A Baby for My Billionaire Stepbrother 4 (3 page)

I tried to think back. I definitely saw him working on one right before he told me I had to go last time, but where had it been the rest of the time? With him?

It wasn't really important. “I guess I'll just drop my bag here in the living room and we can go.”

“You're probably going to want to put it in the guest room. Once the after-party begins, people are going to be all over the place here.”

“The after party is going to be here?” I remembered him saying something about an after party but I didn't remember him saying anything about it being here. That of course meant that people would be here until the early hours of the morning, and there would be no sneaking off for a midnight tryst. I sighed loudly just thinking about how sexually frustrated I was going to be by the end of the night.

“Yeah. Here, I'll show you to the guest room.” She led the way into the apartment. I really wanted to put my stuff in the master bedroom, but I guess I had to play the game while Anne was here. We stepped in and I noticed how sparsely it was furnished. I laughed. “Where do you think the camera is in here?”

She laughed. “There doesn't seem to be any place to hide it. I'd help you tear the room apart to find it, but I do have to get back to work eventually.”

I nodded, then dropped my bag and we headed back for the coffee shop.

W
hen we arrived back at the coffee shop, I heard a mic check being performed. Apparently, the sound system problem was fixed. It had taken us a little more than an hour to get there and back and the place was already starting to fill up.

“I gotta get back behind the counter, but it was really nice talking to you,” Anne said.

“You, too!” I said. I watched as she got back to the register, helping the guy with the orders that were coming in.

James was apparently satisfied with the way the sound system was working now. I saw him sitting on a stool, quietly plucking at the strings of his guitar and making some fine tuning adjustments. After a few moments, he looked up and saw me. He smiled, then put his guitar down and walked over toward me.

The way he advanced on me reminded me of when he had in his office, in his house, and then again in my dorm room. He wanted me, and nothing was going to stop him. A few feet from me, and just as I began to close my eyes, he spoke up. “Allie, I need your help to get something out of the back store room.”

It wasn't a request. It was a demand. I nodded, and he walked around the counter of the coffee shop to the back area. I walked with him into a closet that smelled deeply like some rich coffee.

As soon as I was inside, he closed the door behind him. Immediately, he had his hands around my neck, pulling me in for a deep kiss. I felt myself surrender to him, my knees already going weak as he kissed me. He ran his hands up my sides, pulling my jacket up as he did so. As soon as his hands felt skin, he looked down. I knew what he was curious about. I unzipped my jacket slowly, revealing that there was nothing but a halter top on underneath. I felt his nails dig into my sides as he leaned his face down to my ear.

“You have no idea how unfair it is that I can't take advantage of this,” he said.

I slapped his chest playfully. “Unfair? Unfair is making me wait for you like this.”

He put his finger to his lips. “No lock on the door. We can't do this here.”

I slapped his chest again. “Then why'd you bring me in here!?” I had a wry smile on my face so he knew I wasn't really mad.

He smiled back. “Because it was unfair of you to keep teasing me.” Before I could respond, he leaned back in and gave me another smoldering kiss. He leaned back and pulled away, then turned toward a high shelf. He handed me two bottles of Irish whiskey. “Carry these up to Anne and tell her to hide them for now.”

I nodded, then turned around to open the door. He spoke up one last time. “Oh, and Allie?”

I turned and looked at him.

“If you keep teasing me for the rest of the night, then I'll have to punish you later.”

I began to get wet just thinking about what kind of “punishment” he could have waiting for me.

***

I
walked out of the closet just as another familiar face was walking into the shop. James' secretary from his office, Lauren, was walking in from the cold. As soon as she saw me, she averted her eyes, quickly hurrying toward the register. I knew why, of course. She was the only other person who knew that James and I had fucked. Fortunately for me, she was under a non-disclosure agreement, forced under the power of law not to reveal anything she heard or saw.

Like Audrey, another person forced to keep secrets for James
, I thought.

I walked up to Anne, still behind the counter, and showed her the bottles. She seemed to know to put them away discretely without me saying anything, then gave me a wink. Lauren was in line and looked up, and I gave a little wave. She gave an awkward little wave back. Just then, James came out of the same store room that she had just seen me come out of, carrying two more bottles of whiskey. Lauren quickly put her hand back down and looked at the floor.

Poor girl
, I thought.
She thinks she's witnessing something super fucked up, and she can't say a thing.
I didn't even know if she knew that we weren't really brother and sister.

I walked back around. The coffee shop was filling up fast, so I knew I had to claim a seat quickly. James had been tuning his guitar on the left side of the stage and was already plugged into an amp, so I knew that he'd be over there. Luckily, there was one on the far left in the third row, and I snatched it up. The concert wasn't set to start for another 30 minutes or so, so I pulled out my phone and began to look over myFace.

Suddenly, I received an email from Tessa.

––––––––

D
id you talk to him yet?

––––––––

I
knew she was just looking out for me, but I also knew that I could look out for myself. Well, most of the time anyway. James had saved me from a guy named Dennis who didn't know that “no means no” just the other day. Still, I'd be fine for now. I emailed her back.

––––––––

N
ot yet. His concert is going to start in a few minutes, then there's a party back at his place.

––––––––

T
essa replied back almost immediately.

––––––––

H
old onto your drink all night.

––––––––

N
ow that was an eye-roll inducing statement. Did she think that James had roofied Audrey now? That was pretty unfair. I emailed her back as quickly as I could.

––––––––

I
'll let you know how it went.

––––––––

T
hen I turned off my phone. I didn't need to hear any more from her after that. By this point, James was back on stage, tuning his guitar again. I expected him to occasionally look down at me, but he was completely engrossed in that guitar.

It kind of reminded me of the single-mindedness with which he pursued his business. Oblivious to the world around him, he made deals for the simple joy of making them. Now, he was oblivious once again to the world happening around him, concentrating only on the problem in front of him. I could tell he was enjoying it, that he took joy in making his guitar sound perfect. I felt like it gave me an insight into his soul.

A guy walked out on stage. I had seen him before, working on the sound system. What was his name? Ryan. He looked more confident now than he had been when James was yelling at him about his little sister's karaoke machine. His short hair was a sandy blonde, he had bolts in his ears, and I could see tattoos on his body. He looked like the embodiment of a bad boy rocker. It seemed a little strange, but he was holding a large reusable grocery bag.

He stepped to the mic, then looked at James. James nodded at him. Ryan smiled and grabbed the mic. “Who's ready for Lefty and the Sharks?”

A cheer came up from the crowd. It was hardly a huge crowd, maybe sixty or seventy people, but they filled this half of the coffee shop to the brim. However, a few of them were quite enthusiastic, sending a few hoots and hollers up to the band.

A drummer sat down at his set, and another guy had a bass guitar. Ryan didn't have a guitar, but I guessed he was going to be doing the singing tonight.

“Now, I know that you all know that I don't have a liquor license, so I can't sell you any alcohol. However...” He bent down and pulled a bottle of whiskey from the bag that he had brought on stage. “That doesn't mean that I can't give away some to my friends. With the purchase of a coffee, of course.”

Another cheer came from the crowd. He bent down and handed the bottle to someone in the first row. I saw Anne pull out the two bottles of whiskey from behind the counter and some disposable plastic shot glasses. I was pretty sure that it was just as illegal for him to give the alcohol away as it was to sell it, but then again, I'm sure James could buy his way out of any trouble here. Maybe he had even cleared it with the cops first. James was the type who would have all his bases covered like that.

Ryan took another bottle out of the bag, then opened it up. He took a huge gulp of it, then passed it to James. He also took a drink, then passed it to the drummer. They all took a drink before Ryan put it back down on the stage. “Now who came here to hear us play?”

Another cheer came up. The drummer clacked his sticks together and they immediately launched into a song. The crowd was on their feet in no time, cheering on the band. I unzipped my jacket, allowing my hands to linger on my belly for just a moment before raising them in the air to cheer as well.

I wish I could tell you about their music. There were some originals, mixed in with some covers of classic rock. I wish I could tell you that the lyrics spoke to me, that I thought they were about me, but I can't. I only listened to James' guitar, letting his music wash over me. Half the time he looked out at the crowd, mostly at me. The other half of the time, he watched his own fingers move over the frets, taking great passion and pride in making the music sound fantastic.

My eyes never left him. One song blended fantastically into the next. I didn't have a drink, but the crowd was definitely enjoying the booze and music for sure. I know that they played for over an hour, but it felt like just minutes passed. In fact, when the guitars did stop playing, and Ryan said into the mic, “Thank you all for coming, you've been great. There will be no encores,” I was actually surprised that they had been playing that long.

James set his guitar down and walked up to the mic. “The after party is at my apartment. If you have to ask where it is, just follow the line of people walking there. Entry fee will be one of my metal folding chairs, stacked neatly in my studio. See you there!”

As I watched people fold up their chairs and start to carry them out the door, I laughed. Leave it to James to find a way for people to do his work for him. I walked up to the stage. He saw me coming up to him, and put the mic back away in the stand.

“You were great,” I congratulated him.

“I really was on fire tonight,” he said, puffing up a little bit with pride. That cocky attitude was never too far away with James.

“Well, don't quit your day job anyway,” I said.

“Maybe some day,” he said, winking at me. “Anyway, you should get to my apartment. I've got to make sure all my equipment gets put away right, but I'll be there as soon as I can.”

“Are you sure? I can help if you like.”

He shook his head. “Some of it is heavy. I promise, I'll be as quick as I can. Anne is going to keep manning the register until the place is empty, but she'll be right behind you.”

I nodded, figuring I'd just wait for her. James turned away and started dismantling sound equipment, while I walked to the front of the store. The metal folding chairs were all gone by now, so I pulled a chair up to one of the tables on the other side of the shop. Anne saw me and waved. As soon as everyone was gone, she gestured for us to go. “Once more, into the breach!” she cried as she turned the OPEN sign to CLOSED and locked the door.

A
s soon as we walked into the apartment, I noticed how different it felt with so many people in it. There were forty or so people, including a bartender that I had seen at the concert. He was now manning a table with every kind of major liquor available. People were drinking and having a great time, but all my mind could think about was how
dirty
this place was going to get.

I guess when you're as rich as James, you just get maids to do it.

Anne immediately introduced me to some people. She said that her band couldn't make it there tonight, but that I totally should meet them some time. From the way she lit up talking about them and her music, I really was looking forward to hearing her play.

Soon, however, I was tired of hearing people I didn't know tell stories about more people I didn't know. I went to the bartender, thinking about getting a drink but just getting a diet cola at the last moment. One drink wouldn't hurt the baby, especially when I didn't even have a positive pregnancy test yet, but zero drinks would probably be better.

I went and sat down on the couch, the same couch that I had played with myself on just a few days ago. I really just wanted to hang out with James, not go to a party where I knew literally nobody. I thought about pulling out my phone, but then I knew I'd look really bored. I unzipped my jacket, letting the cooler air hit my stomach. It had been a long day, so I just kind of leaned back and closed my eyes.

“You feeling okay?” a voice that I had just listened to for an hour asked me.

I opened my eyes back up. The lead singer, Ryan, was standing over me. “Mmm? No, I'm fine.”

He nodded his head, then sat down next to me. “Too much to drink?”

I looked down at my cup, half full of the cola still. He didn't know that it was non-alcoholic. “Yeah, maybe,” I said. I noticed his tattoos. They looked tribal, but I had no idea what they meant. I had been dating bad boys for a long time, and they all seemed to get tattoos that looked cool without knowing what they meant.