Cheating With The Billionaire

Chapter 8: Secrets (Kaden)

Kaden's POV

I still can't believe that I had s*x with my stepdaughter.

A week has passed since me and Bella crossed that line for the first time, and I regret nothing. That's foolish to say given what's at risk if my arrangement with Evangeline falls flat, but I just don't give a s**t anymore. All I want is to be with Bella. I care about her so much that it scares me. If it turns out she doesn't feel half of what I feel for her, I'll be gutted.

"I'm back." A knock at the door pulls me out of my head and places me back into the present.

"Come in, Viv." I greet my personal assistant, Vivian, with a bright smile as she enters my office with food. She passes me a warm bagel smothered in strawberry cream cheese, just how I like it. "You know I hate having you get me food because it isn't part of your job description, so I really appreciate that you did this for me."

"Not a problem, boss." Vivian takes a seat in front of my desk. Her dark eyes then pick me apart. "I hate to pry, but are you doing okay?"

"Am I doing okay?" I repeat in between bites. "What makes you think that I'm not?"

"You normally come in with breakfast. And while I didn't mind going out to get you something just now, I couldn't ignore that red flag. Also, you're the best at hiding your emotions, but lately, they're written all over your face. You look sad, boss."

Shit. More like anxious and stressed because of the secret affair that I'm having with my stepdaughter, which is clearly affecting me more than I thought.

"You're the only assistant of mine that's lasted longer than six months. Some would say you're a legend because of that." I try to weasel out of the hot seat by throwing compliments at her, to no avail.

"I'm the only one capable of putting up with your s**t, so I'll happily wear the title." Vivian chuckles. "Now, back to my assessment. Is married life not living up to your expectations? I know you aren't the chatty type regarding your personal life, but as someone who genuinely cares for you outside of this office, I want to know how you're holding up."

How I'm holding up? It's a shame that I have to think about my answer. It's been a while since anyone has cared enough to ask.

"You've been with me for years, so you know I've been a promiscuous asshole for most of my life. Then, last year, I suddenly find the woman who made me want to settle down. Now I'm married and have a stepdaughter. There's been a lot of readjusting on my part, and although the journey hasn't been flawless, I don't regret getting married."

Most of that had been a lie, excluding the first and last part. I was a w***e, and I don't regret fake marrying Evangeline because through her is how I got my Bella. I wish I could tell Vivian about the woman who actually stole my heart, but I doubt she'd approve of me and Bella's complicated situationship. I should probably stop talking while I'm ahead. I consider Vivian a friend, so my mouth likes to run whenever she's around.

"A lot of change has come my way in a short amount of time, so I guess I'm just a little stressed out," I conclude. "Nothing I can't get over."

"You need to find a way to release that stress before it gets too heavy to bear," Vivian says. "The wifey and I started going to couples therapy a few months back. It was weird to sit there and unload my problems onto a stranger, but by the end of that first session, I walked out of there feeling twenty pounds lighter. Wifey felt the same way."

"And your point?"

"Something else is bothering you, Kaden. For whatever reason, you don't want to tell me what that something is, and that's fine. But for the sake of your mental health, please reach out to someone. It's bad to keep all your bullshit bottled inside, letting it fester. You'll only end up exploding and it'll be on the one person who you vowed never to hurt."

"Damn, Viv. Why seek a therapist when you're more than capable of playing the role?"

"Nah. You don't pay me enough for that."

We laugh and then move on to ramble over more lighthearted topics. An hour passes before we know it, and Vivian heads out to get other work done.

I try to jump back into the stack of paperwork still sitting on my desk and I last all of ten minutes before pushing it out of my sight. I'm incapable of concentrating on my work because my mind constantly drifts back to Bella.

No matter what I do, I can't stop thinking about her. I miss her smile, her laugh, and even the cute little scowl she'd give me whenever I piss her off. I know so little about her, but at the same time, it feels like I've known her for ages.

"I'm such a f*****g cliché." I shake my head at myself, knowing I need to get my s**t together and remember what I'm after—the family business, not p***y.

* * *

HOURS LATER

When ten o'clock hits, I decide to call it a day.

I successfully got through half of the mountain of paperwork on my desk, so I can claim my day has been partly productive. I quickly pack up my belongings, eager to get out of here. Staying at the office past midnight is something I stopped doing a long time ago, and I don't intend to bring back the bad habit. Not when I finally have a reason to go home.

Bella.

I think I'm more excited to be around her than she is to be around me these days.

Not long after we slept together, Bella reverted to ignoring me again. I've been chickenshit at attempting to ask why because I'm afraid of what her response might be. If she tells me that what we did had been a mistake or something she wished she could take back, it'll devastate me. It'll completely f*****g ruin me to learn that our feelings don't align.

If I had the chance, I wouldn't go back to change a damn thing. The night that we spent together meant everything to me. Somehow, I'll get her to believe that.

"s**t!" I exclaim after my briefcase hits the ground so hard that it pops open, papers spilling out everywhere. As I'm crouching down to retrieve them, I glance up to see who the i***t is that bumped into me. I curse inwardly upon meeting the shady eyes of Jason Tyler, CFO of Fortran.

"I'm terribly sorry! I must've turned the corner too quickly." Jason helps me out with the mess he caused, and then we both take the elevator down to the parking garage. "I don't think I've seen you work this late in a while. Everything okay?"

"Everything is fine."

"Well, if you ever need anything, you know where to find me."

I don't care if Jason catches me rolling my eyes. I'm in no mood to play polite with the kiss-ass when we're gunning for the same position. Although my parents speak highly of him, I know his nice guy act is nothing more than a tactic he's using to get under my skin. Jason has worked at the company for several years, and I recently noticed him sucking up to my parents at a highly embarrassing rate, demonstrating how serious he is about running the company.

As far as I'm aware, Jason is my only competitor. Things can change at any second, but he's who I need to worry about for now. And worrying is something I prefer not to do, which is why I'm planning to get my hands dirty. Everyone has secrets, and I'm going to expose all of his.

"Hey, Kaden. Can you pass along a message to Bella for me?" Jason smirks while exiting the elevator. "Tell her I think I know what her drink is, and that she should come back to Ray's Bar so that I can try to redeem myself for what happened last time."

Before I snatch Jason up to ask him what the f**k he's talking about, the blonde bastard hops into his car and peels off with a quickness.

By now, everyone knows that I'm married and to who, so it's not a shock that Jason knows my stepdaughter's name. But what is a shock is how they apparently had drinks at a bar some time ago. I'm in no position to bring this up to Bella because we aren't in a relationship. I'm not her boyfriend. I'm not her anything.

Maybe it's time I change that.

After making it home, I immediately shower the day off. I then head downstairs to fix myself a quick snack. As I'm doing so, I realize I hadn't been as quiet as I thought because the kitchen lights turn on. I look behind me and see her standing by the light switch, a hand rubbing at her tired blue eyes. My sweet Bella.

"Hey." I smile and then offer an apology. "Sorry for waking you up."

On impulse, I abandon my half-made sandwich and begin walking toward her. My pulse accelerates as I follow her wandering eyes, catching how slowly they roam down my shirtless torso. Her face flushes when our eyes meet again, and she knows I know she was just checking me out. I panic and grab her hand when she turns to leave the kitchen.

"Please, Bella. You can't keep avoiding me. We need to sit down and talk about what happened that night."

"Kaden, it's late. Just leave it alone for now, okay?"

"Please. I'm begging you, Bella." I reach for her other hand and hold them close to my chest, letting her feel my frantic heartbeat to show her I'm just as nervous. "Sit and talk with me. I just need a few minutes of your time. That's all I'm asking for."

"Fine, damn it." She pushes past me to take a seat in the living room. "You have ten minutes."