Attainment (The Temptation Series) (9 page)

“No, that’s alright. I’m just settling him for sleep,”
Alexis informs.

There’s a pause for a moment and I hear some muffled sounds.

“Oh, goodness, he is just a perfect little angel,” Jessica
coos.

“Isn’t he just? Here would you like a cuddle?”

“Do you not want to put him down to sleep?”

“It’s fine. He basically lives in Bryce’s arms, so he’s used
to it.”

“Well, in that case, I’d love to.”

There’s another pause in discussion and some more muffled
sounds.

“My, oh my, does he look like his father.”

I hear Alexis giggle. “Yes, he sure does.”

This statement has me grinning from ear to ear when my phone
rings. Annoyed by the interruption, I buzz Abigail. “Abigail, can you please
hold all my calls until further notice.”

“Certainly, Mr. Clark,” she responds, the ringing ceasing
immediately.

“Thank you.”

I hang up and continue to listen to the monitor.

“So how’s everything going? Is he feeding well? Are you
getting enough sleep?” Jessica asks.

“Now, Jessica...you wouldn’t be here to find out if I’m
suffering postnatal depression at all would you?” Alexis asks with a playful
tone to her voice.

Jessica laughs and it has me a little perplexed. That is
exactly why she is here.

“No, Alexis. Well, that is why Bryce asked me here. But no,
I just wanted to see your handsome and incredibly adorable little son.”
Traitor!
Fucking traitor!

I’m just about to get up from my desk and march upstairs to
demand she put her skills—that I pay her considerably for—to use when she
continues speaking.

“...However, seeing as I am here, and seeing how you are
clearly not suffering from postnatal depression, do you want to tell me why
Bryce is so concerned? Obviously you have given him reason to be.”

Clever woman, why did I doubt her?

“It’s my own insecurities, Jessica,” Alexis sighs. “I’ll get
over them.”

“Insecurities about what? You look great. You’re healthy,
you’re—“

“I look great? Pfft, I have a long way to go to get back to
the weight I was happy with. The weight I was when I met Bryce.”

She has a long way to go? Fucking bullshit! She looks as
stunning as ever.

“Alexis, I’m not going to stand here and tell you that these
insecurities about your post-baby body are ridiculous, because they are not.
Nearly every mother to have just given birth feels this way, it’s quite normal.
What I will say though, is give yourself a break. You will get back to the weight
you want to be, in time.”

“I may not have time,” Alexis mumbles so softly that I can
barely hear.

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing, it’s nothing. Look, I know I will never be a
skinny supermodel and I never want to be. I was happy with my curves and being a
size twelve. After all, I am 37 years of age and a mother of three. It’s
just...I want to get back to that weight as soon as possible. I don’t want to
risk—“

Alexis cuts herself off.

“You don’t want to risk what, Alexis?”

Leaning in closer to the monitor, I strain to hear what she
is so worried about.

“I don’t want to risk losing Bryce,” she says sadly.

What. The. Fuck?
Lose me? Why would she lose me? She will
NEVER lose me?
With my heart hammering in my chest, confusion plagues me as
to why she would feel this way. As far as I am aware, I have never given her
cause to believe I would abandon her. It doesn’t make sense to me.

“Alexis, why do you feel you could lose Bryce?”
Yes, why?

“Because it’s happened before,” she exclaims, her voice now
raised and sounding desperately troubled. “After giving birth to Charlotte, I
waited too long to lose my baby weight and Rick...well...he obviously didn’t
find me attractive anymore and went elsewhere. He went and had an affair with a
younger, slimmer, prettier woman. God, Jessica, I don’t think I’ll cope if
Bryce does the same. It will kill me. I can’t let that happen. I won’t let that
happen. I won’t let Chelsea take him away from me,” she shouts, desperation in
her voice.

Fuck! Fuck me!
The pieces all start to fit together.

Brayden’s little cry sounds through the monitor.

“Oh, baby boy, Mummy is sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten
you,” she sobs. “God, I’m so sorry.”

I hear another muffled sound together with Alexis sobbing in
the background and it tears me apart. I want nothing more than to run to her
and comfort her, to let her know I would never do what Rick did. EVER! And, I
want to kick his fucking head in for making her feel this way.

“Alexis, Bryce is not your ex-husband...”
You can say
that again.
“...he is undeniably in love with you and I can confidently say
would never betray you like that. You need to trust him, but first and foremost
you need to trust in yourself.”

“I do trust him. I just don’t trust Chelsea. She made it
very clear to me after we lost Bianca that she was in love with him. I warned
her back then to back off, but I know women like her, they wait like a snake in
the grass. Wait for their time to strike. And she’s fucking waiting, I can
tell.”

I run my hands through my hair, completely dumbfounded by
what I am hearing.
Am I that oblivious to Chelsea’s feelings? Does she only
have eyes for me?
Shit!
If that is the case, no wonder Alexis is
acting the way she is.

“Maybe you should tell Bryce how you feel,” Jessica suggests.
“He has known Chelsea for a long time and is probably unaware of her true
character. In fact, I can probably assure you that he is unaware of her true
character.”

Alexis sighs. “I don’t think it will matter, Jessica. Where
Chelsea is concerned he is like a brick wall.”

What? Am I?

“Okay, well in that case we work on you by making you feel
better about yourself. We need to build up your confidence, starting with a
trip to the hairdresser. I think you should organise a girly pampering
afternoon with your friends.”

“That’s actually a great idea, but what about Brayden? I
can’t exactly take him with me.”

“I think his father will cope.”

“Oh, I know that. Bryce has been an exceptional dad so far.
He’s perfect. I have no qualms there. It’s just, he is so busy.”

“I’m sure he’ll be fine. Call Lucy in if it makes you feel
better. Or speak to Arthur.”

“Noooo. I’m not going behind Bryce’s back and interfering
with his business. No way in hell. That is his domain.”

Brayden’s little cry pierces through the monitor again.

“Is he ready for a feed?” Jessica asks. “I’ll let you get
back to it then.”

“He shouldn’t be, the little guzzle-guts. But thank you.
Thank you for coming and talking to me.”

“Anytime, Dear. And remember what I said. Bryce is not
Rick.”

“I know. I just...I get a bad feeling about Chelsea.”

“I can see that. If talking to Bryce about it is off the
cards, take matters into your own hands and build your confidence back to the
level it should be.”

“I will, Jessica. Thank you.”

Brayden cries out again, except this time he is letting
Alexis know he wants a feed.

“Alright, hungry little piggy, I’ll get them out for you.
God, you are so much like your father.”

I laugh. Yes, he is like me, wanting to latch on to her
nipples every chance he gets. Except, I want to for a completely different
reason.

“I’ll let myself out. Take care, and contact me if you need
anything,” Jessica says as her voice trails off into the distance.

“Thanks, I will,” Alexis calls out.

Seconds later I hear what sounds like Alexis unclipping her
bra, and then that unmistakeable sound of Brayden suckling. I’m totally
jealous.

“Whoa, settle petal,” she giggles. “There’s plenty of milk
in there and it’s all for you, buddy. No need to try and rip Mummy’s nipple
apart to get it.”

Honestly loving to eavesdrop on their time together—but at
the same time wishing I could see them both—I consider looking into a video
monitor when I hear a knock on my office door. Knowing that it’s Jessica coming
to say goodbye, I quickly switch off the monitor and call for her to come in.

I play dumb as she walks toward me. “How did you go?”

“Just fine, Bryce. She is definitely not suffering from
postnatal depression.”

I nod and smile. “That’s great. So, what is the matter?”

“I can’t tell you, you know that. But what I can tell you is
open your bloody eyes, especially where certain members of your staff are
concerned. And pay her attention; tell her how much you love her. Tell her how
incredible she is, and most importantly tell her how incredible she looks.”

I continue to nod and smile, knowing that these requests are
like second nature to me. Making Alexis feel good about herself is one of my
favourite pastimes. “I will,” I promise.

“Good. Call me if you need me. And by the way, Brayden is
superb,” she states, smiling brightly. “If ever you need a babysitter, you know
where I am.”

“Noted,” I say as she approaches the door and lets herself
out.

Once Jessica is gone, I start to think about everything I
overheard: the need for Alexis to get back to her pre-baby weight. The fear she
has of losing me. The fuckwit ex-husband of hers and how he has destroyed her
confidence. And, her thoughts on Chelsea’s true character.

Swivelling my chair to face the view of Port Phillip Bay, I
take in the scenic vision that has many times before assisted in providing me
clarity in determining a course of action. This time is no different from
before as I decide what my next step will be. A step that involves planting a
seed, and we all know how much I love gardening.

CHAPTER TEN

“You’re beautiful, you know,” I say as I break the silence
while watching Alexis feed Brayden. “And I love you more than life itself. That
will never change.” I walk into the room and sit next to them, picking up the
soft guitar and nervously fiddling with it. I don’t know why I’m so nervous. I
guess I just don’t want her to be angry with me anymore. I feel like a complete
arsehole.

Alexis gives me a critical look. “Did Jessica speak to you?”

“No, not really, she just ensured me that you weren’t
suffering from postnatal depression.”

She stands up and walks over to the nappy change table. “I
told you I wasn’t.”

“I know you did. But I had to be sure.” I put down the
guitar, wanting to help her, wanting to make things right. “Here...” I say,
stepping up next to her. “...let me.”

She moves aside and allows me to take her place.

“Hello, daddy’s boy,” I coo like an idiot, something I have
absolutely no control over. Even when I try desperately not to talk to my son
using my daddy-baby voice, it still comes out of mouth that way. God only knows
how much shit Derek and the boys are going to pile on me when they hear. “Let’s
change this wet nappy and get you all clean and dry, yeah?”

I lift the nappy to find the filthiest looking mushy
substance known to man. Fuck, I can’t even begin to describe what colour it is.

After wiping his dirty arse and sliding a clean nappy
underneath—just like Alexis showed me—I hold out the folded-nappy-of-death for
Alexis to dispose of.

I then lift Brayden’s bottom to position him correctly and
wipe his little fella clean. Just as I am about to secure the clean nappy, a
fountain of yellow baby piss hits me square in the face.

What. The. Fuck?

I hear Alexis muffle her mouth with her hand, and even
though my eyes are closed and painted with urine, I know she is about to burst
into laughter.

“Did our son just piss in my face?” I state calmly.

Alexis, still trying desperately to stifle her outburst,
croakily responds. “Um...yes, yes he did.”

“Right. Do you wanna hand me a towel, or a wipe, or a
fucking tissue?” I ask, still keeping my tone calm.

“Sure.” She lets go of her bottled outburst and cracks up
laughing. “I would love to.”

Seconds later I feel her wiping Brayden’s piss from my eyes,
followed by my lips and the rest of my face. And, now feeling that it is safe
to unseal them, I pry one eye open at a time to find one happy little boy
squirming around underneath my hand.

“You think that’s funny, don’t you?” I ask him. “Pissing on
daddy like that.”

“You need to keep his Mr. Doodle covered with either the
nappy or a towel AT ALL TIMES!” Alexis reaffirms as she leans down and kisses
Brayden’s head. “Otherwise this little cheeky critter will give you a golden
shower. Won’t you?”

“Speaking of shower, that’s where I am headed now,” I declare
as I walk toward the ensuite.

“Bye, Daddy,” Alexis calls out from behind. I turn around to
find her holding Brayden and waving his little hand at me. “Thanks for changing
my nappy.”

“You’re welcome, baby boy,” I reply with a laugh. “Anytime.”

***

After a quick shower, I soon discover it is almost time for
my appointment with Chelsea. As I make my way down the stairs, I find Alexis
sitting on the floor with Brayden lying on a bunny-rug beside her. She is
holding a brightly coloured caterpillar-looking thing not too far from his
face.

“Boo!” she coos at him, after pulling it away quickly. “I
can’t wait for you to smile for the first time, BB. Something tells me you will
have a smile like your daddy.”

BB? I thought we dealt with that shit.

I quietly and purposely walk up behind them. “BB?” I
question, while firing an interrogative expression her way.

She startles a little and looks up with an uh
oh-I-just-got-busted look. “Um...yes! Baby Brayden.”

Realisation dawns on me. “That is why you wanted the initial
B, isn’t it?” I ask, impressed.

She giggles, revealing her plan. “Maybe.”

“You never seem to amaze to me,” I say, shaking my head with
a smile. “Listen, I have my appointment with Chelsea now. I want you and
Brayden to come in to the office while she’s here.”

“I really don’t want to,” Alexis murmurs without looking at me.
“We are happy here.”

The buzzer to my office sounds and we both look at the
speaker. Why we do this...I’m not really sure.

“Please, I want to show off my son...and the amazing woman
who gave him to me.”

I hear her make a ‘pfft’ noise, and her confident demeanour
from seconds ago is now gone. It saddens me.

“Sure, if it means that much to you,” she says with clear
distaste as she slowly gets up from the ground.

Walking toward my office, I’m ready to put Alexis and
Jessica’s theory to the test. Surely Chelsea isn’t as bad as they say she is.

***

Heading straight for the door, I open it to find Chelsea
seated in reception, brushing down her dress and fixing her hair and makeup.
Instantly, I pick up on her effort to make herself presentable. Normally I
would find this preparation an honourable quality, something that all employees
or business associates should make habit of doing before a meeting. This time
though, I see it more as an attempt to impress me on a different level.

My newfound insight surprises me.

“Good afternoon, Chelsea, please come in.” I stand back and
hold the door open for her, remembering what my mother had always said about
being a gentleman. ‘Chivalry is only dead if you, yourself, kill it.’

Expecting her to walk in like I directed her to, I’m shocked
when she instead stops and places a quick kiss on my cheek. “Hi, it’s nice to
see you again. I feel we haven’t caught up in such a long time.”

Okay, that kiss was unprofessional and certainly not
called for, considering my fiancé is in the room and has just recently given
birth to our son.

Worried that because this particular experiment is proving
Alexis and Jessica’s thesis correct, I quickly give Alexis a glance to check I
haven’t upset her any further. I honestly did not see Chelsea as this brazen
before now.
Shit! Have I been that blind?

Expecting to see Alexis resembling a cartoon character with
steam billowing out of her ears and nostrils, instead, I see a withdrawn woman
who is extremely uncomfortable.

Chelsea follows my line of sight toward Alexis. “Oh, hello,
Alexis, I didn’t know you would be here,” she says with a sweet but somewhat
bitter tone of voice.

“Well, I do live and work here, Chelsea...,” Alexis replies
just as bitterly sweet while cradling Brayden in her arms. “...And, this is my
fiancé’s office, so I’m bound to be around aren’t I?”

“Yes, you are,” Chelsea replies curtly. She looks back at
me, appearing to wait for my instruction as to where we should sit.

Thinking that she would have acknowledged Brayden by this
stage, asking how he is...heck, even asking what his name is, I’m surprised
that she hasn’t.
Maybe it’s because he is in Alexis’ arms, and approaching
her would be awkward due to their obvious animosity toward each other.

I decide to put that theory to the test too and take Brayden
from Alexis. “Chelsea, this is Brayden, Alexis’ and my son,” I say proudly,
stepping up right beside her.

“He’s cute,” she replies, giving him a quick smile then
focussing back on me. “But then again, he is your son.”

I furrow my brow, her flirting obvious and quite frankly pathetic.

At this point, I’m pissed off. Pissed off because one: I’ve
been so fucking blind and because of that it has hurt Alexis. Two: I fucking hate
it when I’m wrong. And three: the way she just treated my fiancé and son in
front of me was nothing short of appalling.

Moving away from Chelsea, I pass Brayden back to Alexis and
kiss her with a purposeful show. When I’m done, I turn back around and ask
Chelsea to sit in the seat in front of my desk. She does but not before
shooting Alexis a subtle scowl.

Sitting down opposite her, I steeple my hands in front of me
and prepare myself to potentially lose an old friend. “Chelsea, I’m going to
have to let you go,” I say neutrally.

“Let me go wher—“

“Your behaviour, especially today in this office, is
unprofessional and quite frankly embarrassing. I made it exceedingly clear that
we were nothing more than friends a long time ago, and honestly, I’d hoped you
could work here with a proficient, friendly and skilled manner. Clearly, you
can’t. And that being the case, I’m sorry to say that you’re employment with
Clark Incorporated is now effectively terminated.”

Chelsea sits stunned, mouth agape, searching my eyes for
some form of reprieve or indication that what I just said was some ploy. Slowly,
she turns to face Alexis. “You. This is all your doing.”

I stand up and gesture that she do the same. “I can assure
you that this has absolutely nothing to do with Alexis. I had every intention
in giving you the benefit of the doubt today, truly believing that what I had
sceptically suspected was just that; a doubtful suspicion. Unfortunately,
Chelsea, you proved me wrong, and because of that and the way you feel, I can’t
have you work here anymore. It’s not fair to Alexis and it’s not fair to you.”

Chelsea stands up, fury and hurt in her eyes. “And how
exactly do you think I feel, Bryce?”

Seeing the hurt seep out of her is unsettling, and the last
thing I want is for her to be upset, but I now realise she needs to be told
bluntly and once and for all that she holds nothing more than mutual friendship
with me.

“I think it’s obvious how you feel. Can you honestly stand
there and tell me that you don’t have feelings for me, Chelsea. That you
haven’t since we hooked up all those years ago,” I candidly request.

She looks down at her hands, her bottom lip trembling. “I
can’t.”

“And that’s why you have to leave. Move on. You can’t do
that here.”

She nods slowly but doesn’t look up.

“Listen, I want you to be happy like I am. Find that someone
you deserve...because that someone is not me. I belong to Alexis now and I
always will. We have a family and we will be married in the near future.”

She looks up at this point and finds Alexis and Brayden. I
find them too, taking in Alexis’ tear streaked face.

Chelsea sucks in a breath and covers her mouth with her
hand. “I’m sorry, Bryce. I...I just thought that we...” She momentarily shuts
her eyes and shakes her head. “You’re right, I’ve acted terribly. God, I need
to leave. Shit! I’m sorry.”

She turns and heads for the door with rapid speed. I take a
step forward, my intention to chase her down. I don’t want her to leave in the
state she is in. Hesitating for a mere second, I pause, fearing that if I do go
after her, I will give her the wrong impression.

Alexis hands me Brayden. “Here, take BB. I’ll go after her.”

I watch her run off while wiping her eyes.

***

Minutes later, Alexis walks back into my office. I’ve
already placed Brayden down in his bassinet, and he is—as per usual—fast
asleep.

Standing up from my seated position behind the desk, I make
my way around to the front of it and lean my arse against the edge. “How is
she?” I ask, worried about the answer.

“Devastated—“

“Shit!” I run my hands through my hair in frustration. I
really didn’t want it to end this badly.

Alexis steps up to me and takes my hands in hers.
“Devastated...but she’ll be okay. You gave her the wakeup-call she needed.”

Letting go of her hands and placing mine on her hips, I
guide her closer and press my mouth to hers, the taste and feel of her body
instantly heeling my apprehension.

“Believe it or not...,” she whispers, pulling away from my
mouth—the loss of her tongue, agonising. “You did her a favour.”

I rest my forehead on hers and momentarily close my eyes. “I
know. But I feel terrible.”

“That’s because you have a big heart.”

“A heart that belongs to you and only you. I wish you would
realise that.”

“I do...now.”

She tilts her head up to kiss me once again, and I welcome
the invitation eagerly. No one makes me feel what Alexis makes me feel. No one
ever has. It’s as though we are two kindred spirits; two halves of a whole.

“Jessica told you didn’t she? You won’t confess because if
you do you admit she broke patient client confidentiality, I get that.”

“No, she didn’t,” I admit sheepishly.  “I heard your entire
conversation through the baby monitor.”

Still secured in my arms, she leans backward and looks at
the monitor then back to me. “Did you not think to switch it off?”

“I was going to, but when you started talking about being
afraid of losing me because of what Rick did, I just had to listen. Hunny, I
would never...EVER do what Rick did to you.”

A tear falls from her eye, slowly sliding down her cheek. I
stop its decent as it reaches her jaw and place a kiss where it had been only
seconds ago. It kills me to think that what Rick did shortly after Alexis gave
birth to Charlotte is the result of her no longer having faith in herself.
Fuck!
I want kill the arsehole.

“You, my love, are perfect in every way,” I say, kneeling
down before her. I lift her top, bunching it just under her breasts. “Every.
Single. Bit of you,” I reiterate in between placing kisses along her stomach.

“Even this new stretch mark here?” she asks, pointing to the
pale pink scar on her tummy.

I drag my tongue along it and watch her close her eyes, not
sure at this point if they are closed due to discomfort or pleasure. “Especially
this one, because this one signifies what you endured to give me the most
precious gift imaginable.”