Sweet Success: East Coast Sugar Daddies: Book 2

by Bates, Austin

  Hormones sucked, too.

  16

  Quinton

  Logan walked into my office, flashed his charming smile, and asked, “How’ve you and that Theo guy been?”

  The good mood I’d been working on cultivating wilted and died. I stood up from behind my desk and pointed at the door he’d just come through. “Get out.”

  He held up his hands, surprise flashing across his face. He hadn’t meant to antagonize me, I saw, but it still hurt to have to face that reality again when I had been trying so hard to move on these past few days. “What’s going on?”

  I grunted and turned away from him. “My gut finally betrayed me.”

  “What?” Logan walked up behind me, looking out through my office window over my shoulder. “You mean you were wrong about him? How and why?”

  I grimaced. “Turns out, he’s been skimming money from what I gave him and putting it away for god-knows-what. Drugs? Maybe alcohol, from the way he was vomiting.”

  “Vomiting?” A new tone entered Logan’s voice, one I couldn’t identify.

  “I woke up one morning after he spent the night and he was throwing up like crazy in the bathroom.”

  “Oh,” Logan said, sounding like a man who’d had an epiphany. “You mean you didn’t know he was pregnant?”

  I spun around and fell back against the window. The reinforced glass panes rattled in their frame. “What? Pregnant? What the fuck?”

  “You’ve never seen a pregnant omega before?”

  “You’re crazy. I slept with him. You think I wouldn’t know if he was pregnant?”

  Logan shrugged. “I would have thought you’d know, but apparently I was wrong. Aaron sent me a picture of you guys together once, and I thought Theo looked a little bit, well, heftier than when I saw a picture of him by himself from before he met you.”

  Logan’s the main investor, I reminded myself. He would have access to everything. Absolutely everything. All the pictures, all the matches. It shouldn’t surprise me he’d want to keep tabs on the app, especially when it involved a friend.

  “So,” Logan continued, “you got him pregnant and now you’re upset with him for being pregnant and wanting to be able to take care of himself.”

  “We didn’t sleep together until the night before he threw up,” I argued. “It couldn’t have been me. Which means he’s been seeing someone else.”

  Logan came to stand beside me. His reflection appeared next to mine on the window; it wasn’t without a lot of guilt that I thought it should be Theo standing there instead of him. “You two weren’t exactly exclusive, were you?”

  “We never said it would be just us,” I admitted. “But I assumed…”

  My friend cut me off. “Here’s an idea. He was pregnant before. He saw the app as a way of protecting himself and the kid.”

  Guilt and betrayal stabbed my heart, twin blows from the opposite side of the spectrum. If he had told me the truth, I wouldn’t have been so angry with him for putting money away. But, if I’d known he was pregnant, would I have wanted to date him in the first place?

  I needed to talk to him.

  I turned to Logan, an apology on my lips. He lifted his hand and shook his head at me. “No need to say anything. Go talk to him. I’ll get Janet to reschedule our meeting.” He smiled. “You’re clearly shocked. You wouldn’t be any use to me right now anyway.”

  “Thanks,” I said, and patted him on the shoulder. Then, I ran.

  I summoned my driver as I raced down the stairs, and he had the limo waiting by the time I got to the sidewalk. Apparently, I sounded pretty desperate. Throwing myself inside, I instructed him to get to Theo’s apartment as fast as possible.

  We made it there in record time and I jumped out through the door before the limo had come to a full stop, barging into the lobby. I took the elevator up to Theo’s floor and ran up to his door.

  “Theo!” I yelled, pounding on it.

  No answer.

  I snatched out my phone and called him, but had no luck with that, either. The call went straight to voicemail.

  17

  Theo

  My phone rang for the fifth time.

  Dr. Hannah Gable looked up from my charts and smiled at me. “You’re making yourself out to be very popular.”

  Blushing, I pulled my phone of my pocket and rejected the call without looking at the number, and turned off my sound. “I’m sorry,” I said. “Where were we?”

  “Well,” she said, adjusting her glasses. “I have to admit it’s always a little worrying when a patient comes in and pays for an appointment with a handful of cash.”

  I blushed harder, my cheeks burning, and tucked my head down. It had taken a lot of cash to get this appointment made, without any insurance or anything, but it was money I had. I needed to take care of things like this while I was able, to make sure the baby and I were cared for.

  “However,” she continued, “what I see here isn’t worrying at all. Your bloodwork is nearly perfect. The only thing out of line is your blood sugar. It’s a bit low, but well within normal parameters.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It’s means you’re pregnant and having a hard time eating, which lowers your blood sugar. Very normal. Just keep trying. Crackers, toast. Anything starchy in your stomach will bring your blood sugar back to a normal range in no time.”

  I nodded. Crackers. I didn’t have any of those. I should buy them while I had the chance.

  “Otherwise, there’s nothing else you and I really need to discuss, Theo. You’re a healthy young, pregnant man. As long as you take care of yourself, come back for regular appointments, and follow the dietary guidelines in those pamphlets the nurse gave you, you should be just fine.”

  That, at least, was a relief. I smiled and stood up, shaking Dr. Gable’s hand before following her out to the reception desk. A healthy baby and a healthy me meant fewer complications and fewer doctor visits, and more money saved.

  I waved goodbye to the receptionist and headed out through the hospital doors, the sunlight a kiss on the cheek after the constant cold of the doctor’s office. Walking home wasn’t going to be so bad after all. I had a few stops to make, to the grocery store for crackers, and to two restaurants to drop off job applications -which may not have been such a good idea, considering the smell of the food was enough to make my stomach do a series of backflips.

  My tasks completed, my spirits lifted, I turned down the last street and walked up to my apartment building. A long, sleek, black limousine was parked out front.

  That’s weird, I thought, and kept walking.

  The realization dropped like a lightning bolt a split second later. I faltered, one of my feet slamming against the back of the other; throwing out my hands, I barely managed to keep from smacking my face on the concrete. Jerking my head up, I stared in through the windshield of the limo and saw the driver staring back out at me. We recognized each other. Of course, we did.

  That was Quinton’s limo, Quinton’s driver. Quinton was in my building, probably standing in front of my door waiting for me to come out.

  Is he going to yell at me some more? Does he want all his money back?

  I looked around, not that there was anywhere else for me to go. Christie was angry-worried about me, I didn’t dare go to Aaron and have to face his questions, and I had no other friends to shelter with. Plus, it was getting late. The streets were going to get dangerous, the shops closing down; unless I wanted to go to a bar, my only option was to suck it up and go inside.

  My heart pounding so loud I couldn’t hear anything, I went inside and took the stairs up to my floor, too nervous to bother holding still long enough to wait for the elevator to arrive.

  Once I got to my floor, I stepped off onto the landing and was hit by a solid weight that was at once familiar and terrifying. I stumbled back, missing my footing. My heel slipped off the top step, my body tilting wildly out of my control.

  Quinton reached out and grabbed me wi
th both hands, yanking my body close to his.

  I stared up into his eyes, his multifaceted jewel eyes, and felt my heart beat even harder and faster than before. Each beat shook me around like a rag doll.

  Quinton cleared his throat and loosened his grip without letting go. I twisted, pulling away from him, and went to my apartment. He trailed after me like a lost puppy, close enough for me to feel his breath on the back of my neck. Memories flooded through me and I hesitated just long enough for him to gain on me and step in front of me.

  “Theo,” he murmured, his voice a soft plea. “You weren’t answering your phone. I was worried.”

  I swallowed hard. A lie rose to my lips, but what was the point? “I was at a doctor’s appointment. For the…”

  “The baby.”

  I blinked. “You know?”

  “I figured it out.” Quinton turned his head and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. “I didn’t mean to overreact about the money. The money doesn’t matter. I just didn’t understand what was going on.”

  I lowered my head. “I should have told you.”

  “No.” He shook his head and spoke firmly. “You should have told me only when you were ready. I jumped to conclusions and that was stupid of me. Very immature for a man my age.”

  I bit my lip. He clearly wasn’t going to leave. “Do you want to come inside?” I gestured to my apartment door.

  I didn’t wait for an answer, didn’t think he would have given me one anyway. I pulled out my key and slid it into the lock, and pushed the door open to reveal everything I’d been hiding. A boxed crib stood against the wall beside the bed, ready to be assembled. The closet door stood open, revealing folded baby clothes and piles of toys next all the suits Quinton had brought me.

  “You’ve been stocking up,” he commented, looking all around.

  I bit my lip, tears burning my sinuses, and then I gave up and told him everything.

  18

  Quinton

  I sat down on the bed with Theo and wrapped my arm around his shoulders as he told me about the baby’s father, a prick of an alpha named Damien who’d gone the whole nice-guy route to get the sex he wanted. There was more to the story, but that about summed it up.

  I leaned my head on Theo’s as we sat in the cluttered quiet of his room together. “I take it this means you have no desire to see him again.”

  “Never!” Theo burst out. He spun around and grabbed my hands, holding them both in his. It was a direct mimic of the way I’d held his hands so many times. I wondered if he knew that or if it was a coincidence I was reading too much into. “I don’t care about him. I don’t want anything to do with him. I… I like you. I want to stay with you and keep seeing you.”

  “I want to stay with you.”

  The phrasing of that stirred up an idea inside me. I kept my mouth shut for now, not wanting to promise anything I couldn’t give.

  “I want to keep seeing you, too,” I whispered. I lifted my head and placed my hand on the back of his neck, pulling him closer to me so our foreheads touched.

  Theo looked up at me and my heart ached to see the way stress had already started to carve lines on his young face. “We’ll do it the right way this time. You don’t have to give me money or gifts or anything. I just want you.”

  The quiet conviction in his words was all I needed to hear. I stood up, letting my hand fall away from his shoulder. “I understand. I have to go do something. Don’t go anywhere, okay?”

  “Huh? Where are you going?” Theo started to stand up, too; I pushed him down gently and held out my hand with the palm out to tell him to stay where he was.

  “Don’t worry. I just need to make a few calls.”

  “Will you be coming back?”

  I didn’t answer, because that would be giving away what I was planning to do. “I’m only making some calls,” I reassured him.

  I left him sitting there on the bed and went back outside to my limo. I instructed the driver to take me home, and then I started making my calls.

  When I reached the penthouse, I took a brief look around the various rooms to form a plan of action. Then, I got to work moving things around and clearing spaces for all the things that would be arriving shortly. The entire time, I waited to hear from Theo, because I knew he would be calling when he found out what was going on.

  The call came after an hour, when I was already almost done with my preparations.

  “Hello?” I answered, making my voice calm despite the brewing hurricane of excitement inside me.

  “Quinton!” Theo exclaimed. He sounded partly furious, partly terrified. “There are strange men in my apartment! They’re taking all my stuff and all the baby’s stuff and they won’t listen to me!”

  I chuckled. That was about the reaction I expected. “Don’t worry,” I soothed. “Just head downstairs. There should be a car waiting for you. It’s going to bring you to the penthouse.”

  “But…”

  “Just do it.”

  When Theo arrived, I was waiting at the door. He ran inside, straight into my arms. “Quinton! What’s going on?”

  “Those men are movers,” I explained gently. “You’re going to live here with me so I can take care of you.”

  Theo’s eyes went wide. His jaw dropped open. “But…”

  “No ifs, ands, or buts. You’re taking the second bedroom. No strings attached.”

  Theo continued to stare at me as if I’d grown a second head. Grinning, I held his face in my hands and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. Right then, I didn’t care how long it took for Theo and I to rebuild the trust we had lost due to our misunderstanding. I’d keep him safe until then.

  Epilogue

  Theo

  6 months later…

  I lay awake, staring up at the ceiling with my hands on my enormous stomach. Thoughts ran through my head, keeping me from relaxing enough to fall asleep right away. They were racehorses, circling around the same track without every really going anywhere. So, so much had happened, and kept happening. I couldn’t keep up with all of it.

  Quinton took care of me like he said he would. He never asked for any of the money back, but instead had taken it upon himself to buy all sorts of baby items that I hadn’t even been aware existed. He even seemed to be preparing for when the baby became a toddler, judging by the age ranges on some of the boxes he was stacking up in his spare room.

  Not only that, but he paid for all my doctor’s appointments and even accompanied me to them. Everything Dr. Gable said, he made sure I implemented, either into my exercise routine or my diet. It was almost husbandly, if I was honest.

  I smiled a little to myself, imagining the look of rapt attention on his face. He had been so sweet about everything since we got over our misunderstanding, accepting everything without ever pushing for more. That meant I was still in the second bedroom, despite having been intimate with him several times since moving in.

  The thought of having sex with him caused desire to stir inside me. My dick pressed up against the sheets, creating a tent.

  Skimming my fingers over the blanket toward the bulge I made, I had to wonder why I bothered sleeping in this room at all. Quinton wasn’t going to suddenly change his mind.

  I rubbed myself from on top of the sheets, closing my eyes as my heartbeat sped up and my breathing came faster. I let my imagination wander, my pleasure heightening as I recalled all our phone sex conversations, and even the secret blow job I’d given him in the restaurant as proof of my feelings for him.

  As proof of my feelings… That’s it!

  My eyes flew open wide. I was astonished I hadn’t realized it earlier, that I’d been thinking about things all wrong. Quinton wasn’t going to change his mind, but he thought I might. All this time, all these months, he’d been patiently waiting for me to come to him.

  I didn’t need to ask myself if that was what I wanted. I already knew.

  I slid out from under the bedsheets and crossed the hall to his bedroo
m. The light was still on, the door open a crack.

  “Win?” I called, and stuck my head through.

  Quinton looked at me from where he sat up in his bed, one hand under the sheets. The bed bounced gently, a tented shape on his lap moving up and down. There was little doubt about what he was doing. “I didn’t know you were still up,” he said, breathily.

  I climbed up onto the bed with him, as naked as the day I was born. I crawled up into his lap and wrapped my arms and legs around him. His covers-covered cock pressed up between my ass cheeks.

  “I couldn’t sleep,” I whispered, tucking my head against his. “I was thinking.”

  Quinton rubbed his cheek on mine, leaned his head back to look at me. “What were you thinking about?”

  “How stupid it was for me to be sleeping in that other room for so long,” I admitted.

  He smiled. “About time you realized that,” he teased.

  I touched my lips to his and spoke against them. “I want to stay here. With you. Forever. Let’s be a family.”

  “Theo,” he whispered. My name was all he needed to say. I whispered his in return and we kissed, our lips lingering together long and slow. He tasted of toothpaste, of sweetness, of promises.

  He tasted of everything I had ever wanted.

  Quinton leaned me over on my back and slid down. He placed his hands on my rounded, full tummy and stroked me. His eyes glowed with a deep admiration. He nuzzled his face on my firm mound, his breath stirring the trail of hairs leading down to my erection.

  “You’re so beautiful.”

  I slid my fingers in his hair. “Prove it,” I teased. “Show me.”

  He glanced up at me, still with his face pressed to my tummy. He danced little kisses all over me, making me squirm around underneath him. “Look at you,” he whispered. “My omega. Of course you’re beautiful.”