The Billionaire's Call Girl: A BWWM Billionaire Romance (19 page)

"Shower twice, Jake!" she yelled after him and he waved his hand in acknowledgment as he disappeared into the house.

Felicia was sitting in the living room when her parents walked in from an outing. They came to her and handed her a small box wrapped in yellow with a big white ribbon and bow on it.

She looked at them in wonder and grinned. "What is this?" she asked, taking it from them with a laugh.

"Well, it's not for you, but you can open it,” her mother said with a wink and a smile.

Felicia pulled at the ribbon and it fell open in her hands, then lifted the top of the box off and set it beside her. There in the box, nestled in white tissue paper, was the sweetest little teddy bear that she had ever seen. She squealed in delight and lifted him from the box, looking at his face and turning him over in her hands.

"Mom! Dad! He's so adorable! Thank you so much!" She gushed, hugging him to her heart. "I love him!"

"He's not for you...,” her father said with a laugh.

She looked up at him with a squinty smile. "I know that. The baby will love him, too. What a perfect gift. Thank you!" She stood up and hugged them tightly, glowing with happiness.

There was a solid knock at the door and her father glanced out of the window to the street and then turned toward Felicia, his eyes wide and serious. "There's a limo out there, Felicia," he said in a low tone.

Everything inside her came to a halt, even time. It was as if the entire universe had just stopped suddenly. It was all she could do to keep herself standing upright.

"A limo?" she repeated in a thin whisper. Her heart began to pound. Suddenly she looked up at her parents in a panic.

"I'm not ready for him to know about the baby yet!" she whispered anxiously.

Without a word, her mother took the box and bear and tucked them away in the pantry in the kitchen where no one would see them.

The knock came again at the door and Cal walked over and opened the front door to find Jake standing there.

Jake's heart was raging against his chest as he looked at Felicia's father. He had rarely felt so nervous around another man. It was usually him that dominated when there were other men around, but he was looking at the father of the woman he loved, and there was no place for domination in that company.

"Hello Mr. Bennett. I'm Jake Johnson. I wonder if I might be able to speak with Felicia for a few minutes, please." His voice came out strong somehow, and did not betray the chaos wreaking havoc inside of him.

Cal looked over his shoulder at his wife and Felicia, whose heart had nearly burst at hearing Jake's voice, nodded subtly.

"It's okay, Daddy," she said quietly.

Cal stepped backward into his home and held out his hand to the man before him.

"Come in, Jake," he said with a tone that let Jake know he was on temporary probation.

Jake stepped over the threshold of their home, and when his eyes met Felicia's, everything in him was suddenly pulled to her as if she were a magnet, drawing him in. There was no way he could escape her and he didn't want to. All he wanted, more than anything in the world, was to go to her and wrap her in his arms.

"Felicia!" he breathed her name out in gust of a sigh, and she knew that he had been holding his breath. She could see that he was just as nervous and on edge as she was.

Maryanne stepped forward and reached her hand out to Jake.

"I'm Maryanne Bennett, and this is my husband Cal,” she said kindly. "Welcome to our home."

Jake's attention felt like it was being ripped from Felicia as he turned to look at her mother. He nodded and smiled at her. "Wonderful, ah, thank you so much for letting me visit. It's very nice to meet you, finally." His charm somehow kicked in right when he needed it most, and, though it was an honest remark, he was glad that something in the back of his brain sent it to his mouth when it did. "I can see where Felicia gets her beauty from," he offered.

Maryanne smiled and nodded. "Thank you. Can I get you anything?" she asked politely.

"Water, please." He hoped it would sooth his dry and nervous mouth.

Felicia was slowly coming to herself again after staring at him in amazement that he was actually standing in her parent's living room.

"You said you wanted to talk with me?" She asked him with raised eyebrows.

Jake shifted his gaze back to her and raised his eyebrows. "Yes, yes, I do." he answered her resolutely.

"Do you want to talk alone?" She wondered if her parents should leave the room, knowing in the back of her mind that if they did, they would still be listening from the kitchen.

Jake shook his head. "No, actually, what I have to say to you should be said in front of them as well. I'm quite certain of that."

She drew a deep breath and nodded. "Well, please have a seat then,” she said, indicating the chair nearest her spot at the end of the sofa. Jake looked visibly relieved as he sat down and Maryanne handed him a glass of water and then sat beside her daughter. Cal sat in his armchair and their eyes all went to Jake.

Jake finished off half of the glass of water and took a deep breath. "Felicia, I don't want to be indelicate, but I'm not sure how much to share about our situation," he said hesitantly.

Felicia's gaze was steady. "My parents know everything about us," she said quietly.

He nodded and looked at them before returning his attention to her.

"Our relationship started out as a business proposition... uh...an arrangement," he said, feeling uncomfortable with his choice of words in front of her parents.

"We both knew what the expectations were going in. Then, as time passed, everything changed for us and we adjusted our expectations to those changes. I fell in love with you, and you fell in love with me, and complications that arose from that ripped us apart. I was locked in a marriage of convenience and you were left alone outside of that. That is a terrible place for you to be, and I am the one who put you there.

I feel awful about that. You became the love of my life. Then our complication expounded when the press got a hold of our situation and just when I needed you most, I lost you. I've been devastated. There is no one in this world who means more to me than you do."

     A surge of emotion welled up in Felicia and she lifted her fingers to her lips, doing her best to hold it all in as she listened to him speaking.

"When I lost you, I lost everything. For the last decade of my life I was convinced that the worst possible thing that could happen to me was to wind up divorcing Mariah and getting bad publicity for it, and, in turn, destroying my company.

Well, we got the bad publicity and the company has never done worse. What I found out the hard way is that all of that wasn't the worst thing that could happen to me. I found out that losing you was the worst thing that could happen to me. I've been a wreck since you left. My life just feels so meaningless and empty."

Felicia wiped tears from her eyes and noticed that her mother did the same.

Jake continued. "I asked Mariah for a divorce, and she agreed to one immediately. It was the best thing we have ever done for each other. She is now with David, free and clear, and they don't have to worry about anything. They can get married and be a family and raise Christopher as he should be raised, with his mother and father.

Of course, I'm still in the picture as a step-dad, but he is in a healthy and loving home with his natural parents, and it's the best possible situation for them. I've never seen any of them happier than they are now, but that leaves me on my own and wondering if I might ever find the same kind of happiness in my own life with the woman that I love.

I do love you, Felicia, more than anyone or anything in the world. It took losing you and almost everything else I have to find out just how much I need you.  I had to come here to talk to you and take a chance on that most precious hope in my heart: the hope and wish that you still love me too.  Now, because I am single and free, I hope that you would do me the unprecedented honor of becoming my wife."

Audible gasps were heard around the room. Felicia felt like her heart leapt right from her chest as she stared at him in amazement.

Jake left the chair and knelt down before her on the floor, humbling himself to her and her parents. He pulled a light blue box from his pocket and opened it up, revealing a massive princess cut diamond ring inside of it. He reached his hand to her and she paused only a moment before sliding her hand into his. The feel of his skin touching hers was like coming home, and happiness shone brilliantly through her whole body.

"Felicia Bennett, love of my life, forgive me for my many wrongs, have faith in a future that we could share and build together, and please say that you will marry me and give me the honor and pleasure of your precious company for the rest of our lives."

Felicia felt tears spill over her eyelashes and drop down her cheeks onto her lap. Her mother made a quiet squealing noise and Felicia knew that she was looking at the truest desires of her heart, right there before her. If she married him, she would always be happy, because she could be with him, no rules, no contracts, no secrets... except one.

The tiny baby in her body would have a father and a home, and they would be a family. She almost told him then, as he was kneeling there before her, she almost told him that he was going to be a father, but then she felt fear about how he would react to it. The fear held her back from telling him.

He pulled the ring from the box and held it up to her, and she nodded her head as she laughed a little and sniffed slightly.

"Yes, Jake, I will marry you." she said softly. He slipped the ring on her finger and lifted his hands to her face, drawing her close to him and kissing her chastely for a lingering moment.

Her parents sighed happily. As Jake stood up and pulled her up with him to hold her, her parents rose up as well, and came to him, hugging him in turn to congratulate them both on the wonderful change in store for them.

He stayed with them for the rest of the afternoon and she showed him her parents’ home and her room. They looked at photographs of her as a child growing up, her awards and accomplishments that were set about the house, and he got to know her on a much deeper level; one that enthralled and entranced him with immense pleasure.

He loved discovering her through her past, and, as the afternoon wore on, he was introduced to their family dinner routine; cooking together and setting the table, and then the warmth of eating with one another and sharing in conversation, stories, experiences, and laughter. It was one of the best nights he had ever had in his life.

After he helped them clean up the meal, they walked out to the front porch and sat on the porch swing, holding hands. Jake ran his finger over the diamond he had put on her hand.

"Your parents are amazing people. They're so incredibly nice and welcoming. That was the best night I've had in longer than I care to remember,” he said with a smile at her.

She nodded and looked up into his gorgeous eyes, feeling like her whole world had just come back into focus for the first time since she had met him.

Jake lifted his hand and stroked her cheek, looking deeply into her eyes. "Thank you more than I can say for forgiving me for being so reckless with our love, and for losing what we had. More than that, thank you for giving me a second chance to show you that you truly are the most important person in my life. I promise you that I will never break your heart or make you hurt, ever again. I'm so sorry that I ever did."

She shook her head at him. "I love you so much that I couldn't tell you no. If there was any chance we could be together as a real couple, I had to take it."

"And you want to be with me for the rest of my life?" he asked, smiling down at her.