Page 11 of Billionaire's Baby Mistake

“Okay,” I say in a weird voice as soon as we reach my home. I don’t know how to act if he wants to kiss me or anything. My heart pounds because I so desperately want to, but I don’t think I should. “I guess I’ll see you later.” I say and look at him before swinging open the car door and stepping outside, allowing the cold air to hit my face and calm me down. “Bye!”

I race indoors without looking back, desperate to make the phone call to Dad that I should have done earlier. I haven’t updated him at all since I told him that I got the job. It’s been so crazy busy, and I know that he must by dying to find out if I have made any progress.

“Hello?” he answers on the first ring. “Zaya, how are you? How is it going? Did you speak to Van?”

“I did,” I confirm quickly, trying not to express how damn useless he is. “And it’s all going well. Alex… likes me now. He trusts me, so I don’t think it’ll be long before I get what I need.”

“Well, you’re going to have to be quick,” he snaps. “The announcement about the new drug is already all over the Internet. I’m pretty sure that’s my formula, and that’s what I need. If Alex leaks it before I get to it, this will all be for nothing.”

“Yeah, okay, I will,” I shake my head in despair. He didn’t want to know anything about this plan, and now he’s barking orders at me. “Anyway, I wanted to ask you something.”

“What? Van will probably know more than me…”

“No, not about this…” I interrupt him quickly, “I need to ask you about the past, about what happened when you left the company, I mean.”

“Didn’t I tell you all this before?” He sounds a little frustrated, which winds me up. He’s always closed off, so I need to know more. If he had just told me everything, giving me all the details in the first place, then I wouldn’t be even slightly wary about what Alex said to me back in his office about the investors. “Peter stole my girlfriend and pushed me out of the business.”

Something bitter in his tone makes me wonder if this woman was the love of his life and that Mom maybe wasn’t. I wouldn’t say that I like that idea at all; everyone wants to believe they were conceived out of love, even if their parents weren’t married like mine were, but that isn’t always the case. I’ll never find out the truth…My heart breaks for the loss, every single time I think about her.

“Okay, yeah, of course… I’m sorry.” I must stop letting things derail me from my end goal, or my whole time there will be a waste. “I’m just trying to figure everything out for myself.”

He sighs deeply and softens his tone. “I’m sorry, sweetie. I don’t want to snap at you like this. This is all a little stressful for me, and I hate sitting back and leaving the horrible job to you. It makes me feel crappy. I would much rather do this myself, but there’s no way I could get inside. Alex probably has wanted posters with my face on them!”

“I don’t think he knows too much, actually,” I tell him honestly, but he scoffs. The entire Bryson family are scum in his eyes. “Anyway, I will be sure to keep you updated next week. Hopefully, I won’t be as busy.”

“Hopefully, it’ll only take another week,” he half jokes, piling the pressure on.

Another week... can I do it in another week? If so, then what? There’s no denying that question is still there, however much I don’t want it to be…

Alex

“Okay,Nina,that’sfine.But, unfortunately, there’s nothing you can do about it.” My heart sinks as I speak these words out loud. Of course, it isn’t Nina’s fault that her brother got sick over the weekend and needs someone to stay in the hospital with him while his tests run. But it does put me in a bit of a bind when it comes to work. I know nothing can be done about personal stuff; it’s just part and parcel of life, but it does leave me stuck right now. “I hope he’s okay, and please keep me up to date. Wish him well.”

“I mean, when my parents get here, I might get some free time. I can always come in then…” she asks in her ever so reliable way. She knows how hard I work and how determined I am to succeed in this company. I’m lucky to have her as my PA. Maybe it’s a good thing that we’ve never hooked up. That could complicate things.

“No, of course, I would never ask you to do that,” I tell her quickly. “You’ll need to get some rest, but if you do get a few moments, would you mind looking into the company's beginnings for me.” I have a sense that Zaya knows more than she is letting on when we had that conversation. I would love to find out if there’s something I don’t know. It’s my company now, and I want to be fully informed in every area. “Only if you get the chance, though.”

“Is… everything alright?” she asks curiously. “Has something happened?” I understand her concern; this is a little strange for a boss who is typically focused solely on moving forward, but this needs to be done before it becomes real in my mind.

“No, it isn’t that; I just…I want to know what happened with the cofounders of the company. There’s an interesting story there, and it would be cool to know it. For speeches and stuff.” My excuse is lame, but hopefully, she’s buying it.

“Okay…” she trails off. I’m sure she’s suspicious, but fortunately for me, she’s used to my odd requests. This might be a little stranger than average, but I don’t think it will bother her too much. “Sure, well, I’ll let you know when I have it done.”

“Thanks, and I hope to see you soon. I hope your brother gets better too.”

I’m left with an awful dilemma as I hang up the phone. Now, I don’t know what to doing with my PA. I have always relied on someone else running my entire day for me, and although I can certainly keep an eye on my schedule, things might slip through the cracks. I suppose I could call a temp company and get someone to work part time, but I’m funny about who I let in. I don’t want any company secrets leaked, and that thought fills me with dread.

I already know what Ireallywant to do. I’m just trying to justify it in my mind. I want Zaya to come and work closely with me, so I can spend more time and get to know her even better. Ever since I spent Friday night with her, I’ve had her on my mind nonstop, and since she didn’t call or text me even once over the weekend, this might be the excuse I need.

Zaya, I need to borrow you for a few hours if that’s okay?I email her, wanting to keep my intentions as unsexy as possible. If she assumes that I only want her for a work related thing – which I primarily do – she will be more likely to come and see me.

Sure, do I need to bring anything?she fires back almost immediately, causing me to smirk. Ah, all the possible answers I could give to that question… Of course, I won’t, because this is on the company system and all the IT guys can read it, but still…

Just yourself.Oh God, I already have an erection because of that slightly suggestive email. How the hell am I going to get through the whole day with her here? I doubt I’ll be able to keep it in my pants. Maybe this isn’t the best idea. This could be worse than dealing with my schedule alone…But I’m too excited to push her away, I just can’t help myself.

I’m hoping that now she doesn’t have the gala to plan, she will have much more time on her hands, and she’ll combine the work I need to do with her own. Of course, I’ll give her a massive bonus at the end of the month…extra work never goes unnoticed at International Pharma Co.

As she wanders through the door in a sleek, knee length black dress, a big smile plays over my lips. I am half worried that things will be difficult between us now and that she won’t know how to act around me, but luckily she seems to be grinning as brightly as usual, and that twinkle is still in her eye. Maybe she didn’t want to contact me over the weekend in case she would seem too keen… not that I would have ever thought that of her.

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