The Billionaire Affair, page 19
I shrug not knowing if that makes me suspicious or admirable. “I hope I didn’t let Jace down.”
Dylan shakes his head. “It doesn’t matter. What is important is that you didn’t do something that you weren’t comfortable doing.”
“Thanks,” I mumble unable to embrace the compliment.
“Don’t worry,” Dylan continues. “This will blow over and life will go back to normal. It always does.”
My life will never go back to normal. Not when I leave the clinic and Jace’s life. “I’m sure it will.”
He leaves soon after. Amelia texts me an hour later.
Amelia: Come to the office at six. It’s very important. #exciting.
I frown. Whatever it is, it must be huge to get Amelia so excited. A feeling of dread settles in my stomach.
Jace comes back from his meeting looking even more stressed but I don’t ask him what the matter is. I don’t feel like I have the right to anymore. Maybe I’m also starting to withdraw unconsciously, knowing our time together is coming to a close.
Chapter 29: Olivia
I brace myself for Jace to come out of his office. He’s going for the TV interview and he hasn’t left his office since he returned from the lunch meeting. The door opens and I freeze. Jace doesn’t head down the corridor. He comes to my desk. I look up from my computer with a smile.
“Dinner tonight? I’ll cook…or rather, I’ll order food,” he says with that boyish smile that melts my inside.
I want to say yes so badly. I’ve missed him and it feels as if in a matter of hours we’ve grown apart. I don’t want it to end this way. The only problem is that I have no idea what Amelia wants and how long I’ll be at the office.
“I’d love to but I can’t,” I tell him with real regret in my voice. I scramble to come up with an excuse. Or rather a lie. God, I hate this. There’s a part of me that will be glad when the assignment comes to an end. Even though I’ll lose Jace, at least I’ll stop living a lie.
I’ve also learned that I’m not cut out for undercover work. I’d rather request interviews rather than pretend to be someone I’m not. I would not be surprised if I have had new wrinkles since I started working at The Anderson Clinic.
“Oh,” Jace says, raising his eyebrow questioningly.
“I’m going to Marcus’s for dinner. We arranged it days ago and they’re really been looking forward to it.” I hate that I can lie so convincingly. It’s not a nice thing to learn about yourself.
Jace nods stiffly. “No problem. Enjoy yourself.” He turns and leaves without so much as a kiss or any show of affection.
Pain ripples through me as I watch Jace disappear down the corridor and listen as his footsteps fade away. Tears fill my eyes. It’s nothing less than what I deserve but it still hurts. I wipe my tears and open my personal email. I find one of the articles that I’m working on and lose myself in it.
Work is a life saver and it keeps me occupied until it’s time to leave for my meeting with Amelia. I clean up and grabbing my purse, I leave. I pretend to be in a rush so I don’t have to talk to anyone on my way out.
Twenty minutes later, I’m parking my car at the rear lot of the building. I glance up and down the street before ducking into the safety of the building.
The lift deposits me on the lifestyle floor and as I stroll in, I feel proud. I love that I work here and that I have a career that I’m passionate about. It’s not where I want it to be but time and hard work will get me there. What I’ve been doing for the last two months and a half at The Anderson Clinic is my stepping stone to get there.
“Hey, Olivia,” James, one of the staff writers at the magazine, calls out as I walk through the open-plan office.
I wave back and go straight to Amelia’s office. I knock gingerly on her door and she calls me to enter. My stomach clenches with apprehension, which always happens when I’ve no clue what my boss wants with me.
Amelia smiles at me and I instantly relax. Whatever it is, it’s not bad.
“Hi, come on in and have a seat,” she says.
“Thanks.” I sit down and while she finishes up on what she was doing, I take in her office and imagine myself in her place. It doesn’t excite me. All I’ve ever wanted to do was to write. I’d hate to be the boss of Lifestyle magazine. All I want is the opportunity to write the kind of stories I love writing.
“Sorry about that,” Amelia says, shifting her attention to me. “It must be crazy at the clinic?”
“It is, especially this morning but hopefully in a couple of days, things will get back to normal.” I’m careful not to mention Jace’s name. I’m afraid my feelings will show in the way I say his name. Amelia misses nothing.
“So, I have some exciting news. We’ve had quite an influx of people contacting the magazine and today has been all about sifting through to see if there are any legit accusations against fertility hospitals and clinics.”
Dismay settles in me. Jace had warned me about this but it had sounded unreal, farfetched even. What I don’t get is this: If people have a real concern and complaint, why not use the proper channels? Even as these thoughts go through my mind, it dawns on me how much I’ve changed.
Prior to working at The Anderson Clinic, I only saw issues from one point of view: the magazine’s. Now that I’m on the other side, it distresses me that one person’s not-quite-true story can have a huge impact on a business that is making a big difference in people’s lives.
“We have a few leads but there’s one couple in particular that I wanted to talk about with you. At first glance, their story seems legitimate. We’ll of course dig deeper before committing but I wanted to give you a heads up that you’ll be doing that interview if we do go ahead with the story.”
Pleasure courses through me. This is what I’ve been working so hard for. Hearing Amelia say with confidence that she’s entrusting me with a human interest story my blood pumps faster and I find myself inching to the edge of the seat.
“You might be wondering why I picked you for such an important interview,” Amelia continues.
I haven’t wondered that but I keep my mouth shut. I want to believe that she picked me because I’ve proven my professionalism. Who am I kidding? I haven’t provided Amelia with substantial investigative stories.
“You are conversant with The Anderson Clinic and you know the processes. You’ll know what doesn’t add up and question them further,” Amelia says.
My blood goes cold. “The Anderson Clinic?”
“Yes, sorry, I’m going ahead of myself,” Amelia says. “So this couple has a damning story to tell about The Anderson Clinic. Apparently, they’d had a financial arrangement with this woman to surrogate for them. Everything went ahead as planned and the woman got pregnant. Except a mistake happened and the clinic used the wrong sperm.”
My heart races to near explosion. I have no doubt that the couple in question is the same couple that Ivy was supposed to surrogate for. It cannot possibly be a coincidence.
“It’s going to be a huge story and I want you to write it. You know The Anderson Clinic and you’ll be able to see inconsistencies in the story.”
I’m breathing so fast, as if I’ve come from racing, and trying to hide it from Amelia. My mind is a whirlwind of confusion. I clench and unclench my hands. Do I tell Amelia that I know the whole story? Oh, God. I’m going to throw up all over my boss’s desk.
“Are you okay?” Amelia asks. “You look pale.”
“I’m good, thanks. Just shocked, that’s all.” What a disaster. “So, this couple, why are they coming forward now?”
Amelia shakes her head. “We haven’t put that question to them. We don’t want to scare them off and in any case, who cares? If their story checks out, I for one don’t care for their reasons. They could have gone to any other publication. They came to us. You don’t kick a gift horse in the mouth.”
I nod as if I understand. What impact will this have on Jace and the clinic? This story will get out, whether we’re the ones who publish it or not. Whether I’m the one who writes it or not.
“We’ll need some time to check their story out. Can you help?” Amelia asks.
I stare at her blankly.
“You must have contacts at the clinic, someone who can discreetly tell you whether these people were ever patients at the clinic.”
My heart beating rapidly, I think fast. “We need the name of the woman who was the surrogate. She’s the one who was a patient at the clinic. The records would be under her name.” I hold my breath and wait for Amelia’s response.
She’s thoughtful for a moment. “You’re right. I’ll see whether we can get them to give us a name. I’ll keep you posted.”
Relief floods through me. I feel as if I’ve dodged a live bullet and I can’t wait to leave Amelia’s office. I’m so frightened that I can barely breath. The walls feel as if they’re closing in and Amelia’s office seems smaller than usual.
“Okay, that’s that,” she says and I shoot to my feet. She stands up as well. “This is big, Olivia and if we play our cards right, we’ll stand out in history for breaking the biggest story of the year.”
Her excitement is palpable.
I feel sick. I nod vigorously. “It is big.” I move to the door.
“I’ll talk to you soon and keep those articles coming. You’re doing a good job and if I haven’t told you, your writing is superb. It’s warm and different, especially with human interest stories. I didn’t know why I never picked on that before,” she says.
A grin pulls at my lips. This is what I’ve been waiting to hear ever since I started working at the magazine. But my grin is fake. All I care about right now is Jace and the clinic. Yes, a mistake happened and naturally, they kept it away from the public but in doing so, they left themselves vulnerable to having their hard-won reputation destroyed.
“Thank you,” I manage to tell Amelia. “I’ll talk to you soon.” I shut the door and hurry out, not lingering in my beloved work place.
The trembling starts when I’m safely in my car. I grip the steering wheel with hands damp from sweat and stare unseeingly ahead. This is a nightmare. I can’t say no to interviewing the couple. Amelia will simply assign another writer.
As soon as it’s published, Jace, Ivy, and Alec will know that I’m the source of the original information. There’s nothing I can say that can convince them otherwise. I’d do anything not to hurt Jace or his family but at this point, I simply don’t know what to do.
I wait until I calm down, then I turn the ignition key and shift the gear to drive. I miss Jace but I’m glad that I turned down the invitation for dinner. He would know instantly that there was something wrong with me.
I go home and settle in front of the TV with a glass of red wine to watch Jace’s interview. I’m a few minutes early and I try to work out various options. There are none. There’s nothing I can do to protect the people that I’ve come to love and respect.
The show starts and I turn my attention to the panel as they are introduced. Jace comes on looking relaxed and as if he doesn’t have a care in the world. He rakes a hand through his hair and the gesture almost reduces me to tears with its familiarity.
The topic of discussion is the errors that happen in fertility clinics. Jace doesn’t speak as much as the other four panelists, two of whom also head their hospitals.
I cringe when he’s asked point-blank if a mistake has ever happened at the clinic. I hold my breath, willing him not to say something that will incriminate him later. Prove him to be a liar.
“Mistakes happen in all fertility clinics,” Jace says solemnly. “We’re all human and we do our best to put systems in place to ensure that these mistakes don’t happen. Our core business, however, is to help our patients make families. Men and women who wouldn’t have families otherwise. It is not to devastate and disappoint our patients. I’m sure I speak for all my colleagues when I say that.”
Chapter 30: Jace
I leave the TV station mentally exhausted after we were shown a clip of a woman whose face is hidden giving an interview of how she was given sperm different from the one she chose. She realized this when she gave birth to a blue-eyed blond baby while she and the donor she had picked both had brown eyes and black hair.
Of course, there could be numerous explanations for that but nobody wants logical explanations. As I told Olivia, these things are like a rolling ball when they start. They pick up more and more dirt along the way. It’s frightening to think of what tomorrow will bring.
I get in my car and sit in the darkness. The Anderson Clinic is not innocent. No fertility clinic is. We make mistakes but we learn from them. Our biggest error was when they used Alec’s sperm with Ivy but that worked out perfectly. It brought them together but it could have gone very wrong. I shudder every time I think about it. The chances of that leaking are next to none. Fewer than ten people know about it, including the family, and now Olivia. I make a mental note to tell Olivia to delete the story she wrote about Ivy and Alec. It doesn’t matter if there are no names and the clinic was not mentioned. As good a piece as it was, I’ll feel better if it doesn’t exist.
Olivia takes up space in my head. I miss her and I need her tonight. I need to lose myself in her warm, soft body. Get strength from her. It has been a shitty day. So much has happened in the course of the day, and I don’t feel upset anymore about her refusal to stand with me at the press conference. I’ll trust that she has her reasons for not wanting to be seen with me and those reasons don’t include being ashamed of me. I have to be with her tonight. Olivia is the hand that stills the storm for me. The thought of going to my empty apartment feels unbearable.
I turn the ignition key and the SUV roars to life. My body is tight with tension as I drive to Olivia’s place. Our last exchange was cold. I left the office first and was so pissed off that I didn’t bother kissing her goodbye. She has every right to ignore my knock.
I park my car in front of the building. My need to see Olivia is greater than my fear of rejection. I get out of the car and make my way to the front where I hit the buzzer and imagine Olivia strolling across her apartment to the door, a puzzled expression on her impossibly cute face, wondering who is at her door at this time.
“Yes?”
Her voice sinks into my skin and makes me want to mark her as mine. My voice comes out as a growl. “It’s Jace.” Definitely not the cajoling voice I intended to use. I shift my weight from one foot to another, unable to keep still, my body coiled like a spring that needs to be set free.
The door unlocking is her answer and I lunge for it before Olivia changes her mind about letting me in. I take the elevator and as it goes up, all I can think about is holding Olivia in my arms. I’m a fool. I’ve said that about other men who acted stupid and made bad decisions about the women they loved. I said it with scorn. I didn’t get how a woman could twist a grown man around her little finger. Now, I do.
She waits until I knock on her door to open it. Her lips look wet and her skin is flushed. She looks relaxed and sweetly sexy in a tank top and a pair of shorts that are tight on her curves.
“Hi. I wasn’t expecting to see you tonight.” That’s a polite way of asking, what the fuck are you doing here.
“Can I come in?” If she turns me away, I don’t know what I’ll do. I need her with every fiber of my being.
“Sure.” She moves to one side to let me pass.
Her scent hits me as I walk into her apartment and I have to fist my hands to keep from grabbing her and slamming her against me. I sit down uninvited and pop open the top buttons of my shirt.
Olivia sits on the sofa across from me, picks up a glass of wine, and sips it, all the while, staring at me.
“I watched the interview,” she says. “You did well.” A smile pulls at the corners of her lips, warming my insides instantly.
“Thank you.” I don’t want to talk about work. I just want to sit here and ogle her like a fucking perv.
“Would you like a glass of wine?” she finally asks when it’s clear that I’m not going to say anything else.
“Yes, please.”
She sets her glass back down and stands up, heading to the kitchen. My eyes are glued to her perfect ass. I shrug out of my jacket and hang it on the arm rest, making myself even more at home. When Olivia returns, my shirt sleeves are folded up my arms and another button of my shirt is open. She doesn’t take notice of it and merely hands me the wine, taking care not to let our hands touch.
I wait for her to ask me why I’m there but she doesn’t. She sits down and takes another sip of her wine.
“How was dinner at Marcus’s?” Envy comes over me at how much she loves her brother. All he has to do is ask her for dinner and she’ll drop everything to go. I definitely don’t want to be her brother but I wish she had a third of those feelings for me. That she loved me enough to say yes to my company anytime.
A look of confusion comes over her features but it’s so fleeting I’m not sure that I read her properly. She smiles and nods.
“It was fine but I came home early. I wanted to watch your interview.”
That makes me feel good and gives me hope that no matter what is happening, she still has feelings for me. My chest expands painfully as the full force of my love for her comes over me.
“I missed you, Olivia. I had to come.” My voice is low and raw with honesty.
Olivia grows still, her gaze on me. Then tears spring into her eyes.
“What is it?” I ask, startled. Does she have bad news for me? For us? Is this it? Is that the reason why I’ve had a horrible feeling of foreboding all day?
She shakes her head and sets her glass on the table. She comes to me and slides onto my lap. I wrap my arms around her, holding her close. My fear dissipates as I inhale her scent.
“I’ve missed you too, Jace, so much.” Her voice is muffled by my shirt but I hear every word. “I thought I wouldn’t see you today. You looked so remote when you left. Like you never wanted to see me again.” The last words come out like a sob.
