Accept My Baby: A Billionaire BWWM Single Parent Pregnancy Romance (10 page)

“
Hope
you are ready for the ride of your life,” he said as he looked
at her.

“
Oh
I got my camera ready,” she said as she patted her camera bag.
“Now, on with it. We only have a few more hours of daylight and
I really don’t want to waste it.”

“
You
can be a little bossy. Did anyone ever tell you that?” Rafael
asked and she shrugged.

“
There
have been a few comments,” she said, smiling.

“
And
did any of the comments point out how hot it was?” he asked as
he started the engines.

She rolled her head
to the side to hide the fact that she was blushing.

“
Take
us up, Imperioli,” she said as she took her camera out of the
bag. She took the first photo of an unsuspecting Rafael before he
turned and smiled at her. She was not sure he knew it at the time but
at that moment, she was having the time of her life. She was actually
having fun for the first time in months.

*****

“
That
was amazing,” Amanda said when they landed back on the roof of
Imperioli Enterprises.

“
I’m
happy you enjoyed it.” Rafael looked at her and waited for her
to get her camera back in her bag. “To be honest, I was only
too happy to do it.”

She looked at him and
took a long deep breath to calm herself. She was still feeling like
she’d had a shot of adrenaline or something of the sort.

“
Thank
you for doing this. I don’t think I have ever taken such
beautiful shots...
ever,”
she said in a soft
voice. “And recently I found a way to get all the shots I need
in the same post and...” her voice trailed off when she
remembered just where she got the idea. Sienna.

“
What?
What happened?” he asked and she shrugged.

“
Just
a few terrible memories...coming back to my mind,” she said,
her face suddenly becoming gloom.

“
Hey,”
Rafael started as he lifted her chin using his index finger. “Where
did you go?”

“
I’m
sorry. I don’t mean to be a party pooper...I just have this
cloud over my head.”

He smiled.

“
You
mean a halo.”

She smiled and
shrugged.

“
To
each their own, I guess,” she said as she looked at him.

“
Come
on. I’ll take you to the best spot in town for dinner,”
he said and she frowned.

“
I
should really be getting home.”

“
It’s
only six thirty. And I am going to feed you.”

“
Do
we really have to go to the best spot in town?” she asked. “I
mean, I really should be keeping a low profile around here and you do
not exactly do the whole low profile thing.”

“
Trust
me, Amanda. This place I am taking you is not just the best
restaurant in Turin but it is as private as you could ever want it to
be,” he said, still holding her chin. “What do you say,
Amanda? Can you trust me enough to come with me?”

She bit
her lip and nodded after a long time.

“
Good.
Come on,” he said before he got off. He walked around and
helped her out before he took her hand in his.

She
slowly followed him into the elevator and breathed long low breaths
as he held her waist. She could sense that he was somehow possessive
with her. She could guess that he was the kind of man who got
whatever he set his mind on and at that moment, it seemed like she
was what he wanted. Who he wanted.

She
could feel people’s eyes on her as they made their way through
the front lobby to the front door. But he did not seem to care. As
far as he was concerned, they were the only ones who were there at
that moment and nothing else mattered. He led her to his white
Lamborghini and waited for her to get in before he got in.

“
Ready?”
he asked as he strapped himself in and she nodded.

“
Yeah,
ready.”

“
Good,”
he said before he pulled out of the driveway.

Her heart was
pounding in her chest as he drove off. She did not know why she felt
so nervous. It might have been the whole pregnancy thing making her
sick as a result of all the motion but it could have also been just
nerves. She could not wait to get to the restaurant and have a ginger
ale to settle her stomach.

As they drove through
the streets, she could not help but notice that the street they were
driving down was a little too familiar. It took a while but
eventually, it all became clear to her. They were driving towards his
house. She turned to look at him and drummed her fingers on the
camera case.

“
Are
we on the road to your place?” she asked and he nodded. “But
I thought you were taking me to the best restaurant in Turin.”

“
I
am,” he said. “And believe me when I tell you that no one
makes a better linguine than I do. Plus I also made my grandmother’s
spicy carrot cake last night. With the frosting all perfectly set,
I’m sure it will be a great treat for dessert.”

She smiled and looked
at him as he pulled up in front of his house. She could not help but
wonder why a single man would need such a big place. What she didn’t
realize was that she had actually wondered out loud.

“
Because
Italy is my home and this is where my heart is.” He looked
outside his window at his well manicured lawn. “And this is
where I want my family to call home.”

“
But
your family already calls this place home,” she said. He
laughed and got out of the car. She stepped out before he could walk
around to help her out. He was a perfect gentleman that way. He took
her hand and slowly led her towards the front door.

“
When
I say my family, I do not mean my parents or my brother. I am talking
about my own family. My wife and kids...maybe a dog too,” he
said.

“
I’m
sorry but you don’t look like a family person,” she said
as he opened the door.

“
Whoa,
judgmental much?”

“
I’m
sorry. I’m not trying to be judgmental or anything...it’s
just that after the party the other night, I checked you out and all
I saw was that you are a billionaire with a weakness for models and
socialites.”

He took her camera
bag and led her out to the kitchen, his humongous five star kitchen.
She would not have been surprised if she saw it on Martha Stewart or
something.

“
Let’s
just say that I am yet to find someone who gets me,” he said as
she sat down at the counter. “But I am not giving up.”

“
How
does a man like you not get the perfect woman? You are the full
package,” she said and suddenly felt her cheeks flush when she
realized what she had just said. She had basically just flat out paid
him a compliment that also came out as flirtatious.

“
Why
thank you,” he said, a smile on his face.

He walked to his wine
rack and came back with two bottles of wine.

“
So,
what’s your fancy? Red or white?”

“
I
don’t know. You are the chef. How about you pick,” she
said.

“
I
don’t really adhere to the traditional pairings but they are
both great bottles. I mean, 1980 was a great year.” He looked
at the two bottles separately and then placed the red wine on the
counter. “I guess red it is.”

She smiled and
watched him pour two glasses of wine.

“
So,
Mr. Imperioli,” she started as he put on an apron. “What
exactly should I know about you? Now that I already know you are a
man who loves throwing glamorous parties and live like like a king.”

“
I
would love to tell you but I think I like the whole ladies first
thing. Tell me about you first and then maybe I can tell you about
me.”

“
And
I like the first ask, first answered rule,” she said as he got
a pack of ground beef from the fridge.

“
I
think you kind of tweaked the language on that rule a little bit,”
he said smiling.

“
What
can I say?” she asked shrugging. “I kind of have a way
with words.”

He laughed and took
another sip of his wine before he put the ground beef in a bowl.

“
Alright,”
he started. “You already know that my name in Rafael Imperioli.
Middle name Vicente.”

“
Wow,
you are going to start from the very beginning, aren’t you?”

“
Isn’t
that the best way to get started? Okay, fine. I’ll cut right to
the good stuff.”

“
That
sounds perfect,” she said as she sipped on her wine.

“
So,
I guess on paper, the world thinks I am so perfect, right?” he
asked and she nodded. “Well, it is far from it.”

She forced a laugh
and shook her head.

“
To
be quite honest, I don’t disagree with you.”

“
I
wouldn’t blame you. It seems the world has this idea of who I
am...or at least who I am supposed to be.”

“
I
blame the poor excuse for journalism the paparazzi pedal. It is and I
am trying to be very polite here, pure shit,” Amanda pointed
out matter of factly.

“
That
was you being polite?” he asked, laughing. “I would hate
to be on your bad side.”

She watched as he got
some vegetables from the fridge.

“
What?
It is true. All they do is use their credentials to invade people’s
personal space and post terrible private photos and videos.”

“
I
guess,” he said in a soft voice. “I have been a victim a
few too many times. I mean I am not safe in any country.”

“
I
think that has a lot to do with the friendship you forged with Paris
Hilton back when she was still a little wild fire,” she said
and he frowned.

“
That
was
a
low moment, wasn’t it?” he said and she smiled. “So,
I am apparent heir to the Imperioli business empire, something that I
didn’t ask for and definitely didn’t want.”

“
Are
you crazy? Anyone would kill to have the opportunity you have,”
she said and he forced out a laugh.

“
The
opportunity forced on me, you mean...I mean, I rarely have any chance
to make my own decisions, even personal ones.”

“
What
does that even mean?” she asked as he put a pot of water on one
of the stove burners.

“
The
perfect picture that is my family, has been carefully cultivated by
my parents. I mean nothing ever happens without them approving every
single aspect of even the simplest of things. Like the color of the
vase.” He grabbed a chopping board and began chopping up the
vegetables.

“
Need
some help?” she asked and he smiled at her.

“
My
restaurant, my service. You just stay there and look pretty. You
could be my muse.”

“
Muse?
You are painting now?”

“
Food
is as much an art as any other artistic form.”

“
This
is awesome. I could get used to this,” she said in a soft
voice.

“
I
wouldn’t mind it if you did,” Rafael said looking up from
the chopping board. “You always do that when you are a little
uncomfortable...maybe when you are blushing,” he said after a
long silence.

“
Do
what?”

“
Bite
your lower lip.”

She inadvertently bit
her lower lip again and then pushed a strand of hair behind her right
ear.

“
You
tend to do that too,” he pointed out and she got off the chair
at the counter.

“
Okay.
I think I will just let you cook since you won’t let me help
and we can have this little talk later,” she said as she began
walking towards the living room. “I’m just hoping you
have a decent movie collection.”

Rafael
was right. His linguine was amazing! Perhaps better than any
authentic Italian restaurant food she had ever had...and she’d
had quite the number of ‘authentic’ Italian food. After
dinner, she could see it in his eyes that he did not want to take her
back home. And it was not like she wanted to leave either. She was
having such a good time. Rafael had put on some soft music in the
background and carried their dessert to the living room. He had just
poured himself another glass of wine when he sat back down next to
her and she smiled at him.