Billionaire by Design (A BWWM Romance) (12 page)

“We meet again, beautiful,” Phil’s voice sounded as he sidled up next to Jenna by the break room’s vending machine.

“Phil,” she greeted flatly, refusing to make eye contact while hurrying to slide her quarters into the machine. She’d hoped to slip in and out of the break room undetected, but Phil’s watchful eyes had apparently spotted her.

“You finally have me all alone,” he smirked as he leaned against the machine, hands casually in his pocket and eyes fixated on Jenna.

“Yay,” she replied sarcastically, unamused by his attempted joke.

“Listen, why don’t you come over to my place tonight so we can discuss the BMW account over dinner?” he brazenly asked with unwavering confidence.

“Are you being serious right now?” Jenna blurted as the machine dispensed the Doritos she’d been having an unusual craving for.

“Of course I am. It’s been three months, and you still haven’t called me,” he playfully grinned as he moved closer to her. She recoiled at his approach and turned to meet his gaze with fire in her eyes.

“You do realize I live with your boss now, right?” she scoffed. She’d put up with his advances long enough and had finally reached her breaking point. Phil, however, remained unfazed by her bitter tone.

“Yeah, I heard about that,” he chuckled. “Zane’s a good guy, but come on,” he added while rolling his eyes.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” a flustered Jenna asked with her brow raised in irritated curiosity.

“You and him,” Phil spoke softly as he inched even closer to her, “don’t belong together. Face it. You’re two different people. He might be into you now, but it’ll never last.”

Jenna could smell the faint odor of alcohol on his breath. He moved to touch her hair, and she swatted his hand away angrily. She was so upset she was shaking, and could feel herself losing control of her temper.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” she growled, trying to maintain her composure. She attempted to walk past him, but he quickly stepped to the side and blocked her path.

“I can give you so much more than he ever could,” he announced, his tone hushed as not to be overheard.

Jenna silently prayed for somebody, anybody, to burst through the door and interrupt their uncomfortable exchange.

“Look, Phil, I’m sure you’re a nice guy and all,” Jenna lied in hopes of diffusing the situation, “but I’m just not into you in that way. I’m sorry.”

“You shallow bitch!”
he unexpectedly barked, his demeanor becoming threatening as he pointed a stubby finger in her face. She flinched at his sudden outburst and the bag of chips she was holding fell to the ground. “You only like him because of his looks, you fucking whore,” he continued in a low hiss.

“You need to back the fuck up right now,” she countered as she snapped her fingers in his face, her urban patois bursting to the surface. She was taller than Phil, and glared down at him as she stepped toward him and unleashed her anger. “Zane’s twice the man you’ll ever be, and when he finds out what a sleazebag you are, you’ll be lucky to have a goddamn job.”

“Oh, feisty, I like that!” Phil chuckled, grinning wide as he backed up with his hands raised in mock surrender. “And you really think he’d take the word of a slut like you over a guy like me? I’ve done more for this company than you ever will. See, you might think you can sleep your way to the top, but it’s never going to happen.”

“You’ve got some serious mental problems,” Jenna spat, suddenly aware of a growing queasiness in her stomach. She’d been feeling nauseous all week, vomiting twice, and had chalked it up to food poisoning of some sort.

“Why don’t you just go back to the ghetto you crawled out of?” Phil sneered, his face twisted in disgust.

“I… I… I’m going… to be sick,” Jenna stammered, knees buckling as she clutched her abdomen with one hand and braced herself on a table with the other. She could feel her insides churning and knew she was going to throw up. Pushing herself past Phil, who stood with a look of confusion, she bolted from the room. She raced down the hallway and barely made it to the lady’s room where she dropped to her knees and vomited violently into the toilet.

“W-w-what the fuck?” she asked herself as her nose dripped and eyes watered. She wiped her nose with the back of her hand, flushed the toilet, and was rising to her feet when another wave of nausea hit her. She fell to her knees once more and threw up for a second time, panic setting in as she clung to the bowl and heaved. Making her way to the sink, she splashed cool water on her face and composed herself in the restroom’s mirror. She knew Zane was working diligently in his office just down the hall, but didn’t want to interrupt him or cause undo concern over what she hoped was a simple stomach bug.

Acting as nonchalantly as possible, she retrieved her purse from the art room before ducking out of the building and hurrying to her car. She drove the short distance to Tucson Medical Center and checked into the emergency room with her stomach still in knots.

She kept an eye on her phone while she waited for her name to be called, hoping Zane wouldn’t call or text to question her whereabouts, and thirty minutes later a heavyset nurse guided her into a small examination room.

“Take a seat,” the nurse instructed while pointing at the exam table. Jenna did as told, the table’s paper lining crinkling beneath her as she hopped into position. The sizable nurse, who seemed devoid of any personality, took her blood pressure and jotted the numbers down on her clipboard. “A doctor will be with you shortly,” she mumbled as she darted off.

Jenna waited anxiously to be seen, occasionally checking her phone to see if her absence had been noticed. Ten minutes later, a doctor scurried in, carrying the same clipboard the nurse had presumably handed him, and immediately began his routine line of questioning while eyeing her paperwork.

“Says here you’ve had an upset stomach lately?” he asked as he scrolled through her information. He was an older man, Jenna guessed him to be in his mid fifties, and his hair had gone completely white. He looked tired, the dark bags under his eyes indicating he was at the tail end of a very long shift.

“Yes, that’s right,” she answered nervously. “I’ve been cramping pretty bad all week. I’ve thrown up a couple times. I’m not sure if it’s food poisoning or what.”

“Well, that’s what we’re going to find out,” he replied as he glanced at her and forced a smile. “You said this just started this week?”

“Yeah. Well, more like the end of last week. Came out of nowhere,” she told him as he began his examination.

“I see,” he muttered as he looked her over. “Have you ever experienced anything like this before?”

“No, never,” she shook her head.

“You’ve been feeling nauseous?”

“Yes,” she nodded.

“Did this begin after you ate something specific?”

“I don’t think so, no.”

“Any other symptoms?”

“I’ve been pretty tired lately.”

“Active sex life?”

“I… uh… yes,” Jenna responded, the question clearly catching her off guard.

“There’s a bathroom across the hall,” the doctor sighed as he pulled a small plastic cup from the room’s medical cabinet and handed it to her. “I need you to go pee in this. When you’re done, hand it to a nurse and wait for me back here.”

The doctor vanished as quickly as he’d appeared, leaving a concerned Jenna sitting alone with the empty cup. She crossed to the bathroom as instructed, her nerves allowing her to fill the cup with ease as her overactive mind pulsed with thoughts.

Why did he ask about my sex life? Do I have an STD? Oh, God, what if I have something? Am I sick? I’m probably dying. Cancer? Don’t let it be cancer. And why did he ask about my sex life? That was random.

Finished with her business, she handed the full cup to the same nurse who’d guided her to the examination room and returned to her seat on the table. Her mind continued to race as she sat waiting for what felt like hours until the doctor finally returned with the familiar clipboard under his arm.

“Well, you’re not dying,” he joked dryly as if he could read her mind.

“Okay…” Jenna replied, her heart pounding so loudly she thought it may burst his eardrums if he put the stethoscope to her chest.

“You’re pregnant,” he told her emotionlessly as he scribbled a series of notes on the clipboard. Jenna sat in stunned disbelief for a long moment while processing his words.

“That’s… that’s impossible,” she gulped. “That can’t be right.”

“Well, it is. Simple urine test confirmed it. Honestly, I could tell the second I saw you,” he said as he continued to write.

“You could?” she questioned, still unable to wrap her mind around the diagnosis.

“I’ve been at this a while,” he smiled warmly while looking at her with a fatherly comfort. It was the first genuine emotion he’d shown, and the unexpected act of kindness immediately helped to calm her. Clearly the good doctor had sensed her panic, and although he was obviously exhausted, he’d mustered the strength to lend her the emotional support she was in desperate need of. “I’ve seen it a million times.”

“How is this possible?” she asked out of denial.

“Well, either you’re the next Mother Mary,” he chuckled, “or I’d say you’ve been having some sex.”

“But I’ve been using protection,” she explained as her eyes began to well with tears. After giving herself to Zane and realizing how foolish they’d been to skip any form of prevention, she’d visited Planned Parenthood and had begun taking birth control. Even knowing the pills would take effect within a week, she still insisted that Zane wear a condom for the first month just to be on the safe side.

“Nothing’s one hundred percent,” the doctor shrugged and handed her a tissue.

“How far along am I?” she sniffed as she dabbed her eyes.

“We’d need a blood or ultrasound test for that,” he answered apologetically. “If you don’t have a local physician, I‘d suggest you find one. We can refer you to an obstetrician.”

“Thank you,” she wheezed as he helped her down from the table. Reaching into her purse, she found her inhaler and let its albuterol work its magic.

“It’ll be a bit of a wait, but we can get you the ultrasound today and you’ll know the baby’s exact age,” he offered.

“I can’t today, but I’ll schedule an appointment with somebody soon,” she replied, knowing she’d already been missing from work long enough.

After receiving a list of recommended obstetricians, she made her way back to the car Zane had graciously surprised her with and sat in a silent, motionless daze while tears slowly streamed down her cheeks. She replayed the news in her mind, unable to believe the cruel hand fate had dealt her. Given the birth control she’d been taking, and the condoms she’d made him wear until she felt confident the pills were doing their job, it was clear that this pregnancy was the direct result of her first and only night of unprotected intimacy with Zane. She’d fought hard to avoid this exact situation by abstaining from sex, and by giving in to temptation, she’d managed to lose her virginity and wind up pregnant at the same time. It didn’t seem fair, and onlookers would have deemed her crazy when she unexpectedly began to pound on the steering wheel while sobbing uncontrollably and unleashing a barrage of profanity.

Five minutes passed before Jenna managed to calm herself. The time on her car’s stereo display read 3:06 pm. She knew her former roommate’s routine well and knew her friend would likely be home. Leigh’s shift at
Family Burger
ended at 2:00 pm, and the girl typically killed time at the apartment before heading to her 6:00 pm evening class at the community college. Needing the support of her only true female friend, she made the short commute to the familiar complex she’d lived in for nearly four years and was relieved to see Leigh’s car in her designated parking spot. She didn’t bother calling or even texting to announce her arrival. Instead she bolted up the flight of stairs and pounded frantically on the door.

“Way to scare the shit out of me,” Leigh jokingly answered, her face and tone abruptly turning serious at the sight of her friend’s distress. “Hey, what’s wrong?” she asked as Jenna stormed past her into the apartment and sunk down on the broken-in sofa that had also become a good friend over the years.

Jenna said nothing for a long moment, sitting silently and staring vacantly at the carpet before suddenly bursting into tears. Leigh rushed to her side and wrapped a comforting arm around her distraught friend’s shoulders.

“What is it?” a concerned Leigh questioned as she began to rub Jenna’s back in an attempt to comfort her.

“I’m… I’m…” Jenna began, but found herself unable to speak the words.

“Shhh… it’s okay,” Leigh assured her soothingly. “Just tell me what’s going on. What happened?”

“I’m pregnant!” Jenna blurted with a wail, burying her face in her hands and weeping loudly.

“Jesus,” Leigh quietly gasped. “With Zane’s baby?”

“Yes, with Zane’s baby!” Jenna cried as she lifted her head to shoot Leigh an irritated look. “Who else?”

Her eyes were red and puffy, her cheeks flushed, and her nose was running slightly. She looked like a complete mess as rivulets of tears ran down her face.