The Billionaire Wins the Game (15 page)

Lucas spent the day with her at the
apartment. She napped off and on and started regaining some color.
Later in the afternoon, she was well enough for a trip to the
doctor’s office.

They didn’t speak on the
way there, both of them thinking of different things. She was
anxious to see the baby was unharmed and he was scared about what
would happen if his child, that he hadn’t even known he
wanted,
was
harmed in some way.

She couldn’t believe she was going to
see the first images of her sweet baby. Once she knew she was okay
and could actually see her moving inside her, Amy would feel much
better.

They walked straight back into the
doctor’s office, where he gave her privacy as she changed. Next,
they sat and waited together for Dr. Scott to come in. She would’ve
much rather Lucas waited in the front office, but she could tell
there was no way he was going to miss the ultrasound.

The door opened, “well you look much
better this afternoon, Amy. Let’s see how your little one is doing,
shall we?” the doctor said, going straight to the ultrasound
monitor. He rubbed some sort of goo on her belly and she jumped at
the coldness.

There was nothing for a few moments and
then, there on the monitor, she saw a perfect little face. “This is
the new three dimensional ultrasound monitor. We get a much clearer
image of the unborn babies. It’s still a little early to determine
the sex, but it looks like all is healthy and well,” Dr. Scott
reassured them both.

He took down some measurements. “It
looks like your due date will be December seventeenth. You are just
over three months along. Your child is fully formed and about the
size of a peanut in its shell. But the heartbeat is strong and
developing nicely. Would you like to hear it now?” he
continued.

Amy and Lucas both nodded. Suddenly the
only sound in the room was a gentle thumping sound that was moving
quickly. No one said a word as the beat continued. Lucas looked
from the monitor to Amy’s face and saw tears streaming down her
cheeks.

The moment was so moving for him, he
became a bit choked up and had to turn away. His child was strong
and safe. Amy was beautiful, and he was so glad she was the one
carrying his baby. He could see the love and excitement shining
through her. He could see she was already in love with their baby,
and he knew she’d be a phenomenal mother.

They may have started things the wrong
way, but he knew it would all work out. Dr. Scott printed them some
pictures from the ultrasound and sent them on their way. Neither of
them spoke while walking out of the office. They were both thinking
of the images they’d just witnessed, imagining the soft newborn
that would soon be gracing their lives.

Lucas took Amy to lunch and they were
both so excited about the baby being in good health they dropped
their guards and had a very nice time together. Amy figured he’d
dropped the whole shotgun marriage idea. She figured
wrong.

After lunch, he drove up to the family
home. “Why are we here?” she asked nervously.

“We have some wedding plans to discuss
with my parents,” he replied.

“Lucas, I’m not getting married. I
won’t be forced into a marriage for any reason. I may be old
fashioned, but I believe in getting married for love and nothing
else,” she said, hoping he would finally drop the ridiculous
argument.

“Amy, I’m also old fashioned and I
believe a child needs both parents. You won’t raise my child alone.
I won’t argue about this. He’ll have two parents. You can’t keep my
child from me.” The tone in his voice terrified her. There was only
pure conviction, no anger, no pleading. She knew he wasn’t going to
back down.

Amy bowed her head and dealt with the
acceptance. She was going to have to marry a man for her child’s
sake, not because he loved her. He was giving her no other choice
in the matter. She was frustrated she’d made the poor mistake of
sleeping with him. She wouldn’t regret her child, she just wished
she’d made her with someone who would’ve walked away and never
looked back, or loved her unconditionally.

She wasn’t willing, nor prepared, to
share her baby with another person. Sure, it would be great to have
a happy, loving family, but she couldn’t think of many couples who
actually stayed together. The divorce rate rose each year and she’d
never wanted to be added to that list of statistics.

They walked into the house with no
other words for each other. He’d made his point, she’d made hers,
and he’d won. She knew he’d always win; she had just hoped he
wouldn’t want to play in the game of fatherhood.

“Lucas, Amy, I’m so glad to see you. We
have much to discuss. All the arrangements have been made. Amy, you
run along with Katherine and get your gown picked out so we can get
the alterations done,” Joseph said talking fast.

Amy was whisked through the house and
shown flower choices and cake. She was fitted into a dress that was
far more beautiful than anything she’d ever thought of wearing. Amy
had pictured her wedding day when she was young, as most little
girls did and this was a dream wedding. It would’ve been perfect if
the groom was in love with her. It would’ve been even more perfect
if she believed marriage could last forever.

Well, she was being given more than
most women. She’d have a safe home and get to be a mother. She
could deal with anything as long as she had her child in her arms.
She knew it was a marriage of convenience but she’d just have to
deal with that. It would get lonely, but how lonely could she
really be, having her child with her.

Besides, she’d planned on being a
single mother so she’d just look at it like being a single mother
with a roommate, who also loved her child very much.

They stayed at the house most of the
day and had dinner with Joseph and Katherine, who she was already
in love with. Katherine was quiet and seemed to get overpowered by
Joseph a lot of the time but it was obvious to anyone around them
that he adored her in a way that made Amy’s heart ache. She had a
quiet dignity about her, letting everyone know, even though Joseph
had the loudest bark, she was truly the one in charge. She was the
kind of mother Amy had dreamed about having in her miserable years
growing up.

They were both kind and caring and they
listened to her as if what she had to say was the most important
thing in the world. She only wished she’d grown up with parents
like them. But since she was marrying Lucas, they’d be her parents.
It was something positive to look forward to. She still thought the
marriage was a bad idea, but the more time she spent with Lucas
outside the office, the more she thought her life wasn’t completely
ruined.

By the time Lucas took her back to the
apartment building, Amy was almost asleep on her feet. She’d been
through a very full day, but for the most part, it had been a good
one. She’d always enjoy visiting with Joseph and Katherine and
nothing had been greater than seeing the ultrasound of her unborn
child.

She must’ve looked at the picture a
hundred times throughout the day. She’d choked up when Lucas had
handed the photo to his father and she’d seen the sheen of tears in
his eyes. She knew beyond any doubt her child would be loved beyond
compare. She would have a much better childhood than most
children.

“Well son, this is the greatest gift
you could’ve ever given your mother and I,” was all he said as he
engulfed both of them in a bear sized hug.

Amy smiled to herself as she thought
about what a wonderful man he was. Lucas put his hand on her back
as they walked into the building and went straight to the elevator.
She felt a tremor run down her spine at his touch. She had tried so
hard to resist her attraction to him and it took everything in her
to maintain some distance.

They stepped off the elevator and Amy
headed for her door. “Not tonight, Amy, we’ll use my apartment,”
Lucas startled her out of her thoughts.

“I just want to go home alone, Lucas,”
she said. “It’s been a really long day and I need time to myself,”
she finished in a pleading tone, with a hint of
annoyance.

Lucas sighed aloud and simply steered
her past the door and down the hallway. “Amy, you’ll be my wife in
a few days. I’m not only taking you as a wife on paper. We’ll live
together, sleep together and be together in every way a husband and
wife are meant to be. I’ll only marry once. You’ll be provided for
very well, and in turn, I expect to be taken care of. You will
share my bed,” he once again spoke in that voice that brooked no
room for argument.

She was suddenly highly alert and
seething mad. She was getting sick and tired of him throwing his
weight around and just expecting her to follow along with
everything he demanded.

“Okay, Lucas, I’ve accepted we are to
be married, and I plan on doing my ‘wifely duties,’ but for the
next few days, I’m not your wife and I’d like to enjoy my apartment
before my jail sentence begins,” she snapped, wanting to strike out
and hurt him.

She had the opposite effect of angering
him. Lucas had to keep from smiling. If she saw that, she’d think
he was laughing at her, which in a way, he was. He was thinking he
was going to definitely enjoy his marriage. He wouldn’t have been
happy with a woman who catered to his every whim. He had enough
people willing to do that. He liked how his future wife had a
strong personality and felt a desire to fight him. He knew he
wouldn’t get bored with her, ever.

He knew he could push the issue and
she’d stay with him, but he also knew to win the war was far more
important than to win each and every battle. He’d put her through
the wringer already and her health was more important than anything
else. He’d let her have this one.

“Fine, we’ll do it your
way. It will make the honeymoon that much better,” he said as he
led her back to her door. Just as she was about to go through the
open doorway, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her, long
and hard.
Let her think about what she’ll
be missing out on tonight
, he thought as
he watched her swoon.

He walked away feeling pretty good
about himself. That was, until he got into his apartment, alone and
in need of release. He sighed as he turned his shower faucet to
cold and prepared himself for a hell of a long week.

Chapter Eight

“Breathe Amy, just breathe.” She felt
like she was about to hyperventilate as she stood in the dressing
room inside the huge mansion. She’d spent the morning being
pampered for her wedding day.

Her hair was up in a bun, with curls
cascading down her neck and face. Her make-up had been expertly
applied to erase the dark circles and highlight her eyes and mouth.
Her nails were extended and painted. She didn’t even feel like
herself. They’d just put her in her magnificent dress and she was
staring in the mirror at a stranger. Who was the girl gazing back?
They had thankfully given her a few blessed minutes to calm
herself, which she was grateful for.

“It’s time, Amy,” she heard Joseph
softly say. That was enough to make her turn her head. She’d never
heard him speak without his normal booming tenor. He looked so
handsome in his tuxedo. She definitely knew who the boys got their
great looks from. He was so alike, and yet so different from
Lucas.

Joseph had great looks and had aged
well. The biggest difference between Joseph and Lucas were their
eyes. Lucas’s eyes were always so focused and determined, where
Joseph’s had laugh lines around them and always seemed to sparkle.
He seemed to be much more relaxed. She wondered if he’d been that
way his entire life or if there’d been a time he’d held that same
focused look as his son.

Joseph walked up and kissed her on the
cheek. “I’m so glad to finally have a daughter in the family.
You’re beautiful inside and out,” he wrapped his large arms around
her for a gentle hug. Those words meant so much to her. He’d never
know how much she needed to be included in a loving family. She’d
give up any amount of money to be loved the way Joseph loved his
children. She was getting just a piece of that now, and didn’t ever
want to let it go.

“With your own father not here, I
wanted you to know I’d be more than honored if you would allow me
to walk you down the aisle,” he said with tears in his
eyes.

Amy’s eyes were burning as she replied
to his kind offer. “It would be my honor to have you escort me.
You’re the kind of father I always dreamed of having.” She couldn’t
say anything further because she got entirely too choked up, as she
looked into his kind eyes. He pulled her close for a hug and she
clung to him, hoping he’d never let her go. She’d been so careful
in her years to not get too attached to people, yet in a few short
months, she loved Lucas’s entire family.

“Now, now, you don’t want to get all
teary eyed and ruin your makeup. I don’t think my son could handle
any delays. He’s already pacing up and down the hallway. The
preacher just led him to his spot at the altar,” Joseph
chuckled.

Amy took one final look in the mirror
and then took a deep breath, “I’m ready,” she said. She took
Joseph’s arm as he led her out of the room. Music filled the air as
they stepped through the doorway.