A Baby for My Billionaire Stepbrother 4 (2 page)

“So, what you're saying is James is the father.” My voice seemed small, even to myself.

“Not only is he the father, but he's paying her to shut her up.” I heard her sigh. “Look, just be careful is all. And definitely bring a condom if you're planning on getting something out of your system.”

My hand strayed to my belly. It was a little late for that, I thought. Still, just because it was possible that James was being a Deadbeat Dad to Audrey's baby didn't mean that he would do that to me, his stepsister.

Did it?

I
almost didn't go.

My plane ticket was already booked, and I had already packed my bag in anticipation, but I felt sick to my stomach.

How could he do that? How could he abandon a pregnant woman and his own unborn child? How could he hold a legal guillotine over her head when she was in this state?

I knew James was an asshole, but not like this. He was the cocky, confident kind of asshole, not the kind that ruins a girl's life and pays to cover it up.

How little did I know about my stepbrother? How much did I really want his child if he did all that?

In the end, I loaded up myFace and looked at a few pictures of him. Not only did I start to get wet just thinking about his hard body on mine, but I wanted to hear it from him before I believed it. I made sure not to tell Nicole where I was going, grabbing a cab while she was still in class.

I went to Boston, determined to get answers.

***

W
hen I landed at Logan International Airport in Boston, I sent James an email.

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W
here should I meet you?

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I
received an email back right away.

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W
e go on in two hours. Come by the coffee house now and I can get you setup at my place.

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N
othing more than that. His short replies were becoming more and more frustrating. I knew that he was busy, but a little bit of reassurance would be nice. Of course, he didn't know that I was aware of Audrey, or that I needed reassuring at all. That didn't make me feel any better.

As soon as I got outside, I felt the chill of the Boston winter run through me. My denim jacket was still zipped up, but I only had on a halter top underneath it and a pair of tight jeans under that. I figured if I was here to be a band's groupie, I might as well look the part. I flagged down a cab and gave the cabbie the address of the coffee shop.

On the way over there, I thought over all the information I had and whether or not I could draw an alternate conclusion. James was paying Audrey's medical bills, and she wasn't allowed to talk about it. Her boyfriend from senior year of high school was not the father. On top of all that, she was in Boston for a concert at just the right time.

I sighed to myself as I touched my belly. Nothing was confirmed yet, but I knew I was already pregnant with his child myself. If James found out, would he make me sign a contract like Audrey? Would I receive a payout, with James' lawyers specifying that the child would never know who its father was? Half of me thought it was impossible, but the other half knew it
was
possible, and that half wanted to cry a little.

At least the baby would have a rich Uncle James
, I thought with a half-hearted smile. No matter what, James would have to see his child occasionally. Maybe he'd have a change of heart down the line.

That was an awful big 'maybe'.

I had come this far, though, and there wasn't anything I could do about it now. I'd have to act like nothing was wrong for tonight. When I had a minute alone with him, I'd dance around the question, gauge his reaction about certain things. I figured that, by the end of the trip, I'd know about Audrey at least.

Part of me wondered how I'd react, even if he didn't plan to treat me the same way. I wanted him all to myself, and if he had another baby in the world, he'd never be fully mine. I knew that was an irrational fear but I worried all the same. Maybe it was just pregnancy hormones.

After what seemed like forever, we pulled up to the coffee shop. I paid the cabbie and looked at the door. Outside, a simple chalkboard stand had “Lefty and the Sharks: 9:00 PM” written on it.

I was ready for tonight.

A
s soon as I walked in, the hum of excitement was tangible.

The coffee shop was not a concert venue, but it's pretty obvious that they were trying their best to make this an event. All the tables had been moved away from the stage to the other side, making it super cramped. In fact, I saw some of the tables disassembled and shoved in the very back corner.

There were a ton of chairs that were obviously part of the coffee shop's furniture set that were lined up in front of the stage. In addition, after a few rows, they had used a bunch of unmatched metal folding chairs. I recognized them as the ones that James kept in his apartment in his own little studio.

Immediately, I heard James' voice. It was the same authoritative tone that he used when I heard him doing business over the phone. “It's still not working, Ryan. Fucking get this thing fixed, and fast. We have two hours until this show starts and if you've got to bring in your little sister's karaoke set to get a working mic, you do it.”

I saw him tapping a mic as he yelled. There were a couple other people up on the stage, frantically running wires or adjusting lights. He hadn't seen me yet, so I thought I'd go up and get his attention. Someone else got my attention first.

“Hey there!” Anne said, her eyes lighting up as she saw me. I remembered those intense eyes from the last time I had seen her, two weeks ago.

“Oh, Anne!” I said, definitely sounding excited. “I like what you've done with your hair.” Two weeks ago, when I had last seen her, her short hair had been jet black with a streak of red through it. Now, her hair was still that jet black, but instead of the red streak, the tips of her hair were dyed a shimmering green. It was beautiful.

“Oh, thanks!” she said, pulling a strand of hair from in front of her face behind her ear.

She looked a little nervous, and I suddenly remembered that during our conversation from the other day, she had implied that she was a lesbian. I was definitely flattered that she found me attractive, but I had never done anything with a girl, and I didn't think that I would start now that I was with James.

“Sorry I missed your show the other night,” I said.

She smiled. “Don't worry about it. I know that you guys with Coleman Corp have to fly back and forth between here and California a lot. I looked for you, but was kind of glad that you didn't see it. It wasn't my best performance.”

I smiled back, feeling very relaxed around her. “I'm sure it was fine, but I would love to see one of your concerts some time.” I made a point of grabbing a new flyer from the stand next to the counter. If James and I would be seeing more of each other, I'd find myself out here more and more, especially when school was out.

She smiled and opened her mouth to talk again, but her gaze lifted up to someone behind me. “Mr. Coleman,” she said.

I turned around and saw James there. His gaze swept over my body, and I watched the pupils of those green eyes dilate. He was close enough that he could just lean down and give me a kiss, and for a moment, I thought he was going to.

He looked like he was considering it, then shook his head and broke eye contact. “I see you've met Ms. Dean, my loveliest employee.”

Anne rolled her eyes. “Look at all this sexual harassment I have to deal with, Allie. It's a wonder Mr. Coleman doesn't call me 'Toots' and make me light his cigarettes for him.”

James shrugged. “All the other girls down at the office are okay with it, though I have different demeaning names for each of them. I guess the difference is that I actually like you, Ms. Dean.”

She fanned herself with her menu. “Be still my heart. Are you just here to bug me, or do you want some coffee?”

“I was actually just wondering if you'd take Allie to my apartment real quick so that she can drop her bag off.”

I turned back to him and glared. He wasn't going to take me back himself? It had already been two weeks since we had last had sex, and I was looking forward to a little tension relief, followed by me asking him about Audrey. “What?”

Anne interjected. “Oh, she's staying with you?” she asked. She sounded a little disappointed.

I whirled around and looked at James. I felt like James must have when Nicole was quizzing us the other night. Had he already said anything?

“Actually, Allie is my stepsister,” James said, making the decision for us. I wasn't one hundred percent sure it was the decision I wanted, but it would work.

“Oh,” Anne said very simply. I turned back to her and smiled.

“So can you take her over there? I'll have Ryan cover the register until you get back. He's worthless at setting up a sound system anyway,” James said, looking back at the stage and shaking his head.

“Sure thing,” she said, then reached under the counter to grab her jacket and purse. She skipped around the counter and went to the door. “Coming?”

I looked back at James, biting my lip again. He gestured to the door. “Go,” he said. “We're going to party after the concert and then I'll be yours for the rest of the weekend.” It sounded innocent enough, like something a big brother would say to his visiting sister, but I knew what it really meant. The
“I'll be yours”
made me shiver with want.

I nodded. “Okay.” He nodded and moved back toward the stage, yelling at people as he walked.
Poor Ryan
, I thought.

Anne was waiting by the open door, ushering me out. I smiled and walked out.

I
immediately shoved my hands in my pockets as soon as I was out the door. I regretted not wearing more clothes.

“I like those boots,” Anne said immediately. They were a pair of brown boots that extended up my calf, and probably the only thing that was keeping my extremities from freezing right off.

“Thanks,” I said. I looked up and down her body, looking for something to compliment other than her hair. “I like your jacket.”

“Thanks,” she said back to me. We walked in silence for a few more moments before she said, “So, he's your brother.”

“Yep. Well, my stepbrother anyway,” I said.

“So that must be why he's not your type,” she said.

She was clearly fishing for some kind of response. “There's more to it than that.”

She perked up a little bit. “Really?”

Oops, that might have been the wrong thing to say,
I thought. “Yeah, really. He was a real jerk to me when we lived together as kids,” I clarified.

“Oh.” A silence hung in the air for another minute. “I'm sensing that this conversation is making you uncomfortable. Mind if I tell a joke?”

It was the last thing I expected. “Sure, go ahead.”

She smiled. “What do you call a lesbian dinosaur?”

I laughed, already thinking the joke was funny. “I don't know, Anne, what do you call a lesbian dinosaur?”

“A lickalotapuss!” She began to laugh at her own joke.

I couldn't help but laugh too, even though I wasn't sure what dinosaur she was supposed to be referencing. “I am not a lickalotapuss,” I said after my laugh ended.

“Figures,” Anne said, still laughing. “How about a Bi-rannosaurus Rex?”

I laughed at that one even harder. “I don't know, I've never met the right lickalotapuss.” I remembered the offer I had in high school to join in on a threesome with a couple. I totally would have for the girl, but the guy was kind of a creep so I backed out at the last minute.

“Well, I guess I can deal with thinking of you as a Bi-curious-rannosaurus Rex,” she said.

“Listen, Anne, I-”

“No, don't sweat it. I just figured that if you were going to be coming around the coffee shop a lot more often that I should make a move now rather than pining away. Trust me when I say that I appreciate your honesty.” She looked up at me with those intense eyes, and I could tell that she was a completely honest person herself. “I'd love to just hang out with you some time, if you're going to be in town more often.”

I nodded, somehow feeling completely at ease with her. “Give me your number.” If I was going to be with James, I would need a friend here in Boston, and I had a feeling that Anne was just the girl for the job.

***

W
hen we got to James' apartment building, the doorman nodded to Anne. Either he knew her or James had called ahead. Up at the apartment, Anne pulled out a key to James' apartment and unlocked the door.

“I didn't see James give that to you,” I said.

She shrugged. “Several of us have keys to his place. Apparently, he's not too worried about theft.”

“Yeah, but surely any CEO is going to be worried about theft, right?”

Anne gestured upward, up to the corner of the room behind the TV. A small webcam pointed down to take in the whole room. Right in the center of the camera's field of view was the couch.

The couch where I just happened to play with myself a couple weeks ago.

It was hardly a breach of privacy, I was in his home. But I still felt a little violated. And this was just the camera I could see. Who knew how many other cameras he had?

Had he recorded us having sex?

Had he watched me playing with myself?

Did it turn him on?

Anne must have noticed me thinking about these things, so she snapped her fingers. “Hey, I doubt he has a camera in the shower to check out his sister, so you don't have to worry about that.”

I shot her a brief smile. “You're right. I'm still surprised that he is so lax about security, though. A person could copy the contents of a hard drive before he could stop them. They'd get caught but it'd be too late to stop the information from getting into the wrong hands.”

Anne shrugged again. “It sounds like you're putting too much thought into it. Regardless, I've never snooped around, but I've never seen a desktop or laptop computer here.”