Billionaire Games (16 page)

C
laire stormed out
, not bothering to go back to her computer.

She felt like a petulant child, but given all that had happened, she’d forgive herself this once.

She didn’t trust herself right now and didn’t know what she might say, how she might respond, so she needed to get out of there. Her mind was too busy trying to process what Simeon had said, trying to accept the fact that she had lost nine years of love over a stupid misunderstanding, so she didn’t have the strength and focus to deal with anyone else right now.

As she rushed toward her car, grateful that no one stopped her, she wondered if maybe it was something she had done, if somehow she hadn’t done enough, shown him enough how much she cared for him, how much he was her entire world.

But she dismissed the idea.

When she had met him, she’d never experienced anything like the feelings he had created within her, and she had shown him that with everything she had. She had given Simeon all that she had. It wasn’t her fault that he couldn’t trust her, that he would believe the worst thing about her rather than speak to her.

She guessed she understood in some ways. Simeon had never had anyone who loved him, who cared about him, and she knew that trust was hard for him. But that was no excuse. She’d given him everything and he’d tossed her aside, only to come storming back nine years later. And she didn’t know if she could forgive him for that.

She wanted to. Even after all he had done, the hurt he’d caused her, she still wanted to. Wanted to forgive him, wanted to go back to the way they had been years before, the way they had been only weeks before. She had seen a glimpse into the life they could have, the life that she still so desperately wanted.

But it couldn’t be.

No matter what she felt, no matter how foolish she was, she couldn’t do that. Simeon had shown her what he thought of her. And she had to think about the baby. The baby was the most important thing now, and she wouldn’t let her feelings or his hurt the baby.

So no matter how she loved him, how she wanted him, they couldn’t be together.

The tears fell slowly at first once Claire began to drive, and as she got further from the office, they began to fall faster. Claire didn’t try to make them stop. Instead, she pulled to the side of the road and let them come. She cried all the tears her body produced and she didn’t try to hide them and didn’t try to hold them back. She just let them come.

And when she was finally done, she reached in her glove box and retrieved tissues. She cleaned her tears and then began to drive home.

Her heart was still heavy, but at the same time she felt relieved.

She had cried the last tears she ever would for Simeon Hayes.

H
e
was
a fucking fool
.

Simeon had suspected as much before, had believed Claire when she had said it. Even now the truth of that kept hitting him over and over again. There was no other explanation.

Still, he couldn’t help but wonder how he’d been so fucking stupid. He clenched his fists tight and began to pace the smooth hardwood floor. He’d found himself back at the penthouse because there was nowhere else he could think of going.

It hurt to be here. Every inch of it reminded him of Claire, teased and tortured him with his memories of her, here, her back in his life. And the pain of those memories was something he welcomed. He deserved no less. And any pain he felt was his fault.

It had been him who’d left, him who had given up the only good thing that ever happened to him. And why?

Because he was a fool, that was why. A fool and a scared boy, one who couldn’t accept that Claire could love him.

He could accept that now, knew that he been a scared, stupid asshole. But he wasn’t that anymore.

He was a grown man now, one with resources and power and the intelligence to recognize that none of that mattered if he didn’t have Claire and their baby with him. All of his money and his power would mean nothing without them.

Simeon had changed, but he was still stubborn as fuck, and he wouldn’t give up on the only woman he had ever loved.

Energized, he headed toward the elevator.

It was time to get his family back.

T
he next day
, Claire called in sick, but she refused to sit home and mope.

Instead she had made a light breakfast, tidied her home, and now was tending the small patch of garden in her backyard.

The instinct to mope was there, the urge to lie in her bed and wallow in the misery that Simeon had heaped upon her, and the persistent exhaustion that still weighed her down didn’t help, but she was sticking to her guns. She’d cried her last tears over Simeon, had spent her last sleepless night wondering where they had gone wrong, missing him, willing to trade anything for a chance to see him again.

Those days were gone.

That girl was gone.

She didn’t who this new Claire was, but she knew she would figure it out, and she knew she would be the best mother she could for her baby. If nothing else, Simeon had taught her that she was stronger than she’d thought. So Claire would start trusting herself and make a way in the world for herself and her child.

By late afternoon she had tired herself out, so she rambled around the kitchen in search of a snack before she lay down.

The chime of her doorbell got her attention and she turned, curious as to who it could be. She wasn’t expecting company.

She ran to the door quickly and looked through the peephole. Then she opened the door.

“Mom? Dad?” She frowned. “What are you doing here?”

“Is that any way to greet your folks?” her father said.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m happy to see you. I’m just surprised.”

“We are too, honey,” her mother said.

Claire stepped back, looked at her mother’s face, saw the hint of worry in it.

“What has he done?” she asked.

Anger, bright and white-hot, raced through her, and she swore that if Simeon had done anything to her parents, she would never forgive him.

“He came for dinner,” her dad said casually as he walked inside.

“What?” Claire said.

She ushered her parents in and then narrowed her eyes on the black SUV idling across the street from her house. She slammed the door and then whirled to face her parents.

“He brought you here?”

“Let us get something to drink, Claire,” her mother said.

Claire frowned but said nothing as her dad sat and her mom buzzed through the kitchen.

“You’re out of tea,” her mom called.

“It’s in the pantry, Mom,” she called, trying to keep her calm.

Her father looked at her sympathetically and then shook his head at her. Despite herself, she smiled and then waited, not so patiently, until her mother came out of the kitchen.

Once she sat down and handed her father a cup of tea, Claire sat on the floor in front of them and folded her legs underneath her. Contrary to what Simeon may have thought, her life hadn’t been easy street, and there had been a time when her parents had struggled, so much so that they hadn’t had money for extras, including extra furniture. This situation now had been common, Claire sitting on the floor in front of them while they rested from their seemingly never-ending days of building her father’s business.

“So what did he do?” she asked, trying to keep her voice even.

“We were very surprised when we saw him,” her father said.

“I’m sure you were,” Claire said.

“You know we never approved of him,” her mother said.

“You always made that amply clear,” Claire said. She had always believed they might have made it if her parents had been more supportive. She’d been somewhat bitter about that for years, but in this moment, that bitterness evaporated. Nothing could have kept them together because Simeon didn’t trust her.

Her father frowned and then said, “You know how much we struggled and we wanted someone who would keep you from that.”

“I’m not incompetent, Dad. And I wasn’t then. I am now and always have been more than capable of taking care of myself. But it doesn’t matter now anyway. So what did he say to you?” Claire said.

“He said he was sorry for everything. And he made us a promise,” her mom said.

“What promise?” she asked.

“He promised he would take care of you and the baby, and he swore he would spend the rest of his life making you happy if you’d let him,” her dad said.

Claire scoffed. “He said that to you and not me. Do you see anything wrong with that?”

“No,” her mother said. “I think it’s lovely.”

“Always the romantic, Mom,” Claire said.

“Call it what you want, but it couldn’t have been easy for him to come to us, and that he did proves that he cares about you,” her mom said.

“Did he tell you how we got back together?” Claire asked.

“Just a vague idea. No specifics, thank goodness,” her father said. “But he is sorry.”

“How can you be so sure?” Claire said, feeling hope warring with doubt.

“Age and experience, my dear. I can tell when someone is lying, and he wasn’t. He loves you.”

Claire frowned, not sure what to say.

“Just think about it, honey,” her mom said.

She stood when her parents did. “You guys are leaving already?” Claire said.

“Yes,” her father said.

“And Simeon’s outside?” she said.

“Yeah. He’s letting us take his car and driver out for a night on the town,” her mom said.

“Mom, you don’t need his car or his driver,” Claire said.

“No, I wanted to ask for his boat, but your father talked me down,” she said, eyes twinkling.

Claire laughed at her mother’s enthusiasm and then hugged her parents.

She ushered them out the door and as she left, her mother squeezed her hand and looked into her eyes. “We just want to be happy, honey. But no matter what, know that we will always love you,” she said.

Claire hugged her mother again and then closed the door.

A
bout an hour
after the Winsomes left, Simeon walked to Claire’s front door.

He probably should’ve been embarrassed about enlisting her parents to support his cause, but there was no room for embarrassment and shame, not when it came to Claire and getting her back.

Now it was time for him to see if they had a chance.

Claire opened the door before he rang the bell.

“I wondered how long you were going to stay out there,” she said.

“Me too. Was it long enough?” he asked as he stepped through the threshold.

Claire didn’t respond and instead closed and locked the door behind him.

Then she looked at him, her eyes distant, hard, though he tried to convince himself there was still hope.

She glared at him. “I can’t believe you. You went to my parents,” she said.

“Had to go for the big guns, and I wanted you know that I’m serious, Claire.”

“Serious about what?”

Simeon stepped closer and reached out for her hands. She didn’t pull away, but she didn’t squeeze his hands back. “About you. About us. I want us to be a family, Claire,” he said.

“Do you even know what that means?” she asked.

“Yes. You. You’re my family, Claire. My heart. I love you,” Simeon said.

Her eyes went bright, but then she shook her head. “How can I trust you, Simeon? You never trusted me,” she said.

“Claire, I’ve never trusted anyone. How could I? I’ve always been alone, had no one, nothing. Then you came in, so different from anything I’d ever known. I wanted to believe in you, believe in us, but there was always a little voice in my head telling me not to get too comfortable, that this was all short term. It was agonizing, waiting for the end, so I made it happen.”

He paused and looked at her, searching for any sign of hope, but he saw nothing, so he continued. “But I’m different now. I know I can’t convince you with words, but I’m going to prove it. Every day I’m going to prove how much I love you and trust you and want you to be in my life. Just give us a chance.”

“Simeon…” She started speaking and then trailed off. She wrenched her hands out of his and then turned her back to him. He could see the tension in her shoulders, and when she faced him again, he saw the emotion that twisted her features.

“I want to believe you,” she said.

“You can. I won’t let you down. Either of you,” he said.

Claire waited, watching him, studying him, searching his face for something.

“You hurt me, Simeon,” she whispered.

“I know,” he said.

“I’m so mad at you,” she said.

“You should be,” he replied.

“I love you,” she said.

He waited, hoping he had heard her right. When she looked up at him, her eyes shining, Simeon saw the anger and the fear in her eyes.

And he saw the love.

He walked to her and pulled her close.

“I love you, Claire. And I’m never going to let you go,” he said.

S
even Months
Later

“
Y
ou ready
?” Simeon asked.

Claire looked at her husband through the rearview mirror and then smiled. “Maybe that’s a question for you?” she said.

Simeon brushed his hair off his forehead and then got out of the driver’s seat. He opened the passenger-side back door and then rechecked the car seat. For the third time since they’d gotten into the car.

“Simeon, she’s strapped in tight. We’re ready,” Claire said.

He glanced at her, his brows furrowed. Then he offered her a tentative smile. “I needed to double-check. Triple-check,” he said.

Claire laughed. “I told you Alan should have driven us home,” she said.

“No. I’m driving my daughter home from the hospital,” he said.

“Well, then, start driving. While she’s still sleeping,” Claire said, smiling at him.

“Good plan,” Simeon said.

He paused for a moment, though, and placed a soft kiss on the sleeping baby’s head. Elizabeth Winsome smiled in her sleep, and her father smiled back and then finally went back to the driver’s seat. As they pulled off, Claire stared over at the baby, her heart melting as it did whenever she looked at the girl.

She was tiny and beautiful and perfect, and Claire thought her heart would burst with the love that filled it.

“She okay?” Simeon asked.

“She’s fine, Simeon,” she said, laughing. “If you keep this up, I’m going to start to question your reputation. Where’s my ruthless billionaire?”

Simeon laughed. “I’m here, my dear. Or at least I will be once I get my daughter out of Boston traffic,” he said.

Claire didn’t say anything else during the rest of the ride, and they made it to their destination without incident. Simeon parked and then helped Claire out of the car. They linked hands and together walked around the car and opened the door. Simeon gingerly lifted the car seat out and then they walked to the elevator.

As they rode, Simeon kept his eyes glued on the sleeping Elizabeth, the awe and love on his face exactly like that she felt in her heart.

“She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” Claire whispered.

Simeon looked up then. “She takes after her mother,” he said.

Claire smiled, and when the elevator stopped, they got off and went into the penthouse. Simeon and Claire took Elizabeth to the nursery, and then later, they sat on the brand-new sofa.

Simeon had filled the place with furniture, and it hardly resembled the apartment that she had first entered. But no matter how it looked, it was home.

“You know this place isn’t going to be big enough for long,” he said.

“Why not?” she asked.

“Elizabeth’s going to get bigger, and her brother’s going to need space, too,” Simeon said.

“Brother? Our daughter is two days old, so let’s hold off on that talk,” Claire said, laughing.

“If you say so. But you know it doesn’t matter,” Simeon said.

He pulled her close and Claire curled into his lap, enjoying the feel of his arms around her, the love that filled her heart.

“What doesn’t matter?” she asked as she rested her head on his chest.

“Where we live. All that matters is that we’re together,” he said.

Claire lifted her head and looked into his eyes. “I love you, Simeon.”

“I love you, Claire.”