Accept My Baby: A Billionaire BWWM Single Parent Pregnancy Romance (4 page)

Amanda
carried her glass and a bottle of wine to the dining table where
Emilia was seated. She sat down and Emilia looked at the spread on
the table.

“
Mandy,
this is...too much,” she said as she looked at the food. Apart
from the pot roast, there was also a side of mashed potatoes and
peas.

“
I’ve
got nothing but time,” Amanda said smiling.

“
This
is non-alcoholic,” Emilia said when Amanda poured her a glass.

“
I
was beginning to wonder why I was not getting a buzz on,”
Amanda lied. “That’s solved.”

“
I
think someone is still tired,” Emilia said and Amanda shrugged.

“
Guess
I am. I could get you another bottle,” Amanda pointed out and
Emilia shook her head.

“
No,
you’ve done enough already. You need to take a break.”

Amanda
smiled at her as she helped herself to some food before she looked at
Emilia.

“
I’m
beginning to think that this is not just a simple visit.”

Amanda
shrugged.

“
Maybe
you’re right.” She dished up and took a bite.

“
Are
you really going to make me work for it?” Emilia asked as she
looked at Amanda, whose curly hair was framing her face. Amanda
looked at her and sighed. “I know you still don't want to talk
about it, whatever
it
is but, sweetie,
it’s going to eat you alive if you don’t handle it.”

“
I’m
fine, Emilia,” she said.

“
How’s
Brett? You haven’t mentioned him ever since you got here.”

“
Brett
and I are done,” Amanda suddenly announced before she took a
bite of her food. Emilia was looking at her, clearly surprised.

“
Wait,
what?” she asked and Amanda nodded.

“
You
heard me.”

“
But
you guys have been together for eight years,” Emilia said and
Amanda rolled her eyes.

“
Were
together for eight years.”

“
Wait,
did something happen?” Emilia asked and Amanda sighed loudly.

“
Yeah,
something did happen. I left him.”

“
Wait...but...”
Emilia took a long deep breath. “How about you just tell me
what happened?”

“
I
am not very sure what happened, Millie. All I know is that I walked
into my house one day and found my good friend and neighbor riding
the hell out of my boyfriend in
my
house. In
our
bed.”

“
Shit,
Brett?” Emilia pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear.

“
I
know right, I never saw it coming either.”

Amanda
forced out a laugh before she took another bite of her food.

“
I
am not sure how I didn’t notice I was living out an entire
season of Tyler Perry’s
If
Loving You Is Wrong
.
I mean, Sienna went from practically being my best friend to the
stranger next door.”

Emilia
dropped her fork and almost choked on her food.

“
Wait,
Sienna? The same Sienna you said was the best neighbor you could ever
ask for?”

“
Yeah,
I probably should have known better, huh?”

“
But
you said and I quote, 'that she was the only good thing about that
suburban hell hole',” Emilia said and Amanda nodded.

“
Yeah,
way back when I thought I had actually found a friend.” She ran
her fingers through her hair. “I thought I was being nice to an
army wife seeing as she was lonely and everything...” she took
a long deep breath. “I was a stupid fool.”

“
Hey,
you will not throw a pity party for yourself. Not while you are
here,” Emilia said. “Actually, not ever.”

“
I’m
not throwing a pity party, Emilia. I’m done feeling sorry for
myself and crying over that bastard,” Amanda said as she took a
bite of her beef.

“
Good
for you. If the ass hole doesn’t see your worth then he isn’t
worth your time. That’s for sure.”

Amanda
forced a smile.

“
Guess
I am too old to be crying over a man.”

“
If
you think you are too old then that means I am too old and hell will
freeze over before I admit that. I do not endure all those Pilates
and zumba classes to be called old.”

Amanda
laughed. This time genuinely.

“
Right
now, I just want to lay low. Maybe walk around town and take in the
sights.” She held her wine glass and sighed. “My camera
could do with a few good shots.”

“
Well,
sweetie, I have to warn you. It is almost impossible for you to lay
low in this city,” Emilia started. “Especially the way
you look and everything.”

Amanda
looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

“
The
way I look? What is that supposed to mean?”

“
You
are this beautiful flawlessly curvy woman. A dick magnet in every
sense of the word while you are out in the States and here, the guys
don't take the long route when they are interested. They just hit the
nail on the head.”

Amanda
shook her head.

“
Well,
too bad for them. I am not looking to get into anything serious or
otherwise. At least not in the near future.”

“
If
that is the case, then you better lay low,” Emilia pointed out
taking a sip of her wine.

“
And
how do you suggest I do that?” Amanda asked.

“
Keep
to the quiet low key restaurants,” Emilia said. “Just do
what you normally do but for the moment, I’ll give you a few of
the not so popular spots. There are a couple of eat and surf
places...coffee shops really but they will do.”

“
Things
are that bad?” Amanda asked and Emilia shrugged.

“
No,
it’s just that the men out here...I think the men in Europe in
general are just very forward. They meet you and decide right there
and then that they want to fuck you.”

“
Excuse
me?” Amanda asked and Emilia nodded.

“
Yeah,
they can be a little forward. No, they are forward, period.”

Amanda
smiled.

“
I
think we could use more of those men back home. If they can be that
forward when they don’t know you, I imagine that they can be
equally as honest when the attraction dies down.”

Emilia
frowned.

“
Is
that what you think happened? That Brett was not attracted to you
anymore?” she asked and Amanda shook her head.

“
Honestly,
I don’t really know what was going through his mind.” She
looked down at her food and began playing with a piece of beef. “I
don’t think I ever will.”

Rafael
Imperioli would have loved to walk out of the dining room and leave
his mother talking but he knew it was not going to help. She would
call him if he walked out and if he did not pick up, she would have
left so many messages on his voicemail that he could not get any more
messages if someone called him. That would have been a definite
disaster especially if someone was calling him with urgent news or
maybe some sort of emergency.

It felt like his
mother, Susanna had been talking for ages. He took a sip of his drink
and sighed loudly.

“
Mama,
we have this talk every time I am here,” Rafael said.

“
That’s
because I believe in being persistent,” Susanna said.

“
Well,
your persistence is beginning to make me rethink these family
dinners.” He took another bite of his food and shrugged. “I
am not ten anymore. You cannot just tell me...no, dictate. The word I
am looking for is dictate.”

“
Dictate?”
Susanna asked and Rafael nodded.

“
Yes
dictate. Because that is what I feel you are doing right now.”

“
Rafael,
I’m not dictating anything,” Susanna said, looking right
into her son’s eyes. She turned to look at her husband, Paolo.
“Paolo, will you tell him I am not dictating.”

“
Yes,
son. Your mother and I just want what is best for you,” Paolo
said and Rafael forced out a laugh. He found it quite strange that
his father would choose to second his wife especially after he had
partied like Tony Stark for the better part of his thirties and
forties.

“
Papa,
like I said to mama. I am old enough. I know what I am doing.”

“
But
all you seem to be doing is blowing your money,” Paolo pointed
out.

“
And
making headlines of every tabloid known to man.” Susanna looked
at her iPad that had been resting on the table next to her plate.
“And I mean every tabloid. American and European...Us Weekly,
OK!”

“
They
are just tabloids, Mama,” Rafael said dismissively.

Susanna shook her
head.

“
If
it was just the tabloids printing things about my son, I would be
alright but now even the serious publications have articles about
you. The Washington Post, The Herald...”

“
What
your mother is trying to say Rafael is that we have been genuinely
concerned about you and the direction you have been taking lately,”
Paolo started, cutting Susanna short.

“
The
direction I have been taking?” Rafael asked. He was not sure
whether the tone in his voice was contempt or surprise. There was no
telling what it really was. All he knew was that he just wanted to
get up and walk away. “And what is this ‘direction’
you are referring to Papa?”

“
Son,
we know you are old enough to make your own decisions but all this
partying you are doing...it is not good for anyone and given who you
are, there are a number of opportunists out there looking to make a
quick buck.”

Rafael put his fork
down and sighed.

“
What
do you mean, exactly?” he asked. “When you say given who
I am? What do you mean?”

“
You
are the Imperioli heir, everyone knows that. And when you are out
there losing yourself...it would not be hard for some woman to trap
you and...”

Rafael forced out a
laugh and shook his head.

“
Are
you seriously giving me the sex talk? At thirty years old?” he
asked.

“
I
always see you with these girls, models and what not...protecting my
son is something that comes naturally,” Susanna said.

Paolo took a long
deep breath.

“
Listen,
son. Why don’t you just join your brother in the family
business and...”

Rafael
shook his head before Paolo could finish. They had been down this
road before. One too many times actually and he was not about to give
in to the pressure. Not this time. He knew exactly what his parents
had in mind. Exactly what they had in mind. Joining the family
business meant bending to their rules. Not having any free will to do
as he would have wanted. It was some kind of enslavement as far as he
was concerned.

“
I
don’t need the Imperioli business,” he said.

“
I
know you don’t Rafael but it is your legacy. It is what we have
built for you and we will be damned if we let you have some floozy
get everything we have worked so hard for,” Susanna said.

“
So,
what? You are going to get me some girl from a respectable family to
marry?” he asked in a cynical voice.

His
parents were not past doing something as ridiculous as that. They had
tried it before, subtly setting him up with what they thought were
women of stature. And they were always women Rafael couldn’t
stand. Women who were always trying too much to be what they really
weren’t. Women who only looked to marry rich so that they could
sip on wine and gossip when they were not traveling the world on
their husband's dime.

“
Honestly,
Rafael...it’s not like you have shown us that you have the best
choices when it comes to the women you date.” Susanna
interlaced her fingers together and rested her elbows on the table.
“I think it would be wise for you to settle down. Get someone
respectable and get married.”