Chapter 5
Nick
What the hell? Ella strides into the park, clutching a thin cardigan closely about her narrow shoulders.
She’s wearing a loose housedress beneath the cardigan, which is better than the frumpy brown uniform required by the resort where she works, but not by much.
Both items have yards of excess fabric which swaddle her curvy figure in an unflattering way.
She’s pregnant, not homeless, and there’s no need to look like a wooly mammoth.
Yet Ella’s breathtakingly beautiful despite her ugly outfit.
Even beneath the loose clothing, her figure is ripe and shapely, a tiny bump protruding beneath the material.
Her golden hair seems incredibly lush and thick, and her peaches and cream complexion is so flawless that it gleams in the setting sun.
Is it true that pregnant women glow? It seems like it, because the young woman is radiating fertility and womanhood.
Still, it’s chilly and I take off my jacket as she walks to the picnic table, stopping only to wrap it around her shoulders as she stands before me.
“There’s a bite in the air today,” I say in an abrupt voice. “Where’s your jacket?”
“I’m okay,” she murmurs, even as she pulls the garment closer about her shoulders, grateful for the residual warmth of my body heat. “I had to run out, so I forgot it.”
We sit at a picnic table as I shake my head again. Why the hell is a pregnant woman rushing around like a chicken with her head cut off? If anything, Ella should be cuddled up before a cozy fire, sipping at a mug of hot cocoa while her babydaddy gives her a foot massage.
But you’re the babydaddy, the voice in my head whispers. You’re the one who’s supposed to be seeing to her comfort and care.
Fuck, that’s right. The realization brings me back to earth with a thunk, and I glower at the curvy girl again.
“Why didn’t you contact me earlier?” I ask abruptly. “You should have reached out the moment you knew you were pregnant.”
The blonde shoots me an exasperated look.
“I did try to contact you, but your company seems determined to keep the riffraff away,” Ella says in a dry tone. “You didn’t exactly give me your cell, so I had to look you up online.”
“So you reached out to Rocket X,” I say in a slow voice.
“I did,” she agrees. “I sent emails to the general inbox, and then dialed the inquiry hotline. The customer service rep was perfectly nice and promised to pass my name along, but surprise, surprise, she didn’t. So I did it the old-fashioned away. I wrote you a letter, which you obviously got.”
I nod, fingering the tattered missive in my pocket.
“I did because my secretary had a feeling that it was something important. Otherwise, she would have tossed it, but something about it stood out.”
“I think it’s the fact that the letter’s handwritten,” Ella says in a dry voice. “I addressed it to you in pen, and stuck on a stamp the old-fashioned way. It’s about as unprofessional as you can get.”
I jerk my head sharply in a nod.
“Right. Well, I’m sorry you had so much trouble reaching me. It shouldn’t have been that way.”
Ella shrugs, looking unconcerned although there are two spots of color on her cheeks.
“No, it’s fine,” she says in an even tone. “I get it. You’re a powerful CEO who barely has two minutes to spare. Your staff is paid to keep random passerby at arm’s length, and in this case, I was definitely a random. They were only doing their job.”
“Yes, I guess so,” I grunt, although my soul feels unsettled knowing that this beautiful woman had to jump through hoops to contact me.
Then, I reach into my pocket and hand her an ivory card.
“That’s my contact information,” I say in a gruff tone.
“My personal cell, my email, and even my home address. If I don’t answer, just leave a message, and I’ll call you back. ”
The young blonde picks up the card and reads the inscription before setting it down again.
“But this address is for a hotel in New York City,” she says, her voice slow. “Are you sure you didn’t give me the wrong business card by accident? Maybe you have multiple versions.”
“I do,” I say in a matter of fact tone. “But no, the hotel is where I live when I’m in Manhattan.
I travel a lot, and the Pierre in NYC offers apartments as well as traditional hotel rooms. So yes, I own a penthouse within the building, and utilize the hotel’s services because it’s convenient. It’s the best of both worlds.”
Ella nods and bites her lip, staring down at the card again.
“I see,” she murmurs. “Yes, that seems a bit fancy for Minnesota, but then again, what do I know about Manhattan? I’ve never been.”
This is the perfect segue.
“That’s what I want to talk to you about, actually,” I reply, my black brows raised.
“I’d like you to quit your job, and to come live with me in New York City, Ella.
You need to see the best doctors, and to have concierge care available to you.
There’s no need for you to toil away at some shitty bed and breakfast when you’re carrying my child.
If anything, you could be hurting the baby by spending countless hours on your feet. ”
Ella’s cheeks color as her small hands grip into fists.
“I’ll have you know that I work because I’m establishing a future for me and my baby,” she says in a stilted voice. “Up until a few hours ago, we didn’t know if you’d make an appearance. If anything, maybe me and the baby are just nobodies that you were choosing to ignore.”
“No, never,” I rasp, my chest growing tight at the thought of abandoning this woman.
“I understand that we conceived this baby accidentally during a single night of passion, but he or she is here, whether or not we like it. I want you under my protection,” I rasp in determined tone.
“New York is the best place for me to make sure you get everything you need. For example, you’re dressed completely inappropriately,” I state in a harsh tone, gesturing to her thin sweater and shabby housedress.
“It’s fall in Minnesota. This park is freezing already, and I don’t understand why you’re not bundled up like a bear. ”
Immediately, I know I’ve said the wrong thing judging from the rush of color up Ella’s neck.
It’s bewitching, actually, and I want to run my tongue along her smooth skin before claiming her plush pout in a kiss.
I want to graze my hands along her voluptuous curves, stopping only to worship the baby within her bulging belly.
Wait a minute, when did you get so sappy? the voice in my head sneers. You’re acting like a fucking pushover.
Immediately, I resolve to exert my dominance, except Ella’s primed for a fight now.
“No, I won’t be going to New York,” she states, drawing the edges of the jacket closer about her shoulders. “I belong here, in Minnesota. This is where I’m from, and this is where my home is.”
I stare at her.
“Ella,” I say in a slow voice. “You’re working long hours, for little pay. You don’t have to do this. I’m here, and I want to look after you and the baby. You’ll be living in the lap of luxury in New York.”
The spots of color flame vivid on her round cheeks.
“But I don’t belong there,” she says in a smooth tone. “I belong here. Besides, what would I even do in New York?”
“That’s the point,” I interject quickly.
“You wouldn’t have to do anything. You could quit your job, and focus on taking care of yourself and the baby.
I want you to stay healthy, and to relax without being on your feet from sun-up to sundown.
I don’t know what’s so difficult to understand about that. ”
She flushes red again, but her chin is a stubborn point as she shakes it.
“I don’t appreciate your patronizing tone,” she says in a stiff voice. “It’s completely unnecessary, and especially when you’re talking to the mother of your child.”
“Of course,” I amend immediately. “I apologize for that. But still, there’s logic to my words. Why stay here, working your fingers to the bone when it’s unnecessary? I’m offering you an opportunity to relax. To take a deep breath, and to focus on your pregnancy. What’s so wrong with that?”
Ella eyes me carefully.
“But what would happen afterwards, Nick?” she asks in a slow tone. “I give birth to the child, and then what? We stay at your apartment? You introduce us to everyone you know as your child and his babymama? Who am I to you, anyways? And what’s going to happen to me after the baby’s born?”
I shrug unselfconsciously.
“I don’t know,” I reply. “I haven’t gotten that far yet.
But what I do know is that I came to find you today, and you were working like a dog at a shabby resort that’s seen better days.
Whatever they’re paying you, I can do better.
I can double your salary, or even triple it, and you won’t have to lift a finger.
You can live in the lap of luxury, and just enjoy yourself.
Sit back, exhale, and let yourself experience the finer things in life as the baby grows. That’s what I’m offering you.”
Ella bites her lip, her expression unreadable.
“Okay, you haven’t exactly answered my question about what happens after the birth,” she begins.
I lean forward, my gaze intent.
“Because I don’t know the answer. I’m being honest with you, which is the best I can do now.”
She’s pensive as she nods slightly, pulling the jacket about her narrow shoulders again.
“Okay, but how long do you think the deal will last?” she asks. “I don’t mean to be pushy, but I need some structure. It can’t all be open-ended and nebulous.”
I shrug again.
“I don’t know because again, I’ve never done this before. This is my first time as a father. It’s my first time as a provider because I’ve never gotten a woman pregnant before. But I assure you that you’ll be taken care of after the baby’s born. That I can guarantee.”
Ella chews her lip and I’m momentarily distracted because her pout is already lush and rosy, and the added movement makes her mouth even more so.
I have an urge to lean forward and press a kiss to those delectable lips, but I know the time isn’t right because the beautiful girl still looks perturbed.
“But what about our child?” she asks in a slow tone. “Are you going to take him or her from me after they’re born?” she asks, her eyes slightly glassy now. “I wouldn’t be able to handle that, Nick. This is my child as much as yours, and I can’t be separated from them.”
Suddenly, I realize that the baby is what Ella cares about, first and foremost. She wants this child and has been doing her best by the unborn baby, and my heart swoops and falls because this isn’t a woman after fame, money, or fortune.
This is a woman who just wants a stable life for her child, and it strengthens my resolve to give that to her.
“No one’s taking the baby from you,” I intone in a low voice. “Least of all me. We’ll find something that works for both of us, I promise. But I’m begging you, Ella – let me take care of you during your pregnancy. I want to do this. I need to do it.”
What the hell? Where are these heartfelt words coming from?
Yet, I speak the truth because something about the bedraggled young woman touches me at the deepest levels.
She’s clearly in need, and likely panicking about her future.
She doesn’t have a cent to her name, and appears to be alone in the world, whereas I have more money than God, in addition to every resource at my fingertips.
I want Ella under my protection, and don’t give a fuck that I’ve become a sap in the process.
“Please, Ella,” I say in a low tone. “Let me take care of you and our child.”
She lets out a big exhale as her shoulders sag, and that’s when I know I’ve won.
The young woman looks down at her folded hands, her blonde hair smooth and bright in the setting sun, and my heart flips over in my chest. There’s something about Ella that touches me deep to my core, whether it’s her determination to be independent, or her very obvious need for support.
Funny, because those things appear paradoxical, and yet they’re not.
I merely have a young woman on my hands who’s fiercely committed to standing on her own two feet and yet clearly as poor as a church mouse.
With that, I stand and hold out my hand to her.
She looks up, her chin held high and blue eyes steady.
Then, her narrow shoulders straighten, and my heart squeezes tight again.
The young woman makes me burst with pride, even in her darkest moments.
But it’s when Ella places her small hand in mine that a surge of possession rushes through my chest so powerfully that my knees wobble as my head grows faint.
I’m caring for this woman now … because she’s mine.