“How many are we talking?”
He sighs.
“My divorce was finalized about two years ago, but we’d separated even before that for a while. So I had a span of a couple years where I was putting notches in my belt at light-speed, and it’s not something I’m proud of.”
I nod, just trying to process this information.
“But where did you meet the ladies? Were they all from New Jersey? New York?”
He nods.
“More or less, and it’s not that hard to meet women, actually. I’m the CEO of an established outfit and a very wealthy man too. As a result, the women practically threw themselves at me, begging me to take off their panties.”
I nod.
“Yes, I suppose so,” I say in a faint voice. “I haven’t had that experience before of course, but I’ve heard it can happen.”
“It candefinitelyhappen,” Rick says in a deep tone. “But there’s more. As you can imagine, I got sick of all these women begging for phone calls, attention, dates, flowers and shit. As a result, towards the end I started using an escort service to source women. The agency was called City Girls, and it’s expensive, but it met my needs. I was able to order a girl practically off a menu, fuck her hard any way I pleased, and then send her packing. It’s not a great thing to admit, but that’s how I scratched my itch. By paying for sex.”
I nod, swallowing around the big lump in my throat.
“I see. Are you still using escorts now?”
He nods, but then shakes his head, black brows beetling.
“I was before I met you, Tracy,” he admits in a low tone. “I was seeing City Girls escorts pretty regularly even a month ago, but I’ll stop if you want me to.”
“I want you to,” I say quickly. “That would mean a lot to me.”
“Of course,” Rick acknowledges. “After all, if I’ve asked you to stop seeing other men, then you have every right to ask me to stop seeing other women too.”
With that, we stare at each other across the table because our conversation seems so serious suddenly. I thought this was just going to be a tropical fling that lasted two weeks, but evidently, we’ve entered new territory where we’re not only in a relationship, but in an exclusive one at that. Who would have guessed?
Yet I feel incredibly happy now, and nod before taking Rick’s hand.
“Thank you,” I say in a simple tone. “I appreciate it.”
He squeezes my small palm.
“It’s no problem. This relationship means more to me than you know, Tracy,” he replies in a low tone, those blue eyes intense. “Maybe neither of us intended to get serious like this, but here we are.”
“Here we are,” I agree in a soft voice while staring into those blue eyes. “My goodness.”
Then, my heart swoops as a smile overtakes my features because this is a dream come true. I’m a pregnant, unwed mother-to-be dating a rich man who seems to want me for who I am, and who wants to establish a real relationship too. What were the chances?
I merely smile and lean forward to kiss Rick once more. He growls against my lips and seizes my mouth hard, even though we’re at a restaurant. After all, I sense the billionaire wants exactly what I want, and that’s the best miracle of all. Yet how long can this last? When we get back to the mainland, will everything change? I hope not, but only time will tell.
6
Tracy
Six weeks later.
I putter about in the kitchen of Rick’s mansion. It’s huge, with a giant island, a six-top stove, as well as enormous stainless steel appliances. In fact, there’s not one oven; there are two, stacked one right on top of the other, just in case a home baker feels especially inspired.
But I love it because after getting back from Bermuda, I moved in with Rick and Amelia straightaway. There wasn’t any pretending that I was going to take a guest bedroom either. Instead, I moved into the master suite, and life has been utterly hedonistic. Rick and I make love non-stop, and I swear, if I weren’t pregnant already, then I would have gotten pregnant with his baby immediately.
But it’s heartwarming because we’re a family now. Rick is busy managing his jewelry empire, and as a result, I’m somewhat of a mommy to Amelia. The little girl even calls me “Mama,” and it always makes my heart contract with delight. We bake together, play games together, and I’m also the one in charge of getting her off to school in the morning, as well as picking her up from class in the afternoon. We’ve even had a few playdates with other girls in her grade, and it’s nice actually. I’m not sure what the other mothers think since I basically appeared out of nowhere, but no one’s asked any questions and I feel accepted, more or less.