Amedeo, Her Italian Billionaire (14 page)

“Not heart-to-heart about this.”

“You need to. You both need to be in the same place on this. You are both the parents and you have to agree on how this child will be raised.”

“You and Gwen have done that?”

“Yes. Long before she got pregnant. I had to know that she had my back and she had to know that I had hers.”

“That’s pretty complicated for Violet and I. We aren’t married. We aren’t two people in love. We are just two people having a baby together.”

“You still need to talk about it. Probably even more than a married couple would. You aren’t going to be living in the same house. You are going to be sharing custody and the child will need consistency.”

What Dante said made sense. He would have to broach things with Violet. They needed to be on the same page. In the same place about how to raise a child. His brother was right. Amedeo would have to initiate this talk. Violet probably hadn’t thought about it.

“I hadn’t thought of it that way. I’m glad I talked to you. At least if we’re discussing this I’ll feel like I’m doing something.”

“Planning is your forte so use that.”

Amedeo nodded. “I asked her to marry me so that Violet would be on my insurance plan. I’ve had a prenup drawn up, but Violet isn’t keen on marrying me.”

“That’s really her choice. In this day and age, not every couple gets married when the woman gets pregnant. I’d bet she’s pretty independent.”

“She is. Sometimes painfully so.”

“Something you have to work around.”

Amedeo nodded, thinking about how he would broach the subject with Violet. They did need to clear the air. He wasn’t worried about it, he just hoped they had similar values. He wanted his child to go to private schools. There were several in the Princeton area. Maybe that was getting ahead of himself.

“I don’t even know where Violet is going to live after the baby’s born.”

“You want to know that.”

“I guess I’ve been worried about some intangibles when I can deal with the tangibles.”

Dante slapped his back. “It’s okay, Amedeo. I went through some moments of terror. It’s normal, but you have to get through it.”

Amedeo had a lot to think about. There were logistics of raising a child that he could deal with. Might make him feel better about not being sure he can be a father. Never in his life had he set off in a direction that he wasn’t sure of. This insecurity was knocking him off his game.

Of course he could raise a child. It wasn’t easy, but neither was building up a company. And if he could sell this one in the next few years, he’d have more time to be with his child.

Hmm. Maybe he’d take a year off and spend it all with his baby.

***

Violet woke from her nap, feeling better. The pounding in her head was much lighter so she went downstairs for her laptop. Yes, Amedeo would be mad that she got out of bed, but she wasn’t a child. She felt okay and her strength was back. She didn’t want to watch any more movies and she needed to do something to stimulate her brain.

Hacking. She liked to keep her skills up and hack into something just to see if she could. She targeted a company, but she had no idea what they did. Besides, it was the weekend. No one would be there to see and she could back out without leaving a trace.

She knew if she worked on Amedeo’s project he’d be mad. She could technically say she was just playing.

He wasn’t due back until dinner time so she had an hour.

She settled herself back into bed when her phone rang. Kalia.

“Hey girl,” she said.

Kalia laughed. “I know we just saw each other, but I’m missing you this weekend.”

“I wish you could come over. I’m bored on bed rest.”

“What happened?”

“I was hit by a car. Not badly, but Amedeo is being a mother hen.”

“I looked him up on the internet. Girl, he’s one ‘hawt’ dude.”

Violet laughed. Yes, he is. “Why’d you look him up?”

“I was bored.”

“You need a man.”

“No, I need a vibrator. Less hassle than a man,” Kalia said.

Her friend was probably right. “You know what Amedeo wanted? He asked me to marry him. Prenup and all.”

“Marriage? No way? You should jump at it. It can’t be hard to see that man naked.”

Life wasn’t ever as simple as Kalia thought it was. “I can’t marry him, Kalia. I want to be in love when I marry.”

“You old-fashioned?”

“Yes, I guess I am. Not that old-fashioned since I’m having a baby out of wedlock.”

Kalia snorted. “Details. You free this week?”

“I’m sure I can be free.”

“Let me know what day works for you.”

“Okay. I’ll call you Tuesday when I’m back to work. I’ll know what my schedule it. I wish you could see this house. It’s as big as our whole apartment building, I swear.”

“You can’t have a home girl over?”

“Not sure. It’s still Amedeo’s house. I’d feel odd inviting anyone here.”

“Fair enough. Talk to you later.”

Violet went back to her task at hand. She targeted a business then let her fingers dance over the keyboard. This one had pretty good security. She had to be careful. They might be able to find her.

“What are you doing?”

Amedeo stood in the doorway. He had his arms crossed.

“Just having fun. No worries.”

At least she hoped not. She stared at the screen as Amedeo stared at her. “Did you have a nice nap?”

“Yes and now I need to work my brain. Give me ten minutes and I’ll be off.”

“You sure you should be on the computer?”

“I’m fine. If my head hurts more I’ll get off.”

“What are you doing?”

“Hacking into a site.”

He frowned. “Be careful.”

“Hacking is what I do for a living. I know what I’m doing.”

But he’d distracted her and she wasn’t being careful. If he’d stayed away she would have had her full attention on her task. Instead, she must have gone somewhere she didn’t understand. A warning came up and she backed out of the site.

“What’s wrong?”

“You’re distracting me. That’s what’s wrong,” she said.

“I just wanted to see if you’re okay. I think there are some things we need to talk about.”

She looked up at him over her computer. She was backing out of the site, but not doing it with any finesse. Hopefully she wasn’t leaving a trail. She didn’t want this person to find her because she had a feeling there was some illegal activity going on. She didn’t like what she’d seen.

After backing out of the site, she closed her laptop. “What things do we need to talk about?”

Was he kicking her out? Who had he gone to see? Had they convinced him that she was just a gold digger? She wasn’t. If he’d given her abortion money, she would have never seen him again.

“Don’t be scared. I think we need to talk about the baby and how we are going to parent this child.”

“Do I need to make a decision about custody right now?”

Her head had begun to hurt again and she wasn’t sure she could think straight right now. That’s what she got for going on the computer.

“No, but you need to think about it. We need to have a plan for raising this child. We need to know that we agree on how to parent this child,” he said.

He’d come to sit on the edge of the bed. She looked at him as if he had two heads. “The birth is months away.”

“Then we’ll have months to sort this out if we don’t agree on things. You know I’m flexible about custody, but there are other things I find important.”

“Like what?”

“I want my child to go to a local private school. That may mean that you live near here. I know you’ve already uprooted your life, but I want you to think about making your permanent residence closet to me.”

She frowned. She hadn’t thought about where she would live, which was odd for her. She could be planning if it was necessary. Then again, her plans had never turned out. Why should she make them?

She shrugged. “Okay. I’m going to have to figure out what I can afford.”

“I’m assuming the child will be in daycare at some point. We’ll have to pick that together. Which means you’ll have to have a clear idea of where you’ll be living.”

She rubbed a hand down her face. “If you want to have this conversation, you need to feed me.”

He laughed. “Okay I’ll make dinner.”

“Thanks. Then I promise we’ll talk about this stuff. Meanwhile I’ll think about it.”

“We need to think about discipline and bottle feeding and what kind of diapers,” he said.

“There’s a whole lot do to with baby raising.”

He nodded, brushing a hair out of her face. “There is and I couldn’t ask for hotter baby mama.”

She just laughed as he walked out.

Chapter10

With dinner done, Amedeo washed the dishes then returned to the bedroom to watch a movie with Violet. She was very affectionate, but he didn’t want to push things. She was sore. He couldn’t imagine that she wanted to have sex.

Not that he would turn it down, but maybe she should stop touching him how she was touching him.

They’d talked about the baby. More than they had since she’d moved in. He felt closer to her than ever, and he’d love to make love to her. She had her head on his shoulder, her hand playing with his chest hair while the move played. He’d lost track of the plot as he focus zeroed in on what her hand was doing.

It began to go lower, onto his stomach. He snatched it up. “Don’t tease me, Violet. I’m only human.”

She lifted her head off him. “I’m not teasing. I feel much better. I guess this conversation we had put me in a mood.”

His eyebrows went up. “Really? Because I can accommodate you, I’m sure.”

She sat up to look at him better. “I don’t think I can handle rough.”

He put his hand on her face. “I can be as gentle as you need.”

Shit, he could be anything she wanted of him if he was going to get laid.

“Promise?”

“I promise, Violet.”

She smiled and his heart zinged in his chest. She was a beautiful woman and she was going to be naked soon. Which made her even more gorgeous in his eyes. Those miles of mocha skin really got his engine running.

He hadn’t hoped she’d be recovered this soon. “Did the doctor say it was okay?”

He didn’t want to hurt her. He didn’t want to hurt the baby either.

“It only said that if I felt up to it, I could have sex. I’m feeling up to it. I’m feeling downright frisky.”

“Let’s take this slowly.”

“Okay.”

She took off her shirt. She wasn’t wearing a bra. He’d noticed that before then admonished himself for noticing. Guess it was okay. He kissed her as if he were kissing someone more fragile. Right now she was.

“If you need to stop, please tell me. It’s okay.”

It might kill him because he was already hard for her, but he would do it. This was her health. He put his hands on the breasts that he’d missed seeing. She pulled him over on top of her. He braced his elbows on either side of her. She didn’t need to take his whole weight.

Her hand went down his pants and his eyes almost rolled into the back of his head. Her hand was warm and soft and she grasped him firmly.

“Someone’s glad to see me.”

“I am,” he said, nipping at her neck. She tasted of strawberries.

“Does he want to come out and play?”

“Of course,” Amedeo growled.

Violet laughed, then shoved his pants down his legs. He stood, then dropped his drawers on the floor. Then he took off his shirt and she smiled at him Guess she liked what she saw.

“Come here.”

“You need to be naked first.”

He tugged off her sweatpants. Her bra came off next. Seeing a woman naked, never got old. The sight took away his breath. “Oh, Violet.”

“I love how you say my name,” she said.

He climbed back on top of her. He took her breast in his mouth as he found her clit. He rubbed in a circle, her body arching up to his hand. He could play her like a musical instrument and that turned him on. She was his most responsive lover ever.

“Oh, Amedeo.”

His name sounded dirty in her mouth. Made his body light on fire. Her fingers dug into his shoulders, her back arched, her teeth gritted. A keening noise erupted from her as her body shuddered.

“You okay?”

“I’m better than okay, Amedeo. Get inside of me. Now.”

He laid her back down his body craving her touch.

She ran her hands up and down his back as he entered her.

“I love how your muscles bunch when you’re moving inside of me,” she said.

“I love how soft you are.”

He moved inside of her, hitting all the right spots, he hoped. Her eyes fell closed, her mouth fell open. Oh yes. He knew that look. She was close. Her hands clenched.

“Oh.”

He sped up and followed her over the cliff, his body a bundle of sensations. He wasn’t even sure how he kept thrusting into her. He’d lost control of his body. As she was wracked with aftershocks, he finally stopped.

He tried to catch his breath, leaning over her. He nipped at her neck, one more time for good measure. He slumped onto her. “Tell me if I’m hurting you.”

“I have no feeling in most of my body, so no worries.”

He laughed. God, he loved to do that to a woman. She was all soft and pliant underneath him. He didn’t want to move. He didn’t want to lose the contact with her. At least he didn’t have a condom to get rid of.

He rolled off her, snuggling her up against him. The length of her was pressed against the length of him. He couldn’t imagine being anywhere else right now. Is this what marriage was like?

*

Back at work, Violet made dinner plans with Kalia for that night. She was still a little sore from the accident, but she didn’t want to go home to an empty house. Amedeo was off seeing his mother and she wasn’t invited.

Something about the situation bothered her, but she couldn’t articulate it. She shouldn’t be bothered by it. They weren’t in a relationship. Just sex. That’s all it was. Why would his mother want to meet the mother of his child? Or hadn’t he told his mother about her?

Either way, she would go out with Kalia and have a good time.

She was getting closer to her own hacker and she’d seen no ramifications from the system she hacked into. That was stupid on her part. She was just flexing her muscles. Letting herself know that she could still do it. She still had it.

Lately she’d been feeling that her skills were going downhill. Must be pregnancy brain. She sighed. She didn’t like feeling useless and Amedeo’s hacker wasn’t proving too difficult. She’d set a trap for him and now they had to wait until he or she sprung it.

Waiting was not part of Violet’s repertoire. She wasn’t a patient person. She wanted everything yesterday. At least the day finally ended and she and Amedeo went their separate ways.

She met Kalia at a restaurant halfway between her apartment and Amedeo’s house. Violet knew she’d be tired, but didn’t want to ask her friend to drive a longer distance.

They were seated in the back, but not by the kitchen. Violet knew she could eat a horse. Lunch had only been soup. Nothing had appealed to her and now she was regretting not having more. Amedeo had suggested she get a sandwich, but she couldn’t choose so she didn’t.

They ordered, then Violet told Kalia what had been going on. “So, he wants to talk about the baby. I didn’t know men like this existed.”

“Not sure if it’s an Italian thing or a white man thing. Could you imagine having a conversation like that with a brother?” Violet said.

“Not at all. You just think about being pregnant and they run away.”

“We talked for hours about what we wanted for our child. It was really kind of neat. Bonding in a way.”

“You’re in love with this guy,” Kalia said.

No. she wasn’t. “I can’t be. No. I’m not. We’re having awesome sex and that’s it,” Violet said, but something niggled at the edges of her brain.
What if she was?

She shook her head.

“You are, Violet. He’s all you talk about.”

“We are having a baby together. I do spend a lot of time with him since I work at his company and I’m currently living with him. I’m bound to have a lot of stories about him.”

“It’s not just that you talk about him. It’s how you look when you talk about him. You’re all dreamy-eyed.”

Violet frowned. “I don’t get dreamy-eyed. Certainly not about a man. Must be my pregnancy glow.”

“There is that, but this is more. This is the look in your eye.”

“I do like him. He’s a good man. He is the father of my child and we need to get along.”

“You’re doing so much more than getting along. You’re sleeping with him.”

“Yes, it’s sex. That’s it.”

“I think your pregnancy brain is making you deny your feelings for him,” Kalia said.

Violet sighed. When Kalia got something into her head, she wasn’t going to let it go. Arguing with her was going to make it worse. “Can we drop this?”

“Why? Because you don’t want to face how you feel? You need to think about it, Violet. If you know that this is going to end, you have to protect your heart. He’s going to break it and you’ll still have to deal with him. He’s going to be in your life for a very long time. So either admit it and get over him or protect yourself.”

Violet shook her head. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just amazed at his behavior. I had no idea that someone could be this nice. That’s all. Each day he does something sweet. It doesn’t mean anything. He just feels responsible for me.”

Kalia shook her head. “You are way into denial. You love him. It’s so clear. I wish I could save you from the train wreck that this will be.”

Violet had to change the subject. This one made her uncomfortable. She cleared her throat. “Enough.”

Kalia frowned. “Fine, but I’m going to say ‘I told you so’ when this all ends badly.”

“Fine.”

“I got a new job.”

“I didn’t know you were looking?” Violet said.

“It’s in an office. It’s a real job finally. I’m not doing much beyond filing, but it’s a good paycheck and health benefits when I’ve been there three months.”

“Oh, that sounds great, Kalia. This is the beginning of you getting out of that apartment. You’ll never have to see Reggie again.”

“That will be wonderful. I cannot wait until I’ve save for a security deposit on another place,” Kalia said.

Violet couldn’t help but be happy for her friend. Things were looking up. “I did some hacking while I was bedridden.”

“Anything good?”

“Nothing that would have breached national security, but I may have left a trail. Amedeo came back early and I lost my focus.”

“That isn’t good, right?”

“No it isn’t. If I’ve left a trail the IT department may find me. I haven’t heard anything, so I’m hoping it’ll be fine.”

“That’s kind of scary. Couldn’t you go to jail?”

“Yes, I could. I was bored. I shouldn’t have done it, but I was sure I could get out without leaving a trace.”

“How about your job now?”

“I’m just waiting for the hacker to come back and set off the trap I set for him,” Violet said.

“Wow. Cool stuff.”

***

Amedeo loved his mother. He loved that he had this family. He wouldn’t want to see them every day, but seeing them once a month or so was perfect. He could catch them up on what was happening and they wouldn’t have time to ask too many questions.

He figured since his mother didn’t know about Violet that he could gloss over that until next month. Or maybe the month after that. He wasn’t sure why he was so hesitant to tell his mother about Violet. She wouldn’t judge. She’d accept what had happened and rejoice in another grandchild.

Was it because he knew his mother wanted at least one of them to marry an Italian girl? He shrugged as he pressed the doorbell to his mother’s house. He’d bought some flowers. Dante would bring wine. Salvatore would bring dessert.

His mother would cook the dinner because, well, she was Italian. They would all go home with the extra food. Violet would appreciate that.

Dante answered the door. The two men hugged. “No Violet?”

“Not ready to bring her into this yet. Besides, she’s not my wife or girlfriend. She’s just a baby mama.”

Dante gave him an odd look. “Baby Mama?”

“Apparently that is the term,” Amedeo said.

“I think you’re underestimating what she means to you.”

Amedeo had been heading for the kitchen, but he stopped in the hallway. “What do you mean?”

“If she was just a baby mama, then you’d have brought her. You wouldn’t care what Mom thinks.”

Amedeo blinked. “No, I just don’t want our mother hassling me.”

Dante shook his head. “Fine. Think what you want.”

He brushed past Amedeo who was still puzzling over what his brother said. He didn’t love Violet. He enjoyed her company. He liked having sex with her. Some of the best sex he’d ever had. Sex that he would miss when she was gone, but that didn’t mean he loved her.

Nope. He’d promised himself he wouldn’t fall in love again. No, he wasn’t in love with Violet

Sure of his feelings, he strode into his mother’s kitchen. She was, of course, at the stove. She loved to cook for her boys and they all loved to eat her cooking. He kissed his mother on both cheeks. Then he kissed Gwen on the cheek, patting her tummy. “Not long now?”

“I can’t wait. I’m ready to stop being huge,” Gwen said.

“You look beautiful,” Amedeo said.

Which made him wonder what Violet would look like when she was close to giving birth. Would she have that glow about her? Would he want to talk to her stomach the way he knew Dante did to Gwen? Time would tell.