Her Asian Billionaire: A BWAM Pregnancy Love Story (2 page)

“You
have very lousy timing,” Rosa told her friend, flopping on the
bed and kicking off her shoes. She needed to wash off the restaurant
smell from her but she did not have the strength to do so right now.

“So,
tell me details so that you can get off the phone and get your beauty
sleep,” Hayley said teasingly. “Not that you really need
it.”

“It
went well and I think I like him.” Rosa told her with a smile.

“I
knew you would!” Hayley declared triumphantly. “You owe
me a lunch and a dinner and if marriage eventually comes into the
picture, a shopping spree.”

“Aren’t
we jumping ahead of ourselves?” Rosa shook her head; Hayley had
always been impulsive and said everything that was on her mind, no
matter the consequences. “We are going on a proper date on
Sunday.”
“And this time try to make it and Rosa,”
she paused for dramatic effect. “Wear something nice.”

“I
always do,” she protested, her mind flashing to her meager
wardrobe.

“No
you don’t and start looking before Sunday. Knowing you; you
will probably pull out the first thing you put your hand on.”
Hayley retorted before hanging up.

Rosa
realized her friend was right and she really was not the going out
type. She had buried herself in work. She was working especially hard
because she wanted to open her own restaurant and sometimes she
thought it was out of her reach but she was not one to give up.
Because of that and her failure in relationship she had not bothered
to splurge on clothes.

She went
into the bathroom and took a quick shower before calling her mother.
She had not called her back since yesterday and they usually talked
every day.

“I
was just thinking about you,” her mother’s calm voice
came over the line and Rosa could not help but smile. Joan Hurley had
been through the death of her husband at a fairly early age and lost
her job as a junior high school teacher because of illness. She had
bounced back and was getting better every day. She had started doing
some organic planting at home that had taken off very well. She was
Rosa’s hero and her tower of strength and even though they did
not see each other often enough because of work they talked almost
every day; catching each other up with what was happening in their
lives.

“Good
or bad?” Rosa teased. A quick glance at her bedside clock
showed that it was almost eleven o’clock but her mother never
went to bed early.

“Always
good,” there was a smile in her voice. “How is work?”
She had made Rosa’s dream hers and was trying to find ways and
means to make sure she opened her restaurant.

“Tiring,”
Rosa admitted. “I met someone,” she added cautiously.

“Is
it a someone I will have to comfort you in the long run or a someone
I can shout for joy and see a glimpse of a grandchild in the future?”
her mother asked.

“You
sound like Hayley,” Rosa said dryly. “Already planning my
wedding.”

“Honey,
we only want what’s best for you.” Her mother said. “Now,
tell me about this someone.”

Rosa
told her about John and the fact that although he was Asian; they had
hit it off and they had a proper date on Sunday.

“That’s
good baby, keep me posted. Now go and get some rest.” Her
mother said firmly.

Rosa
went to bed but could not sleep; her mind in a turmoil. She had done
the dating thing but had failed at it and she was not sure about it
anymore. John Yang was a billionaire and he was Chinese and she knew
they married their own kind; so even if they hit it off together,
there would be no future for them in the long run so she wondered if
she should just quit while she was ahead and save herself a broken
heart in the future; but she had never been one to give up on
anything; she would just see where it leads, no harm in doing that.

The
morning sun was just coming up when she opened the doors of the
restaurant. It was almost September and it was getting to be so cold
but not unbearably so and Rosa pulled her jacket closer to her. She
was the first one there but she wanted to go to the office and sort
out some paper work before the hustle and the bustle started. A chair
in the corner needed repair and she made a mental note to send it out
to get it fixed. She noticed the drapery that parted the far corner
was looking a little dingy. The owners; a husband and wife team had
given her carte blanche in the running of the place but that still
did not satisfy her. She needed something to call her own because
then she would be able to be as flamboyant as she wanted to be. Right
now, even though she held the title of manager; her hands were tied
when it came to certain decisions.

She
pulled out the chair around the small crowded desk and sat down
reaching for the ledger. Last night had been a very good night and
she noted that the chicken in lemon juice had gone particularly well.
She started writing her report and making little notation on another
piece of paper; ideas that she wanted to implement when she had her
own place.

She had
fallen in love with cooking when she was a child and had watched her
mother in the kitchen and watched fascinated at the different herbs
and spices her mother used to make a simple meal delicious. She had
decided there and then that she wanted to cook and she had watched
her every day until at age seven, she had started cooking her own
little dishes in her easy bake oven she had gotten from her mother
for her birthday. At the age of fifteen, she had surprised her
parents with a four course meal for their anniversary. They had been
astounded.

She gave
a sigh and rubbed the small of her back. A waitress had gone off on
maternity leave and she was short but she was not sure she should be
hiring anyone else right now.

*****

John
wandered around the supermarket restlessly. He did not exactly work
and even though he had been given an excellent education by his
parents; the best actually, he was not free to do his own thing; he
was still tied to his parents and he hated it. He had not lied to
Rosa when he had told her that he had been getting disillusioned with
the dating game because as soon as a woman found out who he was they
started seeing dollar signs. His parents expect him to be with his
own kind but after dating several Asian women he got bored with their
subservient manner and their habit of agreeing to everything he said.
He plowed a hand through his hair as he looked at the shelves to make
sure they were well stocked.

He liked
her. He knew it was at first sight but he liked her. He had watched
her hurrying to and from and he had felt the pull of attraction;
something he had not felt in a very long time. He definitely wanted
to be with her; to see her and see where it took them. Hayley had
laughingly told him that she was not easy to pin down because she was
like a butterfly flitting from one place to another but he had
enjoyed watching her moving around, her fluid grace as she moved with
authority. He had watched her and knew he wanted to get to know her
more; he felt it in his bones.

*****

He
called her Saturday night just to find out if she was all right.

“Or
are you calling to find out if I remember our date tomorrow?”
Rosa asked teasingly. She was very tired but she did not mind talking
to him; his deep voice sounded calm and unhurried over the phone and
Rosa relaxed on the bed as she spoke to him.
“That too,”
he admitted with a laugh. “How was it tonight?”
“Hectic,”
she told him. It had been a packed night and a very long day that did
not seem as if it would ever end.

“I
was thinking about a picnic instead of a real restaurant setting,”
he told her. “I figured you spend most of your time catering to
people, I want to do the catering.”

“That’s
sweet,” she told him softly, really appreciating his being so
tolerant. “Isn’t it a little too cold for a picnic?”
“Not
where I have in mind,” he told her mysteriously.

“Do
I need to be concerned?” she asked him.

“No
need,” he answered promptly even though he knew she was joking.
“I promise to be a perfect gentleman.”

“Okay,
I will certainly take your word for it.” She said with a smile.

He said
goodbye and hung up the phone. Rosa found herself still smiling, a
warm glow settling inside her. She was definitely looking forward to
tomorrow.

He took
her to a building that was not occupied. It had been bought by his
parents and was just there because they had not decided what they
wanted to do about it yet. It was located in a prime part of town and
had tremendous potential.

“This
would be a perfect place for my restaurant,” she eagerly went
from one room to another leaving him following behind her with an
amused expression on his face. She was definitely a butterfly, he
thought to himself. He had picked her up at her small apartment and
had sent her an admiring look as he took in her faded jeans molded to
her shapely figure and the dark green sweater she had worn with it.
Her hair done in corkscrew curls were loose around her small face and
she looked like a teenager.

He had
the picnic basket in his hand and placed it on a table in the main
room. She was right, he realized, it had tremendous potential.

“This
would serve as a perfect office,” she indicated a large room to
the back. “Oh John, this place is perfect!” He watched
her animated face and felt the pull of attraction getting stronger.
She was truly beautiful.

“Can
we get to the time when we can actually start the date?” he
asked her in amusement. He had brought along a thick blanket as well
and spread it over the hardwood floor.

“I
am sorry,” she apologized, turning to look at him. He was
looking so handsome, in clearly expensive designer jeans and a black
sweater that looked great on him. “It’s just that I get
carried away when it comes to my dream.” She smiled at him.
“Have a seat,” he indicated where she should sit and
Rosa complied; crossing her legs in Indian style. “What are
having? Sweet and sour pork?” she teased him.

“I
find that to be highly offensive,” he said with mock gravity as
he opened the picnic basket and started taking out the food. “It's
shrimp fried rice and honey roasted chicken,” he told her with
a boyish grin.

“Very
funny,” she said making a face at him. She kept looking around
the building, mentally placing each piece of furniture and equipment
and seeing the décor unfold in her mind. She had to make it
happen.

“Your
enthusiasm is contagious,” he commented as he served her a
plate packed to capacity. “I am actually seeing this place with
your eyes.”

She
looked at him as he filled his plate. “I am glad.” She
started eating and her eyes widened in appreciation. “This is
good stuff.”
“Glad you like it,” he grinned.
“Actually made it myself.”

“A
handsome rich man who cooks,” she murmured. “What is such
a treasure like you being single?”

“I
could ask the same about you,” he passed her a glass of wine.

“Unlike
you I am not rich, I am just a working class girl who wants to find a
way to fulfill her dreams,” she told him with a shrug. “I
was actually kinda intimidated by you. I said to myself: he’s
rich and handsome and has been out with his share of beautiful rich
woman so what would he see in me?” she gave him a direct look.
“It’s actually a question: What could you possibly want
with me?”

He
replaced the glass on the rug and gave her his full attention. “I
have been out with lots of women and I have even had sex with quite a
few but I am looking for something that’s missing; someone who
is not into me for my parents’ money or what they think I can
do for them.” He told her honestly.

“And
you think that person is me?” she asked him arching one
perfectly shaped brow.

“I
am willing to find out,” he told her softly; holding her gaze
with his. Rosa felt it again; that insistent pull of attraction. She
had chalked it down to the fact that she had not been with a man in
so long that her body was responding to being starved of lovemaking.

He
changed the subject, diffusing the tension that was spreading in the
room. “How long have you had this dream of yours?”

She told
him about her first easy bake oven and watching her mother in the
kitchen and how from a very early age and how through high school
that dream had remained.

“What’s
your dream?” she asked him curiously as he listened to her in
silence.

“My
parents’ dream is for me to take over from them when they
retire.” He said cynically.

“What’s
your dream?”

“To
become independent like you,” he smiled at her crookedly.

“We
all need to have a dream John,” Rosa pushed aside the empty
plate. “Dr. Martin Luther King had a dream and we as people
need to have a dream and to follow through with it. I grew up on the
side of town that drug dealers and pimps hang out. I was determined
to be a sister who was different and I needed to make my parents
proud and most importantly to make something for myself.”

“Are
you always this passionate?” he asked her huskily and Rosa did
not miss the double entendre as his eyes went to her full red lips
slightly parted, revealing her white teeth.

“What
are you doing?” she asked him, her hands trembling slightly as
she rubbed her palms on her jeans.

“You
are the most alive person I have ever met,” he told her; gaze
holding hers in a mesmerizing stare. “I love the way you
express yourself and the way your face lights up when you talk about
something close to your heart. I have grown jaded and cynical Rosa
and I don’t like it. I want what you have; a zest for life.”

“What
are you saying?” she asked him. Her throat was closing up and
she could barely get the words through the blockage. He was crowding
her and he was not sitting too close to her.