here when you were seventeen, and I can tell for a fact you’ve gained at least ten pounds, maybe more. How far along are you?”
The tears came again, hard.
“I’ve wanted to bring it up for a while, but I wasn’t sure. I mean ten pounds was still in the range, but no more ... you know. Only, with Alec’s grand gesture last night, and his insisting that you and he are real and now you’re crying. We’ve got to nail this now.” I hated that she was always the businesswoman.
This wasn’t a business transaction; this was a baby … my baby. I was doing so much to change my reputation and become a positive influence on the society that watched my every move.
“I don’t know what to say,” I whispered.
“Kylie, are you ready to be the poster child of unwed motherhood, especially after what you ... we’ve done? Should we have an online poll where people guess who the father is?” Ouch. “And your foundation? What does that say to those kids out there, the ones who are pregnant right now?”
“It says I’m like them, okay. That people make mistakes.” I was sobbing, and Avery took my hand. “But a baby isn’t a mistake!” I was such a mess. “Just give me some time. Let me figure this out.”
“Okay. I get it, this is too much, too soon, but we don’t have a lot of time. If you ask me, Alec seems to have put on quite a show so far. You can take the mistake/not mistake angle and the two of you can make your ‘love’ this epic thing. Have a baby together, make it crazy love then divorce ... separate ... cry, it’s a tragedy. People will care. They’ll be hooked, and then you and Alec can arrange whatever you want privately. We’ll handle the publicity. I’ll get his PR guys in on it. A couple of dinners, concerts, baby clothes shopping, ribbon cutting on the building … This is perfect for you, Kylie. You’ve wanted to change your image; well, this is the time to do it. You’ll be Mrs. Alec Blair, sophisticated, elegant. I can get you exclusive contracts with top designers. This is gonna be amazing, Kyl
ie.” Suddenly, my baby was the best marketing move I’d ever made.
Chapter 18
Alec
It was infuriating that Kylie refused my calls. I was about to go over to her house again and make her sit down and talk with me, but I didn’t want to lose my manhood to those women she lived with. I’m glad she had people who loved her with such conviction, but I wasn’t happy being on the wrong side of that. I called her modeling agency; I knew who to contact and how to work my angle. I made myself a part of Kylie’s world whether she wanted me there or not. We were all over the internet just as I had planned. Maralis Gutierrez snatched up my one-dollar lease offer as I knew she would. I planted the seed in her mind that Kylie and I might be more than a minute and we discussed how we’d spin that.
Worst case scenario I’d be able to protect Kylie’s changing reputation. Even if she and I didn’t last, she’d walk away from this as the mother of my baby on paper and in the press. I was horrified when she told me she was pregnant, but her roommate was right, the responsibility to keep the world Alec Jr. free was mine and mine alone. We were completely careless that night. I had allowed it. Yet despite our ‘mistake,’ I was starting to get excited about Kylie carrying my child. I had vowed never to have another child, but she didn’t know that, and I certainly wasn’t acting as if I was taking that vow very seriously.
At least I wouldn’t have to stalk her anymore. We were bonded, whether she liked it or not. My next course of action was to get her in a room alone so we could discuss our next steps. I went to the bar where we first met and spoke with Greg. I had an idea that I was pretty sure was going to work. Either her agency would make her talk to me or we’d bump into each other, which was more ideal because I needed our ‘story’ to work.
“So, when she comes in, I call you,” Greg recited the plan back to me.
“Yes, invite her to come and pick up a check from the bar for her foundation. I’ll give you the money, but say since she and her roommates are regulars, you wanted to do your part. When she’s here, have her try a new mocktail you’re working on. Keep it casual.” My heart raced just thinking of the moment.
“Sure. So tomorrow, at four o’clock.” He wrote the date and time down in a beat-up, liquid stained day planner.
Who used pen and paper planners anymore? Anyway, as long as he had the date.
The next day, I made sure that the paparazzi, who had been hanging outside of my house since news of my donation broke across the internet, knew I was on the move. I made sure to have my car service send a limo to pick me up. We traveled the few blocks through Manhattan to the bar as soon as I got word from Greg that she had come and she was alone.
I could hardly contain my excitement. I knew I was being reckless diving headlong into this, but I was consumed by my thoughts of Kylie and our baby.
Kylie was at the bar with Greg. “Wow, thank you so much. That’s so very generous. You didn’t have to donate, but I’m so glad you did. Thank you again. I’ll make sure to put you on the donor list and in our press, so you can get some advertising for your donation. And this is so good. What is it again?”
“Cucumber, blackberry, acai berry, Kombucha, and Seven-Up.” Greg smiled at her as he saw me walk in with a throng of paps behind me.
“I like it.” She took another sip.
I rolled right up on Kylie and kissed her neck with cameras poppin’ all around us. She flinched at my kiss as I knew she would, so I secured my arm around her stomach to steady her.
“Sorry to scare you, babe.” I kissed her again. “I came as soon as I heard the St. Marks Brewery was going to make a donation.” I made sure to say it loud enough for the people at the bar and the paparazzi to hear it.
She tensed under my grip. She knew exactly what I’d done. There was no way I was going to be able to get her to listen to reason, so I had to resort to more devious means.
She took a deep breath and turned to me, all dressed up in a plastic smile. “Isn’t it amazing?”
My fingers caught her chin before she could wrench away, and I planted a deep and romantic kiss on her lips.
I made sure our kiss was epic enough to get everyone at the bar riled up about it. I looked at all of those gawking at us and threw my head back, tossing my hair in a sweeping move that expressed a frantic kind of euphoria.
“Damn, I love this woman!” I smiled and shouted to the thirty or so people surrounding us. “Drinks on the house …” I grabbed the mocktail she was drinking and downed it in front of everyone then raised my empty glass. “To Kylie Morgan!” I shouted, and everyone cheered. “Put a round of drinks for everyone on my tab,” I commanded Greg as I pulled Kylie and her chair away from the bar. “Come on sweetheart, we have dinner reservations.”
Kylie smiled again as I escorted her out of the bar with my arm wrapped around her waist. She was such a professional; her demeanor was flawless. She flirted and smiled, waving back to those who had waved at her, acting giddy and happy even as I helped her into the limo. She wore a bright and bouncy blouse and an old pair of jeans. She could have been wearing a panda onesie; I wouldn’t have cared. Nothing was going to derail my night, especially not her.
As soon as the door to the limo closed, she tore into me as I expected she would. I was only happy the privacy screen between us and the driver was raised.
“What the hell are you doing?” She scowled at me.
“I’m kidnapping you.” I smiled kindly. “You’re welcome to press charges, but I’m not letting you go until we’ve talked this through.” She huffed and looked out the window, holding onto her emotions. “You are not running out on me again.”
“Are we really going to dinner?” Her voice was rough and cold.
“Yes. This entire evening will be happening in front of them.” I motioned to the paparazzi that tailed us.
“Why?” I could see she was fighting back tears.
“Because you’re worth my time and my money. You are, whether we planned it or not, the mother of my child. I don’t need a DNA test to know that. I could tell the night we slept together it had been a while for you. I don’t know what tomorrow will bring us, but right now, today, this is where we are.”
“I have no say in this?” She turned to me as her face reddened. “I’m just going to be your prisoner?”
“Do you hate me?” I didn’t want to ask the question, but we had to launch off from somewhere.
She shook her head, unable to say the words.
“Great. So, we will do this for our child. I’ll claim the child publicly and financially. I will need a DNA test at some point, but not for me, for inheritance purposes. My accountant will want a birth certificate, DNA test, other things, but again, it is so you and the baby will have financial security.” I had figured this all out.
“What if I want to do this on my own?” She was gathering up the pieces of her strength.
“You probably will be doing this alone if you and I don’t work out. I can be quite a bastard.”
“You think?” She interrupted me.
Her eyes locked onto mine.
“Don’t kill this before I do.” I opened up a vein for a moment and showed her my true vulnerability. “I’m scared too.” Her beautiful big eyes drank me in. “But we can do this.” The car had stopped in front of Lucuqes, the trendiest and most expensive restaurant in Manhattan.
“I’m not dressed for Lucques.” She panicked as she looked down at her casual attire.
“You don’t have to be.” I winked at her as I got out of the car to open her door.
The driver was about to open it, but I made a point of gently nudging him away. I gave her my hand, and she took it as cameras flashed in our faces. The paparazzi were good at finding me, granted I practically put my entire itinerary on blast having tweeted that I was about to take it to the next level with a very beautiful dinner date who was worth infinitely more than one and a half million dollars. Hashtag Lucques is for lovin’. I gave her my arm, and she took it, stiffening wit
h stress.
As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by a line of waiters and staff all leading to one single table set with two plates and a candle between us. Though the paparazzi were not allowed in the restaurant, they lined every one of the windows outside to see the entire restaurant was empty but for the staff and the two of us.
“You closed down Lucques?” She had a hard time speaking. “That must have cost …”
“More than one and a half million dollars? No, but it was rather pricey, that’s for sure.”
She began to shake, and I brought her in closer.
“I have billions, plural as in many ... too many.” I kept her close as we walked to our table.
“But you didn’t have to do this. People could use this money.” Poor woman, she had tons of money herself, but must still be frugal. I had more money than I could use in a lifetime.
“You know when I first met Maralis, I thought she was a bit of a bottom liner. Not too much personality and a lot of ‘What’s in it for me?’ but she was all over this. She knows you well. We agreed we couldn’t tell you about what was going on, or you’d be on a plane to Jamaica on a nonstop flight to self-destruction. I knew not to involve your posse, or I’d be looking down the barrel of a hit man’s gun, so this was the next best option. By the way, we will not be dining alone this evening. I just need you alone long enough to get you to hear me out and hopefully sign some paperwork.”
“There are paparazzi here. I don’t think they should see us signing paperwork,” she cautioned me. “They’ll know it’s all a fake.”
“Yes.” I picked up the large box behind me and handed it to her. “There is a secret compartment inside. Don’t throw the box away. I will explain the paperwork so if you have questions, I can answer them before our guests arrive.” I took a sip of water and motioned for the waiter who came immediately. “I’ll have a gin and tonic, and my date will have …” I looked over to Kylie. “What would you like to drink?”
“Just water please.” She definitely liked to stay hydrated, but by the queasy look on her face, I figured she couldn’t handle much more than water.
FAKE: An Enemies to Lovers Standalone Romance Page 12
