Found Love Read online

  “Hell, no! Once I get her married to me I’ll go back to my extracurricular activities. I’ll just have to be a little more discrete,” he answered, chuckling.

  “What are you going to do about her getting pregnant?”

  “I’ve already taken care of that. As soon as she agrees to marry me, I’m going to get a vasectomy—which she won’t know about. That way, I won’t have to worry about her getting pregnant and I’ll be the loving and supporting husband. No matter what we try, she just won’t get pregnant.” He stood and paced. “I’ll have to suggest that the problem with her conceiving may have to do with all of the miscarriages she’s had in the past. I’ll make sure she believes no other man will want her because she can’t give them a child of their own and that I’m the one man that will love and accept her with her flaws.”

  Curtis Sr. smiled, obviously proud at the way his son thought. “Well, knowing you like I do, son, you’ll get what you want and deserve.”

  Bernice stood outside the door and listened. Tears filled her eyes. She’d heard the pride in her husband’s voice, and it sickened her. How could she have stayed with a man like that for so long? She’d told herself that her son had needed his father’s influence, and now she realized that her husband had to be the worst influence she could have provided for Curtis. Now Curtis wanted her to consign another woman to her fate. She would not be a part of it. Oh, she’d pretend to call and set everything up, but hoped Andréa wouldn’t answer.

  Ramona Wingate waited until she spotted Sebastian’s watchdog assistant exit the building. She made her way inside and back to his office, ready to put her plan into action. If she had a moment to get him alone without that little brat, she’d be able to convince him that they belonged together. Oh, sure, she’d play the role of adoring stepmother-to-be, but once he said I do she’d ship Nico’s little ass off to a boarding school without blinking an eye.

  Ramona walked into his office and waited until he came in to get his briefcase before he left. She removed her coat to reveal her skimpy negligee. Someone cleared their throat behind her, and she whirled around.

  “Can I help you?” said a female security guard standing in the doorway.

  “I’m waiting to meet Dr. York. He asked that I meet him here,” she answered, slipping the coat back into place.

  “I’m sorry, ma’am, but Dr. York has already left for the day,” she said, stepping aside to allow Ramona’s exit.

  As soon as she went through the doorway, the security guard locked Sebastian’s office and followed her to the lobby door, holding it open until she left.

  Ramona glanced back and caught the woman shaking her head as she locked the door and headed towards the rear of the building, no doubt on her way to tell her colleagues what Ramona had tried to do.

  Chapter Five

  Sebastian left the office, picked up Nico from school, and headed to Andréa’s, not wanting to be late. He looked his son over, groaned, and hoped Andréa wouldn’t mind if he gave him a quick bath since it appeared he’d been playing in a vat of mud. He smiled at Nico’s smudged face and couldn’t be mad at him—his son loved going to school. Even though the school catered to very gifted children, they didn’t just focus on the children’s minds but also the body, with a lot of extra activities that kept the children on the go.

  He parked in the spot next to Andréa’s vehicle, unbuckled Nico, and grabbed his backpack. Once inside the lobby, he gave his name to the guard, who instructed them to go on up. She lived in a secured building, and he worried less about her ex still slinking around.

  Andréa met them at the elevator, and he wasn’t surprised that she scooped his dirty little boy up and carried him down the short walk to her door.

  “Come on in and make yourself comfortable. Dinner is almost ready. Someone looks as though they had a great time at school today.” She nuzzled Nico’s neck, and he laughed and squealed.

  “Yes. Would you mind if I gave him a quick bath before we get started? I don’t want him messing up your place.”

  “How about I give him a bath while you come in here to my office and view the designs. I’ll show you how to maneuver the program.”

  “You did the paintings and the sculptures, didn’t you?” he asked, pausing in the middle of the room.

  Andréa stopped and turned to look at him, her face filled with surprise and apprehension. He could tell not too many people were aware of her talent, not even Teresa.

  “Yes,” she responded.

  “They are beautiful works, every single one of them. Your attention to detail is remarkable, but I guess it comes with being a genius.” He smiled at the startled look on her face. “I know because I love and live with one, therefore I call them like I see them. I think it is a gift to be able to do what you’ve done with your work.”

  It seemed his words of praise touched her like nothing else ever had, for her mouth dropped open, and she brought her hand to her chest. “It doesn’t bother you or scare you to know that my mind never stops working?” she asked, clearly surprised.

  “No, it doesn’t bother me, and it shouldn’t bother anyone. Being a genius is a gift from the man above, and I wish that I had half the genius you and Nico have.”

  “I’d better get him in the tub so that we can eat,” she said and rushed away.

  Sebastian smiled. He’d seen the interest and the desire, but he’d also seen the fear. Her ex did a number on her self-esteem, and that pissed him off. He followed the sound of her and Nico’s voices and walked down the hallway to the bedroom. Entering, he came to a stop just inside the doorway to take in the room. Upon sight, the color scheme made him feel warm and welcomed with its rose theme. It would be too much for him, but it suited her. The huge sleigh bed took up the far side of the room near floor-to-ceiling windows. The matching armoire and dresser flowed well with the rest of the room. Art pieces that she’d created adorned the walls and dresser. His gaze went back to the bed, and the image of them entangled on top of it, his mouth upon hers, assailed him. Again, he shook his head to clear his mind.

  Sebastian entered the bathroom and came to a halt in the doorway. His son laughed and played in the tub, their beautiful host having just as much fun. He cleared his throat to catch their attention.

  “I have his backpack here with an extra set of clothes inside.”

  They both nodded but otherwise ignored him. With a shake of his head he retraced his steps, leaving the bedroom and going down the hall to the second room that he guessed to be her office. The room had all kinds of state-of-the-art electronic and computer equipment. He walked in and moved to the table displaying the virtual picture of the designs they’d come up with. Once again, she’d impressed but not surprised him. He rotated the image. Catching on to how it worked, he rotated and switched the image, adding and removing things as he went along.

  Nico raced in with Andréa right behind him. “Wow, Dad, this is awesome!”

  “I know, son. Do you like it? This is going to be our new home.” He focused on the backyard, bringing it up into view to show Nico how much playground he would have.

  “That’s cool. Andréa, can I use this program?” Nico asked.

  She took Nico’s hand and led him over to another desk, and with a wave of her hand, another virtual image came up.

  “You can do whatever you want to do here—build whatever you want to build and save it with your own password.”

  Nico gave her a hug and a kiss then focused on his own virtual station.

  She returned to the table where Sebastian stood. “So, what do you think?” she asked.

  “I’m impressed and excited about everything you’ve created here. I have a question.” Andréa nodded for him to continue. “I’m wondering about the kitchen. Can we make that just a tad bigger? I have this love for cooking and I wanted the kitchen to be that of a commercial size.”

  Andréa smiled. “Ah, a man after my on heart. Yes, we can enlarge it.” She made the adjustments on her computer that fed to
the virtual image. The kitchen expanded and filled with marble counter tops and dark oak cabinets with glass doors. A commercial-sized stainless steel refrigerator appeared and positioned itself near the center island with the glass top range and gas grill attached.

  “How soon can we get started, and how fast can we get it done?” he inquired without taking his eyes away from the image.

  “I think we can print everything and send it to Mack and his crew, get a start date and a date of completion.” She printed off copies of the blueprints then attached their file to an email to Mack. Within minutes, her desk phone rang. She hit the speaker button and answered.

  “You are telling me that my buddy didn’t have any changes that he wanted to make?” Mack asked.

  “As a matter of fact, he had one change.”

  “Let me guess, he wanted the kitchen bigger.” At her gasp, he laughed. “I know my buddy like the back of my hand. I’m sure that he wants to get started as soon as possible.”

  “Hi, Uncle Mack,” Nico yelled from his spot at the spare desk.

  “Is that Nico I hear yelling? Don’t tell me you made dinner for my buddy. I can see you feeding Nico, but that slacker of a friend of mine can starve.”

  “Mack, you’re lucky Mom loves you or I’d make you disappear,” Sebastian said.

  Mack laughed at his best friend’s threat, knowing he didn’t mean it. They ended the call.

  “Andréa, I’m hungry,” Nico said, pulling himself away from his work station.

  “Well, come on, handsome. I can’t have my little man hungry.” She scooped him up and headed out of the office.

  Sebastian halted and answered his cell. “Yeah, Mack? What’s up?”

  “So, you’re having dinner with Andréa.” Not a question but a statement with the hint of a warning.

  “She suggested dinner at the time she made the appointment with me to come over to view the images. I’m not out to hurt or use her. You know me better than that.”

  Mack sighed. “Yes, I know, but I know that from the night you came to her rescue she’s been on your mind. I saw your interest in her the night of Teresa’s party. I know you’re interested in her more than you have been in a female in a very long time. Hell, I’m not stupid or blind. All I’m saying is that you’re important to me, but she is also, and I don’t know everything that the asshole put her through, but I can’t sit back and let her be hurt again.”

  Sebastian couldn’t be angry. He didn’t want her hurt either—and he wanted to be the one protecting her. “I don’t want her hurt either, believe me, and you’re right, she’s been on my mind from that first night. I just think there could be something here. I’ll pursue it as long as she’s comfortable with it.”

  After the call, Sebastian made his way to the kitchen. His nostrils flared at the wonderful smell of lasagna. His stomach let out a ferocious growl, and he realized that he hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast.

  “Wow, Daddy, you must be hungry!” Nico said, laughing.

  Sebastian walked over to his son and gave him a quick kiss before washing up and grabbing a plate. He groaned at his first bite; the food melted in his mouth.

  “My god, this is delicious,” he praised, enjoying the taste.

  “I’m glad you like the food. It’s been a long time since I’ve cooked for anyone other than myself,” she said.

  “I’m all done. Andréa, can I go back and finish my designs?” Nico asked.

  “Sure you can, muffin,” she agreed and accepted his quick hug and kiss before he dashed out of the kitchen.

  She rose and started collecting plates and carrying them over to the sink. Sebastian followed suit, offering to rinse while she loaded them into the dishwasher.

  “Would you like some coffee?” Andréa offered.

  “No, I can’t have another thing or I’m going to pop. I’ve eaten way too much. Come on, sit and talk with me while I allow my food to digest,” Sebastian suggested. Taking her hand in his, he led her to the living room where she sat on the love seat, him next to her. He stretched out his long legs and placed his laced fingers on his flat stomach. “So, tell me about Andréa Morgan.”

  “There isn’t much to tell. I’m single, never been married—although I came close to marrying the wrong man, but thank God I realized the error before I said I do.” She shrugged, laying her head back.

  “What attracted you to him?” Sebastian asked.

  “I think it had to be his personality. He seemed so sweet and easy going, and he gave me a lot of attention. And one thing about growing up in an orphanage with so many other kids, you try not to compete with all the others and fade into the background. Curtis came along and lavished me with all of his attention. I got caught up and didn’t see in him what I should have. I kind of built up a virtual image of him, and whenever he did something I’d come up with an excuse like, that wasn’t his character…not the image I’d created around him anyway.”

  “So you had blinders on and missed his flaws, missed his true image,” Sebastian added.

  “Yes, even after my first miscarriage. He showed up at the hospital three days later after I’d been calling him, saying he’d had an emergency trip to do for his father. I just dismissed it along with the fact that he didn’t seem as upset about the miscarriage as I was.”

  “Wait, how many miscarriages have you had?”

  “The night you came to my rescue was the third one. I guess maybe Curtis is right, I’m just not capable of carrying a child.”

  By the way she spoke, Sebastian could tell that she believed Curtis’ words.

  “Is Curtis a doctor?” Andréa shook her head. “Have you gone to a doctor to find out if there is something wrong?” Again, she shook her head. Sebastian placed his hand under her chin and turned her eyes to face his. “Until you find out from a doctor who says you can’t carry a child, I would have to say that the powers that be figured Curtis had to be the wrong man for you, that it wouldn’t have been right for you to have his child. Knowing you just for the little time I have, I know having his child would have tied you to him. I know several people that I can refer you to, and they can do the tests to determine if there is a problem with your system or not. I’m inclined to believe that there isn’t a problem with you at all. And I’d have to guess that he wasn’t there at the time you had the second miscarriage either.”

  Once again she shook her head. He pulled her into his arms and held her.

  Her phone rang.

  Andréa lifted her head to hit the speaker button on the phone that sat on the end table. “Yes?” she said on a yawn, her body relaxed being held by Sebastian.

  “Hi, Andréa, this is Bernice Monroe. How are you doing, dear?”

  She stiffened at the sound of the woman’s voice and tried to move out of Sebastian’s embrace. He tightened his hold on her.

  “Hi, Bernice. What can I help you with?” Andréa gave herself a mental pat on the back—her voice didn’t waver, although her insides quaked.

  “I’m thinking about adding on to the patio and I wanted to know if you’d help me by doing a consultation. I’ve heard all about what a wonderful job you do with your designs. I thought I’d give my business to you.”

  “I’m sorry, Bernice, but at the moment I have a new client that I’m working with and I only take one client at a time.”

  “I understand that, dear. Well, is there someone that you can recommend? Or could you just come by and tell me what I should ask another designer?”

  Andréa sighed. The woman had always been nice to her, and she hated turning her away. Sebastian gave her a gentle squeeze. She lifted her head and looked at him. He put a finger to his lip before he hit the mute button on the phone.

  “Tell her that you’ll come by tomorrow to tell her what she should ask, but that you’ll have about twenty minutes to spare.”

  Andréa nodded and did as he instructed. Bernice thanked her before disconnecting the call.

  “Why did you tell me to accept?” Andr
éa asked.

  “Something in her voice, like an odd note or something, makes me think she hadn’t expected you to answer or that she hoped that you wouldn’t answer. I don’t think that her motives are her own.”

  Andréa gasped. “You think Curtis put her up to it.”

  “Yes. I think his plan is to have you show up and he’ll be there to catch you off-guard. But he’s going to be the one caught off-guard because you have a new assistant that you’re showing the ropes to, and considering that I’m about to be retired, I’m thinking of going into a new field of work.”

  She smiled, but her smile faltered. “Why are you doing this?”

  “Because there’s something here between us, something that has been between us since the night we met two years ago, but most of all, I know what that bastard did to you in the past. You didn’t deserve to be treated that way; and from what I picked up from him that night at Teresa’s party, he wants you back and he will stoop to any level to get what he wants. I refuse to let that happen. Now, if I’m reading this all wrong and you want a chance to make it work…”

  “You aren’t reading it wrong. After I removed the blinders, I realized Curtis and I weren’t compatible. I wanted things that he didn’t, and the most important was kids. I guess it took three miscarriages for me to realize that. After you delivered me to the hospital, and after I left the hospital and took a cab to my car, I drove back to his house, packed the things that I’d taken there with me, called a cab, and left. I got a room in a hotel for a few days knowing that once he finished screwing his latest conquest, he’d come in search of me. The first place he’d go would be the hospital, thinking I’d be there waiting on him, and he’d go there and pretend to be just as devastated by the loss as I was. So I stayed at the hotel until I’d talked to Teresa and told her I’d decided to leave Curtis and get my own place. But I never told her about the miscarriage; at least she didn’t know about the last two, otherwise she’d hit the ceiling and hit Curtis too.”

  “How long did you stay in the hotel?”