Amedeo, Her Italian Billionaire (7 page)

Still. He was out of his depth here. “You’re cooking is delicious, Violet.”

She dropped the spatula on the floor, then crossed her arms. “You’re just saying that.”

Her bottom lip grew to twice its size. Then it began trembling. Oh. Crap. She was going to cry. He hated crying women. He never knew what to do. His hand hovered over her shoulders, wanting to take her into his arms.

He couldn’t blame her. These were pregnancy hormones. Dante had talked about how his wife Gwen was a different person when she was pregnant. “It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not.”

“No need to cry.”

Shit. Wrong words.

“I’m not crying,” she wailed as the first set of tears streaked down her face.

Should he pull her to him? He didn’t know. He preferred coding or negotiating business deals. Crying women were not his forte.

With nothing to lose, he pulled her up against him. She resisted at first, but he held on. Soon, she melted into him, her sobs getting louder. He murmured into her ears. Finally her sobs slowed down.

Her breath hitched and she sniffed loudly. He grabbed a dishtowel, wiping her face. “It’s okay, Violet. You’re pregnant.”

“I’m not a crier,” she said. “I can’t remember the last time I cried.”

Sniff.

“It’s okay, honey. You can’t help it. How about I take you out for breakfast?”

“You’d do that?”

“Yes. I’ll make sure the housekeeper comes in today to clean. You don’t have to worry about it.”

“Really?’

Her sniffing subsided. She looked kind of cute with her red eyes. He let her go and she stepped away. “Really, Violet. Wherever you want. What are you in the mood for?”

Food he could do. He’d take her to McDonald’s if that was what she wanted. As long as she stopped crying. He couldn’t do that. If she cried all the time, this was going to be a long few months until she had this baby.

Buck up. She’s the one who has it worse. He had to remember that. She was going to push a tiny human out of her body.

“Uh, I don’t know.”

“Go get cleaned up and we’ll go out.”

She sniffed again then left him in the kitchen. He cleaned up a little while he waited, then was ready by the front door. She stood halfway down the steps. “I’m sorry, Amedeo.”

“You have nothing to apologize for, sweetie.”

She looked better. Calmer. “Where are we going?”

“There’s a breakfast place we can walk to if you want? It’s a nice morning.”

“You won’t be late for work?”

“I own the place, honey. I can walk in whenever I want,” he said.

“Oh, okay.”

She walked down the rest of the steps. He took her hand, leading her out the door. He interlaced his fingers with hers. Like a lover. Hopefully she’d feel safe this way.

“I’m sorry about the kitchen,” she said.

He kissed her cheek. “No worries. No damage and it’ll clean up.”

“I’ll clean it when we get back.”

“No, you have to come to work with me, today. Remember?”

“Oh, right. You asked me to find your hacker. I almost forgot. Okay, I did forget.”

“You okay to do that today?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

She did seem back to normal.

Chapter6

Violet had no idea what had happened. They walked to the restaurant. Amedeo had looked at her for a time as if she was going to erupt. Now she felt okay, but she wasn’t a crier. What had happened?

Pregnancy hormones. Now she was starving. Was that the problem? Had she waited too long to eat this morning? She couldn’t keep doing that. She wasn’t normally a breakfast person. Guess she had to start eating.

“You okay?” Amedeo said.

He’d been very sweet. She might have thrown herself out on her ass for that behavior. “I’m better, but I can’t wait for those pancakes.”

He smiled. “You don’t have to cook for me. I like that you do, but if you ever don’t want to, I can cook and we can get take out. Please don’t put some much pressure on yourself,” he said.

Could he get any nicer? She’d turned his life upside down all because of a one-night stand and he was letting her stay in his house. He was paying her bills. He needed to stop. She was going to get used to it and miss it when it was gone. No one had ever taken care of her.

“Okay. I’ll remember that. My brain is just a fog lately.”

“I think it might be that way the whole time.”

“What do you know about pregnancy?” Violet said.

“Well, I’ve been listening to Dante talk about his wife who is pregnant right now. Due soon, I think. He said she was not herself either. It’s normal.”

“I feel bad that you have to deal with this.”

“I was there when you got pregnant. Remember? I also want this child and to know this child, so it’s what I have to do.”

He was so realistic. Why hadn’t she called him? Why hadn’t she pursued him? Probably because they didn’t talk much during their night of passion. She didn’t get to know him at all. She was glad he was the father of her baby.

She had to admit that she was beginning to toy with the idea of keeping the baby. Would Amedeo really want to be part of his life? He said he did, but at this point the whole idea was abstract. Would he feel the same when she was showing? When he knew there was an actual baby involved instead of them just playing house and having sex?

“You don’t look as if you believe me,” he said.

“It’s hard to imagine a bachelor wanting a child.”

“I was engaged, remember? Having children was a sticking point. Tory didn’t think she wanted them and I wanted to be with her enough to let it go. She did me a favor.”

“You wanted children?”

“I did and I forgot that. I remembered it when you told me you were pregnant. I would have been in a marriage and not true to myself,” he said.

She was so independent that she couldn’t imagine doing that. She only had herself to rely on for most of her life. Her mother hadn’t been useful in that sense. Or maybe she had since Violet knew how to survive on her own. Maybe her mother had done her a favor.

“Did you want children?” he said.

“I never planned on getting married and girls in my neighborhood got pregnant to hold onto a guy.”

“How did that work out?”

“Not well. If the baby daddies had a job their wages would be garnished, but if they didn’t they were long gone before the baby came.”

“Is that what your father did?”

Violet sighed. She hadn’t wanted to talk about her childhood. “Yes. My mother didn’t pursue him either. She wasn’t a strong woman.”

“Wasn’t?”

“No, she died a few years ago. She was an alcoholic and she finally drank herself to death.”

He reached out and squeezed her hand. “I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault.”

She looked down at his olive-skinned hand on her much darker one. His fingers were long and lean while hers were short and round. Swelling already.

“Still. I’m sorry that you had to go through something like that. Other than my father dying at a younger age, my life was pretty easy. Not that I haven’t worked as an adult for all that I have, but I had a good base. Must be tougher when you don’t.”

Violet shrugged. “I’ve never thought about it that way. I’ve never assumed I was a victim. I just carried on.”

“I hope our child gets that strength from you.”

“You’ve sold two companies. You have determination, too,” she said.

He nodded. “Then our child will have no choice, but to be successful.”

The food came. Violet dug into hers. She was starving. As the food filled her stomach, she felt better and better. Calmer. Amedeo had ordered a muffin and coffee. He was finished long before she was. He leaned back and watched her eat as he drank the rest of his drink.

“I’m sorry I ordered so much, but I was really hungry.”

“You’re eating for two. It’s understandable.”

“Still.”

“No, enjoy. I’m in no hurry.”

“You sure? I know we have to get to work.”

“It’s fine. I told my assistant I’d be late. I also told Carl, my IT guy, to be ready for you later in the morning. I can fix it all, don’t worry.”

She glanced up at him, her fork part way to her mouth. She’d bet he could fix anything. Isn’t that what men did? Fixed things? It was just part of their nature. She finished putting the food in her mouth.

“I could get used to this and that scares me, Amedeo.”

“Why? We will have a child together. I will always be in your life in some form.”

She knew that. She wondered how she would handle it when he did finally marry and had a child with that person. Right now, she had him all to herself.

Yikes. She had to stop thinking that way.

***

Violet had been quiet since the end of breakfast. They’d walked home in silence then she showered and changed for work. They’d only arrived an hour later than everyone else arrived at work. More like two hours later than he normally entered his office. He did run the company so he liked to be there first.

“Are you nervous?” he said when they climbed into the car.

“No, why?”

“You’re just being quiet.”

She rubbed a hand down her face. “I guess I’m embarrassed about this morning.”

He took her hand in his. “Don’t be. You’re pregnant. It’s to be expected.”

“Still.”

“Please don’t be, Violet. I’m not going to judge you.”

He wanted her to know that. He understood. He would understand. This child was his also and he was willing to invest the time.

“Thanks. Tell me about your IT guy.”

“Carl? He’s a former Marine. Tough as nails, but fair. His employees say they never have to guess what he is thinking. He’s well liked and the only person who has left his department since we started left because she quit to have a child.”

“Sounds good. Are his skills good?”

“He’s good, but he’s assembled a great team. I was surprised when he told me someone had hacked into my system. They are top notch and often get headhunted by bigger companies”

“But they stay?”

“We always counter offer. Carl thinks they’re all worth it so I believe him.”

Amedeo still held Violet’s hand. It was warm and soft and he liked holding it. She didn’t retrieve it until they arrived at work. She followed him to his office where he called his employee.

Carl was a squat man and Violet instantly liked him. He shook her hand, looking her in the eye.

“How much experience do you have with security?” he said when they sat down in Amedeo’s office.

“It’s mainly what I do. I’ve done some app development, but I really prefer the security aspect of systems. I can usually get into a system pretty easily.”

An eyebrow of Carl’s went up. “Oh? Let me see.”

She pulled out her laptop and fifteen minutes later, she showed him that she was in their system. Amedeo’s phone rang. He was impressed with her skills.

“Yes, Carl is here.”

He handed the phone to his employee who said that they were doing a test and that it was okay that someone had hacked into them this time. He handed the phone back to Amedeo.

“For the record, I used brute force not finesse, this time. I wanted to show you that it can be done and to show you that I was in there. If I were truly hacking, I’d have taken more time and you wouldn’t have known I was there,” she said.

Amedeo flushed with pride. Violet was really good at this. Why was she wasting her time doing this freelance or why wasn’t she paid more than she was? They hadn’t talked pay, but he would give her whatever she wanted.

“Got it,” Carl said, grinning. “I think you’re the person for the job.”

“I need a way to get into the system without looking like an employee.”

“Each user name has a pattern to identify someone as working here,” Carl said. “I can give you an administrator login that only I have. And Amedeo of course, but I altered it a bit so I know it’s you in there.”

“Good. You don’t think this is an inside job?” she said.

Amedeo glanced at Carl. “What do you think?”

“No, I don’t. I trust my people implicitly,” Carl said. “I hired every one of them and did a thorough background check.”

“Will you do that on me?” Violet asked.

“No, I’m trusting Amedeo’s opinion of you. And frankly I’m not sure I care about your background. I saw what you can do and I think you can help us.”

“What do you want to do next?” Violet said.

“Let’s meet the staff?” Carl said.

He stood. Violet stood also. She nodded at Amedeo and they left. He leaned back in his chair. That had worked out. Now he needed to get down to business. He was behind, but he wouldn’t tell Violet that.

He had only worked for a half an hour when he heard a voice outside his door.

“I know he’ll want to see me. You can’t stop me.”

His eyes fell closed. Tory.

What the Hell was she doing here? Hadn’t he made it clear his feelings about her? He ended up being happy that they’d broken up, but he had no desire to see her. His office door flew open. Tory sailed in with Madge chasing behind her.

Save him from females today.

“I’m sorry, Amedeo. She pushed past me and I didn’t want to be arrested for assault,” Madge said.

“It’s okay, Madge. I’ll deal with this.”

His assistant backed out of the doorway, not closing the door. Good girl. She would probably wait right outside in case he needed any help. That’s why he paid her the big bucks.

He turned his attention to the intruder. “What do you want, Tory?”

She strode to his desk, standing in his personal space. He moved his chair away from her. When she’d canceled the wedding, she’d lost the right to be that close.

“I want you back, Amedeo. I miss you.”

“You might miss my big dick, but I doubt you miss me.”

Her mouth dropped open. He’d never talked to her like that. She didn’t like dirty talk. She didn’t even like dirty sex. Missionary position. Lights off. In bed. Sometimes she’d deign to be on top. Though her blow jobs were legendary. When she chose to give one.

“That’s awful, Amedeo. I don’t deserve that.”

“Tory, you don’t deserve my time.”

A security guard appeared in his doorway. Madge must have called him. “Is there a problem,  Mr. Killiano?”

Tory’s eyes widened.

“Could you please escort this young lady out of my building?”

“Sure, sir.”

Problem solved.

***

Violet almost ran into Tory and the security guard as she walked to Amedeo’s office.

“Bitch,” Tory said. “Give me back my man.”

Tory cocked her arm backwards, but the security guard grabbed it before she could connect with Violet’s face. Holy shit. And she thought she could be ghetto. The security guy led a screaming Tory away from Amedeo’s doorway. Violet’s heart pounded in her chest. Not because Tory had scared her, but because she would have had to mess up that bitch if she’d punched her.

Violet had tried to leave the ghetto behind, but if someone threatened her, it came out. She couldn’t help it. It was a part of her she’d probably never get rid of.

She didn’t really want Amedeo to see that. He might rethink her raising his child. She shook off the encounter with Tory, but when she looked up. Amedeo was in his doorway. He grabbed her hand, dragging her into his office.

“You okay? I’m sorry about her.”

She blinked. He was apologizing for Tory? “Her crazy isn’t your fault.”

“Still, I brought her into your life,” Amedeo said.

This man never ceased to amaze her. “It’s fine, Amedeo. I’m fine. I just wanted to make sure it was okay that I got started. Do I need to sign any paperwork to take on this project?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess you’ll have to. How about you get started with IT and I’ll have the papers sent down?”

“That’s fine.”

She trusted him. He wouldn’t screw her over. Too bad she didn’t think this was a real job. Carl was waiting for her when she returned to one floor down where the IT guys had offices.