Baby Makes Five (A Multiple Birth Book 1) Read online

  She bumped into a couple of food trays’ outside patients’ rooms and was still rubbing her right hip when she ran smack into a hard body that felt like concrete. She fell on her butt, her glasses hitting the floor. “Damn,” she said, picking them up, and checking for cracks. She was almost blind without them, and she couldn’t afford a new pair. She perched the glasses on her nose with a sigh of relief. Still on the floor, she looked up at the towering body clad in a business suit.

  “Hello, Lucy. Or would you prefer me to call you Miah?”

  She knew that voice could pick it out anywhere eyes shut. It was the voice that had spoken sweet nothings into her ear, and then accused her of being a gold-digger. It was a voice she didn’t want to hear, mainly because she didn’t want to see the handsome face of the man who had hurt her. She looked into surprised blue eyes and whispered in shock.

  “You!”

  Everything seemed to shift at once, and before she could protest she was

  swallowed up into a black hole.

  3

  Voices. Lots of voices were the first thing she heard as she came too.

  “Is she going to be okay?” a concerned voice asks his voice.

  “You have such profound effect on women Ash, I have to say I’ve never seen one faint before,” a woman’s voice said, laced with humor.

  “There’s a first time for everything,” he drawled sarcastically.

  So it was true, she hadn’t dreamt him up. He was here. This can’t be happening. She panicked. She hadn’t thought what it would mean to see this man again in the flesh. She wasn’t ready for this encounter, not even close to wanting to see him. Her bag, her pamphlets, had he seen them? She sat up with a jolt and knew it was a mistake when her stomach heaved, and she threw up on the person in sight, him.

  Someone handed her a wet cloth, and she took it gratefully and lay back down closing her eyes. She couldn’t be more embarrassed. Nothing could upstage this. She groaned inwardly.

  “You really must be having a bad day, Ash,” said the woman, in the white coat who she realized was a doctor. She sounded amused as if the turn of events had suddenly become the best part of her day.

  “So it seems things can only get better from here,” he said, voice still dripping with sarcasm.

  “Sorry,” Miah mumbled, not looking at him, wishing he would disappear.

  “Why don’t you go and ask a nurse for a pair of scrubs and clean yourself up. I’ll take care of the patient from here on.”

  “Yes, that would be for the best,” he said, eyes never leaving her face. He shook his head and left the room.

  For the first time since she became conscious, Miah breathed a sigh of relief and almost threw up again. She must look like a disheveled rag doll to him because that’s how she feels at the moment.

  “Relax, he won’t sue you. He’s one of the good guys,” the doctor said.

  She wanted to snort but didn’t. Obviously, they weren’t talking about the same guy.

  “I’m Doctor Lee. You’re lucky you didn’t hit your head. Mr. King caught you before you could.”

  She knew she should thank him, but she had more important matters to deal with. For instance, him not seeing the pregnancy pamphlets she had been reading when they collided.

  “I need to get going. My bag. Where is it?” She asked, looking around the examination room. She stilled for a few seconds to let the dizziness pass. She couldn’t afford to faint again, knowing he was in the hospital somewhere.

  “I think we should do some tests to make sure you are ok,” the doctor advised.

  “I am fine. I just came from my doctor, and she has no problem with my health. I appreciate your concern, but I just need to eat something. I really must go. Thanks for everything, but I need my things.” She repeated urgently this time.

  The dark-eyed woman looked at her with kindness and nodded towards a chair across the room where her bag was.

  Miah got off the bed with caution, went over to the chair, grabbed her bag and left the room. She needed to get out before he came back. She pressed the elevator button impatiently with shaking fingers, looking frantically around her as she did. When the elevator came, she stepped inside and closed the door. She sagged against the cold steel and closed her eyes and sighed. “That’s a relief.”

  There was no way they could meet again. Call today a coincidence and move on.

  “This is not a sign,” she mumbled to herself. She knew Amanda would say it was fate; she ran into him. A sign she needed to let him know he was about to become a father. If she believed in fate, then her doctor was psychic when she asked for his medical history. He was just a couple of hallways away larger than life itself while she listened to their babies heartbeats.

  “Ash King, that was his name. Why did it sound so familiar?” she asked herself, then a light bulb went off in her head. “Oh hell, no, no, no,” she said, walking out of the elevator and hurrying for the exit. She half sprinted across the parking lot, before slowing down. She needed to distance herself from the hospital and him.

  “Out of all the men in the universe, why did I have to sleep with him?” she asked, herself angrily. The memory of the cheque flashed before her, no wonder he thought he could buy her off.

  She walked briskly to the bus stop, digging into her bag for her metro pass. She was pregnant with Asher King’s baby. The billionaire playboy, the owner of the hotel she stayed in. She felt like an idiot not knowing who he was. If she had known, she wouldn’t be in this predicament.

  There was no way in hell she could tell him she was pregnant. He had all the resources at hand that she didn’t. If he found out and wanted the babies, he could sue her for custody. From her experience with him and what she had read, she knew one thing for sure. He didn’t like to lose. Which meant more than likely he would take her babies away from her.

  “I won’t let anything happen to you. I swear,” she promised her unborn babies with calm determination.

  She hadn’t known how much she had wanted this pregnancy until she had seen the ultrasound. The knowledge that she was pregnant with twins had rendered her speechless.

  Twins, she was scared to death, but she was also happy. She would have two little ones depending on her. She wasn’t about to let them down.

  He had called her Miah, how did he find out her first name? Did he know where she lived? She hoped not. “Everything is going to be fine, little ones. We are going to be alright,” she whispered to her stomach again, but this time, mostly to reassure herself.

  She sat on the bench. Eyes closed, head back, enjoying the sun on her face. She was happy she had cut her waist-length hair to her shoulders. It was much easier to manage and didn’t keep her too hot in the summer heat.

  ***

  He returned to the room in borrowed scrubs only to find she had vanished. Donna had told him she had left, refusing to be checked out. He thought it was for the best. She was an adult. She could make her own decisions. So why did the idea of her running away made him mad?

  He had seen her, and she looked okay, apart from being a little skinny as if she had lost some weight. His conscience should be clear and surely so should his dreams. There wasn’t a reason for him to feel guilty. He did his due diligence. That was before he had seen the picture of the sonogram and appointment card. It must have fallen when she had hastily grabbed her belongings. He stands in the middle of the room looking at the card and picture confused.

  “What is it?” Donna asked, coming to stand beside him. He had been wondering the same thing.

  “Oh, no wonder she passed out. Here I thought it was your good charm,” she smiled taking the picture from him.

  “What is it?” he asked stupidly not sure if what he was seeing was real.

  “It’s a sonogram of her babies. The poor thing must have morning sickness.”

  “Babies, are you sure?”

  She looks at him with raised eyebrows.

  “She didn’t look… how far along is she?” he as
ked instead.

  “Almost nearing her first trimester. The top of the scan tells you how many weeks and days. The sonogram was done today, so it says eight weeks.”

  “So conception could have been sometime in April, maybe the end of April?” he asked. There wasn’t a need to calculate. He knows exactly how long it has been, down to the hours since they met.

  “Maybe, I’ll have to know all the details. Are you alright Ash? That was pretty specific.”

  “Just guessing, who is Karen Sand?” he asked, taking a look at the appointment card for the first time.

  “She’s one of our best OB/GYN and fertility specialists. She’s in good hands. You met her before at the board meeting.”

  He nodded, looking at the sonogram again in awe. He wanted answers, and he wanted them now.

  “I’ve got to go Donna. I’ll talk to you soon,” he said heading towards the door.

  “I think Miah would want that back. I can give them to Karen and have her secretary call her.”

  “No need, I’ll give them to her myself. Thanks, Donna,” he was gone before she could reply.

  To say he was pissed when he left the hospital was an understatement. He was furious. She had run like a coward, so she didn’t have to tell him she was pregnant with his children. He wasn’t one to jump to conclusions, but he was sure he was the father unless she had had sex with another man right after him.

  Somehow he doubted she had. They used a condom. He always made sure to protect himself and his partner, but everyone knew they aren’t 100 percent fail-safe. His temper steamed all the way to his car; he took deep breaths to calm down before he drove. Maybe he should calm down until he knows the facts. He could be jumping to the wrong conclusion. Surely she would have told him she was pregnant if it was his? She has a lot to gain; he was a wealthy man after all. That had to be it, maybe she left his bed and jump into another man's’, it wouldn’t be the first time a woman had done that.

  His anger was beginning to resurface; he took a deep breath. Why was he angry? She had a right to have as many lovers as she wanted. The thought of another man touching her make him see red. What the hell was she doing to him? He had to find out for sure, or he would go crazy if he didn’t hear it from her mouth that he wasn’t the father of her children.

  He wanted to arrive at her apartment alive, then rip into her for lying to him again. It was becoming a habit of hers. He was just cooling down when he noticed her at the bus stop. His temper flared up as he watched her, eyes closed, face to the sun with a smile on her face. She looked content, and that pissed him off more. She seemed to have a knack to bring out the worst in him.

  He looked at her. The colour to her cheeks returned. She almost looked like her old self. Her small breast looked fuller than he remembered and were outlined by the top she was wearing. Perky, that’s how he remembered them. The borrowed scrubs couldn’t disguise his forming erection. Angry at his arousal and himself, he looked away. She was obviously in deep thought since she hadn’t heard his car drive up and stop.

  ***

  “Get in!” a voice growled his voice. Her eyes flew open and connected with icy blue ones. She was so preoccupied with her thoughts; she didn’t hear his car approaching.

  “No. Thank you for the offer, but I’d rather take the bus,” she said stubbornly.

  “I am not giving you a choice, Miah. I said to get in, or I’ll get out and put you in myself if I have to.” His voice was like a whip.

  “You wouldn’t dare,” she said, nervously looking up and down the street, as if wishing the bus to appear magically.

  “Try me. I’ve been vomited on. My favourite pants are ruined, and I have little patience left, so get in the goddamn car!”

  “I’ll pay for the stupid pants,” she said, standing clumsily and backing away from the car. She suddenly looked as if she would rather jump off a cliff than be in a confined space with him.

  “I doubt you can afford to buy me a new one,” he said, getting out of the car to stand in front of her. “I am hungry, tired, and wearing borrowed clothes. I have no patience or time for tantrums,” he said, lifting her up into his arms and walking back to the car.

  “Put me down this instant. You can’t manhandle me like this.”

  He ignored her and opened the car door, then sat her in the passenger seat, before getting in.

  “Put your seatbelt on.”

  “This is kidnapping. You can’t just make someone go with you if they don’t want to. You’re an arrogant ass.” She crossed her hands over her heaving breasts.

  “I’ve been called much worse, now put the blasted seat belt on,” he shouted pinching the bridge of his nose. She was giving him a headache.

  She hesitated, then complied.

  “Thank you,” he said and drove off. “Now we are going to have a conversation like two adults. I am going to take you to lunch, and you are going to have a good time, even if it kills you.”

  When she didn’t answer, he suspected she must be hungry, or she would have fought him on the issue too. It would be pointless for her to try. He wanted answers, and she held the key to the mystery box; he still wasn’t sure he wanted to open.

  “Where are you taking me?” she asked, looking at him.

  “To lunch, we have a lot to catch up.”

  “Yes, but where exactly are we going to lunch?”

  “Downtown,” he said vaguely.

  He watched as she rolled her eyes in frustration. He wanted to smile but didn’t. They were already downtown, and that was all she was getting for now.

  “I doubt we have much to catch up on,” she said, looking at him, lips pursed.

  They rode in silence for a few minutes before the car stopped. She looked at him.

  “We are here,” he said, getting out of the car and walked to her door. He watched her taking in her surroundings. He hadn’t brought her to a restaurant because he didn’t want her to walk out before he got want he wanted from her. He opened her door and held out a hand to her.

  She ignored it and got out, looking at the imposing building.

  “This is where I work,” he said, propelling her with a hand on the small of her back towards the entrance of the building.

  “You didn’t say we were coming here.”

  “I said we were going to have lunch and talk. I can’t talk in a crowded restaurant. My office is much better for what I have in mind. And I have a meeting in an hour. We’ll order in.”

  “What if I don’t want to eat here?” she asked stopping.

  “What’s wrong with here? I said we’ll order in,” he said impatiently.

  “Have you thought maybe I just don’t want to eat with or look at you?” she asked folding her arms across her chest.

  He bit his tongue before he said something he would regret. “Too bad,” he said and steered her to an empty elevator, and they took it to the twelfth floor in silence. He looked at her; she was upset and was fighting. She was nervous. He hoped it was because she was guilty of holding back information from him. She moved to the other side of the elevator giving them enough space for four people. She stared intently at the door as if her life depended on it. He wanted to laugh but settled for a smile.

  “I don’t bite your know,” he said as the elevator came to a stop.

  “I beg your pardon?” she looked at him confused.

  He shook his head and steered her forward. “Mary, this is Miah Price, Miah this is my executive assistant.”

  “Hello,” Miah said politely.

  “Can you have lunch sent up, please Mary? And make sure to have a chocolate mousse sent as well.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  He led Miah to a mahogany door that opened to his office.“Have a seat,” he invited her and went into an adjoining room. He changed into the suit he kept at the office. He was still trying to come to term with the morning’s events.

  He watched her as she looked around the room wondering what she saw. Was it too masculine and impersonal? He didn
’t have any photographs on his desk like most of his employees did. He didn’t have a memory he wanted to look at or relive as he worked each day. It must seem cold to her, but he liked it that way. He had a nice view across the lake where yachts were anchored; it was all the picture he needed. He knew she didn’t hear his return.

  She changed since they last met. Not just her hair. She had lost weight, and her delicate face was mar by dark shadows. Her glasses suited her. They made her look much more scholarly. She must have been wearing contacts in the Bahamas. She looked as if she had aged. He wanted to kiss away whatever was the cause of her worry, but he wouldn’t.

  “You cut your hair,” he stated. He wished she hadn’t. He loved her long hair.

  She jumped; consciously her hand went to her short curls. “Yes.”

  He watched as she sat, a myriad of emotions crossing her expressive face. From the looks, he could tell that she was curious as to why they were here. All in good time, he said silently.

  “How did you find out who I was?”

  He looked at her and smiled. He wasn’t wrong. “I always get what I want, and the fact that I owned the hotel helped.”

  “Why did you care? If I recall you didn’t want to have anything to do with me afterward,” she said, pointedly.

  “Maybe I had an epiphany and felt bad for the way I left things.”

  Her hollow laugh was her only answer.

  “You find it unbelievable, that after my walk, I realized what an ass I had been to you?”

  “You said it, not me. It doesn’t matter anyhow,” she said carelessly.

  “Sure it does. I spent two days going through guests’ logs looking for people with the first name Lucy and came up with no one who could have been you. The only Lucy was a fifty-year-old woman called Lucille.”

  “Yet you found out my name, should I be flattered?”

  “I guess not, but you did ask. One of my staff remembered who you were after I gave a description of you.”