Chapter 12
Daniel
I took a sip of black coffee that sat steaming in the mug on my desk. The heat swished to the back of my tongue and down my throat as I willed for the caffeine to enter my system at a rapid pace. I rubbed my eyes and leaned back in my desk chair. I was exhausted.
Going out with Freddy last night had been a bad idea, especially with the slew of work meetings I had lined up for the day. I wasn’t thinking. I was desperate for some sort of distraction from the strange void that formed since my night with Addison.
Our night together was all I thought about for the past month.
Having her made me hungry for more, and made everything else I had tasted in the past seem dull and flavorless.
What transpired that night at the bar, on my couch, in my bed—it was reckless abandon.
I had become completely lost in her, and her in me. Or so I thought.
She had left without a word the next morning, which would normally put my mind at ease.
I didn’t have to have the inevitable conversation of, “You’re really great, but I’m not looking for anything serious.
” Or the awkward feeling when I want them to leave, but they were just not getting the hint.
That was the worst. That’s if they were even lucky to stay over, which was rare.
That night, I had gone to bed with my arms wrapped around Addison, and I wasn’t a cuddler.
For some reason, no matter which way I had her into the late hours of the night, I needed more.
My hands were desperate to touch her smooth skin.
My lungs needed to breathe her in. Vanilla and beads of sweet sweat.
She fell asleep pressed against me, and her quiet, steady breathing somehow lulled me to sleep, even though I was ready to go for a fourth helping.
When I rolled over, already aroused and hoping to go again, I found my bed empty.
I was humbled to realize she had left sometime in the early morning hours.
To say it wasn’t a blow to my pride would be a lie.
I should have felt on top of the world. I had conquered my conquest. Challenge completed.
Instead of feeling like a winner, I couldn’t help feeling at a loss.
For someone who was so high on her pedestal of not being “that type of girl,” she made it clear that what happened between us was a one-time thing.
I had never been on that side of it before.
I’d had plenty of one-night stands. Hell, that was all I’d really ever had.
But I was usually the one to leave. Being left was foreign to me.
When I got to the office that morning, I had an email at the top of my inbox.
I quickly opened it when I saw it was from Leading to Learn.
I assumed it was Addison with some sort of excuse as to why she left, but it was quite the opposite.
She had passed our business deal off to a coworker named Shelley.
I didn’t want Shelley. I wanted Addison.
And I thought I had made that clear, but that was before I had learned what she tasted like.
I had broken my own rule of not mixing business with pleasure.
After that email. I grew annoyed. Instead of fighting for her, I took the hint and handed the deal to one of my foundation members. If she didn’t want anything to do with me, then I wanted nothing to do with her. That was my pride taking over.
And it was that same pride that had kept me from reaching out to her, and instead went searching for something, someone, to replace what I felt with her that night. Turned out, pure ecstasy wasn’t exactly easy to come by.
My night out with Freddy last night was filled with predictable women who didn’t spark my interest or my arousal.
We had gone to a new club opening. Bottle service.
Cocktail waitresses in barely-there uniforms. Women in tight dresses eager to get a free drink with shameless flirting and dancing that was more dry humping than rhythmic.
I sat in our booth probably looking miserable as I sipped on straight vodka.
“What is up with you, man?” asked Freddy as a redhead slung her arm around his neck. Her friend was sidled up beside me, her legs thrown over mine. I didn’t remember her name. I didn’t care.
I shrugged, looking down into my drink. Usually, my hands would be up this girl’s short skirt already, but instead my fingers stayed wrapped around my cocktail glass. It wasn’t like I wanted to be like this. I couldn’t help it.
“Is it work?” asked Freddy.
I shook my head.
“Brody?”
“Nah.”
“Is it a woman?” he asked with a tone of disbelief.
I felt the blonde shoot me a look.
“You’re joking, right?” I asked with a sarcastic laugh. I wrapped my arm around the blonde, hoping it would be enough to hide that he had figured me out.
It didn’t work. His eyes widened as he leaned in close, the redhead slipping onto his lap like some sort of barnacle.
“Holy shit, man. Who is she?” he asked, his eyes narrowed.
“It’s no one, Freddy.”
“Is it that girl from the bar? Big tits? Dark hair? Black dress one size too small?”
I took a sip of my drink, holding it in my mouth to feel the burn before swallowing it slowly.
“Whatever happened with that?” asked Freddy. The redhead was now nibbling on his earlobe, making it hard for him to concentrate. Hell, it was making it hard for me to concentrate.
“Nothing.”
“Bullshit.”
“If there was anything there, do you think I’d be here with…”
Shit, I didn’t know her name.
“Rebecca,” she muttered.
“Rebecca. I knew that,” I said.
Freddy let out a laugh as Rebecca removed her legs from my lap. Whatever. I wasn’t interested anyway. I removed my arm from her shoulders and checked the time on my watch.
It was 1 a.m. I was already fucked for tomorrow. I didn’t need to make it worse.
“I think I’m going to head out,” I said.
“What? We still have half a bottle left,” said Freddy, pulling the bottle from the ice bucket.
“Have at it.”
Rebecca rolled her eyes and slunk against the seat of the booth.
I slid on my jacket and gave them a single wave before heading toward the door.
I carefully pushed my way through the crowd and out onto the sidewalk.
There, I heard the disappointed murmurs of the paparazzi who had been waiting outside all night.
Nothing to see here. No woman, or women, on my arm.
I gave them a shit-eating grin and got in my town car.
When I got home, I could barely sleep. I kept thinking about Addison and how empty my bed was.
I hadn’t brought anyone home since that night.
It was a new record for me. Of course, the paparazzi didn’t report on that.
A playboy is much more interesting than a guy who spends his nights alone.
Plus, Kiera was still playing the angle that we were headed for an engagement.
I hadn’t cared enough to set things straight. People assumed things all the time.
After maybe getting only four hours of sleep, I headed miserably into the office this morning. CEOs don’t have the luxury of sick days. Now I was struggling to keep my eyes open. There was a knock at my office door, waking me up slightly.
“Come in,” I said, but it was more of a quiet groan.
Margaret popped her head in. “I sent you a push notification on your Google calendar. Did you see it?”
“No. I’ve been…busy.”
“Oh, it’s just a Ms. Heartly called earlier and wanted to schedule a meeting with you.”
My ears perked up.
“Wait, Ms. Heartly? As in Addison Heartly?”
“Yes. That’s right.”
I sat there in a few seconds of quiet disbelief.
Margaret cleared her throat. “So, do you want me to set that up for you?”
“Did she say what she wanted?”
“No, sir. She just said she needed to get in to see you as soon as possible.”
“Thank you, Margaret. I’ll handle it.” I dismissed her.
She nodded before closing the door behind her.
I smoothed my fingers over my chin in thought.
It had been a month since our night together.
I ran through a list of reasons why she would want to meet with me.
Was it because she couldn’t stop thinking about that night either?
Or did it have to do with the business deal? There was only one way to find out.
I checked my calendar for the day, but I had no openings for a meeting. I had one available for tomorrow, but I didn’t think I could wait that long. My curiosity was at its peak. I would have to call her. But I refused to give her the satisfaction of sounding too eager.
I found her number within an email thread, and dialed.
It rang three times before she picked up.
“Addison Heartly,” she said.
I hadn’t realized I was holding my breath.
“Hello,” I said, breathing it out slowly.
“Hello? Who is this?”
“It’s Daniel. Daniel Jacobs.”
“Oh, um, hi. I called earlier hoping to schedule a meeting.”
“I heard,” I replied with a crispness to my voice.
There was a pause on the other line.
“Well, when is your next availability?” she asked.
“I’m pretty booked up,” I commented.
“Daniel. Mr. Jacobs. Please,” she came back, sounding desperate.
Good.
“Look, anything that has to do with the donations can be handled through my foundation.”
“It’s not about that…”
“Then what is it, Ms. Heartly?”
She inhaled a shaky breath. “I’m pregnant.”
I felt like someone had punched me in the gut. I placed my elbows on the desk for support as I replayed those two words in my head. Was she saying what I thought she was saying? I couldn’t believe it. Panic began to set in.
“What are you trying to say?” I whispered.
“I think you know what I’m trying to say.”
Shit. Fuck. Shit.
“How do you know I’m the father?” I blurted out.
“Are you serious?” she asked, her voice a warning.
“I don’t know. Maybe it’s someone else’s—”
“I can’t even believe what you’re suggesting!”
“Why? I hardly know you. I don’t know what you do in your spare time.”
“I told you I’m not that kind of girl.”
“Well, you were that night with me.”
I regretted the words as soon as they left my mouth. The silence that followed rang in my ears as if I could feel her anger through the line.
“Go to hell,” she snapped.
I heard the click of the phone on the other line. I slammed my phone down and put my head in my hands. Heat creeped up the back of my neck. What the hell just happened? Could I really be the father?
Theoretically, yes. I could be. I had been too in the moment to slip on a condom, which was incredibly careless looking back.
We were both lost in the moment. She hadn’t asked or protested.
Hell, she invited me in when she spread those beautiful legs of hers.
I didn’t hesitate. I just wanted her. All of her.
I figured she was on the pill or something.
This couldn’t be happening. My office started to spin.
It felt like my world was closing in around me.
This feeling of being out of control was not one I was used to.
I had to get out of here. I slid on my jacket and quickly grabbed my briefcase.
On my way out I told Margaret to cancel my meetings for the day, and left her sitting there in a state of shock.
Work would have to wait. I needed to think.