Alpha Billionaire Series
A Fake Fiancée for Christmas Chapter 19

BAILEY

Jace doesn't text me back and actions speak way louder than words. He's done with me. Otherwise, why would he ignore my message? My feelings are hurt, and I feel like such a fool. Why didn't I keep things professional? No matter how attractive he is, I should've stuck to our original agreement and not gotten involved as deeply as I did.

I'm so angry at myself. I walked into the situation with my eyes wide open. It's no surprise that once we slept together, the charming player took off and left me all alone. And, really, the only one I have to blame is myself. I saw this coming a mile away. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

As I sip a vanilla coffee, I open my email and see the notification that $50 thousand dollars was wired into the Head Over Heels bank account. What?

I realize that Jace made good on his investment and I'm not sure how I feel. I know I should be happy to see that much money in the account and now I can save my business, but my heart aches.

It feels like we're officially over.

My phone beeps and I look down, hoping to see Jace's name. Instead, I see Kendall's. My pulse speeds up as I open her text. I adore his sister and wonder why she's reaching out.

Oh, Bailey, I'm so sorry about what's going on with you and Jace. He's such an idiot.

I don't even know what's going on between us, so I wonder what Kendall knows. I write a careful response back to her: Did you talk to him?

Last night, she responds. Selene is such a troublemaker. Don't worry about her being in LA with him. He said he's done with her, and I always knew she'd be back.

Wait a second.I re-read her text.

Jace is in Los Angeles with Selene?

My heart tightens and then shatters into a million little pieces. No wonder he isn't responding to me. He's with his ex. And she isn't merely an ex. She's an ex-fiancée which is a way bigger deal. His words come rushing back through my head: "What do you want to know? That we were a minute away from getting married and she took off? That I was left standing there like a complete jackass in front of 500 guests? That my best friend had to break it to me that she left and was cheating on me? F**k!"

If Selene hadn't left, they would be married right now. She was the one to end things and now it's clear that she's on a mission to get him back.

The thought of them spending time together in L.A. kills me. Did he fly out there to see her? Are they rekindling things? I lean over and my stomach clenches. I feel nauseous. My text beeps again, but I ignore it, race down to the bathroom and puke my coffee up. Ugh.After a few minutes, I stand up, brush my teeth and decide to lie down on the couch for a while. I really don't feel well. Wrapping up in a blanket, I curl up and close my eyes. Maybe I'm coming down with something. Whatever it is, I feel worn out and defeated. I can't blame Jace if he wants to get back together with the woman he almost married. Selene was with him first and maybe I came around too late. Or maybe Jace doesn't care for me and prefers Selene's company. After all, she's beautiful, worldly and he used to be in love with her.

Tears slip down my cheeks as I remember what he said to me after leaving the party.

"You went into this with your eyes wide open. You crossed the line with me. I didn't force you to do anything. In fact, if I remember correctly, you practically threw yourself at me."

Did I throw myself at him? God, that's so humiliating. Here I was falling for the man, and he was merely putting on a show for his family. Just like we'd agreed to do. I'm the one who was stupid enough to start believing it, not him. I can't be angry at him. Only myself. I can't deal with this right now. Hopefully, sleep will come, and I can worry about Jace, Selene and saving Head Over Heels later. Because right now, I feel like shit and my heart is breaking.

Because the truth is clear: I fell in love with a man who doesn't love me. A man who wants his ex-fiancée back. And that hurts so much.

I doze for a little bit and a couple of hours later, my stomach feels much better. My heart, on the other hand, is a mess. With a heavy sigh, I drag myself off the couch and wander into the kitchen and gulp down a glass of water. Picking up my phone, I see a bunch of missed texts from Kendall and one from Evan, my ex. I stifle a groan and note there's nothing from Jace. And that makes me mad.

So mad, in fact, that I throw my phone down on the table and it flies off the edge, landing on the tile floor with a thud. Oops. With a groan, I lean over, swipe it back up and scowl.

"Dammit," I mutter. The screen is cracked and black. "Great."

I just broke it. Could my life be going any worse? I wonder.

The answer to that question is yes. A big, fat resounding yes.

I mope around for the next week, not feeling 100 percent and definitely feeling sorry for myself. I know that I need to start working on a plan to save Head Over Heels so every night, I jot notes on my laptop. I also give Rae some time off until I can get things better situated.

I haven't gotten a new phone yet, so I don't talk to anyone else. Just focus on work and coming up with the best way to keep this sinking ship up and running. In the back of my head, I've gone through everything a million times and have finally concluded that nothing that happened between Jace, and I was real. At least not for him.

For me, it was too real and that's why I'm sitting here alone and licking my wounds.

It bothers me that he pretended that he wanted to try. Because clearly, he didn't. At the first sign of a problem, he ran. Jace never even bothered to tell me about Selene much less what happened between them. So, all I can do is interpret that as he didn't feel the need because he never really saw a future with us. I was an easy lay and a way to pass a few weeks.

It sucks and it makes me so damn sad. But it's the truth. I never meant anything to him.

One week turns into two and January is flying by so fast that I don't even realize it because I'm working so much. But it's a good thing because it allows me to focus on something other than my broken heart.

I'm still not feeling well, though, and it's on and off which starts to concern me. Just as a precaution, I make a doctor's appointment. I'm hoping that it's merely stress and anxiety due to Jace and Head Over Heels, but I couldn't be more wrong.

When the doctor tells me that I'm pregnant, I nearly fall off the exam table.

Pregnant? Oh, God.

How is that even possible? We were careful and-

"Are you on birth control?" he asked me.

"No."

"It ripped somehow. But I don't think...I think it'll be fine."

"Should I be worried?"

"You should be more worried about me returning that love bite you gave me."

"Fuck me," I whisper. Then I quickly apologize to my doctor and get the hell out of there as fast as I can.

What the hell am I going to do?

I am pregnant with Jace Montgomery's baby.

Leaning over, I clutch my stomach and cold fear slithers through my gut. Well, if it wasn't officially over before then this oughta do it. Jace isn't a man who likes feeling trapped and there's no way he's going to want a baby with me. He doesn't even want a relationship with me. Panic hits me hard and I start hyperventilating right there in the hallway of the medical office.

He doesn't trust me, doesn't see a future with us and he wants to get back with Selene.

So where does that leave me?

Alone.Like always.

I stand up and press a hand against the wall. I guess I'm looking at single mom territory because I can't kill a bug much less a baby. Sure, it's going to be life-changing and expensive. And I'll be all on my own.

Oh, God.I'll have no one to help me. Maybe Rae, but that's it.

Hot tears begin to slide down my face and I hustle out of the office and start walking down the busy sidewalk. I don't own a car and take the subway anywhere that I need to go. My doctor's office is only a few blocks away, so I walked here even though it's freezing outside. But I don't even feel the cold.

I'm too numb.

Once I get back to my apartment, I start questioning everything. How am I going to raise a baby alone? How am I going to survive if my company goes under? And how in the hell am I going to break the news to Jace?

I've never felt so utterly alone in my life.

I lean back into the couch, looking out the window, and snow flurries begin to fall. As they dip and swirl, lightly bouncing off the glass, it hits me hard and out of the blue that I am no longer alone. Reaching down, I lay a hand over my flat stomach and tears prick my

eyes.

Hope soars in my fragile heart. From this point forward, it's me and my little one. We're each other's family.

"I have family again," I whisper in awe, tears streaming down my face. And this time, they are tears of joy.

As I contemplate exactly what that means, there's a knock at the door. My head snaps up and I get up and open it. Evan Lyons, my ex, stands there and I'm completely shocked to see him.

"Evan? What're you doing here?"

"Thank God, you're okay." He walks past me then turns, eyeing me closely. "I've been texting you all week. Why haven't you answered?"

"My phone broke."

"So why didn't you get a new one?"

"I've been busy," I say lamely.

"Did you get any of my texts?"

I close the door and feel like a complete jerk for not responding back to him. God, I'm as bad as Jace. But I've been so wrapped up in everything else going on that Evan was my last priority. "Um, sorry, there's been a lot going on." "Did you have a good Christmas?" he asks.

Did I? Yes, I most certainly did. My gaze wanders over Evan's dirty blond hair, slightly narrow face and thin lips. He's the complete opposite of Jace in nearly every way. He's not unattractive, but there was never the fiery chemistry that I experienced from the first moment Jace and I met.

Kissing Evan was kind of like kissing the back of your hand when you're younger and practicing. No emotion, a bit of practice to help you get better.

But kissing Jace, on the other hand, was like an electrical current moving through my body, lighting up every synapse. The desire that exploded came from a primal place. It's something I've never experienced before and will never be able to forget. "It was wonderful," I say with complete honesty.

His eyes narrow slightly. "What did you do? Spend it with Rae?"

I shift from one foot to the other. "Not exactly."

Before he can question me further, there's another knock on the door. This one is loud and persistent. My heart slams into my rib cage and I know who knocks like that.

"Excuse me," I say to Evan. Pulling in a deep breath, I throw the door open and come face to face with Jace.

"Why have you been ignoring me?" he demands. Then his gaze snaps over to Evan and those shrewd indigo eyes of his narrow ever so slightly. "Am I interrupting something?" "Who're you?" Evan asks, moving up behind me.

Oh, no. He sounds way too confrontational and Jace isn't going to like that.

"Who the fuck are you?" Jace snaps back.

I move in between them and try to deescalate the situation. "Jace, this is Evan, my ex-boyfriend. He was just concerned because I wasn't answering my texts."

"Yeah, I know," Jace grits out. He glares at Evan. "Why are you texting her?"

"Who the hell are you?" Evan asks again.

"I'm the guy who's going to beat your ass," Jace snarls. He takes a step forward, hands curling into fists, and I press a palm against his chest.

"Jace, stop it!" Our gazes clash and his stony expression latches onto mine. So many questions pass between us, and I wish like hell that Evan wasn't here.

"This was a mistake," Jace says and backs off. As he turns to leave, my heart falls.

"Jace, wait-"

But he just throws a dismissive hand up and storms out. I sigh and lean against the door frame. A part of me wants to run after him, but the other part of me is upset that he just ran off like a baby. Baby.

I need to tell him. My hand slides over my stomach.

Evan moves up beside me and frowns. "Please tell me you aren't dating that guy. He seems like a loose cannon."

But I shake my head. "Not usually. Normally he's very calm and controlled." So it's clear to me that he's rattled. Just like me.

Evan lays his hands on my shoulders and turns me around to face him. I don't have to look up to meet his light brown eyes. Just straight ahead since he's about an inch taller than me. So unlike Jace who towers over me.

"I came over here because I miss you, Bailey. Maybe I was too demanding when we were going out. I get that now and I'm sorry. I should've given you more space."

"It's okay," I tell him.

"I want to give things another tries," he says, fingers squeezing my upper arms. "What do you think?"

I ponder his words and there's only one answer that I can give him. "I think I'm in love with another man," I state softly. In fact, there's no thinking involved.

I know it for a fact.