The Billionaire's Secret Baby

A Brave New World

Hope's POV

I had just finished putting away my last box when I heard a knock at the door. I walked barefoot to the door and opened it, Kim was standing on the other side with a huge smile on her face.

"God I missed you!" She said and hugged me, right before she walked inside my house and went to the living room and threw herself on the couch.

"I missed you too by the way," I said and went to get the wine and two glasses.

"So, how did it go?" Kim asked me with excitement as I poured myself a glass of white wine.

I have been back from New York for almost a week and this is the first time we actually have a chance to talk, she was away with her boyfriend, now that she is back, I hate that I have to drop a bombshell on her. This is something we couldn't talk about over the phone. I have taken a decision that is going to affect all of our lives.

" Well it went well, actually it went exceptionally well, I have been offered a new job, Editor In Chief!" I said to her with a smile.

"Really? Hope that is great! Congratulations! Wait... does this mean that Mrs Pierce is stepping down?" She asked me.

"Not exactly... " I said and sat down. " Tell me about your get away, how was it?" I asked her.

"You are stalling, this means that something big happened, wait did you hook up with a guy? I mean that wouldn't be a bad thing if you ask me," She said to me.

"Well no, this is not about a guy, well not directly about him, well maybe some of it is about him,, God this is so complicated!" I said to her.

I didn't know if she could understand me because I couldn't even understand myself at the moment, was rambling like an i***t. I feel like I have lied to her too much to carry on doing so.

If I am being honest with myself, there is a lot that I should tell her about, I mean , she is my best friend afterall. For the first time in five years, I really wish that I hadn't lied about my baby's father, this would be easy to explain. That is the thing with lies, they always catch up to you. Never did I think that I would ever see Xavier again, to me, he was just some stranger I met once, nothing but just a fading memory of what he looks like.

Now that I know his name, I will say that it sure feels different and I am not sure if that is a good thing for me. I look at Kim and all I can think about is how she would react if I told her the truth. I also can't go back to New York with this secret hanging over my head, especially since I need her help.

While I have been here with my son, I realised that I can't just uproot him without preparing first. He is four years old and his mind is very delicate, a move like this could be an overwhelming experience. Life here and life in New York is not the same. I will be in a strange city with strange people, a strange home, I think it will best if I went ahead and set things up for him before he comes.

Xavier is going to give me a spectacular apartment, never did I think that I could one day live in a place like that, but as stylish as it is, it is not safe for a four year old, especially one like my child who can't sit still for a minute. I have to child proof it and find him a suitable nanny first, that means that I am going to need someone to take care of him till he comes that side.

"Hope you are making me nervous, just spill it out already!" She said to me.

"I need something stronger, I am coming!" I said and went to the kitchen, I climbed up the kitchen counter and reached out for my secret stash. I took out a bottle of Grey Goose, this has now become my favourite vodka. I poured a couple shots and drink it all in one go. I poured another one and took it to the living room. I am glad that my son is asleep because I never drink in front of him.

"This must be serious!" She said as I walked back in with a glass and a bottle of vodka.

" I need to tell you something and I want you to promise me that you won't judge me," I said to her.

" Don't be silly! I am your best friend, my job is to support you and not judge you, you can tell me anything, you know that right?" She said to me.

"Yes, I know all of that," I said and sat down next to her.

" So out with it..." She said.

I took the glass of Vodka and drank it all. I hold Kim in very high regards, she is intelligent and very kind, she is a few years older than me she has a good strong head on her shoulders, she is twenty seven and she owns a very successful real estate company. I look up to her and what she thinks of me matters.

"I got a job offer in New York and I bumped into the father of my child there," I said to her. I decided to rip the bandage off, it was better this way. I know that she will have questions, I am ready for them.

"Wait... What? The father? Did he wake up from the dead? Did you see his ghost? Girl is he haunting you? We can call Father McNally! " She said to me. After what I told her, she has every right to think like this.

"I don't need father McNally! Kim the father of my child is still very much alive, I just couldn't tell anyone about him, I know that I should have tokd you sooner, it's just that things between him and I are somewhat complicated!" I said to her.

If I am being honest, complicated doesn't even begin to explain my situation with the father of my child. I made a decision out of desperation, I didn't think my one decision could change the rest of my life like it did.

"I am confused right now, Hope we are friends, why did you feel like you had to lie to me? We all have a past, I won't judge you for that, I thought you knew me better than this!" She said to me.

She sounds hurt, this only made me feel more worse than I was already feeling, I hate lying to her.

"The thing is that, we were never in a relationship to begin with, it was a one night stand, I didn't even know his name till New York," I said and poured myself another shot of vodka.

I am ashamed of the way Xavier and I met, in his mind, I will always be a prostitute, a woman who sold herself to him, I can't have him looking at me like that, that is why he can never know about my son. The same way I can never tell Kim the whole truth.

"Stop!" Kim said and took the glass from my hand as I was about to drink.

"I am sorry, I am just... I mean I never expected to see him, he doesn't know about my son and I don't want him to, especially since I will be working for him, I don't even know why I accepted the offer," I said. The words just slipped out of my mouth.

"So he is the one who offered you a job and judging by how you are acting right now, you accepted the job offer! After hearing all of this, I don't think that was a good idea on your part!" She said.

"I know that Kim! It doesn't change anything, he can never know about my son!" I said to her.

"Well that will be hard to do considering that you will be working with the man, you have a son, a whole human being, how are you going to hide that?" She asked me.

"Look I don't have all the answers yet but, I need a huge favour from you," I said to her.

"Okay, what do you need?" She asked me.

"I have to move to New York as in like yesterday, I can't take him with me yet, well at least until I find him a nanny, can you take care of him? I will be coming back every weekend," I said to her.

"Well I don't mind doing that, I know that there is a lot people who would love to help me, how long is it going to be?" She asked me.

" A few weeks at least," I said to her.

" So... who is this guy? I mean your baby daddy?" She asked me.

"His name is Xavier, Xavier King!" I said.

Her eyes went wide, it was like she saw a ghost. She was certainly surprised by all of this.

" There is only one Xavier King that I know, are you telling me that your baby daddy is litterally one of the most hottest, most wealthiest bachelor of our century?" She said.

"You know him?" I asked her.

"When doesn't know him? This guy owns some of the most expensive properties in the country, I have been trying to get him to view some of my properties for years now, Hope how did you not know who the father of your child is? Don't you read magazines or watch TV?" She asked me.

"I don't even have a social media account, I like my life the way it is, I don't want to live through my phone and posting everything I do!" I said to her.

That was only part of the reason, the other was that I didn't want my stepmother and stepsister to find me. I still have my old phone and everytime I switch it on, I recieve texts from them. After the way they treated me, I want nothing with them, infact, I want to forget that the first eighteen years of my life existed because that person is long gone.

The woman I am right now is a mother and as a mother, I will do everything I can to protect my son, those two are toxic and I can't have my son being around people like that. He needs to know that his mother is doing the best she can for him, that his mother loves him and that she will always take care of him.

"Honey I know your son and now that I know who his father is, you cannot keep this hidden forever, he looks just like him, I know that and you know that, how long till he starts wondering? You are gonna have to come up with something really good to convince him otherwise," She said, she was right.

She made me realise that I was taking a huge risk and that it would backfire on me. This still doesn't mean that my plan won't work, it means that I have to find a way to convince him that my son is not his, something not even he can challenge. I just wish I knew what that could be.

" I am working on that, which is why I need my son to stay here till I figure something out," I said to her.

"Hope you know that I love you right? Don't get me wrong but you are forgetting one thing, your son in an heir to a multi billion dollar dynasty, do you think that it is wise to keep this a secret?" She said.

"What are you saying to me right now?" I said to her.

"Nothing you don't already know!" She said to me.

"I can't think that far right now okay? I will always do what's best for my son and right now, this is the best thing that I can do for him. Things are better this way," I said to her.

" Better for who? you or him?" She asked me.

I felt a sharp pain in my heart, that is because I know that she is right. Tomorrow I am going to begin a new life, and just like the life I have right now, I am going to begin this life with a lie. I do not want to be this person. I do not want to be a liar but right now, I know nothing about this man, I am not even sure if he will accept my son. Until I know that I can trust him, that my son can trust him, I will be the only parent he will have.

" I am just a single mother trying to be the best I can be for my son, which is what I have been doing for the last four years, I face whatever comes next," I said to her.

" He deserves to know the truth," She said to me.

"Why? I decided to do this on my own, I could have given him for adoption and I wanted to but I didn't because I love him, I have loved him from the moment I laid eyes on him, Xavier has money, what if I tell him and he decides that he wants to take him, sue for full custody! Then what? I can't fight his lawyers in court! I cannot lose my son, I won't risk it." I said to her.

I know that she doesn't get it right now but the moment I realised who he was, I knew that I could never tell him the truth about our son.

"I hear and I won't push the issue anymore, so when are you leaving?" She asked me.

"Tomorrow, they are sending a company jet for me," I said.

" You are leaving tomorrow?" She asked me.

"Yes, I know it's short notice but I had only a week to get my things in order, I will fly back on Friday evening," I said to her.

"And the boxes?" She asked me.

"Oh, someone is coming to pick them up tomorrow," I said to her.

"What about your house? Are you going to sell it?" She asked me.

"I don't know yet, I mean what if I can't cut it in New York? I am just a mere Junior Editor, what do I know about running an entire publishing house?" I said to her. The more I thought about it, the more nervous I became.

"Stop it! I know you, I know that you can do this, this has been your ultimate goal since you changed courses, you will do great, " She said to me.

"I hope that you can come and see me in New York, I have an amazing apartment with an amazing view, you are going to lose your mind," I said to her.

" Wow, you already have an apartment?" She asked me.

" Not only that but a driver, an in-house chef and a full house staff, it's a huge apartment, top floor, there's a garden and an infinity pool on the roof." I said to her.

"Wow Hope, that is great news, I am so happy for you!" She said with a smile and gave me a huge bear hug.

"Well I am not happy that you are leaving but I am happy that you are finally going to make your dreams come true," She said to me.

It feels good to know that I have a great job, to know that I will be earning enough money to take care of my son the way he deserves to be taken off, even if I am going to be doing it alone.