Chapter Six
Amy had mixed feelings going into work on Monday. She was floating on clouds because her new car had been delivered the night before and she was now driving in her dream vehicle. It was such an exhilarating feeling controlling the beautiful machine and knowing she would never have to fight the crowds on the public transportation system again. There’d definitely been a few times of terror, when she’d been approached by some less than respectable people during those rides. She avoided the busses late at night, most of the time, because that was when it had been the most questionable.
She was terrified, on the other hand, of the work environment when stepping into the office. Was Lucas going to cause a scene? Was he going to send her packing? Could he fire her? He couldn’t because of their physical relationship.
Lucas could fire her for not being good enough at her job. She was already nervous about how well she did in the position. She parked the car and headed in. She would just have to see how things went. There was nothing she could do about it so she would have to do what she could and go from there.
The elevator doors chimed and the door opened up to Tom’s smiling face. “I was wondering when you were going to get here. I’ve been bouncing in my seat for a half hour,” he said with no time for hellos.
Amy sighed, “Hey Tom. If you’ve been bouncing in your seat for a half hour then you were here an hour early because I’m here a half hour early,” she replied. He ran up to her and threw an arm around her shoulders.
“Okay Amy, time to spill. What happened? You totally ditched me this weekend. The way the boss was acting on Friday night, I didn’t even know if you would be here this morning,” he whined a little.
“Everything’s fine Tom. The boss and I just had a little bit of a misunderstanding. I promise I’ll fill you in later but I need to get to the office and start on my work before the aforementioned person walks in and has a reason to fire me for being a slacker,” she said, while walking towards her office.
Tom trailed along with her. “You’re here early. You can’t get into trouble for chatting with me on your own time,” he said.
“I don’t think any time we’re in these offices is our own time. Please just let me get to work and we will go out for happy hour tonight, I promise,” she said pushing him back out of her office.
Amy was busy at her desk when Lucas came in two hours later . It must be nice to be the boss and show up when you felt like it, she thought with attitude and then regretted it immediately.
She wasn’t some high school ex-girlfriend that was going to even think petty thoughts. What he did on his own time was his business, definitely not hers.
Lucas was completely professional with her, giving her a list of things he wanted done and then left the office and stayed away the rest of the day. It gave her plenty of time to breathe and she found herself relaxing and finishing her work early.
The next few months flew by with things the same at the office. Lucas would give Amy her assignments with very little talk and then leave her alone. He never lingered and never seemed to make eye contact anymore.
She’d really gotten the hang of her job and finally felt comfortable with her work. Esther had stopped by several times and praised her progress saying it was as if Amy had been with the company for ten years instead of a few short months. Amy was thrilled by the praise and held the feeling close to her.
She felt like her insides were ripping out a little piece at a time whenever Lucas left the room though. His scent would linger with her, causing her physical pain, thinking of him for hours on end. She wanted him to take her back in his arms so badly she ached all over.
She would run through their night of love making over and over again. She would wake up in the middle of the night with his name on her lips and her body wet and ready for him. She was grateful he was keeping his distance because she would never have had the will power to push him away if he kissed her again.
She had no other man to compare him to but she couldn’t imagine lovemaking to be any better than what she’d had with him that night. Even though she tried so much to put him out of her mind, he came to her nightly in her dreams and she woke up aching and alone.
Amy put off taking a pregnancy test for far too long. She knew she was pregnant. She’d been dealing with morning sickness and there were subtle changes in her body. She was naturally small so most wouldn’t have noticed the tiny bump on her lower stomach, but she did.
She finally broke down and took the test, then threw it away. She’d already known the answer was yes. She supposed she’d better make a doctor appointment the following week. They were going to find out in a couple of months she was pregnant anyway. At least she had the advantage of doctor, patient confidentiality so Lucas wouldn’t have to find out she was pregnant until she was visibly showing.
“Amy it’s dark outside and I’m more than ready for happy hour. Come girl, let’s whisk you away from here,” Tom came bouncing into her office at six. “I’ve been patiently waiting for you for an hour now. You do realize you’re salaried, not paid by the hour?” he added.
Tom jumped up on her desk and sat on the edge while she finished her project. “Hold your pants on Tom, I’m almost finished,” she said with what felt like her first real smile in weeks. “Drinks, my dear, are on me tonight,” she said in delight. “I got paid and actually have some money left and I owe you a million lunches and drinks. I intend to pay them all back to you,” she said feeling really great about herself. It was so nice to have money building up in her meager savings account.
She only had that money thanks to having very little bills. She was in love with her apartment and car and things were perfect in every way possible. She placed her hand on her stomach, which she did often without even realizing it when she thought of her child growing there.
Lucas was in his office with the connecting door cracked and heard the exchange between Amy and Tom. He was surprised by the amount of jealousy he was feeling at how easily she laughed with him.
He’d never in his life felt jealousy before and was shocked by the emotion, at how it was tugging at his gut. They couldn’t be a couple. She was his employee and it wouldn’t work. He shouldn’t feel anything towards her at all but even after months he couldn’t stop thinking about her all the time, night and day.
He sat up a little bit straighter in his chair. He was going out of his mind, which would amuse his brothers to no end. He laid his head in his hands and waited for her to leave the office. He had no complaints with her work. She’d learned more and more each day and was doing an excellent job.
He’d entertained the idea of firing her but had thrown the thought out immediately. He just couldn’t let her go. Maybe he would be able to soon. Of course he would. He would get over his feelings towards her and be able to work with her, like anyone else, or he would have no choice but to figure out something else.
Lucas got up and decided to go out for a drink. He would find himself a nice distraction for the night. Any woman would be happy to come home with him. He was Lucas Anderson and never had trouble finding a date.
Even though the thought of any other woman besides Amy wasn’t appealing, he would just have to work through it. He knew once he stepped out he would begin to feel better and he was sure that some pretty thing would catch his eye, at least enough for one night.
Lucas went to a nice club he hadn’t been to for a while and sat down. He ordered a drink and was there for no more than five minutes when an exceptionally gorgeous redhead sat next to him. She gave him the look that said, buy me a drink and you can take me home.
He slammed his drink down before turning to give her his full attention, “can I buy you something to drink?” He placed all the charm at his disposal into his voice.
She rubbed her finger up his arm, “that sounds nice sugar,” She replied.
He bought her a few drinks and listened to her try and charm him for about an hour. He knew all he had to do was crook his finger and she would be in his car and coming home with him. He was trying to will himself to do just that and knew it wasn’t going to happen.
Lucas felt absolutely zero desire for the woman who had curves in all the right places and was showing them for all to see. “Thank you for your company this evening,” he said to her as he threw several bills down on the table. “I need to get going now,” he finished.
“In case you haven’t noticed the signals, baby I’m offering to go with you. Trust me, you won’t regret a night or more with me,” she purred.
Lucas just looked at her and then turned and walked away. He’d felt nothing for her. Normally he would’ve taken her home and accepted what she was offering. A no strings attached night of great sex.
The whole time he’d sat there all he could think of was Amy. She was soft and feminine, not trampy and brash. She was also the greatest sexual experience he’d ever had. How was that woman always so much a part of his thoughts?
He parked in his spot, immediately noticing Amy’s rig parked in her place. He was surprised by the feeling of relief washing over him at knowing she was home. Of course, that was short lived as he thought there could be a man up in her apartment with her.
Suddenly he had to know. He had to know if she was with someone, or if she was by herself. He knew if he was with her just one more night then he could get her out of his system. He needed to be with her again on his own choosing. He needed to take her again and then maybe he would realize it wasn’t as great as he remembered it being.
Suddenly Lucas was in a rush to get up to her apartment. She still hadn’t figured out the other apartment on their floor was his. He’d been very careful about coming and going at different times from her. He hadn’t wanted her knowing he was that close to her.
The doors opened and Fred looked up from his paper. “Hello Mr. Anderson. How was your day sir?” Fred asked, as usual.
“It was great Fred. Do you know if Ms. Harper’s in her apartment?” he asked, coming right to the point.
“Ms. Harper is currently in the pool, sir,” Fred told his boss.
“Thank you Fred, have a nice night,” he said, as he quickly turned towards the pool.
If she was already swimming, she must’ve only been out for about a half hour. That was a quick night out. He guessed she didn’t have as big of a social life as she wanted him to believe.
Or she could be planning to go out later when the real nightlife began. Well, she could put those thoughts on hold, he thought because he’d decided she was spending the night with him.
He went into the men’s locker room and quickly grabbed his swim trunks and changed. He was going to surprise his assistant since he’d decided he wouldn’t be spending the night alone.
Lucas came out of the locker room and stood unnoticed for several minutes as Amy swam in the pool alone. She looked phenomenal in her swim suit. It showed all her curves off to perfection.
He wanted to take her right then, but anticipation was all part of the fun. When she was swimming away from him he dove effortlessly into the pool.
He made little noise and Amy didn’t notice his entrance. She turned around and was making her way back towards him. He decided to stay in her lane and anticipated them connecting at any moment.
When she reached Lucas, she slammed into him and started sputtering water. “Oh, excuse me,” she said as she started to look up. When she noticed who it was she’d run into she seemed to freeze in place. “What are you doing here?” she stuttered a bit.
“I thought tonight was a great time for a swim,” he replied back to her and took off at a fast pace across the pool. Amy stayed there holding on to the edge of the pool, trying to decide if she wanted to finish off her laps or just get out.
She was about to get out of the pool, when she decided she wasn’t letting him chase her out early. She started her laps again and finished her set amount. When Amy climbed back out, Lucas was still swimming.
She went over to the hot tub, which was a part of her routine. She sat down and let the hot water wash her worries away. Amy knew the moment Lucas joined her in the tub. Her head was back and her eyes were closed, but she could feel him there.
She didn’t say a word. She just pretended like he didn’t exist. If he wanted to make her uncomfortable he was doing a great job but she wasn’t going to show it.
At least she thought she was doing a great job at not showing it. Her body could hide nothing in her swim suit though. He was eyeing her nipples at the moment and they were pebbled into hard points looking as if they were bursting to break free of the suit. He was more than willing to accommodate her with that.
She sat in the tub for a few more moments and then decided enough was enough. The hot water normally eased all the tension away in her body’s sore muscles but she’d sat there tensed and was sorer than when she’d gotten in.
She climbed out quickly, wrapping the towel she had nearby around herself. She didn’t turn to say anything to him, just headed off to the locker-room to get changed. She had to get out of there quickly.
Lucas was glad she’d decided to get out of the tub. He had to wait for her to leave, because he couldn’t have hid the evidence of how she affected him and he was ready to get her upstairs.
He quickly got out of the tub and dressed in record time. He then headed for the lobby and chatted with Fred for a little while. She finally emerged, looking shocked to see him still standing there. She then narrowed her eyes and stomped like a child throwing a temper tantrum to the elevators.
“How was the pool, Ms. Harper?” Fred asked her.
“It was just what the doctor ordered,” she answered him. “I’m bushed though. I’ll see you tomorrow,” she told him, as she pushed the elevator button.
The second the doors opened she stepped in and quickly pushed her floor’s number. When it started to close, she breathed a sigh of relief, until Lucas jumped in at the last second.
“Is there something you needed to speak to me about?” she decided to throw out to him. “Or do you just follow all employees to their homes and act like a stalker?” she spat, no longer having any patience for the new game he’d decided to play.
“Stalker?” he questioned her. “I happen to live here too Amy or did you not notice my parking place?” he lifted his brow at her.
“You live here?” she asked dumbfounded. Why in the world would he live in the apartments when he could live anywhere he wanted? She looked at him without knowing how to reply to this latest information.
She hadn’t seen him around the building and she’d assumed he had his own parking place because he did a lot of business there with the clients that came and went.
“Yes,” was all he said in reply to her question.
“But why would you live in an apartment when you can have a house?” she let her curiosity overrule her need to not speak to him.
“I prefer the apartment because I’m a busy man and here I don’t have to worry about keeping up a property,” he said in explanation.
She just snorted quietly. Like he would have to worry about the upkeep anyway. He would hire minions to do any of his grunt work. He wasn’t the type of man who would pull the lawn mower out of the garage and take it for a spin around the yard. She shrugged and went back to ignoring him.
The door opened on her floor and he stepped out with her. That was when she figured out he was the one who lived in the other apartment on her floor. How had she not figured that out in the few months she’d been there already? They worked and lived in the same place and she had no idea he was living a few feet away from her.
She was going to have an even worse time sleeping now, knowing how very close he was to her and yet how very far away. Why couldn’t she get over the man?
She picked up her step and almost ran to her door. She was having difficulty with the lock, when he stepped up behind her and took the key. His body brushed hers and she just about jumped out of her skin.
He felt so good against her, if only for a moment. He took her key and slipped it into the lock, rubbing against her the whole time. His scent was surrounding her, making her miss his touch.
The door finally opened and she slipped inside, turning with her hand out for the key. He looked at her for a moment and slipped in, shutting the door behind him. How much was she supposed to take? Her willpower was slipping quickly.
“May I please use your bathroom? Then we need to talk about a few things.” He didn’t even wait for an answer. He just headed towards her bathroom. She leaned against the door and tried to strengthen her willpower. She could handle this. She handled it fine at work. Her apartment was no different, she tried to convince herself. She really, really wanted a stiff drink right then.
She rubbed her belly and smiled softly. Don’t worry little one, mama won’t poison you, she thought. She would just have to be strong.
Lucas took a deep breath walking to the bathroom. He could be civilized. Maybe they could even start some kind of relationship. He wasn’t very good with being in a commitment but he thought he was willing to try. He couldn’t stop thinking about her so there had to be something there worth pursuing. That was far more than many other people had going into something new.
He may have jumped to conclusions, thinking she would be after anything. He smiled to himself sheepishly. He didn’t normally admit to being wrong about anything, not even to himself. They would have a nice, reasonable adult conversation and then he could take her to bed without feeling badly about it.
Lucas was feeling pretty good about things as he walked into the bathroom. He finished up and then washed his face and hands in the sink. He turned around to leave and that’s when his world stopped turning.
He almost missed it. In her garbage can was a pregnancy kit box. What the hell? He’d never felt as scared in his life, as he reached for the box. He looked inside and found the little stick. There were two lines on it. What did that mean?
He quickly read the back of the box and time stood still. She was pregnant. Holy Hell, she was pregnant! Had she planned the pregnancy? How could she have? He couldn’t even think as he stood there staring at the pregnancy test. A few of his ex-girlfriends had tried to trap him into marriage by getting pregnant and he’d deftly avoided them. Somehow though, his assistant had gotten pregnant the one and only time they’d made love. He was angry with himself and even angrier with her. He knew it wasn’t logical but he couldn’t be logical at that moment.
Many women had tried to trap him into giving them his name and all the money that came along with it but none had succeeded, until now. Well, I better get out there to the future Mrs.
Anderson, he thought bitterly. Lucas took a few extra moments to compose his face before walking back out to her.
Amy was sitting on the couch when he entered the living room. She didn’t look up at him, which he was grateful for because he was having a heck of a time composing his own features.
“I’ll be right back. There are a couple of phone calls I need to make,” was all he said as he walked past her and through her front door. He didn’t look her way to see her face.
“I need to speak with my father, please?” Lucas asked without any preambles.
“One moment Lucas.” He was put through to his father a minute later.
“Hello son, how are you?”
“I’m getting married and I want to get it done this week. I’m busy with work so can you take care of the arrangements. Normally I would’ve my assistant do it but since she’s the bride I need someone else.”
“You’re getting married, to Amy? I’m so happy for you, son. She’s a real keeper. I’ll take care of all the arrangements. How about Friday evening?” He asked with no surprise in his voice. Lucas was taken back a little bit by his father’s attitude. He was in too much shock to be suspicious though.
“Friday will be fine. Amy’s pregnant so I want to keep this discreet please. Just you and mom and Amy and I,” he said cautiously. He knew his father’s love of throwing parties and he didn’t want a mass of people there to witness the charade.
Lucas finished speaking with his father and then called his attorney to draw up a prenuptial agreement, making sure he was protected.
The phone calls took him about an hour. He finished up and then drank a shot of bourbon. “Okay Amy, let’s get this over with,” he mumbled out loud to himself. He knew he was in for a fight once he told her they would wed.
He walked back down the hallway to her apartment and used the key he hadn’t given back to her to let himself in. Amy was still sitting in the living room. At first it looked like she hadn’t even moved, then he noticed the bowl sitting on the table.
Well, he guessed that her pregnancy hadn’t ruined her appetite. He took a closer look at her and didn’t see any differences at first. She was only a couple of months along after all. Then he did notice some changes. Her breasts seemed to be fuller, although she hid them well in her loose clothing. She also seemed to have a continual flush about her cheeks.
“Why haven’t you told me you’re pregnant?” he asked without easing into it. He believed you should always get straight to the point in a conversation. Why take time to beat around the bush, as the old saying went. If you wanted an answer then you should ask the question.
She hesitated for a few moments as she stared up at him, seemingly shocked he knew about her pregnancy. How had he found out? Then she realized he’d used her bathroom and she hadn’t yet emptied out that trash can. How could she have made such a foolish mistake?
Well it was easy to make that mistake, when she didn’t think he would be stepping into her apartment. Had she known he lived in her building she wouldn’t have left the kit anywhere it could’ve been spotted. She’d never had any visitors besides Tom though and hadn’t known she needed to hide anything.
“I didn’t see that it was any of your business. My job performance hasn’t been affected by it and in this day and age it’s nobody’s business if you’re a single mother or not. You can’t fire me for being pregnant.” She finally sucked in enough air to reply to his question. It wasn’t his concern, her eyes were shouting at him.
He stared at her open mouthed. None of his business? How the hell could she say that carrying his child was none of his business?
“You won’t be a single mother Amy, and you know that. I won’t allow my child to be raised as a bastard. He’ll have my name.” His voice told her his way was the only way they were handling the situation. If she didn’t like it then too bad.
“This isn’t your child.” Amy looked directly at him as she spoke those words. There was no emotion to her voice. He stared at her dumfounded. Not his child? What was she talking about?
He knew she’d been a virgin when he’d had sex with her. The timeline fit. Of course it was his child.
“If it’s not my child, then whose is it?” he decided to see what she would say. He was watching every move she made. There was no way she would be able to come up with some story out of the blue.
“I told you I was in a relationship. It progressed but he didn’t want the baby so we split up,” she lied to him. She’d rehearsed the story to herself many times over and said it with conviction. She wouldn’t even attempt to go into a custody battle with Lucas.
He saw the tiny flicker in her eyes as she lied to him. He knew she wasn’t telling him the truth.
He knew she was pregnant with his baby but he couldn’t figure out why she would tell him otherwise. What if he allowed her to convince him the baby wasn’t his? He couldn’t figure out what she would gain by that.
“What kind of game are you playing Amy? I don’t get it. We both know that the baby you carry is mine so why would you lie to me about it?” In his confusion he let down his guard somewhat and spoke to her puzzled instead of with anger.
“I’m not playing games with you Lucas. This is my baby and no one will take him or her away from me. I’m qualified to raise this child.” She said almost pleadingly. “I’m telling you the truth.
The child isn’t yours,” she was trying to will him to believe her words.
“Don’t worry Amy you’ll get to be a mother and a wife. We’ll be married Friday. I’ve already made all the arrangements,” he laughed without humor.
Lucas suddenly leaned down in front of her, trapping her between the couch and his arms.
“Don’t get me wrong though my dear fiancé, if you try to cross me, or run away with my baby, you’ll never see our child again. Do I make myself clear?” he whispered to her in a deathly calm voice.
She knew he meant each word he said. She had to somehow convince him the kid wasn’t his, or there was a real chance she could lose her child before she even had a chance to know her.
Please, she screamed inside her own head, please don’t take away my child. “Lucas, I’m sorry, but she isn’t yours. That night we had together was great but I moved on quickly. I don’t know what else to tell you…” she said to him with as much conviction in her voice as she could manage.
“Fine, if you say the child isn’t mine then we’ll go have a DNA test done tomorrow. The procedure will be somewhat painful to you but will cause no harm to our child,” he said, calling her bluff.
Amy turned stark white at his words. He could tell she had no idea such a test even existed. She probably figured he would have been glad not to be the father and just run as far as he could. She obviously didn’t know him well at all.
She started to speak and then just gave up.
Game.
Set.
Match.
He just smiled. He knew that getting married wasn’t what either of them wanted but there was no possible way that he would ever let another man raise his child or that he would be a weekend parent. She was carrying his baby, therefore the only solution possible was for them to wed immediately. He’d never understood how a man could walk away from his family.
Lucas was angry and he was confused but he knew what the right thing was for them to do and that was to provide a home together for the baby she carried.