THE RICH BILLIONAIRE'S SECRET

Leo

Leo wiggles closer to her and kicks, barely missing her calf. She looks at him. His eyes at half opened, drooling and snoring. However, all Daisy can see is Conrad. Why don’t you look more like me, Leo? It would be so helpful right now. She covers her face. Am I a terrible person? I swear I’m not keeping Leo from Conrad. I’m going to tell him. When the time is right, I will tell Conrad and Leo. It’s just that right now I can’t afford to do so. I need this job. In a couple of months, I’ll consult a family law attorney and tell Conrad. That way we will have custody and parenting arraignments all worked out.

Daisy rubbed her eyes.

Please, let something happen. Nothing bad or anything—just something so that Emma can babysit Leo. Daisy tightly closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

****

“Do I have to wear a tie?” Leo yanked at his tie.

It was Saturday evening, and Emma was already at her parents’ home for the weekend. Daisy had come to accept the truth: she and Leo would attend Conrad’s dinner party.

Daisy stood in front of her bedroom mirror brushing her hair. She wore black slacks and a silk, pale pink blouse. Every time she twisted her hair up, Conrad’s comment about her hair came to mind. Daisy smiled and let her hair fall past her shoulders.

“Mommy, why?”

Daisy looked down at Leo still yanking his tie. She quickly told him, “Quit trying to strangle yourself. Nice, respectable men wear ties to dinner, Baby.”

Leo moved his tie from left to right.

“Leo, I said stop that—now. You’re wearing a tie and that’s that.” Daisy put the hair clip on her dresser and ushered Leo from her bedroom. “Put your shoes on because the driver will be here soon. Remember to put on the shoes without the laces.”

****

The dark New York sky was filled with plenty of stars. The chilly air hit Daisy’s face and made her squint but she had a hard time breathing. She clenched Leo’s hand as they stood on the busy street in front of the apartment and watched an expensive black car parked in front of them.

Daisy struggled to see any image of Conrad in the back of the back. Her stomach flipped flopped when she thought she saw Conrad’s profile. He was on the phone, talking. Within the next second or two, Conrad will see Leo for the first time. Oh my God, is this happening? Will he instantly know Leo is his son? s**t, I don’t know anything about Conrad. Does he want to be a father? Is he willing to be a father to Leo? I need to know so much more about Conrad Engel...

Conrad’s driver nodded towards her before he grabbed the backdoor’s hand. “Evening ma’am. Are you Ms. Daisy Lang?”

“Yes.” Daisy flashed a smile and trudged to the opened door. Leo wrestled his hand out of her grip and raced to the car. She briefly closed her eyes. Conrad’s probably staring at Leo right now. Oh, s**t.

Daisy slid into the backseat. When the driver slammed the door, she jumped. Her eyes darted around the spacious area. Leo sat on the opposite side. They were alone.

“Ma’am, Mr. Engel says he’s running late. He’s instructed me to drive to the Engel compound. He’ll possibly meet you there.”

“Possibly?” Daisy leaned forward.

“Yes, ma’am, I don’t know very much about it. Natalie said that some impromptu business meeting came up.”

Slowly, Daisy sat back and bit her lip to keep from smiling. Daisy’s phone rang. She hurriedly fished it out of her purse. “Hello.”

“Yes, this is Daniel Montgomery at INSP in SoHo. I’m sorry to call on the weekend, but I’m trying to catch up on some paperwork. Jeff Foreman gave you a reference.”

“Yes, Jeff is an excellent sous chef. He was great at each station assigned to him.”

“Was he ever late?”

“No, Jeff was always on time. I know he was only with us for a short time but that’s because the restaurant closed.”

“Thank you,” Daniel said, “You helped quite a lot.”

Daisy looked at Leo, who had stretched out of the seat and stared out the roof’s window. She sighed. “Leo, sit up, you’ll wrinkle your clothing.”

When they come to a stop, Daisy buckles his seatbelt. As she looked out the window, she relaxed. The worry and fear melted from her body. What was I worried about? It’s time to meet the Engels.

****

The driver slowed the car to a stop, which Daisy looked out the window as she unbuckled her seatbelt. She frowned.

“Are we here?” Daisy asked the driver.

“Oh, no, ma’am. The Engels live in East Hills. That’s a fifty-minute drive.”

Daisy opened her mouth to ask another question but stopped when she saw the driver exit the car. A few seconds later, the door opened on the opposite side and Conrad slid next to her. Daisy blinked when the car door slammed.

Conrad winked at her. “Have we met?”

She slowly shook her head as she studied him. Her heart skipped a beat and her stomach tightened. His cologne filled the car, which took her back to the moment she frantically cleaned his suit jacket years ago. Conrad looked so sexy with his hair slicked back and his goatee and moustache.

Conrad kissed her cheek. “I like the look.”

“Thank you,” She stammered. Although Daisy tried to smile, she felt so dizzy from lack of air that she felt faint. Breathe. Breathe. Breathe.

The car started. Leo stretched and yawned.

Don’t look over there, please Conrad.

Conrad looked at Leo. His eyes widened, then squinted while he studied him.

Daisy studied his profile looking for any hint of recognition. Fear gripped her. Conrad’s expression didn’t change—or at least Daisy couldn’t see change.

Conrad unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned forward. Slowly, he extended his right hand to Leo and exclaimed, “Mr. Lang, it’s nice to meet you.”

“My name’s Leo,” he told Conrad.

Snap out of it, now.

Daisy said in a rush, “Leo, remember what I told you about handshakes?”

“Oops,” Lang replied and hurriedly shook his hand.

“Wow,” Conrad commented as he leaned back, “You have a very firm handshake. You must be a tough young man.”

Leo proudly nodded. “I’m five.”

Daisy looked down, then out the window. She could see Conrad’s reflection. He was staring at her. His expression was unreadable. When Conrad stopped staring at her, she looked at Leo. She pressed her lips together as tears threatened. Panic travelled through her body, which made her feel like she was going to die. Daisy needed to grab Leo and flee the car at the next stop. They’d run back to the city. f**k this job. Jeff has a job—or will have one soon. I’ll keep looking. I have an emergency bank account now...

“The purpose for tonight,” Conrad said in a dry, very business-like tone, “is for you to learn the various food preferences of my family members. I’m sure Natalie told you, ``I rarely host dinner parties, but I do have family dinners.”

Daisy swallowed hard. “I know how to make--”

“That’s not the point.” He interrupted, then continued, “I want you to learn their food preferences. If someone doesn’t want their dish made with salt, don’t make it with salt. I will not have my family unsatisfied with my chef.”

She nodded, not knowing what else to do.

His tone softened as he told her, “Matteo has thoroughly spoiled every Engel, including me. Thus, there’s a high standard.”

“Matteo?”

“He’s the family chef and has been with us for decades,” Conrad answers.

Silence.

She watches Leo as he stares out of the window.

****

The Engel large mansion was absolutely outstanding with its thick, blush-colored drapes and gold furnishing. Daisy didn’t want to sit down for fear of breaking something. The furniture should’ve been in a museum somewhere.

Oh crap, Leo’s going to race around and knock over one of these old vases. There goes my emergency fund.

Daisy, who stood between Conrad and Leo, immediately bent down to whisper into Leo’s ear, “No running. Stay seated until I tell you to move. Act like you do when we visit Emma’s parents.”

Leo nodded and smiled. He whispered back, “Don’t worry, Mommy. I know what to do.”

Daisy stood. Her smile faded as she surveyed everyone. It reminded her of watching one of her favourite vampire movies where the bad guys slowly surround the hero ready for battle.

Directly across from Daisy, a woman stood. In Daisy’s opinion, she was a gorgeous supermodel. She was dressed in a maroon, hip-hugging long dress and heels. Her blue eyes zeroed in on Daisy and she glared at her.

When Daisy felt Conrad’s hand on her lower back, she glanced up at him. He pointed toward the woman.

“The woman scowling at you is my lovely, older sister Adelaide.” He chuckled, then said, “Her bark is worse than her bite, trust me.”

“Hmph,” Adelaide remarked before she sipped her wine.

An older woman, who resembled Adelaide, sauntered over to them, and extended her hand to Daisy. She grinned at Daisy as they shook hands, and told Daisy, “My name is Willow, Conrad’s mum. Thank you for coming on such short notice. I understand you had a babysitting issue—is he your son?”

Daisy clasped her hands together as she tried not to step back, turn and run. She watched Willow lean forward and shake Leo’s hand.

“What’s your name?” Willow asked, now standing erect.

“Leo,” he quickly told her and smiled.

Daisy watched Willow study Leo and physically get ill. Please don’t see Leo’s dimples.

“Bryon, look at how handsome he is—and those dimples, too.” Willow let a high-pitched giggle before she ruffled Leo’s hair. “You remind me of Conny when he was a young lad.”

“Mother,” Conrad exclaimed, “Don’t call me that, especially in front of the company. For heaven’s sake, I’m thirty years old.”

“Conrad, enough,” An older gentleman with a stern expression approached. He nodded at Daisy. “I’m Byron Engel. I understand you’re Daisy. Conrad’s new personal chef.”

“Yes, sir.” Daisy subconsciously stood more erect because Bryon’s presence made her feel like she was in military boot camp.

“I’m a diabetic, which affects the foods I eat. I prefer whatever you make is full of flavour and no more than four carbs.”

Willow tapped Bryon’s arm.

He nodded and wagged his index finger at Daisy. “I get no dessert. After dinner, I have black coffee, no sugar—but you don’t have to worry about that.”

Daisy looked at Willow, who grinned and nodded her approval. That made Daisy smile. I want to get married one day and know what it’s like to do that.

Bryon leaned forward and placed his hands on his knees which made him look like a football player ready to play. Leo grabbed onto Daisy’s leg. She looked down to see Leo’s worried expression. When Bryon flashed a lopsided grin, Leo loosened his grip on Daisy’s leg.

“You are one handsome fellow,” Bryon said before he stood. “And you’re very sweet. Do you take care of your mom?”

Leo let go of Daisy and proudly nodded. He said, “I always make sure Mommy has fun.”

Everyone, except for Adelaide, laughed. Daisy watched Adelaide slowly join them. She held her breath as Adelaide continued studying Leo. Adelaide stood next to Willow.

“I don’t know about you, Mother,” Adelaide said, “But doesn’t he look like Conrad?”

“Really, Adelaide, I said his dimples make him like Conny. I mean Conrad,” Willow said and dismissed Adelaide’s comment with a wave.

Adelaide stared at Daisy. “Yes, Mother, but—”

Conrad exhaled, then interrupted “Why don’t you tell Daisy your food preferences, Adelaide.”

“Hmph,” Adelaide said as she walked away.

Daisy looked from Willow to Bryon as she tried to hide her fear. You’re wealthy. You live in the East Hills. Conrad’s a billionaire. Do you want grandchildren? What if Conrad doesn’t want to be a father? Will you decide you want to be grandparents and take Leo away from me? Maybe Emma’s parents will help me, but they’ve done too much for me already. This can’t happen to me.

Willow touched Daisy’s shoulder and said, “How about we talk in the kitchen after dinner?”

Daisy felt faint. She swallowed hard and looked from Conrad to Willow. She breathlessly asked, “About?”

Willow frowned. “About what else, dear, my food preferences.”

Conrad, Willow and Bryon laughed. Daisy forced herself to join in with the laughter. She waved her hand and quickly commented, “Sorry, I’m still praying Leo won’t knock over a vase.”

Bryon let out a hearty laugh. “Let me tell you, Daisy. The first time Conrad knocked over a vase, I screamed so loud they heard me in New Jersey.”

Willow tapped Daisy’s shoulder and told her, “That’s his way of saying not to worry about it.”

****

Dinner was served in Engel's dining room, not the formal dining room. Yes, Daisy didn’t understand the difference either. In fact, Daisy wished Willow would offer a tour of the home. She’d loved to see how the formal dining room looked.

The dining room was a beautiful place with more contemporary decor. The short black table highlighted the stunning crystal and gold ceiling chandelier.

Daisy sat on the left side of the table with Leo. Conrad and Adelaide sat across from them. They were served a four-course meal with Leo receiving smaller portions.

Although Daisy expected the Engels to talk during dinner, it was silent as everyone focused on eating. As someone from the kitchen staff removed the plates, Daisy looked up and saw Conrad staring at her. She looked away. When she looked back, Conrad was still staring at her. Daisy smiled. Conrad grinned and winked at her.

It wasn’t fair that he got to sit there looking there all cool, calm, and handsome while she was struggling to keep her emotions in check and not blush in front of everyone. That simple smile and wink made her heartbeat increase rapidly, and she had to remind herself that she was here as an employee, not as his date. And who knew how long she would get to keep her job after he discovered her secret. She really had to get a grip.

Now that dinner was over, it seemed that everyone was open to having conversations again. Daisy didn’t know what was worse, eating in the awkward silence or having increasingly personal conversations with a room of complete strangers. Definitely the latter, Daisy thought, but there was nothing she could do about it. They all talked about other things, thankfully saving Daisy from being the topic of conversation, until Willow turned to her with a smile on her face.

“So, Daisy. What made you choose this job?” she asked.

Daisy wondered if she meant a broad career as a chef, or this particular job. Taking the safer route, she paused to consider her choice to become a chef. And if there was anything that could talk for hours about, it was her love of cooking.

“Well, my mother says I started experimenting with food at an incredibly young age. I would always calm down whenever she took me into the kitchen with her, and my favorite toy was a cooking set that I got for my fourth birthday. It had a little oven and was very advanced for a toy made for toddlers.

Willow smiled, genuinely enjoying hearing about Daisy’s passion. Daisy smiled back and caught Conrad looking at her with a strange look on his face. It was like he was seeing her for the very first time and Daisy didn’t know what to make of it. There was a certain aura of fondness in his gaze that she didn’t quite understand, wondering if she had misinterpreted the gaze.

“What a special gift to find your passion so early in life and to succeed in it.” Conrad’s mother marveled. “Only a few are so lucky in life.”

Daisy nodded, agreeing whole heartedly. She had never thought of how lucky she was to not wonder what she was going to do with her life. She had just always known. And everything she had done since then was in pursuit of achieving that dream, and she was well on her way to achieve that. Her son and her dreams kept her going every day, and she couldn’t ask for better reasons to wake up each morning.

“Thank you. It almost feels like cooking chose me instead of the other way round. I had no choice in the matter, but I’m not complaining.”

“And we will all soon be enjoying the benefits of your special gift,” Willow replied. “Conrad tells me that your cooking is absolutely wonderful.”

“I love Mommy’s cooking too,” Leo chimed in, making everyone smile.

He was always her biggest supporter, and never failed to lighten the mood. Daisy couldn’t help but feel proud of the wonderful child that she had raised. She did her best not to look at Conrad this time around, afraid of what she might see there now. This was neither the place nor time to be playing ‘he likes me; he likes me not.’

“Your little one reminds me so much of Conrad when he was younger.” Willow laughed, making Daisy’s heart stop again.

Was this a test of some sort, make Daisy squirm until she spills the beans kind of scenario? Because she wasn’t sure how much more of ‘your son looks so much like Conrad’ she could take. Well, to be fair, they are father and son; a small voice reminded her, her sarcastic conscience being ever so helpful.

“Sometimes he wouldn’t eat anything unless I prepared it. He thought mommy was always best, bless his little soul. Even when I really wasn’t, and there were more qualified people than me around.”

“It is true what they say about little boys and their mothers,” Daisy chuckled. “They always think we are the best at everything.”

“At least in your case, his review actually has merit.” Willow replied with a wink, making Daisy blush at the compliment.

She was so nice and had raised her son well and to be a complete gentleman. Yet, her daughter seemed to have been raised to be a detective, and Daisy was still wary of her. Whatever she did, she had to stay on Adelaide’s good side.

“Now Conrad was just being a baby, as he sometimes still is,” Willow continued, earning a growl from her son, which made everyone laugh.

Their relationship was so warm, and a part of Daisy felt the pain of her son not having this while growing up, the side of his father’s family. No matter what she did for him and how much she tried to be there, she would never fill that gap. Would her son resent her as he got older? She could only hope and pray that it didn’t happen. Because losing him now was not an option.

She met Conrad’s eyes when she finally looked up and he raised a brow as if to ask if everything was okay with her. She must have been lost in her head for a while there, a great way to not call attention to herself. Well done, Daisy, always so smooth! Conrad stuck out his tongue quickly, then schooled his features before anyone could see. Daisy covered her mouth as she snorted out a laugh, drawing the attention of Adelaide. Conrad’s sister narrowed her eyes and looked at the two of them before looking away, much to Daisy’s relief.

“Would you like to see the kitchen, Daisy?” Willow asked, making Daisy’s heart spike with excitement.

She was grateful to meet the chef but also happy to leave the table for a little while. She looked at Leo and hesitated, earning a chuckle from Willow.

“He’ll be fine. Byron can take him to the game room for a bit. I bet he’s bored with all the adult conversation around him.”

Daisy smiled and nodded. If Leo was away from Adelaide, her mind was at ease. She had no idea what Conrad’s sister might ask her son, and what Leo might say in response that might lead them to connecting the dots. She was probably being paranoid since Leo was just a child and didn’t know anything about Conrad, but she couldn’t be too careful with the piercing looks Adelaide had been giving him.

“So, as you’ve noticed, we are all so passionate about our food and it helps when a chef loves what they do too.” Willow said as they walked to the kitchen.

Everything in the house looked expensive and well thought out, and Daisy could only imagine the state-of-the-art equipment they had in the kitchen.

“Matteo has thoroughly spoiled us over the years, and I hope he can teach you a few tricks of the trade.”

“I would love to learn everything that I can from him,” she replied with honesty.

“Lucky for you he loves to teach, and talk.” Willow whispered the last part as if it were a secret between two old friends. “I can’t quite figure out if Adelaide always avoided him because cooking is not her thing, or if it’s because the man tried to talk her ear off.”

Daisy laughed. “I can’t blame him there; I love to talk about food too whenever I have a willing audience.”

“How will you ever survive working for my son, then?” Willow laughed. “I’m sure you’ve realized he’s not exactly Mr. Fun and Social.”

“Oh, he’s not that bad,” Daisy replied with a shrug. “He just uses his words wisely, I suppose. But he does have his funny moments.”

Daisy remembered the flirty man she had met that night at the party. He certainly had quite the potential to be funny, and his social skills hadn’t been lacking when he brought her up to his room.

“Then I guess you’ll work together well. Hopefully for as long as Matteo has blessed us with his cooking.”

Well, there was one problem with that, Daisy thought. Living with Conrad for years might prove to be a challenge when he finally settled down. She didn’t think she could watch him be with someone else and potentially have kids that would look exactly like her son. And what happened when Leo became a teenager and his resemblance to Conrad became unavoidable. Even now, Leo seemed to look more like Conrad with each day that passed. It was like trying to hide a pregnancy bump in a tank top.

“We’re here,” Willow announced as she opened the door to a restaurant level kitchen.

Daisy’s eyes widened, smiling like a child in a candy store, all her previous worries forgotten. This was her dream kitchen, and she didn’t know if it could get better than this. A man chuckled, making her turn to look in his direction. He was dressed in his chef whites, a pristine white flash as he hustled around the kitchen. Matteo’s smile was warm and welcoming, and his large hands fluttered in the air as he waved from across the room.

“Impressive, isn’t it? It’s my favorite room in the entire house,” He greeted, voice deep and cheery.

“Matteo, this is Daisy. She will be Conrad’s chef, and I thought you both might enjoy the opportunity to chat,” Willow said.

Matteo thanked her as Willow quickly ducked out of the kitchen, leaving the two chefs to chat in the enchantingly beautiful room.

“I would be surprised if you weren’t still overwhelmed after stepping foot in this house,” Matteo said, turning back to his dish, but looking up every few seconds to watch Daisy.

Daisy blushed. “Sorry. This has to be the most beautiful kitchen that I’ve ever seen. Outside of a magazine, of course.”

Matteo laughed, his shoulders shaking under his large white jacket. “Don’t worry. The size certainly takes some getting used to.”

“Are those what I think they are?” Daisy gasped, walking towards the intricately hanging knife display along the wall.

She ran her finger reverently over one handle, then turned to look at Matteo to confirm that she wasn’t dreaming. The elder man nodded with a genuine smile, and Daisy looked back fervently at the expensive set of Miyabi knives. She had only ever seen them in advertisements, but she would recognize that brand anywhere. What would it take to convince Conrad to get her a set of the exclusive Japanese knives for her kitchen as well?

Had she just thought of Conrad’s kitchen as hers?

“You really love cooking, huh?” Matteo chuckled. “I haven’t seen that look of excitement on anyone’s face since I got my first chef whites. There is no feeling quite like it.”

“It’s the one thing that has always made me special,” Daisy said. It felt good just to talk to someone who understood where she was coming from. “Even when I wasn’t the tallest, smartest, or prettiest, I was always the girl who could cook better than anyone else. It became my very own superpower, bringing a smile to people’s faces with my food.”

Matteo looked at her for the longest time before replying. “I have never heard anyone describe it so beautifully. You have a bright future ahead of you, young lady, and you deserve it.”

Daisy felt like her cheeks would start hurting from smiling too much, but she couldn’t help it. Matteo had just helped her in cementing her desire to cook for this family, especially her new boss. She didn’t want to dwell too much on the fact that her desire to make Conrad happy with her food extended to other things as well. It wasn’t just her food she wanted him to have, but that could never happen.

“So, your new personal chef is very different from your usual preferences,” Adelaide began, stopping only when Conrad narrowed his eyes at his sister.

He knew her well enough to know that there was nothing innocent about that statement, and her true intentions were about to be revealed. He didn’t want to start this conversation with her, especially with Daisy around, worried that his sister might say something to offend his new chef.

“What are you trying and failing to say?” Conrad asked with a bored tone.

“Oh, I am not failing to say anything. I am actually saying it.” His sister laughed.

Sometimes Conrad wondered if his parents were wrong and if he was the first born, simply based on how immature and nosy his sister was. She had never given him the chance to be the annoying little brother, as was his birth right. Even now, while they were in their thirties, she was still finding little ways to annoy him. Maybe there were three things in life that were certain: death, taxes, and Adelaide being true to her character. He gave a pointed look, hoping she would take the hint.

“I don’t know if you had noticed, but Daisy isn’t exactly an old man.” She said with a faux innocent smile. “Had you noticed, mom?”

His traitor of a mother laughed and nodded. “You are right, she’s not quite like the past chefs.”

“I bet she looks exceptionally good in her uniform too, a feast for the eyes while she serves you a feast from the kitchen.”

Conrad sighed with exasperation. “You are not as funny as you think, you know that right?”

Their mother laughed and brought her wineglass up for a small sip. “Oh, lighten up, Conny. The young woman is pretty, there’s no denying that.”

“What does it matter? All I care about is her cooking.” Conrad replied.

His sister snorted. “And I don’t like expensive, sparkly things.” She said with a wiggle of her fingers, showing off her diamond rings.

“I have always hired my previous chefs based on their experience and ability to cook. That is what they sign contracts for.”

“So, you haven’t noticed at all that she’s a good-looking young woman?” His sister continued poking. “You’ll be seeing a lot of her; I hope things will remain professional between you two.”