Battle for Love (Bachelor Billionaire #3) (29 page)

Julie
decided to call Becky. She explained to her that it could mean she
still had something going on from before. Julie didn't want Becky to
get her hopes up by telling her she could be pregnant again. She told
Becky that she was going to pick her up and take her to the hospital
she worked at. That way they would have a quick result. Becky made
her promise not to tell Gavin.

Becky
was ready to leave when Julie arrived at her house. The whole drive
to the hospital, Becky talked about Julie and Ethan and how she
couldn't believe they were a couple. Julie knew it would be hard for
their friends to accept her being with Ethan. They didn't know what
she knew about him. All they knew was the man on the outside of the
walls he had built to keep his heart safe.

When
they got to the hospital, Julie had Becky take a pregnancy test. It
showed positive. They took blood from Becky to check some of her
levels. The fastest way to see if what Julie suspected was correct
was through an ultrasound. Enough time had passed, that if Becky was
pregnant again they would know for sure. One of Julie's friends took
Becky to a room and got her ready. When Julie watched the screen, her
eyes widened. She looked up at her friend with a smile and the girl
nodded. Julie pointed to a spot on the screen and looked down at
Becky.

“Do
you see that?” she asked.

Becky
shook her head unsure of what she was seeing.

“That's
your baby. You're pregnant again. There's a heartbeat. You're going
to have a baby. I'm going to be an aunt.”

Becky's
eyes widened.

“Are
you sure?”

“You're
going to be a mom. My brother's going to be a dad,” Julie
squeaked with excitement.

She
went on to show Becky the baby on the screen and explain everything
to her. Seeing that there was a baby and a heartbeat, everything
looked great. Becky began to cry as she looked at the screen.

“Do
you really mean it? Am I really going to be a mom?” she asked.

“The
best mom in the world,” Julie said, as she wrapped her arms
around Becky.

They
left the hospital with a few pictures of the new baby.

“I
want to tell him,” Becky said.

“Can
I be there when you do?” Julie asked.

“Do
you want to go to the office now?” Becky asked. “He had a
meeting, so I know he's there.”

“He's
going to flip out.”

Julie
started her car and was getting ready to pull onto the road when her
phone beeped with a text.

“Are
you home?” Ethan sent.

“No.
I went out for a bit. What's up?”

“I
was just going to have you look for something for me but that's okay.
I didn't know you were going out. I'll just get it later.” he
sent.

“Is
it not okay that I go out?” she replied.

Julie
could feel herself getting worked up. Instantly, she felt defensive.
She didn't realize she had to ask to leave the house. There was no
way he was dictating her every move. She had let that happen once
before in her life, and it would never happen again. Julie felt her
hands shake.

“I
didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry.” he replied.

She
looked over at Becky and shook her head.

“Are
you okay?” Becky asked.

“I'm
fine.”

She
pulled out onto the road. The entire drive, she was torn between
being happy for her brother and worried about herself. Ethan had to
understand that she had to keep control of her life. She was so
afraid that he was going to change his mind about loving her. He had
already mentioned her not working. There was no way she could let
herself depend on someone else completely. What was that text about,
she wondered? The more she drove, the worse she felt. He probably
didn't mean anything by it. She was overreacting.

She
knew Ethan would never hurt her. He put his life on the line and his
business at risk to help her. It was time to trust him, she thought.
She had known him for years. He loved her and she needed to give
their relationship a real chance. It was time to stop looking for bad
things to happen. She needed to concentrate on the things.

Julie
parked her car in the lot at the building Gavin had his office in.
Becky looked over and smiled at her. She knew Becky was so excited,
so she put on a happy face as they walked through the door.

His
secretary Jenny jumped up and hugged Becky and Julie.

“Is
Gavin here?” Becky asked Jenny.

Julie
had not been to her brother's office in months.

“I
haven't seen you in so long, Julie. You look amazing,” Jenny
said.

“You
look great too,” Julie replied. “How have you been?”

“I've
been great. Gavin's in a meeting with Ethan. They're in the
conference room. That is one fine looking man. I wouldn't mind
spending some time with him. Can you guys put in a good word for me?
He's been coming by more and more lately,” Jenny said, as she
went back around her desk to sit down.

Becky
looked over at Julie's expression.

“Sure,”
Julie replied. “I'll put in a good word for you.”

Becky
burst out laughing.

“Knock
it off,” Julie snapped as she walked away.

Julie
stood outside the conference room door and waited for Becky. She
could not help but look at her sexy man as he leaned back in a chair
with his feet up on the table. How did she get so lucky, she thought?
He was truly one fine looking man. She couldn't blame Jenny for
checking him out, but that shit needed to stop. Becky walked up
behind her and laughed.

“Are
you checking out that fine looking man for Jenny?” she
whispered in Julie's ear.

Julie
shot her a look that made her laugh harder before she pulled her back
from the doorway. Ethan must have heard them, because he turned in
his chair to look toward the door.

“What
the hell's going on out there? You let your staff have to much fun,
Gavin.”

“That's
not my staff. I know that laugh. Get in here,” Gavin said loud
enough for them to hear in the hallway.

Becky
was still laughing as she walked through the door, pulling Julie
behind her. Gavin stood to hug Becky, as Ethan pulled Julie down onto
his lap.

“What
are you ladies doing here?” Ethan asked.

“We
wanted to come by and talk to Gavin,” Julie snapped, as she
pushed out of his arms to stand up. “Jenny informed us there
was one fine looking man in here with him. She asked me to put in a
good word for her.”

“Actually,”
Becky said looking at Gavin. “I wanted to give my husband
something.”

She
handed him the picture and watched his face.

“This
is an ultrasound picture,” he said.

“Yes,”
she said. “You're going to be a daddy.”

Gavin's
eyes widened as he looked between her and Julie.

“Everything's
fine,” Julie said pointing to the picture. “There's the
baby. We found the heartbeat. You're going to have a baby. I'm so
happy for you two.”

Gavin
wrapped Becky into a huge hug. Julie felt Ethan looking at her. He
told Gavin and Becky congratulations. Julie could feel the tension
coming from his body. She walked over to him and hugged him.

“Everything's
going to be okay for them. It's not the same as last time,” she
whispered in his ear.

Julie
thought about how caring he was toward his friends. How could she
doubt him? They were in the middle of a hug, when she felt him
quickly pull away from her and move toward the door. At the same
time, she heard a woman's voice in the hallway.

“I'm
here to see Ethan. I just need to give him his keys.”

Julie
watched from inside the conference room as a tall, beautiful blonde
handed Ethan the keys to his Ferrari. She could not hear what he said
back but noticed the smile on his face as he took the keys from her
hand. The woman smiled and turned to walk away. Julie felt as if her
head was going to explode. She looked at Gavin as tears streamed down
her cheeks.

“Julie
wait,” Gavin said as he reached for her.

She
pulled her arm hard from his, walked out of the room, pushed past
Ethan, and headed for the door. He reached out to grab her but she
shook her head.

“Why
did I think you could change? How could I think you were different?
You know what I really want to know? Why would you stand in front of
my brother and tell me you loved me? Did you just want to get to him?
Is that what it was all about? I can't believe I was so stupid.”

Julie
pushed the office door open and took off.

“What
did I do?” he asked.

“Think
about what she just saw. Julie showed up here without telling you.
You asked her why she was here. A woman comes in asking for you.
Gives you keys to your Ferrari, which you have only let her drive one
time. You have a big smile on your face when she leaves. You didn't
even try to hide it. I can't believe you Ethan. How could you do this
to her? Why tell her you want to be with her and only her, if you
couldn't even wait a couple of months to be with someone else?”
Becky asked.

“Oh
shit!” Ethan yelled, as he turned and ran for the door. “Tell
her Gavin.”

Ethan
caught up with Julie just before she got into her car. He grabbed her
arm and stepped in front of her door.

“Stop!”
he snapped. “You need to listen to me.”

“Get
out of my way, Ethan. I don't know how I could have been so stupid,”
she said with tears all over her face. “You're good. I must
admit that. I totally bought it. I don't understand why you even
helped me. I really don't. I'm glad you did. I will always appreciate
every moment of my life. I owe that to you. I can't believe I let
myself fall in love with you. I knew it was a bad idea. You let me
into your life. I thought I meant something to you. My heart is
broken. I never thought it was possible to hurt more than I did
because of what Jason did to me. I was wrong. Seeing that woman give
your keys back and the huge smile on your face hurt worse than
anything I have ever felt. You've only let me drive it once. I know
that doesn't matter, but it makes it even worse. You didn't even feel
bad for doing it in front of me, right in front of my face. I don't
know why I believed you had changed. I will never let my guard down
again. I will never trust a man again. You need to get out of my way.
I'll have my stuff out of your house tonight.”

When
he didn't move, she wanted to punch him so hard. Who did he think he
was? She knew she couldn't hurt him just to get even. The tears came
quicker. She slid down the side of her car to the ground and put her
face in her hands.

“Are
you done telling me what a piece of shit I am?” he asked.

He
leaned down in front of her and pulled her chin up so he could see
her face.

“I
couldn't figure out why you stormed out of there until Becky
explained what you had seen. I didn't ask you why you left the house
earlier so I could keep tabs on you. I would never try to control
you. I know what you've been through, Julie. I would never hurt you.
I am going to keep telling you that until you believe it. Living with
you has been the best time in my life. I can't wait to leave work to
get home to you each night. My employees probably love you for that.”

She
let out a huge breath as she stared at him.

“I
had something being delivered to the house, but you didn't answer the
door. I was worried about you. That was why I asked you. I came to
see Gavin because I wanted to show him something. When you and Becky
walked in, I was happy to see you but didn't want to ruin the
surprise. That woman bringing me my keys was business. Come with me
for a second.”

Ethan
reached for her hand, but she didn't move.

“Please,”
he added.

She
let out another breath and reached for his hand. He pulled his
t-shirt up and dried her tears. When he led her through the parking
lot, they walked past his car.

“Where
are we going?” she asked.

“Keep
walking,” he said in his demanding tone that always sent a
shiver through her entire body.

They
rounded the front of the building and Julie stopped as her eyes
widened. She looked back at Ethan's car in the lot and then back to
the front again.

“What's
going on?” she asked, as she wiped her fresh tears away.

“These
are my keys,” he said as he pulled keys from his pocket. “These
are yours.”

Ethan
handed her the keys the woman had handed him.

“They
tried to deliver your new car earlier today, but you weren't home.
The dealership called me, and I had them bring it here. Gavin wanted
to see it. We were going to have Becky bring you here so I could give
it to you. I know how much you like mine. You said you wanted one. I
hope you like it,” he said. “I love you, Julie. That's
not going to change, so you better get used to it. You're mine and
I'm never letting you go. If you keep pushing me away, I'll just keep
proving myself to you. It may take me fifty years, but one day you're
going to realize it's the real deal. I hope you like your new car.”

Julie
stood there in shock. Gavin and Becky emerged from the building as
Ethan pulled Julie to his chest. She was speechless. After a few
minutes, she looked over at the car.

“Did
you really do that for me? Are you being serious? If you're messing
with me, it's not funny. I can't let you spend that kind of money on
me. Do you know how much that car costs?”

She
looked over at him. He had a sexy grin on his face.

“It's
no joke, baby. This is your car. I got everything I could think of in
it. I hope you like it,” he said looking at her. “You
have no idea how amazing you are. I have never met anyone like you.
Most women want everything they can get their hands on, but here I am
practically begging you to let me give you something.”