Page 49 of Billionaire Boss's One Night Stand

I nodded. He had to have heard me, but I could do a take two and say it again. “I’m?—”

“Pregnant?” he said on a rushed exhale.

Yeah, he’d heard me the first time. Asking me again was likely just to confirm it out loud. It didn’t matter how many times I told him. The details wouldn’t change.

His eyes opened wider, almost to the point they’d pop right off. I hadn’t known him for long, but I’d seen him surprised here and there. Or alarmed. The expression of utter shock he displayed right now was in a league of its own.

I bit my lip, waiting for him to react with something else. With a reply. Words. An opinion. I’d even welcome more questions.

What I couldn’t tolerate or wait through was this silence. It was like watching the cogs work in his brain. He was letting it sink in. That much was obvious.

“I—” He shook his head. Backing up from cornering me, he gave up his advantage of caging me in like this. It was just us, sort of, but the further he retreated, the colder I felt and the lonelier I got.

“I need a minute.” He raked both hands through his hair as he took bigger steps back, almost like leaping away from me.

Then he was gone. He turned, so hasty in his step that he didn’t look where he was going. Almost slamming into a tall potted décor stand with ferns and pathos, he caught himself just in time before knocking it all to the floor. His stride was quick and clearly in a direction away from me.

I didn’t have to be nervous and await his reaction with bated breath anymore.

He showed me how he felt about my being pregnant.

He fled.

He walked away from the revelation that I was carrying his child.

Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh,shit!

I expected him to be surprised, but seeing him turn his back and walk away hurt. It felt like too stern of a dismissal, too harsh of an avoidance.

Before panic could kick in, I thought back to which floor was Hailey’s. She was here. I didn’t have to struggle through this slap in the face alone. Right now, I neededsomeoneto talk to, to hear me out about this huge news.

I left the spot in the hallway and sought her out. After mistaking her floor, I rode the elevator up and down to get to the corridor that would bring me to her.

While I wasn’t sure what her daily schedule was like, and lunchtime had already come and gone, I intended to spill it all with her. It was too late for worrying about whatshewould think. If she would judge me. In the end, I could be confident that she would stand by me. She’d be a friend, unlike Matt who stormed off in the wake of my pregnancy news.

Then again, he never was my friend.We started out as lovers, learned that we would work together, and then… found the evidence that we would sort of, kinda, start a family.

If she was busy, I’d stand there and wait her out until she could listen. All these emotions were bottling up. I was tense and nervous, wringing my hands together as I walked.

Once I found her office, I knocked once and stepped inside. Unfortunately, she was on the phone. It sounded like a call with a manager downstairs, but I didn’t interrupt.

She furrowed her brow at my unexpected arrival. Then she held one finger up to indicate for me to wait a minute.

I didn’t sit, too worked up to stay still. All this nervous energy was making me move, but not to run or walk away from the situation, like Matt did. Not that I could. Abortion and giving this child up for adoption just wouldn’t be possible. Regardless of how unplanned this baby was, he or she was my child.

Finally, Hailey disconnected her call. She set her handheld receiver down with a click, and that was my cue.

“He didn’t take it well.” That was the briefest summary that I could think of, so again, twice within the last half hour, I blurted an uncensored and impulsive comment.

“What?” She frowned. “My God. Sit. You’re making me nervous.” Her forced giggle that followed those words proved it. “Who did what now?”

I swallowed, my mouth so dry and my throat closing up from the emotional response after Matt walking away and from the panic clawing at me.

Pacing back and forth, I glanced at her and drew in a deep breath to steady myself. “Matt.”

“Matt? Matt Richards?” She raised both brows. “Your boss? The jerk who’s gonna be CEO after Wendy retires?” She huffed. “If she ever retires.”

“Yes. Him.”

---