THE RICH BILLIONAIRE'S SECRET

Things fall apart

Was she just going to pretend that everything was normal? That they didn’t share a son? Or was this all part of some elaborate ruse designed to trick him?

“Good morning Mr. Engel,” she said when she looked up and saw him standing there and staring at her.

So, it was back to Mr. Engel now. She had to be playing some game with him, but he didn’t know the rules.

“Something has been bothering me since our last conversation,” he said, ignoring the greeting. “Maybe you can help me out here.”

He wasn’t interested in her fake pleasantries, only the truth. Daisy didn’t look up. Instead, she continued what she was doing as if she had been born to do it. Watching her move through the kitchen was a fantasy that he’d never known he had, culminating in a very untoward desire to take her right against the counter.

“Pray tell, what is on your mind today?” Daisy said, words rife with tension. “Let me take a guess: you need to change the dinner menu for this week?”

He sometimes found her sarcasm endearing, but when it was directed at him, it only fueled his anger.

“Full of jokes today, aren’t we?” he retorted.

“What else am I supposed to do when you come into my kitchen on an obvious war path?”

“Your kitchen?” he asked, momentarily surprised.

Daisy sighed with exasperation. “Yours, you know what I meant.”

Conrad wasn’t so sure that he did anymore. Every word that had come out of Daisy’s mouth lately had shocked him.

“Did you plan on ever telling me about Leo?” he asked, his voice cracking as the conversation descended into silence.

Finally, Daisy cleared her throat. “For a while, until I realized I had no way of contacting you. I eventually realized I would probably never see you again either. When you turned out to be my boss, I had no idea how to bring the subject up.”

“The odds of that happening have to be one in a million.” He pointed out cautiously, checking her facial expression for any guilt or obvious signs of a lie.

“Guess we got unlucky,” she said with a shrug, shoulders hunched as she finally began kneading the dough.

“Did we?”

Conrad watched as her shoulders stiffened, a brief pause in working the dough. “What are you trying to say? I thought we cleared this up. The only thing I want from you is to leave me and my son alone.”

He knew he couldn’t do that. Not when he was entranced with the idea that he had a son. He needed answers.

She had lied to him when he had first asked her about the party, whether it was intentional or not. And learning about Leo was too important to risk further lies. She’d had all the time in the world to rehearse and perfect her story, and Conrad needed to know the truth.

“Are we going to have a problem here? Because I can quit right now, and you’ll never have to see me again. I really enjoy my job here, but my son comes first.” Daisy sounded angry, volume rising as she spoke.

“Until you show up with a lawsuit demanding child support?” he taunted.

The air grew cold. “What did you just say to me?” she asked slowly, as if giving him a chance to take back his words.

Too bad there was no going back now. He was going to continue pushing her buttons until she answered his question.

“Is that what you’re after?” He had to know.

“I’m going to pretend that you didn’t say that,” Daisy said, slowly shaking her head. “Maybe we should stop this conversation and I can get on with the cooking. Dinner will be a little while still, so if you’re hungry right now, there are some leftovers.” She pointed at the fridge with her free arm, as if they hadn’t been arguing just seconds before.

He stood for a second, watching in disbelief as she continued kneading the dough before her. “What are you trying to do, Daisy? Who are you trying to fool here?”

Conrad looked at Daisy, trying to figure out how he could have been so wrong. The strange way she was acting was enough to raise Conrad’s guard. If history had shown him anything, it was that Daisy is good at hiding things. If she could hide a son for five years, what else could she be hiding?

“No one,” she burst out. “I am not trying to fool anyone or do anything but my job.”

He couldn’t stop the frustration from seeping through in his response. “Is that all? Really?”

“What else do you think, Conrad?” she asked, switching back to his first name now. He had struck a nerve.

“I don’t know what else to think,” he ground out. “This has never happened to me before!”

“And you think that I have a village of children that I had with multiple one-night-stands? That even after my mom kicked me, I would go out again and let some other man flip my entire life upside down?”

When she put it like that, it sounded stupid. But she was trying to get him off his line of questioning to hide her agenda, and he wouldn’t be deterred. He filed the information about her mother away for later.

“Did you plan all this?” Even getting the words out was difficult for him. He felt like the biggest fool in the world. He prided himself on being able to read people very well, an essential skill when dealing with hundreds of employees every day. Was Daisy smart enough to trick him like this?

“Plan what?” she asked, looking him straight in the eyes.

He forgot his words, so focused on the hurt etched in her face.

“Plan what?” Daisy asked again, venom dripping in her voice.

They were just two words, but she said with so much anger that it rattled his core. Daisy had no right to be using that tone. Not when she kept his own child a secret for so many years.

“Sleeping with me just to get pregnant,” he replied, seeing her flinch as his words cut through like a blade. “I can’t believe I let you into my home.”

Conrad had never seen anyone so livid in his life, and he might have felt bad if he wasn’t certain of her guilt.

“And what exactly was I supposed to accomplish by this?” She was exasperated. “I haven’t asked for anything.”

She raised her hand when Conrad opened his mouth to answer, halting him. “I would choose my next words carefully if I were you.”

“Me? How about you just tell me the truth! Did you really think you could crash back into my life to get your hands on the Engel family fortune? What sob story were you planning to get me to take you in? Or did you hope to seduce your way to a ring on your finger?”

The loud slap echoed in the room before Conrad felt the pain. He raised his hand to his burning cheek, looking down at her in shock. The look on her face hurt so much worse than the stinging on his cheek. She was looking at him like she didn’t know who he was. Like he had taken her heart and trampled on it before carelessly throwing it at her feet.

It was only now that Conrad wondered if he was wrong. If there was a logical explanation for Daisy keeping Leo a secret. A part of him wanted to believe her, despite all the deception and lies. But he had had girlfriends before who only liked him for his money, and he wouldn’t go through that again.

“I won’t waste my breath trying to get it through your thick skull that not everyone is after your money. I work hard for everything Leo needs, and we’re managing all by ourselves. Get over yourself Conrad, and while you are at it, go to hell!” She spat at his feet and stormed out, leaving Conrad dumbfounded.

What had he just done? And more importantly, was it something he could take back? Instead of an answer, his check twinged, still sore from the earlier slap. With his hand gently tracing his face, he collapsed onto his couch, not even bothering to place the dough for tonight’s dinner back in the fridge.

Daisy had promised herself that after James, she would guard her heart. Leo was her number one priority, and her dating life came second. She couldn’t help but feel lonely sometimes, wanting someone to talk to who wasn’t Emma, even someone to just love her too the way she wanted to be loved. It was a basic human need, that need to be loved, and for a split second she had believed that everything would work out for her.

“Did you plan all this?”

Of all the words in the world, and Conrad had the audacity to ask her this? When had she ever given him reason to think that she was after his money? Her salary request had been fair, and he had offered the rides from his driver. She had never asked him for anything, and if it hadn’t been for Conrad’s nosiness, he wouldn’t even know that Leo is his.

Thinking back to the night they met, Daisy saw the man that Conrad was, not his bank balance. She liked Conrad for how much he cared, something she had learned within seconds of being around him. He was a man with many layers that she was dying to learn more. The man who was so serious with everyone, whose business tone was curt and straight to the point. The man who was playful with her and considerate of Leo, giving up his guest bedroom so her child could nap. Their child, she reminded herself, before anger flashed through her. Had he already known when Leo was sick? Had he only insisted upon Leo’s company out of a misguided sense of duty?

He might not remember what happened that night, but she remembered it like it was yesterday. And there had been two consenting adults in that room. He had been the one to invite her up to his room, and they both were equally responsible for not being safe. It wasn’t as if she yanked the condom off. She hadn’t forced or tricked him into doing anything.

There is no way all of this was a coincidence. Did you really think you could crash back into my life to get your hands on the Engel family fortune? What sob story were you planning to get me to take you in? Or did you hope to seduce your way to a ring on your finger?

The words played themselves over and over in her head, and she pressed her hand against her chest. Her emotional pain was translating into a physical one. Daisy couldn’t believe what had just happened. Conrad deserved that slap and so much more, but she didn’t want to give him any further reason to hold something over her. She wanted to throw something or smash his precious art; anything to let out the anger that she was feeling right now. But again, she couldn’t risk being arrested and losing her son over Conrad’s paranoia. It would be a cold day in hell before he ever got hands on her Leo, especially after the earlier argument. How dare he accuse her using her body and her son to get hold of his money. The bastard!

Her heart felt like it would jump out of her chest, and she didn’t understand where everything had gone so wrong. Yes, she had kept his son a secret, but to accuse her of such a diabolical plan? That was way out of line. Even if she had told him about Leo, Daisy had never given a thought to asking him for child support; she had made it this far on her own and would continue without his help.

The driver was already outside, ready to pick Leo up from school. “Miss Daisy?” he called out, hearing the angry stomping of her shoes on the pavement. “Are you going out? I was about to leave to fetch Leo.”

Daisy shook her head and tried to muster a smile for the driver despite the storm swirling inside of her. The man had done nothing wrong and didn’t deserve to be caught up in her fight with their boss.

“It’s alright, Donald. I’ll pick him up myself today.”

“But Mr. Engel said-”

“It’s just for today, I promise. I don’t mean to disrupt your schedule,” she said, hoping he would agree.

Donald nodded and gave her a smile. “Not a problem, Miss Daisy. I’ll pick him up tomorrow.”

There wouldn’t be a tomorrow, but Daisy couldn’t tell him that. After the disaster that had just occurred, she knew that she wanted nothing to do with Conrad anymore. She didn’t want his help or his job, no matter how much easier her life had become since she started working for him.

Hailing a cab, she rode silently to her son’s school, feeling a rush of joy at the look on Leo’s face when she stepped onto the curb. That right there, was worth anything she had to go through to keep him. As long as she had her son smiling at her, it didn’t matter if the world was falling apart.

“Mommy!” He exclaimed, jumping into her arms.

“I missed you so much, Leo. Can you believe it?”

He nodded and grinned amidst the busy New York traffic, looking so much like Conrad that Daisy’s pain came back all over again. But she couldn’t let her son see her cry. She had just had to hold herself together for a little longer until she could tell Emma what had happened. Her best friend would know what to do; she just had to make it home.

“I missed you too mommy.”

Luckily, Leo didn’t ask about Conrad’s driver, and they got back in the cab to go home. Unlocking the door, Daisy was at a loss as she watched Leo run inside. Usually, she would cook up a storm when she was feeling sad and needed something to cheer her up. Maybe bake a cake and have Leo help her decorate it. But today, she couldn’t even stand to be in the kitchen after the fight she had earlier. She would heat up some leftovers for supper and that would be it.

“Leo, why don’t you watch some cartoons. Mommy will be right back in a minute. Okay?” Daisy’s voice was calm as he nodded in excitement, darting across the room to switch the television on. Daisy took a minute to go to the bathroom and lean heavily against the sink. The woman in the mirror was barely holding it together, but she would not cry. She wouldn’t give that power to Conrad, especially now. She had lived without him for five years and would continue to do so even now. Daisy bit her lower lip as it trembled. She had to be strong.

The worst thing was that she had tried to keep the conversation civil between them. She had answered his questions with honesty, only to be badgered by accusations. Conrad had seemed determined to hurt her, and he certainly hadn’t joined her in trying to save whatever friendship they had. She shivered as she realized what this meant. He had the resources to make her life a living hell if he so chose, and after today, she wouldn’t be surprised if he took up the challenge. And that was the straw that broke the camel’s back: the fear of what he could do to her son.

Daisy wiped her cheeks, feeling frustrated when they continued to fall without her consent. She rushed to her room and threw herself onto the bed, letting everything out. The last time she had cried like this was the day she had found out that she was pregnant, coming off the fear of the positive test and her mother’s harsh words. Funny how both times were because of Conrad. He might not have known the first time, but he had sure gone out of his way to make her cry the second time.

I hate him, she thought angrily, balling her fists.

He might the father of her child, and Leo might even want to know him at some point, but she didn’t care about any of that. She hated him and, at this moment, never wanted to see him again. But most of all, she hated herself for being so stupid. If she had been thinking, she would have turned the job down the second she had seen his face. She never should have introduced him to Leo either. Daisy, of all people, knew how unfair life was.

She had played with fate, allowing her son to be so close to Conrad when he could take everything away from her with a snap of his finger. She had willingly taken a job in the lion’s den. What had she been thinking? No job was worth putting their family at risk, and she should have known better.

But what had she done to deserve this? Just when she thought she was getting back on her feet after the closure of Marcella’s, this had to happen. Would there ever come a day when everything just worked out, and she got her happy ending? She wasn’t so sure anymore.

Natalie sat at her desk at Engel Enterprise and stared at two identical unopened manilla envelopes The address to the DNA company in Ohio was stark against the otherwise barren sheets. She pushed her black eyeglasses closer to her face and pursed her lips.

It’s time.

Natalie felt torn.

Her heart wanted Leo to be Conrad’s son. He needed to settle down, and she knew without a doubt he would make a great father. Besides, Conrad would never take the time to find someone like Daisy. They didn’t run in the same social circles. The women Conrad dated either only loved his money and power, or loved him too much too quickly, sending him running. In previous years, the allure of one-night-stands, although few and far between, became the mainstay for Conrad.

Natalie smirked. Yes, Conrad needs a rude awakening. As his personal assistant for over three years and with the company for over ten years, the two had been friends for a while. Of course, Conrad was handsome, but he definitely wasn’t her type. She loved the artsy type, which was practically as far from Conrad as one could get.

Natalie frowned as she grabbed both envelopes and let out a deep sigh. It hurt her to think that Conrad missed so many years with Leo. He and Leo deserved so much better. Well, I don’t blame Daisy. This is all Conrad’s fault. I told him to stop having one-night-stands. I know he’s had s*x with women who run in the same social circles, but the obvious consequences were now sitting on my desk.

Natalie rolled her eyes. She sounded like Willow. I’ve spent too much time with the Engels recently.

She leaned back and looked at her laptop. Conrad was still in his meeting, and he’d be in there for another hour if things went as planned. Natalie knew she was supposed to open the two tests instead of Conrad. He wanted two tests done to verify. Natalie asked why he didn’t want three or four tests done. She shook her head, remembering how he had called her ridiculous.

Natalie dropped one envelope and ripped open the other one. She read the percentage of paternity and dropped the paper. She grabbed the other envelope, opening it much more slowly to read the results. After a moment, she looked to the left, staring off into space.

Her work phone rang, but she hit the button to send the call to voicemail, placing her folded hands under her chin. I’ve known Emma for a long time, and I’m sure Daisy has known Emma for just as long. If thing had been different, maybe we would have formally introduced Daisy and Conrad, and things would all be different. Natalie shook her head. Does it matter now?

Natalie let out a long sigh and placed her palms on her desk. She nodded as she took a deep breath.

“He wanted to know,” she muttered, gathering the two separate packets.

****

The snow that fell was Natalie’s favorite: white and fluffy. The best part was that it wasn’t even windy. Normally, she’d have a driver take her from her penthouse to Conrad’s place. But tonight, Natalie decided to stop by the cafe, grab a couple of coffee, and walk the few blocks to his building.

She wanted to tell Conrad about the DNA test earlier. Ideally the moment she had opened the envelopes. However, his meeting dragged on longer than the workday, and after waiting an extra half-an-hour, Natalie decided to tell him at home. Yes, she could have waited for his meeting to end, but she figured the privacy of his own home would be better to break the news.

As Natalie approached Conrad’s place, she saw a car pull away. When it passed, Natalie saw Daisy’s profile, staring blankly in her direction. Natalie waved with a smile, before it quickly melted into a frown. Daisy looked distraught and turned away.

Conrad, you didn’t ruin this, did you? Natalie wondered, sipping the last of her coffee to toss in the garbage can outside her building. She removed the key fob from her purse, unlocked the door, and entered the building.

Natalie tapped on Conrad’s front door before using the other key fob to unlock the door. She slammed the door to give him a heads up that she’d arrived. When Conrad walked into the living room seconds later in jeans and a sweater, she flashed a tense smile.

Conrad shoved his fists into his jean pockets and leaned against the wall. “You missed dinner.”

Natalie put her large purse on the living room table, shaking the snow off her coat before placing it in the closet. “That’s okay,” she told him, “I had coffee on the way.”

Conrad chuckled. “I don’t understand how you like snow.”

Normally she’d laugh at his comment, but she didn’t feel like doing so tonight. Instead, she opened her purse and pulled the envelopes out.

“What’s this?” he asked, taking them from her outstretched arms.

Natalie didn’t answer.

He looked from one paper to another and was silent for a long time.

Uncomfortable, she shifted her weight from one foot to another and crossing her arms. She glanced down at the hardwood floor and waited for him to speak.

“I know.”

She made eye contact with him. “What?”

“I know” Conrad said, oozing exhaustion as he tossed the papers onto the table. “I confronted Daisy about Leo, and she said he was my child.”

“You had me go through all this trouble of doing two separate DNA tests, and you just ask her.” Natalie waves her hands like she trying to clear her head. After a few minutes, she shrugs and shakes her head. “Well, congratulations, Conrad. You’re a father.”

Conrad ran his fingers through his hair and walked further into the living room. After, he flopped onto the couch eyes unfocused as he stared at the floor.

Natalie pressed her lips together and studied Conrad. What to did you do, Conrad? I’ve known you for too long to know that you’re angry. When you’re mad, you lash out. Maybe that’s why Daisy looked so distraught.

“You fired Daisy, didn’t you?”

He glanced at her and let out a humorless chuckle. “Don’t worry, she still has her job.”

“The question is never what happened, Conrad. I always ask you—”

“‘What did you do?’ Yeah, I know.” Conrad walked past her and opened his secret cabinet behind a landscape photograph, which held a majority of his alcohol. He grabbed a glass and liquor bottle, pouring it to the brim. Swirling it gently he began his story. “I called her out on being the waitress I slept with six years ago.”

“Yes, you said that earlier.”

“I also called her out on purposefully sneaking out of the bed while I was asleep and on getting pregnant.” Conrad took a sip of his drink and winced. He walked to the large arched window and stared at the night sky. “She saw a rich sucker and went for it. Daisy’s a money-hungry tart, who only walked back into my life with my son to access my money.”

“By working for you?” Natalie questioned, sounding confused. Rage grew inside her as she watched him finish his drink. Natalie didn’t even flinch as Conrad threw the empty glass against the wall.

“She’s not who I thought she was.” Conrad put the liquor bottle back on the shelf and slammed the door. The photograph hit the wall with a resounding thud. “I bet you that if I gave her a shitload of cash, she’d give me Leo.”

Natalie stomped her foot in anger, finally having reached the final straw. “Conrad Engel,” she shouted, “you are a complete i***t who lacks common sense if you think that Daisy would trade Leo, her very son, for cash.”

Conrad stared at her, smug.

She pointed her index finger at him, before throwing up her hands. “Conrad, put your pride aside and think. Daisy lost her old job that she had been working at for years. She didn’t even reach out to me, Emma did. And Emma is my friend, not yours. Neither of them would have known who the job was for until the interview process.”

He slid his hands back into his pockets, flexing them as he glared at her.

“Daisy didn’t know who you were. She came here for a job to take care of herself and her son, and she’s done that job without asking you for and extra money, right?”

Conrad glanced down nervously.

Natalie tramped over to him and poked him to accentuate the important words. “She’s an exceptional woman who made a simple mistake of having s*x with a man she had never met. One reaction caused another reaction, and she got pregnant. If she really was money-hungry, she would have checked your driver’s license or tracked you down before now. You’ve been with enough money-obsessed women to know the difference.”

Conrad studied her for a long time. Suddenly, his shoulders sagged, and he glanced away.

“Don’t be so foolish, Conrad. Because of Daisy’s bad luck, you’ve met your son.” Natalie stepped back. “You accused her of only being after your money.”

He nodded and bowed his head.

“How are you going to correct your foolishness?” she asked, grateful Conrad had finally started to listen to her.

Conrad bit his lip, hard enough to draw blood.

Natalie walked to the hallway closet rifling around until she found the broom and dustpan. She stopped in front of Conrad, offering up the supplies. “Start by cleaning your mess up over there.”

Slowly, Conrad stands and takes the dustpan and broom. He looks distraught, which satisfies Natalie for the time being.

“I f****d up,” he choked out, glass scraping across the hardwood.

“Daisy’s a kind woman. I don’t think she’d let one argument come between the two of you if she really did want you in Leo’s life. You just have to apologize and make it right.”

He nodded. “So, Emma contacted you about cooking jobs.”

“Yes, Emma’s an amazing person. She contacted me and a lot of others searching for private chefs. I’m the only one who responded.”

Conrad rubbed his eyes.

“Here a little FYI,” Natalie smirked for a moment. “Daisy initially didn’t even want the job because she’s never been a personal chef before. But she took the job to take care of Leo.”

He stared at the ceiling, looking sad. “I’m f****d. I can’t fix this.”

“You’re the great Conrad Engel,” Natalie said, laughing sarcastically. “You’ll think of something.”

Natalie exited the car and shifted her purse from one hand to the other. As she walked, she thought about her next move. It was nearly one in the morning, and she was exhausted. Nevertheless, her mind still buzzed with possibilities. Natalie and Conrad spent over three hours talking about his night with Daisy.

I’m Conrad’s fixer, but he still wants to handle this on his own. I know he’s going to f**k things up. She opened her penthouse door and shivered as she felt the heat kick in. Natalie sighed as she shrugged off her coat and left it on the beige-colored couch.