Epilogue
Morgan
2 Years Later
“Argh, why is this bed always so full?” I groaned playfully as yet another leg kicked into my side. “It almost feels like there are three people in here.” Cue a whole round of giggles. “Hey, who was that?”
I snapped my eyes open to see my daughter’s sweet round face looking right back at me. Her circular cheeks were filled with the beautiful bright grin that I mostly now associated with her. It was my smile really, she’d definitely inherited it from me, but I spent much more time looking at her than at myself.
“What are you up to, Arianna?” I asked, while taking her chin in my hand. “Are you being cheeky again?”
“Dada let me in,” she insisted, always convinced that she was right, even when maybe she wasn’t. That came from her father, along with those sparkling green eyes I could never resist.
“Oh, did he now?”
Terrance turned his body over as he noticed us talking about him, or maybe he felt my stare prickling on the nape of his neck. “What am I being accused of now?” he grumbled sleepily, rubbing the tiredness from his eyes.
“Nothing, it doesn’t matter. Just get up and make me breakfast, or are you both forgetting that it’s Mother’s Day?”
As Terrance’s eyes widened in mock surprise, which didn’t fool me one bit since I’d been reminding him for weeks, Arianna burst into giggles all over again. She tried to stuff her fist into her mouth to hide it, but there was no escaping the laughter.
“Uh oh, we better get in the kitchen, Arianna,” he whispered to her, as if I couldn’t hear. “See what we can pull together last minute.”
As they scurried from the room, I glanced at the collage of photographs we had sitting on the wall, documenting the past two years perfectly. There was me with a massive bump, with my arm around Nickie; me and Terrance in the hospital room the day Arianna was born; my mom doting on the little pink, newborn baby; Auntie Nickie caressing her gently; all of us at Braxton and Emily’s wedding.
It really was a blessed life. I was the luckiest person alive. My heart was filled with all the love in the world, and I really didn’t feel like I needed anything else.
When I tried to remember the difficult times, the times when I didn’t think that Terrance would step up, or that horrible period that Braxton spent in hospital, or when Mom and I didn’t exactly see eye to eye, it all felt like it had gone on in another lifetime, or to someone else entirely. It was strange to recall that things hadn’t always been this smooth sailing.
“Here we are!” Terrance presented a plate of food as if it was golden, which considering what his cooking used to be like, it practically was. “A continental breakfast, just for you.”
“And flowers!” Arianna yelled in glee. “For you, Mommy.”
“And of course that isn’t all, we didn’t forget at all, did we, Ari?” Arianna shook her head, barely paying any attention because she was so busy picking things off of my plate to eat. “So we have a whole day of awesome stuff planned for you. Breakfast, then out to a movie – sorry about that one, Ari picked out that new animated movie that she’s utterly certain you want to see.”
“Sounds good to me.” I ruffled Arianna’s hair, glad to have the day with us all as a family. Although I only worked part time now, to fit around Terrance’s hours at his own company, these precious family moments were to be treasured. “Whatever this little angel wants.”
“Then a walk in the park because we all know how you love the park, and afterwards Auntie Nickie is taking Ari for a sleepover, and I’m going to cook you dinner.”
“Ooh, two meals in one day, I am spoiled!” I laughed as I shoved a piece of crispy bacon into my mouth. “But seriously, all of that sounds incredible. Thank you so much for planning it you two, especially you, Ari. I know you must have done all the hard jobs.”
She nodded, accepting the praise willingly, prompting me to kiss her on the head once more.
“I’m just going to clean the kitchen,” Terrance smirked as Arianna and I ate. “Having help is wonderful, but sometimes a little messy. Once you’re ready – and take as long as you want the movie doesn’t start for a while yet – we’ll get going.”
He left us behind to snuggle and watch some morning television, both picking at the breakfast alternately. To think that this was the baby I was so scared to have, to think that I would fear not knowing what to do, or making a mess of things... Motherhood had come naturally to me.
Maybe that made me one of the lucky ones, or maybe everyone got the same instincts once that beautiful bundle of joy in their arms. Either way, having Ari had changed my life for the better in every single way. Without her, I had no idea where I would be now, and I truly didn’t want to find out.
***
“What’s this?” I gasped loudly at the floaty red material, draped across our bed. “It looks like...” I picked it up to examine the item closer. “Yep, it’s a dress. What is this for? I thought that we were staying in for dinner?”
“We are,” Terrance called from the kitchen, the room I’d been instructed to stay out of for at least the next hour. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t look nice.”
I didn’t bother to argue. I’d been thoroughly spoiled all day long, so there was no point in resisting now. Instead, I grabbed the dress and held it up against me. I was a little rounder now after having Ari, my body slightly more curvaceous, but Terrance seemed to like that, so I did, too. I knew my body wouldn’t snap back to exactly how it was before, so what was the point in worrying about it? My body had given life, it no longer mattered how it looked.
Still, I got the sense that this dress would actually look very flattering on me.
In sheer excitement, I tore my jeans and tee shirt off and tried it on. As I pulled it over my head, the expensive material glided softly over me, reminding me for a second that not everything I wore had to be practical and easy.
As it fell to the floor, and I got a good look at myself, I was taken aback by how good I looked. I didn’t get a lot of time to fuss over my hair and make up usually, my priorities were on my little girl, but now I had a whole hour to kill and a strong desire to make myself look presentable.
I grabbed all the beauty products I could get my hands on and I got to work making myself look like the princess I felt like I looked. Terrance was right – it did feel good to get dressed up for once. Maybe I would even pull some of my best underwear on, too...
I’d had the loveliest day of my life, and I was excited to see what tonight would bring. Terrance seemed to have some big plans; he wanted to make this Mother’s Day as special as possible, and it would be silly of me to ignore that.
***
“Wow, you look... I’m speechless,” Terrance gasped as I finally joined him in the kitchen. “I knew that dress was going to look amazing on you, but wow. I had no idea how much. It looks fantastic.”
He pulled me close to him, and I fell against his suit clad body with absolutely no resistance. “You know, you don’t look too bad yourself. I like you in a suit.”
“Me, too.” He pressed his lips gently against mine. “Even more so now that I feel like I deserve it.”
“What on Earth do you mean?” I whispered against his lips.
“Well, now I work for my suits. I have my own business. I’ve earned them.”
We kissed for a little while longer, just enjoying one another. Having Ari was wonderful, but it did mean we didn’t get enough time to just be us. Luckily, Nickie adored our daughter, and she was always happy to babysit.
“You know, since we’ve had Ari, I think we’ve gotten a little wrapped up in her, haven’t we?” Terrance asked, clearly thinking along the same lines as me. “It’s been busy; these last two years have simply flown by.”
“I can’t even recall year one,” I laughed happily. “It was all crying and milk and diapers on an endless circle. Totally worth it, though.”
“Oh, of course. That isn’t what I meant at all.” Terrance stepped back and flicked his eyes up and down my body appreciatively. “What I meant was I haven’t had enough time to pay attention to you and your needs.”
“My needs are met just fine.” I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively at him. “But right now my needs are more geared towards food. I’m starving.”
“Will you just wait a minute? I have something I want to say to you?” I watched in awe as Terrance fell to one knee, his eyes sparkling at me with love and desire. “I love you, Morgan, you know I do. I’ve loved you for a very long time now. You crashed into my life and very unexpectedly turned it all around.”
Tears welled at my eyes. I felt the need to interrupt, to say something, but I managed to clamp my lips together to keep it all inside. If I knew Terrance, which I did very well, then he’d been planning the moment for ages. The last thing he needed was for me to jump in and wreck it for him.
“You were my angel in the beginning, and then you quickly became someone that I couldn’t go a day without thinking about. I never wanted to get to know anyone and I never wanted anyone to know me, except for you. You changed everything. And not only that, you’ve given me my daughter, the girl who makes everything seem that little bit brighter. You’ve given me the family that I never had before, and now I want to finally make that official and complete.”
He pulled a box out of his pocket and clicked it open to reveal the most beautiful red ruby ring that I’d ever seen in my life. The gem sat on a gold, thin, elegant band, the sort I just knew would look incredible on my finger. Everything became more real in that moment, I knew then that we really were going to become the family that I’d always desired.
“So, will you do me the honor of making me the happiest man alive? Will you agree to marry me and become my wife?”
“Of... of course I will,” I stammered as emotion filled my throat. “I would love nothing more.”
Terrance slid the ring onto my finger, solidifying our love further, and he jumped up to wrap his arms tightly around me. He embraced me hard and kissed me gently, protecting me and loving me with everything that he had. Never before had I felt so loved by him, and it was honestly the best sensation in the whole wide world.
I belonged to Terrance, and him to me. It was all that I’d ever wanted.
“Oh, and I definitely think it’s time for baby number two...” He cocked his head to one side, trying to gauge my opinion on that one. It was what I wanted, too, but I had to have the wedding first. I didn’t want to be swollen in my dress.
“One step at a time,” I giggled, pushing him playfully. “One step at a time.”
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BANGING THE BILLIONAIRE
By Alexa Davis
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2017 Alexa Davis
PART 1
Chapter One
Milo – Tuesday, January 2nd
It’s going to be okay, I did my best to reassure myself. The worst is over. It can only get better from here.
However, I could give myself positive mantras until I was blue in the face, but the fear wasn’t going anywhere.
I didn’t think I would ever be able to go to the doctor’s office again without that cold bolt of terror tearing through my body. After going there for a routine check-up twenty-one months ago and discovering that I had a brain tumor, everything had changed for me. I didn't think that I would ever be the same again.
I mean, I’d noticed bad headaches and blurred vision, but had assumed that was due to my over-the-top, idiotic, party-boy lifestyle. I’d assumed “hangover” rather than “life-threatening condition,” which, looking back, was obviously very naïve.
As the doctor spoke those words to me and I started off down a path of medical treatment and a whole load of praying, the axis that my world spun on was ripped out from beneath my feet. Everything altered, never to go back to the way it once was.
For a long while, I didn’t have anything to focus on but my health. The rest of the world just faded into the background of my mind. I’d changed inside. I felt myself shift and all my priorities become totally different, but there wasn’t any time for me to do anything about it. I just had to get myself better.
But then, as something of a surprise to me, I found things looking up. The doctors were amazed by my progress.
After the initial shock – and the discovery that maybe I wasn’t about to lose my life, after all, that I'd achieved my goal of getting better – I started to work out how I wanted my life to be different. I wanted to make progress, to live my life in a much more meaningful way, but wasn’t sure how to go about it. It seemed like such an overwhelming task, which was why there had been a whole lot of planning, but not too much action.
I had my businesses, my casinos in the heart of Las Vegas. They were going well for me, but I did want more. In the beginning, when I started off becoming a businessman, I’d invested in other companies a little bit. It was an area I wanted to get back into. I just hadn’t gotten around to it yet because I wasn’t sure where to start.
I had my millions. I’d made more than enough money in my life, but I didn’t know what to do with it anymore. I'd lost the confidence that brought me my riches in the first place. I just couldn't tell if something was a good idea anymore. It was as if my mojo had totally vanished.
Then there was my gorgeous home in Spring Valley. It was up on a hill, looking down on the best view ever with all the luxuries any man could possibly want and a swimming pool to top it off. I’d always loved it because it was the perfect place to party, to have crazy fun, but these days, partying wasn’t the top of my priorities. Instead of being surrounded by acquaintances, partying with people I hardly knew with a different girl dripping off my arm every night, I remained in the place by myself. It felt a little... lonely.
“Come on, Veil.” I smiled at my beautiful dog, trying to shake off the morose feeling inside. “Let’s go and get something to eat.” I knew he couldn’t understand me, but sometimes I just needed some noise about the place. I loved the peace and quiet, but occasionally, it got a little too much.
Today isn’t supposed to be a sad day. I am about to get the all clear from my doctor, that I’m officially in remission... I should have been happy. I should have been over the moon – there wasn’t any place for this sadness. Yet, I couldn't quite seem to get rid of it. I wasn't being ungrateful; I felt happy to be alive. I just didn't know where to go and what to do.
As Veil scarfed down his food, I ate mine slowly, chewing each bite with precision, while I watched the sun rise over the valley. I remembered how lucky I was just to see another sunrise. I could quite easily have not survived this health scare; I had nothing to feel bad about.
“What am I going to do?” I muttered quietly, wishing that the answer would magically appear in my brain. I needed to do something. I needed to shake everything up somehow, and today was going to be the day. Once I got the big news, there wouldn’t be anything holding me back. I would have to take action.
I glanced at my watch, noticing the time. I needed to speed up if I was going to get there in time, and much as I hated the doctor’s office, I didn’t have any choice.
***
Ugh, even the waiting rooms are unbearable. Why don’t they ever do anything to make it less...doctor-y? The smell, the awful décor, the crappy magazines... It was almost as if it was designed to make people like me acutely aware of their condition.
Of course, waiting rooms never used to bother me, not until I began to spend half of my life in them. I used to pity the elderly, the ones with long-term conditions whose lives revolved around their latest appointments, until I became one of them. Then I just started to resent the world and everyone else in it.
“Mr. Fuller?” the friendly receptionist finally called out, putting me out of my misery. “The doctor is waiting for you.”
She looked at me for a beat too long, giving me that familiar, drawn-out smile that could only mean one thing. I’d seen it enough to know. She wanted me to ask her out on a date. Hell, she would probably let me take her in the storeroom today if I insisted upon it. And in the past, I probably would have done it, just because I could.
Not anymore, though. I wanted to live a more meaningful life. I just didn’t feel that way about women anymore. I might finally be ready to settle down.
Sure, she was cute, with her long red hair knotted up into a bun and her t-shirt pulled down just enough to give me a glimpse of her cleavage, but she was too young for my taste, and not the woman I would be with forever. Unfortunately, these days that was enough to put me off.
“Thank you,” I muttered, brushing past her and stomping in to see the doctor.
“Well, Milo.” He grinned, pushing his glasses further up his nose. “As we already predicted, your blood tests have come back clear. Of course, we will still need to keep an eye on you, because at this stage of the game – and for a long time to come, I’m afraid – there aren’t any guarantees.”
He took in my expression, noticing the lack of smile. I tried to rearrange my features to appear less grumpy, but I couldn’t seem to manage it.
“This is great news, though,” he continued, “and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask.”
“No, thank you,” I snapped quickly, always in the same manner. With my appointments, I wanted to get in and out, and questions prolonged that. That was what the Internet was for; if I needed to know anything, I could just look it up. It might have only contained the worst possible outcomes, but that was the stuff I needed to know. I wanted to be prepared for whatever could go down.
“Okay, well, what I’ll do is give you some informative flyers,” he replied tactfully, ignoring my attempt at a brush off. “That way, you should be able to find out all you need now that you have a clean bill of health.”
I felt a little bad as I left. Maybe I had been unintentionally rude to the doctor and the receptionist, too.
It was just all so much for me. I hadn’t wanted to die; that was never in my game plan at all. I just hadn’t made any plans for what I would do when I came out of this on the other side. I was focused, with only the goal in mind. I felt a little out of joint now; that was all. The bad feeling would subside soon enough. I was sure of it.
The ring of my cell phone blasted out, making me jump, and I grabbed it quickly from my pocket to answer it before I got in any trouble. I was outside the doctor’s office, but it felt too close for my liking. It was the reminder that in all my distraction, I’d left it switched on.
“Justin Gains?” I whispered in confusion as I saw the name plastered across the screen. This was a fellow businessman, someone I’d dealt with in the past, but not someone I’d spoken to in a while. It seemed strange for him to be calling me now. “Hello?”
“Hi, Milo, how are you?” His tone was so friendly that it made me a little suspicious. “How have things been?”
“Erm, up and down, you know how it is.” Did he know that I’d been ill? I wasn’t sure. It was all such a blur now, who I’d told and who I hadn’t. “How about you?”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m good. Look, I was just wondering – are you still in the investment game?” Okay, we are finally getting to the crux of things. Good; the sooner I know why he is contacting me, the better. “Because I have an opportunity for you.”
“You do?” Is this it? The sign that I’ve been hoping for? The clue for where I am supposed to take my life next? “I do a little. I’ve just been thinking about getting back into it, actually. What did you have in mind?”
“I can’t go over too much on the phone, so why don’t we meet up? I’m in Sun Valley tomorrow, anyway. We could meet for lunch or something.”
Okay, well, if he is here, I can hardly turn him down, can I? Whatever his reason was for contacting me, I needed to know more. “Yeah, sure, sounds good, man. I look forward to it.”
But as we hung up the phone, I felt all putout. I felt as if I’d been out of the game for far too long and that I had no idea what was going on. Justin Gains was a good guy – there was no doubt about it. I knew for a fact that he wouldn’t try to screw me over, but there was something strange about this. Why now? Why the secrecy? There had to be a reason for it, and I needed to know.
That thought plagued me all the way home, but I knew I had to be patient. I couldn’t exactly call Justin back now and ask more questions, not after he'd specifically said that he couldn't tell me over the phone.
I would have to wait, however annoying that was. Patience might not have been my strongest point, but I was an adult. I could do it. I was sure of it. All I had to do was get through the rest of the day, have a good night’s sleep, and I would find out tomorrow. That wasn't too long to wait.