THE BILLIONAIRE'S SECRET BABY

chapter 8

Ryan

This place hasn’t changed a bit.

After seven years away, I was back in my hometown for the first time, and it was like I’d never left.

I drove along the main street, checking out all the downtown shops I remembered from my childhood. It was so strange, and I felt on edge. Like I didn’t belong there anymore.

I supposed I really didn’t. I was not the same person I’d been when I’d left.

The town may not have changed much, but I had. I’d gone out into the world and made a name for myself. I’d built an empire and dominated my profession. I’d taken my father’s small shipping company and grown it into a multi-billion-dollar international conglomerate, all by the age of twenty-nine.

Yet, as I drove through my hometown, even after being away for so long, I somehow felt like a kid again.

Jason was the only person I’d come back to this place for, which was ironic since he was also part of the reason I’d stayed away for so long.

I’d considered turning down the invitation to the wedding, even though Jason had asked me to be the best man.

We’d stayed close throughout the years, even though I never returned home. I convinced him I was simply too busy with my company to ever get away, and when he began to grow suspicious of that excuse, I claimed it was too painful to come back because of my father’s death.

To make up for it, I would have him come visit me in the city as often as possible.

The wedding invite had been accompanied by a plea from Jason to make an exception this one time and come back home. I still could have turned him down, though.

The perfect excuse had appeared when one of my former VPs had started threatening me and the company, intent on revenge for his very justified firing.

I could have easily stayed back in New York to deal with that mess, but in the end, I couldn’t do that to Jason. I couldn’t miss my best friend’s wedding.

Besides, maybe being away from the city for a while would help the situation at work cool off. If I wasn’t around to be a target, Bill, the former VP, would likely move on and let the matter go without further issue.

At that moment, I reached the coffee shop I and Jason were meeting at. I parked my car out front and climbed out, adjusting my leather jacket before I went inside. I was pleased to see that interior of the shop had gotten a major upgrade sometime in the last seven years. It was sleek and modern, but it still had the same homey feel it always had when I was growing up.

“Ryan!” a familiar voice boomed. “Holy s**t, dude! You’re here!”

Scanning the shop, I spotted Jason sitting at a table in the far corner. I smiled as my friend jumped to his feet and hurried over to me. We embraced in a back-thumping bear hug.

When we broke apart, Jason clapped me on the shoulder and said, “You look good, man. I like this look on you better than those fancy suits you wear in the city.”

I chuckled and ran my gaze over my friend. “Casual day at the office?”

Jason looked down at his button-up shirt and jeans and let out a laugh. “One of the perks of being the boss. Don’t tell Mandy, but I totally started my own practice so I didn’t have to wear suits every day.”

I grinned. I was glad Jason was still the same, good-natured guy he’d always been. Even being a successful lawyer with his own firm hadn’t jaded him at all. We went up to the counter to order our coffees and then made our way over to the table Jason had been sitting at when I had arrived.

Once we were settled, I asked, “So, how have things been? Wedding plans coming together?”

Jason released a long breath and chuckled. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure everything’s coming together. Mandy’s on top of it all. I just do what I’m told.”

“How is the bride-to-be?”

“I think she’s loving all the planning,” Jason said. “She’s an organizing freak, so a wedding is her Super Bowl. Actually, I have to remember to ask her if she’s meeting Sam later. They’re supposed to look at the wedding favors.”

I tensed at the mention of Samantha. I’d been trying so hard not to think of her, yet she was one of the main reasons I hadn’t come home in seven years.