Chapter 9
Ella
“Are you ready?” Nick growls at me from within the limo. It’s dark but my man is devastatingly handsome in a black tux and stark white dress shirt. His charcoal hair is brushed back, and those blue eyes gleam within the dimly lit interior of the car. I smile back sweetly.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” is my murmur. “Let’s go.”
With that, Nick takes my hand as the car door opens, and then helps me step out onto a red carpet. His support is needed because I’m round and a bit ungainly from the pregnancy, and lean on him before straightening and brushing my hair back.
“Everything okay?” he murmurs under his breath. “You look gorgeous, Ella.”
A flush descends on my cheeks as I smile at him brilliantly.
“Thank you,” I murmur. “I’m totally fine. Oh, and you look very dashing yourself.”
The alpha male chuckles as he tucks my hand into the crook of the elbow, and then leads me up the carpet and towards the Fontaine Hotel.
I smile, my head held high and my expression confident because after we made love while shopping two weeks ago, everything changed between me and Nick Bannister.
I’m no longer the pregnant, bedraggled woman he’s caring for while we wait for his child to be born.
I’m no longer an unwanted guest in his home, sequestered away in my quarters while he goes about his usual life in New York.
Instead, I sleep in Nick’s bed every night now, and we have loads of hot, passionate sex.
Yes, I’m the billionaire’s lover for real, and our connection is solid and steadfast.
But it’s not just the physical aspect. We connect on a mental level too, and Nick spends a lot of time with me.
Yes, he wakes me up at sunrise for steamy morning sex, but then often stays for breakfast in bed as we chat about our upcoming days.
There isn’t much to mine other than doctors’ appointments, light exercise, and then lunch followed by a dip in the pool, but the billionaire always listens with interest. Then, he’s out the door to work, and I have the rest of the morning and afternoon to myself before he returns in the evening for a delicious dinner and more filthy times in the sack.
Our lovemaking can be raunchy and wrong, but it’s also passionate and intimate, and I suppose it’s the variety that makes it so satisfying.
So yes, I feel integrated into Nick Bannister’s life.
The billionaire shares tidbits about his past, and I feel like I know him to my core, even if we’ve only been talking for the past two weeks.
It’s as if I’ve always known this man, and our connection is free-flowing, lively, and incredibly interesting.
But our silences are also comfortable, and in some ways, the silence is even more intimate than our rolls in the hay.
So I wasn’t surprised when he asked me to accompany him to a charity gala tonight. I smiled at him while lifting a brow.
“You mean we’re actually going to use one of the dresses you bought me from Khrisomo?” I ask in a teasing tone. “They’re not just here to be torn off or literally ripped in half?”
Nick growled deep in his chest, those blue eyes flaring.
“I’ll tear as many of them as I want,” he rasped. “You look best naked, with your legs spread and ready for me, baby girl.”
“Oh you!” I laughed, the blood rushing to my cheeks as my tummy tingled. “Always with one thing on your mind.”
My man merely growled again before reaching forward to tweak a big breast, making me moan.
“Always,” he rasped hungrily before seizing my mouth in a passionate kiss. “You’re the one for me, Ella.”
After sweet words like that, it’s no wonder that I feel like Prince Charming has swept into my life.
My life has been turned upside down from a bedraggled maid struggling to make ends meet, to one of laughter, luxury, and most importantly, love.
Plus, I don’t really care about charity balls, mani-pedis, nor fancy evening gowns.
What I care about is this man and the life we’re building together.
The love that permeates every interaction, and how safe and secure I feel in Nick’s arms.
With a light step, I lean against the huge man as he leads me into a glittering ballroom.
“Wow,” I murmur. “I had no idea that a non-profit called Daffodil Mamas could sponsor an event of this caliber.”
After all, there are daffodils everywhere, and I mean everywhere, in the ballroom. They’re tucked into vases, strung into garlands, with there’s even a massive trellis on stage, with daffodils dangling from a chandelier overhead. It’s a little overwhelming, to say the least.
“I think the florist went a little overboard,” Nick says in a dry tone while leading me to the champagne. “I hope the champagne doesn’t taste of daffodils.”
“Well, you’ll have to taste it for me because you know I can’t drink,” I say with a saucy smile.
Nick’s eyes immediately go to my bump, which is shown off in a beautiful white gown.
The material’s draped over my shoulders and tummy so that I resemble a Grecian goddess, and there are even lilies strung into my hair, as well as gold and silver jewelry adorning my throat and wrists.
“You look amazing, Ella,” Nick growls. “And yes, you’re not drinking because of the baby, but I’ll get you some juice. Something tells me my son is thirsty.”
“Or your daughter,” I retort with a naughty smile. “You never know.”
Nick’s eyes merely flare again as he signals to a waiter, but before he can order the juice, a woman accosts him.
“Nick!” she sighs while throwing her arms around his neck dramatically. “I missed you!”
My brows pull down in a frown. Who is this? But Nick seems unfazed. He smiles fondly at the woman while disentangling himself, and then introduces us.
“Laila, it’s so good to see you,” he says in a smooth tone. “It’s been ages. Have you met Ella?” he asks. “Ella Moore, meet Laila Kazirhagi.”
Oh my god, upon closer inspection, the woman looks like a Persian princess from her sloe-eyes to her flawless golden skin.
All she needs is a tiara and a royal scepter to complete the picture.
I immediately feel frumpy and out of place in my white bedsheet of a gown, but the woman hardly even notices me.
“Oh Nicky, where have you been?” Laila breathes while taking his elbow in both her hands and staring deep into his eyes. “You said you’d take me on a cruise to the Mediterranean, remember? You promised!” she adds in a petulant voice.
My lover maintains the smile on his face.
“That was a while ago,” he says courteously. “And besides, I’ve got a lot going on right now. I’m going to be a father. Do you see how Ella’s pregnant? We’re going to be parents.”
With a grumpy snort, Laila turns to me once more before surveying my burgeoning belly with green eyes.
“Well,” she says with a harrumph. “I see.”
“Yes,” Nick says in a smooth tone. “No cruises for me, unfortunately. Sorry.”
With that pronouncement, Laila spins on one high heel and disappears into the crowd, her svelte form swallowed up by the other partygoers within seconds.
“Well, that was awkward,” I say in a low voice. “Your friend seemed surprised to see me.”
“Ella, you are always a delight and a surprise,” Nick says diplomatically. “How could you not be? You’re a vision, sweetheart, outshining any of the other women here.”
“Thanks,” I say in a dry tone. I’m about to add another quip when suddenly, a second woman appears from the crowd, just as beautiful as Laila. This one resembles the heroine from Aladdin, and is even wearing a long black braid and a filmy blue dress like Princess Jasmine.
“Nicky!” she squeals before leaning in to give him a kiss on the cheek. “Where have you been? We knew you were expecting, but we had no idea you’d be back so soon.”
Oh, she knew that he was expecting a child? I suppose word gets out fast, although I’m not sure through which channels, seeing that I’ve never met this crowd before. Nick, meanwhile, appears unperturbed.
“Yes, the world has a funny way of working, doesn’t it?” he asks in a smooth tone. “Good to see you, Alizeh.”
“Call me Elisa!” she trills merrily. “I only use Alizeh when I’m with family, and you know that, Nicky! My father and brother keep asking when you’re going to come around to play golf. They re-did the course so that it’s even more beautiful,” she adds.
I try not to look startled. This woman’s family owns a golf course? Then again, I shouldn’t be surprised because this is obviously a gala where filthy rich people bump shoulders and hobnob. Meanwhile, as I look on, Alizeh continues.
“We’ve missed you,” she coos to Nick again while fluttering those spidery lashes. “So when are you coming around?”
“After my baby is born,” he says in a diplomatic manner. “I’ll have my hands full for a while, as you can see. But where are my manners? Alizeh, please meet Ella. Ella, Alizeh.”
With that, Princess Jade turns to me but stops abruptly upon seeing my pregnant form.
“Wait a minute,” she says in a slow tone, her eyes going up and down over my Grecian dress.
Her gaze pauses on my belly, before moving up to my face and studying it.
Her scrutiny goes on so long that I wonder if I have something in my teeth, and subtly try to run my tongue around my mouth to loosen any food bits.
But Alizeh doesn’t acknowledge me. Instead, she turns to Nick with confusion in her gaze.
“Is this...?” she asks, one brow rising.
“Yes, Ella is expecting my child,” he says without missing a beat. “Ella conceived unexpectedly, but we’re over the moon about the pregnancy.”
Alizeh nods.
“I see,” she says in a low tone before biting her lip. “Well, good luck, Nicky. You’ll need it.” Then, this second woman also disappears into the crowd, her black braid swishing back and forth.