SHEIKH'S SURPRISE BABY: A Sheikh Romance (11 page)

When you’re young the world looks a lot different and you don’t see the reality of rent, student loans, and other bills. Sheryl had always seen herself being rich and traveling the world. The reality was that she was stuck in Nashville, working on a gossip column and trying to keep herself above water and that was what the world really was. She didn’t think things could get much worse.

Boy, was she wrong! Her entire career revolved around trying to get dirt on the rich and famous. The way she did this was by attending parties she would never have gone to including banquets and birthday bashes. She went to all of them and she did her best to look more important than she really was. They couldn’t know she was a reporter or their guards went up. In order to get the unfiltered dirt, she had to pretend to be a distant relative.

It always worked. She hated her job, but she was damn good at it. Women found her pretty enough to bring her into their inner circles and men were distracted by those eyes. They all but sold their friends and family members out to her so needless to say business was good.

There were times when she got carried away but up until now it had never gotten her in trouble. Sheryl had attended a very high-profile birthday party for one of the richest men in the city. He’d inherited most of the old music businesses and owned a very successful record label. All of the people in Nashville who were worth anything either seemed to be old money or a music business mogul.

When she heard the name Samuel Morgan she knew who he was immediately. She’d seen him from afar on many occasions though he often disappeared with a pretty woman before she got a chance to talk to him. He was an elusive man and a notorious womanizer.

Sheryl knew she was going to get close to him on his birthday, but she didn’t imagine how close. The night had started off normal. She wandered the room, chatting to various people and trying to come across as someone they could trust. Seeming trustworthy was the key in this operation though it wasn’t hard to seem trustworthy to people who were falling down drunk.

She started on the outskirts of the room but slowly moved towards the center where she knew she would find Sam. When she was finally close enough to get a good look at him, she was a little caught off guard. He was a handsome man in his early forties with a well-trimmed beard, a charming smile and eyes that were gray as steel. When his eyes turned on her they cut through her like a knife. She was suddenly far more understanding towards the women who left with him.

Charming was not the word she would use to describe him because it didn’t do him justice. His voice alone was enough to make her melt. He was educated, witty and respectful. Despite his tendency to lure women in, he wasn’t a jerk, which Sheryl had almost expected.

When he spoke to her, he constantly asked about her completely turning the tables on her. She was always the one who asked the questions. His sandy blonde hair was cut into a professional looking undercut and brushed back of out his tan face revealing those steely eyes and long lashes. He was intoxicating!

Before she knew it, she’d had one too many drinks and was in his lap in the back of a cab. They shared a very long, very passionate night together. It was a shame she hardly remembered any of it. The immense passion was really the only thing she could recall which was probably the most important part anyway.

She had to ask herself if it was worth it because now she found herself in the bathroom stall at work, holding three positive pregnancy tests in her hands. The issue of being pregnant wasn’t even the only problem. Sheryl had absolutely no idea how she was going to get close enough to her billionaire baby daddy to tell him.

Sheryl stood in the stall staring numbly at the pregnancy tests. Had they not used protection? Even if they hadn’t used a condom she was on birth control! Had she missed a dose? What went wrong? Her mind was spinning as she tried to figure out how this could have happened. She ran her free hand through her hair, the panic squeezing her chest until she couldn’t breath.

She wrapped the tests in toilet paper and threw them in the trash, opening the bathroom door so hard that it slammed against the tile wall and cracked it. She didn’t even care, honestly. She was far more concerned about other things at the moment.

As she moved through the office various people tried to stop her to ask her about deadlines but the dead pan look in her face told them that today was not that day and they backed off immediately. Sheryl went straight to her boss’ office and threw the door open, her eyes wild and desperate. “I’m going home early.” This wasn’t a question, it was a statement.

The old man with bushy eyebrows and an unamused look on his wrinkled face cocked a brow “Are you, now?” he asked.

She set her jaw as the anger started creeping through her body. Her boss was a misogynistic jerk that she normally avoided at all costs. He constantly belittled her and never took her seriously. On a good day, she barely kept her anger under control and today was the farthest thing from a good day that she'd ever had.

He saw the look in her eyes and just smirked, going back to his paper. "You having boyfriend trouble, doll? Can't handle your workload today?"

Sheryl didn't know what she was thinking (she probably wasn't) when she reached out and slapped the man across the face. It was the straw that broke the camels back. She was tired of standing around taking this kind of unacceptable abuse.

Her boss seemed just as shocked as her. Sheryl wasn't interested in whatever comment he was going to make. She turned on her heels, stomping out of the office. She heard his door slam as he followed her but didn't turn around "You think you had a shitty job here? Let's see how you handle unemployment!"

Sheryl spun around and ripped off her name badge and hurled it at the old man, not dignifying his threat with a response. She'd been playing his game for years now and she was done.

There were tears in her bright green eyes as she stumbled down the stairs, she wiped at them angrily and got in her car. She sped out of the parking lot throwing her middle finger up towards the tall building behind her. She knew it didn't do any good, but it made her feel better.

The drive home seemed longer than usual and as she sat in silence she started to think. Shit. She'd just quit her job. She was now unemployed, single and pregnant. This created a problem. A big one! The Tennessean was the biggest paper in the city and burning that bridge had probably ruined her chance at a career in this city. She pulled into her driveway as the panic and dread started sinking into her belly.

She put her forehead against her steering wheel for a moment, not wanting to get out of the car quite yet. After a few long moments, she finally swung her door open and headed for her front door. Her hands shaking as she did her best to get the keys in the lock. She cried hard and she finally managed to get the door open.

Her apartment was quiet and lonely and there was little comfort to be found. Sheryl had spent her entire life focused on her career and school so she never had time for a boyfriend or even a pet. Now, she didn’t even have her job. She crumpled on the couch and wrapped her arms around her pillow, fear filling every nook and cranny of her body as she started to contemplate her options.

Sheryl stared down at her phone for a moment and then picked it up, sniffling and wiping her eyes. She opened her web browser and searched for whatever information she could find on Sam. There wasn’t a whole lot about him on the public record. He seemed to be a pretty charitable guy, having given a lot of money to local music programs and schools. That was nice, but it wasn’t the information she needed.

Eventually, she found the name and number of his office and called. She wasn’t surprised when a secretary answered, “Good afternoon, this is Music Row Records and Enterprises. How can I help you?”

“Hi! My name is Sarah Atwood and I’m going to be coming in to check some sound equipment tomorrow. I just needed to meet with Mr. Morgan to discuss replacement options for anything that might not be fixable.” She was lying out of her ass, of course, but it was something she’d gotten very good at over the years thanks to her profession.

The woman on the other line bought it. “Of course, Ms. Atwood. I’ll pencil you in for a 9:30 appointment. Will that be alright?”

Yes! She bought it! “9:30 works great for me.” It wasn’t like she was going to have anywhere to be in the morning.

“Very good. Please be prompt. He is a very busy man and doesn’t wait around. Have a good day.”

There was a click on the other line and the woman was gone. Sheryl took a deep breath and set her own phone down, running a shaky hand through her hair. This was nerve wracking. It had been months since she’d last seen Sam, but she knew she had to at least try and tell him. It was the right thing to do and it was her only option right now.

Sheryl spent the rest of the evening pampering herself. Her day had been hell and she needed to relax a little. The last thing she wanted to do was go into Sam’s office acting like a crazy disgruntled pregnant lady. She was normally a very calm and collected person and that’s how she wanted to come off to Sam. She wanted to show him that she was stable.

It occurred to her that he was probably going to want to know what she wanted from him. What did she want from him? The easy answer was money and support but what would the child need? Knowing his status and the kind of uproar this might cause she figured he would try and push her under the covers, pay her to keep her mouth shut. That seemed pretty favorable, honestly.

Sam was handsome and rich but as far as she could tell his positive qualities ended there. He was almost twenty years older than her and seemed to have a new woman on his arm every time she saw him. She wasn’t really looking for those things in a long-term relationship.

Sheryl sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose as she considered her options and what she was going to say. If it weren’t for the bubble bath she was sitting in she’d probably have a migraine. After a long bath and a long time thinking, she decided she was just going to start with money. She’d tell him her situation and be honest, for once in her life, and see where things went.

For now, though, she was going to get a good night’s sleep.

The next morning she was met with what had become the norm for her. She was bent over her toilet, retching into it, holding her belly and trying to stay upright. It was harder than it sounded. The violent morning sickness had been her first hint that she might be pregnant.

There were three more pregnancy tests in the box and when she finally managed to stand up straight she reached for them, deciding she better make sure. Better safe than sorry, right? All three came back positive and she couldn’t help but groan. Dammit.

She threw the sticks in the trash and went back to her bedroom to get dressed. She wanted to look professional, but she also wanted to look enticing. She settled on a pretty teal dress that was skin tight and pushed her ample breasts together, making them hard to ignore. She was a curvy girl and took advantage of it. The dress hugged her waist and hips giving her a near perfect figure.

Her smooth legs were visible and a pair of black pumps made them look even better than normal. The last thing was her makeup. She painted her lips a deep red and added a little mascara for effect. Sheryl leaned back to take herself in. She looked good. Damn good actually.

When she was confident that she was presentable she grabbed her car keys and headed downtown. She wanted to leave herself plenty of time to get to the office and downtown traffic could be a mess in the mornings. Sheryl stopped for coffee to kill some time and drove straight to the address she’d found online.

The building stood out from the rest of the tall offices in the area. It looked like an old converted factory and had beautiful graffiti all over it. It wasn’t the graffiti you normally saw on the sides of buildings. It was tasteful and artsy and had clearly been paid for. Sheryl adored it.

She got a little distracted by the intricate designs as she made her way to the front door. A man in a nice suit opened the door for her and welcomed her. The inside was just as industrial as the outside. It didn’t have the cold, clinical feel of most office buildings. The walls were lined with photographs of musicians and local art pieces. It was a beautiful office and surprisingly welcoming.

Just inside the door was a woman in a pinup looking dress, big 60’s inspired hair, and cat eye glasses. Her lips were cherry red and her smile was bright.“Hello! How can I help you?” she asked, leaning forward looking at Sheryl up and down.

Sheryl felt a little overdressed and out of place but managed to hold herself together. “Hi. My name is Sara Atwood. I had an appointment with Mr. Morgan at 9:30. I know I’m a little early, but I didn’t want to risk missing him,” she explained.

“Not a problem. I much prefer early to late,” she hummed as she ran her finger down a list of names making a mark beside one. “Let me just give him a quick call to make sure he’s ready for you,” she explained with a smile, waving towards one of the chairs in the lobby.

Sheryl took a seat and glanced around, seeing if she recognized any of the pictures or paintings. She knew quite a few people in the photos but wasn’t as up on her local art as she’d like to be. A few minutes passed and the secretary spoke again. “You’re welcome to go see him. His office is on the eighth floor, last door to the left,” she explained with a cheery smile.

Now that his office was only an elevator ride away, she considered turning around and leaving as the anxiety madder her stomach turn. She forced herself to her feet and went to the elevator, getting on and hitting the button for the eighth floor. It was also the top floor.

When the elevator stopped she stepped off and turned to the left, making her way to the large, cherry wood double doors. Her heels clicked on the hardwood floors and she took a breath as she approached the door waiting for a moment before knocking.

The door opened rather quickly and she immediately recognized Sam. Unfortunately for her, he seemed to remember her as well. “Sheryl?”