Stern Desire Love Redeemed (21 page)

"Okay, do not leave the hotel," he warned, and
then resumed his conversation with Jess.

In the bathroom I called Johnny, Ella's assistant. He said he would be there in ten minutes and that I'd recognize him by the white hat that he would be wearing. From the rack of clothes, I got a pair of beige linen
pants, a t-shirt, some sneakers, and a hat. I inspected the leggings I had on and they were seriously damaged. Maybe I should start wearing crotchless clothes from now on if he was going to destroy them like this. I dumped them in
the trash can. I changed and went back into the living room. Jared was sitting on the couch, his laptop on the table in front of him. He was still talking to Jess.

"Babes, I'll be back."

"Twenty minutes, Kyra." He looked at his watch.

The elevator door opened on the first floor. As I stepped out, I noticed J.C. leaning against the wall to the left of the elevator with a messenger bag slung across his chest. He walked over.

"Miss Kay, Mr. Stern wants me to accompany you to the gift shop."

"You've got to be kidding me."

"No, I'm not."

"J.C., I'm a grown woman. I do not need you to go with
me."

"I'll be by the concierge desk," he said.

The desk was in plain sight of the gift shop. I entered the shop and browsed around, keeping my eye on the door. I purchased a G Shock
watch and some t-shirts for Nate. I looked at my watch and saw that I'd been gone for fifteen minutes already. I was just starting to get anxious when the gift shop door opened and a well-dressed, flamboyant man in a white cap entered. He
walked over to the t-shirts rack and stood on the opposite side from me.

"Akyra, I assume," he said, sounding a bit displeased.

"Yes."

He reached into his black bag, pulled out a manila envelope,
and slid it between the t-shirts. I took it and dropped it into my Balenciaga bag, politely said thank you, and turned on my heels. Then a thought crossed my mind. He had found Ella after her suicide attempt. I turned back to Johnny.

"Was Ella expecting you on the day you found her?"

"Yes, she was," he answered.

"Thank you."

I knew that bitch had not wanted to die. Her attempted
suicide had been a scheme to get Jared's attention all along.

"I am so pissed at Jared right now," I said to J.C. as we waited for the elevator.

"Your safety is important to him, Kyra," J.C.
said.

"He is overreacting. All this is unnecessary."

J.C. did not answer; he stood silently in front of me, as if on guard. Something was up and I was going to find out what.

I marched into the living room and stood across the table from Jared with my arms folded. He was still on the phone with Jess. He looked up and saw how mad I was.

"Jess, is everything set for today? I've got to
go."
Click
, he hung up. "Kyra, what's wrong?" he asked, looking at me and then at J.C., who was reaching into his bag. He removed a large manila envelope, placed it on the table, and left the room.

"Jared, what's going on?"

"What are you talking about? What has gotten you so upset?"

"Why do I feel like I'm under surveillance?"

"Kyra, just relax. I have a great day planned for us."

"Screw your great day, Jared. I want answers."

"So help me God, Kyra, if it was not you..."

"If it was not me what...what would you do?"

"I would put you across my lap and spank the shit out of you," he said, trying to keep a straight face, but I had a feeling he would do it.

"I want to see you try that, Jared Stern."

He took a few steps toward me and I went in the opposite direction. "Jared, we are not going anywhere until you tell me, and I will continue to be rebellious and belligerent and make your life a living misery if
you do not start talking," I warned him.

"Kyra, I'm just trying to protect you. That's all."

"Protect me from what, Jared?" I pleaded.

"The craziness that comes from being with me."

"I want to know, Jay," I insisted.

"Come...sit." He sat on the sofa and I sat next to him as he struck some keys on his laptop and up came what looked like a tabloid
website. Headings were splashed all over. My eyes widened and my mouth dropped open as I glanced over the page.

Brazilian Power Couple, Jared Stern and Ella Knight, Split. Mystery Woman Involved. Ella Out and the Cold Nurse Is In. Nurse Steals
Billionaire from Supermodel. Mystery Nurse Snags Brazilian Billionaire from Supermodel. Nurse with the Right Medicine Steals Jared Stern from Ella Knight.

Jared Stern, Brazilian billionaire, dumped longtime
supermodel girlfriend, Ella Knight, for a nurse whom he met during his hospital stay a few months ago. There have not been any sightings of Mr. Stern and his new girlfriend. The hunt is on for pictures of Mr. Stern and his new love.

I could not read any more. A million horrific thoughts flashed through my mind.

"I must be the most hated woman in your country," I cried.

"Kyra..."

"Oh my God...oh my God." I was hyperventilating. My hand went to my stomach. For the first time, I felt a connection with the fetus growing inside me: the motherly, instinctual need to protect it.
When
the pregnancy comes out
, I thought,
it is only going to get worse
.
I'll be a pariah. I stole Jared Stern and purposefully got pregnant to hook a billionaire.
I could see it all over the papers.

"Kyra, please calm down," he begged.

He had no clue as to the extent of my anguish.

"What does all this mean, Jared?"

"I'm sorry, Kyra, but a picture of you, of us together,
is the one of the most sought after pictures in the world right now." He took my hands. "Kyra, all I want to do is keep you safe and protected. So, please, I'm asking you to work with me on this."

"What? Do they know who I am?"

"No, Kyra, but the reality is that eventually it will get out. I'm getting you a bodyguard."

I pulled my hands from his and stood up.

"No, no, no. Is this what my life has become? No
privacy, being stalked, harassed, and hounded?"

"Kyra, we can deal with this." He stood and stepped toward me. I backed away. "Kyra, please."

"Jared, this is scary for me. Yesterday I was going to
the supermarket, hanging out at the beach with my son. And today I feel like Brazil's Most Wanted. I can no longer go to the mall, to school. I can't even take my son to the park without wondering when they'll find out who I am. I've
been robbed of my freedom overnight. This is not my life, Jared. In your world, I'm a prisoner."

"What do you want me to do, Kyra?" He looked helpless.

"Deny it," I blurted out. "Say it's a
rumor."

"You want me to deny our relationship?" He looked hurt. "If it was up to me, I would let the whole world know how I feel about you."

"I'm not ready for this craziness!" I alone knew
that it was going to get worse. The pregnancy was going to add fuel to that fire. The thought terrified me. My stomach churned. Nausea overcame me and I went running for the bathroom. I slammed the door behind me and slumped over
the toilet. I heaved and heaved, but nothing came up.

"Kyra, I'm coming in."

"Jared, please give me a minute," I snapped.

I needed some time alone to absorb what was going on. This
was exactly what I was worried about. Now the hospital would find out about my relationship with Jared. I would be investigated, along with anyone who might have known about our relationship, and I knew this would not end nicely. This
was so unlike me. Where was the cool, calm, and collected Kyra who could handle anything? It had to be the hormones. This situation was not looking good on me. This was not how I had envisioned this relationship, but what had I expected
when I stepped into a world that I knew nothing about? This was a milieu that I'd only read about and idly dreamed of being a part of, but it was much harder living it than imagining it. There was a knock at the door.

"Kyra, can you let me in?" Jared asked.

"Can you please pick out something for me to wear? I'm going to take a shower."

"Kyra, we don't have to go if you don't want to."

"I want to, Jay."

On the bed waiting for me were a pair of Zoey white, skinny jeans, a Melissa Odabash pink shift-shaped dress heavily embroidered in white, and Melissa's woven Panama hat to match the Ash Bowie suede, lace-up wedge
sneakers. Also on the bed were some sexy lace undergarments with a note on top.

Looking forward to taking these off later.

Hope Nikki will join.

I smiled, got dressed, and added to my ensemble my Prada
glasses. I noticed my Balenciaga handbag on the love seat along with the shopping bag from the gift shop. I took the sealed manila envelope out of the bag and hesitantly opened it. Was I ready to look at what was inside or should
I give him a chance to tell me first? I took a quick peek just to make sure there were pictures inside and caught a glimpse of a girl wearing nothing but a dog collar around her neck, standing in front of Jared. He had a mask on, but
the platinum ring on his finger with the Stern logo gave him away. I closed the envelope and slid it under the sofa. I could not bring myself to look at them.

Jared was in the foyer with J.C. He was dressed in a True Religion t-shirt, brown cargo shorts slung down on his hips, and some
half-laced-up boots. Wow, I loved the rugged, bad boy look.
Nikki might be out tonight
.

He pulled me into his arms and kissed me gently on the lips. I melted into his arms, but was brought back to reality by the ding of the
elevator. His arms were around me tightly as the elevator took us to the roof of the hotel, where a helicopter was waiting.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"The Hamptons. You'll like it there. It's a group of villages with beautiful white sandy beaches that form the south fork of Long Island. And it's so different from Florida."

We landed on a spectacular estate with acres and acres of
well-manicured lawns. I'd never seen grass that green. We were greeted by Mr. and Mrs. King, the caretakers of the property. This had to be one of Jared's properties. They told me that it was eight acres, and that the house was 25,000
square feet of living space on three floors with elevators.

"Wow!" I was astounded by the breathtaking, petrified wood foyer and the impressive Bordeaux walnut floors with an elegant, wrought iron, spiral staircase that curved gracefully upward to the floors
above. I was even more impressed with the exquisitely decorated, two story, book-laden, wall-to-wall, ceiling-to-floor library with beautiful wood paneling and a circular, wooden staircase. The garden was just a few steps away and the
ocean was visible in the distance. There was a table with chairs for kids, relaxing recliners for the adults, and a fireplace to curl up in front of with a good book on a cold night. On the second floor was the master suite: 2500
square feet. This was the kind of bedroom for a queen. It had to be just for show. I would not want to disturb even a pillow.

The third floor was solely for entertainment. This was a child-and-parent playground. There was a cozy home theater that seated twenty,
with a concession stand of all sorts of snacks imaginable and a popcorn maker. There was a four-lane bowling alley, a play room, a party room with a full bar, a full spa, a gym, an indoor basketball court, and a skating rink. The backyard
consisted of two pools: one led indoors, the other spiraled around the property like a lazy river. How relaxing it would be to float along on a floatation device through the colorful gardens, while being serenaded by the sound of birds. Jared led me up some steps behind a man-made waterfall, where there was
another small private garden - a little piece of paradise. The fall, with its tranquil, flowing waters, was behind us and the ocean was down below. The cheerfully singing birds welcomed us; they fluttered busily around the
variegated flowers, and I could feel the light ocean breeze on my skin. I'd never felt so close and at one with nature. We were cocooned in it. Cradled in Jared's comforting arms, I stared up at a cloudless, prismatic blue sky.

Jared was the first to speak. "I became the owner of the real estate business a few years ago; my dad passed it on to me. I suggested we expand to other countries. He was all for it, but did not want the responsibility of an international business, and he wanted to enjoy life and
spend more time with Mom, so Gabby and I took over. We own homes, corporate buildings, hospitals..."

"Hospitals...which hospitals?" I asked.

"We own two of your hospital buildings."

"What?" I exclaimed. I turned to look at him. St. Mary's Healthcare System had five hospitals, an urgent care facility, and a nursing home. "And you are telling me this now because?"

"It's no secret that the system is in trouble. All the hospitals are going through a rough time right now, and they're using major cutbacks and layoffs to stay afloat."

I'd seen firsthand what Jared was talking about. We had gone
from a seven percent pay raise to one percent, with no overtime and certain positions lost. There had been an increase in the nurse-to-patient ratio, and the pressure was on for management to produce or they might lose their jobs.

"I'm sure you may have heard rumors that the system is going private."

"Which I would hate to see."

"Why?"

"St. Mary's South is the largest hospital in our
system. We are a level 1 trauma facility and the best in the area. Eighty percent of our patients do not have insurance; they are the poor and homeless. When these people get sick, they go to another hospital where they are
stabilized and then sent to us. As a matter of fact, they don't go anywhere else. They come to us because we do not refuse care to anybody. If we go private, what's going to happen to these patients? We provide a service to the
community, to this particular group of people. I've worked for private and public hospitals, and I prefer the public hospitals because they are not so much into gouging every penny out of patients while they get richer and the poor suffer." I knew I was going off on a tantrum, but I did not care.
This was a very touchy topic for me. Jared was listening intently. "I'm sorry. What were you going to tell me, that the hospital is not renewing the contracts on the building?" That was another rumor going around the
hospital.