His Absolute Authority: A Scandalous Billionaire Love Story (Jessika, #3) (22 page)

"How's it going?" he asked.

The car was idling before I arrived, apparently.  He had the air conditioner on low, gently cooling the interior.  It was so much different compared to the dry summer heat outside.  Relaxing, but also surprisingly cold considering the abrupt change in temperature.

"Can we turn the AC off?" I asked.  "It's really cold."

"It's not that cold," he said.

"It's really cold to me.  Please?  Just for a little while."

"Yeah, that's fine," he said.  He reached for the dial and switched it off.  "So... you ready?"

"Yes," I said.

He checked for the right of way, then pulled away from the sidewalk and started down the street.

"You look really different," he said.  "I definitely think this is going to work.  Interesting idea, too.  Good ruse."

"Thanks," I said.  "I do have good ideas sometimes, you know?"

He laughed.  "That's it?  Just sometimes?"

I shrugged.  "Well, I don't know."

"Your ideas are usually really good, Jessika," he said.  "I'm not just saying that, either.  I mean, all joking aside from before, you're definitely smart.  You could probably give Asher a run for his money, and I think that's saying a lot considering we both know he's got tons of it."

I laughed.  "Thanks for the reminder.  I almost forgot my husband's a billionaire.  How silly of me."

Jeremy chuckled.  "Yeah, well, you're his wife.  Now you're a billionaire too, you know?"

I scrunched up my brow, contemplating that thought.  I supposed it was true in a way, but I hadn't ever really thought about it like that.  It didn't exactly feel true, even if maybe it was.

"I don't know," I said.  "I mean, I guess that makes sense, but I don't know.  I don't feel like I am.  It's not like I've done anything to deserve it, if it's true."

"Oh, right," he said.  "Like when you basically single-handedly stopped Landseer Enterprises from being systematically destroyed from the inside out, which would have cost Asher his entire billionaire empire.  Nope, that's nothing at all."

I rolled my eyes.  "I didn't do that much," I said.

"Maybe you don't think you did, but I do.  If you don't think it's enough, that's cool, though.  I understand.  I'm sure you'll do a lot more.  What are you writing right now?  When's your next book?  Are you on the New York Times bestsellers list yet?"

"No!"  I laughed at the absurdity of the idea.  "I doubt I ever will be, either.  That's not something that happens to a lot of people, you know.  There's only a handful of books every week that are even chosen, and it's always the best of the best."

Jeremy shrugged.  "That's why you're going to be on it sometime," he said, matter-of-fact.

I wanted to.  I wanted to think he was right, and I wanted to have that happen, and I wanted so much more, but I didn't think it was as easy as he made it sound.  Obviously it wasn't easy.  It really was just for the best of the best for that particular week.  I didn't think I was the best, either.  Did the writers who found their books on lists like that think of themselves as the best, though?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  Who knew?

I'd just need to write the best book I could, release it to the world, and hope people liked it.  That was all that mattered, really.  There was a lot more to it, too, but that was the beginning.  Nothing else existed without that one simple idea.

One simple idea.  One little thing.  A brief moment in time.  A single second in the grand scheme of life and the universe.  Just one little...

Without thinking about it, I blurted out, "Jeremy, I'm pregnant."

***

J
eremy nearly crashed the car after I told him my big news.  Thankfully we were driving in a small town, though.  If we were in the city, we'd likely have gotten into an accident, but as it was he merely swerved slightly to the wrong side of the road.  With no traffic to speak of, and the roads wide and open, nothing much happened.

He fixed our path, continuing straight again, then we drove that way for awhile in silence.

Eventually he opened his mouth and said, "What?"

"I know it seems sudden and strange," I said, "but I'm pregnant."

"Yeah, so," he said.  "How exactly does that happen?"

I laughed nervously.  "Um, well, when a man meets a woman and they fall in love..."  I trailed off after using the same joke my doctor had used when I called her.

Jeremy didn't laugh, though.  I thought it was funny, sort of.  Maybe not funny right now, but...

"I don't know," I said after our long pause.  "I mean, I do know.  It's kind of a strange story.  I talked with Elizabeth—she's my doctor, you've met her, remember?  Um..."

"I know Elizabeth," he said.  "I drive you to your appointments all the time."

"Right," I said.  "So, uh... she said that this is normal."

"It's normal to randomly become pregnant the day after you start trying to have a baby?  I'm almost positive it takes a little longer than that to figure it out."

"No.  Um, I mean, yes.  It does, but—"  I stopped myself.  "Wait, how did you know Asher and I were trying to conceive recently?"

He mumbled something, but not loud enough for me to hear it, so I stared at him until he spoke up.

"Asher," he admitted.  "It's not like it's a secret, is it?  He just asked me to make sure that you two weren't interrupted when you were home for the weekend.  That was the plan, at least.  Obviously it didn't go so well.  We've had some problems lately."

"So he just told you?" I asked.  "Just like that?"

"He didn't
tell
me," Jeremy said.  "He didn't
not
tell me, either.  It was kind of implied in the whole thing.  Like, hey, Jeremy, make sure no one bugs me and Jessika these next few days.  We're going to be busy.  We're trying to have a baby."  He swallowed for a second, hesitating.  "Of course having a baby involves sex, so uh... yeah.  Look, I don't care.  You're both having sex, alright?  Sure, great.  You were both going to have a lot of sex.  I get it.  I don't have a lot of sex, but that's not your fault.  It's not my fault if you have a lot of sex, either.  It's fine.  Whatever."

"Oh," I said.  "He didn't go into details, then?"

"Yeah, no.  Definitely no details.  Penis in vagina, that's all I know."

"Did you really just say that?" I asked, laughing.

"Listen, you.  You're the one that stood on the sidewalk, right out in the open in public, and declared to the world that I have a big penis, so you're not one to talk."

"I don't even know if you do!" I yelled, laughing again.  "No offense, but I'd rather not know, either.  I'm sure it's wonderful, but you'll have to show someone else.  Sorry."

"Good," he said.  "Let's keep it that way."

"Yes," I said.

A couple seconds passed.  "So, you're pregnant?"

"Yes," I said again.

"And... how'd that happen?"

"Well, when a man meets a woman and they fall in love..."

This time he laughed.  I laughed, too.  This was all just so ridiculous and absurd.  Everything was.  Maybe that's how life was supposed to be?  It didn't need to make sense, it just needed to
be
.  It was uncontrollable and wild, and we should enjoy it for what it was.

Jeremy drove us out of town and to the long, winding country road we'd planned on beforehand.  It was just miles and miles, hours upon hours, of trees and driving.  We had a lot of time to talk.

I started to explain it all to him like Elizabeth explained it to me.  I didn't know everything, but I knew enough.  It didn't take too long, but one conversation led to another, and a little about the future, what we would do, how everything was going to go from now on.  I might need more rides to the doctors, right?  Or I might need ice cream and pickles in the middle of the night.  Was that a real thing that happened?  I didn't know.  This was my first time being pregnant.

"Isn't that Asher's job?" Jeremy asked with a wry grin.  "You want to wake me up in the middle of the night to get you ice cream and pickles?  What do I get out of it?"

"I'll give you a hug?" I offered.

"Sounds good, but what happens when you're too big to hug me?" he asked.

"I'm going to get big, aren't I?  I hadn't thought about that."  I reached down and touched my stomach over my shirt, rubbing up and down.

"Yup, nice and round."

"Has anyone ever told you that you say just the right things to make a girl feel special?" I teased.

"Nope, never."

"Good.  I'd really question her judgment if she did."

He laughed.

"Have you told Asher yet?" he asked.

"No, um... I want to wait a little.  Don't tell him, alright?"

He gave me a quick sidelong glance.  "Hey, I'm not going to tell him.  That's your job."

"I'm going to tell him soon," I added.  "I'm just not sure how to do it."

"Probably the same way you did it to me," Jeremy said.  "Seems like as good a way as any."

"Do you think so?  I kind of just blurted it out."

"Whatever works, right?"

We both shrugged.

***

T
he plan, because it had been somewhat of a quiet secret until now, was for Jeremy to pick me up at the first train stop after I got on the train.  Possibly the second, if necessary, but it probably shouldn't have been.  I didn't need too much time to get ready.  Dying my hair only took a short while compared to the overall train tip, and cutting it took even less time.  The self-tanning lotion was fairly simple, as well.  It took awhile to work, but that's part of what the rest of our drive was for.

He made a quick trip back to the mansion to pick up a separate car, just in case, too.  Jeremy usually drove Asher and I in the same car, so if anyone was perceptive, they'd be able to recognize it.  Granted, if anyone was really perceptive, they'd be able to recognize this one, too.  It was different enough that I hoped that didn't happen, though.  As of now, it seemed like we'd succeeded.  It helped that the windows were tinted, too.  Maybe it didn't help a lot, but it kept the interior of the car a little more private than otherwise.

Privacy was important, at least for the beginning of this.  The end, too—and all of it, really—but the beginning especially.  As long as we managed to pull off the start of my possibly crazy plan, I felt like the rest of it would go off without a hitch, as well.  I couldn't see why it wouldn't, at least.

You know the saying?  It's just crazy enough to work?  Well, this was exactly that.

I didn't realize how tired I was from the stress and turmoil of the start of my day until it hit me all of a sudden.  Jeremy drove quietly, soft music playing from the car speakers.  I closed my eyes for a second, but when I opened them again, we were nearly there.  I struggled to wake up and regain my sense of self.

For his part, Jeremy continued on, relentless.  I liked Jeremy a lot.  Not only was he a great friend to Asher, but he was fun and funny and my friend now, too.  He didn't need to be, but I thought we always had a good connection like that.  Kind of like we understood one another, but in a different sort of way?  I felt like maybe Jeremy and I came from a similar place, at least.  Not quite, but... regardless of whether Jeremy thought I'd somehow make it onto the New York Times bestsellers list, I always thought of myself as that girl who'd worked for a temp agency, who just so happened to be hired on to clean Asher's office one day, and... well, everything progressed from there.

I was still that girl, still cleaning, at least in my mind.  It was hard to get used to the fact that maybe I wasn't exactly that same girl anymore.  I didn't feel like I belonged in the company of billionaires, but then again Asher didn't exactly act like any billionaire I'd ever seen before, either.  Granted, I didn't see any billionaires before him, so maybe that wasn't saying much.  The thought made me laugh a little.

Regardless, Jeremy's company and presence was appreciated.  We got along well.  He was so amazingly loyal and wonderful, too.  If I needed anything, I knew I could rely on him.  Honestly, for this current plan, he was the only one I thought I could rely on, too.  It wouldn't have been possible without him.

"We're here," he said.

I nodded.  "Sorry, I fell asleep."

"No big deal.  You looked tired.  And you're pregnant, too.  I think that means you get to take a lot of naps, right?"

"Does it?" I asked with a grin.  "That would be really nice."

"I could be wrong.  Consult with your doctor before making any drastic medical changes, blah blah, all of that."

"Yes, sir, Doctor Jeremy, sir," I said, offering him a silly salute.

"That's more like it!" he said.

We pulled into the driveway, then off to the side towards the garage.  Jeremy waited for the garage door to open, then he pulled inside.  Neither of us got out or did anything until the garage door closed.  I sighed, some mix of relief and anxiety coursing through my body.

Everything was good.  Mostly good.  Sort of good?  Yes, relatively good.

Jeremy opened the door and got out, then went to get my stuff from the back seat.  I got out, too, carrying my own things.

"I forgot to ask, but what's in the bag?" he asked, nodding towards me and my brown paper gift bag.

"It's a present," I said.

"For me?" he asked with a smirk.

"No!  For Asher!"

"What?  Are you serious?  The man gets a present and a baby?  All I got was a nine hour drive.  Speeding half the time, mind you.  I could have been pulled over by the police at any second."

"Ooh, poor baby," I said.  "You risked life and limb and a speeding ticket for me."

"Yeah, don't forget it, lady."

"I really do appreciate it, though.  Sorry you needed to drive so fast."

"Not your fault.  Those trains are quick."

I scurried over to Jeremy, who was on his way inside.  Before he could open the door, I stopped him and showed him the snowglobe in the paper bag.

"It's handmade," I said.  "All of it.  Well, except the liquid inside, probably.  I'm not sure what he used to do that.  Not the glitter-snow, either.  The rest is, though.  Isn't that neat?"