Four

Abby

Kissing Roc like that, or rather letting him kiss me like that was a bad idea. The worst. But it felt so damn good. Like coming home and I hated it. He didn’t deserve me—or my kisses.

As I made my way back to the car, my feelings were all over the place. Guilt. Anger. Love. Hate. Most of all? Arousal. The man still turned me on like he did the first time I’d ever laid eyes on him. Asshole. Why did it have to be Roc who affected me like this? Not that I’d given many other men a chance, but I’d been on a dozen or so dates since Lily came along and I never once felt with them what I’d just felt during that kiss.

And I hated it. What’s worse, I hated myself for responding like I did. Because all that kiss did was bring back all those memories to the surface.

I was dolled up for the end of summer party in a sexy silk turquoise dress that clung to my body in all the right places, and four inch stilettos sure to drive Roc wild. All I could think about was the way he’d look at me, wanting me, and he’d have to wait until the end of the gala. Losing my virginity to him had been the most wonderful experience of my life, and we’d spent our nights exploring each other’s bodies and pushing the boundaries of sexual pleasure.

He’d asked me to the party as his date and I felt special. Important. All night he’d lavished me with attention in the form of small kisses behind my ear and on my bare shoulder, lingering touches and heated looks. I couldn’t wait to get him alone because tonight I’d finally tell him I’d fallen in love with him.

The party was winding down and Roc wandered the room slapping backs and laughing with his guests while I watched him, with my heart in my eyes.

“Excuse me have you seen, Roc?”

I looked up at a stunning brunette with legs at least a mile long and a gleaming white smile. “He’s over there mingling. Can I help you with something?”

She smiled with a twinkle in her dark, sultry eyes. “Nope. I’m his fiancée, Eve and I want to surprise him.” She winked and walked away and I stood there like an idiot while my heart shattered into a million pieces. He had a fiancée. A fucking fiancée. And apparently, it wasn’t me. With tears in my eyes, I turned around as fast as I could and left.

A few days later, I left St. Lucia altogether and went back home to Aunt Melanie in Atlanta. Almost two months after that, I found out I was three months pregnant with Lily.

I never looked back, certain that Roc wouldn’t want his life disrupted by a baby and a woman he didn’t want. I’d been certain he was happily married to the beautiful woman, and I rested easily knowing everything had worked out as it was supposed to.

Now that he’d returned, obviously single, how could I tell him he was a father?

Would he hate me?

Would he want Lily?

***

Roc

“All I can tell you is to keep doing the great job you’ve been doing, follow the rules—ask if you’re unsure—and your jobs should be safe. Honestly, I have no idea what Mr. Mahoney has planned.”

Gorgeous. That’s the only thought that ran through my mind watching Abby address the concerns of the staff, who all worried about their jobs. I couldn’t blame them but I couldn’t focus on anything but Abby and the way those blonde waves blew in the breeze. Using the deck reserved for staff to hold the meeting had been smart, sunshine and fresh air would certainly make them calmer than a stuffy windowless break room. I knew the meeting had started to wind down when she gathered her hair in back and tied it into a knot at the back of her head.

“What about your job,” a masculine voice asked from the crowd.

In true Abby fashion, she didn’t sugarcoat a thing. “No one is safe. No one. Do your job and I’ll do mine. Any other questions?” With a patient sigh she answered personnel questions, scheduling issues and any other questions tossed her way.

I knew the moment she spotted me because she froze, her words faltered for a brief second before she picked up where she left off. But I caught a flash of something—fear, maybe—in her eyes before she shuttered them. What was that about?

“What do you know of Mahoney?”

I had to hear this answer but my phone chose that moment to buzz in my pocket. “Yeah?”

“It’s Noah. Meet me upstairs in fifteen minutes.”

“Noah, I’m busy.”

“Not too busy for this,” he replied and hung up. He’d never had patience for phone manners and it had only gotten worse with age.

I lingered in the back until the meeting finished wishing I’d heard how Abby explained their previous relationship with her staff. “Abby, a word, please?”

Mossy-green eyes went straight to mine, clear of any hint of emotion before giving me a crisp nod of acknowledgement. “For those of you that haven’t met Mr. Mahoney, be sure to introduce yourselves when you have a chance. Let’s have another great day in paradise, shall we?” She flashed the first genuine smile I’d seen when loud shouts of ‘Yeah’ rang back.

I waited where I stood, accepting handshakes and introductions from the staff, all of whom were polite—yet distant—to the man who would decide if they could take care of their families for another month. Instead of making me wait though, Abby held a cloth beach bag and a stack of folders and headed my way.

“Good morning.” Polite and cool, she stood emotionless before me.

“Good morning, Abby, how are you?”

“I’m fine. And you?”

So we were going with icy civility. Okay. “Just great. I’ll be making some immediate changes and I want to go over them with you immediately. Meet me in your office in thirty minutes.”

“Sure thing, Mr. Mahoney.”

I cringed at that. I’d been deep inside this woman, had been her first lover and she acted as though I was a stranger. “Mr. Mahoney?”

She blinked, but that was the only indication she’d heard me. “What else should I call you?”

Right. “I’ll see you soon, Abby.”

Another of those crisp nods and she was gone, walking away from me like she’d done once before. This time, she wouldn’t be the one walking away. I’d make sure of it.

But first, I had to see what the hell had Noah’s panties in a bunch.

***

I couldn’t believe it. I absolutely refused to fucking believe the bomb Noah had just dropped on me. Instead of waiting for more information I reacted, charging down the hall and into Abby’s office where I froze at the now sterile office. “Going somewhere?”

Again, she showed no signs of emotions or even surprise at my intrusion. “Not yet. Simply preparing.”

“For what?”

“The future,” she answered. Stoically. Cryptically.

All her photos, along with pictures of her with high-profile guests were gone. The diplomas that hung on the wall in pride had also vanished. The knickknacks on her desk and the surrounding shelves were gone as well. She’d taken my words to heart it would seem. I took a seat ready to tear into her for keeping such a huge secret from me but she was already wary so I sat back looking a hell of a lot more relaxed than I felt. “We need to make better use of the empty facilities.”

She nodded. “Does that mean you’re ready to move forward with the wedding suite and planner?”

“If you have a proposal I am more than willing to look it over and take it under consideration.”

Her lips pursed but she said nothing other than, “I’ll have that for you soon.”

She listened with a blank expression as I outlined all the other things I wanted done, jotting down notes in her ever-present legal pad without a word of protest. It would have been impressive if it wasn’t so fucking maddening. “Do you have anything to add, Abby? This is your job, isn’t it?”

“I wasn’t aware you wanted feedback. I’ll take a look at this and get back to you. Is there a particular order you want these addressed?”

“I want it all done right away.” If she wanted to give me this robot version of herself, I would just keep pushing.

She nodded, tucking her hair behind one ear. “And do you want to approve new contracts and new hires?”

“Everything will go through me for the time being.” I would make it so she couldn’t ignore me.

Abby finally set her pen down and folded her hands on the desk, casting a hazel gaze my way. “Have you been set up with an office or a phone line?” When I shook my head, she made another note. “I’ll have that done by the end of the day.”

“The office next door will be fine.”

“Anything else?”

The opportunity had just presented itself and my stomach clenched. “You have a child,” I blurted out with all the smoothness of a teenage boy.

“I do,” she answered quietly, no hint of shock at all.

I couldn’t believe her! She’d left me for no apparent reason and went and hooked up with someone else. “It didn’t take you long to move on from me, did it?”

Finally, a reaction. A small reaction but it still felt like a victory. She sucked in a breath before answering. “I’ve only been with one man, Roc, no matter what you may think of me.”

I didn’t believe that for one second. “Sure, Abby.” I couldn’t get away from her soon enough. I thought her disappearance had just been a case of stung pride but finding out that she had a child had impacted me more than I thought it would. And it wasn’t until I stepped inside the private elevator that her final words sank in. I’ve only been with one man.

Shit. That man was me. I pulled out my phone. “Noah, I need to see that report.”