Page 6 of The Green Card Baby Deal

“Better to beg forgiveness than ask permission,” Kent said with a laugh. “I mean if you don’t just take what you want in life, don’t be surprised when no one else hands it to you. That’s my philosophy, anyway. You’ve got to fight for yourself, man, because no one else will fight for you.”

“I’m sorry you feel that way.” Luis sat across from him but couldn’t get comfortable.

Charles Kent shrugged. “It’s the truth. Why deny the truth? But there it is, eh, Morales? So here’s me fighting for myself. You’ve put a bug in my plan, I admit, but it’s just a readjustment for me. I’ll wiggle my way out of this. You, on the other hand…” He laughed again, and Luis felt a chill run up his spine. “You’ve overstepped, my friend, and now you’re about to face the consequences. You should have kept quiet, stayed on your own side of the neighborhood. We could have worked together, you and I, but now you’ve made me mad.” The man leaned in. “Nobody who makes me mad walks away happy.”

“What’s your point, Kent?”

Kent took a long drag off his cigarette and blew a puff of smoke in Luis’s direction. He was like a washed-up actor auditioning for the part of the poorly written villain. “Unfortunately, you drew my attention with your last little stunt.”

“It was not a ‘stunt,’” Luis began, but Kent continued talking as though he hadn’t said anything at all.

“So I started digging into your past. Most people’s weaknesses can be found in their pasts. Did you know that? It’s fascinating, really.”

Luis massaged his own face in frustration. Wherever Kent was going with this, he’d better get there soon before Luis lost it completely.

“I know you came to this country from Colombia. I mean just about everybody knows that since you brag about it constantly.”

“There’s no shame in being proud of where you came from.”

Charles Kent laughed again. “There’s shame in doing it illegally, though.”

Now Luis sat upright, listening far more intently than he had been. “I didn’t.”

“Maybe not initially, but you’ve overstayed your visa, haven’t you? Oh, didn’t think anyone would notice, you being the big bad billionaire that you are? That might have been true if you hadn’t pissed me off. But you did, Morales. You pissed me off, and now I’ve got a good reason to destroy you. I think I’ll start with your status, which is, let’s be honest, illegal. How do you think your shareholders will feel when they find out? Did you mean to drag that poor man’s business down with you? Because that’s exactly what you’ve done by buying it out from under me.”

Luis Morales had no more words for his rival. Charles Kent couldn’t be right, could he? Luis had hired what he assumed to be the very best lawyers, and they should have been all over this. What the hell had he hired them for if they weren’t going to keep track of this sort of thing?

Kent read Luis’s expression with a disgusting grin. “What a massive oversight, huh? Too bad. One little slip-up. Well, I doubt the United States government will consider it a little slip-up. Legality is very important to them. And as popular as you are, I’m sure the media will consider it quite the story when they get their hands on it. Things are about to get very bad for you, Morales.”

“What do you want?” Luis asked from the edge of his seat.

“I don’t know. To win? Revenge? Try selling me back that little brewery you bought. Sell it for a song, and see if I change my mind. I make no promises, but I do treat my friends rather well. Just check with them if you doubt me.” Kent stood and tossed his cigarette butt into the fireplace. “You don’t have long to make a friend out of me, Morales. I suggest you don’t procrastinate.”

CHAPTER 4

CLARA

Clara sat in the doctor’s waiting room and read magazines on motherhood. She’d been called back in after a series of tests to hear her results. The waiting area was comfortable enough with pink furniture and beige walls, all there to provide some sense of womb-like comfort in uncomfortable times. But Clara was feeling optimistic. She’d finally decided to take the reins in her own life, following her beloved sister’s advice. She wasn’t going to rely on a man to give her what she wanted. And this way, she could take her time about finding the right partner rather than getting tied up with an inferior person just because she was afraid she would run out of time to have a child.

The article she read was on sleep schedules, how to deal with the sleepless nights almost every parent goes through during those first few months. She smiled to herself because she couldn’t imagine not being happy with a baby in her arms, even if she wasn’t getting nearly enough sleep. She’d be the happiest sleep-deprived mother on the planet. It would be her and her child against the world. She wondered whether she would rather have a boy or girl, and then decided it didn’t matter in the least. She even told herself it would be wrong to wish for a healthy child because if she wound up with a sick one she’d just love them all the more. Her thoughts got so sappy as she sat waiting, she probably could have tapped them for syrup.

“Clara Ashford,” a nurse called out, reading her name from a clipboard.

She put down the magazine and followed the nurse back to the examination room. Going from pink and beige to white and blue was a harsh change. Clara wished she could have brought the magazine with her. It would have kept her mind off her worries and given her something else to focus on.

The nurse weighed her and took her blood pressure. Then she sat at the computer in the room and began recording Clara’s information. “Any new medications?”

“No.”

“Do you smoke?”

Clara shook her head.

“How often do you drink alcohol?”

“Just socially.”

“How many drinks per week would you say?”

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